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From Craigslist to FEI

A blog about how a lifelong rider/trainer made the (very) long progression to FEI and beyond.

I DIDN'T DIE! Despite What My Body Seems To Think

7/13/2014

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Ok, so Shane rode Arthur a few months ago at Cowboy Country.  It went well and in my mind it was something I should have been able to replicate.  Shane DEFINITELY thinks that (he obviously has way more faith in my body than I do!) and I'd really run out of ground work things to do.

Yes, shocking I know.

So that left me + Arthur and only needing to work on riding type things.  At the very least, I needed to ride him to find out more ground things I needed to work.  Talk about an impasse.  So I made the decision and it seemed a bit last minute.

I'd gotten home from work and just grabbed my riding pants, my gear, and told the husband to sit outside and watch in case 911 needed to be called.  No really, I wanted him there to watch.  Arthur was tacked, ground worked without event, and then I tormented him with a mounting block.  Nothing was phasing him and I was starting to panic.  I had nothing to work on, this was going to HAVE to happen.  I.was.going.to.ride.my.crazy.horse.

So I took a breath, wiped the copious amounts of sweat from my eyes and agree to just sit on him.  I look over to my husband for some moral support and realize... he's not there anymore.

Seriously?

I was going to have to die alone. Obviously.

So I swing my leg over and Arthur looks completel bored.  In my mind though, this is the end.  I'm shaking like a leaf, my body is producing the most amount of sweat I've ever produced and my brain is just an OCD ADHD smattering of freaking out and trying to remember what to do now.  Arthur meanwhile is standing like a rock.

So I pet him.  "Thanks for not freaking out like I am buddy."

Then I sit up.  NOT THAT MUCH LEAN BACK OVER.

I grab some mane.  WAIT NOT THAT HAND IN CASE YOU NEED TO FLEX HIM OUT OF HIS BUCKING.

Arthur is barely conscious.

I sit up a bit more.

He's still barely conscious.

I vaguely recall I should flex him on both sides.  IF HE DOES THIS I'M GETTING OFF ASAP.

I flex him and he moves his head freakishly easy.  OMGWHATSHEDOING!?!?!  Oh right, I trained in responsiveness.  Derp.

OK, so he flexes.  NOW WHAT DO I DO?  Umm... let's... disengage.  Or get off.  No disengage.

I ask, he does.  I'm sweating enough to fill a swimming pool and my legs are hurting from shaking so badly.

OK, not dead, horse is working fine and possibly coping better than I am.

I struggle to recall what comes next when I suddenly recall the next step is to let him move forward.  THAT'S LIKE RIDING OMG.

But I get up my nerve (at this point I'm annoying me), and ask for the disengage and let him spiral out.  He does so beautifully and we walk once around the round pen and I bend him to a stop and I get off easily.    Arthur yawns.

I might need some medications to help me through this part of retraining...
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