Ridecamp: Re: [RC] Helmets and fear

In the last 5 years or so I have had a couple of nasty spills.  The first
one involved my horse and I both doing not so graceful somersaults though
fortunately in opposite directions.  I started wearing a helmet after that.
Two years ago my stallion went down in some sand after a mare passed us and
his brain went into stupid mode.  It had taken me a long time to get
confident again and I finally thought I had it with the stallion until that
fall...and I had come off of him plenty of times from spooks or spins.
Anyway, I started team penning last summer... couldn't get to all the rides
and wanted to build his butt and my confidence.  I don't come off any more
(knock on wood) and I finally feel "free" of the fear though I still carry a
lot of caution with me.  I had to learn to really trust my horse...I think
some of my spills and falls were times when I lacked confidence in my horse
and either hesitated or backed off when I should have let my horse do his
own thing...TRUST.  Boy, if you don't have it, riding is not fun!  :)
Anyway, it takes time and sometimes consciously telling yourself over and
over again to have faith in your horse and to NOT be afraid.
Maggie


=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
 Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
 Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
 Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=