Having My Cake and Eating It Too

Nom nom nom nom. Oh, I'm sorry, did you say something? I was too busy eating my cake while simultaneously having it.

It appears I may get to do a lease on Marve, the horse who lives about 10 minutes from me and who can help me work on dressage and jumping, while also have the opportunity to continue riding Mae if I so choose.

Mae's owner is back (!) and she and I actually managed to connect this week to talk. Wow, I learned a lot...apparently I was getting a lot of misinformation this summer from the barn owner.

It turns out Mae's owner does not want to sell her, not even a little bit.

It turns out Mae is not as experienced/well-trained as I thought she was.

It turns out Mae does not jump and is not even sound to do so, so thank goodness I listened to my instinct and didn't try to jump her.

It turns out she does have a history of rearing, bucking, and other vices I was never aware of -- and I'm almost grateful for that, actually, because we mostly did fine this summer and I wouldn't have felt so comfortable/confident if I had known about these issues, which I believe are exacerbated when the rider is a bundle of nerves, like Mae's owner has been. (Of course, I might also not have been bucked off, but whatever.)

Yeah, it would have been helpful for me to know all these things before I started the lease last spring, but what are you going to do? I'm still alive, no injuries, Mae got exercise and love all summer, I got some riding time/practice in, the owner is happy, so all is well.

The owner is so happy, in fact, that she wants me to continue riding Mae. I actually feel kind of flattered because she went on and on about how happy and in shape Mae looks, and that the barn owner has told her how well I was doing with Mae, etc.

But at this point I have already committed in my mind to lease Marve at Other Barn. I told Mae's owner I would like to continue riding her, but not as frequently as I have been. Maybe once a week or whenever I have time. So we still need to hammer out the details on that, and I'm not 100% sure how it will go. I love Mae, but I have already distanced myself from the situation somewhat. I know the owner is back now, which means Mae gets love and attention from another source, and I'm also really excited about the Marve thing.

I didn't want to write too much about Marve, because it's not final yet. I still have to sign on the dotted line and get some more info. But I really hope it all works out. I'm excited about getting to ride him three days a week. I'm excited about having access to excellent facilities for once. I'm even excited that he is the stable's horse, which means he doesn't have a possessive owner worried that I'm not good enough for him -- instead, I have a barn full of professionals who are looking out for my safety, well-being, and growth as a horsewoman. And yes, I admit it. I'm also excited that I'd get to ride him in the schooling shows (I hear there will be more this year than last year!). That means I can practice with him and ride him in the show -- no more just appearing on show day and being handed a random horse I may not have ridden in a month.

So I'm just excited. I get to ride a horse who fits my needs more, in a better environment, WITHOUT driving 35 minutes, yet I still have the option to ride Mae if I want to. It's pretty sweet. Let's just hope it all works out!