Fifteen years together — an irreplaceable partnership

My Thoroughbred mare has been with me for fifteen years. I bought her as a four-year-old fresh off the track and we've competed through every level of eventing together. She's 19 now and retired to hacking and light schooling. The relationship we've built — the trust, the communication, the wordless understanding — is the most meaningful relationship of my riding life. Thoroughbreds give everything. The least you can do is give the same back.