A horse Trina Maus was schooling flipped and rolled over on her; the ensuing injuries were extensive. She shattered her left ankle, and broke her right ankle and several ribs. It took four surgeries, six plates, and more than 40 screws to put her legs back together. In intensive care and unable to walk, she developed serious complications, including a life-threatening infection requiring two months of bed rest in the hospital.
Once cleared to begin rehabilitation on horseback, she was far from steady on her feet. With one leg still badly broken, she was only walking short distances on crutches with air casts on both legs. Always a staunch advocate for the Thoroughbred breed, she chose her seven-year-old, 17-hand, off-the-track jumper “Lou” as her mount. “I still remember the first time I sat on Lou after the accident. He stood so patiently while we figured out how to get me on,” she recalls. “He walked around so quietly while I just sat there. The next day we rode a little longer, which left me utterly exhausted, but as each day passed I could feel my hips and back getting stronger. Even though I could not walk on two legs, Lou was building my muscles as if I was.”
Doctors were dumbfounded when, having initially told her that she would never again be fully weight-bearing on the left leg, Trina was soon walking on her own. “Lou is the only reason I am able to walk right now. My muscles had deteriorated so badly that I could barely roll out of bed and into a wheelchair,” she explains. “While physiotherapists worked on a plan to get me moving again, all I could think was, “get me to the barn.” I just knew that if I could get on a horse I could get better.”
Before the accident, Lou had a reputation for being mischievous and slightly unpredictable under saddle, but the change in his disposition since has been remarkable. “Everyone comments that he knows I’m hurt,” she says. “It is amazing the love I feel from this horse. He could walk in from the paddock on two legs with someone else, but the second he sees me he lowers his head and takes tiny little steps. He is one of those horses you can never replace. Horses have always been a part of my life, but as competition partners. I now have a lifelong family member with Lou.”
Despite limited mobility and near-constant pain, Trina was back in the show ring by early 2012, piloting Lou around the jumper ring. Soon after, she once again took a hiatus from riding when she and husband Peter Armstrong discovered they were expecting triplets. By 2013, Trina had three healthy babies and against all odds realized her dream when she rode her off-the-track Thoroughbred mare, Mia Amore, at the Royal Horse Show in the inaugural Thoroughbred Under Saddle class.
Assessed by Para-Equestrian Canada, Trina is now eligible to compete in para-dressage, an avenue that she is considering exploring. Overcoming serious injuries and coming into 2014 having achieved landmark personal and professional successes, Trina is in a good place looking towards the future. “My kids are my life right now, my driving force, and I am always trying to set a good example for them. Thanks to my supportive family and Lou I know I can do whatever I put my mind to.”
