This weekend I packed up the truck and headed off solo to a horse show in Carman. I had shown there before when I was a teenager and had lived close to the area. Now, 20 years later I was excited to give it a go. There were enough English classes to make it worth it, so why not?
On first arriving and unloading, we were greeted by giant, jingly heavy horses and carts -- something Miss Tea has never seen before.
Then down the road in search of our box stall, many, many cows.
Her eyes were pretty bugged out, but she was still okay. Finally arrived at the horse barns and had a nice look at the show arena...
Yup, full-on Ex right there. No sweat.
It was a noisy night, but I managed to get a few hours sleep eventually. Show day was fantastic. Miss Tea handled everything surprisingly well and the best part is---WE MADE IT THROUGH THE WHOLE JUMPING COURSE! Twice. Cross rails went beautifully, except for one refusal that was really just a spook at the puddle of water in front of the jump.
Next was 2'6" jumper class and she was amazing! The sheep didn't even stop us when they made an appearance right beside us during our round.
Overall I had a great time. This venturing off on my own isn't so scary after all :) I love my horse!
Hi Wendy!
ReplyDeleteI saw your comment on my blog (best of luck in the sparkle contest!!). I just wanted to drop by and check in with you.
I don't know you and I don't know your horse at all, so take anything I say with a grain of salt. No two situations are the same.
That said, letting go of my mare that I had the wreck on was one of the most liberating and empowering things I have ever done as an adult. I didn't realize how scared I was through that whole process until I met my old man horse. Riding is fun. It should be fun. Amateurs like us are in it for fun, and being scared isn't fun. Ever.
We're interacting with enormous animals and that real, physical fear is not out of place. If that's where you're at, consider trying something new, whether that's a new discipline or a new horse or a new situation. Again, I'm not trying to be condescending and weird, but your comment really struck a chord with me.
I've been there. I know how it feels. It took a solid two years of the best horse I've ever known to get me out of that rut. Even now with Courage, I have moments of "what am I doing", but he doesn't scare me. He's green and smart, but he isn't out to take advantage of me.
Just because that mare of mine scared me didn't make her a bad horse. She was just the wrong horse for me and riding her for three years set me back a long ways.
Again, you know yourself, your horse, and your situation. You're a grown adult and you can make your own decisions. If you want to talk about it, please feel free to email me at sprinklerbandits@gmail.com . I'm a normal, reasonably nice human being and I love meeting new people.
Best wishes to you and yours. :-)
Aimee