A Rose by Any Other Name………………

 

Would be just as sweet as the mare I rode during the Natural Horsemanship Riding Clinic last weekend.

(My Project 365! photo)

 

This post is actually Part 3 of the Natural Horsemanship ‘series’. I just got tired of the same old title.

Rosie belongs to Colleen. She’s one of those steady-eddy type of horses. Not much rattles her and she’s very patient, quiet and calm. She’s low on the herd totem-pole, but she doesn’t seem to much care. In fact she’d prefer not to make friends with others horses, but seems to like hanging out with humans instead.

Colleen cautioned me on the first morning of the clinic that Rosie would be hard-to-catch, but I brought carrots. I also don’t walk straight up to any horses I’m not familiar with, but instead walk to the left or right of them and then pass right on by.

After I do this once or twice, and offer a carrot as I walk away from them, most horses become very curious and will walk right up to me.

Rosie and I became friends right away and I never had any issues with catching and haltering her the entire weekend.

She and I were very relaxed together and I have her to thank because of her calm, quiet nature.

 

At the beginning of the first day, we went over proper saddle fitting, bits and bridles, which I was grateful for since I hadn’t tacked up my own horse for many months. A refresher course was rather nice. Our first assignment was to ride bareback and get more familiar with our balance while moving freely with the horse. I was a little bit nervous, because this was only my second time sitting on a horse after I fell off my mare a year ago.

But Rosie was very patient with me and stood calmly while I prepared to mount, with Christine lending a hand. Christine is a friend from the horse rescue and was an assistant during the clinic.

 

Rosie is shorter than Baby Doll, but I was still glad that I remembered to bring along my 3-step mounting block. All the other riders in the clinic were also glad to have it for mounting their horses bareback, too. After a few minutes I was finally up. Christine was very nice to be there to lend a hand and to give me words of encouragement. It felt great to be back up on a horse again. (Don’t mind how fat I look, I had on many layers: a long-sleeve shirt, a turtle-necked fleece shirt, a hooded fleece jacket and my insulated denim jacket. It was freezing cold first thing in the morning, even in the arena.)

Sitting on Rosie’s broad back is like relaxing on a sofa. Very comfy! Wheeeeee!

Christine led me around for a little while until I felt comfortable to ride bareback on my own.

 

One of the things I used to love to do with Baby Doll was ride her bareback in the arena, round pen, and around our paddocks and house. But getting back up bareback again isn’t exactly like riding a bicycle, and Rosie was very patient and calmly paid attention while I figured out how everything worked once again.

 

 

But it didn’t take very long for me to feel comfortable and for Rosie and I to begin communicating with one another.

  

I really like Rosie’s height and build. She is easier to mount and dismount, is stocky, strong and very comfortable. And the ground is much closer than it is than when I rode Baby Doll. Do you think Rosie is a good size for me? Or is she too small?

   

After a morning spent riding bareback, it was time for lunch. We put the horses back into their stalls and runs. After lunch we were to halter up our horses and lead them back to the arena for saddling and more riding.

To be continued………….

Hee hee hee! And you thought I’d make you wait for more.

I got Rosie all tacked up and the instructors went over some basics on indirect and direct reining.

Then it was time to mount.

The first two times I had some help with just holding Rosie, but the next two times I was able to do it all on my own. I could live without this unattractive butt shot for sure, but I love how quiet and relaxed Rosie was.

The first time I dismounted from the saddle, I got sort of stuck in my mind and just froze up. With the weakness in my left knee, it doesn’t bend as freely and as far and can sometimes buckle if I put all my weight on it, so I kept picturing these scenarios in my head and couldn’t decide which side to dismount. I’d have probably been there all day if it weren’t for my friend, Renee coming over to walk me through it and give me some encouragement. (Thanks Renee!) This is Renee and her beautiful gaited mare, Casey.

We rode for about an hour in the arena, practicing indirect and direct reining, emergency stops, emergency dismounts, riding over and around obstacles, and just becoming familiar with our horses. The next day, Sunday, we did more riding in the arena. And after lunch, we tacked all the horses up again, and those of us who felt comfortable and ready went out for a short trail ride around the property.

I know the clinic weekend was only my second time being back on a horse in over year after my injuries, but between the practice in the arena and the trust I had in my patient, calm horse, Rosie, I felt confidant enough to head out on the trail.

Those pictures are in this Wordless Wednesday ~ Back in the Saddle post.  

That photo above was the only photo taken of me in the saddle unfortunately. The photographer wasn’t able to drive back out to Cedar Hill Farm on Sunday.

I’ll be sure to take more photos tomorrow as I head out on the trails, on Rosie again, tomorrow (Monday).