Day 6 of 30 Day Horse Challenge: All the tack and riding clothes you have (brand/color/other details)

Day 6 - All the tack and riding clothes you have (brand/color/other details)

I have been through 40 years worth of equipment. I have also sold a lot of things and added a lot of things over that time. The collection would change as my tastes and needs changed. I could never list it all. Without digging into the farthest reaches of my closets and tack trunks, I'll give the best of it.

Saddles - Wintec 2000 All Purpose saddle(old style) in brown and a Bruno DelGrange show jumping saddle.

Girth - Beval Saddlery Italian made anatomic synthetic girth. No longer being sold by Beval but a great girth for easy care and the quality of the workmanship is second to none.

Saddle Pad(s) - I loved to collect saddle pads when I had a horse. I have sheepskin ones for horse shows and all kinds of quilted squares for schooling. It would bore you to tears to list each and every!

Bridles - Beval Saddlery's Newport bridle in both horse and warmblood sizes (found amazing deal on ebay when they closed out of this style)

Show Clothes: My 2 wool hunt coats were both custom tailored and made by Grand Prix. One is a navy blue windowpane plaid and the other a charcoal gray pinstripe. I also have a vintage Tailored Sportsman hunt coat (made by TS many years before they became a status name) made from 100% polyester in navy blue with a red satin lining. It was my "horse shows in the rain" hunt coat.

My show breeches were Pikeur's "Winner" breeches. They are side zips with doeskin knee patches.

My show shirts are a few different brands, most of them are made by Essex in various colors to compliment the jackets. All have monogrammed collars.

I still have my custom Dehner boots from my hardcore horse show days. They are beautiful but no longer fit me. I can't bear to let them go yet. Otherwise I have a very nice pair of Mountain Horse field boots that serve me well if needed.

Helmet - I still have my ancient fiberglass shell velvet helmet. It is sun-bleached, the ribbon at the back is faded and hanging down, it has many scuffs in the velvet and the satin lining is rather... grungy. But I can't part with it, either. It is like the shield of a warrior, it's appearance is an unspoken testament to the hours spent training, competing, and giving all to my passion. The new style helmets don't age like those old velvet hunt caps. I remember when I got that deep black, plush velvet hat I longed for the day when it resembled the helmets worn by my heroes, Rodney Jenkins, Conrad Homfeld, Harry DeLeyer, Melanie Smith, and George Morris. (and if you only recognize the name George Morris as you read this, you are a youngster with a lot of horse show history to catch up on).

Its replacement, my old GPA helmet has passed the 5 year mark and it's still in my gear bag. It's supposed to be retired but I can't let it go, even as its replacement, a very attractive IRH Elite Ultra helmet waits to get some riding time.

Schooling Gear - Kerrits! Kerrits! Kerrits! I LOVE Kerrits! No matter what I buy from them it always fits and I love it. All my schooling breeches in all sorts of colors are Kerrits. I have a few Ariat shirts and some On Course cotton breeches but nothing beats my Kerrits. My Paddock boots are Ariat zip fronts and my half chaps are brown suede Ovations.

Hunt Clothes - I outfitted my dream before it became a reality. I have a few fox hunting pieces, specifically a black Melton coat and a reversible canary vest bought in my hopes of riding with the hunt one day. They are unworn and hanging in cedar bags. I hope I will wear them one day while riding a horse.

Day 5 of 30 Day Horse Challenge: Your first fall.

Day 5 - Your first fall.

Honestly, I don't exactly remember my first fall. I may have taken a tumble off the white pony I first rode when I took lunge line lessons in the very beginning as a 6 year old, but I can't describe it and I'm almost unsure it happened.

The next incidence where I hit the dirt is clearer, it happened in a riding lesson when I was about 8 years old. I was riding a big, draft cross leopard appy named "Dalmatian". He was being a pig and not wanting to go forward (as was usual). My trainer was telling me to tap him with my crop and squeeze him forward with my legs. So I was working on that when he trotted off, then pulled his big ugly head down at the bit, pulled me forward out of the tack and I slid right off down his shoulder. Thud! Right in the dirt.

I wasn't much hurt, but humiliated (it was a group lesson) and filthy. I did get back on. He did trot. And that was the last time I fell off of Dalmatian.

Goal: met and exceeded! and Day 4 of 30 Day Horse Challenge: A ride that impacted your life

Remember I said I had a goal last week that by Friday I'd be riding the exercise bike during my physical therapy session? Well, the therapist put me back on the bike on Monday and with the seat way up high I managed to gingerly get the full rotation of my right knee! It hurt, I had to compensate and we used no resistance but I did it! By this past Friday I was riding the bike at a comfortable seat height and making full rotation with very little pain! Yesterday I rode it pain free and even worked in a bit of resistance!

I saw the orthopedic surgeon today. He seemed pleased with my progress in just 2 weeks. But he wants more. Before he'll consider surgery, he wants full range of motion back in the knee. So he said he will see me in another 2 weeks and more PT for me.

Day 04 - A ride that impacted your life.

Well, in a lifetime spent in the saddle, this is hard. There are so many rides that I could say impacted my life. My first pony ride. My first riding lesson. The first horse I owned. My first horse show as a 10 year old (won a second place in Maiden equitation). All the rides in all the classes at all the horse shows.

