Harry horse & Charlie adventures! Horse chat & much more! Everyone welcome!

[Yorkshire Coop]

What kind of historic site Barbara? Would you need to have a archeological survey before building anything?

That is strange with the bellies filling?

It’s getting cold here again Charlie has been beating on a grouse moor shoot with college today so I’m sat here waiting for him to get back. It’s half term from college so no bus back nearer to home. He’s just called to say he’s going to be late. Which means trying to get through the rush hour traffic in York. Getting dark at this time is seriously depressing! Plus I hate driving in the dark

 

[rebrascora]

Hi Kim
Sorry you got stuck waiting for Charlie and then held up in rush hour. Hope you are back home now and he has had a good day. Weather has been lovely here this afternoon and Ian and Lauren and I have all been out on his horses for a lovely ride and a couple of little hunt jumps. Zak pulled my arms out coming home but at least I score a

which hasn't happened for too long. We were out about 2 hrs at quite a fast pace.... particularly coming home...so I am going to be crippled tomorrow. I will be necking Ibuprofen and Paracetamol tonight to try to offset the discomfort.

My yard is on the site of a roman fort. You can actually see the outline of the fort running across my paddock and my stables are on top of it along with the church and the shop and a few houses and the main road runs right through it, so yes I would probably have to have a survey's done which would be an additional expense. The village trust is quite active and my yard is very public, being in the centre of the village, so it's not like I can sneak something in without it being noticed .

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Wow! After setting off at 3.45 we finally got home at 7pm! They should have been back at college between 4.30 - 5.00 but then it was 5.20 then rang again to say there was traffic so they finally rolled in 6.15! Has been a long time sat in a cold dark car park on my own! Most rush hour traffic had eased but it was a bit slow on the A19.
Charlie seems to have had an indifferent day He’s found it much harder work on this grouse moor compared to his usual partridge shoot! Heather up to his waist apparently. He’s cold, damp, tired and not in the best of humours! Plus the usual teenage grumpiness!

Well done you @rebrascora for flying a flag Sounds like a good time was had by all. A nice hot bath maybe in order for you too! Voltarol gel works a treat on the really achy bits

Your yard & village sounds most interesting. I find old things like that fascinating. Things like, what must have happened or who has walked there before. I can see your problem there with it being so public. All villages have those grapevines.......

 

[rebrascora]

Oh, poor you, having such a long wait and then Charlie not having had a good time either!
I've moved my ggs back down to the yard today with Lauren's help so I am now on to winter routine of horses in the yard 24/7. We then rode 2 of Ian's ggs round the block for him because he didn't have time..... the farmer he works for took a tumble out hunting on Sat and broke his collar bone.... actually he was lucky that was all, as his horse put it's foot in a hole whilst galloping and they both took a tumble. It's really fortunate he didn't break his neck or the horse break it's leg. As a result though, Ian is having to do more farm work and since the farmer was the other field master, Ian is going to have to field master Saturdays as well as his usual Wednesdays, so he is not going to have much spare time to exercise horses especially now that it gets dark so early. Anyway, I get to wave another flag for today

. Despite the painkillers my body is complaining loudly, but that emoji at least makes me feel good about it. I have washed the tablets down with alcohol tonight and starting to feel a little easier. I have to walk back up the hill and give the ggs more haylage before I can crawl into bed, so I will have to head off very soon before I zonk. Is Voltarol any better than the generic Ibuprofen gel? I ache in so many places these days, a tube wouldn't go very far and it's expensive stuff!

I know what you mean about historic places and imagining the people who lived there. There is a footpath that leads from the village where the fort (and my yard) is, down a very steep hill towards my house near the river and I often think about the people that will have walked that path over the centuries.

Anyway, hope you are having a relaxing evening and hope to see a flag from you again soon. I need to get mine cleaned up and clipped and then get them out, now that they are confined to the yard.

 

[rebrascora]

Hi Kim

How has your day been today? Hopefully more productive than sitting around in a car park waiting for Charlie!
You won't believe this, but this is my third day in a row for

I managed to give Rebel a trace clip and then threw some tack on him and we had a quick but very pleasant trip round the block including some collected and extended trot, shoulder in, halt to trot transitions, rein backs and side passes, plus a short canter that threatened to become a gallop but I deliberately left it until we were only 50 yards off the barrier on the walkway before I let him go, so that he knew he would have to pull up soon. Whilst he felt explosive, he held it together very well and I didn't get any bucks.
Just 2 more to clean up and clip but they are total mud monsters at the moment and whilst Rasc is dead easy to clip....I don't even have to put a head collar on him.... MeMe was quite apprehensive the last time I tried.
Not sure if I will get another one clipped tomorrow but if Lauren comes we might get two out for a ride, woolly or not!

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

Wow Barbara you sure are sounding very busy! Along with Ian too given the farmer has broken his collar bone More work for you though with Ian tied up! They sure were lucky to only come away with that one broken bone. How scary! I’ve only been hunting a handful of times and never on Harry! Whilst I really enjoyed it I was bricking it all the way and some of the faster parts really spooked me and the thought of dropping in a hole would be a nightmare!

Good on you for getting out for a third day on the trot I can just imagine your body is screaming out but in your head you are feeling chuffed. As for the voltarol V’s generic ibuprofen gel. Voltarol is diclofenac pain relief which works better on the actual joints whilst ibuprofen is better on the muscle areas. I have Tesco own ibuprofen too so use both depending which bit is hurting most or alternate them.
Did the alcohol zonk you out last night?

