Why do I ride? I ride to prove the power of love over loss and triumph over tragedy. My husband, Mike, bought his 1st horse when he was 46 years old. I was competing in endurance riding and he wanted to join me in the sport that I had grown to love. He had never ridden before but he took it on with enthusiasm and a strong drive to succeed. And his new horse was only green broke. 4 1/2 years later they won the American Endurance Ride Conference National 50-mile Heavyweight Championship and earned the prestigious Best Condition Award! Tragically 11 days later Mike died in his sleep. What followed for our 6-year-old son and I was complete despair. The horse also fell into an obvious depression. Somehow this horse knew that his partner was gone. After some soul-searching, I thought that riding him might provide healing for both of us and for my son too. I decided to compete with Mike’s horse. 3 weeks after Mike passed away, I won the final race of the season riding the horse that he loved so much. Unintentionally, I had started a bucket list for Mike. In 2007, I set out to accomplish his goal of competing in a 100 mile ride with his horse. That year, I finished 3- 100-mile races, with 2 top-ten finishes. In 2008, I returned to the National Championship to ride the 100-mile distance. We finished in 4th place out of 45 starts. There was only 1 big item left on the list…the Tevis Cup. The Tevis is the oldest endurance race in the U.S. and considered to be the toughest course in the country. This ride runs over the Sierra’s from Nevada to California. I had to ask a friend to ride for me due to my fear of heights. I knew that she and our horse were capable of a lot in this infamous ride, but the outcome was better than expected. On August 1, 2010, this team earned the first win ever by a Southeastern horse in the 54-year history of the ride. We were sure that Mike was there with us that day. And so I ride. I ride to celebrate life.