And the excuses I've had to make to folks now feel slightly more justified having them both at the same barn.....
Even a few stalls down from one another, riding them both is a massive time suck! Finding a centralized location to tack them both up, lugging their various girths and bridles around. I'll be damned if I didn't spend a solid 2.5 hours today grooming, tacking, and riding both of them!
Wilbur went out on the trail with the 3 yr old Baby Ali is breaking in (a Palomino Popeye K). What a saint. What a gem my Wilbur is.
Ellie and I worked on collecting and expanding strides....all while maintaining an elusive straightness. She's a good girl!
Complaining aside, I'm cherishing the opportunity to ride both of my sweet horses!
I love the idea of having a string of horses... The reality tho is like you say - takes so much time!!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it's working out so well! But yes, 2 definitely = time sink. Beyond fantasizing about hiring a groom the odd busy weeknight, I have never figured out how to get it all done in less than a couple of hours.
ReplyDeleteIn the Bay Area the time suck is really real
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely hard to have time for multiple horses. I've got my boy, then my mother's mare and my sister's mare; both my mother and my sister have asked me to ride their mares to keep them in better shape but seriously...it takes SO long!
ReplyDeleteI think the real time suck are these day jobs ;)
ReplyDeleteHaving two is so hard when you work full time. I couldn't do it long term at all.
ReplyDeleteYou get more efficient the more you do it. I groomed, rode and packed for a show in 3 hours yesterday. But I've been riding 2 horses for almost a year now, haha.
ReplyDeleteWorking full time and riding two is definitely difficult. On work nights, I find myself picking feet and riding bareback on one, then doing a full groom and riding in a saddle on the other. The one getting ridden bareback rotates day to day and week to week. Surprising how much time not saddling saves!
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ReplyDeleteI totally know the feeling! At one point in college I had a string of 3-4 horses but I kept them at my parents farm so I could tie them/tack them up wherever I wanted and I had an arena all to myself. Now I have a string of 2 horses at a fairly busy boarding barn and it can be frustrating especially since there not enough areas to get them tacked up and going, not to mention the time suck after getting off an 8-5 job! They are young so I try to ride them both at least 5 days a week I'm usually at the barn for 2-3 hours, sometimes longer. I've found that tacking them both up at the same time helps me stay motivated. They are pasture pals so I tie one horse up on the outside of the arena while I ride the other then tie it up after cooling down and ride the next horse. That way they practice tying while I'm riding the other horse! I also try to set a game plan before riding each horse which seems to help me be more efficient during the training sessions.
ReplyDeleteNice poost
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