Being a mother of a young child and keeping up with my riding has proven to be a very difficult challenge. But the more I drift from showing, the more I realize what a gift riding has been. My daughter starts preschool next week, and that renews my hope that I will once again find time to ride.
An extremely hot summer also has put a kink in the works this year. As a working mom who doesn't get home until 1 a.m. and boards her horse 30 minutes away, summer temperatures well into the 90s has made it difficult to ride without killing myself and my horse in the heat. There are certainly some major advantages to having your horses at home and being able to fit a ride in as the sun goes down or comes up.
There are many setbacks between me and being back in the center of the arena. A new location where the landscape of the show arena is different than it was where I grew up. Different breeds at the forefront of popularity. Different styles of riding in the hunt ring, where quarter horses no longer rule the rail.
For now I'm vowing to get back to riding while my daughter starts her new chapter in preschool. And meanwhile, I'm also going to attend lots of shows. Feed my other hobby: horse photography. And a side business that could help me pay the show bills.
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