Riding and running

Sweaty disgusting me after the race.

So in addition to riding bikes I'm running regularly -- and improving my times considerably! I ran in a 5K on Saturday, a little local race put on for Muscular Dystrophy by an amazing guy named Shane Burcaw. He has an organization and a book by the title Laughing at my Nightmare -- check out this guy's amazing story and if you're looking to read or give a story with a positive message, buy his book. Shane is witty and charming, the anti-thesis of the stereotypical disabled person. Always surrounded by friends and very cute young girls, he's a standup comic with a great message.

So, in my first 5K in about ten years, I ran 26:47 and was the fifth placing female. I'll take it!

Hoping that all of this exercise makes me a better rider. I did have a nice ride on Riley Monday :-). 

At last! Photos of me riding!

It's just that it's not a horse.

Hi All.

For about seven years I have posted daily about equine exploits. I still want to return to this daily habit, but at the moment I'm not as able to indulge in my horsey habits, and I have less to write about! Harv, while still with me, is not photographable or as available as he once was, now that he's crossed the rainbow bridge.

Riley, while he is still my horse, I am riding once or twice a week, letting my trainer keep him tuned up and developing for his next owner. We've come close a few times, but he is not yet sold. I'm alternately anxious that he won't sell, and anxious that he will sell -- can I really watch someone take him away in a trailer? It's so hard to think about.

For now I'm enjoying my rides and lessons on Riley in the summer warmth, and hoping that the right person comes along. On days I normally would ride a horse, Bob and I are enjoying our bikes, or I'm working out like a fiend at one of three gyms I belong to.

This is not where I want to be permanently, but I'm accentuating the positive, riding bikes and working out to get stronger, to be a better rider. It's all good.

Study Confirms Horses 'Talk' to Human Handlers

Harv and I discussing how treats are dispensed

Shocker of a study from TheHorse.com, but I appreciate some research affirming what most of us 'knew' but maybe couldn't prove: Study Confirms Horses 'Talk' to Human Handlers.  I've been lucky to have two super-expressive horses only two happy to weigh in on any/everything I did.

In some circles, this is known as being spoiled, or fresh maybe. It's a difficult balance. If horses are too constrained by discipline, I think they become a little robotic, or at least harder to read. It's like they have no  hope of influence.

Harv was, and Ri is, very influential.

I'm not a fan: House fans in barns

House fans are for houses -- they're not designed to operate in barns! The motors are not in well-sealed containers and the dirt accumulates, and it is a fire hazard (read this Horse Journal article FMI). At BYOF barns I generally threw away my fans and replaced them every year. Someone recently posted this photo on Facebook, and it is a good reminder of what can happen.

Just just old age: Article alert!

New article from The Horse Magazine: Not Just Old Age: Why Do Senior Horses Die?

This article in The Horse made me think about Harv. Judging from the article most old horses succumb to digestive disorders. Harv, I will say, was done in by the neuro condition.

I dreamed of Harv a few weeks ago -- nothing dramatic, I was walking him around the perimeter of an indoor arena while kids played with ponies in the center. Not a barn/arena I recognize, it was larger than most I've ever used. At one point I hugged him and it was a very good hug. When I woke I had just a vague recollection of the particulars, but being close to Harv felt very real.

The Lobster (movie): Thumbs down

I'll start off by saying that I love dark humor and I can only think of one or two that were "too dark" -- and usually they were more violent than dark. I'm not a huge fan of violence, especially when it seems to be the point of the movie.

If you are contemplating the movie The Lobster, you may have read the great reviews I read. Be forewarned. It is not funny. It is violent. And the violence is perpetrated on humans and animals.

The opening shot of the movie is a woman shooting a donkey in a field. It goes downhill from there. When a woman describes to her lover that she has kicked his dog to death, it took a force of will to remain in my seat. This is a comedy?

I can't say I liked nothing about the movie, but the bright spots were eclipsed by an unrelenting flatness of affect of every character, the lack of empathy or kinship among any of the characters, and scenes of violence/reference to violent acts that I can't get out of my head.

I think some people will be able to get through and and perhaps get some enjoyment out of it. The director clearly had something specific in mind he wanted to say. For my animal loving friends, I can only say...

Don't go.

Bad news, good news

Bad news -- my beloved Clarks Privo sandals,  which feel like walking on a CLOUD and go with all of my summer clothes,  are ruined -- by my own hand, which is doubly sad. They got waterlogged in a freak home accident, and the right shoe shrunk a size. I LOVED these shoes. 

It occurred to me to check Ebay, where I found a pair -- in orange and pink no less -- for $12 including shipping! If I have to buy new shoes, how wonderful that they are ORANGE!

The tall girl's guide to horse buying

I discovered a useful site, Tall Horses for Sale on Facebook. It has horses of all price ranges, all over the country, all breeds.

I won't pull manes either

Well, I won't pull them mostly because I do it badly, but there is research that shows that it actually IS painful to pull hair out by the roots. Go figure... See this article from E-venting, "Why I will never pull a mane or tail again."

Riley prefers his retro-seventies look, "the shag."

Riding underwear: Baleaf me

I've been looking for good inexpensive riding underwear with padding. If you look in riding catalogs, expect to spend at least $25. Because I also cycle, I'm always looking for cheap cycling pants too. I hate "compression shorts" -- not comfortable, binding!

Bob and I have each ordered a second pair of the Baleaf riding shorts (top right). They are $24 on Amazon and $19.99 on Ebay. For the money you can't beat the quality and comfort -- stretchy, breathable, PADDED -- perhaps not appropriate for 100 miles, but for our 30-50 mile rides they are great.

Baleaf underwear is available for $12.99!! (lower right). Haven't indulged yet but they look perfect for riding, and for those of us who like a little extra padding for longer rides.

White hematite pearl browbands: Love the lion!

Prada -- even if I've posted him, he's still cute!

DARK HORSE: Another great horse story,

This movie just  came on my radar. It's a documentary and it looks like a familiar story of people from modest means breeding and training a horse that wins. I'm interested to see if they can retell it in a new way.

Whips whips whips: Horze whips are my fave

W

When it comes to dressage whips I am like the princess and the pea. I can't tell you what makes a good-feeling whip, but I know when I have one in my hand.

I've purchased pricey whips, like Fleck whips (and like them), but for me the Holy Grail was whips has been the $12 Horze Ashton gel-handle whip which I have previously reviewed.  It's light, the right flexibility, easy and comfortable to hold, and hoo-ray, it is modestly priced!

So I laughed when my trainer "discovered" the whip, casually picking it from the many in the whip-holder that is on the wall, ringside. As she trotted by she called out "I LOVE THIS WHIP!"

I snapped this shot at the end of the ride.