Why I Ride

    Hey!
 Sorry I missed posting yesterday, I was too busy riding! I had such a great day today, I didn't even ride! I went up to the barn to go ride Zack and Boo but it didn't end up working out. Instead, I just spent hours grooming them, playing with them, and talking to them. Sometimes you get so caught up in riding, equitation, showing, and you forget why you are really in this sport. I know I didn't start riding to show, and jump, and win pretty ribbons. I started because I was a little girl who truly loved the animal and wanted them to be a part of my life.
  If you never spend time with your horse on the ground, you never truly know them. You could ride a horse for 10 years but if you never took a moment to groom them, to be with them, to just love them, you would never truly know them and they would never truly know you. You learn so much from just being around horses that no amount of hours in the saddle could ever make up for. If you want success in equestrianism, you really have to love horses. There is no substitute for raw love and appreciation for the animal.

   It's moments like that that make you realize that even if you never win a class, or go to the olympics, or show in the big eqs, it doesn't matter. Yeah, those dreams are great, but if you have nothing else, you have a horse you love and a horse that loves you back. Even if I never show past novices, I will always have the love and connection with my horses. Even on those days that my arthritis is so bad it hurts to stand, I still have my horses. Sometimes I start to feel so hopeless, like I should just give up on my goals. I will never be the girl with the 100 000 dollar horse or the groom grooming my horse for me. I will never have the top trainers, or the best barn, and some days I start to feel like I don't even have a chance because of this. But that's not why I ride.

   I'm happy I have to work for what I get and I'm happy I don't just hand my horse off to a groom at the end of my ride. If I did that, I wouldn't have the one thing I truly love, which is the connection you get with a horse. And that, of course, also helps you to have a better connection when riding the horse. You can't expect them to work their hardest for you when you don't do the same in turn. Groom them, talk to them, love them, and they will give you the world.

   I thought since this post was inspired by my time with the wonderful Zack, I would tell you a bit more about him. He is a 14.2-15 hand ( I'm not totally sure his height, he's pretty short though to give you an idea) quarter horse. He was a really good reiner back in the day. He is so well trained when it comes to that. It;s insane to ride a horse trained to voice commands and neck reining. He is at a private hunter jumper barn owned by a family. He is the dad of the family's horse, but he doesn't ride him too often. So that's where I come in! I am helping to get him back into shape and helping to teach him the english discipline and how to jump. It's been a really fun process so far and I can't wait to see what the future brings with him.

  We are aiming to show him by March 1st, which is coming up so quickly! I can't wait to bring him out to a show, he is such a good horse. He always tries to please, and he's learning so quickly. It's gonna be very fun to bring the reiner out for a spin in the hunter ring. If you guys wanna see a video of him being a hunter horse, 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPIEXS4xMKo.

   So thank you all sosososososo much for reading! Go out and hug your horses and tell them you love them. :) Have a wonderful day!