reinersblog.com

The folks I work with at the “real job” don’t know much about horses, most never been on one. So I get all the standard questions. What do you do with em? Isn’t it expensive? Isn’t it a lot of work? Ain’t that dangerous?

I can’t ever answer em. What do you say? When you think about it I guess they’re right, it don’t make a lot of sense.

But you all know what I mean. Them first few steps on  a colt’s first ride. The first trot. The first lope. That moment when you ask for the stop and you feel that back end drop. Wiggling a finger and feeling that face give. The precision of a sidepass. Feeling that pivot foot lock in. When everything comes together even for just a split second.

You might spend hours, days, weeks months working on the slightest maneuver. But when it finally happens every second of work was worth it.

I usually ride alone. Mostly cause I’m afraid anyone else might think I’m nuts going goo goo over what seems like something simple. They have no clue why I’m telling my horse he’s the greatest thing since oxygen because he put one foot in the right place at the right time. Hell, sometimes I think the horse thinks I’m nuts. Wife knows I’m nuts but it’s in the contract she gotta tolerate me.

I suppose closest I’ll ever get to a major reining show is a seat in the bleachers. But every day I’m on the back of a horse I find a way to win a million dollar event. Least ways it feels like I did.

One of these days I’ll see one of you all ride in one of them major events. Maybe even win the whole thing. And when you do, don’t go bein shy about it. No matter how silly you look celebratin there’ll be one fella that knows exactly what you mean.