Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
"Be a light." - Thomas Rhett I read a Facebook comment from someone the other day that really struck me. This particular person is not someone I consider a friend or even someone with whom I am friendly, so her comment was even more appreciated than if someone else had said it. While she said more, her final sentence was this, "So I'm not ready to lecture anyone on this." She was talking about COVID-19 of course, but specifically about whether or not we should leave our houses to ride our horses, ride our bikes, take a drive, and so on. Those words struck me as one of the most respectful things I've heard yet. Yesterday, I heard Thomas Rhett's song, Be a Light, and it felt like he was singing about the situation we're in today. Right now, our world feels as though it's being ripped apart. We're shouting and screaming at one another with the absolute certainty that we're in the right. Our media source is right. Our political voice is right. Everyone else is not only wrong, but stupid, and their choices are threatening our very lives. Before calling someone an asshole, sociopath, or a covidiot, can we first stop and consider, just for a moment, that that person feels like they're making the best choice they can for their own situation? None of us know why someone is making the choices they're making. Would it be possible to give them the benefit of the doubt? While they aren't behaving in the same way you or I would, does that make them wrong and us right? Surely someone else sees our choices as wrong and theirs as right. The last stanza of Rhett's song speaks a truth that's hard to deny. Yeah, it's hard to live in color When you just see black and white In a world full of hate, be a light. Here's the song if you haven't heard it yet. The lyrics follow. Be a LightIn a time full of war, be peace Yeah. In a world full of hate, be a light.
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About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
National Rider AwardsState Rider Awards
State Horse Awards
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
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