I have this Flickr dedicated to my best friend, Madison Lee Chaplain, a 13 year old girl that passed away on July 14th, 2013 doing what she loved most-riding her true love Rosie, her chestnut 15-year-old Andalusian x Friesian.

 

July 14th, 2013 - We were riding along, reins relaxed, and chatting and giggling when all of a sudden, Rosie spooked. Madison had worked with her to the point she was nearly bombproof, and even school buses didn't scare this horse. We will never have any clue what had spooked her that day. But Rosie flew off the handle and bolted - galloping as fast as possible down the trail.

 

We live in a very mountainous region in New York, and this was a very dangerous situation. We were watching her trying to half-halt Rosie and using the one-rein stop which usually worked; this tells us whatever had scared Rosie scared her to the point she would not stop no matter what cues Madison gave her.

 

We saw her rear up, foot wrong, and crash down on Madison. Rosie had reared right near where the terrain sloped down.

 

They ended up tumbling down the mountainside, which was part of this trail that we had rode a DOZEN times before July 14th.

 

We knew Madison was awake throughout all of this because we heard the screams. We galloped the horses as fast as possible back to her house to notify Jennifer (Jenna), her mother, to call the cops NOW.

 

When the cops had found her with the aid of a helicopter, she was already gone. But, she was no longer mounted on Rosie. She had clearly flown off in the course of tumbling down the mountain, which tossed her through the air at a furious speed into a bunch of sharp, large stones sitting in a stream.

 

The rocks smashed her head in the part where her helmet wasn't covering, busting her skull open and killing her instantly. It was a very gruesome scene - there were blood and organs all over - and will forever be etched into our memories.

 

HER LIFE:

 

Madison was an amazing person. Everybody had loved her. Her birthday was on July 22nd, 2013, which also was her funeral. I use to watch her ride all the time at the barn had my seven-year-old Arabian x Paint, Mo, boarded at.

 

Madison was a very talented jumper. She could jump heights such as 4'5 bareback AND bridleless. She would jump anything - logs, branches, picnic tables, chairs, double oxers, triple bars, ditches - she also use to pole bend and practice barrel racing just for fun...and it didn't matter if she was bareback or tacked up.

 

Her record high jump in a saddle was 4'3 (which is lower than her highest jump WITHOUT a saddle!). Madison was a major competition lover and competed in many shows.

 

In one of them, a privately-sponsored jumping show in Glen Spey, New York, she had came out on first place for the best jumps ever for bareback and bridleless - jumping two 5'0 triple bars and a 4'6 oxer.

 

Madison had been riding horses since she was 3 years old and took lessons until she was 9 or 10. She had ridden many varieties of horses ranging from different temperaments - to green broke, to bucking and rearing, to stubborn and lazy, to high-strung and spirited.

 

In fact, for 3 months before her death, she had been helping out at her great-grandfather's ranch with their 3-month-old foals, training them on the ground.

 

Madison had trained their Gypsy Vanner, a 17-handed beauty named Shaman, to be ridden. She had trained to a point where he could jump 3'3 and do pole bending. She was working on teaching him to run barrels just for fun, but now that she has passed away, it'll be never be finished, the task she had started with Shaman.

 

Like Rosie, he misses her. A lot. Madison had spent more time with Shaman than the other residents at the ranch did.

 

HER RELATIONSHIP WITH ROSIE:

 

Riding was her passion. Horses were her life. She had loved Rosie more than anything-and had her super-trained. No one who watched this amazing horse-rider partnership could believe that at one point Rosie had been considered a good-for-nothing horse.

 

Rosie had came to Madison as a 13-year-old horse in January 2011 deemed "untrainable" and "dangerous, and "nobody will ever be able to ride her."

 

She use to bite, kick, rear, and buck. She was noted to have charged at her owners with her back feet and lift one off the ground by their shirt, slamming them into the stable wall. Rosie had been deemed nothing more than slaughter material.

 

Madison was almost killed on more than several occasions and bucked off the same amount. But the young, spirited, fearless 12-year-old girl wouldn't give up on her. She spent every waking moment, night or day, 24/7 at the barn training Rosie.

 

After 1 month of having Rosie brought to her, Madison had Rosie galloping up to her just by the sound of a whistle, and flying lead changes on a lead rope.

 

After 3 months, Madison could walk, trot, canter and gallop Rosie on a lunge line or in the saddle confidently, without the fear of being bucked off or Rosie rearing up.

 

After 6 months, Rosie was jumping heights up to 2ft, and after one year, the team were entering horse jumping shows. At that time, they won in the second to third places.

 

After one year and 6 months (July 2012), Rosie moved off the slightest leg pressure and seat cues, all thanks to Madison's dedication to her.

 

This made her eligible to be ridden bareback and bridleless, and after being ridden like this everyday, for 3 months, she was a pro at it, which enabled them entering into the bareback and bridleless jumping show that came into town in December of 2012 (I wrote about the heights she had jumped above), and they won 1st place.

 

Rosie's previous owners had came to visit her a couple of times and were flabbergasted at Madison being able to pet her all over and ride her any style she wanted without being bitten, kicked, bucked off or reared on.

 

And what was even more amazing - an 11 (almost 12) to 13-year-old kid had trained her to do all of these tasks. Madison Chaplain was truly an amazing and dedicated girl, a fabulous horse owner, rider, and trainer, and beautiful and talented equestrian. She had the most incredible bond ever seen with a horse, and many professional horse owners who had came to see her agreed.

 

Madison always said, "Cherish Every Moment, No Matter How Small", and she was right. No matter how small or insignificant the moments in your life might seem...cherish them. Be grateful for them. Because you'll never know when your moments of life will be done for...permanently.

 

Madison: I wake up everyday wishing I could see your smile and beautiful face again. Sometimes I swear I see you in school, but then the people look up and its not you. I miss everything about our times together.

 

We miss and love you, especially Rosie. She does nothing but stand under her tree (remember her favorite tree?), watching andamp; waiting for you amp; when she thinks she sees you she perks her head up...but then she realizes its not you...and her head goes down again.

 

You might be gone physically, but you will be in our hearts always. I know you're there - in my heart - because I can feel you living there.

 

You were an amazing, incredible, talented, and such a beautiful girl with an amazing connection with horses and all animals to be honest - and you will ALWAYS be remembered. You would have been in 10th grade at only 14 this year, that's how smart you were.

 

Gone but not forgotten. Even then, we can't say you're really gone, because like the saying goes, legends never die, and you were most definitely a legend. Sleep tight baby girl. <3

 

July 22nd, 1999 - July 14th, 2013.

 

From your best friend for life,

Vanessa. ♥

 

"Sunny days seem to hurt the most, I wear the pain like a heavy coat, the only thing that gives me hope - is I know - that'll I'll see you again someday" "Who You'd Be Today" by Kenny Chesney

 

"You were my strength when I was weak, you were my voice when I couldn't speak, you were my eyes when I couldn't see, you saw the best there was in me, lifted me up when I couldn't reach, you gave me faith because you believed"-"Because You Loved Me" by Celine Dion - I say this beautiful song describes Madison's dedication to Rosie PERFECTLY!

 

UPDATE:

It's been so long since I've been on here. Rosie passed away purely out of a broken heart on October 10th 2013. I'm sorry it took me so long to notify you guys. We celebrated her passing like you would celebrate a human's. We had a viewing gallery which included many pictures of Madison and Rosie jumping or just hanging out.

 

We have gone through a great loss but with Rosie's passing everything is okay...everything's going to be alright now. Rosie and Madison are now together again in heaven. And that's what makes us happy.