Riding, Horsekeeping, The Horse World
Awareness of the outside world. Tune in tomorrow. Mental Floss: Why Did NORAD Start Tracking Santa? Soniak, December 19, 2016 (Updated: November 12, 2021).
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Happily liberated from Anxiety at A: Would you Rather: Horse Edition. Ended up being a bit of a cheesy clip show. I’ve been doing this for so long that there is usually a blog post on any given topic.
Spooky or Steady
Steady. I can be, shall we say, high-energy. This is great if you are veteran show horse such as Alvin or Dottie. Let’s do this! [Missing The Saddlebreds]
Not so great if you are a horse of sensitive disposition. Milton is still traumatized by encountering me in full show mode.
Me: “Once those gates shut, it is on.” [Hanging With The Saddlebros IIa]
Milton: (Egad! Who dropped a ferret down my pants?) [ibid, Someday This Will Be Amusing To Look Back On]
Matchy Matchy or Mismatched
Classic. I’ll do show colors for shirt and saddle pad. I won’t go out of my way to colorized things that are usually brown or black. [Doctor Whooves and The Master, photo by Meg McKinney]
I balance my desire to be a curmudgeon with the knowledge that riding needs to lighten up. As long as you are clean, tidy, & tucked in, I don’t care what colors you feel the need to express yourself in.
Tall boots or Half chaps
Tall boots. Practice in what you intend to compete in. Don’t get used to one and they try to show in the other. [My Heart Is In My Boots, and That’s a Good Thing]
When I wasn’t showing, well-fitted half chaps worked fine. [New Equipment: Britches & Boots]
Or that’s the happy version. In reality, I bought half chaps in a fit of anguish, “My chances of ever riding in tall boots seemed so remote that the thought of buying a pair was too depressing.” [Heart]
Indoor or outdoor
Good footing, then I don’t care. Of course, this answer changes as one goes farther north. [When Life Gives You Rain, II]
Bay or chestnut
I would say either, but all of my horses have been bay. After dealing with Milton’s bumps, I’m going to be a hard sell for another gray.
As in, all of MY horses, i.e. Rodney, Previous Horse, First Horse & so on, including those leased & bought. Mathilda was never my horse. Milton? Jury still out.
Long or short mane or roached mane?
Anything but roached. Once rode an big time Three-Gaited horse. They show with no mane. Not at all happy about no grab strap in front of me. Used to give Mathilda a buzz cut in the summer. I always left an emergency handhold halfway down her mane.
Lazy or hot horse?
Lazy. See Question 1. Tact has never been my strong suit.
Private barn or a boarding barn?
Private barn. After having horses at home for almost 30 years, I would drive a barn manager nuts. [Why Not Rack Off Into The Sunset ?]
Create your dream barn or own your dream horse?
Horse. As long as the barn is safe, I can work out of it.
Ride an Olympic-level horse or take a lesson with an Olympian?
I like AaA’s answer, “Um, how about both? Can I take a lesson from an Olympian on an Olympic-level horse?”
If I had to chose, I’d go for the lesson. An Olympic-level horse would have to be super understanding as well as super talented. Those rare unicorns exist. I suspect most O-horses would have no patience with me.
Own a miniature horse or a donkey?
None of the above? I could see a sporty driving pony, but not a mini. Don’t have enough experience with donkeys to know what I was getting into.
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I didn’t answer all of their questions, so I rounded out the dozen with one of my own.
Would you rather have a good ride or win?
My virtuous side wants to say a good ride, but I do like winning. Both, please? [Show Tweets, Georgia Fall Classic 2015, Show Report]
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Looking over my answers, including the questions I did not post, I lean heavily toward both &/or neither. If I have an opinion, it is in stone. For example,
Someone else caring for my horse? No. Someone else making decisions about my horse? So much no. Someone else riding my horse on a regular basis? A thousand times no … Not now. Not ever.
[Why Not Rack Off Into The Sunset ?]
The rest of the time, meh, whatever flips your skirt.
Which would you rather?
Update, Other People’s Choices
Anxiety at A: Would you Rather: Horse Edition, the originator
Breed.Ride.Event: Blog Hop: Would You Rather
Fat Buckskin in a Little Suit: Blog Hop: Would You Rather
A Enter Spooking: Blog Hop: Would You Rather
Gray Flannel Horses: Blog Hop: Would You Rather, makes the point that top riders don’t automatically make good coaches.
Bel Joeor: Blog Hop: Would You Rather, If private barn means not your own, I agree, “Horse people are crazy, even the ones I love, and I would not want to sour a relationship like that.”
Raincoast Rider: Would You Rather?
Stay safe. Stay sane.
Katherine
Virtual Brush Box 