Me & Trio
You cannot lie to a horse. You might be able to twist what is going on in your soul to another human being but horses see through all the bullshit. To ride at all you have to be calm, not pretend to be calm while doing deals in your head, but actually be calm to your very center. If you are tight the horse will get nervous and start misbehaving. Riding is a sort of forced meditation.
In the past I rode Big Sugar Mama but she pulled a tendon in a bog just before I got to the ranch. So this year I’m on a gelding named Trio for his chestnut, black and white coloring. Where Sugar was an enormous mountain of an animal that got me where I needed to go with grace and stature, Trio is a somewhat smaller, stocker horse. But soon we are fast friends.
I’ve ridden enough to know to breath deep and treat Trio with respect. I lean forward on the steep uphill climbs to get my weight off his spine. He responds with sure-footed prancing up rocky trails more like a cat than a horse weighing 1,200 pounds. I let him drink deeply at each stream we cross and after a particularly long ride even let him snack on grass before turning for home.
By the second day riding Trio, I really can’t remember why I live in the City. In fact, I can’t remember much other than the feeling of loping along the upper ditch at 8,000 feet and looking out at clear air and Colorado wilderness.
Thank you for sharing this. As a horseman since the age of seven, I completely understand your message. Working with horses has taken me through a lot of trauma growing up.
Funny, I was just yesterday saying to my wife and a friend that as a mid-life escape, I would love to work a ranch for a season. Quick way to get your body and you soul in shape.
Comment by Ramsay — July 2, 2009 @ 9:21 am