Been busy sorting rugs out today and getting summer ones packed away. I got a shires rug storage bag and I’m very impressed with it! Managed to get 6 rugs in it! Summer ones and a couple spare stable rugs. Much tidier and it’s made some space on rug racks for winter ones. Also loaded up and took my straw to the farm so had a good tidy up before stacking it on the pallet.

As Charlie says “I’m not a kid anymore” I did a couple of pumpkins today on my own One has a very wonky eye! Nearly had one of my fingers off with one of the little carving tools! I’ve got them out lit up and stocked up with sweets but no kids have called trick or treating! If I’d not bothered getting any in I bet loads would have been round!
Never mind, more goodies for me!

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

This got posted on our livery WhatsApp group. I have the symptoms

 

[rebrascora]

This got posted on our livery WhatsApp group. I have the symptoms

View attachment 1577060

I only have a couple of those symptoms to a lesser extent, but since my horses have access to a stone stable I can relax more than most in the knowledge that they can seek their own comfort and 4 horses in one large stable means that it is reasonably warm most of the time, even with the door open. I haven't actually rugged the ones that I have clipped but I have only given them a trace clip which serves the purpose of preventing them getting too sweaty when I hack them out but not greatly impacting their warmth. I do have rugs that I will put on if it gets very cold and they look unhappy but Rascal gets a seriously thick coat and sweats even just standing around and always seems happier to be clipped. He happily stood outside last night whilst I did him without tying him up or even putting a halter on. I have a good excuse for the lines being wonky as I was working by torchlight at 2am!

Pleased to report another

although it was a bumpy ride. Lauren rode out with me, so I was on the newly clipped Rascal and he bucked within 10 strides of getting on and most of the 3 miles we were out. You know those hairy, big arsed, snorting, bucking, goggle eyed Thelwell ponies..... with a scruffy rider with short stubby legs suspended in mid air a foot above the saddle...... well that was us today! He bucked at walk and he bucked at trot.... he even bucked from a standstill! Needless to say, we did not attempt anything faster than a trot and going through the woods we had to stop 5 or 6 times just to try to calm him down as he was bucking at walk as I was ducking under branches. We did also get some beautiful spells of collected trot and some nice relaxed walk on a long rein but you have to keep your wits about you as he can change very suddenly. Surprisingly we both enjoyed the ride despite his antics and in some respects it is nice to know that he is not feeling like an old man just yet, but hopefully he will be a bit better behaved if I can get him out again tomorrow. I will be solo then though which may help settle him provided that we don't meet any other horses.
Lauren has joined the University riding club and is training for a competition.... dressage and show jumping, so we were practising trot to halt and rein back and then halt to trot for her dressage test. As I said to her, if you can achieve it on my lads whilst out hacking then it should be a doddle on the school horses! It is a real feather in her cap that she has been selected for the team because she has never owned her own horse or had one on loan, so she probably has a lot less experience than the other riders. She is clocking up hours in the saddle at the moment though, as she got off my horse and headed up to ride out with Ian on his.
Anyway, must dash as I am out tonight for a meal with Ian and my sis and her husband. We are trying a local artisan Bistro/Bakery. It is a bit more expensive than our usual pub food but it is locally sourced produce and the menu looks interesting. Hope you have a relaxing evening and a lovely weekend and perhaps you will be getting the flags out too. X

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

@rebrascora

Hi Barbara! Wow what a giggle I have had reading about your adventures on an apparent thelwell! The description you have given certainly does suggest a bumpy ride! Rascal sure does live up to his name but obviously not on the clipping by torch light at 2am I have no excuse like that for wonky lines, mine are purely bad clipping and getting over zealous

Congratulations to Lauren on getting in the team! I’m sure you too must be very proud of her. She sure has done well there especially as you say because she has never had her own horse. I’m more than sure your help & guidance has made her what she is too. Compared to your “real horses” I’m sure the school ones are like donkeys. Unfortunately I find that’s where some new owners, be it younger or older ones slip up. Seen it a couple of times with liveries at our place that have come & gone. Go for lots of lesson then go out and buy something that’s way too much for them to ride then they can’t hack all the extra work/winters! I guess lots of people don’t realise how much work they are when they just go for a lesson every week.

How was the artisan bakery/bistro last night? Was it super fancy food or something you could actually eat?

Ugh no flags this week but hoping for tomorrow

 

[rebrascora]

Hi Kim
you get out on Harry tomorrow. Lauren and I are hoping to take the lads out again at 12..... she is marshalling at a cross country race in the morning. Hopefully the weather will hold and the horses won't be too wound up after the fireworks tonight that have been going off all over the village.

Sadly the meal was a bit disappointing. There were some nice dishes but my brother in law chose a Daube of slow cooked beef in a rich red wine gravy and the meat was surprisingly dry and not nearly enough gravy and the potato wasn't cooked properly... too raw to eat, so he sent it back and they didn't handle it very well. My belly pork was nice but would have liked more veggies on the plate. Don't think any of us would choose to go back there. Sticky chicken wings that I chose for starter were gorgeous and no doubt very naughty and there was a huge plateful of them which I shared. I had horrendously vivid and stressful dreams last night though, so not sure what that was about. We didn't eat particularly late or anything. I've felt anxious and groggy most of the day as a result. Hopefully I will sleep well tonight and be on an even keel again tomorrow.