Getting a chance to visit somewhere warm and sunny and escaping a bit of the frigid Alberta winter is always a great thing, but having it include horses, eventing, and education makes it even better!

It was great to see a group of familiar Alberta faces as well as other Canadians at the 2023 United States Eventing Association Eventing Coaches Program (ECP) Symposium which took place on January 17-19 at beautiful Barnstaple South in Morriston, Florida. The Eventing Coaches Program was introduced in 2002, focusing on safety, continuing education, commitment to classical principles, and diversity, equity and inclusion. Coaches can be certified at 5 different levels depending on their riding and coaching experience, as well as horsemanship and practical knowledge.

In addition to workshops and assessments, another educational opportunity provided by this program is the annual ECP Symposium which is open to the general public as well as coaches. It was held over 3 days and provided the opportunity for coaches, riders, judges, and others involved in eventing to gather in an educational, collaborative, and interactive setting to explore skills, techniques, learning styles and philosophies related to the sport of eventing. It was great how the symposium focused on education of not just coaches, but riders and parents of riders as well.

A star studded line up of speakers and ECP faculty members, as well as many notable eventing coaches and riders from across the USA and Canada were in attendance. Each day had a different focus, Dressage on day 1, Stadium on day 2, and Cross Country on day 3.

A staple throughout the 3 days of the symposium was the new ECP Eventing Handbook By The Levels which was introduced in 2022. This incredible resource comprehensively lays out for Starter through Advanced, the purpose of each level, and rider and instructor expectations for each level. Each level is then broken down further by discipline, and then each discipline into 3 different categories:
• Position, Balance, Aids
• Rider Skills
• Exercises and Concepts

The handbook outlines a clear and structured progression through the levels which focuses on a strong foundation of basic principles, and mastery of skills before progressing to the next level. It is an extremely useful resource for coaches, riders, and parents. Attendees were encouraged to refer to the handbook throughout the symposium, and while creating the lesson plans, to ensure what was being discussed and laid out was appropriate to the level of each horse and rider.

Day 1 started out uncharacteristically crisp and frosty in the morning as we arrived and checked in and were assigned to our breakout groups. We were introduced to our host and faculty members, who included Karen O’Connor, Phyllis Dawson, Robin Walker, Mary D’Arcy, Bec Braitling, Jan Byyny, Emily Beshear and more. Guest speaker, dressage legend Peter Gray, started us off by discussing the new USEA dressage tests, many of the movements, as well as the nuances of training and judging dressage.

Then we divided up into our breakout groups for a brainstorming session about Managing Unrealistic Expectations between coaches and riders/parents, which is a common problem in many sports. There was much discussion about different approaches and ideas between the group members, and each group came up with 3 basic strategies or ways to help coaches, riders, and parents stay on the same page. All this information was taken away by the ECP faculty to review at a later date to help them find more ways to continue to assist coaches, and it was interesting to note that every single group listed the By The Levels Handbook as a helpful resource to assist with solving this problem. The Round Table: Harnessing the Power of Experience

By mid-morning the sun had started to thaw out our chills and we headed outside to watch the first riding session, a dressage rider being taught a demo lesson by ECP faculty member Mary D’Arcy.

After lunch we broke into our groups again and moved on to the interactive lesson portion of the day. Each group was assigned a faculty member for guidance, who rotated to a different group for each session, and in each of the sessions which covered riders from Beginner Novice through Advanced, a horse and rider were assigned to each group. The groups had the opportunity to ask questions of their assigned rider, and then observed their warm up, discussing and collaborating with their group and faculty member on what they were seeing, strengths and weaknesses, creating priorities for the pair, and referring to the By The Levels Handbook. The priorities were recorded onto a a flip chart for each group, along with possible exercises to use in the lesson, and then a lesson plan was developed. One group was chosen, and then the faculty member taught the lesson that their group had put together, and feedback, questions and comments were invited from everyone after the lesson. Many different approaches, ideas, and exercises came from the group members as they put their heads together, but the underlying theme of every single lesson was a strong foundation of the basics, focus on the training scale, and an appropriate progression through the lesson for horse and rider. One of the best parts of this interactive format, was that while one faculty member led the lesson, each faculty member assigned to the other groups remained with their group to quietly discuss and answer questions while each lesson took place.

USEA ECP Symposium Day 1 Recap

Day 2 started out with another guest speaker, clinical and sports psychologist, Dr. Paul Haefner, who is also a rider himself. He discussed emotional behavior in riders, and his in depth presentation really helped everyone understand the difference between negative and positive emotional behavior, self regulation, and different skills and strategies that can be used to help improve them.

