Monday, June 21, 2010

A Harrowing Time


I went back to the beach last wkend with my riding buddies from a former boarding stable, T.A.T. 
 It stands for "Two's A Team". 
 The Weather was lovely again...so nice!
The horses had arrived the day before and all had been ridden on the beach- some for the first time...like Tessorro here. He is a Gorgeous 5 yr old Kiger Mustang. His momma, above, drove herself and I Friday afternoon to join the horsin' party that had gotten started the day before.

We decided to take a Sunset ride...but only on the Bay side, as Tessorro's mom needed to build connect/confidence, before she tackled the beach.

Hoof boots...uggg~


And as we set off.....into the beautiful bay view...I mentioned that a helmet had been forgotten!

You can't make someone do what you know is right...prepare for something- No One wants to think, could happen to them.

This gal had a brand new saddle made by "Tucker Saddle Co." it was gorgeous...and sat her -so nicely balanced- in its cushy padded seat! I had saddle envy going on!


 We strode down the road...me on a borrowed horse named Diesel. He is a large Paint I have ridden, just indoors for lessons. He had an attitude this night..which surprised me some, testing me and testing me on my resolve for standing and also leading. 
I mostly remained, in the back.



It was relaxing and calm with the bay on the right...then we turned around, a short time after, and headed home... bay on the left.


This was the last shot...
before the ride went shockingly awry!

And as much as we have stewed over it now..and recounted it..it happened very fast!


We were all walking calmly and I had begun some leg yields on Diesel...to get more control of his body...he was great, as we traversed the road...back and forth with straight thrown in for good measure.
I was simply doing that then...he mistook my aim and LEAP FORWARD- over a rather large water puddle...into nothing but brush..not even a place to land! 
But, I was left behind his motion, so he landed in the scrub without me abroad.
I had been jettisoned at the onset of the big leap! I had no stirrups to help me out...was on the bareback saddle.
I laughed as he leap..almost in disbelief...and the girls looked back to see me....in mid air...he in mid air...then me crumple backwards...over my  right shoulder.
THAT IS WHEN IT WENT SOUTH...
My mount was calm for a moment..then, I may have stumbled as I got to my feet, or he saw the saddle sideways( I did try to stay on apparently..squeezing, and the saddle went my direction.) 
He lost it and bolted towards his Young, Grey pasture mate...and then the second rider was flipped off, as her Grey mount twirled around and ran away....which leads me to the third horse....Who must have thought, " OH MY..THE LIONS ARE ABOUT!",
 he leapt into the scrub brush too...but.... OH!!!
A DROP into the Bog awaited them!
 Must have been 6 feet down...as they were no longer seen by us!
I heard , "Help, Help, Help" ! We rushed, as well as we could to try and find them...and what happened next was amazing.
Tessorro the Mustang, poor baby, his head appeared- AT OUR FEET.....that is far down the drop was!
 We got out of the way as he extended his two legs onto the ground we stood upon...and hurled, pulled and contorted himself, back up to the solid ground of the road.
That accomplished...we set out down the road to find the loose horses.
My friend, had fallen on her helmet-less head and I saw blood and a cut...she was doing okay..knew her zip code and husbands name. 
For now...I jogged on ahead...and got to a turning point..and then heard...cathump,cathump, cathump....here came Diesel horse...looking scared and then relieved...he ran right to me!
The young Grey Arabian, "Chief", stood patiently by... just down the road...waiting for us to come to him.

We all convened..and walked the mile back to the trailer.
Once back to the house, and after taking account of the horses...we then set out for the hospital, after I inspected my friends head again..open wound, but clean..it was still bleeding.
3 staples is all she got off with- PRAISE GOD!
 Boy did I pray and pray, as we were going for the horses earlier.
It could have been SO much worse!!

So, the rest of the weekend consisted of sleeping and healing/resting. Families came to see the two women and encourage them.
I, of course, took more photo's having more time!

We assessed the horses again, in the morning... Tessorro had a bulge in his chest..no swelling or heat though. He also did not change his gait at all.


We  noticed Chief telling us things about his body...it bothers me here....


And here....


He had gotten the rope around his pasterns and burned some skin right off, while running.
Nothing a little 'Sore No More" did not help..in fact I used it too...on me!

The rest of the time...I just shot the horses and ate too much food.
They looked so beautiful...being of diverse coloring!


And Tessoro's ears..they were all fluffy and Carmel colored, as I looked down.


Then, he looked down on me! Made me laugh too!


Chief, the gorgeous Arabian 


And Diesel...saying, enough with the photos...feed me and get on with it!


We did get on with it by concurring....we would be a bit more prepared by doing what we could next time...
A helmet was on the short list! 
And for me...saddle with stirrups, on a borrowed horse!

26 comments:

  1. Thank God all is well. My heart was in my throat!! And I will make sure I wear my helmet EVERY SINGLE RIDE. *sigh*

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  2. Wow..seems it always happens when you least expect it. THANK goodness it wasn't worse.

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  3. Thank goodness that your ride ended well!!! You just never know what will happen on horseback, do you?

    Despite the scare, it looks like you are having a good time, and the trails/scenery are quite beautiful. : )
    So are the horses!!!

    PS-my word verification is "pones."
    Have fun with your pones...lol!!!

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  4. I'm so pleased you all came out of it relatively unscathed. It must have been so frightening.

