Great Escape: Chagrin Valley Hunter Jumper Classic

C’mon. You were one of those girls who loved horses from the moment you first set eyes on My Little Pony or read Misty of Chincoteague.  Now the closest you get to horses is on field trips to Lake Metroparks Farmpark. Bummer.

Cheer up. You can get your fill of horse-admiring at the Chagrin Valley Hunter Jumper Classic, which opened at 9:30 a.m. today with the Riders with Disabilities competition. National competition – read “serious riders” – runs Wednesday, July 13, through Sunday, July 17, and Tuesday, July 19 through Saturday, July 23, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

But set your clock for 1:30 p.m., Saturday, July 17, for watching la crème de la crème horsies in the $30,000 Cleveland Grand Prix, founded in 1965 as North America’s first show jumping grand prix. Feel free to dress up, or at least wear clean jeans.

The Classic is at the Cleveland Metroparks Polo Field in Moreland Hills.

Tickets are free for July 8-14 and July 19-23; $5 adult/$3 senior and 12 and younger on July 15 and 16; and $10 adult/$5 senior and 12 and younger on July 17.

Watch where you step.