Throwing her foot over the side of her horse to properly begin riding, sophomore Madison Davis prepares to embark on yet another horse ride. Calming herself down, she gently glides her hand across her horse’s back and takes off. With the wind in her hair, all of Davis’ tensions ride away knowing her hose is by her side.
At the age of 13, Davis began horseback riding, finding it unique and intriguing.
“I started horseback riding lessons over a year ago,” Davis said. “I usually spend about an hour a week riding, but sometimes more depending on my schedule. Training is super important to my performance so attending lessons is crucial.”
A crucial part of horseback riding is connecting with the horse. By knowing the horse Davis is working with, it allows for adjustments to be made prior.
“Having a connection with a horse completely changes your performance,” Davis said. “When you have earned that connection you know exactly what the horse likes and dislikes, what they are good and bad at. You also learn what kind of little quirks they have because they all have very distinct personalities.”
Each lesson is very tedious and requires a lot of preparation such as grooming the horse and assembling the proper equipment before Davis can begin riding.
“To set up before horseback riding it can take around a half hour to completely get them groomed for the day,” Davis said. “You have to brush them and get all of their equipment on them and ready. When you are grooming a horse it can be telling how they are feeling that day. You also have to feed them and clean up after them.”
Although many believe horseback riding is simple, it requires rigorous training and countless hours of connecting with your horse in order to have faith on both sides.
“A big misconception about horseback riding is that you just sit on a horse all day and do not do anything,” Davis said. “However, you are actually hardly sitting while riding because most of the time you are standing and all that you have to keep yourself up is the stirrups. The stirrups do not help as much in English riding because they are thinner than the Western stirrups.”
With school and extracurricular’s, it can be hard to balance both riding and social life, but Davis proves her dedication by improving and practicing everyday.
“Some of the positives about horseback riding are that you get to have a connection with your horse,” David said. “You are a team with your horse and you have to have mutual respect to be successful. Some of the negatives are that you can get more seriously injured compared to other sports. I have fallen off one time and it has made me nervous to ride again. I was lucky that I was not seriously injured, but it changes your entire view point on riding. It has taught me to know my own limits and to pay attention to the horses’ limits.”
Since Davis does not participate in any competitions, the small victories accomplished mean a lot.
“My biggest accomplishment is all the mini skills I learn constantly,” Davis said. “They are more personal victories which makes me want to continue to get better. Other than that, it would be the first time I ever got to ride pretty well.”
With connections being crucial for horseback riding, Davis mainly trains with Boomer due to the trust both have.
“For a while I rode a horse named Boomer. Which was the first horse I ever rode, and we instantly had a connection,” Davis said. “Spending time grooming Boomer made our connection stronger, and it made me excited to groom him because I was just starting out. Just knowing what Boomer likes helped me connect with him better.”
The past two years that Davis has been horseback riding have been a roller coaster of feelings and emotions. From having tough rides to major achievements, Davis does see herself continuing on in the future.
“I can see myself riding in the future, plus I have been doing it for so long already I do not want to quit now,” Davis said. “I also feel relaxed once I am actually riding, and connecting with horses is something I look forward to. Other aspects of riding like the scenery and the outdoors makes me encouraged to keep going.”
