Ponies.

Ponies. Let’s talk about Ponies.

To the outside world they are seen as small and manageable mounts for youth. To the equestrian they are seen as squirrelly devils who have minds of their own and run amok. But in reality, ponies are everything both parties believe.

Ponies are highly concentrated horses.

They take everything and reduce it down to a small package: more nimble, more intelligent, more durable, more unforgiving, more exacting, more hardy, more authority and leadership…. All wrapped up in a small physically more manageable and mentally more potent package.

But what that makes ponies are a fantastic education for those small enough to ride them. Ponies epitomize the real world and all of the struggles and triumphs that come with living life. Ponies of the definition of the idea that without the chance of failure, there is no chance of success.

With ponies, you learn how to struggle with an athletic animal who shows you that the other teammate in your team can have an opinion that differs from yours.

With ponies even the smallest shift in your balance can take you away from the middle of the saddle leaving you precarious if they stop and turn on a dime. You learn to develop better and more accurate physical coordination.

Ponies also teach you that just because someone is small and stature does not mean that they cannot be leaders, the boss. That rank has nothing to do with the size and build of your body but the fortitude of your conviction.

I never grew up on ponies. Even as a kid, I was really tall and there weren’t many ponies at the barn to go around so I always had the tall horse. I missed my pony era.

But as a result, I am so grateful to the ponies in our barn for giving children, and those of small stature the ability to experience all of these life lesson lessons that ponies have to offer.

Photo of Gabi Stewart on Smudge at the 2025 Hector Half Hundred endurance ride at mile 20 of their 30 mile endurance adventure.

Photo taken by Kelsey Eliot of @k.eliot.photo