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  5. YIKES!!! I am so glad to hear that everyone turned out to be OK. The situation could have been so much worse...

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  6. Whew! I'm so glad that noone was seriously injured. Yes, you were all so lucky! Riders and horses, too.
    Can you believe I've only fallen twice in my entire life? The first was on a pony when I was a little girl. My pony bucked me off and I landed on my hip. Had terrible bruising and so very sore.
    The second time was on Baby Doll and that landed me in the hospital.

    You just never know when something like that will happen, but it will.
    I don't think I would ever ride anywhere but the arena and the trails here at home, without a saddle and stirrups.
    There are too many spooks in strange places and too many things that could go wrong.

    A helmet? Always!
    I'm glad your friend was given a warning injury instead of a serious or fatal injury the first time around. whew!

    The photos of the horses are just breathtakingly beautiful, my friend! I love how they were all lined up, too.
    And the photos of the grey showing you his owies. Gorgeous!

    And the mustang's caramel colored fluff inside his ears remind me of Paint Girl's mustang Chance. Cute!

    Yes, Sore No More is a must for both rider and horse. I've read that race horse owners use it on their horses, too. They sell it in huge buckets for horses as a liniment. I have the large tub as well as a roll on stick. Instant relief of pain and soreness!

    You are lucky to not have been injured, but I hope you are not too sore today.

    ~Lisa

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  7. Again, what beautiful pictures. Your friend is lucky, and what a nightmare! We've all been there, hopefully everybody isn't shaken up too bad.

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  8. Oh, man! I'm glad that you're all OK. It was a lucky thing for you all. Definitely, no riding without helmets. Heck, a lot of people I know where them when they are working with horses on the ground, also. You just never know.

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  9. Bonito paseo y buenos caballos.
    Saludos de Gabriel.
    http://ggjineteraid.blogspot.com/

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  10. OMG! Things could have been SO much worse. Glad horses and riders are okay.

    I dropped by TAT to visit with trainer Cathi and other friends on the day that Tessoro arrived. He's a cutie.

    Ever since one of my former trainers suffered a concussion when training a green horse, I always wear a helmet. I can't afford to lose a single brain cell.

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  11. Wow, I'm glad horses and humans are all OK. How scary. Yep, I'm one of those folks who absolutely positively always wears a helmet, having had a serious accident where a helmet saved my life.

    And I agree with everyone else - your photos are beautiful.

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  12. I am very happy all is ok. That could have been much worse for all involved!

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  13. So glad no horse or rider was seriously injured - very scary. Helmets, always . . .

    Love the pictures!

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  14. Scary story - so glad there wasn't more damage done. Tessorro and his Mom have wonderful cheekbones. I love the closeup of the Arabian - so beautiful. Yes, get some stirrups if I'm going to be riding with you! That frightened me a little bit!

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  15. Whew!
    I am sooo glad that it is over...just keep thinking on it..and the gal that did not wear the head gear..she has thought on it so much too...her husband really gave her the LOOK...when he showed up.
    I will always wear a NORMAL saddle on borrowed horses- from -now -on!
    My right arm..bad arm already..is not working so hot...my mare gets MORE time off now! She'll love it too~

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  16. Agree, Sore No More is pretty amazing. I am the distributor here in Asia... I love the entire Sore No More line.

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  17. As I was reading I just thinking,
    Oh, no
    Oh, no
    Oh, no

    Oh, my! So glad it wasn't worse. Yes, there are A+ helmets on the market for this reason. No excuses :)

    I hope you are not too sore Kacy! I have been there!
    Get some rest, sweetie! xo, misha

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  18. I'm glad to hear that everyone is ok, horses and people.

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  19. What an adventure! I am glad every one is healing.

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  20. So Scary!! bogs can be awful...glad things ended okay...good pics and good company...

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  21. Doing a happy dance that you're all okay. Man, that was scary!

    Where I used to stable my horse, I was the only one who always wore a helmet. It isn't the 'cool' thing to do you know ;-) And then a friends horse stumbled and fell while she was riding and she decided to always wear a helmet after that. After that more and more people started wearing their helmets.
    Sad that something scary must happen before people realize it's important to protect the only head you have ;-)

    Now, what is that 'Sore No More' stuff you all like so much? And is it available in the Netherlands?

    Hope you'll all heal quickly and feel 'sore no more'.

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  22. Oh, Kacy...my heart was pounding with fear as I read your post. I am so glad you all are ok. And, the poor sweet horses too. That was a scary one. I am so sorry your friend had to learn about the helmet the hard way, but at least she is going to be ok. Your photography is amazing as always. Wa says, "Glad I get to rest more, but sorry you are sore, KK girl!"

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  23. Oh my gosh Kac...ouch! Sounds like you are doing ok. What a domino effect! We had a girl come look at Coke and she wanted to take her out on the trail...I asked if she wanted a helmet...she looked at me like I was crazy. This is exactly why you protect your head. Why don't people get that?

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  24. yea, HELMETS Protect you from the "unplanned dismount" that could injure you and or kill you!I am shocked at those who still do not wear them. But vanity/ignorance and maybe some ego too...it all gets in the way.

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  25. OMG! What a scary story. So glad nobody was hurt!

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  26. glad you are all safe and sound. no beating yourself up about it....it is easy to look back and say 'this so and that so'.
    I am sure it wil not happen again.
    love the horses and beaches, I am very jealous.

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