Saturday started out warm bright, without a hint of a breeze or rain........The Mad mare loaded, travelled, unloaded, waited, tacked up, waited, was mounted, waited, participated in one hours worth of dressage training.........her list of achievements also included:- working in out line, excellent transitions, acceptance of aids, extension and rhythm in all gaits. Woohoo.......................we have it under the belt.

Sunday started warm, slightly misty, with a whisper of a breeze. The mad mare was a baggage, not a a total baggage, but definately within that realm.

The hack to the beach started well, until she found and fell in love with a rather tasty bay, cob, stallion, no not the underwear model, this one is more like Mr Universe......Well that was it, we have tail in the air and a new movement called "Hind quaters to the fence". This is now a regular part of the Mad Mares selected movements, I was therefore confident in leg yielding her along the road........obstacle number one passeed woohoo!!

Obstacle number two.............The Mad Mares constant riding companion is now a lovely gelding called Ronnie who rarely puts a foot wrong, until today. From the moment he set a hoof outside the yard gate he spooked at everything, the pteradactyl aka the Robin, the garbage bins, never seen those before, police bollards, everything.........

So, there we are hacking down the road and this cyclist came towards him, we see cyclists every day (usually about twenty riders) but this rider was partiocularly scary............... Ronnie took one look at this cyclist, did a very tight 360 degress and galloped down the rode in the opposite direction........I thought that I had stopped the mad mare in her tracks as she started to go, so I sat back and pulled her to a stop, but I was dillusional, she spun round and we joined the gallop.

So there we are galloping down the road, to top it off I lost a stirrup and it is flapping against the Mad Mare who is taking it as a signal to go faster..... like she needs any help. All I could think of was my instructor telling me to sit upright and sit deep....................which I did, No I did not fall off, I wrapped my legs round her and I was going no where............apart from down the road in fifth gear.

I finally manage to haul...... (yes, i am sorry but it was haul) the Mad Mare to a stop, which made Ronnie stop as well, thank goodness, but this is so unbelivable, a car trys to squeeze between the two horses having just witnessed the whole incident....... I am at this point still uncannily calm, cause despite the circumstances, we have managed to stop and the horses have responded to us.....................but the car incident nearly brought me too tears, more out of fruatration and I suspect a bit of shock as well.

After our unscheduled gallop we continued to the beach, not one of these people that turn round and go home when things go wrong (there is a time and place, but this was not one of them) and continued to the beach. We rode in the sea and had a fab time, we then trotted the length of the bridle path and arrived home three hours later.

Well by the time we get home, my legs have turned to jelly legs, (from keeping them wrapped round the Mad Mares abdo) and I have worked up a bit of a sweat.......Despite the dressage on tarmac I am still pleased with Mad Mare, yes, she was very unsettled afterwards and spooked at evey spookable item, but I was able to ride her through each spooky phase.........and although acceptance of my aids were not as responsive as they should have been, she did respond.

Oh well another adventure......................alls well that ends well !!!!!!

Hoofing it............................at top speed (down the road)