On Mon, Jun 18, 2007 at 08:36:10PM -0400, Karen Thomas wrote: > Anyway, that's MY evaluation of Melnir. I'd love to hear more STORIES > about breeding horses - what really makes them great. Heck, I love to hear > stories about what makes ANY horse special - the REAL stuff that really > matters.
ok, i'm going to take this as an opportunity to write my little essay about stjarni, who was the son of a two-year-old stallion who was gelded the following year, and who was gelded himself as a two-year-old, and who is therefore an evolutionary dead end :) stjarni is the most magically calming, soothing horse i have ever met. i spent the first ninety seconds or so of riding him convinced he was about to run away with me, since he has the sort of huge active walk that a lot of horses use as a preview to a bolt. but no, that's just stjarni's fabulous swing-ass, stepping-under, the-walk-is-a-gait way of going. it is a thing of beauty and as soon as i recognized it i loved it. he has more freedom of motion than any other horse i've ridden, and it is a pure sensual joy to feel with one's own body. he has a very well-developed mind of his own, thankyewverymuch, and does not in any circumstance fail to let you know exactly what he thinks. when i disagree i refer to this character as "petunia", as in "come on, petunia, we're not going home quite yet" on the trail. two strides with an opening rein and a closing leg, and "petunia" who wants to take the trail home is replaced by my good sweet stjarni, tolting off the way i wanted, ears pricked and happy to be exploring. what he thinks about my students is "this person is delicate, i must be very kind" -- including standing still by the "scary" wall while a timid adult mounts for the first time, standing still and then walking quietly while she hollers "oh my god i'm going to fall!" for twenty minutes. then standing again while it takes her half an hour to collect the confidence to actually dismount, half of which she spends lying half on top of his back with her foot sticking him in the hip. he *understands* about beginners, and about children, and exerts all his considerable patience to help them get the hang of things. i have never met a more tolerant school horse, let alone had the opportunity to teach with one. that said, he's always up for something new. last month it was the memorial day parade. while other horses from our barn side-stepped and carried on, stjarni just widened his eyes and pricked his ears and *looked*, perhaps thinking, "ah, so these are americans!" this while people threw candy and fire engines wailed and cap-guns went off. this month, we're starting over crossrails in the ring. for me, he's constantly challenging me. whether it's to get him to bend his hindquarters as well as his neck (which has taken professional chiro, amateur massage by me, and a whole lotta circling), cantering all the way around the ring including the slanty downhill bits, sidepassing or three-tracking or a sloooow four-beat tolt, he's never failed to *try*. he gives me a standard of willingness that i strive to live up to, to always do my best in riding, to be my bravest and most willing and most ready to give anything a try. as a canonical "timid" rider who had to quit a therapeutic riding program b/c it was too scary, i can say he's brought me an infinitely long way -- from someone who was afraid to go out on the road to someone who casually does ten-mile trail rides of an afternoon, past bicyclists and dogs and construction equipment. now i'm someone who trusts her horse's judgement at least as well as she does her own. i've never regretted it either. enough out of me i'm sure, with my "built-like-a-bull", unfashionably chestnut icelandic gelding. but hey, it's an essay question, right? --vicka, madly in love with her ponykins
