An Actual Ride!

I can hardly believe it! I actually got to ride Indy today! It was our first ride since last fall. That is a bummer I know, but I can't feel bummed when I get to ride by wonderful partner.

Indy was fantastic - especially considering how the bugs were bothering his face and ears. I sprayed his body, but it didn't occur to me that his face and ears would be a problem. It didn't seem that bad, but it was. Poor Indy was flipping his head all over the place sometimes, trying to rid himself of the nasty pests. At one point, I leaned up his neck and cleaned out the insides of both ears. He did appreciate that, but they just came back.

As far as not having been ridden for months, well, you'd never know it. He stepped back into the routine as if I'd been riding him every day. I worry about his training so much because I don't get to ride nearly as much as I'd like, and I fret that he's going on 11 and is still so green. He sure didn't act like a greenie today though. I've seen some experienced horses that had to almost start over after not having been ridden for as long as it's been for us. Not Indy. He is such a special boy, maybe he's getting enough "saddle time" after all.

I thought I would see a difference in the way the saddle fit, and I sure did. It wasn't that I shortened the girth that much, but last fall, when I tightened the girth it sank into the blubber, and there was fat bulging on either side of it. OMG! Now, that fat is completely gone. I knew he'd lost weight, but I didn't realize he'd lost that much. I still can't feel his ribs though, so we must keep on keeping on - whether we like it or not.

Since I've been having so much trouble with my left leg, I had wondered how it would feel riding. Well, I did notice it, for sure. On mounting, it hurt as I pivoted on my left leg when throwing my right leg over Indy's back. It was even worse dismounting. I had to hang onto the saddle and very slowly slide down Indy's side. He looked back at me, wondering "what the heck?" but he did not move a muscle. Good Boy! Indy has always stood perfectly still for dismounting, and it's a darn good thing, especially now.

Dear Indy - We'd only ridden for about 30 minutes, but I was limping badly going back to the barn, but he stayed with me, walking very slowly all the way back to his stall, and I wasn't even holding onto him! Is he a doll or what?

I'm not at all sure I'll be able to ride tomorrow, but if not, it's supposed to be nice on Tuesday too, and I'll be hoping to ride then. Wait and see. At least I got to ride today, and nothing can dampen my spirits after a good ride!

On Great Horses Saddled With Lop-Sided Riders

I did it again. After a lovely half hour ride last Sunday afternoon - with an equally super half hour on Saturday - Indy was standing quietly while I thought about what to do in the last couple of minutes before I went back in, when he got stung on the belly by something and bounced once - mostly out of sheer surprise - I and went sliding off to the left, as usual, bruising my ribs, as usual. Heck, Indy didn't even go anywhere. He was just a few feet away, nibbling grass while he waited to see what I wanted to do next. He looked pretty puzzled, and I don't blame him.

This is a problem that has dogged me from the first day I ever rode down to this. I'm lop-sided. Of course, most people - and horses - are to a certain degree. With people, the right side is usually a bit larger than the left. So it is with me - except it's more than a "bit." It's not the first thing that strikes people about me, certainly - well, unless they glance at my feet and notice that my right pants leg just touches the top on my foot, while the left is sprawled all over my foot to the point of dragging the ground at the heel. Yeah, more than a bit. Even though I'm left handed, my entire right side has always been much larger and stronger than my left. If I wore anything with straps, I was constantly fighting the left one to keep it up on my shoulder.

I just took all this for granted - like, what was I gonna do anyway? - until I started riding, and began noticing the problems my conformation was causing. By the time I realized that, in order to make my stirrups feel even, I was not only sitting off to the left, I was also carrying my right leg ahead of the left one. Beautiful!

To make matters even worse, my right ankle is stiff from a sports injury in high school. It won't flex as much as my left, so that pushes me even more toward the left. I've been riding for over 30 years now, and I can't remember even one spill that wasn't sideways and to the left. No wonder my ribs are fed up to the point of having even a relatively easy fall making them scream bloody murder for days. My body has always insisted - much to my disgust - on carrying 99% of my weight on my hips and thighs, so my ribs have no padding - skin over bone.

Maybe if I'd been working under an instructor instead of basically teaching myself to ride, I could have overcome this - somehow - before it became so ingrained, but then again, I've had years of dressage lessons since those early days they haven't helped one iota. In fact, I don't remember anyone else ever even noticing.

