Just Chillin' It

We continued to ride together…all of us.  During the week I found myself dreaming of the weekends and impatient to get to the barn.  I was finally a part of life at RHO.  At this point, Sue was contemplating the idea of purchasing Peaches.  I thought about it, but Peaches was a bit out of our price range. I still hoped that I would be able to use her Penning and take lessons.

Every weekend, I begged to ride Peaches.  This particular  weekend, when I asked Tom if I could use her, he told me Sue would be riding her today...

He called out to his son “Justin, saddle up the Chill mare, would ya”

“You’ll be ridin’ that paint mare right there”

Chill.  I watched others ride her.  She was sturdy and fast.  She loved cows and knew her job, but she was way out of my league.

No one says NO to Tom Riley. No one.  Ever.

Again, I looked at Sharon. She giggled but oddly enough, she wasn’t hysterical.  That’s a nice mare, Michele.  You’ll be fine.

Fine?

I trudged up the hill to Justin where he was already throwing a saddle on her back.  “Justin, what’s the deal with this mare?  Am I gonna die? What is she like? What do I do?  I can’t just get on a strange horse and run the cows!!!”

He was a tall, good looking kid with the same blatant Riley honesty…”You’ll be fine.  She’s a good mare”

Fine?

I don’t want to hear FINE.  I’ll be fine on the ground, watching.

We never knew and will never know what’s in Tom Riley’s head at any given moment. What we did know is that when he tells us what to do, we do it.  No questions, no second guessing.  We just do.

In the arena, in the barn, in the fields... no matter where any of us are, the only voice we hear is Toms. There could be background chatter, we could be in the middle of conversation, hell, we could be out of eyesight but we hear his voice and respond automatically.

That’s how I knew I would be fine.

That Chill mare was Tom’s.  She had unbelievable blood lines and a temperament to go with it. He loved that mare and sometimes fairly choosy on who would ride her, so I guess I felt a bit honored that he would let me.

The day begins.  Wait… before I get on this mare, please tell me about her. What do I do? Does she spook? Buck? Rear?

Tom just looked at me.  By now, I’ve gotten quite used to those looks.

“You ride Peaches, don’t ya? This here mare is better than Peaches.  All my horses are trained the same. Just get on and ride.”

But I…I.

”Just get on the damn horse. You’ll be fine, believe me when I tell ya”

So, I got on the damn horse.  Oh, and by now I owned a tiny pair of spurs and proper riding boots.  I still needed the mounting block to get on and a few people around to make sure the wildebeest didn’t take off. All this riding, even on a Tom Riley horse, didn’t take my fears away.  Deep down it was all still there.

She didn’t.  She stood there and waited for me to climb aboard.  In my head I kept repeating… she’s just like Peaches, she’s just like Peaches.

We warmed up.  Her jog was choppy but slow and steady.  She stopped on a dime and turned like a dream.

 I leaned forward... no leg, nothing.  Just leaned forward and off she went into a perfect, smooth lope.  Stop… turn…. Lope…stop... turn…. Lope. Roll backs… she did them with ease.  She was a happy little mare who did whatever I asked. Nothing bothered her…not even my stupidity.

I can do this.  She’s fun. The best part of Penning was being teamed up with Allison, Donna and Sue. Somehow, I always did better with them. Maybe it was the comfort level or just knowing that they were there, but I loved riding as a team.  Sharon still watched from the back of her horse, but was having just as much, if not more fun!  She would also be the one to tell me how I looked, what I did and how much of an idiot I’ve become!!

So, another weekend of Team Penning under my crystal belt (that dug into my gut)... and another....and another…And every time, I rode the Chill mare.

 I had grown really attached to her and I think she liked me too.  She needed the beauty treatment days of grooming and fussing.  Tom Riley didn’t believe in all that, but we did, and those cow horses that came out of Texas did too!

I still was searching for a horse.  I drove Tom crazy and weekly would call and see if he found anything…

Tom would never sell Chill.  I knew that.  I didn’t bother to ask.

Tom called. I got somethin’ for ya here, so when ya come up you’ll see.

Anticipation killed me.  I couldn’t imagine what kind of horse I would have... but I knew that it would be perfect.

Seca’s Little Acre… WOW… gorgeous mare.  Huge, big-boned, handful of muscle and power. When she was paraded around the barn, everyone had the same reaction... OH MY… she is beautiful.

And Sharon???  Sharon just laughed… and laughed…. Yep, she’s pretty alright… let me know how she works for ya!!!

