That ride.

I just had that perfect ride.

You know the one – the one where it all clicks. The one where you ask him to move off your left leg and instead of laying further into it he moves laterally to the rail.

That ride where you finally nail a tricky rollback. Or he has decided to trail ride calmly without alerting you to every leaf that might fall or mailbox which could house a goblin.

A ride that you never want to end but know you need to stop pushing your luck at some point before it becomes “that” ride. A ride where you pull off your helmet and can wring the sweat out of your hair you worked so hard. But it feels so good.

The ride that makes you smile ear to ear, that makes you realize the daily grind pays off. The ride that justifies the time spent at the barn. The ride that validates your commitment to improving or accomplishing whatever task you sought to tackle, because you just felt real tangible progress.

That ride you think only other people are having—the perfect rider on the perfect horse, how could you ever compare. But then you do because you just had that ride.

It is a ride you can’t even put words to. Barn mates will ask you how he was and you’ll reply, “good,” but nothing more. Because how can you explain what happened. How can you tell them that actually you have the smartest, most talented elastic and pleasurable horse ever to walk the earth. But they’ll know, as there is now a lightness to your step that you didn’t have as you slogged to the barn after work.

Your horse knows it, too—hence the extra peppermints. You’ll give him a few more snuggles. Extra kisses on the nose. You’ll stand outside his stall door, wondering when he got such a nice topline or that his shoulder looks strong.

As you get in your car to go home you’ll feel a sense of sadness that you can’t quite put your finger on for a moment. It is a feeling that you are leaving the bubble, the sanctuary which gave you that ride.  But you’ve had it once, surely you can do it again soon.

You know it when it happens. What an amazing feeling. What a sheer joy to experience.

I want to tell the world.

I just had that ride.


About the Author

Jorna Taylor is your average obsessive horse owner, spending countless hours watching friends ride in circles in the dust or rushing home elated to find the new Dover catalog has arrived. She captures the more comical and interesting moments of her riding journey on her blog. Check it out at jornataylor.