2025-2026 Riding Season Quotes & Challenges
Week 1 • September 7-13
“Release is when we take the pressure off. RELIEF is when the horse feels it.”
— Dr. Stephen Peters
Challenge: How much relief can you supply to your horse this week?
Week 2 • September 14-20
“Harmony isn’t about perfection anyway. It’s about a synchronized coming
together of a common goal.”
— Mark Rashid
Challenge: Where is the harmony in your life this week?
Week 3 • September 21-27
“Getting a horse “free” is a state of mind not a speed or a gait.”
— Nick Dowers
Challenge: Where can we find freedom in our horse and in our lives this week?
Week 4 • September 28 - October 4
“The closer you can release on a thought the more impact it will have on your horse.”
— Nick Dowers
Challenge: Be mindful of the impact you have on your horse this week.
Week 5 • October 5-11
“Find the try, direct the effort and reward and let it soak.”
— Nick Dowers
Challenge: Where in your life do you need to let it soak?
Week 6 • October 12-18
“If you’re only a student of “technique”, then the options become very limited, but if you’re a student of the horse, the options are unlimited.”
— Mark Rashid
Challenge: What are you a student of this week?
Week 7 • October 19-25
“Whoever controls the distance, controls the situation.”
— Mark Rashid
Challenge: Pay attention to your situations this week.
Week 8 • October 26 - November 1st
“Trust is not built in big, sweeping moments. It’s built in tiny moments every day.”
— Brene Brown
Challenge: Where are you building trust this week?
Week 9 • November 2-8th
“When we only practice the things we are good at and stay away from the things that are hard, the things that are hard never get easier.”
— Mark Rashid
Challenge: What difficult things can you practice this week?
Week 10 • November 9-15
“When a belief becomes stagnant, growth is not possible.”
— Mark Rashid
Challenge: Examine your beliefs this week.
Week 11 • November 16-22
“Because of the horse…I have learned the quieter you become the more you can hear.”
— Vicki Tait
Challenge: Spend some quiet time contemplating this week.
Week 12 • November 23-29
“Like a murmuration of birds, when we move with awareness, we create beauty without trying.”
— John O’Donohue
Challenge: How can we find awareness this week?
Week 20 • Jan 18-24
“When you hold space for horses to shine in their wisdom and gifts, it’s transformative not just for them, but for us.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: Be still this week and listen for wisdom.
Week 21 • January 25-31
“The most valuable thing I can offer the horse is mindful stillness.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: What’s the most valuable thing your horse is offering you this week?
Week22 • February 1-7
“What comes easy won’t last. What lasts won’t come easy.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: What’s lasting for you this year?
Week 23 • February 8-14
“How you do anything is how you do everything. Do your best at whatever you’re doing.”
— Vicki Tait
Challenge: Be aware of how you’re doing the little things this week.
Week 24 • February 15-21
“It’s not about perfection, it’s about progress. Acknowledge the small changes when they start to happen.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: Be aware this week of the small changes that are happening within you.
Week 25 • February 22-28
“Humility is the foundation of everything. To know yourself is a sacred part of creation.”
—One Drum - Richard Wagamese
Challenge: Find the wisdom for discovering hidden parts of yourself this week.
Week 26 • March 1-7
“Your feel and timing is like a heartbeat. It never stops. It’s always on the move.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: Be still and tune into your timing and feel this week.
Week 27 • March 8-14
“Harmony cannot coexist with exclusion. Harmony is the energy that heals.”
— One Drum, Richard Wagamese
Challenge: Find the wisdom in harmony this week.
Week 28 • March 15-21
“When your soul sees it’s shadow it fears the journey but remember your shadow only appears because of the light.”
— Rumi
Challenge: Be still this week and sit with your shadow.
Week 29 • March 22-28
“The horse has allowed me the space to heal the things inside of me that I didn’t know were broken.”
— Jim Hicks
Challenge: Explore the possibilities of healing something inside you this week.
Week 30 • March 29 - April 4
“Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would have preferred to talk.”
— Doug Larson
Challenge: Be still and listen this week.
Week 31 • April 12-18
“Gratitude is the gateway to abundance. Play is the pathway to freedom.”
— Lewis Howes