Before I write
about today's hack (on Hugo, in case you hadn't guessed), I'm going to tell you
about how I first met Hugo: it was the day my little sister went riding for the
first time when she was visiting me last month.
On a previous
hack with my favourite leader, L (the one who owes me a proper farm-land
gallop), I asked her for some recommendations for hacking horses. She said it
depended on what you like, but in terms of fun, Hugo's one of the best for a
bit of a blow-out. I thought great: I have a quick horse to ask for next time,
especially as L said she'd give me a gallop in good weather when I'm “on
something proper”, implying that Frankie pony is improper. How dare she: that
moody little madam's my beloved Turbo Cob! lol.
Anyhow, I
arrived on the yard with my sister, and the lady in front of us was given
Frankie. I smiled at her and told her she was my favourite hacking pony, and
she seemed pleased. Zoe, as the tallest person there, was given the real horse
– Hugo, something I was a bit nervous about given that he sounds like a likely
speed-demon out hacking, but I didn't let any of that slip. All my little
sister needed to know was that Hugo was recommended to me and I really liked
the sound of him :)
We got
outside, and I had my camera ready. Frankie came out first, and the lady riding
had lots of questions about her. I left out the galloping, speed-freak bit
about Franks when she's in the mood, and told her about how sweet she was, had
a short stride that might feel bouncy at first but is easy to get the hang of,
and she always comes back to you when you ask her to slow down. She was
delighted, and didn't mind me photographing Frankie either. As possessions are
locked in the office while out hacking, my camera or phone are never on me when
I go out, so I wanted to snap her while I had the chance. In case you didn't
see what my beloved Turbo Cob looks like in my last blog, here's the little fit
stick for you now!
Next came out
this sweet looking bay gelding, with a little white star and corrective shoes
on his hind feet. I had a feeling it was Hugo, and I was right: his name was
called a moment later and Zoe looked nervous but excited. She was looking
forward to riding, but I think she would have preferred something smaller! As
it turned out, with Dottie (15hh Appaloosa gelding), and only ponies for
company, she was on the biggest horse by a about a hand. Well Zee, if you will
get the long legs that me and my other sister covet, you will be given a horse
that takes them up! lol. Anyhow, she got up and my birthday instructor M sorted
her stirrups and girth. I taught Zoe how to hold the reins, and patted Hugo.
Hugo immediately came in for a cuddle, and when I stepped back for a photo, he
stepped toward me with neck curved for another. That was it, I was hooked: a
giant sook, a fun hack, and my little sister's first ever riding horse – he
even has a name I have on my horse name list for my own gelding some day! What
wasn't to like?! Here he is, with my
little sister on board:
M took the
lesson, and I was glad: was nice to have little sis riding with an instructor
that I knew and trusted. The only thing I was worried about is that M talks a
LOT! I loved having that much info to take in, and while I couldn't use it all
at the same time, I got a lot out of digesting everything afterwards. Zoe did
not seem phased however: she watched M like a hawk while getting instructions.
Just look at them!
Anyhow, I
won't bore you with the details of my sister and a bunch of adults learning how
to trot in an hour, suffice to say that Frankie surprised me with her laziness
and corner-cutting, and out of the folk who'd never ridden before (a few were
adults who hadn't ridden in over 10 years), Zoe got the hang of the rise and
fall better than they did, but still wasn't in sync the whole time. She
improved loads though, and stopped carrying tension in her reins quite quickly.
It wasn't perfect (and it's not meant to be – there's so much to learn and do
that it's an ugly start for everyone), but I was chuffed at her. Hugo looked
after her too, and while he was a bit lazy as most RS horses are with beginners,
he didn't put a foot wrong or give Zoe any cause for concern.
D, who gave me
my first ever lesson at the city yard on the Groupon voucher on Whisperer, came
up on Indy and we chatted a bit. He was taking the trek out, and shouted to ask
if everyone was happy to go. To my surprise my sister said no, and M said it
was fine – she'd give her a private lesson instead. Zoe quickly said it wasn't
nerves – she was physically sore from trotting and was done after an hour.
