For a long time, I’ve been quietly researching and practicing trail riding—going from bouncing all over in a mounting block to finally staying seated, and then to off-road rides with tanxu’s Sherman. I was proudly confident that I could handle horses. That was until an accident while riding a Thoroughbred at Shunxin, which instantly made me realize how ignorant and arrogant I’d been (I always thought of myself as humble, devout, and cautious when riding). Later, through repeated rides and lessons with tanxu’s Sherman, I deeply felt the gap (back then I was still riding in a wide, comfy Western saddle), and I was hit hard. I felt I’d hit a plateau in riding—the gap in controlling the horse and using my lower leg aids. With my boyfriend’s constant encouragement (and constant teasing about his riding skills), I overcame my mental barriers and kept teaching myself. Eventually, I could freely go up and down hills and jump ditches in a cavalry saddle, and I achieved trust and cooperation with the horse. Every time we worked together, I felt immense satisfaction.
My love for horses grew even stronger. Feeling my riding skills improving, I decided to buy a horse for my own trail riding. As a girl, I seemed to have a strong desire to have a gentle, obedient horse—one that would walk or stop when told, nuzzle up to you with sparkling eyes when it saw you, and ride bareback with me by a lakeside at sunset... (Okay, I’m fantasizing.)
Ok, after endlessly looking at many horses, I ruled out half-bloods—they’re too complicated. Mongolian horses aren’t suitable for off-road or mountain riding, so forget them. Finally, I thought of Sherman’s big black Ili horse (extremely spirited), and after smirking mischievously, I decided on an Ili horse. My boyfriend rc and I scoured forums and asked friends, only to be shocked to find that Ili prices keep rising every year (puzzling). This year, they’ve even surpassed half-bloods. Well, with no reliable channels, tanxu Sherman showed us an Ili horse and recommended it. The aesthete piu, upon seeing the photo, immediately slapped the table and yelled, “That’s the one, that’s the one, that’s the one!” Then I contacted tanxu and learned the horse was hard to control, hard to rein in, fast as grass flying, and had a hard bit. I casually told rc: “Hey, these biceps of mine didn’t grow for nothing, you see these muscles?! And I’ve ridden horses at all speeds before. Back in the day...” (Classic overconfidence!!) Rc looked at me with admiration and said: “Great, let’s go see him!” So we drove with tanxu to the horse owner’s place in Tianjin (damn Tianjin highways), and the exhaustion that made me feel shriveled completely vanished the moment I saw the horse. Gorgeous. piu, while tanxu wasn’t looking, turned to rc with a sly smile, making rc’s skin crawl.
Well, piu, who was planning to give it a try, was stopped by tanxu, who handed over an equestrian helmet. OMG—I hadn’t worn one in ages. I never wore one for trail rides (felt like a mushroom, so I refused), do I need to wear one for a trial ride? I started to feel uneasy and anxious. I took a few steps back and said, “Uncle, you go first.” When tanxu was tacking up the horse, the horse was full of hostility, lifting its legs and trying to kick. Once mounted, though, it behaved well circling in the arena, fully under tanxu’s control. I thought, “Well, that’s not so bad!” Then it was my turn to mount. After feeling a bit nervous, I found the horse was actually quite steady. Walk, trot, canter, and walk—all easily switchable. It could even change gaits on its own and circle tightly. Though there was a bit of a push from behind. Then tanxu demonstrated the horse’s speed on the big field—it was pretty fast, about the same speed as Pearl, the horse I rode at Shunxin. I decided to buy the horse that day and arranged to have it transported to Beijing the next day.
ranger
All night, rc and I excitedly discussed what to name it. After rejecting rc’s suggestions of Yaxi, Laoweizi, and Ulijiang, piu finally named it Ranger (Ranger: well-equipped and well-trained).
Alright, the next day, after piu slept at 3am, woke at 6am, dozed off again at 6:30am, and woke up at 6:40am, we drove to pick up the horse (damn Tianjin highway). The horse trailer was already waiting at the ranch. Getting Ranger into the trailer was incredibly tough. It kept rearing up. We sought help on Weibo, and finally, following elder brother Wang’s advice, we covered Ranger’s eyes with a piece of clothing to get him into the trailer.
ranger
We arrived at the ranch at 4pm. As soon as the horse came out, people couldn’t help but say: “Wow, not bad!” In a ranch full of famous horses, I’d have been satisfied just to get a nod for a domestic horse. I didn’t expect extra praise. I was overjoyed: I’d scored a great deal.
Ranger was surprisingly stable and quiet. Even when I led him across the arena into a small circle, he calmly rolled around to rest. Then I walked into the circle and called his name—he actually followed me and obediently let me put on the halter and lead rope. OMG, did my dream come true?! Overwhelmed with excitement, I led Ranger to his stall. He calmly and submissively walked into the stall, patiently waited for me to remove the lead rope, then lowered his head to graze. I was so excited I could barely express it—I wanted to roll on the ground... (Okay, I’m a cat person...) ... On the way home, rc excitedly said, “This horse really knows how to please. At first he was so aloof, but today he followed you—you two are so in sync!”
I proudly envisioned a bright future: having a gentle, obedient horse—one that would walk or stop when told, nuzzle up to you with sparkling eyes when it saw you, and ride bareback with me by a lakeside at sunset...
To be continued the next day...