The Ohio State Equestrian Team had its first home show Oct. 25. at Liberty Farms. The co-ed club is new to the competition scene and welcomes riders of all skill levels.

After splitting from the Ohio State Western Team three years ago, OSET now has 65 members. Because the club is not a varsity team, coaches accept riders of all experience and skill levels, said Jessica Reynolds, spokeswoman for OSET.

“It doesn’t matter if you’ve never even touched a horse before,” Reynolds said. “You don’t have to [compete], you can simply come and have an hour away from classes to relax and be with horses.”

The team practices at Liberty Farms and is coached by Kathy Osborn.

The farm, about 10 to fifteen minutes from campus by car, provides a wonderful facility and many practice horses for the club, Reynolds said.

OSET team dues are $360 every active quarter, on top of a $45 annual fee. This covers riders’ one hour lessons each week and the cost of caring for the horses and other supplies, Reynolds said.

The club practices hunt seat riding, which is a form of English riding, Reynolds said. Because OSET practices hunt seat and the Ohio State Western Team practices Western riding, the two do not compete and have different hosting grounds. The Ohio State Western Team holds its shows at Autumn Rose Farm in Powell.

The club competes in Zone 6, Region 1 of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association, along with Ohio University, University of Akron, Lake Erie College, Kenyon College, College of Wooster, Denison College, Oberlin College, Kent State University and Tiffin College.

If a rider wants to compete in shows, IHSA requires a $30 annual fee, in addition to $25 per-class and $10 per-day coaching fees during competitions. Shows usually last two days and riders can show both days.

Admission to shows is free, Reynolds said.

“When someone comes into a show, they can expect to see a rider in the ring for about 15 minutes, and if they’re jumping, jump about eight obstacles,” she said. “Spectators will see all divisions compete, and riders of all skill levels.”

Riders are scored in a point system, and points accumulate and can carry over to the next season, Reynolds said. Riders are placed into divisions based on ability. When they collect 35 points, they advance to a higher division. Moving up a division also qualifies the rider for regional finals, which is the first qualifying round for advancing to the National Intercollegiate Horse Show.

More than 200 riders competed in the home show on Oct. 25. Because of the amount of time and planning it takes to produce a show, Reynolds said that OSET will probably not host another until next season. Schools such as Lake Erie College and Ohio University have much larger barns, more horses and more experience with competitions, so they can hold two shows per season, Reynolds said.

The team will travel to Lake Erie College on Nov. 14-15, Ohio University Jan. 23-24 and again Feb. 13-14.

OSET will then compete at Lake Erie College again on Feb. 20-21. Regional, zone and national finals locations have not been announced.

Those interested in joining OSET should contact Emily Smith at [email protected]. New members can start with the team right away, Reynolds said, but might not be able to begin competing until Winter Quarter because of paperwork.

For more information, visit osuhuntseat.com.