Bailey Hand Grabs First Place For LBHS in IEL Equestrian Event

Laguna Beach High School senior Bailey Hand and her handsome equine partner, Triple Star, scored a first-place ribbon in the J.V. Jumper class in the Interscholastic Equestrian League (IEL) horse show at the Oaks Blenhein Riding Park in San Juan Capistrano during the show’s opening weekend, Sept 20 - 21.

Bailey and Star were the only horse/rider team representing LBHS at the popular IEL horse show - which hosted some 40 High Schools and 150 entries from all over southern California. The tiny LBHS equestrian team of one, however, was a top contender at the show. They kicked into gear for the last J.V. Jumper class of the weekend, defeating 11 other entries to take the blue ribbon.

Bailey & Star made sharp turns, electrifying jumps, and galloped through the timer to nose out Frankie Gale and her steed Hemmingway of Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, who are currently rated number two overall in the IEL’s English Junior Varsity division. After their success this weekend, Bailey and Star are rated sixth.

Bailey has trained with Mickey Hayden Show Jumping in Laguna Hills for four years and has competed at county horse shows in Santa Barbara, Del Mar, as well local venues. In July of this year, they were awarded champion and reserve champion in the low children’s/adult amateurs class at the Victory Horse Show at the Oaks.

Besides their first place victory at the IEL show, Bailey and Star also received two 3rd place ribbons in J.V. Jumpers. “Jumper” classes are timed events over a series of fences that range in height from 3’0” to 3’3’’. Penalties are incurred for going off course, refusing a jump or knocking down a poll. It doesn’t matter how good you look - the fastest time wins.

Jumping is a Bailey’s passion, and she hopes to represent LBHS in most of the remaining six IEL shows, slated for Oct 4 & 5, Nov. 8 & 9, and Nov. 15 & 16, all being held at “The Oaks”.

“It is so much fun,” she said. “The jumps are higher than Star and I have done in past shows, and the kids here are really competitive. There’s also that element of potential disaster. But we hung in there, and in the end we came through.”