Photo courtesy of Mike Burnett
From Hannah:
It’s hard for me to describe the week we had in Guadalajara, Mexico. I’m tentative to write this blog because I don’t want to botch how amazing the week was.
First, I have to say that without our amazing support staff, in Mexico and at our homes in the US, there is no doubt that we wouldn’t have been successful without our supporters. We had a goal–to bring home team gold–and everyone pulled together to achieve it. It was truly remarkable to be apart of and I am so thankful to say I was a small part of the puzzle. Jim Wolf, Captain Phillips, Sara Ike, Dougie Hannum, Joanie Morris, Brendan Furlong, Steve Teachman, Angie Cooney: you all made this trip possible and made it so easy for us to be able to focus on our jobs. Between the wonderful care of the grooms, horses and equipment, YOU ALL made the gold possible and I can’t thank you enough. I’ve never been able to completely focus on my riding like I did that week and I owe it to you and the grooms.
All of the grooms were amazing that week, but obviously one stands out in my mind the most…Sara McKenna. I give Sara the credit for mine and William’s seamless weekend in Mexico. I never had to worry about anything but riding to the best of my ability. Having someone that not only does their job perfectly and also takes extra care of the “baby athlete” (whom I might add is probably the most unorganized creature on the planet…) while also believing in me and supporting me no matter what gives an incredible amount of confidence. Sara did that for me and I’ll never forget it.
William was a great competitor in Guadalajara. As always, I could count on him to do his best and he did his job. I’m so blessed to be apart of this horse’s life and I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I cannot believe how far he has come. Being a homebred of Ms. Mars and going all the way through the levels with David to getting a gold and silver medal at the Pan American Games really shows the quality of the breeding and training program that Ms. Mars and the O’Connors have. I’m honored to be apart of it and so thankful to be able to ride for them. Karen and David truly made my riding and my career what it is today.
Most importantly, I have to thank God for giving me these talents and the family, friends and opportunities to fulfill my dreams. Without Him, I am nothing. I don’t say it enough, but there’s no denying it. I am also so thankful for my family who is always patiently waiting on the sidelines. I’m not a very emotional person but I’ll never forget jumping my final round clear and running up into the stands to hug my mom, dad and grandmother. We all burst into tears and it was a really special moment that I’ll always hold dear.
Lastly, I’d like to thank all my friends. You are the reason I still ride. Whenever times get tough or I get discouraged, you are all there to pick me up and get me going again. I have an amazing group of friends and I love you all. I can’t wait to cheer you on and support you the way you’ve supported me.
I’m going to get a tissue now…thanks again for the support 🙂
-HSB