We then headed outside and the faculty members gave a talk on all the different facets of show jumping, including the 5 rider responsibilities: direction, speed, balance, rhythm and tempo. We were encouraged to keep these in mind as we formulated the lesson plans for the show jumping sessions that carried on through the afternoon. Again we broke into our groups and faculty leaders rotated through again as we were assigned horse and rider pairs and developed lesson plans on our flip charts. Appropriate exercises were chosen to link proper flatwork to the jumping, and to improve the performance of each horse and rider pair in a structured and progressive way. The importance of the rider responsibilities and proper basics shone through in each lesson taught even at the lowest levels.

We wrapped up the day with the ECP faculty members discussing the program’s application process, workshops, and the assessment process. They also covered the expectations of the program and gave advice on what makes a successful coaching assessment, and then we finished with a Q&A session where attendees were given the opportunity to ask further questions about the program.

USEA ECP Symposium Day 2 Recap

The third and final day started out with a gorgeous sunrise on the cross country course as Phyllis Dawson and Robin Walker led a demo by advanced rider Alex O’Neal, who demonstrated the different types of canters needed during different part of cross country riding, jumping, and schooling, as well as the different rider body positions.

Karen O’Connor then took over to discuss the basics of cross country riding, emphasizing that we must by very clear and systematic about everything. She discussed rider and body positioning for different parts of cross country, as well as different ways to hold the reins, and everything was demonstrated by the demo riders as she spoke. The riders then put these basics to work in some lengthening and shortening exercises, and some small jumps. To view part of Karen’s session, check out: USEA’s Tip Tuesday: Cross-Country Positions with Karen O’Connor from USEA on Vimeo.

From there Robin Walker and Emily Beshear took over and discussed how to coach horses and riders through negotiating different cross country obstacles such as ditches, banks and water, with a demonstration rider on a green horse.

Again we broke into our groups and created lesson plans for our assigned riders, with the chosen faculty leaders teaching the lesson, keeping in mind the basics of cross country that had been discussed earlier. Different elements of the cross country course, including terrain and mounds, were incorporated into each lesson to help each horse and rider improve different skills. It was exciting to have one of our own Albertans as a demo rider in one lesson, Reagan Noyes and her thoroughbred gelding, Scooby Dude. They got a lesson from Phyllis Dawson that focused mainly on the water complex, progressively adding in more technical elements to build confidence.

USEA ECP Symposium Day 3 Recap

Continuing education is so important, and the symposium is a place where coaches can gather together, learn and collaborate. It provides an opportunity for coaches to ensure that even though everyone has different teaching styles, that the proper foundation and basics are being taught consistently across the board and that everyone is on the same page. Everyone who attended, whether they were a coach, rider or parent, came away more educated, inspired, and with more tools in their tool kit.

For more information on the program visit: https://useventing.com/safety-education/eventing-coaches-program

Check out what those who attended had to say!

“I was fortunate to attend the ECP Symposium in Ocala both this winter and last year. I found both symposiums so informative and super fun! Although these symposiums are intended for coaches, as a rider I learned so much about eventing, riding, sports psychology, and horses at them. I found myself often thinking “how do they know I do, think, react like that”. As a parent it is great to see how the ECP program is developing to support and improve riding skills, horse knowledge/horsemanship, and eventing knowledge, with the ultimate goal of safety for both the horse and rider. The symposium included presentations and talks by industry specialists, round table discussions with ECP Certified Coaches, group brainstorming sessions, and question and answer sessions, as well as riding demonstrations with Certified coaches coaching riders and providing feedback to the symposium participants on the coaching methods they used.

I found these symposiums SO informative and fun to attend. They are a great chance to learn from the leaders of Eventing and to meet and get to know other eventing coaches and participants. Everyone attending was more than happy to chat and give their thoughts and ideas to help each other. I can’t wait for Next Year for another few days of fun in the sun!” – Catherine David, Eventer & Parent of an Eventer

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“I have been fortunate to attend many of the USEA Coaching Symposiums over the years. They had been organized, differently, in the past but I think that the current way the symposium is run is the most beneficial to coaches, as a whole.  

I found the candid discussions amongst the attendees regarding the pressure coaches are under whether its riders who want to move up before they are ready, the demands/unrealistic expectations from parents, the coaches in the industry who are not as educated as they could be, the microscope that the sport of Eventing is under because of negative public perception when there is poor riding exhibited and/or horse falls…this is so interesting when a group of coaches from across the US and a few Canadians are together and they share the same issues/concerns and the resulting discussions of how to cope.  I think the fellowship between the coaches is what helps create such a strong program.

