FORT LUPTON — As a college student, Jodi Rinard brought her love of gymnastics and horseback riding along with her to the campus of Mount Holyoke College, in Massachusetts, where she learned of a club that combined gymnastics and horseback riding.
The sport was called vaulting and Rinard was hooked. She went on to gain National prominence as a vaulter, winning the 1999 Trot Team National Championship. With her husband, Eric, as her partner and go-to guy, Jodi opened up Mile High Vaulters in 2002, outside of Fort Lupton.
Vaulting incorporates many traditional gymnast moves, all while astride a moving horse. There are no age limits in vaulting, however, much of the competition emphasis is placed on athletes between the ages of 4 and 18.
Horses wear special saddles that allow riders to more safely control their movements and poses, and there are numerous variables to vaulting — most notably the speed in which the horse is moving, as well as the difficulty of the rider’s movements. Horses are attached by a rope lead that is controlled by a lunger, making the horse and lunger two critical components in competition. A horse will either walk, trot or canter, and the lunger controls the horse’s pace and speed, along with word and sound commands.
The Mile High Vaulters Club is part of the larger American Vaulting Association, which governs in the United States more than 150 organizations that compete locally, regionally and nationally, and is located on the Rinard’s Atlantis Farm west of Fort Lupton. There are more than 30 members of Rinard’s club, which operates out of the Peaches Arena, built specifically by the Rinards for vaulting, and dedicated to the memory of Jodi Rinard’s Percheron mare.
As head coach of the club, Jodi relies on several assistant coaches who have a lifetime of experience in vaulting, and volunteer parents as well.
The vaulters
Hannah Beehler, of Dacono, is a home-schooled high school junior who initially convinced her parents that she wanted to take horseback riding lessons. As part of that riding program she learned to jump horses.
One summer, she enrolled in a local horseback riding camp, and one of the field trips was to Atlantis Farms, where she was introduced to the sport of vaulting.
“The minute I saw riders on horseback performing their moves I was hooked,” she said.
Hannah also participated in gymnastics and karate, and she attributes many of the skills she learned through those activities as factors in her success as a vaulter. She has competed locally and nationally, and has risen through the numerous skill levels as a vaulter to become one of the team’s most successful competitors.
But, Carlee Heger is — without a doubt — Mile High’s most successful vaulter. Herger, who is a senior at Polaris Expeditionary Learning School in Fort Collins, makes the one hour drive to Peaches Arena from her home several times each week. She credits her background in dance and gymnastics with helping her to succeed, but points out it is her love of horses and Coach Jodi that have made her a winner.
This past year, Carlee won first place in individual, pairs and team competition at the U.S. Nationals, in Loveland. Her first-place finish in individual competition qualified her as a member of the U.S. Equestrian Team, and represented Team USA this summer in international competition, spending several weeks in Europe.
Another of Mile High Vaulters’ rising stars is 11-year-old Melonie Ford, who has been riding since she was five. Ford is a former Tiny Tot’s National Champion Vaulter who is now working her way up to the Junior Level (ages 14 to 18), where she plans on continuing her winning ways. Melonie’s mother, Tiffani Ford, is also one of the club’s biggest supporters. She travels to every practice and competition, and is regularly found helping out around the arena with no task out of limits.
“The coaching staff here at Mile High is awesome,” Tiffani said. “They take these kids and teach them not only to be a vaulter, but better people”.
According to Coach Jodi, “Be safe” is the top motto of Mile High Vaulters, along with “have fun,” and “win if you can.”
And win they have: In 2015, Mile High Vaulters vaulted to the top of the national limelight as one of the nation’s elite programs, collecting awards in nearly ever level of competition. Heger was 2015 Women’s National Silver Level champion, qualifying her to represent Team USA in an upcoming competition in the Netherlands; Haley Smith joined Heger as the B Team National Pairs champions; and Matilda Rinard was crowned the Tiny Tots National champ.
Jim Roedel, Smith, Rachael Weiner, Ana Schult, Heger, Ford and Courtney Madden were the 2015 National B Team champs.
Vaulting challenges
One of the biggest challenges of vaulting, according to Rinard, is cost — horseback riding can be a very expensive endeavor, especially if you own the horse.
“Since Mile High Vaulters owns and trains their own horses, participating in our program is much cheaper than owning your own horse,” Rinard said.
The cost of membership varies depending on the amount of time each athlete participates, but on average it is about $100 a month. Each vaulter is individually responsible for any travel-related expenses.
Rinard also pointed out that, in addition to competing for ribbons and trophies, there are some distinct personal advantages to being a vaulter at Mile High.
“All of our members have responsibilities beyond riding horses and being a good vaulter,” she said. “Every member, no matter how young they are, must take care of their horse, feed it, groom it and clean up its stall. Our goal is to teach our kids good horsemanship, but more important, good human and life skills.”
Vaulting is a very athletic sport, and teaches some impressive physical skills, too. Vaulters must be able to lift themselves up on a moving horse and perform physically challenging movements, and in pairs and team competitions, two or more people are on the horse at any given time.
“The physical skills required to be a good vaulter are essential to winning,” Rinard said. “It is important that each of our athletes be in the best shape possible — something they must do on their own time”.
Vaulting teaches a wide range of other skills, Rinard explained.
“A successful vaulter must be skilled in teamwork, sportsmanship, compassion, and must be willing to work hard,” Rinard said. “We aim to teach our kids the meaning of hard work and being respectful, not because it makes them better vaulters, but it makes them better people.”
“Our goal at Mile High is to give our kids the life skills they will need to be a success in whatever they undertake,” she added.
To learn more about Mile High Vaulters go online to www.milehighvaulters.org, or visit their Facebook page.