WEF 2024 is a Wrap: Reflections on Life, Learning, and Finding Success

For the ninth year, two chaperones, a group of Foxcroft riders, and their horses packed up and moved into a rental house and barn in Wellington, FL, to participate in the Winter Equestrian Festival. While the program is designed to be riding intensive and allow the students to reap the benefits of repeated time training and competing each week, it is also designed to facilitate growth in many non-horsey areas. 

Cooking, Cleaning, and Homework — Oh My!
Whether learning to share a house with six other people, organizing academic work and tutoring sessions, successfully grocery shopping and preparing meals, or helping to provide horse care, there are unlimited opportunities for a student to evolve as a rider, a student, and a person. Many times, I chuckled quietly while listening to the girls debating how to prepare dinner without possibly succumbing to food poisoning. Thankfully, we dodged that bullet due to well-timed discussions and interventions about expiration dates, safe practices for thawing meat, what color cooked chicken should be, and how many days in a row leftovers could be consumed. Admittedly, the girls were more adventurous chefs than I am, and I was inspired by their willingness to prepare proper meals and try things that seemed like too much work and too many dishes to me. 

While sometimes I suspected the elaborate cooking displays were an attempt to avoid starting their homework, they all found their rhythm and developed methods for managing their time and figuring out how to complete their work, communicate as needed with their teachers on campus, and plan ahead to coordinate tutoring sessions around their show schedules. With a young group of three freshmen, one sophomore, and one junior, I was pleased to see how the first-year participants asked for advice on how to send a message, learned what to prioritize, and figured out how to advocate for themselves when they needed more or less help in certain subjects or with a particular assignment.  

With a few house meetings to help steer things in the right direction in terms of shared chores and some reminders about how to keep our barn aisles tidy, both at the home barn and at the show stalls, the group learned a lot about the value of having systems, budgeting time to complete tasks, and being organized so when there was a last-minute schedule change it was not a cause for panic. 

Thoughtfulness and Work Ethic = Riding Success
The thoughtfulness and work ethic of the students translated well into their riding, and they created many successes in training sessions and while competing. The riders contested classes in the jumper rings in divisions ranging from the .90m classes to the 1.15m classes, as well as the hunter rings in the Low Children’s and the regular Children’s hunters. 

Esme D. ‘27 with her leased horse, Pablo, and P-Sky M. ‘27 with her leased mare, Fancy, started off the circuit in grand form by putting two tri-color ribbons on the Foxcroft banner as they ended Week 1 as Champion and Reserve Champion, respectively, in the Training Jumper .90 39 & Under division. Chloe J. ‘26 started a productive learning season, getting to know her short-term leased hunter, Tarantino, and collected an 8th place finish out of a large and competitive class in the Low Children’s Hunters during Week 2. Meanwhile, Michelle L. ‘27 was connecting with a weekly lease horse named Diego, and after jumping a few rounds at the 1.0m height to get to know each other, they moved right into the 1.10m Junior Jumper 14 and Under classes, where they earned a 5th, an 8th, and another 5th in the Classic their first week competing together during Week 2 of the series. 

Our most seasoned rider and horse combination, Cierra C. ‘25 with her Jenny, started the season earning points toward the NAL and WIHS Finals for the fall of 2024 with a 5th place finish in their Week 1 1.15m Junior Jumper Classic 15-17. That ribbon started a trend for this duo, who proceeded to pick up Classic ribbons in five of the six weeks they showed, including a win in the Classic during their final week. 

As the weeks progressed, Esme and P-Sky continued to earn many ribbons and set their sights on moving up into the 1.0m Junior Jumpers, which they did with ease and confidence during Week 5, with both riders getting ribbons in huge classes in that division their last two weeks showing. As an additional learning opportunity, P-Sky did a weekly lease during Week 3 on a jumper that we asked to play in the Low Children’s Hunters, and she earned 3rd place out of a nice class. Chloe continued to fine-tune her position and technique while allowing Tarantino to acclimate to the atmosphere at WEF by putting in solid rounds in the ticketed rings and still gaining valuable horse show mileage in the 2’6” USHJA and Low Children’s hunter classes.