I am not a coach.  I am someone who attends competitions and prefers to sit at the warmup, watching and listening to the coaches as they prepare their riders. I believe that we can not stop educating ourselves as increased education equals increased safety.  I am the AHTA Athlete Development Chairperson who is responsible for looking after the High Performance Program and who hires clinicians to teach the upper level riders. I use the topics that have been discussed at the symposium to help organize educational sessions in Alberta for the AHTA members and High Performance – topics that are relevant to ensuring we are developing competent coaches and riders.  And, hiring high performance clinicians who are very good at developing riders who are educated and competitive at their competition level. Most ECP educated coaches definitely fit this criteria. Many of the top US coaches and trainers are ECP certified so that speaks volumes for the quality of the program. People like Leslie Law, Karen O’Connor, David O’Connor, Phyllis Dawson, Peter Gray, Jonathon Holling, Bobby Costello, Allison Springer to name only a few…..the list of coaches is very long, who have gone through the Eventing Coaching Program. (The full list can be found on the US Eventing web site).

The ECP Coaching Manual is outstanding and I hope all Alberta coaches (and riders) take the opportunity to use this in their program. We do not have anything like this available in Canada.  (The manual has already been described in this blog so I am not going to repeat it here). 

Finally, spending a week in the sunshine in Ocala is a nice break from the winter weather.  Start saving the money to attend next year, whether you are a parent, coach or rider.” – Kathleen Ziegler, AHTA Athlete Development Chairperson

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“This was the second year I have attended the ECP clinic, and every year I find it incredibly useful for my professional development and education. In particular, the ECP handbook is a source I use regularly in my program to help guide my students in their pursuit of their goals. Learning how to use the resource in a round table situation created opportunities to practice and learn from each other. Overall, having the opportunity to mingle, work, and discuss with other professionals in the industry was a real highlight from the clinic. I would highly recommend anyone who is interested in pursuing their coaching education to invest in the trip down to participate.” – Becky Staden – 2* Eventer, Trainer, and Equestrian Canada Coach

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“The 3 days of the symposium were hands down some of the most educational days of my entire life. Just the fact that so many coaches traveled from all over the USA and many from out of the country speaks volumes to the quality and value the program and symposium offers. I love the structure of the program, focusing first and foremost on safety, the basics and a proper foundation of fundamental skills, and then an appropriate progression of skills from there as riders move up the levels. The handbook is an incredible resource, it really is like a road map up through the levels and I strongly urge all coaches, riders and parents to get themselves a copy and utilize it in their programs.

The symposium had amazing speakers on several different topics, but the best part of it for me was the collaboration of coaches together in our groups creating the lesson plans for the demo riders. It was such a great opportunity to hear everyone’s ideas and opinions, and so helpful to myself as a coach to see that even though we all have different teaching styles, the basis of WHAT was being taught was consistent across the board. If you don’t have proper basics and a correct foundation, you don’t have anything really at all. It was also amazing to pick the brains of the faculty members during the lessons, when else are you going to get to ask Karen O’Connor her opinion on what we were seeing or what other exercises she might use in a lesson? I loved that the group brainstorming exercise and creating of the lesson plans on flip charts wasn’t only just to benefit those who attended, I really appreciated the fact that the program took each and every one of those flipchart pages back to review later to find different ways to improve the program and support coaches in the future. It was really refreshing to see the passion and such a strong level of commitment to supporting the coaches and bettering the program.

I came away with so many new ideas and tools that I am excited to share and implement into my own teaching, and the whole symposium was incredibly inspiring. I want to find more ways to help support and inspire coaches and riders to keep learning and educating themselves here in Alberta personally, as well as through the AHTA. I want to thank Kathleen Ziegler for the opportunity to attend the symposium, I feel like it was a huge game changer for me as a coach. Stepping outside our bubble and continuing to learn and grow is crucial for coaches as well as riders, I highly encourage everyone to to attend this symposium if you get a chance, and I am so incredibly grateful that I got the opportunity to attend. – Jessica Kerschbaumer – Intermediate Eventer, Equestrian Canada Coach & AHTA President

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“My main take away was how wonderful and useful the handbook is as a coach. It allows me to have something to refer to when a student or parent has questions about a possible move up or what is required for the level. It was so fun to watch all the different coaches do their thing, and I feel so much gratitude that I was able to attend.” – Sara Sellmer –  BC 4* Eventer, Trainer, Coach

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“I had the opportunity to attend the ECP this year for the first time and found it incredibly educational. To see how many people have travelled across the country in order to increase their understanding in coaching and riding was inspiring. It was great to meet and converse with top level riders and coaches all focused on bettering themselves as horseman. As a younger person in the industry, I definitely like to hear all the different opinions and see different styles of riding applied in a way to better develop their horse. You’re able to pick and choose what might work best for you rather than such strict guidelines we seem to get set in. I can definitely say after meeting a few of them at the ECP clinic I’ve looked for them out at events and watch how they’ve applied what was said in the clinic to the real world and how it all works out. It’s great to be able to understand and apply bits and pieces of what were said to my own coaching and riding. Truly a great learning opportunity. Definitely excited for next year!” – Caitlyn Sutherland – 2* Young Rider