Today’s Common
Ride arrived quickly – only 6 days after my last jaunt. With swelling that
compressed my sciatic nerve, my left leg had been a bit of a flop all week, but
with great improvement in my range of motion, overall control, and general
degree of sensation. While I wouldn’t have chosen to hack with my leg not fully
recovered, I wasn’t prepared to lose my deposit and not take part in my local
Common Ride, especially as it’s meant to be a pretty tame affair and I was on the
darling Abbie. I mean, what could go wrong?!
L adjusted my
stirrups for me before I mounted. Luckily Abbie stood like a lamb, because
mounting was the part I was most concerned about – my weak leg would have to
take all of my weight and actively push me up and over the saddle to sit
astride it. Luckily this happened with no issue whatsoever, and I felt
vindicated that my leg would be strong enough to ride on. What became quickly
apparent however, was that Abbie had different leathers on from my last ride –
the top hole after 1 loop was not only too long this time, but was vastly
uneven. I cursed not going to the yard at the weekend to put my own stirrup
leathers and irons on her saddle! I toyed with them as best I could, but I
never really get a feel for what even is until I’m out trotting, and this would
prove to be the case yet again.
Fording the
river in the middle of town was glorious – the banks and bridges were covered
in people cheering us on, and Abbie powered her way into the water. This Common
Ride is different from all the others – rather than being in the general
cavalcade at your own pace, with a marshal or two at the front and back of the
pack to ensure people go the correct way, this Ride is actively patrolled. This
means that the whole snake is split into about 10 or more groups, with one or
two marshals escorting each one. Essentially, it gives it a hack-like feel: you
stick in a group of 7-15 people roughly, and can’t over-take your Ride Leader –
in this case an official Marshal from the town. I had stuck with people from
the yard, so that we made up a little herd that regularly hack together and
seek each other’s company, and because the people I was riding with chose it as
a safer group than many of the others, with the bonus of an extra Marshal. All
this created much more work for me in walk and trot however – Abbie’s only
marish tendency is to be opinionated about where she is in the pack, and she
likes to power her way towards the Official Party at the front; so, holding her
within a small group, never mind the penultimate group of the ride with only
half a dozen or so horses behind us, was a challenge; Abbie certainly began the
fight at the water!
Trotting was
deeply uncomfortable – I could feel that my stirrups weren’t quite even.
Luckily, I had enough warning about the first canter to put my left leg up one
hole, which I hoped would be about right. We took off on a canter track – a dusty
path on farmland, and I immediately felt uneasy: one hole did not make for even
stirrups, and I had the awkward issue of my right leg being short-enough to make
the more forward light seat most comfortable, and the left one so long that
only standing upright was comfortable; essentially, no matter what way I
positioned myself, I couldn’t feel comfortable with these stirrups. The second
set of canters quickly came, so I tried sorting the left stirrup to bring it up
but no joy – I was on the top hole so needed another twist but had no time to
put one in. I then put my right stirrup back down a hole, hoping that I would
at least be comfortable enough to sit the canter or just stand up slightly.
Again, it was not even enough to make this comfortable either: rather than
relaxing and enjoying the canter, and my balance naturally compensating for
slight fluctuations in the ground, I had to actively control it – I would feel
more weight in one stirrup and have to deliberately shift my weight over. I’d
see a change in the ground coming up, and I had to allow for it, where with
even stirrups it would have been so subtle as to be done on autopilot. I was so
annoyed – I really wanted to be enjoying these canters rather than working so
hard for them. I also felt like I was making life unnecessarily hard for Abbie,
and she was more objectionable than usual: I’d ask her to come back to me a
little as I felt a bit uncomfortable at times, or the dust was so bad that I
couldn’t see, and rather than listen immediately, she tossed her head at me and
took much stronger aids to relent. That little mare has the patience of the
saint, but even I was beginning to try her!
The break couldn’t
come soon enough. I got a bottle of water, Abbie got food and drink, I got
caught up with my riding buddy who was much further ahead on the faster Ripper,
and I finally got to put a loop into my left leather. It would take another
trot on the roads to find as close to even as I was going to get, but there
were no canters left to really try them out – only the two gallops: one on the
back of the race course, and one along the beach. I considered doing one but
not the other – all the uneven riding had caused immense pain in the hip I fell
on last week, and I wasn’t sure my body would be strong enough to handle both.
I put my big girl pants on and told that wee voice to shut the hell up – the best
bits were yet to come, and short of my leg falling off, I’d be doing them by
hook or by crook!
