04/07/2025
Well, I guess it’s time to start talking about what’s going on with us here in Gilroy.
I haven’t shot any arrows off Willow since last summer. She’s had a couple times where she needed time off, the rainy season keeps us from working, and I’ve spiraled my little brain into an AWAKENING.
Ok so, arrows. Willow really tolerates a lot, and she will do so so so many things for the riders she’s loves. After some time away, I realize my horse keeps coming up with soundness issues when I ride too many times in “2 point”. She runs away, she is hard to slow, and she’s pretty anxious about it. We’ve all thought it was her previous gymkhana life that has trained this into her and we’ve been working on slowing it down but ultimately when she has time off we are back to the same deal. My guess is the arthritis she has in her neck is compensating and causes lameness in her fronts. When I ride my horse with my butt in the seat, no issues at all. She’s happy. Willow also very much enjoys being ridden a certain way. Willow is the tank that gets you to where you need to go, but she demands you stay with her and tell her where to go. She doesn’t seem to feel good about dropped reins and being “left to find the answer” very much. Essentially, when I’m riding in the track, I’m paying attention to my bow, arrows, teacher, targets, the pace, my position, etc and it leaves my poor little horse last. She’s just like me; I need to be the priority here, not the other s**t going on in the world. LOL! I get it my girl.
So we have a new saddle fitting appointment on Wednesday and hoping we get something going there, we will try riding two point in this saddle and see how she feels. Then the next question is, can I still shoot but not ride in two point (that’s for the teacher), and other then that we will figure out the rest. It all just takes some time.
My awakening has brought about many new perspectives and views, ultimately helping me become a better horsewoman. I won’t touch on this subject too much, but I’m not operating and viewing my world through a lens of fear, pain, negativity and shame anymore. I feel so much lighter in my body and my horse has taken a notice to my new lightness. My body isn’t blocked in places it was before, I can FEEL again. So I’m working on being a better rider, mostly getting over my canter fears, and not being scared anymore. But this is the very beginning to a huge work in progress on my end.
That’s all for now 😁
