Back in the Saddle

On Wednesday, I returned to horseback riding. The winter was so nasty and the weather has been so uncertain until now that it hasn't been possible. But Wednesday was really nice (against the weather report of rain) and it was nice to be back at the barn.

I love the smell of the barn. Hay and horses is an amazing and intoxicating smell. While Christine (a teacher in the art department and fellow rider) and I waited for our lesson, I joked that the child in the ring we were watching posted better than I did. Christine commented that I canter better than any of them, which was very kind.

The new instructor is my speed, though I secretly enjoyed watched Alyssa and Sue (our club sponsor) argue. I was on Spanky who is the most beautiful shade of red ever. He's tall, but not to tall that I couldn't mount him on my own if he was saddled with a western saddle. The lack of pommel on the English saddle makes that impossible. The problem with Spanky is that he's a little lazy and a bit of a follower. I gave him a regular pep talk about how he should be his own horse and not listen to the gossip around the stables, after which he stopped following the others so much. Breakthrough!

We trotted for an hour, getting back into the rhythm of posting. The new instructor commented that I had a Western post and we worked on correcting it. She means that I sit far back in the saddle, making posting a lot more work for me and the horse. After I corrected it, there was definite improvement. At the end of the lesson, I dismounted and undid Spanky's saddle, then took him back to the barn. I removed his bridle and brushed him down, promising that at some point I would get him on a Western saddle and we'd go trail riding. He was a Western horse, so I think we had an understanding. I hung out at the barn for awhile and just enjoyed being there.

I like horses. They're not particularly fragile (getting one to move when you're dismounted and they don't want to is a full body effort) but as a species they're incredibly gentle. When we're waiting on the line and Spanky starts dancing because he wants to run, there's that moment where I just want to let him so we can see how fast we can go. But one of the differences between English and Western riding is control (as well as the use of reigns - didn't realize that so much until recently). So Spanky and I don't run, but I think we have a secret understanding that, in a different saddle, we would.

As a side note...2 days later, I'm still extremely sore. So out of shape...

Instead of writing my paper...

I'll post about why I'm sore.

I feel like I've gone a few rounds with Gabby (my former personal trainer who loved to box and made me love it too). We had our riding lesson this evening. It was dark, but the rings are lit. I had a fabulous horse, Justin, who is sadly owned by someone and thus not usually available as a class horse. It was all trotting and posting today. My legs, abs and arms are killing me.

I've ridden for a long time, being around horses from a young age. I, like anyone who learned to ride outside of a class or stable environment, learned to ride Western. There's a lot of differences between the two forms, but it boils down to purpose. The purpose of Western riding is to work. You keep your reigns in one hand so you have a hand free to work. You grip with your knees and thighs when at a run so that your feet are free to kick. The equipment is all different as well. In English, the purpose is to show the beauty, strength and grace of the horse. It's to showcase the animal (and secondarily, the rider). You grip with the calves and feet (while pushing through the heels) and keep the knees and thighs relaxed. All the equipment is designed for better communication with the horse. Even the dismount is different.

Needless to say, the differences have been a culture shock. Pushing through the heels and gripping with the lower leg is difficult to remember when my instincts kick in. Not to mention, every time I halt, I tend to transfer the reigns (which are connected and held with both hands) into one hand. I do admit that, now that I have the general motion of posting down, it's considerably more comfortable than sitting the trot. Trotting is evil. But with posting, it's not so bad. And I'm buildings towards things like jumping and dressage (so sweetly described by friends as horse ballet). Things that serve no purpose other than to do it. It's fabulous! It's also a killer workout. Up and down for an hour. Exhausting. But oh, so much fun!