Horse history 1982-1983

[stephbg]

Very few photos exist of me on horseback, or even in the general vicinity of horses. There are a few reasons for this, but chief amongst thme was that in 1982 cameras were the size of horses, only the adults owned a camera, and film was precious. There was little room for DIY because you couldn't exactly take the camera with you in the saddle. Suffice to say that these are rare shots indeed.



Broadacres Riding School 1982
I'm just a fraction under 12 years old here (yes, it did happen). I'm riding Prince, and I flatter myself that I've got a decent seat:



These shots are from the shows for parents at the end of week-long residential riding camps. I did most of mine here at Broadacres (conveniently situated under the airport), with the occasional company of doctor_k_ and zebra363. Think Lord of the Flies, but with less supervision and more flies.


Broadacres Riding School 1983

This is about a year later so I'm still 12, seen here in blue jumping Wrastus (I was told and utterly believed that his name meant "troublemaker"). I use the term jumping loosely, but hey, that was my standard at the time. Speaking of loosely, I think I'm about to lose a stirrup here. Also of interest in this shot is the fact that not all the riders wore hard hats in the ring, even when jumping. Safety was definitely an optional extra back in the day. We used to gallop around the bush over and under trees without helmets either. Lawyers, you may wish to look away.



My hard hat was a gift from my sister's friend who went on to become a Rhodes Scholar. She wrote a thesis on a feminist interpretation of Chaucer, and later a murder mystery novel set in the publishing industry called Brought to Book. I may need to check some of those facts, but that's what my brain just offered me. I always liked the fact that my brains were afforded the same protection as those of a Rhodes Scholar. In practice I don't think that hat ever protected me from anything. Might have been something to do with the perished elastic band that served (or rather didn't) as a chin strap.

I just remembered that a TV news film crew came around once to film for a fluff piece, and *everyone* was given a hat. We all scored extra activities that day too, to make the place look a bit more alive than usual. Things went back to normal when the cameras left.


Broadacres Riding School 1983 II

This is from the same show as above. I think I look a tad more secure in the saddle, but I'm clearly having a little discussion with my mount regarding vector preferences. Wrastus was assigned to me as a challenge, meaning that I was out-horsed for the whole week and generally not too happy about it.



I did eventually figure out that it's much more fun to be out-horsed than under-horsed, but that was only after I switched to occasional bush riding which required less precision. I use the term precision pretty loosely too :-) Also in the context of these poor old riding school nags, the "better" horses were the nervvy ones who tended to bolt, as opposed to the majority who refused to move at all. If nothing else I seemed to acquire the knack of handling the frisky ones.

Comments

[bunny-m.livejournal.com]

Awww.

Proto-Steph is adorable.

[http://users.livejournal.com/doctor_k_/]

I remember Wrastus as being a complete pain. But I was not a good rider.

[ratfan.livejournal.com]

I wish I had some horse photos: I rode from when I was about six until my teens; after that, only sporadically - something to do with paying for it myself after I left school - but I don't think there are any pictures. I used to go to a place called Greenacres (what is it with acres?.

I'd seriously like to get back into riding if I could only work out getting to somewhere to do it (sigh).

[zebra363.livejournal.com]

There are photos like that of me at my mother's place!

I vastly prefer being under-horsed, myself.

[ratfan.livejournal.com]

Yes, when the horse is in charge, you end up with bruises, scrapes and sometimes landing on the ground :-)