Dreary -yet challenging- ride

Today Heather rode down to Sinwaan's to meet me for a ride. I do not feel comfortable riding on the road alone, so I was very glad for the company! It also meant that Heather put in an extra 10 miles (5 miles each way) of riding to accompany me. WOW! I joked that her horse would be in twice as good of shape and she commented that since he was older, he would need the added fitness for the upcoming ride season. Heather rides a Mustang that she acquired as a youngster and he is 19. They have done dressage in the past, and last season Ruth got Heather hooked on limited distance rides.

Sinwaan was a muddy mess when I got to the barn. In all honesty, I thought I may be riding in the rain today. It had been drizzling all morning and it was foggy and gray. I had been stalking the weather report all week and the prediction was 10% chance of rain Saturday, 50% chance of rain Sunday. Well I was not risking Sunday's weather. I told Heather and Cheryl that I was riding Saturday, even if I did get rained on a little bit. A little would be better than a lot. I only have the opportunity to ride once a week and I can't afford to throw it out because of a little rain. Heather and Cheryl were both in, until Cheryl discovered a flat tire on her trailer.

I took my time grooming because on the drive over I had not passed Heather on the road like I thought I would have. So I was trying to figure out if she was running a little behind, took a different route, or what. I didn't want to ride alone on the road, and wasn't jumping up and down about riding by myself in the field. I had gotten most of the mud curried off of Sinwaan's back and toweled him off a bit when he suddenly perked up. He had caught site of Quincy coming down the road. I hurried then to tack up, but still took care to be sure nothing was twisted or ill-fitting.

Off we went.

Now I don't know what has gotten into Sinwaan. Usually, riding in a group of horses he is content to take up the tail end and follow at whatever speed the leader sets. He falls into line and you could put a beginner on him. Today, and last weekend, riding out from his barn, he has been full of nonsense. Jigging and tossing his head and almost crow-hopping and threatening to rear. I can feel him under me, just a bundle of nerves and energy all tangled up and he wants to explode but can't decide which direction. I try to channel it and keep him moving forward, as this is the only thing that seems to help but lately this means he is in the lead, which doesn't help matters because the lead horse is also the lookout horse. So not only is he bouncing around like an idiot, he is also half-spooking at puddles and mailboxes and stumps and all kinds of scary things that he normally (following) would not even see.

I have, at this point, come to the conclusion that this is how he acts riding away from HIS BARN. We'll see if my theory proves correct the next time I trailer him out, if he is the same challenge. He has been challenging. I had been thinking what an easy horse he had become and how it was almost too easy, how fun a challenge would be. Well, now I have my challenge.

The jig is not so awful I can't sit it and pretend I am riding a fancy show horse in a park class. What gets to me is the antics out on the road. The last thing I want is to come off a horse and land on asphalt!

Heather and Quincy are as steady as they come, so I was glad to have them along, and Heather offered to take the lead for awhile to help settle Sinwaan down. Our first encounter was a donkey in a field who started braying and trotting over as soon as he saw us. Then the Appaloosa came galloping over. They were quite a bit below us and Sinwaan just did not know if he could handle all that noise and excitement. But I talked and eased him through it and we continued on up the hill. Quincy was a bit slow, after all, he had already done 5 miles, so Sinwaan quickly took the lead. After about a mile he settled down into more of a working mindset. He doesn't do a very good job at maintaining a steady gait however, something we need to work on.

We had a nice ride, all-told, with the horses playing leap-frog on occasion. We chatted the whole way and did not get rained on at all! Sinwaan got the lead back when he sensed we were heading for home and went into a power trot. Until he saw cows. Oh my stars, what are those??!? What a moron, he shared a pasture with cows for a couple of years at least before he came to me. What is wrong with this horse? He stops and stares and then wants to leap off the road into the field if they dare look at him. More power trotting until we get to Jenee's place. What is THAT? It's just a dog agility course. Ok, but what is THAT? Just a stump. Once we got past more scary stuff we went back into the power trot. He can really move out when he wants to.

I feel like I am really dogging on him in this post. I don't really mean to. I am so thankful to have him, and I am glad to see he is acting more fit every time I ride. He was just as strong at the end of our ride today as he was at the start (in fact I was having to hold him back quite a bit the last 2 miles), I wish I could have done the loop twice! Just didn't really have the daylight for that, with Heather needing to ride on back home at the end.

He definitely does need more miles and more consistency to get him back into the steady easy horse to ride that I remember. He is too old to be acting this green. It makes me second-guess everything. Is the tack not fitting right? (I always use the same tack every time) Is something hurting him? Is he running too hot from the tiny bit of alfalfa and grain he gets every day? Is he just testing me to see what he can get away with? Is this simply a new trick based off his barn-sour attitude I have always seen? Time will tell. I think once we get out away from HOME he enjoys himself, so that tells me I can probably rule out any pain or tack problems.

Ruth loaned me a Wintec endurance saddle that I am dying to try out but I don't have a girth that will work with it. I am hoping to find one soon. I am also planning on riding 4 times over my Christmas break. I hope it doesn't rain. :)

Ride in the snow

Today's high of 21°F felt warm compared to the frigid temperatures we had been experiencing, so when I realized riding was an option today I got downright giddy. Ruth picked me up and we headed to Heather's to pick up the trailer. We had planned on picking up Sinwaan and bringing him back to Heathers so we could all ride together from the start. Hope opted out so we trailered Ruth and Heather's horses out to Sinwaan. New starting point!

There were flurries in the air as we tacked up. I had to readjust my stirrup length since my aunt rode last in my saddle. Mounting up, my seat was downright cold! We rode on down the drive and Sinwaan was acting up a little. The way he usually acts when he is being ridden alone. Barn sour? Tossing his head, prancing, pulling at the reins. Itching to go! Although my riding partners saw a different side of him today, I think it did help to have them along, yet I found myself in the lead part of the time, which is unusual for him. We walked a bit to warm them up and then did much of the rest of the ride at the trot along the edge of the road. At one point I could hardly see, the snow coming down was hitting me in the eyes. The scenery surrounding us was beautiful and I would not have traded that ride for a warm spot on the couch! My toes froze, my thighs and knees felt the chill of the air as we picked up speed and yet I felt overwhelmed by happiness. Yes, it's snowing. Yes, it's cold and YES I AM RIDING!

Ruth commented to me "You know everyone who sees us thinks we're crazy."

There was not much traffic to deal with, thanks to the weather I imagine. One person honked and spooked the horses a little. Otto had a misstep and slid a bit anther time. Yet all-in-all it was a wonderful winter ride. All I needed to complete the moment was a jingle bell. :) I checked the milage when I got home and we traveled 5.8 miles today on horseback. Not bad, maybe next weekend we can go farther.