My name is Chelsy Tuplin, and I have a Learning disability and I am in my 20s. I started riding at Cowichan Therapeutic Riding in 2005 when I was 5 or 6 years old.  I had never ridden before but when I first met my riding coach Lisa Pink and her pony for the first time, I was super nervous. It took me a couple of times but when I got on Coco, he was a brown and white pinto.  He had a big personality, and I was happy riding. Now I have been doing different riding programs in my riding career one program started in 2016 which was the Vaulting program. The Vaulting we used Leo, Grady, Kegan and we did it for three years. My level in Vaulting is walk trot this year.

I started to volunteer when I was about 14 years old. I learn a lot about horses and what they need and how everything is tailored to the horses at riding. Cowichan Therapeutic Riding is my second home. I feel like it is my happy place. one of my favorite times was that I was volunteering, and it was a hot day. I was cleaning the stall and one of the volunteers came up to me with a halter in hand and asked me if I could catch the escapee none other than Smokey our lovely Quarter Horse. I went to find Smokey and there he was in pasture 12 the grass area where he was having a blast. I went into the pasture, and he was not happy to see me. It took about five minutes to catch him and then I got close to him, put on his halter and away we went. Smokey was so angry at me that I put him back in his normal pasture. I told the barn staff and they never laughed so hard, and I had a good laugh too. 

This year I had amazing opportunities with Cowichan Therapeutic Riding. I got to ride in a clinic Para Dressage and Clive Milkins, he is a very famous coach. I rode on Josefa, and it was amazing because my riding coach Lisa Pink rode with me and I felt so nervous and Wendy, who is a volunteer, helped me.

I made Josefa trot around the riding ring. I was so proud of myself, and Clive Milkins said that I did very well in the clinic. At the very end of the ride Yilden spooked and poor Josefa was going to bolt but I gained control in the nick of time in front of lot of people who saw it all go down I on the other hand didn’t breathe. 

 I can’t remember the exact year, but I did a speech for One Hundred Woman Association, but I was super nervous, but the speech went well I was very proud of myself. I have been in the newspaper for their 30 years anniversary on the front page when Ember the pony I rode was nine years old and I was ten-year-old in that photo. 

Cowichan Therapeutic Riding has given me a lot of confidence in myself and over the years I made good friends at riding. When I am riding, I feel like I don’t have to worry about my workday or what happens at home. I can come to ride and leave problems at the barn door and the horses help me solve everything. Horses are amazing they know when you have a bad day or even a week, they try to help you as best as they can.

Horses teach you amazing things in life and I treasure every valued lesson that the horses give me big or small they always know how you feel. I still have lot to learn about horses, but I am just happy that I can work with horses and that I will always keep that close to my heart.