Colleen Stimola grew up surrounded by horses. Following in the footsteps of her sister, she started riding at 5 and last year, the sophomore general studies major brought her passion to the University through the Ole Miss Equestrian team.
A student tightens her stirrup before performing. (Courtesy: Ole Miss Equestrian Team)
Stimola now captains the team. Though the paperwork associated with starting a campus club intimidated her, she said she knew she wasn’t the only person interested in being a part of such a group.
“During my freshmen year, I really started to miss riding,” Stimola said. “So when I searched for an equestrian team here on campus and saw that we didn’t have one, my parents encouraged me to start something.”
Stimola posted flyers around campus to attract attention, and, within the first week, 31 women signed up. At that point, Stimola said she knew her plan would work.
Then, in the fall of 2015, the team sought out a coach and practice area. The team currently travels to Memphis once a week for lessons to practice at Hunters Edge Stables, where they meet with coach Beanie Cone.
Though the team is currently all-female, they are actively seeking male and female members.
Freshmen exercise science major Nora Heidel explains how difficult it is to find time to make this trip every week. Members can compete at a variety of skill levels.
“It’s an hour drive down, then we stay and practice for two hours, and drive an hour back,” Heidel said. “It’s hard to find four hours during the week to do this.”
The team is working toward building a facility in Oxford. Their ideal facility would cost $1.5-2 million, according to Stimola and Cone. They’re seeking donors and the help from the school to provide the funds to make it possible.
With their own facility, they would be able to train properly on a daily basis. Stimola and Cone said these things would help them take the club to the next level.
The two said the school could collect revenue by renting stalls to students each semester, so that some riders could bring their personal horses to school and compete with them.
The equestrian team currently competes in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association. The association schedules all of their shows. The team placed fifth at recent shows at Georgia College and Auburn University.
Junior public policy leadership major Cheney Thomasson describes how the recent accomplishments only further prove their need for a practice area.
“With how successful we’ve been doing during our past shows, it’s a true testament to what the potential of the team is,” Thomasson said.
– Dawn Boddie
