Tales From a Bad Eventer: The Hard Way

Have you ever dealt with a horse that just had to make everything more complicated than it actually was? Bad Eventer shares her tale of woe.

From Bad Eventer:

Ever know someone who has to do EVERYTHING the hard way?

My first farm had a hay barn on one side and the horse barn on the other, a pretty common arrangement…………

I put the bales in my truck and drove them up the hill.

I have a horse who also does EVERYTHING the hard way.

He’s truly a puzzle.

He takes 10 times longer than average to grasp the smallest concept………

But once he finally……. “gets it”……….. he does seem to have it etched in there fairly well.

So I keep telling myself if we can ever get over the hump….. it’ll be worth it in the end.

But a recent morning we spent an hour (literally) on the SMALLEST idea.

Reverse.

I kept telling him, “It really isn’t complicated. I ask politely, you back up.”

His initial answer involved bolting, rearing, breaking my nice show reins <gggrrrrrr> and finally, reluctantly backing up………………. with a very poor attitude………

Mind you all of this was from THE GROUND.

While I was patiently and quietly asking him to back up….. over and over again, and getting the MOST OUTRAGEOUS answers,  I was trying to convince myself this impossible task was worth it.

“Persistence will pay off.”

“Really….. persistence will pay off.”

“I really HOPE…… that persistence will pay off.”

Those are the days when I start to wonder what it is I’m doing.

And I’ve started to believe my pony is somehow learning impaired.

His partner in crime………

caught on……….. in about 45 seconds.

When I was beginning to believe this was completely futile…….. I remembered……. I’ve had a horse like this once before!!

He made EVERYTHING difficult. His idea was always the hardest, most complicated way to accomplish any task. EVERYTHING took him 10 times longer than average.

But I stuck with it…….

and he turned into one of the very best…….

safest…….

and agreeable horses I’ve ever owned.

Bad Eventer…………. still hanging in there.

To check out more from Bad Eventer (and you really should), click on over here.