My Lovely Larry

In my last post, I mentioned Larry and I are working on developing a horse-rider bond, so I thought I’d further introduce him.

Larry is a 16-year-old, 15.2-hand, bay Arabian/Thoroughbred. I bought him in 2012 as a lesson horse. He was good at his job for many years but eventually became a begrudging employee. He didn’t do anything nasty to his riders — that’s not in his nature or training — but he was clearly unhappy being a multi-person horse.

As it turned out, I was weaning myself from teaching at about the same time he wanted a career change. So, Larry became my go-to riding horse.

I don’t ride a lot but am trying my best to get into the saddle more often because both my body and brain go “ahhhhh” as soon as I’m up.

Larry’s size, demeanour, surefootedness and reasonably good brain make him a perfect mount for me – a middle-aged woman whose body feels like it’s changing daily and who, while never a huge risk-taker, is even less adventurous these days. He’s extremely responsive and tries hard (generally) but he also has enough of an independent spirit to keep things interesting.

Larry’s also goofy, fun and sociable — the type of guy you’d enjoy having a beer or two with. He’s gregarious without being completely annoying. He loves to tease his Shetland Pony field-mates Cricket and Rocky and is in love with the petite and voluptuous Bubbles, who feels very much the same about him.

Looks-wise, he’s quite handsome. Arabians aren’t my favourite. I will always firmly land on team Thoroughbred when it comes to breeds. But Larry’s a nice blend of both. In fact, the bulky boy is often mistaken for a Quarter Horse. Even his disposition belies the fact he’s a combination of two typically hot breeds.

The past few months when I ride Larry, I’m not longing for Mac, who died a year and a half ago. Now, it’s all about me and my new/not-so-new guy. His gear has made its way from the tack room at large into my special box (another big step in moving on from the memory of Mac) and I peruse tack shop websites looking for fun stuff that Larry and I “need.”

I’m also hunting for a saddle that fits us both perfectly because I’m really looking forward to travelling many, many kilometres together.