Anyway... it seemed to me even the last few years with DJ that the thing was somehow getting worse. In fact, I was now getting the saddle off the the left - not much, you understand, but enough that I was constantly "hitching" it back to the center of DJ's back. He didn't seem to care, but it was extremely frustrating to me, not to mention making it even easier for me to lose my balance to the left and not be able to recover.

Indy's saddle was a touch off to the left Sunday, but I can't "hitch" it over on him like I did on DJ. Firstly, Indy hates that, and besides, with the Tacky stuff pad liner I use under his saddle, once you have the cinch properly tightened, that sucker ain't gonna hitch over anyway. You get it right the first time, or you get off, loosen the cinch and straighten it - Indy doesn't mind this at all. And, that's exactly what I should have done, but I didn't. Next time...

All this post mortem soul searching can't alter the fact that I'm here at the computer instead of out riding right now, but, I have thought of some things to do that possibly can prevent - or at least tip the odds - this from happening again.

Number one thing is to get some protection for my ribs. I tried a regular "body protector" earlier, and not only did I feel like a was wearing the top half of a space suit, it was catching on my cantle. That darn thing would make me fall. Scratch that. What I have come up with is high impact foam. I was able to get some rectangular pieces which I can make into a rib protector which will be quite comfortable I think, and be quite adequate for the type of riding I do. I have no plans to be taking 5'6" jumps at full gallop.

Also, I'm going to put just a little extra padding on my left stirrup. My stirrups have removable hook/loop pads on them already, and I think I can add just a little more under the left one. It doesn't need much - nothing like a hole or even half a hole on the leathers. That's why I've never been able to adjust my stirrups. Never found anything that wasn't over kill. It's funny how something so small - 1/4 inch, probably even less - can make such a huge difference. Anyone who's ever ridden knows that it sure does though.

What's especially frustrating to me this moment is that Indy was doing so super. Saturday he didn't even think about giving me any static when it came time to come back in the paddock. He just strolled in, stopped where I told him and stood perfectly still while I dismounted. I even closed the gate myself with him standing beside me. He never seemed to consider making a break for the field. He just stood there.

He is also becoming lighter and more responsive to the bridle every ride. He just gets better and better. So, now I don't know how long it will be before the next ride. My ribs are sure not ready yet, and even when they are, there's always the weather. I know Indy won't forget, but I want to RIDE!!!!!!!!!!

Oops, sorry about that... Guess I'd better close for now. My ribs hurt.

Everybody Talks About; No One Does A Thing About...

The weather. Oh yeah. I hate to keep posting about the darn weather, but it's about the only thing going on. It was 28 degrees this morning. Thank goodness Indy and Ami love this weather and were apparently outside most of the overnight hours since there was nothing to clean up in the stalls. Even the cats must have been out all night.

We did have one fairly warm day last week, with the afternoon temp being almost 70 degrees. Unfortunately, the wind speed was up there too - gusting to almost 40 mph. Just a bit much. In fact, it seems to happen that way quite a bit - reasonably warm day with wind speeds to match the temperature.

That situation does remind me of the comment made by one of the saddlers at Down Under Saddle Supply where I got my Aussie saddle. The first saddle that I ordered was the Wizzard Poley, which has stuffed panels similar to an English saddle. I had done quite a bit of homework on Aussie saddles, and I knew that for very wide backed horses, the ones with a fleece panel, like a western saddle, were recommended. With that in mind I had intended to put the Snowy River Legend - which has the fleece panel - as a second choice. But, of course, I forgot.

A couple of days after I mailed off my order form, I received a phone call from Lance at Down Under. He had called because after seeing Indy's withers tracing he was concerned that the Wizzard Poley wouldn't be comfortable for him. He suggested that I might want to change my order to one of the fleece panel saddles.

Well! I was impressed. I mean, he could have just sent the one I ordered after all. I told him that I had intended to put the Snowy River Legend as my second choice on my original order, and it would be just fine since I really liked both saddles.

Lance said okay then - he's get the saddle made and shipped out that evening. I told him that he didn't really have to rush because the wind had been so strong I couldn't have ridden anyway.

Then he said that he didn't think the horse that went with this withers tracing was in any danger of being blown over! I had to laugh out loud at that one. Of course, it wasn't Indy I was worried about in the first place.

Worst Nightmares

After heavy snowfall throughout New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, Mike and I went slogging through the snow yesterday to give Indy and Ami their breakfast on the coldest morning yet this winter. The temperature was all of 9 degrees with a stiff north northwest wind that drove the wind chill well into minus territory.

