By DEBORAH BEHRENDS
Illinois Correspondent SYCAMORE, Ill. — Under a blazing hot Sunday afternoon sun, Circle K-D Trail Riders hosted its second annual Horse Drill Team Competition and Lunch on July 8 at the organization’s arena located at 29746 Moose Range Road near Sycamore.
A horse drill team competition is one in which equestrians turn the art of riding and their love of horses into a dance. Costumed riders and horses work as one to make synchronized moves and music come alive. Horses and riders perform precision movements in tight drill formation, sometimes at high speeds. Many of the routines have complicated formations and quick maneuvers that send the arena sand flying.
Teams from southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois participated, including a couple of youth teams.
The competition is judged on aspects such as costumes and grooming, overall uniformity, music, choreography, routine difficulty, theme and overall entertainment value.
It is also judged on equitation, which is the spacing of the horses, correctness of transitions and gaits, attitude and behavior of the horses, riders’ positions, speed and difficulty of the moves, uniformity of the moves, roundness of circles, etc.
“It is one thing to be able to ask a horse to pick up a trot. It takes a much higher level of skill to be able to control the horse’s speed and position at a specific trot to match the drill teammates,” said organizer Linda Odom of the Circle K-D Trail Riders.
Small teams consist of 6-12 members and large teams may have 13-24 members. The small teams must perform a routine between 7-10 minutes with large team performances between 7-12 minutes. Often, riders will carry flags.
Each team varied its routine and the moves used in each performance. Moves can be basic - like a figure 8 or mirror-split, or they can be much more difficult like the pinwheel, thread-the-needle or do-si-do.
Drilling can be done as a just-for-fun activity or as an exhibition team to entertain audiences. It can also be done as competition against other drill teams like the one Circle K-D Trail Riders hosted. Some drill teams perform in local rodeos, parades, at fairs or horse shows, in addition to participating in drill team competitions.
Drill riders often belong to various other riding groups and enjoy using their horses for showing, roping, penning, trail riding and other activities.
Spectator tickets included a steak sandwich lunch cooked by the DeKalb-Kane Cattlemen’s Assoc. All proceeds benefited the Circle K-D Arena and grounds improvement projects. The event also included a silent auction and face painting.
The seven teams finished in this order: Timmerman’s of Island Lake, Ill.; Kettle Morraine Rough Riders and Kettle Mor-raine Easy Riders, both of Dousman, Wis.; Four Square Walking of Elkhorn, Wis.; Tumbleweed Wranglers of Garden Prairie, Ill; Midwest Renegades of Woodstock, Ill.; and Sizzlin’ Hot of Monee, Ill.
Circle K-D is comprised of more than 60 individuals and families. Club members bring their own horses to weekly Thursday Play Nights at the facility, sharing activities and challenges with other members. Aside from Play Nights, the club hosts a Warm-Up show in May, a Fun Show in September, a Halloween show in the fall and a monthly trail ride.
Shows and play nights offer numerous competitive events or classes. Not instructional in nature, classes rather are an opportunity for riders and their horses to practice maneuvers in a competitive atmosphere among friends.
“It’s a great way to network,” Odom said. “Especially if you are new to the area and would like to meet other people that own horses ... The club is a really good atmosphere for the kids to be around, and they enjoy the horses so much.”
For details, visit www.circlekd.org |
