Quarry Ridge Farm hosts 20th annual horse show

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Quarry Ridge Farm held its fall horse show in Battle Ground on Saturday, Oct. 1, as local riders of all ages showed off their skills. 

Show manager Julia Cook Richard was glad to see the turnout at the Quarry Ridge Autumn Horse Show. 

“It’s a hunter and jumper horse show,” Richard said. “We have two arenas running, and it starts with brand new beginners all the way up to people that are going to enter our micro-prix at one meter, and it’s an over-fences class.”

The show typically brings in around 45 to 50 entrants who compete in multiple classes. Hunter and jumper classes are competitions focused on jumping over fences, she said. The jumper competition is timed and requires the participants to take a quick and efficient route to get the fastest time without dropping the height of the fence. As for the hunter category, it is based on “subjective judging,” which focuses on the style of the horse and rider.

“It’s judged on style, manners, the form of the horse over the jump,” Richard said. 

The show marked the 20th year Quarry Ridge hosted the horse show. The turnout “has always been well-supported within the equine community,” Richard said.  Riders came from Oregon, Northwest Washington, Hood River, and other places, she said.

“These shows are technically called ‘schooling shows,’ and they’re not rated, which are the big events that offer a lot of prize money,” Richard said. “It’s more of an informal but competitive atmosphere. We have riders from all levels of socioeconomic classes. … The larger shows are a lot more expensive and it limits the opportunities of a lot of riders, so I would call this a high-quality grassroots event that over the years has been well-supported within the equine community, or the equestrian community, I should say.”

The event helps prepare participants for bigger competitions down the line.



“It’s a really great training ground. It’s a friendly atmosphere. I mean, we’re competitive, but we’re really supportive, and we just want everybody to learn and have a great time, and going away feeling like they learned something, whether it was from a mistake or a beautiful round that they’ll never forget,” she said.

To make the riding more accessible for people of different skill sets, Quarry Ridge decided to host a micro-prix, which “gives riders that are jumping at lower levels an opportunity to ride in a fun class.”

Many of the students at Quarry Ridge who competed in the micro-prix went on to bigger shows, developed careers with professional equestrian services or  attended equestrian-related colleges, Richard said.

“A lot of riders have gotten their start here,” she said.

Richard said Quarry Ridge opens its doors to a wide variety of people.

“The show is always special, as we welcome everyone with open arms no matter the socio-economic status, race, religion. (That’s) not always the case elsewhere,” she said. “We have an atmosphere of inclusion, friendliness, and genuine support of all the riders and barns they represent. It fosters learning life lessons (and) winning and losing with grace.”

Quarry Ridge Farm is located at 25604 NE Manley Road in Battle Ground.