Well, as the name suggests, I had a wonderful weekend of horses! I am however now stiff as a board but it was totally worth it!
Why am I stiff as a board and walking round like I've pooped my pants you may ask, well I hadn't ridden a horse in approximately 9 months until Saturday. Now yes, it is a very long time to not ride a horse and except not to have sore muscles the next day but I did except sore muscles and have been preparing for a good few weeks now swimming and gyming 3 times a week!
But you know what, I do not care that I have sore muscles because it was absolutely worth it! When I first told my Mum five weeks or so ago that I was planning on hiring a horse and doing the Thurlow Tattersalls meet we ended up having a heated discussion that ended on me sulking saying I'd cancel the horse reservation. Only to sit on the sofa stewing in how cross I was to be told no and thought F it I'm doing it anyway! Because of this I did not tell Mother Pettit that I was going, I even managed to go unnoticed when arriving at the meet and putting my coat on, but once on the horse I had to walk passed them and all was revealed. Mum and Georgie took the surprise rather well and even came up to talk to me before we set off. Luckily she wasn't mad at me, just wanted me to be safe!
After a good while chatting and seeing lot's of different people I knew in the beautiful grounds of Tattersalls auctioneers the Master spoke and thanked everyone for attending and donating their caps to the East Anglian Air Ambulance! Then the call for 'Hounds Please' was called and the Masters, whips and hounds made their way down the main avenue. I must admit when I pulled into a space and started trotting away the adrenaline started flowing and I got nervous jelly legs; it was like they tried to stop working for a minute! Luckily my brain took over and I was rising up and down and keeping up with everyone. It really was an amazing feeling hearing all those hooves on the road and the whoops and cheers of supporters lining the streets to watch us all go past! In no time at all we were off the road and on to the Links canter track. I did get a pang of panic as I'd never sat on the horse I was riding before and not sure if she was gonna find 6th gear and whizz off with me but she was a sweetheart and just slipped into a nice steady canter and didn't pull at all. Just what I wanted, a nice safe horse who wasn't gonna make my arms an extra 6 inches before the end of the day.
We had a canter round the Links but after my falls and not knowing the horse well I decided to just canter past the fences!
Melton the mighty! Hover cob!
By this time the sun really was warm and I was so glad for it, It would have been miserable had it rained! The horses had really gotten the blood up and were also warm at this stage too. Again we were back onto a main road and were greeted by smiles and waves by kind car drivers who had stopped to let us pass by. They were very kind to let 100 or something horses go by, the field really was massive. I hadn't fully appreciated how many people were there as i was quite near the front/in the middle of it all and didn't have chance to look back!
Now we'd got out of Newmarket town and into the countryside part it was now onto muddy tracks! With the amount of rain we'd had I was a little apprehensive of how heavy the ground would be, but having a few dry days leading up to the day meant the ground was absolutely perfect; soft, but not too soft!
I had never been into this part of the Newmarket countryside so I was both lost and intrigued on where we were going. At various parts I did spot places I knew. The sun was still beaming down beautifully which made the countryside look even more beautiful. Melton was still being an absolute saint and A few people I knew had caught up which meant I could chat when we slowed down or stopped for a breather. I'm glad with the warm weather that i'd filled my hip flask with raspberry gin and apple juice. Fruity alcoholic delicious!
Time seemed to whizz by so quickly with all the trotting and cantering, in no time at all an hour had passed and we were getting nearer to Six Mile Bottom. It was then I saw people in front of me queuing up to jump a hedge in a field and I decided instead of canter passed and up to a gate with a gap next to it so I could get through without jumping. I just didn't feel confident enough yet, hopefully I will in the future.
While everyone waited I was whizzing across country with the first jumpers so was nice to open up and have a canter along without having to start and stop all the time.
We then did have to stop and wait our turn at a ditch into another field. For some reason ditches scare me less than jumps and Melton popped over without any cause of alarm so I breathed a sigh of realise and continued cantering up the hill with the rest of the field.
Quickly I recognised where we were, not far from our final destination in Six Mile Bottom and again while everyone queued to jump in and out of a small tree cover I opted to go round and watch a bit while keeping the pace going. It was then that some peeled off to carry up for 'second horses' and the second part of the day, while others like me decided to finish there for the day. The farm we were at had a part of their field flooded and very kindly allowed a good few of us to take our horses in to cool off and splash about. Something I gladly took them up on and took Melton in for a splash. She and I loved it and after that called it a day and walked her back to the lorry. I handed her over to her owner, thanked him very much for allowing me to borrow her and said how wonderful she is. Mighty Melton the Saint!
So, that was my Saturday, warm and mud splashed with the wind in my face. As I am sure is clear from this post, I absolutely loved it. It was so nice to get out 'hunting' * again and enjoying myself and feeling safe.
*Trail hunting a pre-laid trail
I spent the remainder of Saturday at Georgie's babysitting the girls while Mum and Georgie went to put Beanie and Ronnie to bed then a well deserved take away treat and snoozing on the sofa.
Thanks to all my lovely friends who made Saturday such a great day!
Look out for Part 2 coming up for how Sunday's lessons went at Palace Hosue for the ROR!
Sophie x
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