Writing and riding

I'm not sure how it happened that my time has been so swallowed up by other things that blogging has fallen off my to-do list but it very obviously has done just that. Much of it stems from the overwhelming feeling that revelations and insights about my relationships with the horses could not possibly be as interesting to others as they are (sometimes) earthshaking--or at very least head-shaking--to me.

Calabar and I are still working on our riding and we seem to be cooperating better than ever these days. He needs a confident hand--or as Allie says, more leg--and somewhere along the line, I found that in myself. At least most days. It also appears I've forgotten how to ride in a western saddle, so I'll be working on that with Lena and hoping I don't irritate her too much in the process. My left foot refuses to stay in the stirrup at a canter, regardless of what direction I'm going or how short the stirrups are. I have no idea what's causing this so my only solution is to toss that heavy saddle up more than every other month or so.

After Allie tortured my by raising the stirrups

We still have not gotten out on the trail this year but the trailer is in good repair so if I can stop making us too many plans on the weekends, it could actually happen now that weekends are back to normal. I'd been working Sunday-Thursday which left Saturday as cleaning and family errand day. Convincing Steve to play hooky on a Friday was never as successful as I'd hoped it might be. Oh, well.

It's like riding a bike? 

We did get up to Slide in July and had a nice time despite inferno-like temperatures. We didn't ride as much as we planned because of the heat, but Allie got to work the mechanical cow on Lena, Adrienne got to ride again after a long (6 years?) break and we got to catch up with Ike and Cheri. It's a gift in life to know people you can reconnect with easily, like the last two years were only a couple weeks. The plan is to visit in October next year when temperatures should be less horrid.

Lena shows Allie how to chase a cow

Calabar and Lena also got to meet Tuffy which was an interesting experience for all of us. Neither of them, to my knowledge, has been around foals much. They were totally enthralled with this tiny baby horse. Even my big, brown gelding was completely enchanted by this little being.

"His nose is so small!"

"No, we can't have one," we said.

"Are you SURE?" they said.

"Tuffy is right there!"

"Oh, yes. We're sure."

Tuffy and his momma, Truly a Hot Pepper

So.. I am continuing to learn and am finding a bond with Calabar that deepens with every ride. Do I have the need to share each and every milestone? Not so much any more. I have some other writing projects I'm working on and he plays a part in them, as does Lena, but my journey here has hit a bit of an impasse. Will I come back to it? I probably will here and there. I love my horses and the joy, grounding and comic relief they toss into my life on a regular basis. Sharing that with the world is simply not a priority for me anymore.

I think that's okay, at least for now.

Trailering goal

Calabar doesn't know it, yet, but we have a new goal--solo trailering.

Going out with Lena is one thing. They both load and trailer very well--as long as they are together and Calabar rides in front, of course. In fact, loading them these days mostly consists of getting of their way while they practically leap into the trailer. "Lena, can I shut the divider first before you climb in?"

Going out is a fun thing--as long as there is two of us

However, the last time I tried to take Calabar somewhere alone, it wasn't pretty, so I haven't done it again. I'm realizing we might have to work on that, though, even if he doesn't think it's a good idea.

Ex-racehorses generally trailer very well, even alone. When racing, they trailer a lot. I do have a vague memory of Calabar's trainer telling me he always pawed while riding in a trailer, but once we got him and started taking him out on trails with Lena, he became a champion hauler.

And then.

Our friend Devon has a mare of her own that had come off the track and she wanted to take Ursulita out on a mellow ride. Since I was still not doing a lot of fast work with Bar, we decided to take the two of them out to Doran Beach for a gentle outing.

Calabar loaded great and I decided to let him have the whole trailer so did not close the divider. That may have been a mistake.

As we left the barn, he began to get upset. Frantic is more like it. The trailer rocked back and forth as we drove through downtown Sebastopol and I'm probably lucky no one called the ASPCA on me. It's also a good thing he didn't fit through the window or he might have taken Main Street by storm. As it was, the other drivers got a really good look at how long his neck is.

So, after telling his ex-trainers how great he hauled, it was a little humbling to pull in to the barn and have them tell me they heard me coming from the time I made the turn onto their road. Sigh.

When Calabar saw Howie and the farm where he'd lounged around for a couple years after coming off the track and before coming to me, his eyes got HUGE. He was still dancing in place, but Ursulita just climbed on the trailer like it was no big deal.

Gotta love ex-racehorses. "Eh, big bouncing brown horse--no big deal."

And then we had a great time at the beach! Both the horses were good, nobody spooked, Calabar clambered over a big log just because I asked him to.

Look at us, well, Devon and Ursi--at the beach!

After our ride, Calabar would not load for me ("But we're going HOME!") so we loaded Ursulita first when we headed home and then dropped goof ball at home before taking Ursi back to her barn.

The very next time Steve and I went to take the horses out, Calabar flat out refused to load for me--even with Lena standing right there. It took him close to a year to let me load him again, though he would load for Steve most of the time.

Which brings us back to the present and the big brown horse who practically drags me onto the trailer now, having finally come to believe I am not taking him anywhere terrible.

A new horse friend has just adopted an ex-racehorse and will be ready to do some trail riding in awhile. She boards at a nice place that has several nice trails right off the property and invited us to come up sometime.

Hm. Can I bring a friend for my goofy horse? That's kind of awkward and imposing, though I didn't think of that until after I'd asked. Oops--color me rude.

So. It is time to practice solo trailering with Calabar. Probably we should do it with Lena, too, just for good measure. Forrest the wonder horse already trailers well all alone. Show off. Goes swimming, too. Super show off.

I think I know all the tricks to get this started--load, unload, load, unload, short trips, unload, load, repeat--and the biggest trick of all is patience and persistence. I'd like to think perhaps I'm not giving Calabar the benefit of the doubt and he'll suddenly be fine with this, but only actually trying this will answer that question.

Field trip!

Back home

Steve and I are relaxing in the living room and Calabar and Lena were last seen munching grain in a most contented manner. Calabar did have to do a corner-to-corner inspection of his pen ("Is this my poop?") and a good hearty roll, but all indications are that the normal accommodations are acceptable.

This trip was incredible. Not only because it gave me a much-needed mental break from work, but because it really showed me my horse. Cheri said the difference the work we have done together is obvious, which made the weekend complete. The best part was watching him absorbing the action--totally transfixed, very curious, but not really afraid. Okay, the really best part was watching him drop his pretty Thoroughbred head, pin his ears, and give cows the stink eye--just like a real (and really tall) cow horse.

One of the other this-will-hopefully-stick-in-my-memory-forever was watching Lena and Bar move in tandem in the big arena. I caught just a snippet on video, but they are so lovely together. Like four-legged figure skaters, matched in movement, balance and cadence. She does, however, stop better than he does. (The video may not work, but I'll try and if not, try again later.)

Such a great trip, such a needed break for all four of us.
And tomorrow, it's back to the grind. I guess I'm ready, though the temptation to run off and be a cowgirl is awfully strong.