Saddled Up: Phoebe Storm And The Impact of Equestrianism
By: Reese Watson
Phoebe Storm is an athlete, waking up at the crack of dawn, training no matter the weather: rain, snow, or blazing heat. She has felt the ache of tired muscles and the instant pain of long, hard falls. Her ring is fenced in, with dirt-dusted ground, and scattered across, it sits an array of obstacles. Her uniform consists of pristine leather boots, black blazers, and hard helmets. Her equipment is polished with precision, as her ribbons and awards litter the walls around her. And you should know, as she walks into a rustic barn and approaches a chocolate brown horse ready for riding, that Phoebe Storm is an athlete.
For as long as she can remember, Phoebe Storm (11) has wanted a life surrounded by animals, specifically horses. Born in Tulsa, but raised on a cattle ranch in New Mexico till the fifth grade, Storm has always had the ability to walk out her back door and be greeted by animals.
“Growing up on that ranch really infused me into that lifestyle,” said Storm, who spent her days playfully training her dad’s old western horse, trying to get it to jump over random obstacles. “I’d spend hours in the backyard, I wanted to train, I wanted to compete, I wanted a jumping horse. So, I started making him jump, and he did--it shouldn’t have worked, but he was jumping. That was my first taste of riding.”
Competing is at the backbone of riding, and with a love for animals and a naturally competitive personality, Phoebe was more than ready to commit.
“I’ve always been such a competitive person. When I was little I was always trying to just win anything I could--I craved competition.” Storm said, “It started with my love for the horses, but competing was just a natural step for me.”
Phoebe and her horse "Quinn" taking a picture with her ribbons in the winner's circle at The Las Vegas National Championships.
Photo Credit: Maurice Storm
Storm started competing competitively in 2019, beginning with the program “IEA” (Interscholastic Equestrian Association), which is a different format of riding where you compete normally, as well as continue being judged on equitation (a sub-discipline focusing on the rider and how well the horse is being controlled/positioned), but you don’t ride your own horse. And within the last couple years, she transitioned into high-level “Schooling Shows", where she began making a name for herself in the Hunter Jumper riding scene. Hunter competition is almost a ballet event, which shows how pretty or how smooth your round is. Jumper being more fault and speed, making sure you make it around the ring in time with no tipped rails.
“I started with small and local schooling shows, maybe one or two days long,” said Storm, “but I started my first A circuit show in 21’, and had a big competitive season in 22’. I then ended up qualifying for The Las Vegas National and placed in the top five. Because of that, I qualified for the World Champion Hunter Rider Program.”
Phoebe and her horse "Quinn" competing in the $25K National Derby Championships at The Las Vegas National.
Photo Credit: Andrew Ryback
Her success didn’t come without hardship. In fact, there are many different moving parts of riding, whether that be the horse itself, the different terrain, or the mental and physical impacts of competition life.
“Riding takes a lot of strength--mental, physical, it doesn’t matter. You have to focus on improving, and that alone can just be competing with yourself,” said Storm. “That's something that a lot of people have helped me out with--focusing on myself--because I am so competitive, I have a tendency to get in my head a lot and just overthink everything.”
Inside the toughness and hardship of riding are also the valuable lessons learned. For Phoebe that meant things like humility, patience, and empathy. Learning patience and empathy from working with live animals, while developing new skills. Then learning humility through new experiences and even new failures.
“This one time during The Las Vegas National--which was an incredibly huge deal to me, I mean you had to be in the top five in your zone to even be invited--I had a great first jump, good second jump, then crashed through the rail on the third and fell off. I was falling off on this huge stage, and this was a huge opportunity to have a big moment, then there I was falling face first in the dirt.” said Storm, “But I found a lot of strength at that moment, I still had the next round, and I came back from my fall and finished two points from first place. It's all about getting back up again, as my trainer says ‘You win some, you learn some.’”
Horses aren’t the only animal she spends her time with. FFA or “Future Farmers of America” newly takes up a large portion of her free time and school life. Currently, she competes in career development events, while showing animals and participating on the officer team.
“FFA is truly a family, and I’ve been given so many opportunities from it. It keeps you constantly working.” said Storm, “And with the livestock, you are out there every morning, every single night, you are working your animal for hours, you’re paying for feed, you're monitoring everything that's around or goes in these animals. They are essentially market animal athletes.”
Phoebe and her sheep "Karen" winning 1st place dorset breeding ewe at the Tulsa State Fair.
Photo Credit: Next Level Images
Being surrounded by animals has forever impacted her, and will define the rest of her life. Looking towards the future, Storm hopes to become an equine veterinarian specializing in reproduction, but in the meantime searches for balance in her chaotic schedule, especially with an approaching senior year. But, the growth she’s experienced has not gone unnoticed.
“You learn so much about yourself in those bare-bones moments.” Storm said, “Like when you’re up at four am in the dark and you're cold and it's raining and you don't want to be there, but when you love something, that’s where you get the strength to continue.”
Her passion for animals is prevalent, as her hard work and dedication have acted as a constant life lesson. Still, no matter the weather, no matter the time, and no matter the hardship, Phoebe Storm is an athlete with a love for a sport that will take her anywhere for the rest life.
“It's such a pivotal part of my life and it taught me so many things and it's turned me into the person I am today. It taught me to work hard, persevere, and have strength through anything I do in life.”
To learn more about Phoebe and her riding journey, follow @phoebesequestrian on Instagram!