Friday, May 19, 2006

Thank you, again, for responding to my blog entries! I thought I would answer another question from your comments. Later this week, I will fill you in on my experiences at the Old Salem II horse show.

How old are you and how do you handle going to horse shows, riding at a top level, and going to school?

I am a 17 year old junior at Holmdel High School in Holmdel, NJ. Juggling school and riding can be rather challenging, particularly, when I have to take several tests, complete a great deal of homework, ride at the barn after school and participate in horse shows on the weekends. Hours of sleep are often lost, time with friends and extended family will be often sacrificed and “downtime” can be a rare occurrence. Nevertheless, I absolutely love what I am doing and will do whatever it will take to achieve my goals. Without the support and assistance of my parents, my school district and my trainers, the “balancing act” would be more taxing and a less gratifying experience. I realize how truly fortunate I am to have had many great opportunities and I am very thankful to those who have helped me along the way.

12 Comments:

At Mon May 22, 10:32:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Maria,
I guess I will be the first one to comment on this post. I was wondering ..does the cost of board at Beacon Hill alot ? Also did Brianne really sell logan and who is she riding now ?

 
At Fri May 26, 04:35:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Do you have any advice for those who do not have the oppertunity to ride at such facilities? Or simply do not have the financial resources that others may have to ride with such trainers?

 
At Mon May 29, 02:09:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

How was Devon? It's really a pity I couldn't go and watch this year, I really wanted to go and see some of the Horse Power stars ride :)

And seconding what the second anonymous poster posted, do you have any tips for those of us who don't have a chance to ride at such top level facilities (there are none within 30 minutes of my house, the max my parents will let me travel) and don't have their own horses for money reasons?

 
At Tue May 30, 01:27:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I saw the Junior Jumper class at Devon on Sat evening. Hope you're ok after the fall.

 
At Tue May 30, 04:58:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

just wanna say you're a great rider, and well very pretty too

 
At Tue May 30, 06:37:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

how did you do at devon? also i was wondering a equitation question...do you have to wear tailored sportsman in the ring? or is it just a trend?

 
At Tue May 30, 06:38:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

are you ok after your fall?

 
At Wed May 31, 09:48:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

your fall looked pretty bad..are you ok? do you have any pictures of you or your barn buddies ? i think we would all like to see them\\!!! -rach

 
At Thu Jun 01, 01:35:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

What are your typical lessons like? What excercises do your trainers have you do to help keep you advancing? I am hoping for specific training comments (not simply flatwork, work without stirrups, etc.) and training techniques that help make you the rider that you are (both in your body and your mind). I would love to be a fly on the wall at your lessons - I think you can learn so much by watching and listening - I would rather watch your lessons than watch you show (even though you are a beautiful picture on a horse) because, to me, the show ring is where you put it all together, but the lessons are where you LEARN HOW to put it all together. Thank you for giving your time to this blog

 
At Wed Jan 17, 05:41:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Do you have any advice for funding this kind of thing? I'm currently trying to work out working at the barn to shareboard. I also have a job, and I'm a Junior in highschool so after paying for car insurance and gas to get to the barn, I don't have much money left to ride often or compete.

 
At Tue Apr 17, 04:02:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

board at Beacon hill costs from $1400 up to $2000 a month, that is full care though and your horse will be ridden for you if you can't

 
At Tue Jul 03, 11:20:00 PM, Blogger amanda said...

dear maria,
I was just wondering how you do what you do! I to only have one horse and find it hard because everyone I'm showing against has 3,4 ,5 and so on. Though my horse is still very good,sometimes I think it would be better to have more just for practice and so I could compete in both Eq. and jumpers. I find catch rides for some trainers I know but not nearly as many as you. My family doesnt have enough money for me to compete as much/ as far as most of the girls.I mostly stay in the mid-west(Illinois,Wisconsin, Iowa, Kentucky, etc.) Do you have any advice on how you deal with some of these issues??

 

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