 |
| Image courtesy of Julie McKevitt |
Firsts by J.Q. Rose
Thank you for joining me today. Have you ever tried to do something new? Do you remember the first time you tried to dive from a diving board? Ran your first race? Made your first breakfast for your mom on Mother's Day? Rode your bike without training wheels? Read your first book chapter book?
In Girls Succeed! Stories Behind the Careers of Successful Women, there are ladies in
the book who have accomplished firsts in their careers.
Olympics gold medalist Angela Ruggiero is the first female
to play in a professional men’s ice hockey game and through the years she and
her Team USA won first places in national, international cup, and Olympics
games.
Horse woman Pati Pierucci received first place in dressage
competitions at the Gran Prix level, the elite level of competition.
Cycle racer Mackenzie Woodring won first place in road
racing competitions. In 2012 she garnered a gold medal for the 2012 Women’s
Pro State Champion at USA Cycling’s Road Race in Michigan. She also won gold
medals as the pilot for her blind partner, Karissa Whitsell, in the 2008 Paralympics
games in Beijing, China, riding a high tech bicycle for two. They are currently
the world record holders for the Paralympics three kilometer pursuit race. And in 2012 she was the Women’s Team USA Paralympics Gold Medal Winner with
partner Kara Vatthauer.
Professional clown Brenda Marshall’s career includes firsts.
She was the first woman president of the Clowns of America International and
the leader of the first People to People International Clown Delegation to
China.
Educator Barbara “Chili” Chiles was the first Athletic
Director for both boys and girls in Illinois.
I could go on and on with all the things each woman has
accomplished in her career, but I believe the path they took to finding success
is the most compelling reading.
I have included an excerpt from (where else?) the first chapter about Pati
Pierucci, horse trainer, teacher, and dressage competitor. It’s also a wink and a nod
to the first novel I wrote in seventh grade about a horse. My grandmother took
all those hand-written pages and typed them up for me. When I saw the manuscript
in that form, I knew I wanted to be a writer. Well, it’s taken a few years, but I’m living
my dream now.
EXCERPT
“Go confidently in the direction of your
dreams.
Live the life you have imagined.”
--Henry
David Thoreau
PATI PIERUCCI
HORSE TRAINER AND COMPETITIVE RIDER
True Love
For Pati Pierucci, it’s all about
the horses. She says, “They make me
smile inside and out. I love spending
time alone with them.”
Pati loves the horses today just
as deeply as she did at seven years old.
They are not just a job. They are her pets and friends. They are her passion.
When the big pearl white stallion,
Idilio, gently neighs when Pati walks by his stall, she drops everything to
spend time with him. Idilio is a
powerful Pure Spanish Horse. In Spanish the breed is called Pure Raza Espanol
or PRE. Pati and Idilio have introduced this breed successfully into
competition in the United
States.
Growing up on horse farms in Kentucky
and New Jersey, Pati was around horses all the time. At the age of fifteen Pati was caring for and
feeding other people’s horses. Later, at Barclay Farms in New Jersey, Pati galloped their race horses
every morning. As head instructor, she
gave riding lessons at the farm. Her interest in horses and farm operations led
her to major in Equine Studies in Overall Farm Administration and Breeding at
Harcum Junior College in New Jersey.
Pati successfully worked at farms in New Jersey and in Virginia.
She became serious about “dressage”
when she rode and trained her mother-in-law’s quarter horse, Sage’s Spy Song. Dressage
is a French word that means training.
The rider guides the horse through a series of intricate moves by using
the rider's hands, legs, and weight. The horse and rider seem to become one
moving from one task to another flawlessly.
There is beauty and grace in the dressage movements performed by the
horse and rider. Many people compare the
competition to watching figure skating, ballet, or gymnastics. Teaching Sage the movements was a challenge
because the horse had one leg shorter than the other!
Pati learned the levels of movement in dressage
from talented teachers. She practiced and worked hard to advance her skills for
competitions.
She remembers her first
performance at the Gran Prix level, one of the highest levels of
competition. She was excited and nervous
about the first presentation with her horse.
They would be performing under the lights in front of a crowd of 17,000
people. She wanted to be sure to warm up
just enough so that Idilio would be ready, but not tired. However, there was a delay. She tried to stay calm. She didn’t want to
get too anxious because her horse would pick up on her nervousness and make the
stallion uneasy. Finally after a twenty
minute delay, the pair began the dance.
Pati concentrated on the dressage
movements allowing Idilio to perform flawlessly. A few minutes into the presentation, she
realized she was so nervous that she couldn’t swallow. Saliva kept building up in her mouth, but she
could not swallow! Pati rode her horse
through all of the paces, yet she could not swallow. She began to think that at the end of the
performance she would be drooling.
After performing for six minutes,
she heard the crowd start clapping. The performance was over. Finally she could
swallow. Happily her nerves did not upset Idilio. He performed so well they
made it to the next round. She never
forgot that bit of panic at her first Gran Prix event. Now she experiences nerves before a routine,
but she calls them good nerves because they keep her sharp and ready to
perform.
Pati and her husband, Peter, work
together in their own business, Pierucci Dressage, located on a farm in
Virginia. Pati focuses on teaching lessons in dressage, coaching and training
horses. She is enjoying enormous success showing for client horses as well as
with students in dressage competition. She supervises a staff of highly qualified
people who help care for the horses.
Pati’s occupation allows her to
spend her days with her beloved horses and to have family with her even at
work. She can be with their children, Phoebe, Hannah, and Ramey at the farm and
include their four dogs and pet mouse, Georgina, in all the activities.
The day begins early on the farm
to turn the horses out of the barn and prepare stalls. Pati spends the entire morning riding each
horse for forty-five minutes teaching the horses the movements required to
perform in a dressage competition.
As the horse masters each movement Pati
teaches another maneuver which becomes more complex than the one before. The
rider and horse spend years working together in order to place well in the
competitions. Pati and Idilio performed at The Gran Prix and International
Levels where only the top horses and riders appear.
The afternoon on the farm is spent
on grooming, treatments, and teaching until the horses are fed and tucked back
into their stalls at 9:00 pm. This
routine is practiced six days a week by this dedicated horse woman and her
staff.
Because Pati worked hard and took
on increasing responsibilities for the horses, she is respected within the
horse trainers and performance circles. She embraced her passion for the
handsome animals and allowed it to take her to new heights in her business. The
life long fascination with horses continues for Pati as she develops her
business and looks forward to even more fun and enjoyment with the horses.
HIGHLIGHTS OF HER CAREER
Attended Harcum Junior College,
New Jersey, degree in Farm Administration and Breeding
Head instructor, Barclay Farms, New Jersey
Competed in Dressage Competition
at Gran Prix Level for over fifteen years
Head trainer and instructor at
Hampton Greens Farm, Michigan and Florida
FOR MORE INFORMATION
More about Dressage
The three basic gaits are walk,
trot, and canter.
Lateral means to move sideways.
Halfpass is a dressage movement
that is a highly trained lateral (meaning going sideways) movement.
Tempi Changes is when the horse is
cantering and changes his lead leg.
What firsts have you experienced. Leave a message below. I'd love to hear from you. Thank you!
Girls Succeed! is available at Amazon and all major online booksellers.
