Quest For A Trainer Who Would Get Me

"You rode all the way here bareback?", Molly asked with a half smile. There we stood in front of the big white farm house on the tarred driveway at 8am in the morning. I was sitting on my gleaming and muscled up gelding, in jeans and sneakers, no helmet. All Mister wore was his brown bridle with a kimberwick. I imagine we must have been quite a sight. I had just finished my chores and disappointed in everything horse show related, threw a bridle on Mister and just rode. I didn't plan to end up here, I just saw her driveway and turned up. Somewhere there was a trainer that would understand me and considering she seemed to be the most misunderstood trainer in the area, maybe she was it.

It was the day before my sixteenth birthday, the day after not making the Maine Team for the Big E. 4H had never really been my thing anyway and my goals had never matched up with the leaders ideas of what they should be. While everyone else in our group were riding pleasure bred Quarter Horses and Appaloosas, looking picture perfect in Western or like an AQHA idea of what hunters are, I was proudly riding my Morgan/Saddlebred cross hunt seat, forward, on the bit, and with his head slightly higher than 4H liked it. I was not about to force my naturally high headed, forward moving horse, into a scene from an AQHA hunter show for a pleasure class. My scores were fantastic in Equitation, I hated showmanship, so it was a little weak, and my portfolio had been thrown together in 10 minutes and over-nighted two days before the deadline. When I was talked into going to tryouts, I didn't really want to go, but once they were done, I was upset that I didn't make the team.

I looked down, a bit embarrassed. "I didn't make the Maine Big E Team. The goals 4H has for me don't really fit. I was hoping that I might be able to work in trade for lessons with you and just rode up here to ask if that was a possibility?"

About a month earlier, I had officially met Molly when she was asked to do a saddle fitting at 4H horse camp. I pulled Mister out of his stall and brought him out with my saddle to be fitted. She liked him instantly, which wasn't a reaction I got often at 4H events. "He's very nicely put together", she remarked.

While every other horse had been put right back into their stall, I kept Mister out for awhile longer because he didn't like being in the stalls at the fairgrounds and would become very upset. Molly watched us for a moment and then said, "This horse has had some rough times in his life, but he is extremely happy with her. They have a good understanding of each other." There were many eyes that rolled and that comment was turned into a joke by a few 4H members later, but I decided it was one of the nicest things I'd ever heard at 4H camp.

The next thing I knew, Molly was showing me around everywhere. She had me turn Mister out in a small paddock in the back of the barn and told me that I could put him there everyday. She introduced me to all the horses. I was told to be there at 8am the following morning for a riding lesson and then we would go over my daily chores. I rode home looking forward to the next day.