Without skipping a beat she said I could take Hugo on the trek, and she would
happily wait for an hour. My sister is 18, and does not do waiting, not without
advance notice and a book to read or console to play! I said I didn't know if I
could – I'd already ridden on a Groupon voucher so wasn't strictly allowed. M
said the YO was around so she'd ask: YO took one look at me and said “Yes, you
hack here regularly and enjoy anything we throw at you. You can be 2nd
escort at the back of the ride and look after everyone. Is that alright?” Hell
yes it was: I'd blagged a ride, got to try Hugo who I already adored, and got
to chat more with the people on my ride, most of whom had asked me a million
questions about the horses they were on, what the trek was like and so on. I
was on board Hugo about 45seconds after that yes!
There was no
time to change stirrups as everyone else were on their ponies and ready to go,
so I was on my sister's leggy leathers: they were like dressage stirrups, but
on a GP saddle - not very easy! Treks are only walk and trot though, and my
stirrups were even so I was more than happy. Off we went on our merry way!
We got to the
river to cross it and Frankie, who'd been lazy the whole schooling session,
turned for home and napped. She would not budge towards the river, so I had to
pretty much grab and pull her along. I couldn't believe it: the Turbo Cob is
usually raring to get off the yard with me, or if she's in one of her moods,
while she is no longer jogging with excitement, she's never napped tried to
spin. They definitely know who's on board and who'll be firm with them or not,
even when they don't have an hour to feel how well you can ride or not!
We got across
the river, and up came the trot. My lower legs were going forward, but I wasn't
worried as I knew what was happening: really reaching for my stirrups causes me
to push forward as I try to get the length from over-lowering my heels. I knew
if they were the right length, it wouldn't be happening. I found Hugo's trot
easy, but it's certainly not one I would have chosen to learn on. Given
Dottie's flat back and short-coupled
typically Appy build, I'd much rather be on him than on Hugo who has
some sway and bounce.
Frankie took
the piss the whole way: she kept dragging the lady into trees (no one escapes
that trick it seems: she has opinions on the route with the best footing, and
will exercise this as much as possible: she even refused to move over last week
with me if you remember). She also kept stopping, snatching reins, and leaning
down to eat grass like a Welsh A with a tot on board. I kept getting asked
“What do I do?” so I gave her full instructions, and things improved quite a
bit. The lady said she was glad I'd been there today, to learn about Frankie,
to soothe her trek nerves and get some photos. I was touched, and clearly very
happy to oblige!
When the lady
had better control of Frankie, she moved up the ride order. I then had the pair
of European girls in front of me. Bless their souls, but they really had not
learned how to trot: they stood up about once every 5 strides and bounced the
rest of the time. I even tried calling out 'up-down, up-down' to the pace of
their ponies Marley and Gizmo (this is surprisingly hard when you're on a horse
with bigger strides and you're rising and falling on a totally different rhythm
yourself: felt a bit like playing two different sets of beats on a drum kit).
That didn't help them either. They asked how I was doing it so easily, and I
tried to explain about the horse pushing me out of the saddle, letting my hips
bring me forward, and then gently sitting down as soon as that forward momentum
stopped. I don't think any info really helps beyond the basics to rising trot:
you just have to practise, and you'll get the hang of it eventually.
The girls had
no common sense either, bless them. I had to call to them to lean back on every
downhill stretch, and forward when uphill. They never did it themselves – I had
to call every time. I also had to shout left a lot: they never seemed to
realise when we were on roads with potential oncoming traffic, and D didn't
speak once that I heard except to shout walk or trot. It felt like he was just
showing us the way, and I was the one keeping an eye on the 4 riders out with
us! Even I had started to wonder how it would have went without me there! The
girls kept falling behind too, and I kept saying to catch up. There were points
we couldn't see the ride in front at all as they'd taken bends, and I kept
saying it's not safe to be left behind. The girl on Gizmo was not happy – she
pretty much didn't want to trot at all. Gizmo is 13.2hh of mischief, and I was
glad he knew his job: he knew when to trot and did it anyway. I think we would
have ruined the ride for everyone else otherwise, with them having to halt
regularly to allow us to catch up. I felt for her, I really did, but I knew I
wouldn't have permission to walk her
back to the yard on my own, so onwards we pushed. In fact, on the final trot by
the river she lost a stirrup and was completely on Gizmo's left side. How she
didn't fall off I don't know! Still, I was able to calm her enough to trot her
back to the ride and walk home.
