The next exhibitor in our highly popular “10 Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me” series is Amateur competitor, Lisa Mazurka of Sutton, Massachusetts. She rides under the guidance of Gene Spagnola, Gretchen Mathes, Jessica Ross and Ricky Noiseux at Powder Brook Farm located in Harwinton, CT.
Mazurka shows Invested In Cowboys (aka “Mudflap”), an 8-year-old sorrel gelding in the Western all-around events and has been with Powder Brook Farm for 12 years. “I am so blessed to have found this horse. His talent amazes me. Just when I think he is at his peak, he just keeps getting better and steps up his game.”
Lisa Mazurka’s 10 Things
1. I was a crazed horse kid. My parents didn’t have enough money for lessons when I was young so owning a horse was a life-long dream for me. I was obsessed (and drove them crazy). Everything I owned was about horses: clothes, stuffed animals, books, posters, etc. I also collected Breyer horses and still have most of them today.
2. I was a late bloomer in the Quarter Horse show circuit. I purchased my first horse when I was 28 years old. I took lessons with him at a local barn and didn’t start competing at AQHA shows until I was 30.
3. Ironically, my first horse, Sierra’s Jet Set, came from Powder Brook Farm. Of all the places I could have found my first horse, I think it’s fate that I would end up training there eight years later.
4. I am very passionate about my work. I own my own business and conduct and monitor cancer research around the country. I am so grateful that I can do something that makes a difference to so many people and have been a part of some very exciting advances in cancer therapies.
5. I have always been involved in sports and competitive events. In high school, I was a gymnast and cheerleader. In my junior and senior years, we made it to the NCA (National Cheerleaders Association) U.S. finals.
6. My favorite class is the trail. In fact, I am quite obsessed with the science, math, and geometrics that are involved. Thankfully it’s Mudflap’s favorite class too because I love to practice.
7. Early in my riding career, my trainer, Gene Spagnola said I needed to get better at thinking on my feet and making quick decisions in the show pen. So, I enrolled in an Improvisation class in New York City which was run by the writers of Saturday Night Live. It was so much fun and helped me a lot.
8. I love to run. I try to find the time when I’m at the horse shows to run with my two German Shepards, Remy and Dallas. It helps clear my mind and tires the dogs out. It has become a favorite sport among my fellow barn mates within Powder Brook Farm as well. Many of us have completed many half and full marathons.
9. Not only do I travel with my two dogs, but I also travel with my cat, JJ. He loves going in the bus and has a fan club of people that look for him sleeping in his bed at the front windshield of our bus at horse shows. A couple of years ago at the Congress, a family came by every day and knocked on our windshield to say hello to him.
10. Some years ago, my husband and I had a freak accident traveling to Lexington, Virginia where a turkey (a big one!) flew right into the windshield and smashed the glass directly into the body of the bus. Thankfully, we were not hurt. Our bus is fondly named “The Turkenator.”
Thanks, Lisa!
