Cole Keeps Thinks Interesting

Kevin and I had the opportunity to take our horses on a long ride on Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, Ellen had to work, so we went without her. I took Cole Train, and of course, Kevin took Starry.



Life hasn’t been very cooperative, so this was only the third long ride of the year. Cole is faster than Starry over the long run, so just like in the past, we lost them a few times as we trotted along. Kevin warned me this might happen, so that I wouldn’t be alarmed when I noticed he wasn’t behind us.



The weather was unseasonably warm, so there were a lot of hikers and dog walkers on the trail. There is plenty of room to pass people on our trails, so if it is safe, I will keep going. I make sure that I never surprise or scare anyone.



We approached a dog walker who was standing off on the side of the trail. As Cole approached, he transformed and did his big, showy trot. (It is very passage-like and really something to see.) The dog walker was awed, and I laughed, clicked and treated him. That’s all it took. Cole put on a show for nearly every person we passed. Most people liked it, though some didn’t know what they were looking at. Cole thought it was fun. I thought it was funny.



We did have one problem situation. We were on our own, and there was a large group of people—half of them children—up ahead on the trail. We had been cantering, though we were trotting when we saw them. I don’t know what went through Cole’s head when he saw them, but he took off running--straight for them. I felt like I was on a bowling ball—heading down the alley—and we were going to topple some people over.



It took a bit, but I got him back down to a trot in time. He slowed enough, but wouldn’t stop. I ended up spinning him right in front of the group. They didn’t slow down, move to the side or stop—they just kept going. I had to ride through them. Cole didn’t want to walk, but did with a mixture of prancing and a few more spins. Children were running loose to the right and left. A kid asked his name. Next thing I knew, they were all screaming, “Cole Train. Cole Train.” That only added to the prancing and dancing. He put on quite a show.



Towards the end of the group, a parent reined the last of the kids in, much to my relief. Cole settled down, and the rest of the ride was uneventful. We met Kevin on the way home. He also went though the big group of people, but of course, Starry behaved perfectly.