Questions and Concerns

Barn 2 is the "adult barn"... it's a place where people have "pets" and not the hobby of horseback riding. OK... that's not true for EVERYONE there, but it is for the most part. It's nice, but I'm not there just to chat all the time. Again, it's not 100% true that all they do is hang out, but they definitely don't ride much. Those that ride are on a different schedule so I never see too many people at the farm.

The few that ride when I do are people that I wouldn't trust on a trail to react in a safe manner in the event something happened. Again, this is not everyone, but a general assumption. There are a few kinds of people: the ones that I wouldn't trail ride out with, the ones that won't trail ride, and the ones that don't even ride. That about sums it up. This really doesn't help with switching up Spyder's routine or getting him used to being in the ring with other horses. He's always been behaved at shows, but he gets bored there just as much as he is getting at the farm.

Now how could he be bored? Well, it's me. I won't go on a trail alone, and I very rarely ride over to the "kid's barn" where the indoor is located. The jumps over there are always smaller, but I've been too lazy or not had enough time to get over there. There is SO much to do all over, though - trails, water, track, rings, dressage, jumps, cross country, etc. Any barn closer (or further for that matter) doesn't have nearly the amount of amenities that we have at our disposal. This price is also hard to beat for less things to do. A huge factor is safety. I'm not going to ride out and get hurt and then hope someone finds me or I am OK. Am I scared or just cautious? Not sure.

The problem? The lack of people to ride with. It gets SO boring riding on your own over and over again. I don't try new things for fear of getting hurt and being alone when it happens, if it happens. Do i get a trailer? If I got one, would I use it enough? Would not having a truck limit me? This is debatable because my dad has an extra, in-laws have an extra, and brother-in-law has one; however, they are all within 25 - 45 minutes away - with another 25 minutes to an hour from each location I borrowed a truck. If I had a trailer, where would I go and who would I go with? Is there even a point to getting one?

There is a farm in my development. Yes, I could walk there, BUT it's $100 more and it's just an outdoor ring and an indoor. The place has heat/air conditioning for the indoor, stalls, and tack area, but you are so limited. It's a huge lesson barn, and where you can ride depends on the schedule. Another fault, they only do 1/2 day turn out. While each horse gets their own stall, they can only be turned out for 12 hours because there is limited field space. I think Spyder would go crazy which in turn, would make me go crazy.

So, there leaves the dilemma, and I need a plan for the big picture and the smaller one. Where should we be? What do I want to be doing with my horse? Can that be done in the current situation? What are my smaller goals and how can I gear training towards them? I feel like we've lost this touch and I don't know what to do. Good think I have a honeymoon to go on. I'll have a lot of time to think about it.