YRAP

Mission: The activities are designed to develop camaraderie among young riders, thus, hopefully, developing lifelong friendships and a commitment to the sport. The purpose of the program is to encourage our younger members to become involved in the sport of Eventing and perhaps continue this involvement into their adult lives as members of the US Team, volunteers at local events, coaches, trainers, competitors, and consumers of equine products. The Young Rider Program consists to two components. The NAYC branch focuses on developing and fronting riders and horses for the North American Youth Championships (NAYC) each summer. The YRAP branch focuses on providing young riders with the education and skills they need to progress through the levels regardless of level. In addition, each has a fund-raising program. The funds raised are used to help defray the costs of the program activities. The YRAP encompass a variety of friendly competitions, camps, and educational activities which provide the educational development necessary for a young rider's progression. While many young riders never endeavor to progress to the NAYC and beyond, YRAP is in place for them to accomplish whatever competitive goals they do have. In short - Our members are the future of the sport!

Young Rider spend a significant amount of time in the public. Visibility is important for program growth and obtaining public support so do consider buying Area 2 YR Gear through our partner - https://www.agpestores.com/expressivestitches/groups.php wear our YR-II and YRAP branded clothes with pride.

Activities: Our Young Rider Advancement banner and a representative can be found near the scoreboard or awards at the competitions below. From there we coordinate “Behind the Scenes” activities and distribute awards. We can provide assistance for things like: Identifying those who will provide a free course walk to our members; finding an instructor or horse; understanding the rules etc.

The behind the scenes is model from the National Mentorship Program. Riders will be given an opportunity to shadow judge, hang with the TD, Course Builder, assist in Show Jumping, scoring, or other active. The biggest learning often comes when we can change a teenagers perception of what is a “good dressage test” or what the course builder is trying to test in your training.

The number of entries at an event will make the determination of whether we give awards to individuals or teams, Teams may be scrambled or by division again depending on number of riders and request of the organizers. In most cases teams are only given to program members (Adult, YR, Collegiate) with the exception of the cross border challenges. We love team competitions over others, and encourage getting to know your team mates with various door prizes donated by sponsors. Individual awards are call Achievement Awards. Please see the details regarding how these awards are calculated below.

We have 3 WoW camps every year held with USEA ICP certified instructors as leads and whenever possible the coaches and selectors of our YR teams. These camps are modeled off the Emerging Athlete Program. They are always popular and fill fast. They usually consist of two mounted sessions each day with focus on dressage, ring craft, show jumping courses, XC, pace, and grid work. Lessons are tailored to the needs and desires of the students who ride as individuals or in very small groups.   Additional lectures and education are including most days.