The Scared is scared of things you like

So I came off Whiskee at the start of the NAETC. Not sure what happened. He went from relaxed to Calgary Stampede bucking bronco in the blink of an eye.

I went off over his right shoulder and landed on my right side. Sprained hand, bruised forearm and shoulder, bruised hip and tailbone. And got the wind knocked out of me.

photo: wendywebbphotography.com

The next thing I know, I am on my knees looking up at my friend Kim, who had turned her horse around to ask if I was okay.  I told her, "I think I hurt my hand", and said that I was okay, so she should carry on.

Then other people arrived on foot, including Alison, the event's First Aid volunteer. I am grateful for their help in assessing my injuries. Soon I was up and there was Whiskee! Chelsea caught him and brought him back.

He was a bit antsy, so I asked her if he was okay. She said yes. So I got back on, with the help of a young fellow who gave me a leg up. On two.

One, two. I am up in the saddle again.

Was I scared? Sure, I was scared.

But the Scared is scared of things you like.

And I like riding. I am an endurance rider.

I like riding long distances over hill and dale, through the forest, down the canyons, across the field, even down the road.

Nothing beats the view though the horse's ears.

Whiskee was a perfect gentleman for the rest of the day. All 75 miles of it.

So what happened? Maybe he got stung? Another rider got stung at about the same spot on trail. We will never know and it doesn't really matter.

What matters is to remember that the Scared is scared of things you like. Even if the thing you like is what scared you in the first place.



the Scared is scared from Bianca Giaever on Vimeo.

Good Whiskee

“Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whiskey is barely enough.”
— Mark Twain

God willin' and the creek don't rise, and thanks to the generosity of Nightwind Arabians, I am set to ride Whiskee in the North American Endurance Team Challenge in Millbrook, Ontario this week. It is a FEI** 120km event. 

I haven't told Luba. She thinks she is going. 

But we had to withdraw her from the competition last week. She somehow managed to aggravate an old splint on her left front leg earlier this month. Dr. Hodge at Russell Equine shock waved it and we were hoping that would do the trick, but it still needs more time.

Extra-corporeal shock wave therapy is a non-invasive treatment done under sedation. It is a pressure wave that passes through the tissue, increasing blood flow and speeding up the healing process. It also reduces pain (analgesic effect), so it cannot be done too close to the date of a competition.