Scott Cunningham Photography
While other 5-year-old girls dreamed of having their very own pony, Kaylee Adamek was already training to become a national horseback riding champion.
“When I was younger, I loved horses, and I have no clue why,” Kaylee says. “For my fifth birthday, my family took me to Autumn Rose Farm and I had my first lesson. I have ridden every single week since then.”
Of her numerous accolades, the most recent for the 16-year-old came during the Interscholastic Equestrian Association competition in Oklahoma, where she placed first out of 12 intermediate riders.
Kaylee belongs to the association team at Autumn Rose, where she acquired the skills to win multiple local and regional shows before taking the national stage.
“I’ve been competing since sixth grade and, in eighth grade, I won nationals for the first time,” Kaylee says.
Her parents have provided a strong support system throughout the years and have been active in helping their daughter pursue her passion.
“It’s much more than the ‘bank of dad’ and the ‘taxi by mom,’ ” says Bob Adamek, Kaylee’s father. “We’ve all gotten involved. We would take the horse to the competitions and I would attend the shows, but it was Kaylee and her mom who would wake up at 5 a.m. together.”
Sharon Adamek, Kaylee’s mother, attends every one of Kaylee’s shows and cheers from the stands.
“I’m always out there yelling for her,” she says. “Sometimes I hide because I get a little nervous during the run.”
On competition days, Kaylee’s emotions and composure fluctuate by the hour.
“When I wake up, it just feels like a normal day,” she says. “I start to get nervous when I put on my show outfit and, right before I go out, I start to think, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore.’ ”
However, as soon as she reaches the lights of the arena and the crowd of hundreds begins to cheer, Kaylee settles into her zone.
“I’m not mindful the entire time,” she says. “I can’t hear anyone. I can’t see anyone. No one exists except for my horse and me at the moment.”
At many competitions, each rider is randomly paired up with a horse he or she has never competed with before.
“It keeps the playing field level for every person out there,” Bob says. “They try to make it about the rider and not about the skill of the horse.”
Each member of the family has dedicated many hours toward Kaylee’s success.
“Shows took high precedent with our family,” Bob says. “We would plan vacations around shows and make sure she never missed a lesson.”
Fulfilling the dream of many young girls, Kaylee takes care of her own horse, Beepers.
“We had to retire him last year, but he’s doing well,” she says. “He’s gone on to become a therapy horse out at The Mustard Seed Farm.”
Owning your own horse is not necessary for the sport. If anything, it’s simply a luxury and a blessing, Bob says.
“You don’t have to be wealthy to participate,” he says. “You don’t need to own your own horse; we’re just lucky enough to be able to. It really takes dedication and heart over anything else.”
Kaylee attributes her passion for horses to other aspects of her life, including time management and self-confidence.
She is a junior at Dublin Coffman High School and is one of only a few students on the Autumn Rose equestrian team. She is also a member of the marching band.
Though horses and band concerts take up much of Kaylee’s time, she still maintains great grades, Sharon says.
“She wouldn’t be this involved if she couldn’t keep her grades up,” she says. “In many ways, she’s really grown up throughout the years.”
When she isn’t training, in school or marching with the band, she is volunteering with Mustard Seed, a horse-assisted therapy center in Ostrander.
“I clean my horse’s stall all the time, but while I’m at it, I clean up all the other ones as well,” Kaylee says. “It’s what I like to do, so I spend what time I can out there.”
The barns are her “happy places,” Kaylee says.
“This is truly what makes me happy,” she says. “I believe this is where I’m supposed to be and this is what I’m meant to do.”
Kaylee looks to take her riding to the next level, whether it be by performing in global competitions in two years or by training therapy horses who aid victims of post-traumatic stress disorder, troubled youths and depression sufferers.
“I want to make this my career,” she says. “Thinking about college right now makes me a little nervous, but I’ve been looking. I just want to be around my horses.”
Stephan Reed is a contributing editor. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Photos of Kaylee Adamek and her horse.
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