Elf On A Shelf
...
It's been a while since I have done one of these and to be honest I spend more time driving a truck these days than I do sitting on a horse! But Monday I had a full day of lots and of course it couldn't just be a nice easy day could it?!
It was a cold, windy day but at least it was dry! Rather than heading straight to muck out I made a b-line for the lorry to get more pictures for the behind the scenes posts we have been doing on the Facebook page. The truck wasn't fully loaded as the haylage and horses still needed to go in but those horses needed ridden first. Usually their last day before they race the horses just get to go for a yeehaa round the fields and so I headed out to get a video of them. Ahoy Senor lead with Corach Rambler about 10l behind to start with. That lead didn't last long! Poor Lori got absolutely tanked with on Corach and swiftly went flying past Hank! At least he was feeling well! Scu normally rides Corach out everyday but they had already left for Cheltenham as Scu had a preview night to do on Sunday night.
https://fb.watch/bNx_VqQsLE/
Once I had what I needed and set it to upload I headed back to the barn to help muck out. The lads were in good form this morning. My first lot is a wee dude of a horse called Harris. He is small, stocky and numb as hell when he wants to be! His work was just Trot 1, Canter 2. Straightforward on a Monday, or so you would think! "Oi! Come back here you wee pig!" I say to him as he pops into a canter going down one of the wee hills in the field we trot across to get to the gallop. "It's going to be one of those days then is it?" I ask him. "Yup!" Harris replies with a shake of his head. Great ... So off we went trit trotting down the gallop and then back up with no real issues. Heading back down the lad in front was in a bad mood and socked his horse in the gob with one rein which made i shoot sideways which in turn made the horse I was next to shoot in the other direction off the gallop and made Harris slam on the brakes and shoot sideways too. "OI!" I said to the lad "What was the need for that! Don't take your temper out on the horse!" I got a grunt in response. as we pulled up to a walk to go round the bottom bend the lad jabbed his horse in the mouth again and Harris needed no excuse! He slammed the brakes on, shot violently sideways and then buggered off round the bend in canter! "Oi you dirty little barsteward! Come back here now!" I growled at Harris whilst trying to get myself back into some semblance of balance and control. I was literally hanging out the side door, one rein gone and one toe in my iron! I actually don't know how I stayed on! Fresh little twat! But to be fair to him he came back and settled into being numb as hell all the way up the gallop but at the speed I wanted him to go at. It didn't help that my middle toe on my left foot kept cramping. We trotted back down and cantered back up with no further issues.
My next lot was the lovely Henry. Henry is a real stable star, he is Big River, a lover of Kelso. Normally Henry is a lovely ride normally but today he was being keen as hell! He is funny at times!
Over at the other yard my next horse was the lovely Big Doug Floppy Ears! Big Doug's is awesome! Don't get me wrong he is not a nice ride at times and today was one of those times. But he is a really lovely, gentle, kind horse with big floppy ears! Tacked up and heading out of the yard Big Doug's was being a bit jig joggy "Great, today is not going to be fun" I muttered to myself. Heading onto the gallops there was 1 lad in front of me and the rest quite a way behind so we had to wait for them. Big Doug's took a hell of a hold jogging along the bottom. This was NOT good! We finally jumped off and I dropped paw as I always do and gently said "Steady lad, good boy" He is a worrier, you need to hold his hand. And of course the cows would have to be at the side of the gallop! Mucking Fagic! "Ooooaaasss a boy, steady, it's just the cows" I coo at him as we go flying past, head up trying to fight me. I left my hands exactly where they were, I didn't fight him, there's no point. You start to fight and you will lose. Not a shadow of a doubt. Thankfully Big Doug's settled again and lobbed away to the top. Again I gently tried to steady him up and pull him up using my voice. It didn't work. He cantered off the top and round the wee bend before coming to a sharp stop. I stroke him down the neck as I say to the rest of the lads that I am going down at the back and not taking him upsides as I wouldn't stand half a hope of holding him with the mood he was in this morning. As we started to lob down Big Doug's took a hell of a hold and you really have to fight your own instincts and not move your hands even so much as a milimetre. Your totally screwed if you do. Half way down, just as we get to the cows one of the lads in front comes right back to a trot, his horse had bit his tongue and there was a decent bit of blood but he was ok to carry on. I however had a fight on my hands from there on down. "Come on now Doug's settle, no need for this" I gently say to him to no avail. It was a bit of a fight the rest of the way. He wouldn't drop his head again and was just shaking it and pulling like all hell. I managed to get him back to a trot but I could not stop him from a trot. I went past the entire string and finally got him stopped just as we got the end of the white railing. I bailed. I wasn't going to take him up the gallops a 2nd time. There was no point. He was in too much of a tizz and would have just absolutely bolted with me. I've barely sat on a horse in months and I am not as brave as I used to be so I decided discretion is the better part of valour and took him home. When Doug's is in this mood not even the jockeys can hold him.
Humphle's was my next spin out and like Henry you can't really fault him. He is just a properly nice horse to ride.
My last lot was wee Champles! Everyone loves Champles! He won at Musselburgh the other week. Champles is another one who is fresh as paint. Just a quick nip once up the gallops but that resulted in us jogging sideways and backwards most of the way home!
