Why You Need a Barn With a Really Rad Cheering Section

There I was, standing in the lineup, after my first ever class in the Walk-Trot-Canter division.   I can't say that this first class was a success (well, I didn't die, so there's that), because I engaged in all of the following activities while the judge was looking: cantered incorrectly the first direction, forgot to change my whip when we reversed, forgot that we had to canter again after the reverse, and lost my stirrup going into the lineup.   I guess that's what I get for not participating in #nostirrupnovember, but I digress...

Anyway, I had just had the most-um-interesting start to the world of Walk-Trot-Canter classes, and I was just glad it was over.  I had cried at least three times before the show, and couldn't sleep the night before.   I was disappointed in myself for making so many mistakes, and I was ready for them to hand me my last place ribbon and let me get the heck outta that ring.  I think at that point I was trying my best to come up with a really good excuse as to why I couldn't go back into the next class.   I was avoiding eye contact with my instructor so much that I think the other competitor next to me was convinced I was giving her the stink eye.  They called my number.  Third. 

Then, I heard the cheers.   

You would have thought I had won the dang thing, and you could hear cheering from multiple sides of the arena.    Even though I had one of the hardest, most stressful rides of my life, this melted away when I remembered that I had a whole group of riders there to support me and cheer me on, no matter what place I received.

In the next class, I got second- still not a blue ribbon ride, but the cheers were even louder this time.   

This is what happened for all of our riders at our barn.   We cheered on each other, even if it wasn't a blue ribbon ride.   We hugged each other.   We shared words of advice and last minute preparations.  We loaned our stirrups, saddles, gloves, and hands and hearts when others needed them.   

This is why it is so incredibly important to have a barn with a really rad cheering section.   Cheering on each other doesn't mean that you forget the rivalries.  It doesn't mean that you'll never be jealous of someone, and might have to try a little harder to offer congratulations. 

But sometimes, you'll forget.   Sometimes, you'll be swept away in your own victories or defeat that you'll forget, but if you're a member of a barn with a really rad cheering section, you'll be reminded of why it is important.  

Because at our barn, we don't just build riders.  We build people.