Rites of passage
22 May 2007 22:38![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
glenatronYesterday I drove a horsebox for the first time- after a nightmare time finding anyone to get us to the clinic the weekend after next one of the other owners on the yard very kindly offered to let us borrow hers so I went out with her to collect some shavings and so she could teach me to drive it.
It was a very interesting experience. I think the box is a similar age to me, it has a maximum speed of about 55mph and the brakes aren't great, all of which means you're pretty much compelled to drive it like a horsebox rather than driving it like a car. The thing I found hard was actually giving enough space for slowing down - I drive a lot further behind other cars than most people, but this needed a whole lot more care and anticipation than I'm used to and a lot more use of the engine to keep things slow rather than the brakes.
It will be fine, no doubt.
Also, after Saturday's brilliant ride I had a really good lesson on Sunday ( I'm getting closer to the elusive goal of keeping my feet down and my hands down during rising trot ) and today, just to balance things out, Zorro kicked me.
Normally I'm very happy to say these things are my fault, but in this case he was basically being a sod. I'm sure I could have phrased things in such a way that it wouldn't have crossed his mind to try and lamp me, but I'm not expert enough to do that yet. It's only a couple of weeks until the clinic, though, at which point a) Zorro will meet Steve and there'll be fireworks and b) I'll be left with a whole lot of great ideas for how to take things forward.
Still, an educational couple of days- my first drive in a horsebox, my first kick, a whole lot of novelty right there.
It was a very interesting experience. I think the box is a similar age to me, it has a maximum speed of about 55mph and the brakes aren't great, all of which means you're pretty much compelled to drive it like a horsebox rather than driving it like a car. The thing I found hard was actually giving enough space for slowing down - I drive a lot further behind other cars than most people, but this needed a whole lot more care and anticipation than I'm used to and a lot more use of the engine to keep things slow rather than the brakes.
It will be fine, no doubt.
Also, after Saturday's brilliant ride I had a really good lesson on Sunday ( I'm getting closer to the elusive goal of keeping my feet down and my hands down during rising trot ) and today, just to balance things out, Zorro kicked me.
Normally I'm very happy to say these things are my fault, but in this case he was basically being a sod. I'm sure I could have phrased things in such a way that it wouldn't have crossed his mind to try and lamp me, but I'm not expert enough to do that yet. It's only a couple of weeks until the clinic, though, at which point a) Zorro will meet Steve and there'll be fireworks and b) I'll be left with a whole lot of great ideas for how to take things forward.
Still, an educational couple of days- my first drive in a horsebox, my first kick, a whole lot of novelty right there.
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Date: 23 May 2007 10:07 (UTC)Of course, if it had caught my knee that would be another matter...