And Sue…. What’s her name?

Seca’s Little Acre

What?  Stinka? Stinka’s what?

NO SECA… SEEE CAAA

OH…. Seca  ... Seca… I thought you said STINKA….

 I knew I was in trouble

Tom, really?

Really.

Is she like Peaches?  Like Chill? 

“Well, she will be. I’ll work with her for a bit and you’ll see.”

She was breath-taking.  I knew it would be awhile before I would ride her, but she was a dream come true.  So, Ritchie, again just to make me happy, bought this massive machine of an animal and we were set.

Weeks and months went by.  I continued to ride Chill.  I loved her.  No one else rode her. Tom actually didn’t let anyone else ride her… even if he needed a horse for someone… it wasn’t the Chill mare.  He knew we were good together and that my new horse "Stinka" would take some time.

A lot of time.

Barbed Wire Babes

If not for my friends, I wouldn’t be riding.  Yea, well, Tom Riley is responsible for me actually RIDING, but I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for all of them.

I am so grateful to Sharon for dragging my ass to RHO.  I am so grateful for Sue, who put in long, grueling hours of counseling me …I am so grateful for Donna, who amidst the needless drama I create for myself…always makes me laugh.

Then along came Allison... the newest member of the BWB and one of RHO’s top riders. A gutsy, unafraid true cowgirl who was extremely kind and patient with me.  Allison taught me to just enjoy the ride...don’t think about it... just ride.

Allison has been with Tom a long time.  She rode almost any horse he asked of her and did well on every one of them.  She was a strong player in the cow arena and someone that everyone wanted to team up with.

We embraced Allison and we became five.

I continued to ride Dakota (With boots on) and actually did improve.  I just couldn’t shake my nerves.  I did get some confidence back though.  I don’t know what possessed me, but one day, I asked Tom if I could just ride one of his horses… like… a small one… a dead one even...…that didn’t move.

He called out to his son… “Justin, saddle up that Peaches mare, will ya”

OH HELL NO. HELLLLL NO….  PEACHES?  ARE YOU FRIGGIN NUTS?

Peaches came from our old barn. Need I say more?  But what I didn’t know was Tom had her in training from the beginning.  He re-conditioned this horse to become an unbelievable Team Penning athlete.  Well, Team Penning horses are kind of used to going fast... yea … fast. She was a beautiful mare, fine boned and healthy with big kind eyes.

“Tom, I don’t think I want to do this anyway... forget it, I changed my mind… no seriously, really… forget it”

“Listen, I’m not gonna put you on a horse that I don’t trust. I matched everyone up here with their horses… This horse is great and she’ll only do what you ask her, she rides to your level,  believe me when I tell ya”

Literally knees and arms shaking, I got on Peaches with the mounting block.  She stood quiet and gentle.  I liked her size and just the way she felt under me.  She was comfortable and smooth.  Tom walked to the center of the arena and we began a lesson.

We walked and did a little jog.  Tom prided himself in the way he trained his horses.  They all STOP on a dime.  He made me stop, back up, jog a little more and stop her.  For the first time since Satin, I finally felt like I was riding.  I was elated and this was an entire new world.  SO THIS is what they meant about a Tom Riley horse!!!!  I couldn’t get her to go though.  She was so kind and really knew that I was…in all actuality, a beginner.  Tom stopped me and said... “Here, put my spurs on, you’ll see a difference…believe me when I tell ya”

Spurs?

Spurs.

Really?  Did you just meet me?  Do you know me at all? Like, who are you?

Spurs.

So, he put them on me… to me they were these huge metal extensions of my ankle with rowels that resembled a pizza cutter with points... yea... that big…but really, they were just normal spurs.. That looked like those ninja flying discs that would kill on impact….

“Now, don’t dig into her side, just tap her.  Git used to em first”

So I tapped and she moved… inside leg, outside leg, left turns, right turns and a world of difference.  Amazing.  Yes, I was ready to lope and we did.   All around the arena.  She was awesome.  I was unafraid and able to really control her.  She listened and responded.  This was amazing! I learned more in that one day than I had in all the years of riding. The one thing, though, that every rider wants to do is make their trainer proud.  Tom Riley was the happiest when we were.  I couldn’t take the smile off my face … but to see Tom beam at the fact that I actually rode was overwhelming!

“Well, how was that?”  He laughed his hearty laugh and knew I was hooked.

