Bloghop: 25 Questions

1. Mares or Geldings? Why?
Can I answer stallion? I love stallions!
But obviously, I'm a mare person all the way. I mean, what would I DO with myself if my horse just behaved itself right from the get-go and acted normal and sane all the time?
(Caveat: I actually think geldings are more princess-y and drama queen-y than most of the mares I know!)

I mean obviously

2. Green-broke or Fully Broke?
I'm completely apathetic on this one. "Fully broke" to me technically means that you can get on and do a lot of stuff easily without a lot of energy or fuss, but the horse also generally comes with a series of odd little quirks and different training methods that were instilled in it by someone else along the way, which I usually end up uninstalling and reinstalling my own way. A greenie comes with a lot of training that needs to be done, but at least I can more or less do it my own way and screw it up just the way I like it.

Blank slate to ruin all by myself!

3. Would you own a "hotter" breed (ie. Arabian, Trakhener, etc).
Not sure which offends me more - the idea that Trakehners are hot horses, or the fact that Trakehner was misspelled in the question. I've had 3 of them (and Pax is 1/2) and none of them were hot or silly. They were all from good old German bloodlines though, and were more heavily built than the hotrods of today, which could have something to do with it.... they've infused the American book with A LOT of Arabian and TB blood recently, which I personally think has kind of diluted everything... but I digress. Obviously the Germans have it right, if you look at what they're producing over there.
Fast fact about me: I have a Trakehner brand tattoo. It's a tramp stamp. It's still one of my favorite tats.
In reality, I can't stand hotheads and I try to steer clear of them in every way. I like quirky horses, but hot horses? No thanks.

Best Trakehner ever

4. What was your "dream horse" growing up?
Friesian. I wanted a Friesian. I LOVED Friesians. I even had a sign on my door that said "Friesian Crossing" with a silhouette of one prancing along. I thought they were just the most beautiful things I had ever seen.
..... And then I spent a summer working on a breeding farm..... and that changed my mind PRETTY FAST. I LOVED working there but I got solidly soured off the breed. I do still think they look beautiful rearing in calendar pictures though.

Yes, that is me...

5. What kind of bit(s) do you use and why?
It depends on the horse, but my all-time fall-back favorite is my Happy Mouth mullen mouth eggbutt. Gogo went it in exclusively for a long time until she graduated to a double jointed eggbutt (she never really went well in a loose ring for whatever reason). And now it's literally the only thing O tolerates, aside from her hackamore. If I were riding here more, I think I'd try just toodling along in a halter, but I'm not, so ehhhh. I ride Dylan either in his double or just a snaffle - a plain loose ring double jointed thing. He likes it as much as he will ever like a bit, I think... I did try him in an LG, and he went fine in it, but I honestly had no control over him when he wanted to get bargy.


6. Helmets or no helmets?
Every time, every ride - helmet. And I do get nasty and preachy about it so if you get catty at me about why you feel like you are entitled to not ruin your stupid Barbie-doll hair, I will tell you all the ways in which I will refuse to clean up all the pieces of your brain that splatter everywhere when you get smashed in the head. And I may insinuate that you don't have enough brain to protect if you can't make the choice to wear one. Because you're just plain stupid if you don't. It's the same thing I'd say to someone who choses not to wear a seatbelt. There's no reason not to, and you're stupid.

Good reason to wear your helmet... although you run the risk of drowning if you fall off with one on, so there's that....

7. Favorite horse color?
I love weird colors. Dark colors. Light colors. Shiny colors. I am a very visually stimulated person if you couldn't tell. Basically anything eye-catching or shiny and I like it, although I am less partial to plain bays than anything.
I always said I'd never own a bay though... and have now had five of them. I also said I'd never own a chestnut, and, well....


8. Least favorite horse color?
Plain boring bays. I like things with flash and chrome and interesting colorings/markings.


9. Dressage or Jumping?
I miss galloping and jumping... but I understand that due to my bad leg, those days are probably gone. Maybe one day I'll get back into it, but being in a long stirrup is painful enough, so I don't think I'll be able to get back to that, so dressage it is - which makes me perfectly happy.
Even better than all of that though: driving.

Can I choose this?

10. How many years have you been riding?
Since the age of 7, when I started in with regular lessons. And I've been going pretty strong every since! So that would be... 23 years?


