So Diva hasnt been ridden in 4 weeks, no problem. I rode her bareback twice on the weekend, once without longeing first GASP! Those wild crazy Ayrabs, you cant do that! Eh, too hot and lazy to drag out a saddle, besides she wasnt 100% sound yet, 90% there. Didnt ride long, mostly walked, no problem.
So last night I have a friend out with me, a rare thing. We were chattin away but I wanted to get a bit of a ride in to see if shes getting better, and she is. Id say shes 99% there now. I know this because she galloped AWAY from me in the pasture instead of to me, little @$%^*. So I just do bareback with the halter and lead rope. Now, before I continue, let me just say that Diva is super duper slick and shiny this summer. She is naturally that way but shes extra that way this year, shes also extra FAT which may have something to do with it.
This was our last show and most of that is not show sheen, its au natural! (click for bigger photo for the full effect)
Let me also ad, in the 5 years I have had her I have never fallen off. You can see whats coming now yes? So I line her up with the mounting block and jump up. I just about have my leg over the other side when I start sliding on her slick coat. So I slide back down, missed the mounting block and land on my feet in the arena, no prob. I get on again and just make it over that time. So we walk, no prob, trot a bit, and actually did much better at the trot than on the weekend. I rode for maybe 15 minutes. So I am back up front, standing still, still chattin with the friend. Forgot already about her slipperiness and decided to do "around the world", which I have done with no problem MANY times on her. Sitting sideways, no prob, sitting backwards, no prob. I go to swing my leg around her currently ample tushy and my butt slides right off the side weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I am glad I just had a halter on her since I managed to grab hold of the lead somehow as I was goin down, mind you I'm completely backwards at this point. Would have hated to have pulled on her mouth! Landed on my own somewhat ample tush, Diva jumped around a bit then walked off with her butt facing me as if to say just how stupid are you! I gotta say that arena footing makes a pretty nice landing, I even had my 5 year old Razor flip phone in my back pocket, not a usual thing, only because my friend was meeting me there and I forgot to take it out before I got on. It survived as well. It didnt even hurt, I was more embarrassed but had a good laugh over it.
And IMO I still have not FALLEN off, I just slid off, I meant to do that, yeah:)
and I'm not even sore today! (well maybe just a little)
I've done almost the same thing. =P
ReplyDeleteA new girl to the barn and I were riding a little after our group lesson was over, and her parents got there to pick her up. We were chatting to them, and while she talked to them I decided to try an around-the-world on the gelding I was riding. He was my main mount at the time and I rode him w/t/c bareback in a hackamore (others used a kimberwick on him as they had a hard time getting him to listen, but we just 'clicked' as a horse/rider combo.) But anyway, this time since we had a lesson I was in a western saddle... Well I was on that 3rd quarter turn, and somehow got my leg stuck behind the cantle I guess, and as I was righting myself lost my balance over backward. =P Right in front of my new friend and her parents, they were worried, as I actually managed to knock the wind from my lungs when I landed on my back (nice soft hogfuel + rubber-pieces arena luckily!) So I was laughing at myself, or rather trying to as I had no breath, but was fine, only a bit of dignity was hurt. =P