Feeling Foolish

The first time I went to a blm auction I was shocked at the size of the Sulfur horses that they had there. Little ponies--some less than thirteen hands---who could ride something that little!

I was ignorant and my ignorance was shared by everyone that I knew of in the horse world. I had dropped fifty pounds and was down to around 200 pounds and was sure that I would need a big horse.

Then I started learning what the Spanish horses could do. I could ride a 13 hand Shackelford or Corolla fifty miles and the next day see absolutely no difference in the horse. Samson and Holland are as happy to be saddled up the the day after a forty or fifty mile ride as they are to be saddled up the day before such a ride.

When I first saw the Shacklefords I thought it certain that some of them would be too little for me to ride. However, by then my ignorance was lessening and instead of consulting some formula for weight carrying capacity I decided to consult with those who have actually ridden and worked the smallest Spanish Colonial horses. I asked Tom Norush, President of the Horse of the Americas Registry, if the smallest Shacklefords, like Wanchese could comfortably carry me.

I was surprised when he did not hesitate to tell me that it would be no problem at all.

Wanchese is the smallest stallion we have and also the most dominant. I have put many miles on him in the past. But my health has slipped a bit, I have put on some weight and I had this nagging feeling that I should not ride Wanchese until I dropped some weight.Terry and Pam love the little stallion and Terry wants to run him in an endurance race. Just on a whim she rode him on a five mile run while I rode Joey, my incredible Choctaw who leaves nearly all others way behind on such a run.

I expected to pull away from him around mile number two. Instead, he ran step for step with Joey the entire distance even though it was the fastest five mile run that I personally have ever made.

However, he does have a habit of declining to do the bidding of his riders. Terry really wanted me to take him out and work on his responsiveness and to get him to follow a light touch. I did not want to do so until I dropped significant weight.

But this morning I rode him. I mounted up and he trotted off with being asked to do so. Terry, Jen, and Elise were riding three other Corolla stallions with me. Four stallions, all born wild cruising along together. Wanchese responded to me beautifully while constantly moving out faster than the other three stallions chose to go.

Terry was delighted. I simply felt foolish.

Without giving it a lot of thought I had let the ignorance of the non-Spanish horse world creep back in my head.

Wanchese fixed that. We will go significantly faster when we set out in the morning.

And now consider what we will have when I breed him to Choctaw strain mares.