We reached the
water, and while I came out of single file to cross alongside Gizmo, Hugo
strided on and got easily ahead. I waited on the other bank and got a slightly
ill-tempered shout of “I'm fine – just go!” I calmly replied “The YO told me to
stay at the back of the ride, and as she was so kind to let me take Hugo, I'm
not arriving on the yard ahead of you!” She may not have felt grateful, but she
needed the help and the extra pair of eyes whether she liked it or not!
Throughout all
this, Hugo was a total gentleman. He pranced and danced, telling me “We canter
here when someone like you is on my back!” but settled as soon as I asked with
him with minimal cues my seat or hands. He wanted to overtake and enjoy
trotting with Dottie and the ride leader who were much faster, but waited every
time I asked. I was so impressed with him: he was a mix of cute, affectionate,
keen, attentive and kind. I knew I'd be asking to take Hugo out at the next
available opportunity. In fact, I asked and asked and asked... twice Hugo was
in lessons, once for a regular and once for a total beginner, and then the
slowest ride leader of them all nabbed him as her lead horse. Grr! Well, finally I got the big sook, and
here's how we got on:
I'd a nice
walk to the yard with a lady that I met on the bus and who rode as a kid. She
had her first ever trek at the yard that morning thanks to a Groupon voucher.
When her sister arrived, I left them on the bench and went to see the horses. I
said hi to Whisperer, to Jordie, to Shiloh and
even to Frankie. Franks did not say
hello back: she looked snoozey in the corner of her stable, and even a Fruit
Pastille didn't tempt her! (The first time I've ever had treats in my pocket at
this yard, as I'm generally against treating from the hand with most horses,
but she deserved it and refused. Charming! lol).
The yard got
busy with two lessons, a trek, a one-hour hack and our two-hour hack turning
up, so I made sure to take my seat and got into the office first, as me and the
lady were the first people to arrive. Two of the YOs daughters came into the
office, and I like them best as they usually read out the horses and give you a
choice, or just assign you without asking which makes for my kind of lottery –
you always win a ride! lol. I was asked who I wanted, and rather than give a
short-list of two or three as I usually do, I just said “I want Hugo if he's in
please”. I got an immediate yes and sort
of guffawed in shock: I said I'd been asking for him for a month and he'd been
booked for something else every single time. With my bus, I'm always on the
yard at 9:15, 30mins before hack's due to start, so K said “Well, you wait from
what feels like 8am so it's about time!” I laughed, said the wait was totally
worth it this time, and went out smiling. My beautiful boy was out second, and
after 2 loops on his stirrups, got sorted to as close to even as one can get
with synthetic 'leathers'. I also chatted to the lady I walked in with again,
who was on Frankie's son Finlay. I told her I hadn't ridden him, but adore his
mum and he seems sweet, and she looked happy. I asked my groom when we were out
of earshot if Flynn or Finlay were lively to ride out like mum, or typically
relaxed geldings. She said yes (never a helpful answer when given two choices),
but then said had settled down really well. I presume that meant that when
first broken in, they were a handful to hack (as many youngsters are), but were
now quiet rides. I was a bit disappointed, but still might give them a go,
especially Finlay as he's a bit chunkier than Frankie and looks like he has
more mischief in his eyes (except when he's snoozing, as per the pics in my
last entry).
There were so
many of us on the yard, that they needed a sheet of horse names to group people
together! I was called first with Hugo to go towards the river, and I was
determined to be behind the leader on this ride. We went by the slow
ride-leader M, who stopped to give Hugo some love. I asked if he was a
favourite of hers and she said “Yes, in every way!” We passed L and when she
said it hadn't been decided who was taking us out yet, I urged her to
volunteer. YO then said S was taking us out, and L came over when she saw me
and two other regulars said “If I'd known it was you lot, I would have TOLD the
YO I was leading this one. Next time you come, tell them in the office that you
want me to take you!” I'll definitely be
doing that: three of us before the ride had all said we wanted her!
