Park Lane’s Danielle wins the 2025 RDA Creative Writing Competition

Danielle’s poem ‘I Ride with Confidence’ is an uplifting account of what riding at Park Lane means to her. A wheelchair user due to cerebral palsy, on horseback everything changes, as her pony partner provides the sure-footedness and balance that frees her to just enjoy the ride and hone her skills.

Here she is standing tall to mark the occasion, holding her RDA certificate and rosettes.

I ride with confidence by Danielle - Park Lane Stables 

I ride with confidence, bold and free,

Through fields of dreams that welcome me.

The sun shines bright, the breeze is light, 

No fear of falling - just pure delight

Ehlers-Danlos may bend and ache, Cerebral 

Palsy may make me stiff and shake, ankle

splints may guide my stride, but on a horse, I

soar with pride

Walking a straight line with no wobbles

Can be tough, but in the saddle my strength

Is enough. No fear of stumbles, no fear of

People needing proof, no worries of falling

Over my hoof.

The RDA, my heart holds tight with shatterproof

love, I rise in flight. RDA you make me feel

Relaxed Determined and Accepted

Congratulations to Danielle and all the Park Lane participants who were placed in the different categories: Tom and Virginia came 3rd and 5th in the poem category, Philippa came 5th in the letter category, and Dan and Nathan came 9th and 10th in the story category. They’re all winners in our eyes!