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Thread III: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1311311/posts |
Posted on 04/26/2004 12:06:41 PM PDT by HairOfTheDog
Free Republic has a lot of horse people that have found each other on other threads…. And since we all like to talk horses, how about a thread where it is not off-topic, but is THE topic?
A few of us thought it would be interesting and informative to have a chat thread where we can share ideas, ask for input from other horsemen, and talk about our riding and horse-keeping. We have a lot of different kinds of riders and horses, and a lot to share. We may not ~always~ have a lot of activity, but when we do, it will be fun. I will put a link to this thread on my profile page, so if you have something to say and can't find the thread in latest posts… look for it there and wake the thread up!
I will also develop a ping list for horse threads that are of interest. As FreeRepublic is a political site, our politics and other issues will probably blend in…. There are many issues for horsemen that touch politics… land use, animal rights/abuse cases that make the news…. Legislation that might affect horse owners.
I am hoping this thread will be a fun place to come and share stories, pictures, questions and chit-chat, unguided and unmoderated and that we come together here as friends. There are lots of ways of doing things and we all have our quirks, tricks and specialties that are neat to learn about.
Pinging the whole thread list because I haven't for awhile.... hopin' some of ya who are lurking on the thread will join in one of these days!
Below: Practicing goin' up this little bank... Missed the pic the first time he did it because Bay rushed and leaped up it and I got more concerned for his safety than the shot! Rats... It would have been a great shot!
Below: Then we practiced goin' down it...
Below: I set up here at this spot, and nicely framed it so I could get ecurbh coming towards me on this trail... When ~what do I see~ but ecurbh and my horse just runnin' by! LOL!
Here he comes back feelin' all smug...
OK - if that's the way he wants it... we'll do cantering...
That's quite a grin on the return trip, almost looks like an old cowboy < wink, wink >
He was ~very~ proud of that little maneuver!
~shakes head~ cowboys and their displays of bravado... ;~D
Well, it just takes me a while to be able to tell which end is up, so to speak. It looks like a strange S&M contraption for a bit.
Looks like you're doing great:) Isn't it a blast:)
Becky
It's how man is meant to travel!
I keep an EasyBoot in my tack kit for when Gracie throws a shoe. That stops the unevenness AND the wear problem.
"I'm just humoring my human's human, here . . . "
Hair have you ever heard of NATRC, (North American Trail Riders Conference). It is the organization I ride in competetively.It's a national thing, here's a link to their web site:
http://www.natrc.org
I think it is a great way to improve riding skills and still have alot of fun and something whole families do together.
As much as you two seem to want to and enjoy trail riding you ought to look it this. It's just competitive enough to make it fun, plus you get to go all over your reigon, run into some of the same people. Alot of regions get permission to hold their rides in places that you normally wouldn't get to ride in.
The think I like best about it, besides getting to really ride, rather then just going around an arena, is that once the competition is over and they give out the awards, you get the judges score cards, so you see what you did good, bad or in between. Unlike the show ring when you leave and may not have a clue as to why you didn't place, or why you did:) I learned sooooooo much from going to these.
Becky
LoL. I know the feeling. I used to hook the lead rope on the halter so I could find the right hole to put his head in. I stand beside the horse talking to him like, "ok boy , let's see, this is your right rein, no your left, this thing goes under your chin, come on, open your mouth" etc. He seems to understand though. Okie actually seems to like me going slow and talking to him, except when I clean his feet. I have to speed things up or he will get tired of being on 3 feet and have to rebalance. He paws his foot during grooming and saddling but only when I start to walk away . He stops when I come back. Someone told me he likes my attention. Who knows? :')
Yep. I've had a few bad days but it is the most fun I have had in awhile.
LOL
Becky
Now throw out your chest like a proud cowboy! Start now, or you'll wind up looking like Mike Plumb. He's a great rider (one of the greatest eventers ever) but his shoulders are permanently slumped.
You have to nip those bad habits in the bud or they take forever to break. It took me YEARS to stop riding off my knees over fences - a very dangerous habit in the hunting field or eventing, but something that hunter-jumper riders used to be taught to do. Now I ride off the backs of my legs and the bottoms of my stirrups, like I should have been doing all along.
I would be interested in that. Bay is too old for more endurance racing, but he might be able to do Competitive Trail for a while. I do know others here who do it, so there is a local following here.
Also want to re-join the local Chapter of the local Back-Country Horsemen. They just do fun rides in high country, and also volunteer and do a lot of trail building/maintenance in our local state forest.
I got a great picture of Okie today. I'll post it if it comes out as good as I think. I tied him under a tree today. I put him on a very short rope because he will work til he loosens it and in about 30 minutes he will be where I want him. Anyway, he's white with brown spots. He has his neck stretched real for and stretching up to get to leaves on the branches. He looked like a giraffe:')
I've never tried one of those but have been with some people who did, and they had trouble keeping them on. I don't know if it's because the terrain is so rough here or because they didn't have the right size.
I had ordered some boots called "Old Mac's" designed by some guy in Australia, but they never came in. I'm going to see how the barefoot thing plays out and if it just doesn't seem to work will try ordering these again.
Becky
Good attitude is Bay's most valuable asset. He's a good guy. Still a lot of horse, unlike the old plugs I learned on, but a great heart.
lol I don't think I'll post any pictures with me on my horse. I probably look like a sack of potatos:')
The farrier helped me fit it last time Gracie cast a shoe. She always casts a shoe on the same foot (her left hind, the white one) so we were able to measure it exactly with her shoe off.
I think there's something to the old wives' tale that a white foot is softer and more prone to damage. Every blinking time she casts a shoe, it's on that foot.
Of course, the quarter crack that it took us almost a year to cure was on her right fore, so who knows?
Did you really get a quarter crack cured?? What did you do?
Becky
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