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The Michigan Daily-Friday, October 9, 1981 -Page 13
FOSh rider to compete nationally
By RON POLLACK
Michigan freshman Elizabeth Wright
has found that an outdated form of
transportation is as effective a means
as any to take her to various parts of the
United States. It has been the legs of a
horse that have carried Wright to dif-
ferent spots on the map.
At the Eastern States Championship
Horse Show held in West Springfield,
Massachusetts from September 23-27
Wright rode her American saddlebred
mare Sassy Stepper to victory in the
Eastern Amateur 3-Gaited Saddle Hor-
se Championship. The combination also
won the New England 3-Gaited Cham-
pionship at the show.
WRIGHT HAS been invited to ride
Sassy Stepper at the National Horse
Show in New York's Madison Square
Garden from November 3-8. She has
also qualified to ride in the National
Championships at Madison Square
Garden and at the American Royal in
Kansas City.
Although she has qualified for all of
these competitions, the Vermont native
has had little opportunity to practice
recently, since Sassy Stepper and her
trainer have remained on the east
coast.
"I'll go back in a few weeks to prac-
tice," said Wrighf. "It's a lot of
travelling, but I miss riding a lot. If I
don't ride for a week, I feel like I'm
going nuts."
ACCORDING TO Wright, this is an
extremely difficult time of the year to
be away from competition. "The
season's most important time is in the
fall," she explained. "This is my last
year in equitation competition, since 18
is as old as you're allowed to be to com-
pete. Because this time of year is so
important, I was considering not
coming (to Michigan) in the fall. It's
hard to be here right now. If I wasn't
here now, I would be riding. In Vermont
I rode every day. I rode two or three
horses a day."
Since arriving in Ann Arbor, Wright
has not enjoyed luxury. Thus, Wright
feels that her skills have already star-
ted to erode.
I don't know if your skills decrease,
but your sensitivity decreases and
you're not as in tune with the horse and
the whole aspect of riding," said
Wright. "It take a ride to get back in
rhythm. It just takes a litle longer to
get it all together. My concentration
just has to be refocused. Concentration
and sensitivity are the most important
things that I lose."
In spite of setbacks, Wright's plans
for the future are dominated by horse
riding. "When you're 18 you can turn
pro, but I'll stay as an amateur for a
few years and work with my trainer,"
she said. "I guess I'll turn pro
when I get good enough and think I
can do it. I'll do it if it works in my life,
insofar as it's something I continue to
like to do.
"I want to work with horses all over
the world. If I could take a term in
Spain and work with horses and then go
to Europe, that would be great. I had a
chance as a senior in high school to go
to the Dominican Republic, where I
worked with Pasofino breed of horses.
That worked out well."
8:00pm Hill Auditorium
$6.50,7.50,8.$0 reserved
Tickets on sale now at the Michigan Union Box Office
and all CTC outlets. For more information, call 763-
6922. For a complete listing of the Ann Arbor music
scene, dial 99-MUSIC.
ra.
MICHIGAN FRESHMAN Elizabeth Wright riding her horse, Sassy Stepper,
displays her equestrian talents. The pair has qualified to ride in the National
Championships at Madison Square Garden.
* M' icers to do battle
rn intrasquad match
I
By MARTHA CRALL
It will not be as exciting as the
opening regular season contest, but the
Michigan hockey team makes its debut
tonight at 7:00 p.m. in a Blue-White In-
trasquad game at Yost Ice Arena.
"We're real rough around theedges,"
said head coach John Giordano. "But it
should be a pretty good game."
THE WOLVERINES have only been
practicing together for a couple of
weeks, and tonight's outing more or
less serves as an opportunity for the
icers to showcase their taletns and have
some fun. For some athletes, however,
it is a more serious matter-there are
still a few cuts to be made andl the
coaching staff is sure to take a good
look at some individuals.
Although Giordano said the game
would not be used exclusively to trim
the squad or determine starting lines,
he said that it will be helpful.
"We're going to wait a couple of
weeks to make the final couple of cuts,"
Giordano said. "We've got to look at a
couple of kids real seriously to deter-
mine if they can make a contribution to
the team.
"MAINLY THE game is something
forthekis,"hesai. And to promote
the game of hockey."
The two co-captains for the 1981-82
Wolverines, Steve Richmond and Dave
Richter, will lead the White and Blue
squads, respectively.
The Blue-White game is the first such
intrasquad contest for Michigan, which
is concentrating on promotion for the
1981-82 season. The admission is $1 per
person, with all proceeds going to the
Michigan Hockey Scholarship Fund.
Season and individual tickets for the 19
game hockey season (in which the first
home game occurs on October 30) will
be sold tonight at Yost.
CORRECTION
The Technics-SA103 Receiver
in Thursday's paper was in-
correctly described as having
30 watts per channel. It
should have read: "20 watts
per channel." We regret any
inconvenience to our cus-
tomers.
HIGHLAND APPLIANCE
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