Well, a filly, really. She's just four years old. I said I was NOT going to do it...not going to buy another horse....not going to buy a MARE....especially a young one....but then Christan said she was perfect for me...
...you see where this is going. It actually all started about two years ago, when I was in-between horses, and I was perusing one of my favorite sites for "horse eye candy", Mapleshade Farm's website. There was this filly, an Oldenburg by the stallion Donatelli, only about two years old. She was cute as a button and very well-put together, but the price was rather high. I inquired on her anyway, seeing as she had been up there for a while. The price had been dropped to around $10k, but it was still too high for me and I didn't really want a two-year old that would do nothing but sit around and eat its head off before I could ride it.
Right before we moved from off Hollybrook Lane back to Denny's, Christan had gotten in this very lovely, dark bay filly for sale/training. I admired her, but didn't think anything about it as her breeding is quite good and I didn't think I had a chance in hell of buying her, not to mention that I really didn't want to replace Sam just yet, and I was half-heartedly interested in Winny, the little dapple grey TB that Christan also has for sale. Not that interested in him, though - I was pretty happy with working with just Oliver. Fast-forward to a week ago. Christan tells me that the filly is absolutely wonderful, and if I wasn't totally against buying another horse, I should really consider her because her brain was fabulous. Yeah, yeah, I thought - still don't want another horse. Skip ahead to Thursday, for my lesson afternoon. I had come out a bit earlier due to taking a mental health day at school, and ran out of time to head down to Cabin Branch to drop off the blankets, so I was there in time for Christan to suddenly show up riding the mare. Wow. I really hadn't seen her close up, just in the field, and she is beautiful. Very much the Warmblood, with good, thick bone and very rounded. Dark, dark bay, with a small white star and I think two white hind bobby-socks. I was impressed just looking at her, and Christan headed off down to the arena to work her. Curiousity got the better of me, so instead of spending some quality time with Oliver, I took a short cut through his field, gave him a cookie, and then attempted to crawl through the fence to get to the dressage arena (didn't work). Again, wow. As I sat on the wrong side of the fence, watching the two of them, I noticed that she had a nice, sweepy stride that looked quite promising, and her canter seemed nice and rhythmic. Very impressive considering the mare hadn't been doing this all that long. Christan told me to get on her, and of course I couldn't resist, so I grabbed my chaps and helmet and we went into the jumping arena.
She is a nice, broad girl. Her neck seems a little shorter to me than Oliver's, but her shoulder is beautiful - nice and long and laid back. She still doesn't completely understand what contact means, but it didn't take her long to figure out what I wanted. When I asked for the trot, she really pushed from behind and she was very nicely forward, which I didn't expect since she appears so quiet from the ground. Her trot is going to be very, very good - I tried to sit back, roll my shoulders back, and get her to sit down a little more, and even though she couldn't hold it for long, she tried without complaint, and when she tried - wow! She's going to be very, very fancy! She even knows her leads at the canter, and picks them up better than Oliver (probably because she really can push from behind into it). Christan suggested that I pop her over a crossrail, which I didn't want to do since we were riding in her dressage saddle, but I trusted her (both C and the mare) and we headed for a crossrail made of two painted planks, with a plank set in between, parallel to the ground. Not the most inviting crossrail for a baby, but the mare just sighted it, and then hopped over it without a look. Impressive. So, Christan got back on, and took her out to the xc field behind the arena, Keith and Coda following. CHristan trotted her up the bank, dropped her off the bank (you could see the mare thinking about it as she flopped her big ears around, but didn't hesitate), and then popped her over the ditch - she dropped her head for a look but didn't pause), and then cantered on down over a little BN jump. Apparently there was a herd of deer on the other side, but you couldn't even tell from watching her because she never missed a beat. I was about 99% ready to buy her, but I wanted to take her trail riding myself and see if I could push any of her bad buttons (if she had any).
So, on Saturday, Cindy came out with me to ride Oliver while I rode the mare. She was a big, goofy four year old in the crossties - trying to eat the fuel cover on the tractor, trying to climb into the tiny space between the tractor and the stall door, etc. I was beginning to have some small doubts and started looking for reasons not to buy her (did I really want to deal with a BIG, goofy four year old again?), but since we had gotten this far, I at least needed to take her out on the trail. She stood quietly by Cindy's side while I rode Oliver first, just sleeping. I figured that if she were going to be pissy, it would be after standing there, tacked up, just waiting. I got on (no problems) and then proceeded to talk Cindy through riding Oliver from her back - again, she just fell asleep under me. It was time to get her moving, so I started her trotting, and remembered just how green she was - lots of leaning on the bit, popping her shoulder, etc, but it didn't take her long to remember how to move. At this point, I was still looking for an "out", so I trotted over the little x that we had jumped yesterday - she picked up the canter three strides out and jumped it beautifully (I was in my jumping saddle this time), and then I decided to circle around and jump the first vertical on the outside line. I figured that if she wobbled too much, I was going to circle and not try and do the four strides to the oxer out, which was about 2'3 and had the flower boxes underneath. She jumped the vertical nicely,landed, wobbled, but then straightened herself up and did a beautiful four strides out over the oxer with ease. I yelled to Cindy, "THIS is why I'm buying this horse!" because at that point, I knew I was going to. Never in my life would I have considered taking a VERY green four year old down a line, much less to a scary, bright oxer, when I had only ridden her for about 15 minutes a couple of days before. It was difficult to remember that she is only FOUR, and a young four at that.
Cindy and I went into the field and then wandered down the little path into the upper xc field. The mare didn't care if she led, followed, if the bugs were eating her alive (they were certainly bothering Oliver!), and even down the lane between the trees, where the creek is burbling, she didn't get antsy or snorty - just marched on down like an old trail horse. We emerged into the xc field, and I took her into the start box and then out over the big telephone pole "X". She cantered over the x like she had been doing it all her life, and then I went down, turned right (scared up some deer but she didn't even blink), and then cantered over the scary red rails that always seem to spook the horses. She took a longish spot and popped me a little out of the tack, but again - didn't hesistate. That was when I knew I couldn't let this one go. We finished our trail ride around the property without a hitch and I told Christan I'd write her a check that day.
The new mare's name is Bella Sera (beautiful evening), and I'm calling her Bella. Her registered name is Denali, and I toyed with calling her Dani, but I have a friend name Dany and I wasn't sure she'd appreciate the honor. Plus, Bella really fits her. I cannot believe the brain on this mare. Christan made me a heck of a deal and I would have been crazy to turn it down.
So, here's to two-horse ownership again! May it be less bumpy and more fruitful than last time.
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