By Nicole Fava
We are horseback riders. The barn is our second home. Our best friend has hooves and greets us with a nicker. Whether we started riding as a young child or later in our adult years, this sport and what comes with it have us hooked. Horseback riding can be dangerous, demanding, and can cost an arm and a leg. But nonetheless, it has become a part of who we are and we would be lost without it. Here are ten reasons why we ride horses!
1. We like to dream big. Horseback riding is a sport of opportunity. If you train hard and find the right horse for your goals, the sky is the limit. It’s not completely absurd to dream of competing in the Olympics or at the National Finals Rodeo! You can be an “underdog” and still have a chance in this sport. We ride horses to chase our dreams, whether they are big or small.
2. We enjoy building a partnership. Rather than working with several teammates at once, horseback riding is special because you have one partner in that moment. And what’s more unique compared to other sports is that this partner is an animal. It is incredibly rewarding to know a horse remembers your training and wants to work with you. We ride horses to watch this partnership develop over time.
3. We are brave, or want to learn to be brave. Horses are half ton animals with minds of their own. Once we conquer our fear of climbing into the saddle for the first time, we realize how rewarding it is to be brave. Our bravery will be tested time and time again as the jump height gets raised, or as our horses get faster. We ride horses to “practice bravery”, as one of my trainers would say.
4. We like a challenge. In my opinion, horses test us more than humans do. A horse changes day by day; once we fix one issue, another is bound to arise. As we learn more, we raise our expectations of ourselves and our horses. We ride horses because these ever changing challenges keep us motivated.
5. We want to improve our balance and strength. When learning to ride or in trying new disciplines, it can be difficult to find our balance in the saddle. Moments of losing balance and the risk of falling only push us harder to perfect it. We eventually develop the muscle memory to stay on our horse and look good doing it. We ride horses to improve our balance and build our strength… gyms are boring in comparison!
6. We like seeing progress. As horseback riders, we note both progress in ourselves and progress in our equine partners. As a new rider, your instructor might scold you for poor equitation, but your progress will be obvious when you win that equitation class next summer! Or, maybe you started a colt and taught him how to steer. His progress is obvious as you both fly around barrels a few years later. We ride horses because there is so much joy in the journey.
7. We enjoy like-minded people. As horseback riders, we’re our own breed of human. We will proudly go out in public right after cleaning stalls. We all have “that voice” that we use when we talk to our horses. We’re tough, resilient, and can be hard to handle. We all share a passion for horses, and we lift each other up when those horses (quite literally) knock us down. And those similarities are why you will find some of your best friends at the barn. We ride horses because our barn family has made us who we are today, and we’re all on a similar journey together.
8. We are hard workers. As riders, we are the farthest thing from lazy individuals. We won’t sleep at night until all of our barn chores have been finished and all horses have been worked accordingly. We like to be actively working towards our goals, and it shows in our committed riding schedule. We ride horses because we enjoy working hard and watching it pay off.
9. We like to be outdoors. If you spend most of your life in the classroom or in an office, you are extra appreciative of your time at the barn. It’s not all glorious, as you’ll sometimes find yourself freezing during winter mornings and covered in mud when you get home. But nothing beats a summer horse show, a spring trail ride through a field of flowers, or even just a simple ride in the sunshine. We ride horses to experience the best nature has to offer.
10. We love horses. Even if you love to compete, never forget why you started riding in the first place. We ride horses because, well… we love horses! And no matter how many times we fall or where our lives takes us, we know we always will.