Off the yard
we set, and Hugo keenly crossed the river, which was the shallowest I've seen
it since my first hack in April. The first trot came, and it was as easy to
before, though I wasn't 100% happy in my stirrups, and felt my lower leg move a
bit. I corrected every time it did, was happy to notice my mistakes at least,
and resolved to do what I've seen two other ladies do: bring their own genuine
leathers and irons to go on the saddle, so they can always insure that their
stirrups are even and are easily adjustable!
I was happy to let it go at that.
I'm not sure
how, but that first trot stretch where on tall horses or Frankie I've been
battling branches galore, I don't remember a single dodge being required.
Perhaps I have struck the Goldilocks rule: that in-between is just right, and
at 16.1hh or so, Hugo is what I was call a medium-sized horse (15hh something
being small, 16hh something being medium, 17hh something being big/tall, and
18hh plus being huge)! Duly noted for all future excursions :)
Hugo was keen
as mustard the first few trots, though always kept a horse's length behind the
lead pony Lou. Lou didn't seem to be in a tail-flicking, kicking, marish mood,
but I do wonder if he's once-kicked, twice-shy, as he would give me more
impulsion when I put my leg on, but wouldn't get closer (thus making me think
it was safety, not laziness driving him). I also quickly noticed his waggley
ears now that I wasn't watching beginner riders: they move like he's swimming!
Seriously, when he walks, his ears are like a swimmer's arms: sometimes they
bob in circles one at a time like the front crawl, sometimes they floppily
circled together like the butterfly stroke. I was so transfixed, I missed some
of the scenery sometimes. I even sang to him too! “How much is that horsey in
the window? The one with the waggley
ears!” lol.
The uphill
first canter was coming up and I was grinning like an eejit – I was so excited!
Hugo was quick, but unlike the fast Ransom, was a gentleman and didn't try to
overtake, even though he could easily have done. I was in the two-point
position as I like to allow the horse that extra reach uphill, and because
Frankie's broken into gallop up it before, so it leaves me ready for that
eventuality. I did however make a
mistake: Hugo's canter felt like it would be really easy to sit too, so once we
got to the slower part at the top, I sat down. The way I changed my seat
however, I accidentally blocked his movement so he went to trot. I asked him to
canter, but he quite rightly ignored me: he was concentrating on keeping up the
same speed and momentum in his trot, and we were so near the top, it wasn't
worth upsetting the rhythm. That was completely my fault: I should have just
stuck to what I'd planned to do originally.
The next
canter quickly came up, and I stayed in the two-point position the whole time.
I noticed how high Hugo carries his head: I presumed before riding him as he's
in a martingale (though bobbing Ransom
isn't for some reason), but as he doesn't fight for his head and doesn't
suddenly go from high-head carriage to low head-carriage unpredictably like
Ransom, it wasn't an issue – just a difference.
On canter three, I decided to sit the whole time for start to finish and
I was right: I did find his canter easy enough to sit to. So far the cut off
for finding it easy is around the 16.2hh: certainly the 17hh above have such
big canters that I really need to get used to them in the school. Sitting still
and classically while a horse is launching you with such a powerful back end
requires some practice it seems! Hugo
also hadn't held my error on the hill against me: he wasn't hesitant, worried I
was about to block him again. He went forward keenly, quickly and politely.
