Virtual Brush Box

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. “Half a century after Dartmouth College first admitted women, a female scholar and college administrator for the first time has been selected to lead the Ivy League institution, ending the hegemony of men who have filled the role for 253 years and through 18 presidencies.” Valley News: Dartmouth College names next president, Lippman, Jul 2.

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Greg has been experimenting with various hackamore/bit combinations for Milton.

In Sunday, he used a simple side pull hackamore WITHOUT a bit.

(What?! Greg pointed out that Milton will stop or hop when disturbed. In the time we have know Milton, speed has never been his friend. They were both fine with the idea. I hyperventilated a little. But I digress.)

Milton loved it.

He walked with a gorgeous, swingy walk.

Rodney can usually outwalk Milton with little effort.

He could still outwalk Milton, but now he had to work at it.

He was not pleased.

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. Surprise filling earlier this week. 😦 Wasn’t too bad. Worst part was epinephrine hangover.

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I don’t know how Rodney does it.

Before the show, I was deliberately keeping our work at Falcon Hill Farm to a trot. Now that the show was over it was time to move on. Take the next step. Canter. Grids. Poles. Dare we say jumps? YOLO. Just Do It. Reach for your dreams.

Or not.

The following weekend, Rodney was juuuuust tight enough somewhere in his hind end to preclude activities that loaded the hindquarters, i.e. jumping & cantering. He was fine. He was sound. Maaaaaybe a step or two at beginning of the trot. Noticeably tight in the left lumbar. Deeply disinclined to lift the opposing foot. Warmed out of it with activity. Lingering tightness for a day or two.

“Learn how to maximize inconvenience to your rider with minimum inconvenience to yourself! Sign up for my class now!” Rodney (probably)

That’s okay. He’s still resting on his laurels from the show. [Crossrail Contender]

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. Alabama NewsCenter: Alabama Dam Ride pedals for a cause, White, May 13, 2022. Photos by Meg McKinney.

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Group order from Custom Ink. Each year everyone gets a new shirt in a new color for the summer fun shows.

Wasn’t gonna order one. Have so many Stepping Stone Farm shirts (so! many!). Just gonna be the old gray mare in an old gray shirt.

The shirt is at least 6 years old. The photo will never get old. [NE GA Charity 2016]

However.

Looked at a local jumper show prizelist. Between this fee and that fee and that fee over there, the money adds up before you even start entering classes. That’s for one show.

A new shirt for the summer shows costs slightly less & I hope to do two of the three summer shows. So, 50% per show.

If I’m paying for the hunters, might as well pay for the Saddlebreds. Plus, if I’m gonna do the shows, might as well do them right.

Ordered fitted version and smaller size than usual for closer fit. 😦

Whether or not I get to the shows – she adds superstitiously – at least I got blog post out of it.

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. NPR: Michigan medical students walk out on an anti-abortion keynote speaker, Sullivan, July 25, 2022.

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Having finished doing everything, and writing about doing everything, time to recap this year’s Virtual Tevis. [Dance Card]

Started on Thursday, April 7 with a 1-mile ride. Finished on Friday, July 8, with a 1.84-mile ride. All at walk. All in home pasture. Going around the pasture instead of going around the ring area counts as “trail miles” for this crew.

We rode 55 times in 92 days. (Or so, spread sheet lists 54 rides. I am going to be mature and NOT track down the missing ride. Let it go. Let it go.) Longest ride was 3.15 miles. Average ride was 1.8 miles. Sounds about right. We usually rode for either 1 or 2 miles, depending on time available.

This was our third Virtual Tevis. It felt like the hardest one to finish.

100 miles in 100 days is easy – if you keep at it.

I took a week off. [I’m Bored Already]

My horse took a week off. [Playing Catch Up]

Milton and his rider were kind enough to wait and finish with us.

When it was looking dubious, I made the claim that I wanted to finished because I liked this year’s shirt. It was an excuse. I wanted to finish.

Before we started, I said I would be okay with not finishing. [Virtual Tevis Announced For 2022]

First off, when I said it, I meant not finish because we were so busy with shows and lessons and trailering to exotic, exciting showcation destinations.

Second, pfffft, who am I kidding. I want it all. Busy show schedule AND time to do the VT. I didn’t say it was reasonable, just that I wanted it.

This year, props to the horses for being amenable about all the pre-breakfast rides. In truth, I think they prefer it. [Let The Summer Hours Begin]

Next year. More gaits. More places. More milestone photos. I said the same about this year. Something to work towards.

[VT archives]

Onwards!
Katherine

Riding

Awareness of the outside world. CBC: Bodies of Work, Olivia Apps

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Lovely, narrow 3/8″ curb reins from Fennel’s. To go with my dual steering set-up. [Riding With Two Reins]

Bought from a saddle seat store. Asked Coach Courtney to recommend a tack shop as she is the only person I know who deals with double bridles on the regular.

Requisite photo bomb.

Onwards!
Katherine

Images

Art from the outside world. Birmingham Times: Ramsay High School Student Captures 1st Place in World Games Art Contest, Michaels, May 23, 2022.

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Prize Statuette

Legacy Arena, 14 July 2022.

AL.com: Podium reactions to Vulcan trophy highlight World Games, Goodman, Jul. 16, 2022.

Medal

TWG: The World Games 2022 Medal Reveal, image from website.

Mascot

TWG: Vulcan & Vesta, Official Mascots of The World Games 2022

Signage as part of skyline

UAB Fields, 15 July 2022.

Climbing

Screenshot from Olympics.org, 10 July 2022. Part of introductory chatter for TWG event livestreams and videos.

Cartoon

AL.com: ‘Let the World Games begin!’ The pants-less Vulcan dude abides, Crowe, Jul. 08, 2022.

Links

The World Games 2022 & IWGA

Vulcan Park & Museum

Archive [Views Of Vulcan]

Onwards!
Katherine

Words

Books from the outside world. Head On, Scalzi, 2018. “It has everything: Futuristic sports, murder, sex, love, home invasion, shady business people and midnight flights to central Europe. As one must.” Whatever: Head On Post-Writing Post. Read prologue, Tor.com: Head On.

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The World Games bills itself as “New Generation of Global Sports.”

What sports will we be playing in the 2120 Games? A quick Internet search shows that movies and books predict future sport becoming high tech and/or death matches.

I predict we will move in the opposite direction. As tech expands, we will place a priority on “pure sport”, i.e. what a human can do unassisted.

Competitions than use little or no technology will become the status sports. Running. High Jump. Wrestling. Straight up human effort.

Of course there will be no such thing as an unassisted competitor.

Before the competition there will be nutrition, immersive training, questionable medications, misuse of nanotechnology. During the competition, there will be the playing surface, the clothing, the shoes.

When we speak of tech, we tend to think of things that beep and blink. However, anything built is technology. The rope in tug of war. The shot in shot put. When seconds or inches count, huge amounts of money are spent on materials and design.

Yet, despite the dictates of logic, the ideal will remain the naked dude running in ancient Greece.

I haven’t touched on team sports or sports from the past, such as fencing or riding. Thoughts?

Update. Check out food for thought in first comment.

Update 2026. Have not read Gold Dust. Going off of summary, “I decided to have sports divide into two types, leagues that allowed augmented athletes and leagues that didn’t.” Whatever: The Big Idea: Catherine Asaro, October 13, 2025.

Onwards!
Katherine