Touching Down in Mexico

Posted by on Oct 14, 2011 in News | Comments Off on Touching Down in Mexico

Anyone who ever said the Pan American Games are “kind of a big deal” made the understatement of the century. It finally hit me that this was a huge deal when I stepped onto the tarmac on Monday after 16 hours of traveling to look up at a HUGE jet only to realize that this jet was the one that would take Ginger and me to the Pan Am games. Our three superbly hilarious Mexican pilots made the trip more than entertaining. Ursula Lange, my Puerto Rican teammate who will be riding in the dressage, and I got to ride in the cockpit for landing and take off. I was amazed just looking at the...

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Mexico Bound

Posted by on Oct 14, 2011 in News | Comments Off on Mexico Bound

When I was a little girl, I had my very first horse show at a local schooling hunter-jumper show. I remember when Laurel, my riding coach, asked me if I would like to go. I was giddy with excitement and couldn’t be more proud of myself. I rode a school horse named Little Sundance. The day before the show I brought home the barn’s tack that I would be using to be cleaned. My dad, who is one of my greatest supporters, was so excited that I was invited to show that he stayed up all night with me to clean my tack. We had no idea what we were doing, so we soaked all the leather in water and...

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Meet Lauren Billys

Posted by on Oct 14, 2011 in News | Comments Off on Meet Lauren Billys

I have had the awesome opportunity to blog for a major horse magazine called The Chronicle of the Horse.  My blogs will continue on their website, but I will put snipets from each blog with a link to continue you to the remainder of the article.  I hope you enjoy!   Hi. My name is Lauren Billys. I am 23 years old. I’ve been riding since the age of 8 and grew up falling in love with horses in boxer shorts, tennis shoes and half chaps. My best friends and I learned how to ride by trail riding, swimming down the river, and (my favorite) three-day eventing. My first horse, Ranger, came...

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A Weekend of Firsts

Posted by on Sep 28, 2011 in News | Comments Off on A Weekend of Firsts

As I mentioned last week, this past weekend was spent at the Twin Rivers Horse Trials in Paso Robles, California.  Upon arriving at the event, I was unusually anxious and nervous.  I really wanted to be sure that this was a positive and confidence building outing for Ginger and I so we could pack our things and prepare for Mexico the next two weeks without replaying the mental video of something not working out at our most recent show.  As I have mentioned probably countless times before, Ginger has been conditioned and is getting fitter than ever, which made for a different kind of...

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Change is the Spice of Life

Posted by on Sep 20, 2011 in News | Comments Off on Change is the Spice of Life

Although it has only been a month since I last wrote a blog entry, it feels as though so much time has gone by.  Many course-changing events have taken place and I am happy to say that I am more than satisfied with my current location.  On August 27th, The Road to the Pan American Games, a fundraising event to send Ginger and I to Mexico, took place.  After envisioning this event for the last six months and seeing it manifested into a reality was surreal.  It makes me realize that everything is coming together and falling into its proper place.  As I said the event was surreal for many...

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