The Crazy Eight, the Sling Shot and the Homicide. These are just a few of the signature formations that have won Latigo ‘N Lace Equestrian Drill Team competitive success. The local equestrian team has had a stellar June, picking up the drill team award at the Portland Rose Festival’s Grand Floral Parade on June 6, sweeping the divisions at the Pacific Northwest Drill Team Association Regional from June 12-14, and earning the Supreme Champion spot at the Reno Rodeo Championship Drill Team Competition on June 19.
“(Drill team) is about competing together instead of against each other,” said Christy Slaby. “I’ve shown horses my entirely life. It’s so much more fun and rewarding to excel and learn with your best friends.” Slaby leads the team with co-captain Carol McPartland, who is also her stepsister.
“(Equestrian drill) is like synchronized swimming but on horseback,” said Slaby.
Competitions usually consist of a short program drill and a freestyle drill. A short program features the same six required patterns, plus six maneuvers drawn every year. The 12 required patterns must be performed in less than six minutes using 16 riders.
The freestyle drill can range from 8 to 12 minutes, and it’s open to any kind of interpretation, the more impressive and dazzling the better. It’s also where Latigo ‘N Lace excels.
“We push the envelope, with patterns you can’t look up in the manual,” said Slaby. The Homicide, for example, features all 16 riders charging into the center of the arena at full lope, said Slaby, with just enough space for the riders to pass by quickly.
In addition, riders of the drill team carry flags, to add a degree of difficulty. “We’re always looking for something that will put us above the rest,” Slaby said. Other teams might have four riders lead with flags, she said, but her team is one of the few with a flag for every rider.
“With 25 to 30 different maneuvers in a drill, we make sure the audience doesn’t see the set-up between one maneuver to the next,” said Slaby. Her husband, she said, gave the perfect metaphor for the team while watching them practice: “It’s like what you see when you look in a kaleidoscope, one pattern bursts into the next.”
Part of the team
The success of this year’s season has happened without a coach. “Taking the reins for Carol and I was a little scary in the beginning,” said Slaby. “We’re both super-passionate about the sport, (the team) basically said you are our coaches anyway.”
The distinction between captain and coach is important to both Slaby and McPartland because, by being captains, they are still equals with the team.
Latigo ‘N Lace was established 23 years ago as a youth team by Slaby’s mother. The team evolved to be a women’s drill team, featuring 20 riders and their horses, ranging in ages from 14 to “60-something,” said Slaby. The majority of riders are from Clark County, spanning Woodland to the Vancouver area, with one rider from Troutdale, Ore., and another from Hillsboro, Ore.
This weekend, the team is competing at the Washington Ladies Riding Club Association State Competition in Tacoma. But the most anticipated competition of the season is the one held during the Clark County Fair. “Because it’s our local competition, our friends and family get to see us,” said Slaby. “There’s this enormous amount of energy and always great performances.”
The competition will be held the last Saturday of the fair, Aug. 15. For those unfamiliar with equestrian drill team, it’s definitely the best way to experience it, she said.
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