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New Territory: Shooting & Riding

by William :: Wednesday May 18, 2005

Before coming to Thacher, I had never been closer to a gun than 10 feet, much less ever actually shot one. So when I heard that there was going to be trap shooting one weekend last fall, I jumped at the chance to try it. That sunny Sunday afternoon, I went up to the trap range. It was comforting to see two of my Senior Prefects there, as well as other people I knew. Because there were many of us who had never shot before, the instructor started with a clinic that introduced us to the basics of sighting and timing. After completing this crash course, I began to shoot. That first time I was able to shoot 8 out of 25. Because I have shot trap every weekend it has been offered, I have become much better at handling a firearm than I ever thought possible—and I’ve been able to raise my score to 22.

Such has also been my experience with the Horse Program. Before Thacher, I had never really been on a horse or been around horses, and I was none too comfortable with them. But by the second week of school last fall, I finally became fully aware of the actuality of horses, mostly through my own horse, ED. Now, having ridden trails and raced on the gymkhana field for several months, I’m no longer frightened of these animals, and I’ve learned to accept them as they are. Before this experience, I had never had any “life and death” responsibilities, but caring for ED, has really opened my eyes to actual responsibility. Even though I have become comfortable around horses, I have tried to never lose sight of the fact that they are large and not always completely predictable. Still, I have always felt safe, because of the superb direction that the Horse Faculty gives. For instance, I was having trouble making my horse canter correctly, but after working with one of the instructors, I was soon able to remedy this.

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