Wearing my heaviest boots that make me look - and feel - like the Frankenstein Monster, I galumphed behind Mike along the mercifully short distance from the house to the barn. Once inside, we found Ami standing in the front stall, and Indy lying down in the back one. But wait a minute - he's upside down. He's not lying down, he's cast!

Having no idea how long poor Indy might have been trapped like this, Mike and I rushed to help him. In so doing, we ignored everything we both know about working with a cast horse - we grabbed his feet with our hands instead of using ropes. Mike took the back and I took the front. Since Indy was lying with his head almost to the back wall, there wasn't a lot of room for me to get out of his way if we did succeed in getting him free. My left brain was reminding me of all this while my right brain was screaming that Indy was in trouble and we had to help him!

Even considering our saddle fitting adventures, there are times when being round is a good thing. Indy rolled over on his fuzzy barrel as easily as rolling a, well, barrel. He contemplated the situation for a moment, then got to his feet as calmly as if he'd been taking his normal pre-breakfast snooze. Well, this is Indy after all...

I worried that he might be sore from his ordeal even though there weren't signs of a significant struggle in the stall when we found him. And, in true Indy fashion, he said, "What? Me worry?" He was fine, and nothing showed up today either. He was plowing around in the snow like his usual self, obviously enjoying the sun we had today.

All's well that ends well as they say, but I think another little homily might be appropriate as well - Do as I say, not as I do!

Total Meltdown

I'm sure it will come as a surprise to no one that it has been hot here. In fact, this past week has had the most miserably uncomfortable days we've had since we moved to Indiana in 1992.

With the ambient air temp over 90 degrees and the humidity around 90 as well, the heat index has been above 100. Even with fans going in the barn, I get dripping wet, and I'm not a heavy sweater. It just saps the life out of you.

Both Indy and Ami have seemed to be pretty comfortable though. They've been damp, but not dripping, and their hay feeder is in a nice shady spot in the paddock. Well, Indy was dripping one day, but that was because he was galloping up and down the paddock trying to get our attention so we'd come out. Honestly, that boy...

My new saddle will be delivered next Tuesday. Needless to say, I wouldn't have been riding anyway. I think there has been one day since our little "accident" that would have been suitable for trying a ride.

Now, what does one do with a saddle with a broken tree? I certainly wouldn't sell it to anyone. Mike says we should perform an autopsy. Well, why not?

No, I'm Not Making This Up.

Since I last posted, Indy and I have had three great rides - two for 40 minutes and one for 30 minutes. He was super all three times. He's even starting to walk straight to a target instead of weaving all over the place. A great time was had by all.

Last Monday however, things went a little bit wrong... I had Indy all saddled, and he was standing beside me - as he always does - and I looked a way a moment to say something to Mike. In the meantime, for some reason Indy decided he needed to go to the back of Ami's stall. Ami was still tied there, so she backed up and Indy went under her tie rope.

Don't ask me how he managed this - I have no idea. It only took a second and there he was, the saddle horn hooked onto her tie rope, pulling it into a V with Ami on one side and her tie ring on the other. She pulled back, the fuse on her safety halter snapped and it was all over before Mike or I could even try to grab the quick release knot and untie her.

Ami then strolled on out of the barn, and Indy didn't seem to know anything had even happened. All's well that ends well, right? Unfortunately, this wasn't the end. As I took Indy out to start our ride, I noticed that the saddle looked a bit, um, odd. The cantle and pommel were much too high and the seat was considerably shorter and deeper than it was when I put it on him.

Yep, the tree was broken right behind the foregirth. I couldn't believe it! Just the right combination of pressure and torque, jerking the tree against the unyielding foregirth. Unbelievable.

For those non-horse people, a saddle with a damaged tree is like a car with a damaged A-frame. Totaled. Period.

Since I do love this saddle, and besides, it's the only one I tried that fit Indy, there's nothing to do but get another one... At least I won't need the pad, fenders, leather stirrups and Bates rig. One must look on the bright side - if one can find a bright side that is.

Just kidding - sorta - since Indy and Ami were not only OK, they demonstrated what Cool Characters they both are. Plus, it's been way too hot to ride the last couple of days anyway.

Saddle Time

Since my last post Indy and I have had three rides of about 20 minutes apiece. What is the main thing I have learned from these rides? That I'm much more out of shape than he is.

