Riding Atlas,...

[JensFlock]

Beautiful picture!!!
I would love to ride a shire. They are so big and powerful looking.

 

[Mare Miller]

He is gorgeous! Wow! I've always loved the gentle giants. You've got to find it hard to even stop to eat with all your responsibilities!

 

[ShreddedOakAviary]

A break down of my schedule for those who are curious...
5 a.m. wake up, shower, drink coffee, browse internet.
6:30 a.m. wake birds and kid and make breakfast and feed kid.
7:00 kid leaves for school. Feed horses a.m. feeding.
7:30 feed birds, clean bird cages, and clean aviary.
10:00a.m. let out pet birds and play with birds, browse internet and read books
12:00p.m. make lunch, eat lunch, clean more bird cages (or make toys or whatever)
2:00p.m. rotate birds on playstands. Answer emails, pitch hay to horses for afternoon feeding... including grain. Feed dogs for second time (my son throws them food in the morning before school.
3:00p.m. tack up 2 horses and do any necessary riding, driving or training. I start and my husband wakes up at 4p.m. to join me for a ride or drive (my husband get home from work at 8a.m.
7:00p.m... put away birds and prep for dinner. Make dinner and eat between 7p.m. and 8p.m.
after dinner I wash dishes, laundry, vacuum, mop, and whatever else needs to be done. My husband usually works on whatever he feels like and then winds down before having to leave for work at 10p.m.

The exceptions are Sundays... I don't clean house or scrub bird cages... instead I mow the lawn and work on other projects. Depending on the level of mess in the aviary sometimes cleaning only takes half hour total.

 

[ShreddedOakAviary]

And a lot of days I'll go for either a night ride or a noon ride if I am not otherwise engaged, like today I'm done riding already. So, I am free for another half hour and I'll make dinner a little early.

 

[Mare Miller]

Busy girl, that you are! I took a fall around 7yrs. ago from a quarter horse mare, I had just brought home the day before. And it breaks not only my heart but my daughters, also. We were total horse people riding buddies up till that happened. I've taken many falls from horses throughout my life but this one was a game changer.

I had on just little bitty nub spurs, knew how to use them, was in the arena, my daughter on her horse, and bringing her into a canter when she did this crow hop, threw me off balance my spur hit her high in the side and she bucked. I hit the ground on the back of my head, 22 staples, concussion, loss of all taste and smell for a year, bleeding on the frontal lobe, later. I still have a fear. I also feel like my balance never fully recovered. Shreddedoaks, you have given me hope.

My daughter keeps trying to help me get back on, God love her, but I seize up at the thought.

 

[Wulfgeist]

He's quite handsome. I had a Quarter Horse when I was young but I always had a soft spot for drafts.

 

[ShreddedOakAviary]

Mare Miller... when you are ready to try you'll feel that urge push past the fear just a tiny bit. No one can do much for you, for me it just took 3 years and I am still feel ill when I think about riding, once I'm up I am OK, I just do short rides when I am afraid (or sometimes not more than ten minutes on a bad day). It gets easier and is making me happy again.

 

[Mare Miller]

Mare Miller... when you are ready to try you'll feel that urge push past the fear just a tiny bit. No one can do much for you, for me it just took 3 years and I am still feel ill when I think about riding, once I'm up I am OK, I just do short rides when I am afraid (or sometimes not more than ten minutes on a bad day). It gets easier and is making me happy again.

Some days I do feel the urge to get back on but am normally alone at that time, and won't chance it. My daughter, who lives away from home, will offer to warm up my horse and even lead me when she is home. I'm working on it, but not happening yet.

 

[luvmytooo]

Wow , Roxy ! The only really bad fall I have taken was when I was bare back .
I decided to go bare back because I was only going for a walk to relieve some of the stockiness in her hind legs fro the day before. I had to go through several streets before i got to the area we called the green. It was a large enough to work a horse , lunge etc...I was just walking along on the side and I heard a rustling then all I remember was my horse letting out a squeal then taking off at a very fast canter.
There was a man and a wheel barrel smack in front of us , no time to turn and we were on concrete by then , so that would be suicidal ,so we jumped the barrel.
Came down fine but when we got to the end of the long block which only turned left , she slipped slightly but caught herself and i know she tried to keep me on as well , but being bare back , I slipped right off did a flip and came down with my head hitting the only metal pole on the road. I was out till someone came out to see what all the noise was ( metal shoes galloping on roadway , and my head hitting pole no doubt ) I came to with my horse standing over me and about a dozen people and EMS. We both were fine after that , although Im sure this incident added to her foundering later in her middle twenties , she was five at the time.
My baby girl kept nudging the EMS guys , I dont think she wanted them near me , lol.
Ive had other falls , but none to this extent thank goodness , and none to everybody elses horrendous falls.