I blogged on Friday over at our Sizzling Pens blog that I was going to horseback riding camp with the family and was unsure, to put it mildly, how the ol’ bod would cope with it.
We got back on Sunday afternoon and I am pleased to announce that I held up very well. I told the riding boss I didn’t care which horse I rode since I didn’t have my heart set on a white one, or a spotty one or one that looked like the horse in the book I checked out from the school library, etc., etc. So he takes me over to the absolute biggest horse in the herd and says, “You can have this one.” Okay, I am tall so I guess I need a big horse.
I hefted myself up onto the beast and said, “What’s his name?”
“Widowmaker.”
Widowmaker by George Phippen
And the funny thing is that my first thought is, “Shouldn’t that be Widower-maker?” since I am a woman and grammatically correct as well. Not, “Help! Help! I’m going to die!” Then the rational part of my brain kicked in and I realized that a dude ranch would not saddle up a horse called Widowmaker.
So the cowboy and I had a good laugh. The horse’s name was actually Snookums or Sugar Pie or something cuddly like that. His name should have been Butt-Biter, because that was his little bad habit. He would tailgate the lead horse and then try to take a chomp out of its rump. Other than that, I could have been riding in a Barcalounger through the meadow for all the work I had to do aside from reining him in once in a while when he started to look hungry. Hungry for horse butt, that is.
I thought I might be nervous but I wasn’t. I did some trail riding when I was a kid and it came back to me quickly. The trick with a horse is that you can’t be wimpy. Not that you’re going to whipping your horse along like Paul Revere on his midnight ride or a Pony Express rider delivering the mail, but it has to know you mean business. “Please” and “pretty please” just don’t work. Otherwise you are either getting a detailed botanical tour called “Plants Your Horse Likes to Graze on Instead of Following the Horse Ahead of Them” or else you are finding out just how shatter resistant your riding helmet is as it scrapes you off its saddle on a low-hanging branch.
I think this is a good skill to have in everyday life, like with the car mechanic, your co-workers or your family. Treat them like horses. Let them know you mean business and don’t let them bite anybody in the butt.
Entries (RSS)
Wasn’t Widowmaker Pecos Bill’s horse?
I have found that dealing with horses has made it far easier for me to deal with people. It’s taught me the value of reining in (har, har) my emotions, and thinking before I react. I wish I’d discovered that little bit of information years ago!
I love the moral of the story! Absolutely.
You also have reminded me of a long-standing goal to learn to ride horseback. I loved horses as a kid, and developed a semi-fear of large ones now as an adult, so I haven’t been able to talk myself into it. DH rides, since he worked on a horse ranch, but I am still working my way up to it. But I definitely want to try it one of these days, maybe take lessons.
Sam
You know that phase when young girls go nuts for horses? I skipped it. I’ve only ridden horses like Snookums who ignore me completely and perk up when trotting for home.
I’m more of a dog person–the small ones you can’t ride.
The last time we went out to ride, I spent about two hours too long on the horse. It was fun, but my body didn’t hold up as well as yours.
I love horses.