02/13/2026
Riders often think of mental strength as something deeply personal—an internal trait built through discipline, focus, and self-reliance. But in Tonya Johnston, Mental Skills Coach recent Plaidcast conversation with Keri Potter and Weatherly Stroth, another idea takes shape: mental resilience isn’t built alone. It’s shaped, supported, and sustained through community.
Not community as a social bonus or moral support system, but as something riders actively engage with. The ability to stay connected, grounded, and open to others becomes a stabilizing force in a sport that can feel isolating, high-pressure, and intensely individual.
Despite barns full of people, riding often places individuals alone with their thoughts. Riders walk courses quietly. They warm up in their own heads. They replay mistakes privately and assume mental toughness means handling everything internally.
Tonya Johnston points out that many riders unintentionally increase pressure by isolating themselves emotionally.
“When people feel like they have to manage everything on their own,” she said, “that’s when pressure tends to get heavier instead of lighter.”
That isolation doesn’t always look dramatic. Sometimes it’s subtle like keeping doubts to yourself, assuming everyone else is coping better, or believing that struggle is something to hide. Over time, that pattern makes emotional regulation harder, not easier.
Keri Potter emphasizes how grounding it can be to realize that others are navigating the same challenges. Riders often assume their doubts or frustrations are unique, when in reality they’re widely shared.
“When you’re around other people who are doing this every day,” she said, “you realize you’re not the only one who feels that way. Everyone has moments where things don’t feel perfect.”
That widens perspective. Instead of interpreting every setback as personal failure, riders begin to see challenges as part of the process. Tonya reinforces this idea, noting that exposure to other riders’ experiences expands a rider’s mental flexibility.
“When you hear how other people think through things,” she said, “it gives you more options. You don’t feel boxed into one way of reacting.”
📎 Continue reading this article at https://www.theplaidhorse.com/2026/02/12/community-is-a-mental-skill/
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