Wild Thing!

Today I got to ride Wild Thing... She's actually very sweet. and a LOT smaller than Kaibab or Gretsky.

But there was a catch... That's a bareback pad and a halter instead of a saddle and bridle. Um... I know I said she was smaller, but how' m I supposed to get up?

A leg-up from Anna got me past that hurdle, then it was on to more stretching. It's a little different without the saddle, and my hips were aching by the end of the lesson from hanging on.

Then I got to try steer and stop with my legs and seat (another reason my hips and legs were sore). While doing this, I was also trying to remember to sit up straight, stomach in, don't look down, legs long, toes up, stay relaxed... and who knows how many other things... as you can see, the toes aren't up.

I did get better as the lesson progressed. By the end I was pretty much the one in charge of where we were headed. But Wild Thing didn't give that halt away easily... she wanted to stop beside Anna each time, and if I insisted we stay on the outside of the ring, we didn't stop.

And finally, a shot of the mountains in the background. It really is lovely there.