My name is Vivian Ripley and I wanted to share my riding story. I had my very first ride with Amy when I was 4 years old and I had decided that horseback riding was my thing! Over the last 12 years I’ve been taking lessons with Amy and all her amazing horses; I began teaching lessons just about two years ago. My very first horse was one of Amy’s and she is always the best matchmaker. Two years ago, while I was on the search for my next horse, Amy was generous enough to trust me with one of her top cowboy dressage horses, Warrior.
Warrior has been an excellent teammate for me and we love to barrel race together. For the longest time I couldn’t pick which discipline I wanted to pursue, but when I felt the power and passion of the horse beneath me I knew that was what we were going to do. We are both 16 years old and you would never be able to tell his age because of his loving and quirky personality.
Amy has always been my biggest inspiration and one day I hope to take everything I’ve learned from her and make horses feel better. Currently, I am a junior in high school and my goal has always been to ride for the MSU Rodeo Team. I plan to study equine science and do chiropractor and massage work on horses. Something that I learned from Amy is that horses are always trying to tell you something. They are so commonly misunderstood and Amy has inspired me to listen to them and make them feel and perform to the best of their abilities.
One of my favorite things about horses are the bonds you can build and just how much they can teach you, and that is why I love teaching lessons. Seeing these riders of any age build a bond with a horse and improve as riders just fills me with so much joy! Everyone deserves to know just how magnificent these creatures are. The lesson program at Cedar Ridge has been going on for many years and I love being able to bring everything I’ve learned from Amy to all generations!
Amy and the horse community have become such a huge part of my life and I would call Amy my second mother! This part of my life has been very fulfilling and I owe Amy, the horses and the Cedar Ridge community much gratitude.
