Local Author, Horse Rider and Stampede Celebrity Lee McLean made a connection with the Royal Palace last year.

After releasing her book "Horse Woman: Notes on Living Well and Riding Better" her publisher suggested McLean sign a copy of her book and send it off to her most influential horsewoman, and after thinking about it McLean decided the Queen was her choice.

"What came to me was our queen in her nineties with her beautiful silk scarves on, riding her ponies around the palace."

McLean says a couple of months after sending off the book she received a letter in the mail.

"I got a lovely note from the queen's lady in waiting, who had written and signed it, So it wasn't from the queen herself but I was still very moved to get this letter. It was definitely a special thing to keep."

McLean says she choose the Queen because of her passion and love for riding.

"To master something they say you have to have 10,000 hours in it, horsemanship is no different, when we think of ourselves we've always got such a time crunch because we have to earn a living, we have to be at work and when we come home we are tired, where do we find this time? and yet the queen has raised international riders, I know that shes got good staff and all the money in the world but I'm sure shes pretty crunched for time too and she still maintains this till this day and that inspires me because shes remembered what feeds her soul and what's important to her and horsemanship is it."

McLean says it was a surreal moment to open her mailbox and see this letter.

"To open up this old mailbox, and our mailbox is old, the kids in the neighborhood have for a long time, gone around and shot at peoples mailboxes with their 22's or shotguns so it was neat to pull up with the old truck and reach into this old gunshot mailbox and pull out an official letterhead of her majesty the queen."

 

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