We were able to extend the weekly lease on Diego and pair up with Jess Collins of Visionary Ventures to co-train Michelle for the season. They forged a solid partnership, picking up numerous ribbons in the 14 and Under division before moving into the 1.15m Children’s Modified classes to get more time over the Classic course heights. They added a 3rd, 12th, 6th, and 7th to their collection of Classic ribbons by our last week of the circuit, Week 8, in Wellington. Michelle also got to try her hand at the hunters for the first time while leasing a horse for the World Champion Hunter Rider festivities during Week 6. Although pace and contact were different than what she was used to in the jumper ring, both abroad and stateside, she did a fabulous job and piloted Amadeus to 4th place with a score of 82.75 in the Children’s Hunter Younger. 

Cierra stuck to our game plan of showing in the 1.15m Children’s Modified classes on Saturdays and then the 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classics 15-17 on Sundays. This formula garnered her the previously mentioned Classic prizes, two weeks of being Champion, and one week of being Reserve Champion in the Children’s Modified division — no small feat considering she only ever entered two of the three division classes that counted toward the championship title each week. This pair is now poised for their spring move up into the 1.20m classes and one more fall at the NAL/WIHS Finals during her senior year at Foxcroft.

Although earning top ribbons at a venue like WEF is always a significant accomplishment, the learning process and journey of self-discovery as a rider that leads to increased confidence, gaining new skills both in and out of the saddle, and the wisdom that comes from new experiences are the most valuable takeaways from spending January and February doing the Foxcroft WEF Program. It was truly a pleasure to have these five students take part in this adventure, and we look forward to continuing to utilize the School’s unique Exceptional Proficiency (EP) program to share this type of seasonal offering with future riders in the years to come. 

FULL RESULTS — WEF Weeks 1-8 
A total of 22 clear round blue ribbons were earned by the jumper riders in their prep rounds.

WEF Week 1
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 15-17: 5th
Esme D. ’27 & Pablo — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 2nd, 3rd, 5th; TRAINING JUMPER .90 39 & UNDER CHAMPION
P-Sky M. ’27 & MTM Fashionista — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 1st, 7th; TRAINING JUMPER .90 39 & UNDER RESERVE CHAMPION 

WEF Week 2
Esme D. ’27 & Pablo — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 2nd 
Chloe J. ’26 & Tarantino — Low Children’s Hunter: 8th
Michelle L. ’27 & Air Pearl Z — 1.10m Junior Jumper 14 & Under: 5th, 8th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 14 & Under: 5th
P-Sky M. ’27 & MTM Fashionista — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 4th

WEF Week 3
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — Children’s Modified Jumper: 2nd; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 15-17: 2nd
P-Sky M. ’27 & Kueen Buissonniere — Low Children’s Hunter: 3rd 

WEF Week 4
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — Children’s Modified Jumper: 1st, 4th; CHILDREN’S MODIFIED JUMPER CHAMPION
Esme D. ’27 & Pablo — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 9th 
Michelle L. ’27 & Air Pearl Z — 1.10m Junior Jumper 14 & Under: 7th, 12th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 14 & Under: 3rd
P-Sky M. ’27 & MTM Fashionista — Training Jumper .90m 39 & Under: 2nd, 12th

WEF Week 5
Michelle L. ’27 & Air Pearl Z — Children’s Modified Jumper: 7th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 14 & Under: 12th
P-Sky M. ’27 & MTM Fashionista — 1.0m Junior Jumper 7th, 12th

WEF Week 6
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — Children’s Modified Jumper: 1st, 5th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 15-17: 6th; CHILDREN’S MODIFIED JUMPER CHAMPION
Michelle L. ’27 & Amadeus — Younger Children’s Hunter: 4th

WEF Week 7
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — Children’s Modified Jumper: 1st, 7th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 15-17: 3rd; CHILDREN’S MODIFIED JUMPER RESERVE CHAMPION
Esme D. ’27 & Pablo — 1.0m Junior Jumper: 9th, 9th
Michelle L. ’27 & Air Pearl Z — Children’s Modified Jumper: 5th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 14 & Under: 6th
P-Sky M. ’27 & MTM Fashionista — 1.0m Junior Jumper: 10th, 12th 

WEF Week 8
Cierra C. ’25 & Generosa MK — Children’s Modified Jumper: 9th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 15-17: 1st
Esme D. ’27 & Pablo — 1.0m Junior Jumper: 3rd
Michelle L. ’27 & Air Pearl Z — Children’s Modified Jumper: 12th; 1.15m Junior Jumper NAL/WIHS Classic 14 & Under: 7th