The Aussie saddle I'm using weighs about 26 lbs. That's the same weight as the saddle I used on DJ for almost 20 years. DJ was something like 2-3 inches taller than Indy, and I had no problem lifting the saddle onto his back. Now, I struggle and push and sort of slide the saddle up Indy's back instead of lifting it up as setting it straight down as I always did before. SHEESH!

My first saddle - 1978 - weighed 36 lbs! I guess I couldn't even pick that one off the ground these days. Have I gotten soft of what? Of course I am older...

We had a couple of interesting things happen on these rides - mostly concerning my efforts to find a way to make the saddle stay put without having to girth so tight. On the first of the three rides under discussion, when I dismounted to quit I decided to see if I could get back on if the girth were just one notch looser. The answer is NO. When I put my weight in the stirrup, the saddle turned a full 90 degrees.

So here we are, the saddle is now on Indy's side, and he's looking at me with a "What the heck?" look on his face. Fortunately, he decided it was just one more thing that goofy humans do, and he stood quietly while I struggled to hold the heavy saddle up with one hand - lest it slide completely under his belly - while trying to loosen the girth enough so I could boost the saddle up on his back with the other. I thought for a few minutes that I was going to have to call for help. The saddle wouldn't budge without the girth being looser, and the girth strap was almost out of my reach and didn't want to give an inch either. Finally I managed to loosen the strap and get the saddle on his back again. I also assured Indy that he was indeed a good boy!

I've often heard about people with round backed horses using the rubberized mesh non-slip shelf liners under their saddle pads to prevent slipping. It always seemed to me that wrinkling would be a problem with such thin material, but what the heck, it's cheap and I decided to give it a try.

It does make quite a difference, and since I ride an Aussie saddle with a fitted pad, I tied the thin liner to the straps at the front and back of the pad. This keeps the stuff from wrinkling much - enough, I hope. We're still in the testing stage with this stuff. I'm not sure Indy likes the feel of it next to his back as well as he likes the sheepskin. We shall see. It's up to him of course....

An Actual RIDE!

Wow! I can hardly believe it - I actually got a ride in yesterday. It's been almost a year, and it sure felt good to be back up.

Even though Indy's still so green, he hadn't forgotten a thing, and we picked up right where we stopped last fall when it started raining, and raining, and raining, and raining...

We rode in the small paddock for the first time, and it worked out OK. When I get ready to ride Indy out into the larger pasture, we can just go out the new gate and we won't have to worry about Ami trying to follow us. She's not going to like it no matter how I handle it. She didn't like us riding in the paddock, and she could see us the entire time. LOL! Ami is so worried about Indy leaving her. I'm going to take it very easy and stay in sight until she learns to accept it like she did with DJ. Poor girl, she was so traumatized when we lost DJ - but then, so was I...

It was very hot yesterday, so I kept the ride to 15 minutes - for both our sakes! I hope to ride again this afternoon for about the same length of time. It may be a few degrees cooler. I hope so. Actually, the heat and sun bother me a lot more than the do Indy. But, his back is still not accustomed to wearing a saddle for long periods of time, and the very last thing I want to do is make him sore.

It was so wonderful to be riding again. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for this afternoon too.

One Picture...

Well, here we are, riding in the Aussie saddle. Notice how relaxed Indy looks, head low, playing with his bit. He was not looking this way in this previous saddles, believe me.

As always with a new saddle, I've been fiddling with the stirrup length. It always seems to take me forever to decide just where I want the stirrups on each individual saddle. Most of my height must be leg, because I ride with a longer stirrup than many people who are taller than I am. Still, I've shortened them one hole since this picture was taken, so we shall see.

I haven't ridden in several days because it's been raining and chilly, with a stiff East wind. Indy loves it, but I do not. It's supposed to be nice tomorrow, so hopefully I'll get a chance to test the stirrup length. At least the stirrups are very easy to adjust.

More details - and pictures - later.

Not Yet....

No, I haven’t had a chance to ride the saddle yet. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised – I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a new piece of tack in my life that didn’t cause the weather to go rotten and stay that way for weeks. I think it’s some kinda unwritten law or something. It’s not that it’s wasted time or anything. Since Indy and Ami have just started shedding for real, I have more grooming than my arms can hold up to – especially since it’s been wet and they both are muddy on top of being shaggy. Maybe I don’t want to put my brand new sheepskin pad on Mr. Grunge’s back just yet anyway!

