In recent news, I had a big shock today. I go horse-riding every Saturday (have for years) and today I had my first major fall. And wow, it was big! Now, if any horse riding professionals drop in, please don't make fun of me, because I thought it was big.
So there I was, trotting along in neat circles with seven (7!) other riders (numbers change, seven at the same time isn't the most I've had but yes, it gets cramped). My horse - okay, so he's not mine, but let me continue pretending - is called Copper, and he likes to go fast. Which is great, and I love him for it, but it's not useful when you're trotting together with seven other horses and you're third in line. And the horse in front of you kicks.
When this happens, you generally fall into a fast-slow pattern. Which is where Copper goes fast, until, suddenly, he feels the reins and slows down. This lasts for about ten seconds before he gets bored/I-kick-him-on-because-he's-basically-walking and then he's going at about 60kmh.
For all you non-horse fanatics out there, there is this thing called a "forward-going trot" which is, very basically, the proper trot. If your horse isn't doing it, he might trip. Especially if he's Copper and tries to pull the reins out of your hands by pulling down his head.
So - here, after that long speech, comes the important part - one minute I'm trotting along, the next, I feel Copper stumble, his head goes waaaaay down, his knees buckle, and I'm flying over his head.
I will, however, bask in this. I didn't lie there. I got up and went to Copper (was there before my instructor, too) and started patting him as he half-sat/half-lay there and pretending my hands weren't shaking. And my knees. My entire body really.
But despite my tears, my shallow breathing and my uncontrollable shaking, my instructor let me pretend there was nothing wrong and I got back on.
