more on mounting aids

["Judy Weaver" <JWEAV@sc.co.contra-costa.ca.us>]

I'm behind on reading messages, so if this subject has been worked to death forgive me.

I'm so pleased to learn that others find it hard to mount their horses and resort to blocks, rocks, fences, ditches and anthills!??!  Sometimes Toots and I look like a merry-go-round while I turn him this way and that to find the low spot for him and the high spot for me.

I second the notion that if you use an aid for mounting be sure it is stable.  I tried standing on a lightweight molded plastic chair to mount a horse bareback (the horse, not me).  The chair flipped out from under me and I ended up on my backside under the horses body between front and rear legs.  He was calm about it and except for giving me a worried look tht HE had done something srong stood absolutely still while I got up, dusted myself off, checked for damge, put the chair away pronto, and found something solid to stand on!!

Another thought - check your riding apparel.  I learned to ride western and often still ride in blue jeans.  I find they bind around my thighs and knees and limit my lifting my leg or bending my knee enough to reach the stirrup.  So I do a lot of shifting of my pants leg to try to get more give and stretch.    I don't need to do this when I wear my stretchy riding tights.  Same for my boots which fit snug around my ankles and limit bending of my foot while tennis shoes dont.

So maybe it isn't our bodies getting old and stiff after all!!

Judy in No. Calif (where it must be 70 degrees out today but I'm stuck inside)
Toushaa (you want ME to stand still next to WHAT!!!)