With some
closures and things, we did have to retrace our steps again, but S took us on a
new route to do so (whereas M made us turn 180o once we'd finished a canter)
and put loads of cantering in. In fact, by the time we'd made it to the bridge
over the valley about 40mins into the ride, we'd done 5 stretches of canter
already: that's how many we do under M over the whole 2 hrs!!! S also joined
two stretches together and made a mega-long one. I was out of the saddle for
this one and had a blast. Hugo did slow towards the end a bit though, and was
suddenly sweating a lot. He's a fit horse that does common ridings, but running
around in the 19oc heat was getting to him poor chap! The walk after this was quite long, and
beautifully scenic, so we both appreciated it. The hooves seemed particularly
loud and echoey over the valley today, and with the bright sun, made for a
picture perfect view. I really need a hacking jacket, so I can zip a phone or
camera safely up and bring it with me. That, or I'd love Santa Claus to bring a
helmet cam this year! How much fun would it not be to see the Turbo Cob in
action up that hill, over that bridge, and on the railway line?! :D
Apart from
trying to get Hugo to get a bit closer in walk, the rest of the walk and trot
work in the middle of a hack was a breeze and a delight. I'd offered earlier if
the lady on Dottie wanted to go ahead as Dottie was rude and tried to over-take
me on a narrow canter stretch earlier. She'd turned me down, and then out of
nowhere pushed in. I've no problem in changing order to find the best place for
horses of different speeds: why not accept my offer, or ask to change up than
just butt in? The lady on Clyde almost did the same, as they were two-abreast
chatting, however when we had to go single-file again, the lady on Clyde dropped back and told me I should be ahead of her.
I thanked her for that: I was on a faster horse, and I didn't want to be held
back just so that they could be an easier conversational distance away from one
another.
We reached the
Glen, and it was finally open today! There was a sign apologising for closure,
but a tree falling and landslides in the unusual summer weather had lead to
closing the route for safety reasons. I understood a bit better why it had
taken a month to reopen again after reading that. I hadn't realised how much I'd missed the
Glen until I got back in: it has all the sights, smell and beauty of the
woodland we cross, but because it has proper paths rather than mud trails,
there are no branches sticking out to catch you! I also got chatting to the
lady on Clyde too, about Common Rides and
lessons. While the school are down to one full-time RI and thus limited private
lessons, they have some part-time instructors who do the regular group lessons.
(The yard runs on the American system of Beginner lessons on particular days
and times, Intermediate lessons on specific days/times etc, and a girl comes in
to take some of these). There's a flatwork lesson where they do more advanced
work like lateral movements, so am tempted to try that when money's less of an
issue. I also found out that Clyde's a monkey
in the school, so is used for hacking and Common Rides only. I never would have
expected it: he's such a quiet, ploddy, so-straightforward-he's-boring kind of
sweet little horse, I thought he would have been positively snail-like in the
school! I said I'd be interested in
joining that lesson as my love is dressage, though I've been bitten by the
jumping bug a bit after The Olympics. She said she was a nervous rider who only
rode out on Clyde ever, and couldn't stomach
jumping at all. I told her how hacking and Common Riding takes much more guts,
and she's not to call herself a nervous rider anymore! She also told me if I
liked Corrie then I must be an absolute speed merchant. Was pleastantly
surprised that Mr Smooth had a reputation as Mr Speedy too, because he can
certainly move! I then turned back forwards and enjoyed the sights, sounds and
smells of the Glen.
We came across
the wood pole-lined big steps, and Hugo powered up and down them. He clearly
knew we were near the railway line! We
got the bottom, and sadly we didn't do the thing of cantering all the way from
there to the end of the railway line. I don't think this is a regular canter
point for S, as she wasn't checking up ahead to see if he we had space to go. I
was disappointed, but we got so much cantering in earlier and I'd had such a
great time, I didn't dwell on it. We came to the Railway Line, and we walked
more of the beginning of it than usual before she stopped us. She said it would
be a steady canter, and back to trot for pedestrians. The sad fact was that, on
such a cracking day, we had to trot most of it to get into some clear
space. Hugo had such big airs off the
ground it felt like he was doing what I call the 'impatience passage': not as
pretty as a dressage horse doing the real thing and not trained in the horse as
a schooling movment, but a natural trot-jog where the feet get proper air time.
It felt amazing to ride, and I could feel the fire in Hugo's belly grow as we
trotted more and more, but he wasn't making a dash for it – he waited like I
asked.
