About two years ago I attended the
Certified Horsemanship Association's International Conference held at the Horse Park in Kentucky; my main objective, besides my never ending quest for more information on everything about horses, was to fulfill my requirement to maintain my certification with the organization.
One of the few riding opportunities being offered was a semi-private dressage clinic with Jo-Anne Young, Professor of Equine Studies at Houghton College, NY. First come, first served - only two spots available. Got up early the first morning to sign up for one of the openings...and I just made it! The second spot was mine!! When I arrived at the arena, the first rider was already there; a petite older woman with the most curious riding helmet that had a straw hat rim taped around it to protect her face from the sun.
After an enjoyable riding lesson, we went to several of the other seminars and clinics together, and our conversation deepened. She told me about her horse who had just passed a world record in endurance riding, but she hadn't seen any publications on the event yet. That evening, Mary Anna Wood and I spent several hours in my room perusing the Internet on my MacBook for all the news releases and publications notices about her very special horse, Elmer Bandit. She told me all about how they rode, how fast he trotted, his diet and his life in the pastures at home. And as she talked, I was amazed and inspired by this woman and her old Arab gelding and all that they had accomplished together. I decided right then and there that, while I wouldn't break any records, there was no reason why I shouldn't take up something I had been dreaming about for a long time - endurance riding. The next day, at one of the seminars, this gentle horsewoman, who had rode over 20,000 miles on her grey Arab, gave me a knitted pot holder - she was always knitting them, keeps her hands busy, she says. It was purple and pink.
When I got back to San Diego I began my search for an endurance prospect. I finally got my Harley SF - a 3 year old chestnut purebred Arab gelding. We have a long way to go. But I have been inspired by a one in a million pair!
And every time I think, "oh, my 30 year old horse is too old to do that," or when my old horse seems to be faltering, I'm not so quick to think, "maybe it's better if I just have him put down" because I think of Elmer Bandit, and all he accomplished at the age of 37. He has really given me a new perspective on horses and what they can do; he has literally kept my old horse alive with his spirit!
Today, I found the purple and pink pot holder she knitted for me. I put it in my saddle bag, and from now until forever, I will rack up the trail miles with it tucked behind my cantle, in loving memory of the horse who inspired me.
