Delaware’s Interscholastic Equestrian Association team JGPH competed at IEA regionals on Saturday, March 5, in Swanton, Ohio.
The middle school team “was the high-point team for the entire show,” according to coach Ryan Geiger. The middle school team will now advance to zones, which will be held on April 2 in Jackson, Ohio.
The high school team did not qualify for zones, but Geiger expressed his pride in the fact that they had qualified for regionals for the first time.
The team has been dubbed Team JGPH after head coach Jeff Geiger’s business, Jeff Geiger Performance Horses. In addition to coaching the team, Jeff Geiger provides the team with a place to practice and horses to practice with.
As the middle school team prepares for zones, Ryan Geiger is hoping to find some sponsors for both teams. He said his hope is for anyone who is interested to be able to compete on the team. The fact that participants do not have to own a horse to compete on IEA teams helps with making this possible, but there are other expenses, such as travel, that Geiger is hoping to be able to offset through sponsorship.
For “a lot of the kids, this is their avenue to college, allowing them to get recognized for scholarships,” he said. “They wouldn’t have that opportunity if it weren’t for the sponsors helping them to compete in the first place.”
“We really want to encourage higher education,” said Ryan Geiger. With this goal in mind, he said he is hoping to establish some scholarships for team members with the help of sponsors.
Sponsors will receive publicity through the team, according to Geiger. Different levels of sponsorship are available. Any new sponsors at this point in the season will receive publicity for the rest of this season as well as the entire next season, according to Geiger. For more information on sponsorship, email [email protected].