I rode Peaches all the time… or at least when Sue or Laura didn’t use her.  I hoped every weekend that she would be available. 

She was. This one particular Team Penning day, she was. 

 “Michele, you’re Pennin’ today.”

Penning.

Penning.

OH HELL NO. Really? Did you just meet me?  Do you know me at all? Like, who are you?

Penning? Like with cows.. and people?

’UBET. Put yer big girl panties on and cowgirl up.”

No one said NO to Tom Riley. Ever. No one.  

I remember looking over at Sharon.  Now, if you know Sharon, you know her face before she gets hysterical .  Her eyebrows go up.. her eyes gleam, her mouth opens  and wails of a  huge aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh   hahahahahahahahah  and unending laughter begins.  She looked at me… with the face…the horror and disbelief on my face must have been priceless…. All I heard was that uncontrollable laughter.

Thanks Sharon, What the hell do I do now?

Well, you don’t have a choice… she said… while she wiped away tears of  laughter.  Good Luck….

Sharon.. I could always count on her for support.

Sue looked at me in disbelief, Donna laughed and Allison just said "go for it girlfriend"

OK, so I went for it.

The team was called. I don’t remember who I first rode with, but I do remember Tom announcing that it was my first time and my team was there to support and teach me.

Into the cows I went when he called the number.  Where is it and what the hell do I do when I get it? Just chase it.. get behind it. So, I got behind it... JEEZE.. what the hell was coming out of that animal?  What the hell?  I found myself spewing out cow calls  that sounded like a cat in heat.  What the hell was that out of my mouth….. and did it really scare the damn cows into moving? What the hell was this about?  Grown people chasing cows..

 Get the wing... I got the hole.. what? 

Nonetheless, I was hooked.  It was a blast.  What a difference a real trained horse makes.  So me… along with my barbed wire babes were hooked on cows, the horses that drive them and the trainer that makes it all happen. 

My next call to Tom Riley was desperate.  “Tom, find me a cow horse.  I can’t do this with Dakota and I really want to ride”

He laughed.  UBET.

Boots or no Boots....

So begins the saga of Sue, Donna, Sharon and Michele. We rode together on the weekends when there was no Team Penning.  When there was, Sharon and I gladly watched from our trusty steeds.  We peered over the fence of the massive cow arena and cheered our girls on week after week. I even went as far as donning a cowboy hat and buying crystal pocket jeans.  Life was good, but still…something was missing.  I didn’t have much confidence in Dakota.  I knew that to be true when Donna decided to see what I was actually talking about.  One round through our indoor arena, and Donna validated all my thoughts and fears. She handled Dakota well but still understood my feelings about her.  Sometimes, I could feel her nerves through her spine.  I didn’t want to believe that after all the work Tom put into her, that I was still a failure and still really didn’t want to ride her.

I did though.  I hesitated through every lesson.  I discovered that besides not being able to swing my fat ass over my horse, I feared my feet would get caught in the stirrups... get dragged around the arena like a rag doll, hit my head and die.  I feared that she would rear and I would be flipped off… stepped on or trampled if she fell back on me, hit my head and die…I feared that she would buck, I’d go flyin’ over her head, slam my body into the wall, knock my teeth out and hit my head and die….

By this time, Tom Riley was quite used to me and the “real” Tom Riley finally showed his cowboy face.  Gone was the sweet, gentle, kind, horse-lovin, cowboy that we knew….

“No, Tom, I don’t like these boots, they are tight in the stirrups…I’m gonna get stuck”

“WWAHHH WWAHHH WAHHH...  all ya damn do is whine….Will you git yer damn ass in the saddle.  Take off yer f’n boots for Chrissakes… I don’t care…. Ride f’n barefoot then” (He did use the full expletive by the way…) Jes git on the damn horse”

Yup.That was Tom Riley.  

 So I did… took me  10 mins of my lesson to get on… then… get down, take off my boots.. Only 5 to get back on... and rode in my damn socks.

 Didn’t help and I looked ridiculous in socks…

So I got wider stirrups.  Didn’t help.

I will never forget the conversation I had with a dear 6^th generation psychic friend of mine, Linda Lauren. We talked about my fears and anxiety when riding. I told her of the day I found Dakota, the training she went through and even the many times I attempted to ride her.  

