This weekend, seven Ball State student-athletes will be competing in regional competitions, but they are not exactly typical student-athletes.
They are members of the Ball State Equestrian Team.
Of its 24 members, seven riders on the team have accumulated the required 35 points to advance on to regional competition. Points in both riding disciplines, Western and English, are earned throughout the 10-show season. The Western competition will be held Friday night at Black Hawk College in Moline, Ill., and the English competition will be held at Purdue Saturday.
Kim Richwine, BSET president and junior telecommunications major, is one of Ball State's five competing Western riders and is excited about the team's chances at regionals.
"Everybody who is going to regionals is probably going to do very well," Richwine said. "Those are our consistent, ready-to-count-on riders."
Other Ball State riders who will be participating are Jennifer Brown, Janelle Fabyan, Kris Fyre and Jamie Updike in the Western discipline, and Laurel Peffer and Karen Taylor in the English style. The top two riders in each class skill level at regionals will move on to zones, and the top three individuals from that level will go on to compete at the national level.
This year, the Ball State team has a special duty at the Western regional.
"We are carrying the Indiana state flag to represent Ball State in the opening ceremonies," Richwine said. Ball State will be one of three schools to carry a flag in these ceremonies.
BSET is made up of riders of a wide variety of skill levels and experience. To be a member of the team, all one needs is an interest in the sport, a payment of lesson fees, a willingness to help with club fund-raising efforts and to help with barn duty at the team's training facility, Fox Run Farm in Daleville.
"We have children's medalists who have obviously been in this for a long time, but we also are accepting members who do not know the head from the tail," Richwine said. "They get to learn from each other as well as the coach. It is a nice opportunity."
All members of the team share one other desire, said senior English rider Karen Taylor.
"We ride because we like power between our legs," she said.
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