The delay has also given me a chance to get a good application of Leather Therapy Conditioner on the smooth leather parts of the saddle before they get dirty and have to be cleaned first. Mold on tack is a serious problem around here, and the Leather Therapy is the only thing I’ve found that does a lick of good preventing it. Even it works much better if you can get in onto the leather before any mold has a chance to dig in with its nasty little spores. YUK!

Last but far from least, I’m also working on the full Bates rig that I purchased – not only to get it conditioned as well, but also figuring out how the heck the thing works. Actually, it’s quite easy once you “get it.” The full instructions that came with it didn’t hurt either…

I knew I’d be glad I paid extra to upgrade the girthing system to this. It doesn’t just convert the usual English style girthing that Aussies use to Western style – it adds what they call a Bates buckle, which is a quick release between the near side tie strap and the cincha. You get the leverage of the long Western tie strap, but without having to thread it around three times every time you saddle up. You just have to move the strap a little bit to release and only a bit more to refasten the buckle. Not only much easier on my repetitive movement injured hands, but a lot less pulling and tugging on Indy too. Since snugging up the girth is his most unfavorite part of the whole process, he’ll probably benefit even more from this thing than I will – which was the main reason I bought it of course.

Maybe all this seems like going to extremes to some, but how could I possibly be comfortable if my horse is not? After all, riding is my idea, certainly not his. I figure keeping him comfortable is the least I can do.

Is It Possible? Could It Actually Be True?

As promised, my saddle arrived on Saturday afternoon at about 4:00 PM. Mike and I were already at the barn, but we were listening hard for that Fed Ex truck. Since we were already involved with our barn stuff/horse grooming, I didn’t open the box until we were back inside.

My first impression was, “WOW!” The pictures on the web site and in the catalog certainly don’t do it justice. It’s beautiful – gold stitching on the black Nubuck leather, and horseshoe dee rings. I thought you had to pay extra for those. There is gold stitching on the fenders and stirrups as well. As for the all important tree – well, it certainly looked wider than the Wintec or Abetta, and not only that, the angle of the bars was obviously much flatter than either of the others. Hope!

Yesterday was the first trial – just the saddle, with a sheet over Indy’s back to keep it pristine – just in case. I was a little concerned about Indy’s reaction since he was not standing well for the Abetta any more. The sheet of course was a big ho-hum for him, but he got a bit tense when I heaved the saddle onto his back. Mike steadied his head, but he calmed right down and went back to munching his hay while we were evaluating the fit. That told me volumes right there. Indeed, the fit did seem excellent, with the saddle nestling down around his back instead of perching on top of it. I was thrilled with my impression and even more so with Indy’s. He will have the final say after all.

Today, we tried it with the sheepskin pad that I ordered with it – again with the sheet underneath. The fit still seemed just right, and Indy was totally Mr. Cool – after giving that pad a thorough sniffing, that is. He decided the whole thing was OK though, and went back to munching.

Now, I have to figure out how to use the Bates rig so I can try girthing it up. As for riding, the weather has been awful, first day of Spring or no. It’s cold and windy. Still, spring is here, and surely we’ll have a halfway decent day before too long. Meanwhile, I can be applying the Leather Therapy Conditioner to the smooth leather parts to fight the war against mold.

I think Indy is going to be a lot happier with this saddle – and if he’s happy, I’m happy.

News From Down Under

Late Tuesday afternoon I received a phone call from Down Under – no, not Australia. It was an extremely nice fellow named Lance from Down Under Saddle Supply, and he was calling about my saddle order. He was concerned that the saddle I’d ordered – the Wizzard Poley - would not be suitable for a horse with Indy’s wither tracing, which he had in his hand.

Actually, I had considered that myself, since the info says that saddles with traditional stuffed panels were more suitable for narrower, high withered types, and that Aussies had gone to the fleece lined panels – like an American Western saddle – because of the influence of the wider American horses. I had considered listing a second choice, but then forgot to do so.

So, here was Lance, calling to advise me instead of just sending me what I’d ordered. Is that service or what? We agreed that the Snowy River Legend would be a much better choice for a Morgan. In fact, Lance told me that the Dallas Mounted Patrol used only Morgans, and Down Under supplied their saddles – and had great success fitting their Morgans with this very model. Then he went on, going over the other things in my order as if he had all the time in the world. He said he would have my saddle out within 24 hours, but if I had any other questions, not to hesitate to call him.

The next evening I got a pre shipment notice from Fed Ex stating that they now had it and it was on its way. Guess Lance made good on his 24 hour promise.

I’m impressed. If the saddle itself is anywhere near as good as the service, Indy and I will be in business!