Fur Feather Meds shopping delivery

When asked what present I would like for my name day (Finnish celebration, like a mini-birthday) of course a horse girl like me is going to answer with saddle pad and bandages! Since in Finland there isn't a wide selection of saddle pads - apart from the very common ones - I decided to order online. I returned to my favourite shop Fur Feather Meds from where I've already bought stuff from before (you can read about it here!)

 1. "Patent" over-reach boots! I have been dreaming about boots like these for ages! At only £17, they are a bargain. These will look really good when training and at competitions.

 2. HV Polo bandages in navy. I cannot describe in words how much I adore HV Polo stuff, and these bandages have gone straight up to number one as my favourite bandages! I love the design, they're a really good length and width, and pretty thick so they will last for a long time and through many washes.

3. HV Polo Oxford saddle pad in navy. This is even more beautiful in real life. I really like every little detail on the pad, the navy stripe edging, the logo at the corner, the silver and white ropes as well as the HV sewn into the pad! So pretty, and the fact that they last long and cope well with washes makes HV Polo saddle pads great.

And one of the best things with FFM is that if you wait patiently, Lily will reward you with a little gift! This time I got a lovely euro-star pair of socks, which are so soft! Thank you!

30 Day Equestrian Challenge, Day #5

30 Day Equestrian Challenge

Day 5 - Your first fall

I can't remember my first fall, but it was probably when I was tiny and had just started riding! I started riding on little shetland ponies, and knowing their character one of them was the first one to buck me off. Since this is such a short answer, I decided to answer a similar one of your most recent fall.

My most recent fall is 2 years ago when I was hacking out with Nelli in the woods, and decided to canter. Since the track around the woods is very uphill/downhill and twisty, the horses can't really go super fast like they would on an even flat open field, which suits me just fine!

I was cantering up a hill, and decided to lift my bum out of the saddle to help Nelli since we were going up a pretty steep hill. Apparently it helped her too much, because she then decided to do her classic quick fire succession of bronco bucks, which resulted in me landing in the bushes... Not my finest hour. Luckily Nelli is a sweet mare and decided to stop as soon as I was on the ground. I can still remember the look on her face, watching me and wondering what I was doing on the ground? And I did get back on as soon as I could, using an old tree stump as a stool!

 

30 Day Equestrian Challenge, Day #4

30 Day Equestrian Challenge

Day 4 - Describe the most important horses you've had in your life

I've had this page open for the last fifteen minutes because (once again...) it has been pretty difficult to chose the most important horses, because I feel like every single horse that I have ever ridden has given something to me, and from every horse you learn something and that makes each horse important in my eyes!

1. Briggsen, my first pony
I cannot thank this pony enough. Thanks to his success at getting me off his back every single day (sometimes more than once a day!) for the first 6 months of being with us, I now have developed pretty good stickability. After my pony, no other horse than Nelli has been able to buck me off, and quite a few have tried their best!

Briggsen was the best choice for me as a first pony, he was young and wild and a bit crazy, but he had a heart of gold. He was so sweet that even my grandparents fell in love with him! A cheeky little bugger, but what else would you want as your first pony? I remember the first time that I rode him that I totally loved him from the first second onwards. A bit spooky, but deep down inside I knew that he would teach me a lot of things about horses.

2. Vallu
My 'little' superstar schoolmaster who has taught me all the fancy moves, as well as teaching me about teaching trust. A challenging horse that I will figure sometime soon, he is my super horse. Every single little victory, like being able to canter out on a hack seems like winning an Olympic gold medal. I know we can make it together, and show everyone how good we are one day!

Vallu is spooky, distrusting, lovable, very clever and a big giant teddybear in the stable. He has such a wide range of character, one day he can be a firecracker to ride when training and then the next day he'll act like a sloth when walking out on a hack. Riding him is always a challenge, because you have to be quick enough to stay five steps ahead of him. But I've never been one to back down from a challenge.

3. Basse
I can't not include baby B in this list, because he is and always will be the most important and special horse that I've had in my life. My first horse, my first young horse, my first competition horse etc, he is the horse of firsts. Like your first love, you can never forget it.

Basse is such a cool dude, he's always relaxed and easy going. He is the total opposite of me, and that's why I love him to bits. Although you do sometimes get the rare shot of energy/excitability when going out for a canter in the woods, Basse seldom puts more energy into his work than he has to, which is alright because that's just who he is. He makes me laugh everyday, whether it be the twinkle in his eye when someone else is riding him and he isn't giving them anything for free (like today) or whether he is sleeping in his paddock, or having a temper tantrum at 6 o'clock in the morning when I'm too slow at giving him his morning feed. He has lots of little things that make him incredibly special to me.

Special mentions:

I couldn't press publish until I mentioned a few very special horses. Nelli, Rama, Pinski, Balou, Bob, and Curro. Thank you all for teaching me so much ♥

30 Day Equestrian Challenge, Day #3

30 Day Equestrian Challenge

Day 3 - Your best ride ever

Day 3's challenge has really been a difficult choice for me, because it took me a loooooong time to chose a single best ride ever. I've had three best rides all on different horses; Basse, Rama and Vallu, but for the sake of the challenge I have chosen my best ride ever with Basse, way back in 2008!!

Basse was just 6 years old, and it was our first year of competing together. We were at Hickstead, did a Novice 38 and got 72.90%!!! The feeling of euphoria when we finished the test was something that I can still remember five years later! It's so rare that everything just clicks together and falls perfectly into place at a competition, but this time it did.  

To get an 8 for my position and seat is simply amazing! The result of the test is my personal best score, and I will always treasure that ride and the feeling that Basse gave me. It is my best ride ever.

30 Day Equestrian Challenge, Day #2

30 Day Equestrian Challenge

Day 2 - The last time you rode a horse and what you did

The last time I rode a horse was yesterday! Heh, what a surprise. Although the last time I rode a horse I did manage to reach a huge milestone with Vallu, as we were able to go for a relaxed canter round the woods when hacking out! Since this spring I have been trying to get Vallu to chill when hacking out, but our trips usually end up being cut short by a spooking, cantering/piaffing Vallu who decided that the birds singing in the trees are too scary. During the last 2 weeks, V has somehow become more relaxed, and now appears to enjoy going out for a walk. Fingers crossed this will continue once we're in Nottingham, and then we could go for really long hacks during the weekend!

Vallu was more interested in eating everything within his reach rather than walking on in the woods. He also always manages to get a huge branch instead of just a mouthful of leaves, and he spent the next 5 minutes chewing this one!

First time in the woods 2013, I was leading him around on the ground