A great ride was some of my most creative solutions that won me ribbons in the show ring, especially in the hunt seat equitation classes. So many experiences. The trail rides, the horse shows, the lessons, the schooling, the hacking, the dressage tests, the hunter paces, the fox hunts.

The fox hunts. Those were a blast. I was only fortunate enough to be a guest about 3 times with friends who were members of our local hunt but every ride was thrilling. I remember the first time I hunted, my friend asked if it would be okay if I rode first flight with him as he was one of the Masters. I will never forget the response from one of the other Masters, "well, all right, if you think she can keep up."

Ha! Not only did I keep up, afterwards, I was asked if I'd considered hunting and would be interested in joining the hunt.

Good times. I was some kind of rider back then. I was hoping with the right horse to finally return to fox hunting, although at this age I'll settle for riding second flight for awhile but everything has just gone wrong. I hope I will ride well enough again to not have to give this one up.

So, you want to buy a horse?

I came across this today. This is funny, but sad because it is often true.



Oh, and if that's what she's charging for board, I wanna board there, too!

Loose Horse at the Royal Wedding!

Okay, I'm not all caught up in Royal wedding fever but I did want to check out Kate's dress. Loved that it was an Alexander McQueen, one of my favorite designers. When watching the snippet of video I saw this!



SO, how many of the horse folks in the audience caught this one?

Day 3 - 30 Day Horse Challenge: Favorite Horse (own/lease/ride) with description about the relationship

Day 3 - Favorite Horse (own/lease/ride) with description about the relationship.



Well, that's easy. My favorite horse is Monty, the horse that I started this blog for and who was my everything. He was not the first horse or the only horse I ever owned but he was the one who was the most versatile and who had the most comfortable connection with me.

Monty was a Warmblood/TB cross. He came from Virginia and was originally brought to the farm where I was boarding my old mare Alta, as a sale horse for another of my trainer's (whom I've nicknamed "the Master") students to try. He watched the horse go and decided this horse was too green for her but he thought he'd be a great match for me. I still remember the phone call at work when he told me to get out to the barn and try this new horse as soon as I got off work.

I thought he was joking, I wasn't looking to buy a new horse. I still had my old, semi-retired mare and was playing catch rider with anything that needed riding. So I went and tried this big gray horse. And he was lovely. Comfortable to ride and with a willing heart. He'd canter up to any jump, and even if he stopped to peek at it, he'd then pop over. Green but so eager to please. I had 2 weeks to try him before he would be sent back to the dealer. I had no idea how I was going to afford 2 horses but he was too good a prospect to pass by.

So I sucked it up. I had some help from my folks but the bulk of it I financed with a small loan and the Master let me teach beginner lessons to defray some of the second board costs. Originally, my intention was to buy him, finish his training, get him out to the shows and sell him for some small profit. I still had Alta, who was my difficult, wonderful, wicked mare and when you spend 20 years with someone, you don't just walk away. She was still my horse, and selling Monty would have been okay as long as I still had her.

Then 2 years later, Alta died. And Monty just became my horse.

And went on to become my best horse.

My Good Horse.

Successful as a show horse, trail horse, hunter pace horse, family horse and best friend. I could TRUST him. I never could completely let my guard down with Alta, but Monty was easy. It never took me long to figure him out and he was what I called my 1,2,3 horse. If something upset him, he only needed to be encouraged to face it 3 times and it was over.
For example, if we were passing a tree and something about it spooked him, I'd encourage him calmly with my seat and voice to go forward. I'd circle around and pass it again, he'd peek, but it was more of interest at that point than fear and by the next circle past he would ignore it and keep going. Knowing this made showing him a breeze as I always knew he'd let go of something that upset him very quickly.

If you have time, browse around on my past posts on this blog and you'll see how much Monty meant to me, and how losing him took so much away. The emptiness is still there. I hope there will be another good horse and more memories for me. But it's been so damn hard.

And because I still dream, here's another "dream horse" that would be a perfect choice for me:

TROY

Day 2 - 30 Day Horse Challlenge: The last time you rode a horse and what you did

Happy Easter wishes to all!

Day 02 - The last time you rode a horse and what you did
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I'm not going to count the actual last time I "rode" a horse, as it was just after mounting and ended with unfortunate results. That's not a "ride" as I see it.

The last time I rode a horse was when I came to care for and ride dear, sweet Ruby. That's him and me in the picture above. If you are just catching up with my blog, Ruby is the old former A-circuit show horse that my trainer asked if I would like to half board. Ruby is amazing and sweet and a pleasure to ride. His owner is also wonderful to work with and The past 8 months or so I've been half boarding him with her have been stress free.

Ruby and I did our usual ride in the field behind the main riding arena. I was so thrilled the frozen ground and warmer weather were beginning and I could ride outside again.

But it also brought on my feelings of wanting a horse of my own, and to have the warmer weather and spring/summer months to work with the horse and form a partnership. So I started shopping and that turned out to be yet another mistake.

As for my knee, I completed day 2 of physical therapy. I have gotten more flexion and I'm happier for that but when the therapist tried to get me on the stationary bike to try and loosen the joint, it was NOT happening. My knee won't complete the rotation without strong pain. I really tried, we even raised the seat way up but no go. :(

Tomorrow I go again. My goal is this knee is going to rotate by Friday.