Geplaatst 
Het is in het engels (sorry als je niet zo goed in engels bent).
The following was sent in by a member. Apologies to the many male members (we know you do all this too!), but I think it will strike a cord with some of the female membership.
I ride........That seems like such a simple statement. However as many women who ride know it is really a complicated matter. It has to do with power and empowerment. Being able to do things you might have once considered out of reach and ability. I have considered this, as I shovel manure, fill water troughs in the sun, rain and cold, wait for the vet, farrier or hay delivery, change the tyre on a horse float by the side of the freeway, or cool a horse down before getting down to the business of a long cool drink after a long ride. The time, the effort, the money it takes to ride calls for dedication. At least I call it dedication. My husband calls it "the sickness". It's a sickness I've had since I was a small girl, bouncing my model horses and dreaming of the day I would ride a real horse. Most of the women I ride with understand the meaning of " The Sickness" . It's not a sport, it's not a hobby. It's what we do, and, in some ways who we are as women and human beings.
I ride......... I hook up my float and load my horse. I travel to some trail somewhere, unload, saddle up, whistle for my dog and, I ride. I breathe in the air, watch the sunlight filter through the trees and savour the movement of my horse. My shoulders relax. A smile rides my sunscreen smeared face, I pull my cap down and let the real world fade into the tracks my horse leaves in the dust. Time slows. Flying insects buzz loudly. My horse flicks her ears and moves down the trail. I can smell her sweat and it is perfume to my senses. Time slows. The rhythm of the walk and the movement of the leaves become my focus. My saddle creaks and the leather rein in my hand softens with the warmth. I consider the simple statement........I ride. I think of all I do because I ride. Climb sandstone slabs, wade into freezing lakes, race a friend through the gums all the while laughing and feeling my heart in my chest.. Other days just the act of mounting and dismounting can be a real accomplishment. Still I ride, no matter how tired or how much my seat bones or any of the numerous horse related injuries hurt.
I ride............ And I feel better for doing so. The beauty I've seen because I ride amazes me. I've ridden out to find lakes and dams that remain for the most part, unseen. Caves, dark and cold beside rivers full and rolling scenery I see in my dreams. I think of the people, mostly women, I've met. I consider how competent they all are. Not a woos amongst the bunch. We haul 12ft rigs, we back into tight spaces without clipping a tree. We set up camp. Tend the horses. We cook and keep safe. We understand and love our companions, the horse. We respect each other and those we encounter on the trail. We know that if you are out there riding, you also shovel, fill, wait and doctor. Your hands are a little rough, and you travel without make up or hair gel. You do without to afford "The sickness" and probably, when you were a small girl, you bounced a model horse while you dreamed of riding a real one.
Now you're there...........ride.
