Some riders choose the easy path—perfect horse, perfect trainer, perfect barn.
Gracyn did not.
Her riding journey began in 2020, full of excitement, dreams, and the firm belief that all horse trainers tell the truth (adorable, right?). In late 2021, she bought Topaz—a gorgeous mare with presence, elegance, and, as it turned out… a hidden past.
A few months later, Gracyn discovered:
- Topaz was not the age she had been told (surprise! she came with more “experience” than expected)
- There were medical issues nobody mentioned
- The price? Also fictional.
Basically, she bought a horse… and got a plot twist.
But instead of panicking, reselling, or becoming a full-time detective, Gracyn did something better:
She chose to love the horse she had, not the horse she thought she bought.
In May 2024, she moved barns—new environment, new vet support, new honesty. She even took a three-month break from riding, not because she wanted to, but because Topaz needed it.
Because in Gracyn’s book, “riding is optional—horse care is not.”
She shifted from riding to rehab, from cantering to chiropractics, from jumping to gentle groundwork. She started documenting Topaz’s rehabilitation journey, and people didn’t just watch—they learned.
Her page wasn’t about “perfect.”
It was about progress, patience, and occasionally, peppermint bribes.
By August 2024, she returned to showing—not on Topaz, but armed with every lesson Topaz had taught her (some emotional, some expensive). She started competing at Wendover Place, this time aiming for the 2’9” and 3’ divisions.
Topaz? She is now semi-retired, highly opinionated, and living her best life as a part-time therapy horse, part-time diva, and full-time mentor.
And Gracyn? Her dream isn’t just to keep jumping higher.
It’s to someday own her own barn—where horses are trained with compassion, riders are taught with honesty, and “soundness” isn’t just a checkbox on a sales ad.
Because some riders chase ribbons.
Gracyn collected wisdom, vet reports, and a horse who turned her into something better:
Not just a rider—
but a horsewoman.
Follow her on Instagram: @gracyn_paige
