Dell Pets: Behind the Scenes of Catherine's Equestrian Showjumping
Catherine M. | Analyst, Marketing Development Program | Texas, United States
Originally Published: May 28th, 2024
I have been riding horses and showing competitively in showjumping at a national level since I was five years old! From kindergarten to senior year of high school, weekends were spent on the road at horse shows. Mornings before school and evenings afterwards were spent training, taking riding lessons, and caring of my horses. At the moment, I have six horses that I get to share with my mom and sister. Their names are Arthur, Bruno, Caesar, C'esta, Euro, and Q2. I have ridden at the same barn, Switch Willo Stables, since I started riding. To this day, I feel so lucky to continue to ride, show, and travel with my horses, mom, and my trainers at Switch Willo.
From 5 to 24 years of age, I have relentlessly dedicated my life to the sport of showjumping. Some highlights of my riding "career" have been: qualifying for Pony Finals with my two first ponies, Dino and Strawberry, winning 1st overall in Texas in the Equitation for 2018, competing at ASPCA Maclay Regionals and ASPCA Maclay Finals, competing at National Medal Finals, winning the 2022 overall Champion at the World Equestrian Center in the 18-35 Adult Hunters, and being first place in Texas in the 3"6 Amateur Owner division in 2023. This year, my goals are to compete at International Derby Finals and to win 1st place in a Grand Prix! My lifelong riding goal is to be a successful FEI (international) ranked rider, to be a normal competitor in the Grand Prix's across the nation, and to eventually become a professional.
In college I was recruited to be on the Division 1 Women's Equestrian Team at Baylor University, where I rode all four years, and served as captain my senior year! I also continued to compete at horseshows outside of the college world on weekends I didn't have a Baylor meet or doing Summer and Winter break. Post graduation, I kept training, riding and competing. At first it was difficult to manage my time and schedule exactly when I could ride my horses or be at a horse show; but over time, I figured out how to appropriately manage my time for work and my sport. Because of the flexibility of hybrid work at Dell, I have been able to chase my dreams of riding professionally while maintaining a career in tech. I feel incredibly thankful and supported by Dell and my coworkers! Because of them, I am able to chase my dreams and be around the thing I love most - horses!
I obviously love the sport, but the biggest part of it for me is the horses - I love them. The bond humans can have with a horse is completely unmatched. Being able to participate in a sport where your partner is a 2,000lb animal who doesn't speak English is the most fun thing in the world. Not only do you need to spend countless years training and riding, but the most important aspect is bonding with your horse and being able to understand your teammates. Horses are highly intelligent and emotional animals!
To this day, riding is and will always be, a tremendous part of my life - which is why I am so thankful for the flexibility of a hybrid work environment at Dell Technologies. Because of Dell's hybrid work and supportive community, I am able to ride and travel across the nation to compete at the highest level of showjumping to pursue my dreams!
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