I'm trying to take the equine world by storm. And though I've been taking weekly lessons for over a year now, Sunday showed just how far I still have to go.
I recently moved in with a girl from work, Rachel, and her husband, Jared. It's great to be with fun people again and helpful with the bank balance!
Rachel's parents have this gorgous 2000 acres of land in Tuscaloosa with horses. I've gotten to go out there several times now and it's fabulous! We went this Sunday and took three other people with us. Rachel had me put the saddles, etc. on for two of them (a husband and wife) and then take them out while she got her horse and her cousin's horse ready. It was a bit of a disaster. First, these saddles are totally different from the ones I am used to using. Second, I don't have a clue how to take people out, and, third, its 2000 acres and I'm crazy directionally challenged. So I put their saddles on and said "Rachel you should probably check behind me just for good measure" (she forgot).
We headed out and it was VERY windy so the horses were getting all hyped up, and the guy was a bit uncertain and was pulling on the reigns, which hyped the horse up a bit more, which in turn made his wife's horse skittish. I was on one of the less easy going horses, so I was working hard to keep him relaxed and not join in their hoopla (the only thing I succeeded at).
Their horses kept trying to break into a trot, which can be unsetteling when you haven't actually asked the horse to do it. This produced more pulling and tugging and "whoa-ing". Everyone was dancing around in circles and I kept throwing encouraging tidbits, "Try to relax more." "Loosen up on the reigns." "Relax your butts!" (Horses can feel your anxiety and tension in your derriere). As all this was happening, I noticed the girl's left leg getting farther and farther down the side of her horse and her right leg getting higher and higher. I said, "Is your saddle too lose?" Within seconds she was hanging on to the side! I stopped and tried to help her get down and as she came off, the saddle came with her, still fastened. It slid nearly underneath the horse...It was a fiasco! I couldn't figure out how to unbuckle it because it was at such a crazy angle I couldn't get the clasp to come undone. I finally just undid the other side and it fell to the ground. As I was resaddeling, the horse decided to step on my foot and stay on it, and I had to put all my weight on him to shove him off.
Once we finally got everyone back on I was like "let's just go back to the house and wait for Rachel." On our way the guy's horse got to dancing and turning again and I looked back just in time to see him come off (not fall) and get into a tug of war with the horse on the ground. All I could think was "please God don't let him rear and pummel the guy to death, just let us get back to the house." We did. Rachel fixed everyone's saddles and we went back out and I think a good time was had by all. But the moral of the story is I DO NOT need to be in charge of ANY horse riding expeditions!
The happy part of the ride!