Feeling really “content-lite” right now guys…sorry, not a whole lot happening in horsey-ville or running life at the moment.

So I poached Liz Stout‘s “10 Questions” post so there’s at least something on here for November.

How old is the youngest/greenest horse you’ve ridden?
Mimi is the youngest…she was 3-1/2 when I got her. Greenest? Probably Beamer. He’d been to a couple of different trainers by the time we got him, but he was really inconsistent and knew the least in terms of “things beyond the very basics I had to install on him.”

How old is the oldest horse you’ve ridden?
Probably Snappy…he was in his late 20s the last time I rode him.

Were you scared of horses when you first started riding?
I wasn’t…until I got dumped within my first month of riding, and then proceeded to part ways with the same horse a number of times over the course of that first year of riding.

Would you say you’re a more nervous rider or a confident rider?
More nervous. See above. I’ve gone through cycles where I’ve felt super-confident, would climb on and ride most horses without thinking twice, and be really brave and bold. And then there’s the flip side of that, where I’m doubting everything I know, question my own capabilities, have a hard time trusting the horse, and am looking for the boogieman around every corner. I’m really trying to reclaim that confidence cycle again.

Biggest pet peeve about non-horse people around horses?
Probably bad attitudes about right-of-way and trail sharing. I understand that not everyone may be familiar with trail etiquette, and I try to give people the benefit of the doubt and educate first — “Hi there, can you slow down or stop while we pass? Can you speak up so my horse knows you’re a person? Hiding in the bushes may not be the best idea, horses might think you’re a predator.” And so on. But I’ve unfortunately run into a few pieces of work (most commonly mountain bikers and some hikers) who have a major attitude problem about trail sharing.

A time you’ve been scared for your life?
I guess it’s a good thing that I really can’t think of anything? Several times where I knew the end result was going to hurt, but if there’s anything else, I’ve done a good job of blocking it out of my mind.

Have you ever fallen off at show? What happened?
Ahahahahahahaha…multiple times. Most memorably? Parting company with the pony in the warm-up ring at the International. Oh, yes. Biggest show of my life, and the most memorable part of it was I got dumped.

What’s a breed of horse you’ve never ridden but would like to ride?
Peruvian Paso. Andalusian.

Describe the worst behaved horse you’ve ridden?
Spooky, ansty, won’t settle, explosively reactive, can’t handle contact, rears under pressure.

The most frustrating ride you’ve ever had? 
This is a hard one to answer. I’ve had a lot of frustrating times/moments along the way. You know I’ve got a passion for horses when a lot of this journey has been an uphill battle, and I still keep forging onward (mostly because the good times have been so good, it’s worth the struggle to get there). I  can think of a number of times when, if pushed, I would say “Yes, that was a frustrating moment” but I try not to dwell on those moments too much, and instead try to spend more time focusing on the positives that happened. So I don’t know if I’ve had one ride that stands out in my mind as “most frustrating time ever.” So I’m going to go with “doing everything right at a show and being under a judge who just doesn’t like your pony.” Because you can’t do anything to change that when your horse moves with impulsion and rhythm and the judge like foot-shuffling peanut-rollers.