Riding the Pace: A Collaborative Approach to Cross-Country Training
By Rachel Medbery, Daffodil Hill Farm LLC, Bethany CT
It started at the beginning of 2025 with my goal to compete in the Waredaca Classic Three-Day Event.
What followed was a journey of research, preparation, and discovery. It involved understanding the demands of each phase of the classic format, building conditioning plans, and applying for the Area 1 Adult Rider $250 reimbursement program.
As the season unfolded, one phase clearly stood out as a major challenge: steeplechase.
Fast, technical and unfamiliar, it presented a new challenge — one that demanded not only fitness, but feel, rhythm, and confidence in riding pace. I couldn’t help but wonder and ask, are others in Area 1experiencing the same uncertainty and wouldn’t it be better to face that challenge with others vs. alone?
That question became the catalyst for action.
With the support of Booli Selmayr, one of my favorite trainers for her ability to build confidence in any level rider, a steeplechase-focused clinic was organized at Fox Race Farm in Millbrook, NY. Eight riders participated, many preparing for the Waredaca Classic Three-Day Event. The answer to my question evolved into something more — a shared space to learn, to build new skills and to prepare together.
By the time I arrived at the Waredaca Classic Three-Day Event, that early collaboration had been built into something meaningful. The group that had participated in the clinic at Fox Race Farm stabled together and supported one another throughout the event. I am very proud that I completed the long format “on a number, not a letter,” but equally important were the lessons learned along the way.
One takeaway stood out above all others: confidence in riding pace — whether for steeplechase or cross-country — cannot be developed in a single session. It requires repetition, intention, and consistent access to well-structured training opportunities.
From that realization, Riding the Pace was born.
Following the event, I saw the new USEA Foundation Training and Education in the Art of Pace and Riding in the Open (TEAPRO) Grant and applied. I had my longtime friend and coach, Amiee Loring, write a letter of recommendation and in February 2026 I received an email saying that I was being awarded the grant money to organize 3 clinics similar to the one I had run that fall of 2025 with Booli.
Once I received the grant funding I realized I wanted to do more than to just host three clinics. I wanted to help riders develop the skills to ride cross country at a consistent and effective pace, and in order to do this, we need a PLACE that would work. Area 1 is
quickly losing its open land along with our cross-country facilities and I desperately want to support the landowners, organizers and professionals that have dedicated their careers to keeping space open for us to event, hunter pace and fox hunt. Efforts like this cannot be done alone. It need a community, and Area 1 is a strong community that I’m hoping will come together to support this effort and help our sport to continue.
I am so thrilled that the 2026 program is already underway. I’m excited about what we are doing and the people that are joining me to bring the program to life.
Ali Fisher, at Stoneleigh Farm in Brewster NY is working to present an unmounted session on April 17. This session will focus on understanding and applying timing tools, including the “big yellow watch,” to build accuracy, awareness, and feel. We are working to stream and record this session.
Corinne at Frazier Farm in Woodbury, CT is partnering with this program to bring the initial workshops to life. The goal is to get out and begin to practice using your watch and feeling the actual pace you are riding. These workshops will let riders practice and get a sense of what they need to work on for the year. We were intentional on setting the workshops on Thursdays for 4 consecutive weeks—April 30, May 7, May 14, and May 21, to allow riders to practice before the Frazier Farm schooling horse trials on June 7 th . These workshops offer riders structured opportunities to evaluate and refine pace across varied terrain in a practical, supportive environment.
The Fox Race Farm 2 part series with Booli, is building on the momentum from 2025, with additional mounted sessions on June 12 and June 19. The goals will continue to develop rider skill, confidence, and partnership as the questions become more technical and forward. Based on the feedback received from the pilot session, Booli will be focusing on the rider’s position and transitioning the work done on the flat to jumping confidently from a gallop stride.
What began as a single goal — to prepare for one event — has grown into something far more expansive.
Riding the Pace reflects what makes Area 1 unique: a willingness to share knowledge, support one another, and transform individual ambition into collective progress.
As the program continues to grow, it is building strength through meaningful partnerships. Riding the Pace is proud to be supported by Strider as a registration partner, helping to streamline clinic access and participation across the program. The Frazier Farm workshop series is also supported by Grand Prix Equine Veterinary Practice, whose involvement underscores the importance of soundness, education, and horsemanship in developing the long format rider.
Looking ahead, the focus will remain on building relationships and expanding partnerships that will sustain and grow this work beyond the initial TEAPRO grant. The goal is to ensure that the momentum sparked through the Training and Education in the Art of Pace and Riding in the Open (TEAPRO) continues to benefit riders across Area 1for years to come.
Ultimately, Riding the Pace is more than a training series — it is a commitment to developing skill, confidence, and community through shared experience, and to building a lasting framework for education.
