Last Weekend

This past weekend I:

1. Cleaned my house, except for the ironing. I hate ironing.
2. Finished a report for work. Yay!
3. Went horseback riding with my neighbor. See story below.

So my neighbor (her name is Sa, she's an avid horseback rider from Germany) invited me to go riding with her this weekend. I agreed, but only after warning her that I have been on a horse exactly once, and that was about 7 years ago. So off we went to Cypress Trails, the horse-riding place (or whatever you call it).

I have to say this place was pretty cool. A guide takes you through the woods, following trails and going up and down hills and crossing through a creek. The trail we took ran along a bluff overlooking a creekbank and eventually came out along a powerline. The ride started out great.

Then the horses started trotting, and that's where things started going downhill. For those who don't know (I didn't), trotting means jogging. The horse took off and I was super nervous and felt like I was going to fall, but I made it. No worries(: Then the guide asked if we were ready to go up Canter Hill. Not thinking anything about it, I said, "Sure". No one told me the horses RACE up this particular hill, hence the name Canter Hill. Go figure.

So there the horses go, hauling ass up this giant hill. For someone who is pretty much a first time rider, this is not what you should be doing on day #1. But, somehow, by the grace of God I made it up the hill without falling off. I should note, though, that one of my feet had fallen out of the stirrup, I got slammed against a tree, and had all but dropped the reins. Weird, but it was fun and it sucked at the same time.

At the top of the hill, the horse didn't stop running. I was trying to figure out how to make him slow down when I looked ahead and saw that the trail doubled back in a hairpin turn. I knew its over. The horse made a sharp right to go around the curve, and I (unintentionally) made a sharp left. Landed on my right shoulder and somehow ended up with bruises on my left side. I got back on and finished the ride, but my neck and every muscle in my back hurt for two days. My shoulder is still a little sore, but will be better in a day or two. My bruised side still hurts like hell, and I have this dull pain in my forearm.

I should note that the guide said the lady at the front desk told her I had been riding for years, as novice riders aren't supposed to canter (duh). I don't know if that's true or if she was pulling a CYA. Either way, it actually was really fun, and I plan on going back sometime.