He Will Rock You

Meet A Knight’s Tale, affectionately known as Ledger. (You’ve seen the movie, right?)

I found him in southwest Oregon, having been nicely started by an owner who didn’t quite have the time to meet his demands for a high-energy job. He’s seven years old, 15.2 hh, kind, and a little bit too smart. 

Before I go on, shout out to his seller for doing things right. She advertised him 100% honestly: He’s not for a rider who wants to go slow. He needs regular mental and physical work to stay out of trouble. He has some old scars from tangling with a fence as a youngster. Speaking of fences, he doesn’t always like to stay in them. 

He’s also sweet, sound, and sane. The seller insisted on a 30-day trial period to ensure a good match. She internet stalked and interviewed me, and included a buyback and first right of refusal clause in his sale contract. We’re staying in touch, and I love having her support as Ledger launches into his new career.

Bringing him home involved a beautiful, 450 mile drive across central Oregon. It took nearly 12 hours to ease my precious cargo through the twisty mountain highways. We arrived home tired, but none the worse for wear, and spent our first few weeks getting to know each other.

Ledger was trained using Clinton Anderson’s Downunder Horsemanship Method, with which I have some familiarity because I had another horse trained that way a few years back. When a “testing” behavioral issue cropped up, his seller was very helpful in advising me on the specific groundwork that would punch the right buttons in his brain.

It worked…and that got me thinking about revisiting the Method to refresh my memory. More on that later.

As Ledger settled in, his personality and athleticism burst out. As promised, he loves to go down the trail and appears to be the kind of athlete that eats workouts for breakfast. He bounds up hills like a jackrabbit. He’s fitter than I expected ~ a happy surprise ~ though I was aware that his seller had been working toward a September LD. I suspect he’s the type that would let me work him too hard, so my present mode is one of cautious progression. I don’t want to take advantage of his strong aerobic system before his structures are ready.

I got his teeth done and had my favorite vet/chiropractor look at the funky kink in his loin. He doesn’t seem to have any pain or limitation associated with it, and goodness knows he can get his hindquarters under himself. The vet assigned me some bodywork exercises to see if we can smooth out that bump, but said it doesn’t seem to be anything to worry about.

Assuming no surprises, Ledger will be coming along to Old Selam in a couple weeks. I think he could probably do a 50. However, I’m going to play it safe since I have a thorough knowledge of him and his fitness history. We’ll probably try for the LD on Day 2. If he finishes looking stellar, we can always do a second LD on Day 3.

And now, the sun is up and coffee is gone. It’s time to ride!