32/ OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2017 THE RIDER


Inside Shelley Peterson’s Novels and Christmas At Saddle Creek


By Kelly Bowers Canadian Shelley Pe-


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terson and her husband David run Fox Ridge Sta- bles in Caledon, ON which is home to over 20 horses. Shelley wears many hats as the mother of 3 adults and grandmother of 4 young grandsons, as wife, actress, stable owner, and business- woman. She is also the best-selling author of eight novels written for young adults; ‘Dancer’, ‘Abby Malone’,


‘Stagestruck’,


‘Sundancer’, ‘Mystery at Saddle Creek’, ‘Dark Days at Saddle Creek’, ‘Jockey Girl’ and her latest, ‘Christ- mas at Saddle Creek’. Shelley Peterson ac-


tually learned how to tell a good story through her training as an actress and years of working in TV, film and on stage. Two of the most critical skills were character development and the art of telling multiple stories within your story. Readers may wonder where an author’s ideas for a story line or character traits come from. Some of the people and story lines in Peterson’s novels may be partly inspired by aspects of her own real life. Her fic- tional figures often have traits, abilities, feelings and beliefs that she either relates to or envies. For example, Shelley believes that most people feel, at some point in


their life, like they’re different from those around them and they don’t fit in. Years ago, when her own daughter experienced feeling isolated at school, Shelley began to write the book Dancer as a way to help her work through the dif- ficult time. Examining the char- acters she creates, you’ll notice that people and animals often feel like outcasts who face challenges with little support. The act of writing the fictional version may have helped Shelley to work through the real life situation in her mind, and might even help readers going through something similar to gain a bit more confi- dence in themselves and their abilities. Then, when the lonely soul meets a unique friend, two or four legged, who really “gets them”, connects with them, and accepts them for who they are, the consequences can be life changing. And lets face it, when it


comes to being accepted, horses are the ultimate equalizer. Sitting atop your loyal steed, you don’t have to be popular or cool or come from a wealthy family to have a loving bond with a horse or pony. You don’t have to ace your exams or be asked to the prom to enjoy your time in the barn, trail ride all day, or compete in a horse show with your best four legged friend. Horses don’t use the same superficial criteria to judge you. They accept you for who you are and they know you by what’s in your heart. Shelley’s affection for ani-


mals and especially horses is em- bedded in the pages of her novels and there are several of her char- acters that have deliberately been given an enhanced intuition and respect towards animals. This re- flects her own belief system that humans, who are also technically animals, need to value and show respect and admiration for other animals, with an abundance of patience and understanding. So, logically, often the people, horses and other animals in her stories are misunderstood, labelled as untrainable, even unsafe, and judged as unworthy. When trying


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to understand such per- sonalities, Shelley advo- cates us all looking deeper to find the root of the problem and eventually learn how to earn the trust of the mis- trustful. One


of my


favourite recurring char- acters at Peterson’s Sad- dle Creek is Bird. She not only feels like a dis- placed outcast,


openly prefers the com- pany of animals and was born with the abil- ity to communicate tele- pathically with them. That’s the one super power Peterson may have yearned for long ago. She spent years struggling with her very first foal, Sundancer, who’s unpredictable and extreme


she


behaviour


earned him a reputation of being unridable and nearly untrainable. In a perfect world, Shelley would have been able to ask him and actually un- derstand what he needed and how she could help him - right from the horse’s mouth. And who among us hasn’t wished for that super power at one time or an- other? I imagine that’s why Bird exists.


If you have been reading


Shelley Peterson’s books, don’t miss her newest novel, Christmas At Saddle Creek which fills in juicy details from previous stories and offers more surprises, trouble and adventures than anyone’s Christmas needs. If you are new to the series, I strongly suggest you start at the beginning and read all the books in order so as to enjoy them as they were writ- ten, getting to know each of the characters you’ll meet again in later books. With a cozy blanket, horse


drawn sleigh, bon fire, and lots of snow, neighbours helping neigh- bours - a rural Ontario winter jumps from the pages of Christ- mas At Saddle Creek. But then there’s crippling storms and


power outages, chilling tempera- tures, cancelled travel plans, hy- pothermia and of course the family drama. So, it’s about as real as a Canadian Christmas can get.


The holiday begins with a


dangerous midnight rescue at- tempt, but it doesn’t end there. The contentious relationship be- tween Bird an her mother finally come to a head, stopping Christ- mas dinner in it’s tracks. And within days, potential disaster is faced twice with their only hope being nothing short of a real Christmas miracle and a little help from friends. Before the snow clears, we say hello to a mysterious yet familiar visitor and a heartfelt goodbye to a dear beloved friend. My feeling is that Christ-


mas At Saddle Creek is the telling of stories inside the story. One of these reveals a truth that leads to new understanding with the op- portunity for relationships to be repaired and healing to begin. As Mrs. Pierson says, “Truth must be handled with love and kindness or it will destroy everything.”


Equestrian Canada Secures $115,000 in Funding for Next Generation Equestrian Athletes


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tional Partners group confirmed the funding, which they ear- marked for targeted sports and disciplines. Of the $115,000 total, $70,000 was granted for next generation athletes


in the


tive Funding is granted by the National Partners group, com- prised of Sport Canada, the Cana- dian Olympic Committee (COC), the Canadian Paralympic Com- mittee (CPC), and Own the Podium (OTP), and was ap- proved for equestrian by Canada’s Minister of Sport and Persons with a Disability, Carla Qualtrough. On Sept. 13, 2017, the Na-


pleased to announce $115,000 has been secured for Canada’s up-and-coming athletes through 2017-18 Next Generation Initia- tive Funding. The Next Generation Initia-


Ottawa, ON, Sept. 22, 2017 – Equestrian Canada (EC)


is


help Canada’s rising stars excel on the world stage by providing


thrilled to have the opportunity to provide next generation eques- trian athletes with increased fund- ing and services,” said Eva Havaris, EC Chief Executive Of- ficer. “Athlete development is critical to equestrian sport in Canada, and we are truly grateful to the National Partners group for their recognition, support and commitment to the high perform- ance building work that is taking place within EC.” The funding will be used to


Olympic discipline of jumping, while $45,000 was directed to ris- ing athletes in the equestrian Par- alympic sport of para-dressage. With the addition of this Next Generation funding, EC has re- ceived a total of $715,000 in Own the Podium funding for the 2017- 18 fiscal year. “Equestrian Canada is


equestrian athlete development, visit www.equestrian.ca/pro- grams-services/athlete-develop- ment.


ence resources are critical to the success of athletes in any sport, and equestrian is certainly no ex- ception,” said EC Director of Sport, Jon Garner. “This funding will allow us to provide next gen- eration equestrian athletes with access to the world-class services and personnel required to reach their full potential.” For more information on


opportunities to participate in training camps, work with tech- nical advisors, and receive access to human and equine sport medi- cine and sport science services, including massage therapy, med- ical and veterinary care, and men- tal performance coaching. “Technical and sport sci-


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