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March 20, 2007

On the Scene - Welcome Back to White Fences II

DressageDaily Amateur in Focus - Tacie Saltonstall - Battling Cancer With Dressage
By Lynndee Kemmet for DressageDaily.com

Diagnosis - Florida for the Cure!

Just how much riding matters to her was clearly evident last September when Saltonstall was first told she had breast cancer. Her first question to her doctor was, could she still go to Florida for the winter show season? She was given the green light to travel south provided she had doctors and a chemotherapy program in place in Florida. So she went to work getting her cancer care set up in Florida and then packed up her horse, Alten Gold, and headed south.

Known around the barn as Bennie, Alten Gold is a 15-year-old International Sport Horse, originally from Canada, whose previous rider was Courtney King. Saltonstall’s trainer, Pam Goodrich, found the horse for her and last year, the pair spent their time just getting to know one another. “This year has been a big difference from last year. I totally understand now what I have to do. It’s like a light bulb went on,” Saltonstall said her developing relationship with Bennie.

She gives credit to Goodrich for making it possible for her to continue advancing her riding despite her cancer. “I can’t thank Pam Goodrich enough for all the patience and understanding. She has been so patient and has worked so hard with me. If I didn’t understand something, I could look at her and she’d know and she’d be able to explain it a different way. Or she’d say, look at me and give me a visual cue.”