By Jeremy Smith
“You try being the one to keep her home if she’s ever sick,” mum Margaret says.
Cambridge Riding for the Disabled (RDA) is preparing to mark its 40th anniversary in October and the organisation’s longest-standing rider – Theresa Rippey – has made her intentions clear.
“I’ll never give up horse riding, I love it.”
Having ridden there for all but four years of the organisation’s four-decade history, she’s not going anywhere.
Formed in 1983, Cambridge RDA’s first home was the Leamington Pony Club grounds.
Theresa began riding at RDA just four years later, aged seven.
Those riding sessions were held fortnightly on Saturdays in Hannon Rd and Theresa went along because – Margaret says – her daughter initially caught the riding bug two years prior, when she first jumped into a saddle.
There’s been no stopping Theresa since.
“I never miss a day and I love all the horses. Magic is my favourite at the moment,” Theresa says.
Theresa, who works at Achievement House, is quick to add she treasures the special bond she has developed with the many horses she has ridden over the years – even keeping a list of their names.
“Theresa’s become friends with so many amazing people in our time here,” Margaret said. “This is her happy place and I’m really grateful to everyone who’s played a part in her riding story.”
Acknowledgement
This story was first published in Cambridge News on August 24, 2023, and is reproduced with the publisher’s permission.
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He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata! He tāngata! He tāngata!
What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people! It is the people! It is the people!
