She travels fastest who travels alone...

She travels fastest who travels alone...

That would be me, today.  Years ago, before my sister got her horse, Ranger, I rode by myself so much that some people called me "The Lone Rider."  That name vanished, because my sister and I ride together as often as we can.

I was going to ride with her out on the loop this morning, but she had a terrible headache.  Instead, she let Dante play out in the mud.  It was cold--right around freezing--but nothing was frozen, yet.  Since I would be by myself, I decided to go for a ride in the park, instead. 

Cole used to be very good on solo rides.  When I had 2 horses, I had more opportunities to ride him by himself.  The last few years, he has become rather rambunctious, alone.  He just hasn't been doing it enough.  This summer, it seemed I could get him out alone every few weeks, and he just kept getting better and better.  The novelty wore off.

He has gotten so good, I didn't even hesitate to take him out--even though it was a chilly morning.  We all know how spunky horses can get when the air is frosty.

When I am alone, I like to go faster than when I am with other people.  Cole's speed can cause problems for other horses.  (I actually think that is the root of the problem with him acting up when he was alone--he anticipated the speed.)  The times we have gotten out by ourselves, I have spent much of my time installing brakes--so that we could go fast.  I like to speed along, but I like to know that I am in control.  So, the rides were slower and more careful than I would have ridden a few years ago.

Today was the day that I got to test to see if my work paid off.  The park was very quiet.  There wouldn't be many reasons to stop, but if I had to, I felt I could.  Just to make sure, I tried a few times early in the ride.  Yes, I had Cole's brain.

After a little bit of trotting, I asked for a canter.  He was enthusiastic, but came back to a trot on his own after just a few strides.  I brought him to a halt and tried again from a standstill.  I got it and this time, he went a little further. 

We reached a part of the trail that we always walk because it weaves between trees.  I was alone--so we trotted it.  Cole was starting to have fun.

We walked over some rocky ground.  When the trail smoothed out, I trotted a bit--yes, his mood was right.  We stopped, and I asked for a canter from a standstill, again.  He did beautifully, and we went a good distance, this time. 

Around the corner and down a little slope at a walk, a little trotting to the mud, walking through the mud--and then we got to the place that we love to gallop.  It had been so long since I have had to chance to really let him go.  I have to confess, I was a little nervous. 

Once again, we did it from a standstill--and he was just wonderful.  We went very fast, but it was so much fun that I wondered why I was nervous!  Cole sprouted wings!  We didn't go all the way to the end, because I wanted to test the brakes--they worked perfectly.  What a wonderful horse!  I trotted out to the end--letting him go as fast as he liked.  (Cole's fast trot is faster than a lot of horses can canter.)  It was so much fun.

We turned around and trotted back until we found Ellen walking on the trail to meet us.  That was Cole's ultimate reward.  He loves finding Ellen and walking with her.