Just before she mounted her horse, Midiri looked down at the silly smiley face scrawled on her hand and couldn't help but smile back. All the UD team members had similar purple faces inked on their hands, and suddenly, Midiri didn't feel quite so alone in that arena. Colo. The nationals brought together the best of collegiate teams, and by the end of the two-day event, UD had earned a very respectable 10th overall out of 19 teams participating. On a recent wind-whipped afternoon, Midiri and club president Linda Pill, also an agricultural sciences student, laughed at the recollection of a fellow member running around in Colorado with her purple pen, checking to make sure everyone had a smiley face. But while they enjoy joking about the team's assorted amulets and charms, it's readily apparent that luck has had little to do with this team's success.
Riding is a sport that engages both body and brain.
It calls upon an individual's coordination, strength, logic and judgment. At collegiate equestrian competitions, participants are given mounts at random. Within minutes, the rider has to become acclimated to a new horse and must think quickly and act decisively. This close-knit group was enthusiastic, despite knowing that they were going into nationals as the underdogs. After all, UD was competing against some teams from schools with long histories of equestrian excellence.