Story by Katy George
Photos by Chris Parker & Taylor Schefstrom

“It was the white shirt,” University of Oregon senior Brittany Kelley joked, motioning to the crisp new show shirt she bought just before winning first place at the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association’s Zone Eight championships. “If I’d worn the orange, I would have lost.”

Her wardrobe choices aside, there was no denying Kelley’s riding talent on Saturday, April 10. After a close first round at Stanford University’s equestrian center, she was called back along with two other riders for a tense ride-off. Kelley performed flawlessly, but in a dramatic turn of events was dismissed from the ring to pave the way for a second ride-off. Unbeknownst to her, however, she had already won; the third round was only to determine second place. Poised now to go to Nationals at the epicenter of the equestrian world, the Kentucky Horse Park, Kelley is ready to finish up her senior year with a bang. She took a moment to chat with Ethos about the madness of IHSA shows, past disappointments, and her preparations for Nationals.
Katy George: What exactly is the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association [IHSA]? How do the competitions work?
Brittany Kelley: IHSA is a club sports competition, non-varsity. All different levels of riders can ride in it. You don’t have to have a horse and you don’t have to have any riding background. [Competitors] go to a host school in your region; they provide all the horses for you. You randomly draw the horses. You show at your level, in one of the eight different sections they have for Western or English. Then you show on whatever horse you draw with no prior exercise, no prior warm-up.
KG: What has been your favorite part of being a member of the UO equestrian team?
BK: I think it’s an awesome experience to be able to ride, especially if you’re not able to have your horse [in Eugene]. It really tests your riding skills. It’s nothing like anything I’ve ever experienced in show jumping before. Also it’s just really cool to be with a bunch of horse-crazy people and bond like we do. We have some cool girls on our team.
KG: This season has had a few tough moments for you, including a disappointing loss to Melanie Christensen of Seattle University for a chance at the Cacchione Cup. What exactly happened?
BK: I just got a bad draw on a pony. Sometimes [the draws] don’t always work out, and the pony just didn’t work so well for me. Then Melanie happened to get the seasoned dressage horse, so that’s what it came down to. But all’s fair. That’s how it works.
KG: Since your draw affects your ride so much, it’s obviously important for riders to pay attention during the warm-up stage so they can get a feel for the horses. What were you looking for at Stanford before your ride?
BK: I was looking for the way the warm-up riders rode the horses. Did they ride them in full seat? Were they in half seat? Did they look like they had a lot of contact or did they look like they had loose contact? A lot of different things like that, so I could see how happy the horse was and what position I could ride in to make the horse go around at its best.
KG: What went right for you at the Zone Eight championships?
BK: The fact that I’ve competed in some nationally-ranked competitions before was a huge help. I’ve been in a lot of high-pressure situations like that, so I’ve learned how to deal with myself, how to coach myself mentally and keep cool. Then I got the best draws. Stanford supplied really fantastic horses, but I got two really, really great draws. As far as my performance, I think that I just rode. If I get too technical with myself and I want myself to do too many things in the ring, I become mechanical. But if I let myself breathe and ride, it becomes instinct and it’s just fun.
KG: You pulled off a tricky inside turn at one of the jumps. How did you feel going into it?
BK: I didn’t really think about it. I just knew I wanted to get it done, and I knew I wanted to make it look smooth. If I chose the riskier option and didn’t make it look good, then I was automatically out, which is why it was risky. So after that I just kept riding, and the rest of the course I had no plan but to ride off my eye.
KG: There were two scary moments for you after your initial trip into the arena when it looked like you might be out of the running for a second. Can you tell us about the ride-offs?
BK: The ride-offs are always kind of cool because it’s the judges’ way of saying “you’re all on an equal playing field, in the top two or top three.” I thought it was funny how they made us turn our backs [while the other competitors in the ride-off completed the test]. Sometimes they do that, sometimes they don’t. Going last is always a little bit easier than going first, and I was first in the ring [during the first round], so it was great to go last in the ride-off. I knew what I was supposed to do. I was really lucky that the horse I had didn’t give me any crap.
KG: Was there ever a moment when you were thinking you had lost the ride-off?
BK: Oh yeah. I didn’t even think I was going to get called back [after the initial ride]. I thought I’d had a good round, but you never know.
KG: At what point did you realize you’d won?
BK: When everyone was telling me I had. When I walked out of the ring [after the first ride-off], I was super disappointed, because usually they only ride off first and second so [since there was a second ride-off] I figured I’d lost. But everyone was telling me, “You’re the only one who did it right.” I knew my competition; I’d seen them around before and they’re really wonderful riders with some really fantastic backgrounds. I couldn’t underestimate them.
KG: Nationals is May 6 through 9. Do you have any plans for how you’re going to prepare yourself for that?
BK: I’m going to try to ride a little more often, partly because I like to, but partly because maybe it will help. But it’s always up in the air with IHSA. I’ve been riding for fifteen years, so I don’t feel like I need more jump lessons. I just need to stay on track, and when I get there I need to keep cool and just remember that I’m having a good time. I ride May 6, and then I’m done, so I just get to kick it in Kentucky for three days. It’s going to be so much fun. It’s the Kentucky Horse Park, so you have all the racehorses there. I’m really excited.

See the results of the competition.

Gallery • 1 Photos

Brittany Kelley, Riding to Victory