The Road

There are a few moments in life that look small from the outside but end up changing everything. For me, one of those moments was asking for the ride on Alejandro, a PRE stallion who became my first real professional ride. At the time, I needed a horse to ride. His breeders needed a rider. On paper, it made sense. In my body, however, it felt like I was about to walk directly into traffic. I was scared to death to ask. But I had grown up hearing one sentence over and over: “T

It can be incredibly frustrating when the world around the arena refuses to be polite. A four-wheeler goes by. A kid runs past the rail. A tent flaps. Someone drops something. The judge’s stand suddenly looks like it might be a portal to certain death. Naturally, this always seems to happen when I am sitting on my most reactive horse. It never fails. I get Peanut out, and my barn manager comes riding by on his kid’s tiny four-wheeler like he has been hired by the universe spe

I have decided to start a blog called The Road. It will live here on my website, and it will follow my journey toward a very specific goal: riding for Team USA and, one day, wearing the USA tailcoat. That is a big sentence to write. It feels a little bold. A little vulnerable. A little like standing in the middle of the barn aisle with no makeup on and announcing your life plans to a room full of horses who could not care less unless dinner is late. Still, here we are. The re