A Close Community

When you pull up at a horse show, the first thing you will see are scurries of people all talking to their friends and catching up with old friends they haven't seen since last season. The experienced equestrian knows though that everyone is there to win whether they are competing against a best friend or not. All they have on their mind is how many people they need to beat to go home with that blue ribbon and possible prize.

Many people who are not involved with the horse community don't understand though that even if you are competing against someone if you ever find yourself in trouble the first person you call is that lady you met at the small show because you know she lives close. There are horse people all over the country and when you are found traveling with a trailer and your tire goes flat, it is nice to have that little black book of friends close by.

One perfect example of this is when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. Everyone in the horse community knew that there were still horses down there, so they started sending anything and everything they had. It didn't matter how small it was. Helmets were sent so those little kids could get back on their ponies and start riding, hay was sent by the truck load to replace the thousands of bales that were lost. It was no longer a matter of who was going to win the show, it was only a matter of who was not going to lose the battle.

Michigan and had a very bad accident that landed her in the hospital for about a month. Unfortunately, she still had horses back home that needed to be taken care of and she had a kitten in her truck that needed food and water. Almost immediateAnother example actually involves a really close friend of mine. She was competing up inly after the accident happened people were calling offering to take care of the kitten and her horses back home, offering to cook meals for her family, and offering to just come visit with her. That is not to mention that multitude of cards and gifts that were sent to her to keep her mind busy. After a long recovery she healed fine and didn't have to worry about what she had to take care of when she got home.

The horse community is always there for each other whether it be a bad accident or just a minor crisis. There will always be that open door close by of a family that has a small barn in the back and is willing to give you a meal or even a bed as long as you enlighten them with your many horse stories and experiences. An equestrian will never feel alone as long as they remember the huge horse family that is there to back them up.