Saxonburg girl jumps right into equestrian event
SAXONBURG— Eventing just didn't fit Sydney Christman's style.
Show-jumping?Well, that's a different story.
The 12-year-old girl competed in the 49th annual Washington International Horse Show Wednesday night at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. Christman competed in the children's jumping category.
"She'll be one of the youngest competitors there,"said her mother, Heather Christman before he event. "The youth division goes up to 18."
Sydney Christman qualified by placing among the top 30 in points nationally during the past year. The equestrian points season ran from Sept. 1, 2006, through Aug. 31.
Points are accumulated through performances at equestrian events during the competitive season. Christman competed in 16 events throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York and Virginia.
Points are awarded to the top eight placers at each event. That point value is multiplied by the number of competitors in each class at that event.
Christman accumulated 3,436 points, placing sixth nationally.
"I've been riding horses since I was 2, but this is the first year I competed for points like this," she said. "I've been show-jumping for two years now.
"I used to do eventing, but some of that stuff was boring. I like jumping. I have a good time with animals and jumping is a lot more fun."
Christman said her mother and grandmother bought her a pony, Coco, when she was 5. But as she got older, Christman got too tall for the it.
"That's when I got a larger pony, Cappucino,"she said.
Christman rode Cappucino at the Washington show, and she'll do it again in Harrisburg Oct. 23, when she competes in the North American Show Jumping event.
Christman trains with Bunny Adams of Mars. The Christmans lease a barn at Braeface Farm in Saxonburg and own six horses now.
"We rescue horses, get them better and sell them to make extra money,"the elder Christman said. "But Sydney wins enough on her own to pretty much fund her own program. She finances everything herself that way."
Christman also has a sponsor: Guardian Horse Bedding in Chicago.
In the children's jumping division, competitors must ride their horses as they jump over obstacles 3 feet, 9 inches high. Scoring is based on the number of falls combined with overall speed.
No problem for young Christman.
"I've ridden a lot of horses for other people," she said. "My mom and my trainer call me the daredevil kid because I like riding horses that don't like to do things. ... I try to get them to do things. It's kind of challenging for me."
