Back in the Saddle

The focus of this blog was about Monty - "a good horse" and chronicled our recent adventures and the fun a good horse can give you. It was also a way, as his melanoma condition worsened, to keep the memories of our time together alive. I think, moving forward, it also applies to my search for another good horse.

So, starting this weekend, I'm going to be writing about the horses I try, and what it's like to ride many different horses again. I have ridden Monty exclusively for the last 7 years. Before him, I was a "catch rider". My old mare was retired with her lameness injury and I wanted so bad to keep riding and showing so I would ride whatever was offered to me. I was a wise rider, I wouldn't get up on just anything. I chose what was safe but never turned down a challenge. I rode greenies, showed sale horses, and competed with a lovely, highly trained mare for a lady who's kids no longer competed but she still liked to go to the shows and schmooze.

That was before Monty came along. Back then I was also much fitter, thinner, and didn't have a family to think about. I'll be honest, I am working to suppress some fears about getting on strange horses to try and find "the one". But I have to do this, and now. The longer I wait, I think the worse it will be for me.

I have never been in this situation before. Every horse that came after the one before overlapped it's time in my possession. My first horse was a QH/Morgan given to me by my parents (who had no idea what they were getting into) on my 10th birthday. Two years later my dad got a western broke TB/QH for himself to trail ride with me. He stopped riding when his business picked up and I then rode his horse and found out he was a really good hunter/jumper. Then my mare, Alta came along and I bought her by trading those two horses with the dealer who was handling her sale.

I owned her for over 20 years. Monty came along in the last 2 years of her life, when she was no longer rideable. As I said, I was riding other people's horses at that time, but at the end of the day, when I had to give them back, or had to do what their owners told me they wanted done with them, I always had MY horse to come to and groom and fuss with as I saw fit.

Monty was brought in as a sale horse for another customer at the barn where my mare was. I'll never forget the Master calling me at work and telling me to leave now and come ride this new horse. I wasn't even looking for another horse. I had a horse. He told me the horse was too green for the client but would be a perfect project for me.

So, being a sucker for a good ride, I went right after work and tried him. He was so calm, steady and willing. After my super hot TB it was a breath of fresh air. I didn't know how I was going to juggle 2 boards and pay for him but I did it. The Master and the barn owner were good enough to let me take up teaching the beginners to earn enough money to cover the second board. And sometimes, though I hate to admit, my animal loving parents helped me out.

Then, when I lost my mare to colic, it was just Monty and me. And my life changed. I met the man who became my husband, changed to a better job, got married and started a family. Horse shows became less important but the horse never lost his place in my life. Many times my husband talked me out of selling him when the rest of my life kept demanding the time I would have used to go to the barn.

And here I am, horseless for the first time in almost 35 years. My kind friends have already begun offering rides. This weekend, E.W. has asked me to help her with the new horse she is fostering with option to adopt from a local rescue and another of my friends has offered me the chance to ride her thoroughbred mare sale horse.

I have been living on the internet looking and looking at horses. I found one locally I'm going to see on Sunday. I need to start somewhere and NY local is as good as any with this nasty cold weather.

So, we shall see. Let the journey begin.

Dressage Lesson Tomorrow Night!

I've been so busy that it's been impossible to catch up! I've been working Monty quite consistantly now. We even got back out on trail this past Sunday. The previous Sunday my friend E.W. and I walked over to the stable down the street to watch the dressage show.

She introduced me to her friend who boards there and was also competing. It is this friend's trainer who is coming to give me a lesson tomorrow night! I got to watch this instructor perform a second level test with a young horse she's bringing through the levels and was very impressed with this lady's ability to ride a very consistant test. Even when the young horse spooked a bit and flubbed his lead change, she collected him, corrected him and proceeded as if absolutely nothing wrong had happened. I enjoyed watching her ride, I can't wait to have her work with Monty and I!

And, to top it all off, my twins are taking their first official riding lesson this Thursday. They are really into doing this, I always thought, "ah, boys and horses are 50/50 as far as interest goes at best, and even then it would only be to play cowboys and indians". I'm getting this uneasy feeling I may be wrong about that where these two are concerned. Time to sell more stuff on Ebay to raise funds for this!!