My Ride

Welcome to our new blog, On Staff at Horse&Rider, where we'll be sharing our wacky and wonderful H&R adventures with you. Alana (you'll hear from her later) and I have many a horse enthusiast's dream job, working with some of the most talented professionals (human and horse alike) in the equine biz and getting to be part of a team (more like a family) that produces the industry's leading Western training, how-to, and advice mag. H&R has a legacy of excellence and is beloved by many devoted horse enthusiasts, so we don't take this privilege lightly. BUT, no matter how serious we take our jobs, we always manage to fit in plenty of fun and occasionally find ourselves in a few hairy (and usually hilarious) situations. We'll be happy to share those with you in the future (at the sake of our pride).

One of my responsibilities here at the mag is to respond to our reader mail. It's one of the parts of my job I love most. For the last year or so since I've been at the mag, our readers have generously shared their horse tales and lives with us. So, I'll return the gesture and share a bit about how I landed here at H&R.

Growing up in downtown Houston, Texas, my equine experience was limited to the imaginary horse worlds I created with my Grand Champion and Breyer model horses and the occasional vacation trail ride (above). But for some reason, my sister and I, concrete bound as we were, got bit by the horse bug. We begged long and loud enough to get our parents to take us to horseback riding lessons, and many of our favorite childhood memories were created at Steve Archer Quarter Horses in Richmond, Texas. (Read more about my experiences at Steve Archer at HorseandRider.com)

While I grew up riding hunter/jumper, I was introduced to western riding by my then boyfriend, now fiance, while attending Texas A&M University. I purchased my first horse, Stetson, (the red dun above), and many a college afternoon was spent with friends, meeting up after class and hitting the trails in the Texas heat. I graduated with a bachelors degree in English in 2006 and also received a masters degree in Agricultural Communications. My goal: to combine my love of writing with my life-long passion for horses.

I was eager for experience and during my graduate program, I packed my bags (and my horse, and my dog, AND my cat) and headed for Amarillo, TX where I interned for five months at the phenomenal American Quarter Horse Association (in front of the museum, above), writing for America's Horse and The American Quarter Horse Journal. I picked up loads of journalistic experience (and a little roping skills too) and broadened my recreational riding horizons by exploring the ever-burgeoning QH show world.

At the end of my internship, I tossed my hat in the ring for a spot at H&R as editorial coordinator, and was thrilled to land the spot. So once more, I packed up my crew and relocated, this time to north Dallas. The rest is history in the making. I continue to grow as a horse woman and a journalist thanks to my opportunities at H&R.

With that introduction out the way, we hope to continue to share glimpses of our wild ride at H&R. What would you like to know about life behind the scenes at H&R? What's it like produce a photo shoot? Is Clinton Anderson really that cute in person? (Yes!) Let us know, and we'll provide the scoop.