Tease

With the horse market as it is and opportunities cropping up daily, not having a horse – and KNOWING I should not get one right now – is the biggest tease ever!  Killing me!!

I just keep telling myself the perfect horse is going to come my way as long as I’m patient.  It works that way, right?

Ack.

At any rate, test drove a beautiful half QH/half Arab mare last night for a friend who is fostering her.

She was a dream.  Stood like a statue to be mounted.  Gave to pressure on her mouth with only slight touch on my part.  Responds to voice commands.  Very forward moving and eager to pop up into a trot or beyond.  She has the subtlest trot-canter transition I’ve ever experienced, she kind of feathers her way into it ever so gently.  Her gaits are balanced and  a pleasure to ride.  She’s got SPEED, oh goodness.  Rarely do I feel trusting enough of a new horse to test out that rate of speed on day one, not this mare.  She really wants to take care of you, and it was obvious.  So I asked, and she gave.  What a joy.

From the get-go we had to navigate small spaces and big, strange, brightly-colored, potentially-scary objects (cars, wood piles, tractors, trailers, a mini bulldozer, wheelbarrows, upright beams with yellow and black striping) and she excelled through all of them.  Tractor trailers j-breaking and going at a spritely little clip coming from both front and behind (on the road that borders the rails-to-trails we road on) only caused her to toss a single ear to note what they were doing.  No change in pace, no shudder, no hesitation.  Big German shepherd?  Hesitant, as she tried to figure out what he was (he’d take two fast steps then stop and wait, then repeat) since his movement was jerky and unpredictable.  But after 10 seconds or so of watching him, she decided he wasn’t to be concerned with and moved forward at my request.

Oh, and did I mention she’ll go over a jump willingly?  ‘Cause she does that, too.  One hell of a test ride!  That’s for certain.  Great, great, great mare.  If the family doesn’t talk the father into keeping her permanently they really won’t have an issue getting rid of her.  She’s brilliant.  Wish I could take her, but it just isn’t the right decision right now. 

 I don’t know where I’ll be in a year.  I need to save my money for school as is.  I don’t want to get a horse and have to worry about getting attached/getting rid of it when I inevitably leave for grad school.  I love WV, certainly, but that doesn’t cure the fact that I have this “anywhere-but-here” feeling right now.  And I have NOT yet left the state.  It’s time.  It doesn’t have to be permanent.  But it is time to seriously consider getting away for a little while.  I need to grow a little more and really be outside my comfort zone.  It’ll do wonders, I know it.

But for now, here I am, and here is this wonderful horse to ride when I ride with my 10-year-old counterpart.   Couldn’t be better. 

Oh, wait, yeah it could.  Stanley’s back in my life, too.  Going out tomorrow to see his big beautiful face!  If his shoes are back on then it’s time to ride and start getting that poundage off!