This is a love story. Maybe not a traditional one. Or maybe it’s more traditional than you think.
It’s a story about OVS alum Carolita Landers and the horse she rode, named Kronos, during her time at the Upper Campus.
They were not a typical duo. Carolita, a 2014 graduate of OVS, forged a bond with Kronos that went beyond her love for horseback riding. For her, Kronos was not just a horse to be ridden during sports. He was a special part of her high school life.
So, when it came time this fall for Kronos to retire from OVS, it was only natural for him to find a home with his best friend.
In November, Kronos was trailered from OVS to Colorado, where he now lives on a ranch with an indoor arena, and plenty of space for Carolita to take him on long, leisurely trail rides.
Now a junior at Colorado State University, Carolita did not forget about Kronos after she graduated from OVS, and the strong bond they maintain is proof of the connection that so often occurs between horse and rider as part of the OVS equestrian program.
“I visited OVS for the day the year after I graduated and he was the first thing I went to go see, and I also got to see him when I was at OVS for Caitlin’s wedding this summer,” Carolita recalls. “And I think that was one of the main reasons why it really sparked my interest in having him.”
Typically, when OVS horses grow older, the equestrian department does not fully retire them, unless they are completely unable to be ridden. Rather, they start bumping down the amount a horse is ridden and the duration. For example, the elderly horses will be used only as horses to walk on. And, for the horses that are in too much pain due to old age or health reasons, they are euthanized.
As for students, usually, they will graduate, leave high school, and maybe think back on fond memories of horseback riding, but their horse and their high school memories are in the past.
But that is not the path Carolita chose to take. And that’s something Equestrian Director Stephanie Gustafson has never seen in her 11 years at OVS.
“I think it was amazing that Carolita, during her time at OVS, felt such a connection to Kronos that she wanted give him a home for the rest of his life,” Mrs. Gustafson said.
The road to this reunion was a long one.
Throughout her time at OVS, Carolita competed in 1st Level Dressage with Kronos, went down to the barn early on Saturdays to groom and ride him, returned to riding him after her gap year in eleventh grade, and in her senior year, asked the equestrian instructors if she could take Kronos to college with her..
Carolita fondly remembers the therapeutic qualities that came from being with Kronos.
“Even if I went down to the barn and didn’t ride and had a bad day, he had such a funny personality, he would always find a way to cheer me up,” she said.
With tears in her eyes, Mrs. Gustafson remembered a time when Carolita was supposed to ride Kronos during Parent Weekend, but the horse was lame. Rather than be upset that she couldn’t show off her more advanced skills, Carolita groomed and readied him to perfection anyway, and just walked him around the arena, simply happy to be with him.
That is why, three years later, Carolita still has an immense love for Kronos, and her 12th grade wish of taking him to Colorado has finally come true.
Carolita kept in touch with her riding instructors over the years, so when it came time for Kronos to retire, OVS barn manager Caitlin Cooper contacted Carolita to see if she wanted to have Kronos retire with her in Colorado.
“It’s remarkable because it wasn’t just out of the sadness of saying goodbye, because she said goodbye a long time ago,” Mrs. Gustafson said. “So, [her decision to care for him] was not out of that intense separation and sadness associated with it but rather a long term commitment and love for him.”
