I AM US EQUESTRIAN
“I Do This Sport for What I Win Inside”
by Zoie Brogdon
I have a passion for leaping barriers, gaining ground in record time, and doing so with poise and with grace. Not just because I’m a competitive equestrian, but because that’s how I aspire to live my life. Life is about pushing beyond your comfort zone into new worlds. Worlds you’ve never entered. Worlds some try to push you out of. Conquering new worlds, in order to conquer the world within. You have to have the courage to be the very first or be one of the very few. It’s about pioneering new ground. As an African-American young woman, that is not only my right, it is a cultural directive. A directive to innovate and to demonstrate excellence at every turn. My mother says, “Meet your obstacles with grit, but also with grace and poise and a persevering faith whenever faced with defeat.” Life is not about never falling down; it’s about the determination to get “back in the saddle.” So that’s what I do. I fall down. I fail forward. I get back in the saddle—and I win. Because I no longer compete just for the ribbons, but rather to gain ground in the world, and to gain ground within. This is why I ride. This is why I am an equestrian.
44 SPRING ISSUE 2022
PHOTO: COURTESY OF MUIRNEEN EQUESTRIAN PHOTO: SARA SHIER PHOTOGRAPHY
Zoie Brogdon’s equestrian life has taken her from summer camp, to Compton Jr. Posse Youth Equestrian Program in California, to top scores in the jumper ring. But she says her riding is about much more than that.
