This week’s Her Campus celebrity is not like any other we’ve had so far. Her name is Lindsay Fairbanks and she is from Bolingbrook, IL. She is a 20 year old Elementary Education Major with endorsements in Math, Science, Language Arts and Spanish. Here at ISU she is involved in FEAP (Future Educators Association Professional), a relatively new RSO that her roommate and her co-founded in 2009. But what makes Lindsay so different, is her involvement with ISU’s equestrian team. This is Lindsay’s third year on the team, and when nominated for President this past year Lindsay gladly took the position. To learn more about Lindsay and her involvement with the equestrian team, I asked her a few more questions.
HC: When did you first start riding horses?
Lindsay:The first time that I rode a horse was when I was 5 years old. I used to ride in front of my aunt on her horse named Foxy. I started instructional riding and riding on my own when I was 10 years old, so I have been riding for 10 years now!
HC: Does the sport run in your family?
Lindsay: I am actually the only one other than my aunt who rides horses so it does not run in my family. Much of my family is afraid of horses because of their size, but they support me and encourage me to continue improving all the time.
HC: What made you want to be a part of the equestrian team here at ISU?
Lindsay: Since I have been riding for half of my life, I knew that going to college was not going to stop me! When I was looking for schools to apply to, having an equestrian team or club, or even somewhere to continue riding was a requirement. I got information and became involved as soon as I stepped foot on campus! My family and I made sure to check out the barn when we came to check out the school, because the barn was a very important aspect!
HC: How often do you practice and where?
Lindsay: I generally ride three times a week at our home barn called Hunter Oaks Farm in Carlock, Illinois owned and operated by Sandy and Tom Mercier. It is about a 20 minute drive from campus where we train with our trainer, Jamie Price for the hunt seat competitive season.
HC: How often do you compete?
Lindsay: During our competitive season (early October through late November and March through early May) we compete on average once a month with various time spans in between.
HC: Do you usually place/win?
Lindsay: So far, out of the three shows that I have competed in I have placed in every class that I rode in with ribbons ranging from first through sixth place. The past show that I competed in last weekend earned me two fifths, one fourth, and one third place. It was a very tough show, but everyone rode really well and made it to the ribbons!
HC: Have you received any specific awards?
Lindsay: The ISU equestrian team has received a few sport club awards in the last two years, but other than qualifying for Regional’s two years in a row, and winning 7th place (big purple ribbon) at last year’s Regional’s, I have not received any special awards. We will see what happens this year at Regional’s in April!
HC: Have you ever suffered any injuries from riding?
Lindsay: I have suffered quite a few injuries. Many of them have been minor scrapes and bruises from falling off, or getting thrown. One major injury that I had was during my freshmen year of high school when I got thrown and broke my arm. I have been pretty lucky ever since then, and have only fallen off a few times with minor scrapes!
HC: Do you plan on continuing after you graduate?
Lindsay: I absolutely plan on continuing to ride after I graduate. The barn is like a second home to me. I would not be able to give it up and remain sane! This is something that I will be involved in for the rest of my life.
HC: What are your goals for the future?
Lindsay: For the near future, I hope to ride well at regionals and hopefully qualify to go on to the next level of competition at Zones. Looking a few years in advance, I hope to own my own horse one day (I currently lease horses, but have not owned my own yet) and be able to have a steady teaching job that will still allow me to spend my extra time at the barn with horses!
Here at Her Campus, we wish Lindsay and the rest of the team good luck at regionals in April!