EC Blog- AQHA L1 Championship West From a First-Timer’s Perspective

EC Blog by: Jane Jacklin

Hello horse lovers! My name is Jane Jacklin, and I’m so excited to share my first Level 1 Championship show with you. I will be showing my 13-year-old black mare, Capteeva, in the Western All-Around under the exceptional guidance of Amanda Winger Performance Horses. I have been showing Quarter Horses since I was 13, but this show was not around as a youth. After taking a break from showing horses while I was in college, I was excited to hear AQHA added this show for the level 1 exhibitors as well as restructuring the novice/level 1 division.

It’s a great show for exhibitors to see how they compete at a higher level, but still splitting the show regionally for more reasonable class sizes. My goal with these blog posts is to give encouragement to people setting goals to compete here next year. This show really is set up for you to succeed.

As I am writing this, I’m sitting in the stands waiting for Karen Graham to do the “Ride the Pattern” for Hunt Seat Equitation. After the classes for the day have completed, an AQHA Professional Horseman (or woman) will go over the next day’s patterns, accompanied with a horse and rider. What a great demo for AQHA to put on to ensure all questions are answered and everyone understands the pattern.  Whether you’re showing in that particular event or not, it’s great education for any level 1 rider.

Well, the demo is about to start. More tomorrow!