![Minutes before the Activities Fair in the gym, president Abhi Gowda ‘26 prepares the stall for his club Helping Hands, Sept. 4. A relatively new club, Helping Hands was co-started by Gowda and focuses on assisting the homeless, and just last year they succeeded in raising a couple hundred donations to send to shelters. This year, they have goals to expand, with hopes to increase volunteer opportunities and take in-person trips to shelters, as well as extend their help beyond just homeless people. “The Activities Fair gives a lot of underclassmen the opportunity to really get to know the Canyon culture, and it gives them many opportunities for service and volunteering,” Gowda said. “[Through the Activities Fair,] I hope to find a bunch of new and passionate members about our club and just get our name out there and spread awareness to the cause that we’re fighting for.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/1-2-1200x885.jpg)
![The winter guard team makes fifth place at the state championship finals in the Denver Coliseum, March 30. The team performed to Barnes Country's “Glitter and Gold,” lead by coaches Margo Sanford, Blair Bickerton and Anna Orgren. In their class there were a total of nine groups participating, and the top five who made it to finals received a plaque. “[Walking onto the stage] is very nerve-wracking, but also very exciting as well. When you first start color guard there's a lot of anxiety and uncertainty when you first perform in front of an audience, but once you've done it for a while, it starts to become the best part of the season,” Ella West ‘25 said. “It's very fulfilling to see an audience react to something you've put your heart and soul into.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Both-socal-media-nd-website-main-1-1200x846.jpg)
![April marks the 25th anniversary of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, created by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC). This month is to spread awareness of the harassment, assault and abuse that happens around the world. The symbol that represented the month was a teal ribbon; however, some survivors of assault create different symbols and movements like the TikTok trend in 2022, where survivors would tattoo Medusa on their body, in honor of her backstory in Greek Mythology. “I don't think [this month is known] at all. I rarely see anybody talk about it. I rarely see much of an emphasis on posting it online, or much discussion about it, and I feel like there needs to be way more discussion,” an anonymous source said. “I think just validating every experience that a person has gone through, regardless of the degree of it, the severity, is an essential step into making sure that people are aware that this is a very real problem in a society and that we need to do better in addressing it.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IMG_0011-1200x900.jpg)
![Lesbian Visibility Day is April 26, and it’s a holiday to celebrate the lesbian community of the world. Lesbian Visibility day was established in 2008 by many queer activists and organizations who sought to raise more awareness for lesbian history and culture. “So this is why during Lesbian Visibility [Day] we celebrate and center all lesbians, both cis and trans, while also showing solidarity with all LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary people,” Linda Reily, in an article written by her, said.](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Lesbian-Visibility-day.jpeg)
Ready, Set, Ride
Tossing and tightening the freshly polished saddle up and over a six-foot, 1500 pound Hanoverian Horse. Tension builds slowly as one waits for their name and number to be called over the loudspeakers.
March 31, 2020
Valli Guha ‘22 is an Equestrian Horseback rider. At the age of 15, with three years of experience under her belt, Guha recently won a multitude of ribbons in the Arizona Season Finale, which is an “A” rated, Equestrian show. Nov. 16-17. 23-24.
What is Equestrian Horseback Riding? How does it work?
Essentially, these Equestrian Horseback Riding competitions are broken into two categories, Hunter and Jumper. Hunter Horseback Riding is solely judgment on the horse itself, not the rider. This category specifically grades the horse’s movements, attitude, jumps, formation, and strides. Whereas the Jumper category is all number based. The horse and rider team with the fastest time and fewest faults wins. Guha routinely competes in the Hunter division.
During the first week competition, Guha and her horse Riveting competed against three other contestants in her division. Guha and her horse closed out the competition with eight ribbons total, six first places, one second place, and one third-place ribbon. Nov. 16-17.
“During these competitive shows, knowing where your horse is physically is one of the most challenging aspects of riding because you need to pace the horse correctly in order to push them appropriately,” Guha said.
In the conclusion of the second-weekend competition, Guha left for home with eight ribbons total, two-second place, three third place, one-fourth place, one-sixth place, and one-seventh place. She was up against eight other competitors in her division.
“When I won, it felt like all the hard work paid off and I felt really proud of myself. I continue to work hard in this sport, and I hope it pays off later on as well,” Guha said.
Starting at age 12, Guha knew she was very interested in competitive horseback riding, her parents soon after helped her put her interests into actions. Nowadays, she travels to out of state competitions roughly six times a year.
“My dad takes me to all my competitions and assists with all things travel-related, he is one of my biggest supporters through all of this,” Guha said.
About Riveting- The Horse
- Born in Germany
- Breed: Half Hanoverian and half warmblooded
- 16 years old
- Belongs to Briana Davis and is being leased by Guha
PC: Nagendra Arakali
PC: Nagendra Arakali