It was a cold, windy day but at least it was dry! Rather than heading straight to muck out I made a b-line for the lorry to get more pictures for the behind the scenes posts we have been doing on the Facebook page. The truck wasn't fully loaded as the haylage and horses still needed to go in but those horses needed ridden first. Usually their last day before they race the horses just get to go for a yeehaa round the fields and so I headed out to get a video of them. Ahoy Senor lead with Corach Rambler about 10l behind to start with. That lead didn't last long! Poor Lori got absolutely tanked with on Corach and swiftly went flying past Hank! At least he was feeling well! Scu normally rides Corach out everyday but they had already left for Cheltenham as Scu had a preview night to do on Sunday night.
https://fb.watch/bNx_VqQsLE/
Once I had what I needed and set it to upload I headed back to the barn to help muck out. The lads were in good form this morning. My first lot is a wee dude of a horse called Harris. He is small, stocky and numb as hell when he wants to be! His work was just Trot 1, Canter 2. Straightforward on a Monday, or so you would think! "Oi! Come back here you wee pig!" I say to him as he pops into a canter going down one of the wee hills in the field we trot across to get to the gallop. "It's going to be one of those days then is it?" I ask him. "Yup!" Harris replies with a shake of his head. Great ... So off we went trit trotting down the gallop and then back up with no real issues. Heading back down the lad in front was in a bad mood and socked his horse in the gob with one rein which made i shoot sideways which in turn made the horse I was next to shoot in the other direction off the gallop and made Harris slam on the brakes and shoot sideways too. "OI!" I said to the lad "What was the need for that! Don't take your temper out on the horse!" I got a grunt in response. as we pulled up to a walk to go round the bottom bend the lad jabbed his horse in the mouth again and Harris needed no excuse! He slammed the brakes on, shot violently sideways and then buggered off round the bend in canter! "Oi you dirty little barsteward! Come back here now!" I growled at Harris whilst trying to get myself back into some semblance of balance and control. I was literally hanging out the side door, one rein gone and one toe in my iron! I actually don't know how I stayed on! Fresh little twat! But to be fair to him he came back and settled into being numb as hell all the way up the gallop but at the speed I wanted him to go at. It didn't help that my middle toe on my left foot kept cramping. We trotted back down and cantered back up with no further issues.
My next lot was the lovely Henry. Henry is a real stable star, he is Big River, a lover of Kelso. Normally Henry is a lovely ride normally but today he was being keen as hell! He is funny at times!
Over at the other yard my next horse was the lovely Big Doug Floppy Ears! Big Doug's is awesome! Don't get me wrong he is not a nice ride at times and today was one of those times. But he is a really lovely, gentle, kind horse with big floppy ears! Tacked up and heading out of the yard Big Doug's was being a bit jig joggy "Great, today is not going to be fun" I muttered to myself. Heading onto the gallops there was 1 lad in front of me and the rest quite a way behind so we had to wait for them. Big Doug's took a hell of a hold jogging along the bottom. This was NOT good! We finally jumped off and I dropped paw as I always do and gently said "Steady lad, good boy" He is a worrier, you need to hold his hand. And of course the cows would have to be at the side of the gallop! Mucking Fagic! "Ooooaaasss a boy, steady, it's just the cows" I coo at him as we go flying past, head up trying to fight me. I left my hands exactly where they were, I didn't fight him, there's no point. You start to fight and you will lose. Not a shadow of a doubt. Thankfully Big Doug's settled again and lobbed away to the top. Again I gently tried to steady him up and pull him up using my voice. It didn't work. He cantered off the top and round the wee bend before coming to a sharp stop. I stroke him down the neck as I say to the rest of the lads that I am going down at the back and not taking him upsides as I wouldn't stand half a hope of holding him with the mood he was in this morning. As we started to lob down Big Doug's took a hell of a hold and you really have to fight your own instincts and not move your hands even so much as a milimetre. Your totally screwed if you do. Half way down, just as we get to the cows one of the lads in front comes right back to a trot, his horse had bit his tongue and there was a decent bit of blood but he was ok to carry on. I however had a fight on my hands from there on down. "Come on now Doug's settle, no need for this" I gently say to him to no avail. It was a bit of a fight the rest of the way. He wouldn't drop his head again and was just shaking it and pulling like all hell. I managed to get him back to a trot but I could not stop him from a trot. I went past the entire string and finally got him stopped just as we got the end of the white railing. I bailed. I wasn't going to take him up the gallops a 2nd time. There was no point. He was in too much of a tizz and would have just absolutely bolted with me. I've barely sat on a horse in months and I am not as brave as I used to be so I decided discretion is the better part of valour and took him home. When Doug's is in this mood not even the jockeys can hold him.
Humphle's was my next spin out and like Henry you can't really fault him. He is just a properly nice horse to ride.
My last lot was wee Champles! Everyone loves Champles! He won at Musselburgh the other week. Champles is another one who is fresh as paint. Just a quick nip once up the gallops but that resulted in us jogging sideways and backwards most of the way home!
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