Our Featured Adult Rider of the Month is Ellie Langston!
Posting our weekly features is always a pleasant reminder of how truly special our Lancer community is and how fortunate we are to have wonderful people join us. In an uncertain world, we appreciate the slice of positivity that these interviews bring. Ellie Langston joined Lancers in the autumn of 2019 but it feels like she has been a Lancer for so much longer and immediately embodied the Lancer spirit.
Ellie has been riding on and off since the age of five and started at her aunt’s farm in England. After several years out of the saddle, Ellie wanted to get back into riding. She explained, “I always loved seeing the horses when I took my dog for walks outside the barn, and watching people ride made me miss riding and being a part of a barn community. I was also looking for a way to get some exercise after quitting soccer”. She joined our waitlist and nearly a year ago, was able to join our A4 Monday adult ride.
In a short time, as Ellie described, Lancers has had a really positive impact on her life. “I love being able to go to school at Dal and ride at the same time”, she explained. “It’s a good way to exercise and being around the horses is a really good way to de-stress after a busy day at school. Lancers has helped me settle into living in Halifax after moving here from PEI because everyone is so welcoming and pleasant to be around”.
Ellie jumped right into Lancer life and within a few short weeks of being a Lancer, she had already volunteered at our Fall Open House and became a trusty volunteer with the therapeutic riding program. She is very community-minded and we appreciate all that she gives. Ellie hopes that in the future, she can become more involved with life at the barn such as therapeutic riding and other volunteer opportunities. She also wants to keep taking private lessons to improve her riding so that she can get back to competing and jumping like she did when she was much younger.
Ellie’s positive attitude certainly rolls over into her riding and her favourite horse is Chevy. She described, “he’s such a big teddy bear and some of his quirks make him fun to ride. Lola is a close second!” She also noted that one of her favourite memories at Lancers was watching the Musical Ride at the fall Open House. She added, “it was so entertaining, and seeing how skilled all of the riders were made me want to improve my riding. It was a really fun day!”
We are very fortunate to have Ellie as a Lancer. When COVID-19 landed upon us in March, Ellie returned to PEI and sadly for us, has not yet been able to return to Lancers. That she still remains an engaged member who carries the genuine Lancer spirit with her is a testament to her wonderful nature which makes all those around her feel instantly welcomed. We look forward to the day when we can see her again, trotting around on Chevy, but until then, we will continue to count our lucky stars that she has become a Lancer with excitement for all that she will bring to our community.
