
DATE: Monday, September 22, 1997            TAG: 9709230105

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: Ting-Li Wang 

                                            LENGTH:  122 lines

THERAPY ON HORSEBACK HAMPTON ROADS YOUNGSTERS WITH DISABILITIES USE THE CONFIDENCE AND SKILLS GAINED IN RIDING PROGRAM TO WIN RIBBONS AT COMPETITION IN GEORGIA.

ALPHARETTA, Ga.

The night before her first horse show, Elaine Jeffers practiced saying the word ``trot'' in her hotel room. Her mother, Jennifer, told her to say the word loudly enough to wake up daddy in Virginia Beach when the time came.

Elaine, an 11-year-old born with Down syndrome, did not disappoint.

Along with four other young riders from EQUI-KIDS in Virginia Beach, Hampton Roads' largest therapeutic riding program, Elaine competed in the first Eastern Championships for Riders With Disabilities last month.

EQUI-KIDS won a total of 19 ribbons and shared an empowering experience reaffirming that therapy is not only fun but also builds self-confidence and fosters sportsmanship.

``They're tall. They're high off the ground. They can see over everybody. That's a real big power trip,'' said Barbara S. Ford, executive director of EQUI-KIDS since 1989.

``So you put these kids on horses, and all of the sudden, they're the ones that are up there and they're the ones in control.''

For two weeks before leaving for the competition, the riders weathered hot temperatures while practicing walking, trotting, circling and reversing their horses at Brookgreen Farm in Virginia Beach.

With a contribution from Alexander's of Ghent Hairstyling, yard sale receipts, and donations from families and friends, the EQUI-KIDS delegation finally packed up their saddles and headed for Wills Park Equestrian Center in Alpharetta, a suburb 25 miles north of Atlanta.

Once in Georgia, the EQUI-KIDS team had to get acquainted with the borrowed horses they'd be riding in the competition.

It wasn't easy. Catherine Harrell's horse, Destiny, bopped his head up and down relentlessly. Elaine Jeffers had difficulty telling her pony, Dixie, to obey her commands. Taylor Thurmond had to resort to a whip to tell his horse, Reuben, to trot.

The work did not end in the riding rings. After practice, the horses needed to be walked, cooled down, brushed and put in the proper stalls.

``In the beginning, Barbi (Barbara Ford) teaches you can't say `can't,' '' said Catherine, an experienced rider who will turn 16 this Halloween. ``If you can't do something, she tells you you can, and she makes you do it.''

Catherine, who has learning disabilities, feels that her ability to concentrate has increased since she began riding almost 10 years ago.

``I can now sit and study at one subject for a while,'' she said. ``I used to not be able to do that. I had to get up and move. Now I can sit there and work without taking medicine. I just do it.''

Eleven-year-old Rachael Atol, who also has learning disabilities, found her borrowed horse, Lyric, to be an excellent match. ``I've been getting horses that are just like me, they are antsy,'' said Rachael, who has been riding for three years.

Riding has taught Rachael to be more patient and not to snap at any second. ``If I hadn't started riding, I would not have enough patience to stand still.

A willful rider who bulked up her knowledge of horses by reading books and dictionaries, Rachael possesses an ability to empathize and connect with horses. ``It's like a mirror which shows you what yourself is really like,'' she said. ``I can just look at her (the horse) and see what I've been doing wrong and change it.''

Besides instilling patience, therapeutic riding also provides a refuge where children with disabilities can focus on their achievements rather than limitations.

``Most of the kids ride because they have disabilities that people tease them, and riding horses makes them forget all that other stuff,'' said Danielle Dunmire, a petite, independent 9-year-old who has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

``It's probably the only place that I'll be able to ride horses, because some people are really rude and they won't let you ride horses if you have disabilities. EQUI-KIDS is the other way around,'' she said.

Paired with a horse named Ace, the best horse she said she had ever ridden, Danielle went on to win four ribbons in the competition, which attracted 54 adults and children, some from as far away as New York.

``It does make you feel pretty good knowing that you can do something that some other people can't do,'' Danielle said.

On the first day of competition, riders were judged on their posture, how they bend and steer, and how they control the horse. Elaine Jefffers squeezed Dixie, a recalcitrant chocolate-spotted pony, with her legs.

No response.

She remembered her mother's advice, and with all the might she could muster from her 73-pound frame, Elaine shouted:

``Trot!''

For Elaine, the opportunity to ride has improved her confidence and her ability to follow directions and has increased her muscle tone. Steering a horse by pulling the reins has also boosted her ability to tell left and right, something that most people take for granted. Bob Story, a judge for the equitation event, was happily surprised when Elaine persuaded Dixie, nicknamed ``psycho pony,'' to trot.

``I felt like that was a plus for her that she had the presence of mind and the quickness of mind to say, well, I'm going to go to my voice aid and use that,'' said Story.

As competition progressed, EQUI-KIDS riders continued to collect ribbon after ribbon. Destiny, Catherine Harrell's horse, bowed his head to the judges gracefully at the end of her musical dressage routine, performed to Bette Midler's ``Wind Beneath My Wings.''

Elaine Jeffers charmed spectators and judges alike with a neon-green octopus costume, which her mom spent five weeks sewing.

Reveling in his joy after winning a second-place ribbon in an equitation class, Taylor Thurmond, a 9-year-old boy with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, did not forget what it meant to be a winner. Before dismounting his horse, Reuben, Thurmond congratulated the winner, Amy Kerin of Knoxville, Tenn.

``It's very nice to congratulate the winner, to be a good sportsman. It makes the winner feel proud,'' Taylor said thoughtfully. Resting his chin on Reuben's muzzle and later smothering him with loving kisses, Taylor praised the horse that had carried him to victory. ILLUSTRATION: Color photos by Ting-Li Wang/The Virginian-Pilot

Barbara Ford, left, ...

Taylor Thurmond...

Photos

Danielle Dunmire...

Catherine Harrell...

Elaine Jeffers...

Paired with a horse named Ace... KEYWORDS: RIDING THERAPY THERAPEUTIC RIDING PROGRAM

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