Sadly, the UBC TSC Equestrian Team’s season was cut short due to COVID-19 with Zone and National Championships being cancelled along with the TSC Awards Banquet. However, we are thankful for everything we were able to accomplish during the earlier part of the season. Here is a little recap of what the team got up to this year:
Off to a Great Start!
This was an exciting new season for the team with 8 new athletes and a new executive. We continued to train out of Riverside Equestrian Centre with team coach Natalie Nahirney.
Show Season
The team had three weekends of competition this season. The first show was held in Oregon in November. It was a fantastic start to the season for the team with many top place finishes. The team drove back down to Oregon in January for their second competition of the season. A couple highlights from this show included Jasmine Taylor receiving reserve high point rider on Saturday and then qualifying for Regional Championships in the limit flat division on Sunday. The final show of the regular season, as well as Regional Championships, took place in Washington state in February. Jasmine had a reserve champion finish at Regionals, which secured her a spot at Zones. Another highlight was Fatima Tavera winning high point rider. For a full breakdown of the team’s results from each show, you can check out our previous blog posts.
Jasmine was meant to fly down to California to compete in Zone Championships the first weekend of April at Stanford University. Unfortunately, this event was canceled due to COVID-19. We would still like to recognize Jasmine for her achievement of qualifying, and we are sure she would have done amazingly had Zones taken place as planned.
Limit rider Jasmine Taylor
Open rider Fatima Tavera
Fundraising
The team held two fundraisers throughout the season, selling Krispy Kreme donuts on campus at UBC. We sold out both times, and the money raised went toward travel costs, competition fees, training fees, etc. The team also participated in the TSCAC spin-a-thon, which raised funds for the organization Right-to-Play.
Selling Krispy Kremes
End of Year Recognition
Although the TSC Awards Banquet was canceled, a few of our athletes were still recognized for their outstanding performances this season. Jasmine Taylor, Olivia Godfrey, and Hanna-Krista Norris were all Academic Thunderbirds (awarded to students who have achieved a yearly average of 80% or higher in the previous 2018-19 academic year). Eleanor Walton-Knight was awarded the Team Sportsmanship Award.
We are sad to see our open rider and finance exec Hanna-Krista Norris leave the team, as she is graduating soon with a degree in finance. We would like to thank her for everything she has contributed to the team and wish her the best with her next chapter!
We would also like to take a moment to congratulate all of our athletes for a fantastic season and thank everyone else who made the team’s success possible (our coach, supporters, and everyone in the TSC office). We are so proud and appreciative!
Senior open rider Hanna-Krista Norris
What’s Next?!
We are also excited to announce a new executive for the 2020-21 season:
Club Lead: Fatima Tavera
Finance: Eleanor Walton-Knight
Travel and Safety: Amy Perna
Marketing and Communications: Tessa Wiehr
Fundraising: Sage Houston
TSCAC Rep: Melissa Tsia
Next up, we are looking forward to the upcoming season. If you are interested in trying out in September, keep an eye on our social media (Instagram and Facebook) for more details, which will be posted in August, and come and visit us at Imagine Day in September.