My goal is one that many equestrians, even those with significant formal training, wouldn’t dare contemplate, let alone seriously consider, but for some uncanny reason the desire to compete in a Grand Prix show jumping competition, hooked me, throwing all common sense and rational to the wind.
I am the first to admit that my dream is insane
but I sure am enjoying “the ride.”
I admit that I have been outright laughed at, scoffed at and told point-blank that, “Yes, you could do it once, but then you would be dead,” (the latter a response to my request to jump “just one” five foot fence), and this all coming from my trainers, no less.
I have since come to realize why my Quest prompted such strong reactions. The sport of competitive show jumping, especially at the Grand Prix level, is one of the most dangerous, rigorous, expensive, and physically and mentally demanding of any individual sport known to mankind.
What am I, a middle-aged, middle-class, single, mother-of-two, thinking to entertain such an insane objective?
Perhaps I wasn’t.
In retrospect, I believe that what it boiled down to was, that being a complete beginner at the time (and pretty much still to this day), I just didn’t know any better.
So nearly a year and a half later, having learned just how daunting and ridiculous the goal of my competing in a Grand Prix really is, what’s my excuse today?
After much soul searching and investigation, I think that Dr. Gregory Bern’s research, outlined in his book “Satisfaction: The Science of Finding True Fulfillment,” sums it up. He concluded that “humans need a challenge –a REALLY DIFFICULT CHALLENGE – to reach a brain state that creates the feeling of complete happiness.” Well, I can personally attest that I am never quite as happy as I am when jumping fences.
So maybe that’s it, or perhaps I will never really be quite sure of the answer. All I know is that after watching the Grand Prix competition at the 2010 Fidelity Classic Horse Show, I decided that I wanted to do “that,” too. Since then I have been off and running in my Quest and loving every minute of it. For what I have found is that the fun is in the getting there, it’s the journey, it’s the “ride.”
Quest for the Prix is dedicated to my two children, Nicole (10) and Bobby (13), and to my horse KEC Jaliska (7).
Anything is possible, if you believe.
Do you think my Quest is too grand? Post your comments at www.questfortheprix.com ,Facebook or Twitter.
Contact: victoria@questfortheprix.com
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