..but here I am too...
..yep - and this is me..
okay - so I never actually dyed my hair BLACK. This is a wig..but I do like to change my hair a LOT! Hey - if my horses can wear tail extensions..then by golly - so can I! ha ha Anyway - I have been asked several questions and instead of trying to answer them one on one...I thought I would just do it here!
1. How old are you?
My usual answer to this is Thirty-seventeen! You figure it out...
2. Why do you want to ride sidesaddle?
When I was a little girl, I saw a woman riding aside. I don't remember enough about it to know what discipline - just that she rode with both of her legs on one side and to me - she was the epitome of elegance!!! (sooo not what I look like YET!) Some days I would like to hunt down that woman and slap her...ha ha
3. Why now?
The easy answer to this question is that I am 30-17! The real answer is that I truly believe that in a moment of real distress..I called out to God about something and He gave this to me. Every door was suddenly opened from how I got my saddle, found my instructor, being able to ride (as the only sidesaddle rider) on the circuit that I already cover for Saddle and Bridle magazine ...and so many other things! It has been such a fun adventure and a good place I can go when other things in life have not been so good... I hope that makes sense!
4. What are your goals?
I have a bunch..
For now..just NOT to get last place every time I show.
Later - to be more competitive against astride riders. When they see me as competition..then I know I have really accomplished something.
I hope that maybe I can be that 'lady' that I saw when I was a child to someone else..so that the sport never dies.
I would love to have several sidesaddles and several willing horses so that I could host sidesaddle clinics at my farm a couple times a year! Now THAT would be so COOL!!!
5. Why do you live above a barn?
I seem to always follow a certain path. I would rather have one thing that is really spectacular ..than have several cheap things. (I am sooo detail orientated!) This came into play when we built our barn. It ended up costing about twice what we thought it would. Our first plan was to live there for 5 years or less and then start working on a house further back on the property. Life happened... first 9-11, which hit us financially..then my husband found out he was ill, and now the general economy. I cringe when I think that because of my 'high standards', we may be living above this fantastic barn when we are 80!
6. How many horses do you have?
Currently - 8. All facets.. broodmares, retired, unbroken baby, and a couple that I should sell, but the market is so bad that I won't risk their safety..so for now, I call them hay burners. I only ride 2 of the horses even though 6 are broke to ride.
If I forgot to answer a question someone has asked - or if someone has another one ..either post it here - or e-mail me at juliesize@yahoo.com I love to hear from you guys. No kidding - I now get about 20-30 e-mails a week from my blogs!
8 comments:
I was wondering what it was that made you want to ride sidesaddle. I can only picture myself falling off!
- The Equestrian Vagabond
I like that, Thirty seventeen !
Riding aside has been a far off pipe dream for me too , not sure if I ever will try it or not...
I would love to live over my barn. It's always been something I wanted, to share my "house" with my horses, or have them share theirs with me.
If I was starting from scratch, the barn would come first, even if it did mean living above it!
Wow, you live over your barn, that is soooo cool!!! I would love that but my husband would not. I would put in a baby monitor so I could listen to my horse and donkey when they eat their hay. What a soothing sound.
I love the polka-dot dress!
It was very inspiring to hear how you got into sidesaddle. . .it's not just that you are committed to your discipline, but that you also compete, and are determined to work your way up in the process. A lot of people spend their whole lives in an arena drilling the same thing and never experiencing the great wide world of equestrian sports simply because they refuse to compete until they think their good enough to win. I entered my first novice level three-day event after only two months of lessons in dressage and jumping! I had ridden my whole life. . .but mostly bareback & on the trails!
By the end of my first season I was "in the ribbons" and had moved up to training level. Competing was the key to my success. . .the more you do it, the easier it becomes.
Thanks for stoppong by my blog Julie! What a cool pic for your header...it apparently, sums you up pretty well. :-) Stop by again...Tami
Well, you're THAT lady to me Julie. I've always thought side saddle was neat but you've inspired me to actually figure out how to try it. Thanks!
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