The race track
was fun, but now that my leathers had stretched with riding, they were still a
little longer than I was comfortable with, and I had to work to keep my left
heel down as my weak ankle was tiring. I also had the same issue I had earlier –
that I didn’t quite have short enough leathers to make up and forward the most
comfortable, so when I’d get a bit unhappy trying that, I’d sit and try to bring
Abbie back a bit. When in that deeper position, keeping my heels down was an
issue, and Abbie’s canter felt so bumpy, that I actually found it much more
difficult to manually adjust my balance. So, I had a choice between the more
forward seat that would leave me more vulnerable if Abbie spooked, kicked or
threw in a dirty stop, or I could try and bring her back a bit but also get
bounced off in the process. I am sad to say that I was pleased when the
stewards on foot told us to start bringing our horses back; on a day with even
stirrups and a functional leg, I’d have been so disappointed to have stopped
then, and would have kicked on to really open up Abbie’s gallop. As it was, I
was between the frying pan and the fire in terms of my seat, balance and comfort.
If the beach hadn’t been the last bit of fast work of the day, I might have
been tempted to call it quits, and save my aching hip.
I was not
prepared to chicken out of the beach gallop however, even after discomfort on
the race track – I have been dreaming of galloping along a beach in the summer
sunshine since I was knee-high to a grasshopper, and I’d survived longer, windier
and faster gallops so far on this ride!
The start was a
difficult one. One of our Marshals had a tool of a horse – it was spinning,
napping, reining back… Essentially, if it had to walk or stand still, it was a
total handful. The ground crew shouted our instructions to us before we hit the
sand – to go as far out onto the firmer, wet sand as possible before starting
the gallop, and anyone over-taking needs to go out wide, or they’ll fill their
neighbour’s face with sand when passing. The marshal’s horse was not handling
the walk out onto the firm sand well, and spun directly into me. The horse
smashed into my weaker left side, and knocked my leg backwards, completely out
of the stirrup. I knew I had about 2 seconds tops to get my stirrup back, or my
horse was taking off and nothing I could do would stop her; I’d also run the
risk of being bounced off, as it was an issue I had even when I had both
stirrups! Abbie and I were straight, pointing the right way, and deep into the
firm ground – we were about to go. It took two attempts, but thankfully I got
my stirrup a fraction of a section before Abbie lent on her hocks and sprang
into action!
The ground was
strange to ride on – it was more very fine pebbles than pure sand, and it was
deeper than I thought. I was glad Tom hadn’t come to film me or photograph me –
I knew I had my concentration face on! There were a lot of cheers, and most
riders waved, and I got comfy enough to give two waves along the way (whereas I
often ride whole gallops one handed once I’ve settled my horse’s speed); the
rest I spent so busy concentrating on my seat and balance to worry about giving
a good show. I also knew any pro photos of me would be pants as my face was
black with dust from the early canters, and I’d look terrible. What’s the
betting that I find a great action shot somewhere, but I look too awful to have
it printed?! lol. This gallop did end too early for me however, and I was
delighted to finish it smiling and happy. I also gave my nervous friend a pat
on the back: she’d only done this ride once before, and at a much slower pace
because it was in torrential rain. She’d gone much faster this year, and while
it tried her nerves, I think she’ll look back on it with great happiness and
affection!
My filthy face
and neck:
A poor photo,
but proof that I ended the beach gallop with a smile:
Despite the ride
being almost an hour late, we were still paraded off the beach and through town
by a pipe band. Thankfully, all the trotting I’d been told about had turned
into a walk (or jog on Abbie) because of the density of horses. I began to
reflect, and this was definitely the ugliest riding I have done in quite some
time – bouncing around, and having to give stronger aids to Abbie, who hated
both being near the back and behind Marshals, and my needing to adjust her
speed often several times mid-canter, rather than just at the beginning. I was
however, effective: I remained within my little group at all times, and despite
changes in ground and direction, I was able to manually adjust my balance
despite uneven stirrups and a weak leg. I am proud that I did everything and
did it safely; I am only irked that it required so much concentration that it
reduced the joy. However, having had two brilliant Common Rides in a row, I
know that this is only a glitch, and it has a clear cause – information that I
didn’t have for definite when I’d uneven and long stirrups on my first ever
outing. While I will be resting my leg from riding this weekend, I will be
getting back to it after that, and getting my own leathers and irons on the go!
I also need to start riding big horses in preparation for my riding holiday in
early September: most of the show hunters that are there are 17-19hh; I need to
get some canter and gallop practice on such big striding horses! lol.
As always, thanks
for reading, and apologies for the lack of helmet cam footage. I only
remembered about it on the bus; I’m still feeling short-comings in my memory
from my concussion. In truth, I wasn’t even close to remembering it: it wasn’t
sitting by the front door or anything – I hadn’t even changed the batteries yet
from Tuesday. So, fingers crossed that all those people that cheered us on and
filmed on phones and tablets, put their videos on YouTube; I’d like to at least
see us all fording the river and galloping the beach! :)
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