Throwback Thursday: We Jumped The Jumps

... very, very tiny jumps.

Dear Past Self,
Your leg embarrasses me. So does your helmet. And your saddle placement. Horse is cute, tho.
Love,
Future Self

True Story. Before Guinness' body started sliding down the achy slope of old age and decrepitude, we actually did quite a bit of jumping!

When I brought Pig home, the goal was to transition him from a career as an excitable hunter into that of an event horse. I was a rusty IHSA hunter rider, with a childhood of questionable eventing jump instruction behind me. Pig had literally been cross country schooling once in his life. Despite this somewhat-iffy background, I leapt (heh) at my first chance to take Pig over some cross country jumps.

Little did I know, in the short time Guinness had left in his jumping career he would go on to teach me all sorts of things. Including: how to wait for the jump, how to fold at the hip, and how to bravely tackle large fences. He made me into a confident jumper, and allowed me to refine skills I'd never had the chance to truly develop.

While I wish I had photos or video of our more advanced jumping, I'm glad to have these little glimpses into our time jumping together. I can still remember the sticky humidity of that day, the sound of hooves on solid ground, and the smell of the honeysuckle mingling with horse sweat.

Do any of you have moments from the beginning of a journey that stick with you?