Too Much Adventure at Brandywine!

I thought I should pull up the post in which I decided I was Wonder Woman. I hadn't been blogging very long when I wrote this little treatise, so many people have no idea what I am talking about. This is from September 2008. 

I sit here now with sore 'Popeye muscles'!  We trailered over to Brandywine for a lesson with Zing. Firstly, Zing has decided he doesn't load into a trailer anymore. So we couldn't get him in. Ashley, this is for you. Zing is a scent horse, he can't sniff enough horse dung, so I went and picked some up. He got interested and made it half way in before he power backed. The manure lost its interest. I have at least one mare that is in heat, reference my prior post, so I went to her stall and got some soaked bedding for him. He liked that and got in. We didn't have time to play with him, so do what works. Uneventful trip over there.

We have arrived at our destination and open the trailer doors, Zing is up on his toes about everything. I open the divider enough for Kristina to clip the lead rope to his halter and I guess I don't realize he is still attached to the trailer tie. He has a leather halter on and he pulls, breaking the halter. Kristina shouts (a shout for mild Kristina) "He's loose! I told her no he's not and pressed the divider back into him. We proceeded to have a battle of wills on who would push whom. He is at least 1000#'s and I'm not, but I am determined not to have my STALLION loose on someone else's farm, causing harm potentially to himself and others. I felt I was losing him a couple of times, but my super powers kicked in and I kept him in the trailer. He finally turned around and I got the divider closed. Kristina was on my side at this time and I told her to get the halter on him. The halter was useless so I went into a barn full of Warmbloods and grabbed a huge halter and gave it to Kristina. She got in on him from outside his space and stood there. I told her to get in there and she looked at me and I repeated get in there. She did, I opened the divider and we got into the barn.

I have a well-stocked trailer, so I had duct tape to get the halter fixed for the immediate need. A little twine to get the throatlatch long enough. As I was repairing the damage, Kristina came to the trailer and said "You don't have any thought for personal safety, do you." I couldn't argue, so I said no, I don't. My horse would get loose over my dead body. The prospect of that meant more than anything else. Adrenaline is a powerful thing and a strong personality combined with it kept everyone safe. I told her I am Wonder Woman. She later told me I would be the mom who would pick up the car pinning her child. Yes I would, but then I wouldn't be able to walk for a year!

On the way home I told her this is my defining line between amateur and professional, the understanding that the person who works with horses as a life choice is responsible for everyone's safety, often at the risk of their own. I am not reckless, quite the contrary, but that horse was not getting out of that trailer. And now my poor, old body hurts, but he is in his stall and all is right with the world. Hopefully Wonder Woman won't need to show up again!