Jami Salas/NCTA Members of the NCTA equestrian team are, front from left: English coach Katy Jones, Shana McKeown, Courtney Urbanec, Dakota Adler, Abby Busking, Anna Neff, Jena Earl. Back, Ashley Wirges, Erika Ringle, Kim Anderson, Jess Bowman, Western coach Roy Cole. [Click to enlarge]

LONGMONT, Colo. -- The NCTA equestrian team met with success this past weekend in Longmont, Colo., at the Colorado University horse competition.

Attending NCTA members Jess Bowman and Kim Anderson of Loomis, Dakota Adler of Hazel, S.D., and Shana McKeown of Carroll all placed at the two-day event.

Competing in the International Horse Show Association provides an interesting diversion from school work.

Students participate in both English and Western competitions, also known as "Hunt Seat" and "Stock Seat" competitions.

At contests, students ride horses provided by the host school -- students only see the horses as they warm-up.

Horses are then distributed via a drawing.

There are "flat" classes, where students walk, trot and canter the horses.

Then there are jumping competitions where a course of roughly eight jumps is set up for riders.

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Jess Bowman of Lancaster County, Pa., received the overall reserve high point rider at the English competition last weekend.

Bowman is a novice in the jumping classes and an intermediate competitor in the flat classes.

The overall point score is calculated for the entire competition, all classes and riders.

Bowman said she was pleased with her performance this weekend.

"I really enjoy competing on the NCTA equestrian team and was very honored to receive reserve high point rider for the day," Bowman said. "I hope to get high point rider one day."

The team has two more English competitions this fall, and two Western competitions.

Katy Jones coaches the English riding while Roy Cole provides instruction for Western riding.

Judy Bowmaster, head coach for the NCTA equestrian team, can be contacted at 1-800-3CURTIS for more information concerning the equestrian team.