I grew up in Salinas, California—home of the “California Rodeo” way back when.   I have always loved horses.  In fact, my single claim to fame is having sat upon “Rowdy Yates’s lap” at the advanced age of 4 and having eaten his orange sherbet  (because Mr. Favor didn’t like children) at an Elks Club luncheon where my mom was a waitress.   Not long after that, I left and got locked out of the building in search of their horses which were not to be found.  I believe they lied to me!  The first true love of my life was a Shetland Pony named Cindy a black-coated she-devil that no one else wanted to ride, so I didn’t have to share and that suited me just fine.  I suppose it was that first critical relationship with Cindy that cemented my bond to mares—those most tempestuous of steeds of which I now have two, Addie and Stormy, both Registered Half-Arabs.

In any event, I had a long childhood playing Cowboys and Indians in the hills, chasing the neighbor’s cattle, and participating in 4-H.  My love affair with horses has lasted a lifetime and at this point when I’m too old to ride, I think I’ll just switch to teeny tiny miniature horses and keep them around for company.  Who knows?  Maybe one will be my service animal!

 Family-wise, I’m a single mom blessed with the two greatest kids on earth—son Colton “Colt” circa 1993 and daughter Savanna circa 1995.  I love them to pieces in spite of the fact that they don’t much care for horses.  “Friends, Romans, and Countrymen, lend me your children… and I will effectively put them off horses!”  Oops!  Oh well.  A little too much enthusiasm from Mom, I guess.

 Anyway, I’m the Resident-Newbie-Drill-Gal-In-Training or the “RNDGIT” as I tend to think of myself.   I’m also the Water Gal which suits me just fine.  There’s a lot to learn in Drill and I’m soaking it up as fast as I can while preparing my Stormy Gal (Addie was too cranky this year) for the rigors of Drill.  It is an absolute BLAST!  I kid you not—it’s like bumper cars on horseback sometimes and that’s pretty fun… though I highly suspect my teammates look forward to the day when we’re not bashing into them.  I absolutely love the camaraderie of the team.  A more wonderful and diverse group of women you will not find nor will you find a more dedicated Coach.  In all sincerity, discovering and becoming a part of the High Valley Riders Drill Team has been a dream come true for me and I’m looking forward to earning an actual riding position on the team.  Yee Haw!  Stay tuned to see how Stormy and I fare over the long haul!  Y’all come back now!

 Mary F