I’m not a special snowflake, but I do think I have a slightly unique edge to my experience with the horse world. When I was riding as a kid, I primarily fox hunted before doing any serious showing. It seems most kids grow up in the show ring on ponies or school masters, but I grew up on hunter paces and eventually fox hunting. When I finally did start showing, there was so much to learn. I didn’t know anything about…
I am super late on the final blog hop from Viva Carlos. At first I didn’t think I had enough shirts to participate, but I kept finding them when I did laundry… so here it is. Better late than never?
This post could also be titled “I feel compelled to always jump at least one animal competitively over fences.” There’s only been one extended period of time in my adult life when I didn’t ride. I filled some of that time with model horses and the other bulk of it was spent learning agility with Eliot, my springer spaniel. When I first got Eliot, I wanted to do therapy dog work with him. Of course since that was the plan, Eliot…
I like silly things. From being stuck at a desk 8-9 hours a day, I get a little punchy… especially in the afternoons. During one of these silly afternoons, I discovered Google Translate Sings! It’s pretty amazing. The concept is basically this: Take popular song lyrics Put them into Google Translate between roughly 6 different languages Translate them back to English See what you get! I was trying to figure out how to put an equestrian spin on this, so…
In certain open shows in North Carolina (and probably elsewhere), there is such a thing as a Versatility Class… and it is awesome. Rules vary per show, but the format is always as follows: One horse & rider combination for roughly four classes with major tack changes back and forth. The horse & rider must stay in the ring for tack changes, and can have 1-2 helpers. The helpers stand at the edge of the ring while the classes are…
I started riding lessons at 10/11, which is probably an average age for kids. For many years though, I considered that “late” because I started my first competitive sport when I was 5. Even though I’ve always loved horses, the lessons came later in my childhood because my first love in life was ice skating. Growing up in North Carolina, ice skating was kind of a spectacle to folks. It was still super rare, and I have no idea how…
There’s a not-so-secret trick that equine photographers keep in their bag of tricks. It’s striking and classic, and makes people go “oooo” and “ahhhh”. What am I talking about? The “black background” shot. It’s one of the most impressive pictures you can take of your horse, but it’s also one of the easiest. There’s no special lighting or big black backdrops we set up behind the horses… the trick is a barn aisleway or door with the light shining in…
Given the turbulent environment at the cult, you’d think there wouldn’t be much room for upward growth. In contrary, they actually gave promotions out like candy. Unlike candy, promotions weren’t very sweet. It was more of a curse than a blessing really, because they did not typically come with any raise. I knew several people who received a lot more responsibility, often switching departments or roles entirely, to bring the same amount of bacon home at the end of the day….