Horse People

I’m sure you’ve all been there before. You start talking about your life, which of course includes horses, and you can see the glaze of detachment shutter over the person to whom you’re speaking. Not everyone g...

Getting There

I recently realized that I'd been at my barn for a full year starting from May 7th, this past Friday. I can't believe I'm not further in my riding, and I'm shocked how far I have to go to get where I want to be...

Grief

Grief is a weird thing. I've heard it referred to as a weight. Others describe it as a burn. For me, it felt like drowning in the ocean. As a child in Florida, I was in the ocean a lot. One particularly lon...

Body Image

Star is basically a yak during the winter. This in and of itself isn't necessarily a bad thing. They're kinda cute all fluffy. I had no idea horses got winter coats until I moved to Canada. In the South they ma...

Dreams

This November marks five years of marriage for me and my hubby. In the way of most good things, it somehow seems like yesterday while also feeling like forever ago. We sat down after the wedding and made a five...

Finding My Star

Growing up, I loved to perform and I quickly gained the nickname of “Star Searcher.” As I entered my teen years this was shortened simply to “Star.” During high school I had a dance teacher named Starzyk who I ...

Watching & Learning – Clinic with Peter Gisborn

Riders often speak of clinics in the same revered tones as they speak of the Grande Prix. I only became completely aware of the aura that surrounds clinics when I asked a young barn mate if she was attending. ...

Feeling Old

I'm sitting here in my Back On Track fleece pullover, feeling every single mass muscle in my body. It's shocking to feel this wrung out. I may not be in the best shape of my life, but I do generally feel fairly...

Bounce

I can't ever remember a time when I thought something with riding was too hard. There have been times when I haven't really gotten a concept or been able to accurately accomplish a maneuver, of course. There ha...

Saddle Searching

I've had the same saddle for twenty years. It's an old fashioned hunter saddle, put together in the '90s when Ruiz Diaz was making saddles for Collegiate. That saddle has gotten me through high limit hunter cla...

Resolutions

After three weeks away from my standard life and routine, I'm more than ready to get back into the swing of things. I'm not going to knock the last three weeks. I got to spend time with people I love, became a ...

Out of Style

I often find myself saying (or even just thinking), "when I was a kid in the horse world..." It's generally in response to a change. To something that is not done or handled like it was 15 to 25 years ago. I...