Big Gymkhana Family Weekend 2010

5/15/2010

Joy Sawyer Mulligan

Hundreds hurried-scurried to campus for Thacher's annual spring gathering.

Talk about blossoming! The name’s the same—“Big Gymkhana”—but back not much more than a decade, it was primarily only the 9^th grade parents who came to campus in May for a couple of dusty, no-frills days to watch their kids race the Hurry Scurry and Washington Poles, and possibly spear a few rings or pick up a silver dollar.

Now, they do that same watching for a day-and-a-half out at the Gymkhana Field, but, along with parents of upperclassmen, they thrill also to multiple performances (athletic, dance, instrumental, choral), silent and live auctions, meals that include organic strawberries and salads tossed with lettuce grown just down the valley, multi-generational dancing under the stars, a rocking Open House, trapshooting, an ecumenical Sunday morning service, and individual and group meetings with teachers, advisors, and college counselors. All of it happens thanks to the tireless work of the entire staff and faculty, and a multitude of parents whose vision and energy perpetually reinvent the weekend to create the best intersection of Family, Toad, and Horse.

Those who’d been to Thacher for a spring Family Weekend in prior years found themselves in both familiar territory—thundering hooves and dust, the view to the Ojai, hugs and smiles cross generations, after all—and terra sorta-incognita. The latter meant similar events (both auctions, for example) in new time-slots and different locales on campus, as well as entirely fresh attractions (a fund-raiser aimed solely at financial aid support).

This year’s Parents Auction, chaired by Sara Star (Steffi ’11), was quite a lot like Sunny (J.J. Ntshaykolos‘s horse): poised for action before the race, fast off the starting line, highly efficient, and reliable in delivering the goods for a great score. When the bid sheets had been collected and the echo of the final “Sold!” had gone to silence, the combined auctions had yielded a record by, let’s just say, lots of zeros. (Total net: $400,000=amazing generosity among those in the audience Friday night.)

Yet as long as Thacher is Casa de Piedra, it will be the Big Gymkhana (from Friday's camp drafting through the last Silver Dollar try late Saturday afternoon) that, more than any other event of the weekend, gets the blood pumping and the tears welling: the long, horizontal line of riders and horses spanning the field and moving as one toward the spectators tucked under oak trees, trumpet playing The Call to the Post; the American and California flags flying straight out behind as those two riders holding them trot, then lope, then gallop full-tilt around the riders and past the crowd, accompanied by an a cappella version of The Star-Spangled Banner; then the races themselves, each a spectacle in its own right; the Silver Dollar Pick-up as the final, dramatic moment of the day. (Watching it all, it’s nearly impossible to believe that most of the 9th graders arrived a few months ago not speaking a bit of horse.) Freshman Leigh Thomas named her favorite part of the whole day: “The feeling of freedom and accomplishment, as you soar through the races, feeling how far you've come and the thrill of the speed, as you and your horse (powerful muscles!) move together.”

Although Blue Team had a substantial lead going into the day, the customary Big Gymkhana day tripling of points and some especially strong performances by Orange Team riders catapulted The Crush into first place by the day’s end, with 12968 points to Blue Team’s 12678 and Green Team’s 10765. (See below for Top Ten lists and other awards.) At the evening awards ceremony, Director of the Horse Program Cam Schryver thanked all the riders, both underclassmen and those older students whose leadership had made this season a remarkable one for its spirit and camaraderie.

The weekend was wild and woolly, raucous and loud a good deal of the time, but, in a welcome and necessary counterpoint, Sunday morning brought quiet and calm (well, except for the trapshooting). Contemplative options were plenty at the ecumenical Chapel Service, from readings to musical performance to the short address offered by Wade Hughan, dad of Iona ’10 and Margot ’12, who connected the dots between gratitude, generosity, action, and leadership in a moving address to a happy Mother’s Day congregation.

Top Ten Riders

1—Laura Benard on Slash

2—Will Rutter on Russell

3—Cayce Cover on Brandy

4—Shravan Rajasekaran on Whirlwind

5—Zane Schryver on Boon

6—Lilly Haggard on Jazz

7—J.J. Ntshaykolo on Sunny

8—Chris Colson on Cool

9—Carson Leydecker on Tiger

10—Miles Fossett on Jamie

Top Ten Freshmen