The United States Pony Club is the largest equine educational organization in the world. Riders from around the globe follow the pony club curriculum. Their standards of proficiency are widely recognized as giving riders of all disciplines the background they need to enjoy horses their entire lives. KCS is proud to have been accepted as a USPC Riding Center.
Unmounted meetings
Unmounted meetings focus on horsemanship. Members follow a sequential curriculum that expands on their knowledge with each certification they achieve. For example a D Level (beginner) Pony Club member would only need to know how to give water, hay, and grain to their horse whereas an A Level (advanced) member would need to know how to identify different types of grains and hay as well as be able to discuss nutritional values.
Horsemanship topics include:
feed and nutrition, exercise & conditioning, farm and horse management, equipment, land conservation, veterinary knowledge, conformation & soundness.
Other KCS member Requirements
In addition to our unmounted meetings our members must be riding a minimum of 1 time per week. It can be any kind of riding experience- a trail ride, riding at home, riding with another instructor, or as a part of the KCS riding school. If members are not part of our riding school they will schedule one lesson per month with a KCS instructor, to check progress and work towards their next mounted certification.
Certifications
The goal of Pony Club is to teach every member communication, confidence, leadership, safety, self-reliance, and good horsemanship. As members learn and develop at their own pace, they have the opportunity to progress through the Pony Club Standards of Proficiency (SOP). The SOP outline a clear progression of skills in riding and horse management. Each level requires an increasing depth of knowledge and abilities.
Pony Club Members demonstrate their skills and express an appropriate level of knowledge at each certification. Members are evaluated based on the SOP for each section of understanding. The levels of certification start at what is called D Level (beginner), progressing to C Level (intermediate) then to B Level and A Level (advanced).
HM Certification- Once a member has passed the certification for the D-1 level (which has a basic riding requirement), as long as they have access to a horse for hands-on care they can continue on through the certification levels without ever riding. The Horse Management certification is based on a practical application of knowledge.
Mounted Certification- May be attained in Dressage, Eventing, Show-jumping, Hunter Seat Equitation, and Western. No matter what level of certification a riding member tests into they will be required to meet the SOP for both horse management and riding.