The Equine Addiction
Anyone who has spent any
amount of time pursuing the art of showing horses would be hard pressed to argue with the fact that horses and horse showing is nothing short of an addiction that is virtually impossible to break. Addiction, which is defined as "the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologi- cally habit-forming" is an undeni- ably accurate adjective that we often use to describe our obsession with our beloved equines. It is impossible to describe the personal satisfaction that comes from a successful run in the show pen. The adrenaline, the accolades that come from our peers, the knowledge that the time, money, and efforts that we have invested have all come together and culminat- ed in 5 heroic minutes in the arena. Our peers shower us with congratu- lations, we look adoringly at our equine partner, and float on air for the remainder of the day knowing that our tenacity, our attention to detail, and the never ending hours of practice have all aligned and made us the best that we could be. It would be fabulous if this "high" could last us indefinitely; if we could spend day after day walking around in our own little bubble of personal satis-
52 . November 2012 .
www.PacificCoastJournal.com
faction. But if the truth be known, horses and horse showing is a diffi- cult, fickle, and often times ego crushing endeavor. The reason that the adrenaline high of a successful run in the show pen is so satisfying is because those runs are hard fought and unpredictable. Let's face it, we relish in our success because we know that the next time we throw a leg over our horse and cross the threshold of that arena, we could experience a defeat that brings us down as low as the success made us high.
As our show season begins to
wind down and we leave the arena with our final runs under our belts, we are left to live through the winter months with the memory of that "last go." For some, their final run or runs of the season were success-
ful....proof of their progress, their hard work, their evolution as show- men. For others, those last runs may have been riddled with errors or fall- en just short of their personal goal set. Despite an otherwise successful show season, maybe this last day was not an accurate representation of how much they have accomplished or how far they have come. As the
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