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Friday, September 23, 2016

Horse Thief Part 1

One of the ladies at the barn very kindly agreed to let me borrow her horse for a few jump lessons this fall while she is traveling.  Since she ended up being gone during the clinic with D (she had been planning on riding in it), I asked if I could steal Blue for a lesson.

Blue in all his glory

Blue is a total doll.  He is a draft quarter horse cross, so he rides totally different from Stinker.  I had ridden him twice before.  Once on the trail ride where I ponied Stinker and once when I was jumping.  We might have gone through some fences instead of over, because if the rider isn't committed Blue decides it isn't worth the effort to jump.

Poor Blue did not know what he was in for.  In the beginning he was super lazy and had the well I don't think I feel like moving off your leg thing going.  I popped him with the whip a couple times and the first time he went "hey my mamma never does that!" and flipped me the bird.  The second time I got more of a yes ma'am (like the good southern boy he is).

He is pretty darn cute even if my pictures are crappy

My respect for his owner grew enormously when we started to canter.  Blue is a little sluggish with his hind and his canter gets a bit four beat.  D had me rhythmically tap his inside hind with the whip to get that snappier.  I was surprised at how much it changed the canter.  But holy crap he takes a lot of leg to keep him jumping and packaged, not to mention testing my coordination by keeping time with the whip.  I was seriously questioning my life choices, but who needs to be able to walk...

Immediately regrets life choices

Overall, it was a really good lesson for me, because I was able to work on my timing on something that is slower than Stinker and doesn't demand quite as precise of a ride.  The next day, my timing was much better with Stinker.  I am very thankful for my awesome barn people that let me steal their horses when they are out of town.

12 comments:

  1. Gotta love those draft crosses! It's almost always an awesome change of pace (literally and figuratively, hehehehe) to ride a different horse!

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    1. I have the sport car and the mack truck covered this week! :)

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  2. It is so refreshing to get on other horses once in a while and see the differences in their style. Fun to try new things and also to appreciate what you have.

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    1. It really is and it keeps me honest in my issues as a rider.

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  3. What a cool horse! Glad you're getting some saddle time on other beasties too.

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  4. Big draft crosses are my favorite, but horses that require a lot of leg are my nemesis.

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    1. I'm lucky that I have a lot of leg but I honestly don't know what short people do. But I do prefer my little pocket rocket :)

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  5. Draft crosses are my homies! But they can be lazy for sure! It's so interesting to ride different horses :)

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    1. They are a fun bunch! And it really is interesting to ride horses that are so opposite in temperament.

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  6. Ooh he sounds fun, in a challenging and exhausting way lol but FUN!

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