Junior Scholarships -CDS Santa Cruz Jr scholarship program is intended to offset
entry fee and stabling expenses for Juniors who are attending the Junior Championship Show. The annual scholarship amount
of $500 will be split between however many juniors that are attending (maximum $250 per Junior).
Applicants for Junior Scholarships must:
- be chapter members in good standing
- attend at least 2 chapter meetings
- volunteer 8 hours at chapter events
- write a letter to the board requesting the scholarship by July 1
- write an article about their experience after the show
- give a talk about their experience at chapter meeting
The board will determine which Juniors will be awarded scholarships. If more than 1 applicants
are selected then the scholarship will be divided between them. Scholarship funds are paid after the Junior Championship show.
For more information, or to apply, contact Liz Anderson.
Past scholarships have been given to:
Emily Sorensen
Julia Warter
Read about Emily's experience at Junior Championships:
Dear CDS Santa Cruz Board,
Thank you for your support in sending
Cris and I to the Junior Championships this year. The show was very good for
us, despite having a significant amount of time off before the show. Cris got
a hoof abscess the day before the Coastal Classic, which left Liz and I to do our pas de deux on our reserve steeds, “Swiffer”
and “Pushy.” While I was willing to cover for Cris once, I wasn’t
willing to do 5 tests at Murieta on foot…though I bet my equitation score on “Pushy” would have been phenomenal. Luckily, two days before the show, Cris was becoming closer to sound, so I was able
to put in two brief rides. By the time Wednesday came around, he was 100% and
we were off to the show.
We were stabled in the MEC barn, at the
end of the aisle--fortunately, close to the water spigot, unfortunately, close to the manure pile. I have never seen so many flies! My “all natural”
fly spray got pitched soon after arrival and the first shopping splurge was made on a fly mask and I’m-not-messing-around
fly spray…we may die a little sooner, but at least we’ve outlived the flies!
All of our horses settled in very well,
readily chugging water, eating like Hoovers and no herd bound
behaviors to speak of. Wednesday night, we rode to get our horses accustomed
to the arenas. They took well to the new environment and I was pleased to discover
good(!) footing.
Thursday was the first day of the show,
i.e. Equitation Day for Cris and I. By the time my class came around, the rail
had been smooshed to smithereens. Rail classes…no room for creativity. I got a 69% for my equitation, whatever that means…
Friday was our first real show day. Cris and I had a morning ride in the soon-to-be-dreaded “Snack Bar” ring
2. Cris warmed up very well (famous last words) and we headed over to ring 2. We were a little early, so I took him into the covered warm up. He got a little tense in the new arena, then it was time for us to go in, oops…lesson learned. Our test started by entering at A, going sideways, stopping, staring off into the
distance for a moment, then continuing. He was very tense in the arena, which
caused a few more bobbles. Considering how bad it could have been, the test actually
went pretty well. However, the damage had been done and we got a 60+%. This test was 4-1, the first test for the team competition.
Saturday, Cris was feeling much more
like himself. Both of our rides were in the afternoon (thank you Cool Medics,
you’ve saved me!), both were 4-2, both in the indoor. The first test was
for the team competition and we did very well. I knew after we made it from A
to X in a straight line, that we would be fine! We got a 65+% for the first test. In the second test, (for the individual championship) we were both starting to get
tired. Unfortunately, for my little half-Andalusian, tired means, “Extended
trot? Why, whatever are you talking about?”
We also had a mistake getting into the quarter pirouette. The score for
the second test was a 63+%. This put us into 4th place after the first
test, which meant that to make up ground, we would have to score well doing 4-3 in ring two…ohhh, the thorn in my paw.
The good news was that they had too few
4th level team entries, so they made the class individual. Cris and
I won that class!
Also on Saturday, Elaine, her daughter
Cayman, and her friend, Scarlet, all came bearing snacks and well wishes. It
was good to have faces from home come to cheer us on.
Cris and I had 4-3 early on Sunday morning. I looked over the bushes from the warm up to the show ring and caught glimpses of
the other girls riding their tests. It’s intimidating enough to have to
warm up with Ashlyn DeGroot and Jessica Banaszeck and their huge and talented warmbloods.
It’s a good thing Cris has an ego, because mine was pretty puny after watching what we were up against. Sandy helped me get set up for a good entry into ring 2, one that would hopefully
keep us on the centerline. We made it to X without looking like I needed a Breathalyzer
test! Cris was still a little tense, but it was closer to “good tension,”
not the kind that would send us (me!) flying in inappropriate directions. We
got through the test without mistakes, though maybe a little too careful. I felt
very good about our ride, especially since it’s such a difficult test. We
ended up with a 63+% for this one as well, which felt quite low. Sometimes I
agree, sometimes a high score surprises me, sometimes I’m surprised by a low score.
Unfortunately, this one felt low. We kept our 4th place position,
3% below the winner, Ashlyn DeGroot.
All in all, I’m very pleased with
the show, especially considering the circumstances going into it…I’m pleased we got to go at all! I’m glad I got to represent the Santa Cruz chapter and hope that the up and coming juniors will take
advantage of the opportunities offered to them by the chapter.
On to the ranks of Adult Amateur!
Sincerely,
Emily Sorensen
