Author Archives: RHD Ainsley

Sympathy Pains: My Stint on Stall Rest [Part 1 of 2]

stall rest sucks

It’s been a almost a year since I’ve updated about my and JJ’s progress, and there’s a good reason for that – in a bizarre twist of fate, I wound up being put on stall rest, too. Because of lawyers and litigation, I haven’t been able to talk publicly about anything that’s been happening, but […]

Getting to the USEA AEC, Plan B

Ride Heels Down vendor booth at the USEA AEC

When JJ and I first started eventing together in 2014, I wasn’t sure where the partnership would take us. When it was announced that the 2016 United States Eventing Association’s American Eventing Championships would be held less than three hours away from me at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in North Carolina, though, I decided […]

Everything Hurts and I’m Dying

No Stirrup November

And the award for “shortest amount of time it takes to fall off during #NoStirrupsNovember” goes to… me!! I didn’t even last 30 seconds. Here’s the story: Ah, November 1st. It’s a time to enjoy crisp fall days, fun seasonal flavors (yes, I’ll jump on the pumpkin spice bandwagon… no shame here!) and riding without […]

Cool Horse Jobs: Q&A With Ainsley Jacobs, Equestrian Apparel Entrepreneur

Ride Heels Down vendor booth

REPUBLISHED FROM OUR FRIENDS AT HORSE NATION. In our “Cool Horse Jobs” series, we chat with professionals from all facets of the horse industry. Today, we’re speaking with Ainsley Jacobs, founder and owner of Ride Heels Down equestrian apparel company. You may recognize Ainsley’s name from our “Lessons Learned” blog column — every other Tuesday, […]

Cranky? Or Communicative?

equestrian communication

In my 20+ years of riding, I’ve thrown my leg over hundreds of horses. Many have been lesson horses, and while most were happy to cart me around without a care in the world, there have been some that were flat out opinionated, obstinate, and ornery. Who can blame them? Lesson horses, are, essentially, the […]

Walking the Road to Recovery

JJ Spot

“That’s a sound horse.” – Dr. Dan Carter Good news, friends! JJ has been cleared by our vet to start rehab! :D After he came up lame at an event in April, JJ was diagnosed with a collateral ligament injury and put on stall rest for several months. (Fun fact: in the six months that […]

Four Yoga Poses to Help You “Ride Heels Down”

yoga for equestrians

REPUBLISHED FROM OUR FRIENDS AT SIMINA YOGA. LEARN MORE ABOUT EQUIFIT AT: siminayoga.com/yoga-for-equestrians/ Mantras aren’t only popular among yogis; we horseback riders have a few of our own! “Heels down, legs on,” we hear over and over again, so much so that long after the riding lesson has ended the “Heels down, legs on” refrain […]