Article Contributed on: 12/10/2008 6:00:51 PM
Kathryn Clark may have hit a bump in the road, but it's not keeping her down.
After suffering a broken collarbone in 2006 at a horse competition, the 20-year-old Littleton resident recuperated and recently returned to the ring.
"I flipped a horse and the horse landed on me. I hurt my collarbone and had to stay in a brace for months," Clark said of the accident that left her couchbound for months. She tried returning to competition several months after her injury, but struggled for two years to get back to her pre-injury level of competition.
On Nov. 13, she won first place in the Mile High Grand Prix Show for Champions. The event showcased different classes of equestrians at the National Western Event Center in Denver and raised funds for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.
Clark said after the accident she had struggles with the horse.
"He just got scared, the accident hurt his suspensory tendons in his front legs."
Last year Clark obtained a new horse with the help of Coventry Farms owners
Kris and
Jim McConnell, who help run the equestrian boarding ranch near Mineral Ave. and South Santa Fe in Littleton.
The McConnells are both former prize winning jumpers and now help operate Coventry Farms in Littleton with Kris's mom and dad,
Dan and
Joyce Brost.
Kris and Jim were at the show when Clark was injured.
"It's mentally as well as physically stressful for the horse and the rider," said Kris
Because the horse didn't return to duty with its previous confidence, Clark said she needed another horse.
The McConnells found one for her in Arizona and brought it to Colorado.
Now Clark rides her European horse named Arbitrage, who helped her win the recent competition.
According to the McConnells, the Mile High Grand Prix jumper competition is a timed event.
"Clark was one of six who made the first round, which is a course of 10 to 14 jumps over a rail 4 feet 3 inches feet high. The second round is six to eight jumps. They can't hit the rails or have a refusal (the horse stops). She came out blazing fast and clean and went to the top of the class," said Jim.
As a result, Clark won $3,000 for the precision jumps.
Clark said she competes weekly and tries to juggle a college career at the same time. A major in business marketing, she said she'd like to make a living doing something with horses.
She recalled what got her interested in horses: "One of my friends invited me to go riding at a birthday party at Coventry Farm. She hated it and I loved it." That was when she was in first grade at Damon Runyon Elementary School.
Now she is working hard to qualify for the North American Young Rider championship, where the top four riders from regional zones compete as a team. The competition is with riders from the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The jumps are set at 4 foot 9 inches and 5 feet. "It's very big," said Clark.
To qualify she will compete in national level Grand Prixs. The November event didn't count, because it was a smaller horse show and the rails were less than 4 feet 9 inches.
Her next qualifying event will be at the National Western Stock Show in January. This winter she will travel to compete in Arizona, California and New Mexico.
To balance college work with training, Clark said, "I try to tackle my classes in two days or just mornings. After riding for the last 12 years, Clark said her dream would be to compete in the Olympics and go to the World Cup Finals, as well as to horse shows in Europe.
"I really like the bond you form with your horse, the adrenaline in jumping and trying my best. I am competitive," said Clark
Up next:
National Western Stock Show Grand Prix events will be held from Jan. 14 to 19 in the Events Center. For information on the stock show, visit www.nationalwestern.com. For information on Coventry Farms, visit call Jim McConnell at 720-343-0783 or visit www.coventryfarms.biz.