This Thanksgiving I experienced one of the greatest holidays injustices imaginable. I came down with the stomach flu 20 minutes before Thanksgiving dinner. I managed roughly four bites of turkey, a few spoonfuls of mashed potatoes and peas, and two forkfuls of apple pie. Then I had to lie down and suffer for several hours. I went to… Read more »
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A Good Fit
My new bit and headstall both arrived last week, but since Brian and I had our Sunday trail ride planned I decided not to try them out until afterwards. I intended to test the new combo yesterday, but work did not permit. This morning I woke up and it was dark and raining, but things… Read more »
A Bit About Bits
Although Steen’s behavior has been excellent lately, I’ve been feeling for some time that his bit doesn’t fit him quite as well as I would like. He doesn’t fight it, or toss his head, or refuse to take it or anything major like that, but it does shift around in his mouth more than I’d… Read more »
Horse Hopping
Although my mom and my sister each have a horse, lately neither of them has had much opportunity to ride. My sister’s horse, Jak, is happily one of those rare horses who doesn’t seem to backslide much even when left standing for long periods of time. He is sometimes a total goofball and maybe a… Read more »
I Do This For Fun?
On Friday, Brian and I almost didn’t go to the barn. We were both tired, he’d had a long day at work, my neck was still stiff from my fall, and it was chilly. Somehow, however, we talked ourselves into going and so Friday afternoon found us tacking our two boys up in the barn… Read more »
A Horsey Weekend
Again the weather was beautiful. The night times had frost warnings, but I don’t think we ever got quite below freezing. The days were sunny and warmed up in the high 50s on Saturday and into the 60s on Sunday. We rode both days. Saturday was a surprisingly busy day at the barn. We actually… Read more »
Consistancy and Improvement
Years ago I remember reading an article about training for cycling in which an exercise physiologist said that a person is always gaining or losing fitness, they are never static. The reality, of course, is that a person can maintain a certain level of fitness for a little while. But it really is only just… Read more »
No Falls, No Bucks
That’s right, no bucks. On Thursday there was a buck, and I was able to stay on. So now I can say I’ve ridden a bucking horse. It happened in the indoor arena. It was just Bear and I. We had done our usual warmup of lots of walking and easy circles, stops, and flexes… Read more »
Working the Strip
Today Brian and I headed out for our (soon to be) traditional Wednesday afternoon at the barn. The weather was again perfect. I had an easy start to the day when I found Steen up by the waterer, so I didn’t even have to hike out to the pasture to get him. The boys were… Read more »
The One Where I Fall Off, Again
The barn was empty when Robin and I arrived this afternoon. The sky was slightly cloudy and the temperatures were neither too warm nor too cool. Plus they had mowed the strip, one of our favorite places to ride. Steen was waiting almost right by the gate when we entered the pasture, but Bear was… Read more »