One of the things that is so very confusing to me is the whole issue of how safe Missy is. I mentioned before that she quite often gets a shot of Ace before I ride, this is more common in the winter months when she hasn't had the ability to be in turnout during the day and/or hasn't been lunged or ridden for more than a few days. I have always been extremely opposed to this practice but was led to believe that this is common and at some barns this is routine.

In the three years since I've owned her, she's never bucked, reared, or otherwise tried to unseat her rider. She's never kicked or bitten and the farrier loves her. She stands calmly while I groom her, pick out her feet, and tack her up, I never put her in cross ties. She is a little annoyed when I cinch up the girth but nothing major. She's pulled back three or four times, in all cases for a good reason (something scary or sudden). She bolted once when I was riding her, she spooked at an out of control horse in the round pen next to her, and I was able to stop her after a few seconds. On the lunge line she sometimes bucks a few times and can shift into what I call second gear: a low, extremely fast gallop, but not for long.

I've had children as young as 2 hug her neck and little 8 year-old girls brush her, she loves kids and is very gentle with them. She walks next to me on a loose lead like a big dog and stops when I stop. She did have a bad habit of not standing at the mounting block (which is how I fell and broke my shoulder), but with just a little focus on training she will now stand and wait quietly until I ask her to walk on. She is very spooky outside the arena, not of other animals, but get her next to a tree and she is a nervous wreck.

What makes her difficult to ride is she is very forward, she wants to go as fast as you will allow her to go, even at the walk. Sometimes she is too amped to walk and I have to keep stopping her and making her stand until its my idea to move forward. It can be a challenge to get her to pick up the trot quietly and she can move sideways and throw her head a bit. Once at the trot she can get very fast and I have to constantly use the half-halt to keep her from cantering. Her trot is very big and smooth, like riding a big couch, but her canter is very choppy. She has a hard time picking up the right lead to the left and wants to go too fast, but when you ask her to pull back a little she will fall back into the trot. She's better to the right but her canter is so big that in the arena you are pretty much always turning. I've never galloped on her. I was just starting to get comfortable at the canter when I fell, and in the six months since I've been back in the saddle I've only cantered a few times on a lunge line.

So, what am I to think? She has her moments but for the most part she has good ground manners and is hot but not naughty in the saddle. I ride her in a hackamore because anything in her mouth causes irritation due to the confirmation of her teeth and she can't concentrate on what you are asking her to do because she is too focused on her mouth. Other riders say things like, "she's not the easiest horse to ride", and "I would never ride her, she's too much horse for me", yet she was safe enough for me to get on after riding for 10 months? So is it my lack of training and ability, or hers? A little of both, I suspect.

I'm going to look at several horses at a local ranch on Saturday. I like that they have a few to choose from and that they offer a 30 day trial period. I'm not at all sure that I'm ready to buy another horse right now but I want to see what's out there. I also set up lessons once a week at a huge sprawling property near my office, so I can get my feet back under me and get my confidence back. They have a lot of horses to lease there as well, which may end up being a good idea. I was opposed to leasing at my barn because there weren't any horses there that I would want to ride on a consistent basis and its become obvious that getting there during the week is nearly impossible.

The picture above is one of the many beautiful open fields at the new ranch. They have many different types of places to ride, including a huge grass polo field, trails through light woods and loops around the property on wide dirt paths. The buildings are old and some I would even say were ramshackle, but the stalls are clean and the horses all look healthy and well-taken care of. I'm looking forward to my lesson next Wednesday but also more than a little nervous. At this point I have no idea what my skill level really is.