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Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Young Rider Dressage News
Teenager Amanda Harlan Takes on Adults in Competition and Comes Out on Top
By Lynndee Kemmet for DressageDaily.com

A Rider from a Young Age

Amanda Harlan was six when she started riding lessons and she’s never looked back. In her brief riding career, she has moved through several different horses as her riding skills rapidly advanced. She has also been racking up victories over the years. In 2006, she and Liberte won the silver individual medal in the North American Junior/Young Rider Championships. Last year, they were members of the Young Riders California team that also included Emily Tears, Jaclyn Meinen and Crystalyn Hoffman that earned a team gold medal at the NAJYRC.

Harlan’s goal now is the National Dressage Championships and once she makes that, she said she’ll turn her attention to the Brentina Cup. “I believe in focusing on one thing at a time. These are all stepping stones.” Stepping stones, she said, to her eventual goal of representing the U.S. in international competition.

Harlan sees her latest quest as a process that will make her a better rider. Because she has been so successful in young rider competition, she felt the need to move into the open division against more experienced adult riders. “I think competition is good. If you go into an arena where everyone is better than you, it helps you to get better,” Harlan said. “But, if you’re in an arena where you’re the top person, then you’re not getting better. It’s good to have a challenge and the pressure of competition. It makes you better. I’ll make mistakes and learn, but I need to take it on.”

It is with Liberte that Harlan is hoping to make it to both the National Dressage Championships and afterward the Brentina Cup.

But, knowing that his competitive career is winding down while her career is gearing up, Harlan already has a replacement in the wings. Last fall, she got a younger horse – a six-year-old Hanoverian named Rosenzauber.

As passionate as she is about her riding, Harlan does attempt to balance her life. She’ll be going to college in the fall and expects to have a career outside of riding. In high school, she’s been involved in other sports, such as volleyball, and keeps a grade point average of 3.5.

No doubt about it, Harlan is definitely a young rider worth watching.