MEET THE JUNIOR Emily LeDoux-Bloom

Hi, my name is Emily LeDoux-Bloom. I am 14 years old and have been riding endurance since 2003. I have completed 705 endurance and 60 LD miles as of November 1, 2006.

It seems like a long time ago when I was 11 years old and riding my first 50 at Cooley Ranch on my Morgan, Radar. I remember how excited I was when Ruth Waltenspiel announced that I was first junior and handed me that engraved silver cup. I was hooked! No more 10 meter circles for this kid.

So, my mom began to search for an Arabian for me. She found SJ Kerensky, who we call Kosmos and a million other pet names. Kosmos was just a little too much horse for me, so I stole my mom's horse Baskn Endahsun (Sunman) and she rode Kosmos for the past two years. This year, Kosmos and I are partners and have completed five out of five 50 milers with three first junior awards. One award was an embroidered horse blanket that we won at Washoe.

I am planning to do my first 100 miler soon. Kosmos completed his first 100 last year at Arabian Nights.

People ask me if I am horse crazy and I don't know if I am or not. I got my first pony Snoopy when I was 6 years old, so horses and riding have been a big part of my life and I don't really know life without them. I started showing English when I was 6, but shows became very boring compared to riding up and down hills, camping out with all of your friends, and seeing new places. I love to travel.

I do know that I had two great jobs leading trail rides and conditioning horses for other people because I ride endurance. This made me some nice money this summer. I do know that animals are a big part of my life. I am pretty sure that I will pursue a career as a veterinarian and plan to practice on both large and small animals. Maybe I'll even vet Tevis or international rides some day.

I have ridden four different horses over my 705 miles. Last year at Chamberlain Creek, my horse didn't vet in. So my mom borrowed a horse from Lari Shea. Riding a horse you meet the night before a ride can be an exciting thing. Voltair is an experienced trek horse, but we did his first 50 together. I had to watch for changes in his attitude very carefully because I did not know what was normal for him. I was very proud to finish the ride with all A's.

Being sponsored my someone other than your mom can be another exciting thing. I am lucky that Abe and Sharon Kirkpatrick, Forrest Tancer, and Cynthia Ariosta have sponsored me when my mom broke her ribs or was starting Hank, her new horse.

There are a lot of things that juniors can do to help their sponsors. The most important is to know what is normal behavior for your horse because the sponsor may not know your horse. Another thing is to have a ride plan that your sponsor and you agree on. A good plan includes pacing, when to electrolyte or not, keeping track of EDPP [eating, drinking, peeing and pooping], and being open to changing the plan if you have to. Having songs that you both can sing really helps on the long down and up hills. No oldies, please.

I think that endurance riding is something that makes anyone a better person. I have trouble sometimes fitting in conditioning and going to rides around my homework, playing volleyball and basketball, and singing in three choirs. This has made me realize my priorities and make hard choices and sacrifices. I know that this kind of discipline will help me get where I want to be in the future.

Some of my friends think I am crazy to pay money to ride 50 miles for fun. I think they are crazy because they won't!

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