Horses & Other Interests
I think of dressage and saddle seat as a Venn diagram.
For a low value of x, both are English-style horseback activities that do not involve jumping. The ultimate dispensation of x will require those more knowledgeable that I. The distance between the two is so small relative to how far away I am from both …
… that they merge into one big dot.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
We shipped Milton over to Stepping Stone Farm for a second lesson [First].
I’m tickled with everyone.
Coach Courtney has the flexibility to work with us on driving skills without insisting that the horse go like a Saddlebred.
Greg is learning from the lessons and from the opportunity to work in an enclosed space.
Milton improves each time, yet misbehaves just enough that we see value in dragging him over.
Gold stars all around.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Rodney and I had our third dressage lesson with Mr. E. [March, May].
We went for the full 45 minutes. No quitting early for us.
We trotted. A lot. Probably as much as we have trotted for the rest of phase II combined.
We did leg yields. I would not have said that I knew how to do leg yields. I tried for years with Previous Horse and all I got was attitude. With step-by-step guidance, I got Rodney organized. Then Mr. E. said leg-yield. I told Rodney, ‘Go that-a-way.’ He did. He floated from rail to quarterline like a leaf on the wind.
The next step is to shift the lessons to a place with more space and better footing. Mr. E. has been wanting us to canter for the last two sessions, but it has been too slick.
That’s enough to put anyone in a good mood!
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
“Art – or any craft, is something you have to have your heart in.”
debandtoby commenting on my post [SketchBox Fail].
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
The Short Version
Had a meltdown. Decided to stomp away from riding and blogging.
Had a great lesson. Decided not to.
I meant it at the time.
The Rest of the Story
Descent into Despair
My first lesson after Mid-South was terrible. The bridle was set up in a way that makes me uncomfortable. Because I was concerned that it would go wrong, it did go wrong. I managed to upset an absolute beginner horse. Seriously, people who have never ridden a horse ride Bingo. At one point, I was so bent out of shape I was shaking.
That was one meltdown too many.
I was done.
Since I would not be riding, I would not be blogging [Breaking Radio Silence, 2nd para]. I drafted the post, scheduled for today. That gave me a week. If I still felt the same way, off I went. Maybe not forever, but for now.
Wallowing in the Deep End
Since I was upset, I treated myself with care and respect and sensitivity. HA. Things I said to myself in a 24-hour period.
I thought I found an answer at Mid-South. Apparently not. Turns out there are two horses* in the world I can ride, and one of them is dead.
Rodney is 18. I’m kidding myself.
Milton bucks whenever he is asked to canter.
The only ASB I can ride is Sam. I upset the rest, including Bingo. Bingo!?!
Forty years is enough time to hit one’s head against a wall.
I recalled every meltdown and bad show I’d had this year. In drafting the departure post, I looked up previous rants and realized nothing had changed [Que Pasa?].
(*Caesar, aka Previous Horse, & Sam.)
Wallowing in the Shallow End
Greg did not believe. Part of me admitted that he was probably right. I knew I was being over-dramatic, but it felt real to me.
Strangely, I was going to miss the blog more than the horses.
Somewhere in there, I realized that, at the very least, I would continue to sit on Rodney. We’d never go anywhere, nor amount to anything, but he was here and we could at least go stand in the ring.
Riding Out of the Miasma
After a fun-filled day of this, Mr. E. Came for our third lesson [Dressage 1, 2]. It went great, on an absolute scale not just grading on a curve for Rodney.
Well, okay then.
I guess I’ll stay with Rodney.
… and Milton.
We’ll figure out something with the Saddlebreds.
Looking Back, Looking Forward
I seem to flirt with quitting every so often, either riding or blogging or both [2012 Where Do We Go From Here?, 2013 Hiatus/I’m Baaaaaack, 2014 Sine Die … Or Not, 2015 Whither Now?. Not to be confused with non-quiting meltdowns, 2016 A Look Inside My Head/Headspace Update].
Although I have elected to plod forward, all of this remains bubbling below the surface. It will probably continue until I achieve whatever my psyche considers a success [Nerves Update].
Onwards. For the moment.
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
May Instagram from @rodneyssaga.
Was working on the walk post [Proper Walk Protocol]. The first was single file. This one was supposed to look more side-by-side.
Previous [April 2017]
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Countdown timers. Countup timers. Stopwatches.
Time allowed. Time window. Kilometer splits.
Turns out a navigator is more than an animated sand bag.
What have I signed up for?
Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott
Virtual Brush Box 