British Columbia goes to Oregon Horse Center

OHC Nationals for Debbie is quintessential Mountain Trail Competition. Her first decision at the beginning of the year is “what horse am I going to take?” - as a trainer she competes on a new horse each year.

The competition is fierce but friendly. There are hundreds of the best Mountain Trail horses in North America, with new and challenging courses and obstacles each year. Nowhere in the world will you find an accumulation of natural obstacles, in one small area, that will challenge your horse’s confidence in you and put your training abilities to the test. To compete in Oregon is exhausting but exciting, and to win or place against this level of competition is incredibly rewarding.

The highlight of the year for Nancy is showing in Oregon. The Nationals are nerve racking and intense, you need to be very focused and immersed in the show. Two arenas showing at the same time keeps you on your toes to not miss your class; then some classes run until 11:30 at night.

The competition is serious and talented and the camaraderie is fantastic. Some of the obstacles were extremely challenging, where you take that deep breath and believe in your equine partner to find the way and keep you both safe.

“My name is Autumn and I am 14 years old. In 2022 I got to experience a great thing with some great people and my horse Jimmy. I went to Oregon to compete in the Oregon National Mountain Trail competition. It was amazing! There were huge logs, great big rocks, stone steps and massive water features. The water was so deep that when I had to walk through it with Jimmy, I rolled my jeans up past my knees so they wouldn't get wet, I looked ridiculous. I think even Jimmy was laughing at me. My favourite part was the waterfall. It looked surreal and so cool. I also really liked the challenge that Nationals brought. It was things I had practiced for and knew how to do, but at the same time all so new and different. It was also really nice to compete with kids my own age and meet people that love the sport as much as I do. Jimmy and I ended up doing pretty good. I was happy with how we did. Even though I knew there were moments he was scared, he trusted me enough to go through those obstacles which is better than any ribbon I won. Even if I never get to go again, I will never forget this experience. It was so amazing and I am so grateful to all the people that made it possible for me to go. I am especially grateful for Jimmy and getting to go to Nationals with him.”

Colleen considered competing at the OHC Mountain Trail Competition.

“While I did not ever think I would have the opportunity, this past fall I decided that if I didn’t do it now, I may never do it! My horse is turning 20, I’m not getting any younger, and both he and I were in good shape after a successful season of competing in the BC Mountain Trail circuit. After attending the PNE Showcase of Mountain Trail in Vancouver we were still on a roll of challenging ourselves. And even though my husband, Gordon and his horse Snip had not competed for two years in BC Mountain Trail due to a variety of reasons, I convinced him to come along and make a holiday of it! It was quite an eye opener, compared to the courses we have here in BC. It is truly a mountain, stream and trail course. What amazed me was how big all of the obstacles are. Large logs, stumps, creeks, waterfall, deep lakes, huge rocks. All of this in a much larger arena area than what we are used to. I went into the competition very apprehensive that we could do these obstacles and came out of the week feeling very successful in our abilities to do things I would never had expected my guy to do. Definitely a confidence booster for both me and my horse Digger. I was very proud of our whole Canadian/BC contingent and how successful everyone was! We’re looking forward to improvements on our local course and challenging everyone this summer!”

Karen’s take away from this adventure was that “it was an eye opener, don’t take anything for granted with regards to how your horse may react to the obstacles and the arena. Definitely enter the in-hand classes to create confidence in your horse. This was a great experience with great people!”

The group from British Columbia made Canada proud with many podium appearances and awards coming back home. With competitors from France, United States and Canada the number of competitors was the most they have had.

The Oregon Horse center provides the most challenging Mountain Trail course and the OHC National Finals is the Ultimate Trail Course.