A Catch

Jill's last boss one said he thought most of the guys that worked there, did so, so as to hang around with her.  She had worn polyester space clothes as a cashier at an adventure game in the evenings after being a horse camp counsellor by day, before her first year of university.

Her new lesson buddy was debating about taking on a new contract, because she felt the client had a romantic interest in her. She was afraid it was conflict of interest to take his money, when she didn't feel romantically about him.  Meanwhile, she ALSO wanted to work for a guy that she had a crush on, ha.

They saddled up to this chatter and set out the arena right on time.

*
"If I was in charge of this operation," Jill said to her beautiful sidekick,  "he would be wearing his helmet, he would be working the horse in a fenced corner and we would be laying ground poles for the other barriers.  Horses are very barrier oriented and it would help."

It was entertaining to see the expert manage the sprited young horse.  It was a beautiful first day of spring!  The very tall man had a very hard time keeping the tiny bay gelding going round properly.  He would either rush on and buck or stop, quickly turn in and turn the other way.

"Good!"  Jill shouted to the man, many years her senior and far more credentialed than she, every time he insisted on sending the horse FORWARD the same way around the circle, instead of allowing the horse to turn in, or stop.  As if it was her business!

The horse was quite adept at his evasion and his owner was quite adept at addressing it.  And, when forced to go the way he didn't want to go, he would gallop, then stop, on and on.  What a naughty boy!  "Good!"  Jill would encourage the lunger, who was very strong, and consistent in the right way, anything a little slow in his movements he made up with stregnth.  Quite a pleasure to watch lunge, all in all.

And then, the next thing you knew... the horse was loose and running free and fast.  Jill had closed the the main gate behind them but not latched it.  There was a red gate between the big field he was in and the even bigger field next door, and that's where they were standing.  Jill ran to the other metal gate, pulling the red one behind her saying "close the gate" and closing the human sized gap the horse was gunning for.  Ho! HO! HO. She was waving her arms at him and leapt up on the gate as he screeched to a halt going deep with his forelegs into the mud.  Jills feet moving up the fence actually had connected with is flesh in passing. Unbelievable. A true brush with death.

"You should have seen the hoofprints in the mud where he stopped.  It was a miracle he stopped.  It was a miracle he didn't flip into the metal gate even after stopping."

And, in then in three simple steps Jill caught hold of his lunge line, and stood at his head and he stood, with thundering heaving sides.  They were ALL out of breath.

The lunger came over saying "many horses kill themselves when they find themselves dragging something like that, so,,,er,  jolly good.  But, I'm not going to let him get away with it." and went right back to where they had left off.

Wonderful!