THOMASVILLE —
Horseback riding came natural for Landrie Folsom — so, too, has winning.
It’s only natural that a national championship is in the Thomasville resident’s future, right?
That’s the dream Folsom will carry with her this weekend when she participates in the Junior Hunter Finals and Hunterdon Cup Equitation to be held in Lexington, KY on Aug. 2-5. Folsom is excited about participating on the national stage but understands how tough the competition will be.
“Most of it is to just go for the experience of it because there’s a lot of people and there’s a lot of kids that have been doing it,” Landrie said. “It’s their entire life. Most of it is just to go and have good rounds and hopefully, we can do well.”
Folsom and her horse, JJ, will be judged in both riding events. In the Junior Hunter Finals, the judging will focus more on the horse and how pretty he looks and how pretty Folsom makes him look. In the Hunterdon Cup Equitation, the judging is more on Folsom and the way she looks on the horse.
“Equitations are a little tougher because the courses get a little more complex but the Hunter stuff is a little harder because you have to hide every single, tiny, little thing to make the horse look right,” Landrie said.
Folsom qualified for the prestigious horseback riding events by winning her divisions at shows in Jacksonville, Fla. and Ocala, Fla.
“She qualified last year and chose not to go because it is very stiff competition,” Landrie’s mother Debbie Folsom said. “She just didn’t feel like she was ready.”
Landrie and her horse of four years are ready now, however. JJ, a bay Dutch Warmblood gelding, came into Landrie’s life in 2006. With the help of trainers, Janet Cawley and Amy Center of Cavallo Farms in Tallahassee, Fla., Landrie and her horse have been quite successful. In 2008, Landrie qualified for and competed at the Marshall & Sterling Children’s Hunter Finals held in Saugerties, NY. She was the Hunter Champion there as well as Reserve Champion of all the Hunter Classes at the show. Landrie is quick to complement JJ when discussing their success.
“JJ is more than just a horse,” Landrie added. “He’s a teammate. Just like in any sport, you have to know that you can trust your partner.”
Landrie has been very trustworthy of horses since the age of four, when she first started riding. She practices seven days a week and several hours each day. It’s a sport that came natural to the Brookwood junior and one she’s enjoyed every second of.
“Some of the best friends I’ll ever have are the ones I’ve met at the horse shows,” Landrie added. “The opportunity to travel and show horses has been hard work, but it’s also more fun than I thought possible.”
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Landrie Folsom will compete next weekend in two prestigious horseback riding events. Clint Thompson
Folsom galloping ahead
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