Time to "Go Team!"

I have always struggled with being friendly.  Let's be real; I'm socially awkward.  I never know what to say or to do around new people who I want to be friends with, so instead, I stand there awkwardly and sometimes attempt to lamely leap into a conversation, usually with disastrous results.

However, sometimes I pick up good friends.  Who somehow manage to see the social bumblings and stick around long enough to let me get over it.  Endurance has brought me a few such friends.  Some who I've met in person.  Some who I will perhaps only know on Facebook. 

Horses have DEFINITELY brought me friends. 

Now, because I'm such a socially awkward butterfly, last year when the Green Bean group for endurance did a competition, I knew I was badly suited for a team.  One, I don't ride enough to be competitive and I didn't want to feel like I was dragging a team down.  Two, having to meet strangers?  Uhhh, pass. 

So I competed in the 1 Horse: 1 Rider division for the 0-499 mile riders (On The Vine).  Thanks to some lucky riding, points wise, and by 20 miles, Strider and I won our division.  I'm crazy proud of that boy.

So, as I've already spoken about, I looked at the scoreboard, and realized I can't compete individually well.  When the winning rider last year had 400+ miles on the same horse? 

Nope.  I have neither the finances nor the time to do so.

Time to have some fun, right?

So I made myself put it out there that I'm looking for a team.

I'm honest about my goals (planning on about 300 miles IF everything goes perfectly...so I've now jinxed myself to every ride being an unmitigated disaster).

Someone posted on a local endurance group that they're a green bean looking for another team member, so I replied.

And I find myself frequently checking back to see if I've been accepted. 

See?  Socially awkward.

I think it would be a good fit, team-wise.  They have a mentor already lined up.  They ride gaiteds.  And say they're really doing it to have fun.

So, I'll keep checking my "Book of Faces" to see if I've been accepted or not.  I still have time to go 1H:1R again if I so desire.

But I think I could benefit from having a team's help.  I was always cheering on the other people in my division last year and ultimately didn't care if someone passed me (though, not gonna lie, I wanted to win too!), so I -think-, overall, I've got my competitive streak in check.

I think.

While it's always hard for me to put myself "out there", I think I will be grateful that I did so.