Linda was gifted and talented.  She has given me chills on countless occasions and always right on with everything she says.  This particular conversation was distressing to me.  I told her, “Tom says this is the right horse for me for what I want to do…and I try week after week. Why can’t I do this?  Why can’t I trust her?” Her simple, blatant statement was heartbreaking and I refused to believe it.  “No, she’s the right horse for Tom.  She is not the one for you. You haven’t found her yet” 

 Yea, well, how did she know?  Every horse is the right one for Tom.  This was my paint, and I wasn’t going to believe that. I heard choirs of Angels call to me when I found her….Of course it would seem obvious for Linda that Dakota wasn’t for me…When was I going to stop feeling this way?  I felt the same on every horse I rode… or dared to ride…. So why was Dakota so wrong for me? Maybe just riding wasn’t for me…

YEA… um no Linda, I don’t believe you this time.

My girls kept my spirits up.  They kept me laughing and riding. I even took the suggestion of one of my dear cowgirls… get hypnotized to be able to ride, it works!!

 So, 125 dollars later off I went to the hypnotist. I liked her… she was soft spoken and understanding.  I started from the beginning with Satin to the present with Dakota.

I remember the entire session... which tells me something went awry.  Are we not supposed to remember a hypnosis session??  I don't really think I went under...I remember her asking me (amidst my deepened slumber???)   think of a good time with Satin… a time when you were happy riding her…

So I did

Now... think of Dakota... your beautiful horse.  See yourself in that happy moment with her... instead of Satin.

Yea, ok... the only thing I could do was associate Dakota with the fear of death.

Long story short…didn’t help. 

 Oh… and I still had to take my shoes off.

The Fun Begins

It wasn’t all miserable.  I loved this barn and Tom Riley.  I loved my friends and really enjoyed watching them have so much fun. My husband was finally happy!  Way back when we started this horse stuff, we both used to dream of someday being able to ride a real cutting horse…yea right. 

The best part of being at this barn was our people. RHO was a training barn with no real borders to speak of.  When we all came in together, we became Tom Riley’s barn.  We were his students, his prospects and his extended family. It was literally overnight that RHO was created as a boarding facility with permanent residents.  My desire to be back with my old trainer slowly faded.  In all reality, she was not in any position to start up a new place and we were all settled and happy.  Me? Well, I saw a big change in Dakota and my husband was thrilled.  I knew that our horses were in the best shape ever and well cared for.  That’s really all I ever wanted.

The respect I had for Tom was sincere.  My feelings for him changed to deep admiration in one sweep of a conversation we had.

“Michele, I hope you don’t mind but I took the liberty of riding your horse this month so I could see for myself what she was about. I know you want to ride; we just have to git your head around it.  For what you are doing, and what you want to do, I can’t offer you a better horse.  She is a fine horse and she is fine for you and I want you to start riding her.  I will work with her and you and we’ll git cha goin, believe me when I tell ya”

I believed everything Tom told me…from day one.  That’s why I was surprised, a little happy but mostly upset. Upset because it really was me all the time with Dakota (which I knew).  Upset because the great wizard of RHO really did have nothing in his black bag for me.  I  wanted so much to be able to have enough confidence and strength to be able to enjoy myself instead of wondering if I’m gonna die with each ride. I really did want a new horse, a Tom Riley horse that was simple, no frills, sound and kind. However, now I felt I was truly stuck with Dakota, but  it did make me a little more determined to conquer this battle.

Tom continued to ride Dakota and I rarely took lessons. Honestly, I didn’t want to ride her.  Tom also said I would know when it was time and when I was ready. My friends begged me to ride with them… you’ll be fine, they said… just a little trail ride around the property they said… Really???  Did you just meet me or something?  I can’t do this.

A month of training went by and it was time.  OK, so I rode... took a lesson or two on Dakota and began to smile.  She was different... not perfect, but responsive and relaxed.  Slowly I rode but no faster than a jog…

The day came when I was just comfortable enough to ride around the arena and be able to sit on top of my beautiful paint mare and make believe I could ride!

We were all together in the arena… Me, Sue, Donna and Sharon.  Tom Riley proudly watched us.

I remember the look on his face as he marched into the middle and said “Ladies, please line up here… so we did… and next... I would like you all to welcome Michele to RHO as part of our barn…now take your rides around the arena… They clapped... Tom’s face was beaming and I cried like a baby!!!

Sue announced me as the newest member of the Barbed Wire Babes and I truly felt complete! Such a small accomplishment… but to me it was huge!

So,this day marked the true beginning of the Barbed Wire Babes .  

Believe me when I tell ya!