My Personal RTB Story

Road To Breyerfest means so much to me, more than I can ever express in words. This group, blog, or whatever else you want to call it has grown to be much more than just information about an event that I did not even know about eight years ago. It became a safe haven in the model horse community when I was dealing with some very personal medical issues. It became a place where I could come when I lost my heart horse, even though I am reminded of him almost every moment because of how he actually helped me to get the strength to create this group. This place has helped me to realize that I am bigger than the social anxiety and depression that threaten to take over when the “off season” comes around. But it is so much more than just a place to help me.

Road To Breyerfest came about because I was finally able to go to Breyerfest for the very first time in 2012. I am and have always been a horse crazy person. As a child, I played with toy horses more than I did with dolls. My parents purchased me a Barbie Dream House with tons of accessories along with the dolls, but that lovely Dream House quickly became my Dream Barn and the flower bed outside became this amazing arena with corrals. I asked to go to Breyerfest for years when my grandmother was feeling alright and headed to Kentucky to visit with her sisters. I was raised in California so I never was able to go to Breyerfest. I went to the Kentucky Horse Park a few times when I was able to come back here with my grandmother, but it was never during Breyerfest. So when I moved here back in 2003, I decided that I would work towards going to an event that I had always dreamed about. For the first few years, that never happened. My first husband hated horses, including my real horses, and tried to destroy my model horses. After I straightened out my life from that disaster, I lost track of my models and certainly did not go to Breyerfest. In 2012, I was living with my parents once more, but had a decent paying job, a decent car, and a way to get to the Kentucky Horse Park. But after I purchased my tickets, I was lost. I had no idea what a Special Run was or a Celebration Horse. My friend at the time said that he would go with me so he purchased a ticket and handed me the model tickets. I asked on FB just what was going on and I was told to just go and learn for myself. I was told that I would figure it out when I got there. I have extreme social anxiety and I also have driving anxiety due to a severe car accident that I was in the year that I moved out here. I had NO IDEA what to expect and no one would help me. I did the Ninja Pit and was still confused because only one or two people in line would answer my questions. At Breyerfest, I was so confused and nervous that it was overwhelming for me. I decided that something had to be done, but what?

In 2013, I rode my horse at Breyerfest. How I got to that point, I am still not entirely sure. I had called them and written emails about how I would like to take my horse there to showcase an event that I feel strongly about. I had talked to my horse trainer and riding instructor that I had graduated from and she told me that I was amazing in my field and that if it was meant to be, it would happen. I gave up hope that I would even get there. But one day in January2013, while I was slicing lunch meat at my job, I received a phone call that would change my life more than I ever realized. It was from Breyer and I was officially being asked to come to Breyerfest to ride my horse in an event that they did not even know about. I think that I cried. At this time, my Heart Horse had been retired from competition due to arthritis and he was 20 years old. I said yes! I told my dad that I needed a ride to the Kentucky Horse Park and a dream was coming true! I made all of the necessary arrangements and finally, I made it there with my horse, Someone Trespassed. I was walking on air and my old horse knew exactly what he was there for! In the beginning of the event, he was mistaken for Topsails Reinmaker, but quickly made his own way to be known. We had people that knew us from when we used to show out in California and were at the very top before I moved to Kentucky and lost my dreams. I did not know that a mere four years later I would lose him to an unknown neurological disease. But as I sat at the gate, waiting to go inside, I was asked so many questions about Breyerfest itself. I did not know all the answers then, but I was willing to learn and help people to learn as well. I carried a program with me and talked to the Breyer volunteers to learn everything that I could learn. One time that weekend, as I sat on my horse, I decided to make a group and name it the Road To Breyerfest so people can follow my journey and learn about Breyerfest as well. That was also the day that my then fiancee proposed to me in the covered arena at the end of my performance that day. I said yes. Later in the day as I sat at my horse’s stall, RTB was created. It did not grow very fast, but it grew and I slowly learned everything that there was to learn about Breyerfest. Then I had a child and threw a wrench in my plans for 2014, but my husband surprised me and I was still able to attend and learn more, even with a six week old daughter. Every year, I learned more and the group grew until what it is today.

RTB has undergone a ton of changes, but it is still fundamentally the same. We provide information for those that go to Breyerfest. We now offer a virtual Breyerfest experience, a positive community for model horse lovers and real horse lovers, and a place to learn about Breyerfest and Stone Horses’ Equilocity. From files that offer reading on what to expect to videos explaining everything down to the very last detail to even Live videos where you can come on and ask your questions directly and get answers right away. We offer a place where you can share your newest model with excitement and get a response that is positive and uplifting. It is also a place where you can share your love of the real horse and know that everyone there loves horses in some way. There is so much more to RTB than I can even talk about.

One day, I hope that RTB is the first and foremost place where people go to when they decide that they want to go to Breyerfest or learn more about the model horse hobby. I hope to see it grow into something that everyone can join and know that they are in a wonderful place.

Thank you for reading my thoughts on how I feel about Road To Breyerfest and I hope that you continue my journey with me as I grow this group to more than just that. I hope to get a website one day as well as more than just a blog. I want RTB to be amazing and I hope that it really does happen.