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From Mistress Collette de Rayncheval, Mists Equestrian Officer:
Our goal is to have fun playing with horses while learning more about horses, horsemanship, and the history of horses and their effects on Medieval cultures.
We offer classes about horses, horsemanship, equipment workshops, and horse history which are available at Collegiums, A&Ss, Equestrian Practices, Kingdom Equestrian Meetings, through individual mentorships, and group riding lessons arranged at riding stables.
It is often asked if people need to own a horse to participate. The answer is, "No."
For people who want to ride but do not have access to a horse, there are events where rental horses are available, and there are riding lessons. There is also the option of making friends with horse owners and arranging a mentorship. Many horse owners are interested in working with someone who is enthusiastic, interested in learning from them, and willing to share in the large amount of work involved with owning a horse. Some horse owners also have horses available for a part or full lease.
There are also many non-riding options where people can come and help out with the equestrian college in other ways. We often need help with setting up and taking down the games equipment, ground crew, heralds (especially at equestrian specific events), helpers acting as Chatelaines for a day at Equestrian activities (there is usually a big need for this type of help), Autocrats for Equestrian events, and we have even needed help running an Equestrian Jousting and Foam Weapon Crest Combat list. If it needs doing at a fighting event, it probably needs doing at an Equestrian event or Equestrian activity.
If any of this sounds like fun, consider joining the West Kingdom Equestrian e-mail list.
For more information, contact your Mists Equestrian Officer, Mistress Collette de Rayncheval.
Upcoming Activities
South Bay
English Riding Lessons, Saratoga:
There are regular English riding lessons twice a month in a covered arena in Saratoga. These are on Tuesdays or Wednesdays at 4:30 pm. All levels of experience are welcome. Horses are provided as part of the costs of these lessons. These lessons cost between $30 and $50 per lesson depending on how many students attend.Equestrian Practices, Santa Cruz:
There are Equestrian Practices scheduled over the winter in Santa Cruz at the SCCHA arena. For this type of practice you bring your horse, help with the setup and the work of running the practice, ride and have fun. If you do not have a horse, and you want to ride, you will need to arrange your own horse time on a borrowed horse. If you want to come and help out, your help as a ground crew or acting as Chatelaines for a day would be greatly appreciated. At first these practices will be focused mainly on the Equestrian games and working with riders new to the SCA. What these practices do in the future depends on the interests of the people attending.North Bay
Equestrian Practices, Santa Rosa:
Wolfscairn is arranging regular monthly Equestrian Practices in Santa Rosa. For this type of practice you bring your horse, help with the setup and the work of running the practice, ride and have fun. If you do not have a horse, and you want to ride, you will need to arrange your own horse time on a borrowed horse (talk to Colleen in advance if you want to use her horses). If you want to come and help out, your help as a ground crew or acting as Chatelaines for a day would be greatly appreciated. At first these practices will be focused mainly on the Equestrian games and working with new riders. What these practices do in the future depends on the interests of the people attending.Equestrian Practices in 2007
Mists Equestrian Practices coming up in the North Bay Area (in Santa Rosa at Colleen's house) in 2007:
1. May 20
2. June 3
3. July 15
4. August 19
5. October 7Each of these practices starts at 11 AM and runs until around 6 PM.
These practices focus on educating people about basic Equestrian Skills, as the majority of the current participants are interested in learning about groundwork and an introduction to riding. We will be working on different basic skills depending on who shows up. (This can also be a great opportunity to work toward your Equestrian Marshal level.)
Please contact either Colleen or me for more information.
Mists Equestrian Practices coming up in the South Bay Area (in Santa Cruz) in 2007:
1. May 13
2. Aug 12
3. Oct 21These Equestrian Practices focus on the more experienced rider who is interested in practicing the gymkhana type, scored games played in the SCA. As riders get more experienced with SCA Eq. activities, this group hopes to branch out into Styrofoam jousting, boffer crest combat, and equestrian archery.
At this practice there are opportunities for the experienced horse person to authorize. If you do not have a horse, you will need to arrange for one a head of time. For ground crew authorizations Zinaida has generously offered her horse depending on the horse's mood that day. It is best to contact her, or me, a head of time to see if he might be available if you need him for authorizing as ground crew.
These practices are also a great opportunity to fill out your Marshal-In-Training experience!
For more information please contact either Zinaida or me.
There will be an Equestrian Tournament in Santa Cruz over the weekend of Nov. 17. More details to come.
For all Equestrian activities:
If you have already authorized, then bring your Equestrian authorization card. I still have some of your cards, but if I don't have it and you don't have it, then you will need to reauthorize, so take care of your Equestrian authorization card!
Wear shoes that fully enclose your feet, and bring your lunch.
If you are interested in joining the WestKingdom Equestrian e-mail list on Yahoo, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WestKingdomEQ/
In Service,
Collette de Rayncheval
Mists Equestrian Officer
