Christie's Week

Well, as you might have guessed I haven't been riding this week. :( I thought I would share why.

First, here is a picture of my schoolmaster Sam and the "old" me I miss so much! Sam came to me underweight, and was a HARD keeper, but worth his weight in gold. After he passed, I found out for sure that he had malignant metastatic melanoma. Sam has a long story.

This is Sam and me at our FIRST jumping show, in a hunter class we crashed! We took home the blues that day. :)

Monday 5-26-08 I went to look at a potential lease horse. I have decided that it would be good if I could ride a made horse again to work on ME. This horse is pretty awesome. The owner showed his lunging, which was very impressive. "Little trot" to "BIG trot" to "little trot" again all on voice command. Walk, trot, whoa, walk, canter, etc. ALL on voice command with instant responses. I was impressed. Then she rode him. He was her Pony Club horse and has evented through Preliminary Level. Not a packer, but a definite schoolmaster!

Now it is my turn to ride. Walk, halt, walk transitions. He is in front of my leg. He is VERY soft in the bridle with NICE contact, on the bit. Nice comments from owner about my contact and soft hands. Trot...WOW! Looks can be deceiving! Huge trot! Back to walk, now I know what to expect. More trot to left. Trot walk transitions. He is SO responsive. Still soft in the bridle with amazing contact, using himself well! He would collect and then go long and low beautifully. Now we go to the right. I ask for trot, at least that is what I intended to ask for. He picks up the canter. I wasn't prepared, but the first few strides feel lovely. Then he starts going faster. I already knew not to get in his face, so I am giving with the reins and trying to slow him...but my body isn't cooperating! I am leaning forward too much with too much leg on, and that along with the giving rein means go REALLY fast. (He is a former steeplechase horse, too!) We are heading towards a jump...better to fall before the jump than over the jump, so off I come, hard.

I get up, and the owner collects the horse. She comes over and seems COMPLETELY shocked when I tell her I would like to get back on!?! I do get back on. More walk, halt, walk transitions, both directions. Especially where we got too fast and I fell. Trot, walk, trot transitions. I am reluctant to use too much outside leg, and he drifts out. Put leg on and he comes back in. I could learn so much from this horse! I would definitely need to ride him again before deciding to lease him.

The owner and I have talked. Here is her assessment:

I think your biggest challenge is adjusting to your time out of the saddle and the change in your body at the same time. Even just one of these things is enough to deal with, but you have 2. You know exactly what to do, the hard part is just making your body do it.

Working on ME because of the time I have been out of the saddle and my body changes is why I want to ride a made horse. Plus, when I DID get back into riding two years ago it was on a green horse who takes a LOT of leg, not the sensitive TB type I rode before.

So, I haven't ridden this week because my back and hip have been bothering me quite a bit, with numbness in some places and hypersensitive spots in other places that feel like hot needles are poking me, even though there is not a mark there.

Then, Thursday 5-29 I get a call from the barn that Deuce has cut his leg and is bleeding badly! Sometimes the reports I get like this are accurate, and sometimes they are exaggerated, but thoughts about what happened to Teddy (Theodore O'Connor) pop into my mind as I go rushing over. I get there, and Deuce is grazing happily! The cut is right above his right front fetlock, but is pretty superficial, thank goodness!

I'm going to be brave...here is a picture of Deuce and me after our second hunter pace together 10-21-07:

Another one, the day I had him exactly two years. :)
Deuce is a pretty unflappable guy and a VERY good boy! He is also a red roan overo Paint, but his red roan is hard to see! He has a medicine hat and some other roan markings. He basically looks white with blue eyes, though! When I take him places people try to guess his breed, and I get some of the wildest guesses!