University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Taylor Staton
February 06, 2019 | Equestrian, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
As she sat in Butts-Mehre Heritage Hall on a cold February morning, Taylor Staton was wearing her Georgia letter jacket. There was a time when she might have envisioned it being a jacket she earned as a member of the GymDogs, not the equestrian team.
A sophomore Western rider from Cumming, Ga., Staton was heavy into gymnastics, even attending GymDogs camps as a young gymnast, before turning her attention to equestrian. It was with the horses that she found where she belonged.
During a recent Quick Chat, Staton talked about her how she got started riding, her gymnastics days, her favorite horse and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: How did you get started with horses? Were you put on one as an infant like a lot of your teammates or did you get started later on?
Staton: My story's a little different. I actually started out as a gymnast and I was a gymnast for maybe 10 years, I want to say, until fifth or sixth grade. I actually went to GymDogs camps every summer and stayed at the ECV (East Campus Village) and stuff, but I started just getting burnt out on it.
My mom was like, "You like animals, so why don't you try horseback riding?" I was like, "Okay," and ever since then, I've been hooked. I started very late compared to the girls that start when they're like 2 years old, but it was just a suggestion that my mom thought of and it got me into it.
It was kind of funny because we had season tickets to the GymDogs, me and my sister were both gymnasts and it's funny how I was like, "I want to be a GymDog" and I ended up being on the equestrian team (laughs).
Frierson: When did you know that horses and riding were something beyond just a fun hobby?
Staton: In about the eighth grade I was doing more of just the horsemanship side of the Western side, and a girl started taking Reining lessons from a trainer in Athens and I went up with her and took a lesson. I just started driving up to take lessons and after that I really got into it.
Frierson: What is it like for you now to just go for a ride? Is it as joyful and free as it was when you were a kid or is it different because you spend so much time around horses already?
Staton: Really, now, when I go to my trainer's place that's kind of what I do. When I'm preparing for shows, that is my relaxing time with my horse. That's my version of going for a ride, compared to practices here where things are a lot more structured, which they need to be. Whenever I go over there I get to do my own thing.
Frierson: Do you have a favorite horse among the many out at the facility in Bishop?
Staton: I would say Odie is my favorite — he's a small, little one and he's my favorite.
Frierson: What makes a horse your favorite? Is it the personality, the connection you have or something that you can't really describe?
Staton: I would say it's all that and also how willing they are to work with you. They all have their quirks just like people, where they're sensitive about certain things or they want to be the more dominant one or more aggressive. With Odie, he's kind of one of the ones that needs that comfort and someone to have that connection with him, which makes him more confident, if that makes sense.
Once you have that connection with a horse, it can really change a horse from really bad to really good, with the trust between you.
Frierson: What's something you know now that you wish you'd known when you first started college?
Staton: I think with having more independence, managing my time more wisely, especially with the strict practice schedule we have and traveling and getting stuff done early and preparing things the night before. I think just keeping myself more organized to help keep the days easy with how busy the schedule is.
Frierson: When you travel what are one or two things you take with you every time?
Staton: I always take my headphones and some Sour Patch Kids, my favorite candy.
Frierson: Everybody says headphones, which makes me wonder if everyone on every team is kind of in their own world when they travel or is there still the cutting up and camaraderie that I remember from road trips in high school.
Staton: I think with us there's a little bit of both. When we're on the way to a meet we play music out loud when we're getting ready and stuff like that, especially after a meet, whenever we win we'll sing along and there will be dancing on the bus and celebrating. I guess it depends on where we are and if it's before or after a meet.
Frierson: If you could travel anywhere in the world on somebody else's dime, where would you like to go? And who would you take with you?
Staton: I would definitely go to Italy and I would definitely take my mom, because I know that's a place that she's really wanting to go. We've always talked about going over there for a trip.
Frierson: What is it like being on a team that has so many people from all over the country and Canada? I would imagine it makes things pretty interesting.
Staton: I really like it, it makes for a really good dynamic. From where I lived, I had the same people from elementary school to middle to high school — I knew everybody. But when I got here where people come from so many different places and you hear so many different stories, it makes you really want to get to know that person because the way they grew up may be completely different from mine.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
