Emilia Effner, 12, of Chardon, competes next week at the United States Equestrian Federation Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park.
Emilia Effner, 12, of Chardon, competes next week at the United States Equestrian Federation Pony Finals at the Kentucky Horse Park.
She and her partner, a red roan pony she calls Nicky, qualified to ride in the annual A-rated show by winning the small pony hunter championship at the Chagrin Hunter Jumper Classic in July.
Emilia has been a student of Carol Lewis and Amanda Lyerly at Madison Hills stable in Gates Mills for two years, said Alissa Effner, her mother, in a phone interview July 26.
While Emilia became enamored of horses before she was 6, her young career had its ups and downs, Alissa said.
“She fell into this on her own,” she said, recalling the day she and Jason Effner took their young daughter to Lake Metroparks Farmpark in Kirtland, where she had her first equine experience.
After that, Emilia had to have a ride there every night.
She had her first lesson soon after and has not lost her enthusiasm, Alissa said.
At one point, the Effners bought her a pony, but that was not a success and they decided she needed a more reliable ride. A string of leased ponies did not work out until Lyerly found a good match.
Enter Thomas Thomasson’s Picturesque Knick Knack, aka Nicky — a 16 year old Welsh pony who measures about 50 inches at the withers and has experience with young riders and the show ring.
Because Emilia, who attends Notre Dame Middle School in Geauga County, has yet to have a growth spurt, she is still a good size for the small ponies, her mom said.
Nicky wasn’t handed to Emilia on a silver platter. She rode a variety of ponies before her parents agreed to lease the small roan.
“She’s had to put the work in and wasn’t always getting the easiest ponies,” Alissa said, adding she is relieved Emilia and Nicky are so compatible.
“This is a breath of fresh air,” she said.
Emilia said she rides Nicky every day but Mondays at Madison Hills and shows on weekends with Lyerly’s other students.
“He’s probably my favorite. I love showing him,” she said over the phone, adding she was excited about competing with him at the Kentucky Horse Park.
The long drive to the showgrounds didn’t deter her and she was enthusiastic about the trip.
“I love traveling,” she said.
Her parents are some of her best fans.
“We all support her. We go to the shows,” Alissa said.
Competition at the A-rated shows is stiff and the hunter courses are often long and complicated, she said.
“The show ring is really big and the jumps and courses are a lot trickier, but she gets it,” Alissa said.
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