On our way back home from spending the day in Albuquerque, we decided to stop off in the canyon to pick up some dinner from Subway. After getting my kidlets loaded back in my vehicle I prepared to back up out of my parking space. I looked into my rear view mirror and was startled to see a horse and rider staring back at me!
I immediately set my brakes and rolled my window down to say hello. I recognized the fella and his horse from a stop off at a gas station last summer when my neighbor friend and I were driving back in the evening, after doing some letterboxing up in the Santa Fe area. I couldn’t forget them, because he had parked his horse in front of the gas station so he could go inside and get something to drink. He left his horse ground tied in a parking space beside other cars in the crowded parking lot next to the local bar and restaurant, too.
I was impressed that his horse just stood there calm, quiet and relaxed as vehicles drove in and out of the gas station parking lot and noise wafted out of the bar. I wasn’t able to get a photo of the duo then because my batteries had died, but I did get to meet and talk with them for a few minutes.
So I had to laugh this time when I asked if he remembered me and he said he did and asked if my batteries were charged in my camera this time. I’m guessing that I’m not the only dweeb who has asked to takes photos of him and his horse, though. He was sure to put his sunglasses on, straighten his hat and get himself all gussied up before I took the photo.
Right after I took this photo he and his horse crossed the busy intersection, even with a huge noisy truck driving right behind them. That’s I-40 that travels over that bridge in the background. This horse is a rock solid mount. I can’t imagine anything spooking or freaking him out. I was also impressed that he rode him bitless in a nifty hackamore, too. And I like how untraditional this guy is, too, riding in a cowboy hat, work boots, English stirrups and an Aussie hornless saddle.
He rides all around the mountains and usually right along the roadways. I bid him farewell and said I hoped I’d see him and his horse again someday soon.
26 comments :
that's so awesome! I want to live in your neck of the woods.
wow, gotta love those bomb proof horses. I haven't ridden too many of those!!
- The Equestrian Vagabond
We often ride beside a busy highway but not right on the shoulder like that... we're off in the ditch. And while his horse may be pretty bombproof there is always something that will get to any horse. Seems kinda risky to ride right beside the traffic like that!
awesome horse and guttsy rider...roads are the worst...highways are a night-mare!
I am being so whitty this PM...that is the 2nd horsy-ism I have come up with...must be the "lemonade"!!!
That is just too cool!! Horses like that sure are awesome! It is not so uncommon to see that here in the town we live by but it can still catch me off guard to see a horse strolling through town LOL!!
Don't you just love living where you can still see stuff like that?? That and going somewhere like WalMart and seeing people wearing spurs and chaps.
How fortunate to be able to meet him again.
wow!!!! I want a horse like that!!!
so glad you had batteries...nice photos...
Now that's a horse!!!
Geez, I don't know if he's brave, or stupid. Even the rock solid ones flip out sometime, or trip over something, or get hit by an out of control driver. The idea of road riding scares the bejaysus out of me. Oh well, I hope the guy lives to be 110 and dies in the saddle.
I shared this with my friend who rides into town with me to grab food... Glad to know we aren't the only ones who do stuff like this! :)
It's good to see that he's still out riding the area. I'll have to be on the lookout for him.
Very cool! And I know excatly where that intersection is..:-))
That is great. I am working on Indigo ground tying. I can successfully hop off her and go put the mail inside the house. I've been doing a lot more things with her that have purpose this year and it's paying off. She stands patiently beside the mailboxes and even stood still wile I stood up on her back yesterday to get a horse shoe out of a tree my boyfriend somehow managed to stick up there like 8 feet in the tree then told me I had to find it. Men... lol I have no clue how the heck he got it into that tree.
Love it! My friend and I ride our horses into town on a regular basis and it's always good to see we're not the only looney tunes out there. We took our boys to a rest stop on the turnpike for Roy Rogers once and they were awesome. I don't think my guy would stand ground tied in a parking space though. He'd go home with the first person to give him a scratch. Haha.
Very cool. It's all about the amount of time we can put in with our horses and pushing past all those problems when they are young and inexperienced. It also helps to have good weather every once in a while. Sigh.
Yep, that would be great to have a horse that unflappable. I believe one of the keys is that he probably rides him a lot -- everywhere.
Dan
How cool! That's an awesome horse!
Aussie saddles traditionally have English type leathers rather than Western fenders. Super secure seat. Polocrosse players usually use that type of saddle.
How neat. I would love to be able to do stuff like that. I am not sure I would ever trust a horse to stand in a parking spot though, much less that people would leave him alone. That is just wow.
He sounds like an endurance rider (or a potential endurance rider) to me! I do all kinds of stuff like that to prepare my horses. Being able to trot for yonks is no good at all if they can't handle seeing the water truck or any of the other bizarre stuff we sometimes see on trails.
Next time you see him (sounds like there WILL be a next time), ask him if he does endurance or CTR!!!
The expression on his horse's face reminds me of a French comic strip called "Lucky Luke," about a stereotypical American cowboy in the Old West. (It's pronounced "Lookie Look"). He's the cowboy who shoots faster than his shadow, and Jolly Jumper is the smartest horse in the world!
Lisa, I think you should get an award for the most unusual posts. Dang if you don't find the most awesome things to post about!!! That is so cool that his man and his horse are so connected. I however would be scared to death riding along a busy highway. Not because I would trust the horse but the crazy people driving. People will sometimes try and do things to scare the horse, that's bad. People used to do that to me years and years ago when I was a kid riding my horse along a road.
That is really neat that he remembered you and asked you if your batteries were charged this time!!! LOL
Loved this post! :-D
hugs....
Jane and Big Gilly
When I was a kid, My best friend and I used to ride up to town and get cokes at the local Circle K all the time.
That is one cool dude on a great horse! :)
HAHA! He was pretty cool..and I wish I could have seen that horse in a parking spot!
Kac
Post a Comment