This parents weekend, the Hillsdale College Equestrian Club stepped out of the barn and back into society for a bake sale. But sophomore Gianna Marchese, club secretary and treasurer, said money wasn’t the only thing on their mind.
“We made $130,” Marchese said, “but we also got riders who were interested in joining the team and met their parents, so I think that was the most profitable thing.”
The club began planning the fundraiser in February in an attempt to buy team jackets. They had hoped to organize a scavenger hunt, but winter weather dictated otherwise.
“We were looking at the temperature and decided that it was way too cold to ask people to go outside,” said sophomore Danielle Ciarelli, vice president of the club. “The bake sale ended up being really good because we got the team known, became better acquainted with the college.”
The college is not particularly large, but the equestrian team is small even relative to Hillsdale’s campus. The team’s size allows it to form a tight community between riders, but also means the equestrian club is too small to be able to host large events or participate in campus life in a significant way.
“We want to do more, but we don’t have the manpower to pull off a big event,” Ciarelli said. “A lot of people are taking the [horseback riding] class, but they don’t want to make the commitment to the team.”
The primary obstacle to recruiting new members is the shortage of both time and money among would-be equestrians.
“Each person pays dues to the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association,” junior Mary Clare Smith said. “Two two-day shows at $25 a day gets pretty expensive.”
Though the team cannot provide its recruits more time, it is trying to establish a fund to help its competitors pay for equipment and show fees.
“What we would like to do is set up a scholarship-type budget for people who are dedicated to the team and want to show but don’t have the money,” Ciarelli said. “We could cover at least part of their show fees. Eventually, we hope to cover part of the show fees for the whole team.”
Horseback riding is demanding, but pays dividends to those who choose to invest their time, energy, and expendable resources in the sport.
“I had met the people who are on the team before,” Smith said, “but I feel like being on the team with them and going to competitions with them has furthered our relationships. We have a lot of fun, a lot of camaraderie.”
The equestrian team maintains solidarity through competition, a virtue of its small size.
“University of Michigan, Albion College – they have huge teams,” Ciarelli said. “I don’t want that. It becomes a competition between members. Those large teams don’t help each other. We help each other and cheer each other on, no matter what.”
But being a small team means that Hillsdale rarely gains the high visibility of the other colleges in the region — though by no means does it make them less enthusiastic.
“Every once in a while, you’ll hear Hillsdale called for a placing, and you’ll hear us all cheer,” Smith said.
The team needs more membership, more participation. Riding a horse is intimidating and can seem like something beyond the reach of a latecomer to the sport, but the team said that they are eager for all equestrians.
“The prospect of competing and getting in the ring with other riders shouldn’t scare people away,” Smith said. “Even I did it. It is a very scary thought. You’re riding this huge animal and no one can catch you if something goes wrong. But I think people should. If they have any interest at all, even if they have zero experience, they should try it out.”
