Not again?

The rumors are true i am moving the horses, tomorrow. But you just moved them, you say! Yes, thats true i did just move them. Its only been two months and i am moving them again. Its a very long story and i will be writing more about all the trial and tribulations in future blog posts after i’ve had a little time to settle me and the girls into the new place and had a little time to reflect on the last two crazy months. The main reasons for the move are as follows

• My horses need more training

• I want an indoor

• Crazy people suck and life’s too short

Let me start with my horses need more training:

The barn i’m leaving has no ring, the ring available is at Schooley Mill Park. Its a public park and i had full access it. All i had to do was cross the street, a shot little walk or ride for those with traffic safe horses and viola i could use this amazing beautiful ring. Not to mention the trails and cross country jumps on a course thats also free use. Awesome right? Wrong. Not when you have baby green ottbs. The disadvantage being everyone else in the universe with a trailer also has free access to the ring. So there was lots of trailering in and some atrocious riding and manners and no “rules” other then we all can use the ring. The ring would often be empty but it would just as often be full of 10 year olds on naughty ponies taking a jumping lesson with a questionalble coach and stage mothers gathered at the gate giving you the stink eye because you intended to use the ring.

Its a chaotic atmosphere and you never knew what you were going to get. With green ottbs this was troublesome as Circe would often lose her mind. My usually sweet girl did not do well there. Would it be a calm day or a crazy one and that was just “IN” the ring never mind the fact that this is a big public park and there are all manner of people using it. Baseball games, soccer games, hell ive even seen them playing cricket. People yelling screaming, running, jumping. Park workers with mowers and weed-whackers. People driving through the parking lot like idiots. You get the picture. Needless to say this whole environment was not one Circe thrived in. It took two months to get a decent ride on her where she was relaxed and her normal self. Of course that was my last time in the ring. Go figure. Jezebel did better as shes a pretty adaptable pony. She settled in quicker and was less stressed but she also has to take baby steps and mostly is doing ground work because were restarting her from scratch because of the ulcers and rearing. So basically as beautiful and huge as the ring is … it sucks.

Next up: I want an indoor. I never wanted to stay where i am now in the winter and i had been keeping my eyes open for a place to move with an indoor in the fall so that come the snow id have a place to ride. This has always been on my mind and in the plans so when the decision was made to move an indoor was an actual requirement. I didn’t even want to  look at a place if it didn’t have an indoor.

Lastly and the most upsetting part of the last two months. Crazy people suck and life’s too short. I was duped into moving into a barn with a seriously clinically mentally ill person. The kind of person that is either off her medication or seriously needs it adjusted. I was told that the person i would be sharing the barn with “Liked to do her own thing” and thats why there was no coop in my barn. Thats cool i like to do my own thing too. The truth was that it wasn’t that this person wanted to do her own thing, its that she wanted the barn to herself and if you had any kind of presence there it screwed with her “this is my barn” fantasy. I began looking for a new place 14 days into moving into the barn. It only took that long before it went way off the rails into full on crazy town culminating in her husband being banned from the barn for behavior that often lands people in jail.  I’m still under a directive from management to call the cops if i see him on the property. For my own safety.. good times.

With all the being said i found a place that fits my needs.  Not too far away about 45 mins drive. It’s an eventing barn that rents out to different trainers. After visiting it, taking the better half to see it and asking the trainer a million questions we made a deal on two stalls that will include some training rides for my girls. I’m still keeping Michelle cuz shes amazing but i will be adding a new person to the training mix  and setting some more concrete goals. I hope that between the three of us that we can get the girls in 6 days of work or close to it. I think they need it and i know i know i need more help and Michelle is too busy to give me more then 2 days a week. Shes in high demand!

The new barn has huge stalls, 14×17,  a tack/ feed room, washer and dryer, its own bathroom, hayloft, hot and cold wash rack, nice fields with automatic waterers and the trainer and i see eye to eye on lots of things. Shes new to MD and looking to build up her business. This could be a win/win. The facilities include a dressage ring, a jump ring, a gymnastics ring, an indoor ring with super amazing footing, a cross country trail, a cross country field. One of the areas 4 star eventers, one you see at Rolex and international events has two of the barns here. This is a serious riding barn. Its also expensive so i will have to put my nose to the grindstone to pay for it all.

Tomorrow i load the girls and get them to new digs. I’ll be glad when the last two months are behind me and im excited to move forward. I’m hopeful the adjustment to the new place will be swift for the girls as they have to be used to moving around by now. I’m gonna omeprazole them both for the trailer ride for calmer horse tummys.  I have some short, medium and long term goals to work out but my team will be expanded and i will have more help achieving them. Wish me luck.