Lily’s Journey: From Horse Lab Student to Sought-After Horseman

I first heard about UMA from my neighbor. She had done competitive show jumping with Monica years before and they reconnected years later. I had been riding my neighbor’s horses for a little over two years and then at 13 years old, in December 2022, I became a part of the UMA family. 

The horse I learned the most from…

After a few lessons, I was given the opportunity to ride Quarter Horse Esmeralda “Esme” and I fell in love with her. Monica got her shortly before I became a part of UMA. Monica didn’t start Esme’s training and got her much later in Esme’s life. When I first met her, she was a 12 year old wiggily, semi-responsive, head-up-brain-off mare who had a poor start. With Monica’s incredible guidance, Esme and I learned how to be partners together. Monica taught me how to be “brave and bold” even with the runaway freight train that Esme was in the beginning. This horse taught me more than I have ever or will ever learn behind a desk. Behind her ears I have learned patience, dedication, self- discipline, perseverance, and much more. 

My major accomplishments at UMA

I started showing Esme in April 2023. It was both our first official show, so we were figuring it out together. It was a gymkhana show and we did pretty well with a high point in future champion.

Then in September 2023 I got to be a part of the Arroyo Grande Harvest Festival Parade with UMA and then another parade in December 2023.

In May 2024 I tried out to be a sponsor flag carrier for the Elks Rodeo and I made the team! With Monica’s coaching, in June 2024 I got the unbelievable opportunity to ride in the 81st annual 2024 Elks Rodeo as a flag sponsor rider. This was an amazing accomplishment for both Esme and me, we came so far to get there and I am eternally grateful for the generosity that Monica showed me and how she believed in me.  

Later that June I got to do another gymkhana show and Esme and I showed a lot of improvement. It was really cool to compare the show in 2023 and the 2024 show more than a year later to really recognize how far we had come.

I will never forget Esme

Esme taught me how much you could truly love a horse and I will forever be grateful for all of our ups and downs, bad days, good days, wins, and losses. This horse will hold a special place in my heart and I will never forget how much we learned together. I will cherish all of the special moments and memories I have with this horse, especially all of our adventurous trail rides. 

What I learned at UMA

At UMA, Monica teaches people how to be a partner to the horse and not be a rider that takes “control” or only rides the horse as a passenger. She values the importance of being an effective horse handler that works with the nature of the horse and not against it.

I learned about what a horse is and why they do the things they do. I learned all about equipment and how we use it, why we use it, and how to use it effectively. I also learned that every time you interact with a horse you are teaching it something, even if it is not desirable. Everything is a teaching moment and not a lot of people realize this. 

Horse Lab and the UMA Community

Throughout my time at UMA I participated in horse lab. Horse lab was an amazing opportunity which led me to have many many hours of time to practice my skills and gain so much confidence. These hours helped my confidence grow as a rider and horse handler. I got to deal with multiple horses daily and my confidence on all different horses skyrocketed.

UMA has an amazing community of people who are always pushing each other to be brave and bold. At UMA I met my best friend. She and I would push each other out of our comfort zones. Many days of jumping bareback, double riding, sidesaddle, galloping up and down the beach, tackless riding, bridle-less, roping dummies standing up, jumping hay bales, vaulting, and many more things. We had so much fun and doing these things built our confidence as riders and we both wouldn’t be the riders that we are today without UMA. Even though she isn’t taking lessons anymore at UMA, she is still apart of the family and I can’t wait to see where her job takes her and where our friendship goes. The community at UMA is so awesome and it really helps riders build confidence while learning and applying horse handling science.