11. Spurs/whip or no spurs/whip?
Depends on what the horse needs. I always, ALWAYS used to wear spurs and carry a whip, on every horse, every ride - because I never knew when I might need one or the other. I always wore spurs and carried a whip with Gogo, but almost never used either except for the occasional tap to help her move over a little faster. I wore neither on O because she was too much of an idiot. Whip and spurs are for finesse and refining aids, not for anything else, and if you can't get a horse to do basic XYZ things without blowing their lids off, then you don't need to be using either.
I have not been riding Dylan with either whip or spurs, but as I get stronger I will definitely be adding them back in.


12. Your first fall?
I'll never forget this one. I was probably about 9 or 10, riding a lesson horse named Sandy, an ugly dumptruck of a QH who was the color of dirty tidewater and had gaits like riding a broken washing machine. The barn where I took lessons had a water trough in the arena, and the lesson ponies would dutifully line up for drinks.  Sandy more or less dragged me over there before the start of our lesson, and stuck her head in the trough. One of the barn staff had run a hose to the trough, and was filling it, unbeknownst to me. Sandy stepped on the hose, the hose lifted and sprayed her in the face, and she vanished out from underneath me. I went ass over teakettle right into the water trough. Funny enough, I remember being all excited about it, like "I fell off! Now I'm a real horse rider!" I clambered back on Sandy in my soaking wet clothes, and proceeded to my lesson like nothing happened - either nobody noticed or nobody cared that I was soaking wet!


13. When was the last time you rode and what did you do?
Yesterday morning - went for a nice hack down the road before the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade came on (also before the rain hit). We did a bit of bending and going sideways back and forth across the road while we walked, nothing special but it was a good workout for just a walk.

14. Most expensive piece of tack you own?
Uhhh... hmmm... I have no idea. I tend to get the more expensive things either second-hand, or I borrow them. The Dartmoor is definitely the most expensive thing but it isn't mine. Dylan also came with his Schleese, but that also isn't mine. I have two Prestiges that are probably still worth a fair bit of money, but I got them years and years ago.


15. How old were you when you started riding?
7! Wait, didn't we have this question already?


16. Leather or Nylon halters?
I have both, and rope, and mule tape, and basically everything inbetween. I am a chronic halter-collecter.

What? You no likey?

17. Leather or Synthetic saddles?
LEATHER NO QUESTION.
But, that said, I LOVE my biothane harness. It's so well made that it mostly passes for leather, even fairly close up. And it's SO easy to take care of. Cleaning saddles and bridles is one thing, but cleaning a whole goddamn harness takes hours and it just sucks.


18. What "grip" of reins do you like?
Hmm good question, I have about every kind of rein possible so I don't really feel one way or another about it, though I'm not really partial to slick leather or laced leather. I like pebbled/grippy reins if we're going to be wet or I need to take up rein fast for any reason (or not let it slip out of my hands). My driving lines are straight beta, and I'm not very fond of them - I've been considering swapping out for some driving lines with grip, and just keeping the boring ones for shows.

19. English or Western?
A good western saddle is great for trail rides and noodling around, but I don't sit in them well so I can't so much beyond noodling. So, I guess that means english for me!

Western: good for not dying

20. How many horses do you currently own/lease?
Too many.... there are 6 equines in my herd now. I keep thinking Darby is going to die, but she keeps not dying, so my herd number has stayed solid. Dylan will of course be going back home to his momma at some point too, so I technically only own 5, and two of them are babies which technically makes them half a horse each, so that's four, and one of them is a mini which basically means she doesn't count, so REALLY there are only four of them, right?


21. Do you board your horse? Self-care/full board? Home board?
My own place and I wouldn't change that for the world. It sucks having to trailer out to really ride, and that does cut into my riding/driving time for sure, but it is so worth it to have them at home and actually under my own thumb. I hate when other people care for my horses.


22. Have you ever had to put down a horse that you loved?
Quincy, Metro, and Gogo. And of course, there will be more, as most of mine are permanent keepers and this is the cycle of life.


23. How many saddlepads do you have?
There are at leasts 20 of them floating around my tack room.... probably that many blankets and bridles too.... and at least that many pairs of boots. I'm kind of a hoarder.


24. Slant-load trailer or straight haul?
I have a 2 horse straight load because it was made for giant warmbloods - extra tall and extra wide. In the future, I'd probably get another straight load, but I would want something with room for carriages. You know, when I win the lotto and all.


25. Why do you ride?
I ride because I hate people and I want to spend all my time doing thing that involve living things that are not people.
Or well, maybe that's a slight exaggeration.... but, only partially.