Finally, we
got a clear space and before I could really tell that the leader was cantering,
Hugo leapt into action! Completely involuntarily I shouted “WEEEEEEEEEE!” and
off we went! We quickly hit a smooth gallop, but with diminishing space in
front of us, dropped down to an active canter instead. I'd expected Dottie to
go faster given he'd tried to take over me earlier, but he started to fall
behind, and when I called out that I was passing as my horse was faster, Dottie
and rider moved left and cut me off. I didn't see her hands move: I think
Dottie did that all on his own. Still, the cutting us off slowed things down
even further, and before we knew it, there were more pedestrians so we went
back to a trot. Hugo and I were flying along, expecting to move back up to
canter again once the people had passed, but we didn't. While I was
disappointed, I'd expected it days in advance: with such good weather, you get
more people out and about, and more broken canters. I'd enjoyed myself in the 5
canters in the pedestrian-free woodland anyway, so I wasn't gutted and
certainly didn't let it detract from my mile-wide smile :)
Hugo had given
me such confidence, that when we were on the side of an A-road waiting to
cross, I held the buckle to allow Hugo to eat. S called up that a few tractors
were coming but I'd every confidence that Hugo couldn't have given the tiniest
poop about them and I was right. Except when crossing roads, I road Hugo on a
very long rein after that as it's the final quarter of the ride anyway. We had
two superb trots as well: the totally in sync, moving as one and floating
across the ground feeling I've felt so many times on Guinness when I've got his
hocks under him and pushed him into medium trot. It felt amazing, and made me
feel like my schooling's not just fallen apart because I haven't done it for a
few weeks! Those two trots were incredible, and I enjoyed every second as a
grinning idiot.
When we
finally got to the long path beside the river, I rode without any stirrups for
about 20mins and on a long rein. I'd never been fully comfortable in the
stirrups, and wanted rid of them to give my joints a break and regain
circulation in my toes. I trusted Hugo implicitly, and he was a gentleman the
whole time. (I normally only take my feet out for a minute of circling on the
way home). We got to the part that was originally the first trot stretch, and S
stopped to ask if we were happy to canter it. Before I could even think, I'd
involuntarily shouted “HELL YES!”, as it
was been a pleasant surprise to be asked (of the 5 leaders I've had, only one
other uses this to canter). Everyone laughed and said “Hell yes, me too!” and
off we went. I was grinning at first, but I learnt the hard way about how much
the muck on this trail flies up, so had to shut my mouth and smile on the
inside. Hugo dropped out of canter once as we ran out of space, but
transitioned straight back up when we deliberately fell back. We both had such
a blast: I think the pair of us were rather frustrated by the lack of cantering
under the railway bridges!
We arrived at
the yard, and while I circled my feet (not because I needed to, but to buy
time), I patted and praised Hugo - something I did so often on the ride as he
did everything I asked of him that he possible could, bless him. I hopped off,
and started to unwrap and run up his stirrups and loosen his girth. He started
getting bargy, which he hadn't been before, but I quickly realised why: there
was a bucket of feed on the ground! I got him away, and he stood when I asked.
I then went to rub his head. He showed me he was itchy, so moved in to use my
as a scratching post. I hate no manners in a horse, and this is one rudeness
that I don't agree with, so I stepped back and offered my hand: I happily play
the “scratch me here” game with a gentle horse, and was happy to scratch by
hand, but I was not being barged over by his beautiful big head and floppy
ears. L came up and took him at that point, but we were both happy, and he'd had
the two sweets from my pocket as he hadn't begged or harassed to get them
(another behaviour I hate in a horse that's so easily prevented).
I knew from L's recommendation that Hugo was
going to be a cracker, and I felt his potential as a hacking horse on that
trek. I had not been disappointed on this ride; in fact, my only minor gripe is
his saddle: about an hour into the ride it felt uncomfortable, and it continued
from there-on in unless I was in the light seat. I thought it was what I was
wearing at first causing the discomfort, but I was in the same clothes and
undies I usually wear to hack. It then clicked with me: it must be his saddle,
as Zoe was sore too. Grr! If they got a better one, Hugo might just be the
perfect ride. I texted my little sis on the way home to tell her I felt her
pain, that horse riding doesn't usually hurt so much, and Hugo's the dog's
danglies. She was pleased to hear it!
So, here's a
pic of me and the man himself (taken on the day of my sister's lesson, as I
don't usually have a photographer, though Zee didn't give me much warning as you can see). I think this boy's the shizzle: when I'm
wearing more padding, I'm asking for this guy again! :D
No comments:
Post a Comment