Our 'Very Interesting' Horseback Ride Experience

If you're a frequent visitor to this site, you know how much I love Living Social deals! Brandon and I have been fortunate enough to have so many fun experiences in Nashville due to the discounts offered on Living Social. This past weekend, we again used a deal purchased from Living Social to go on a private horseback ride. We were so excited because we thought this would be a fun date together. However, in hindsight, I'm not sure 'fun' is the word I would use to describe our trip - maybe 'interesting' is better??

To begin this story, I'll tell you that Brandon and I are probably considered beginners at horseback riding. I rode horses a bit growing up at various camps I attended and have gone for trail rides a few vacations in the past; Saturday was only Brandon's second time riding. Neither of us have had any formal training and  while we feel comfortable around horses, we are by NO means, equestrians. (At this point, you, as the reader, should consider what might be next in my story if I have to start it like this...lol). 

So, our horseback ride began and from the start my horse was stumbling around like it was tired or had a hurt hoof. Other than the occasional 'trip' from my horse (he never fell, but I felt like I was going to a time or two) the first leg of our trip wasn't bad. In the middle was when it started getting scary. It all began when it came time to cross a creek bed. There wasn't any water in the creek, but the banks were really steep. To help our horse descend and ascend the steep banks, the guide instructed Brandon and I to lean back on our horse and to hold the reigns tight. We did as we were instructed. The guide lead the way and her horse did exactly what it should have - but mine and Brandon's horses didn't follow the leader well at all. Instead of easing down and up the banks, they simply jumped the creek entirely....while we were leaning backwards. Now, if you've ever watched someone jump while riding a horse, you know that the rider always leans forward on the jump, so that the landing is cushioned by their tush. Because Brandon and I were leaning back, the impact of the landing went straight up every vertebrae of our spines and into our necks - OUCH! Days later, my spine is still slightly sore from this landing! To top things off (as if a surprise jump to untrained and unexpectant riders wasn't enough) as soon as our horses landed, they were spooked by the sound of a critter nearby and started running chaotically...UPHILL! I know you're probably thinking that I'm making this story up, but I promise, it is totally true!

Once we regained control of our horses, I made a comment to our guide that my horse seemed especially jumpy and was stumbling a lot more than it should be. Her response? That it was because it had me on it's back - as if I was a ton of bricks riding a horse that wasn't trained to carry people (many of whom are much bigger than me) horseback. No remorse whatsoever. No comment or apology about the jump (actually, she laughed when that happened). No sympathy for Brandon and I, who were both uncomfortable about what our unpredictable horses might do next. Little did we know that we should also be worried about what our guide might do next!

Brandon and I were thankful when we began to recognize our surroundings and realize we were close to the end of our nightmare of a horseback ride. We thought we had experienced the worst of the trip and we were finally on our way to getting two feet on the ground. This was all around the time that our guide said "Now, make sure your heels are down in your stirrups and remember that the magic word is 'stop'." Before Brandon or I could ask a question (like, "What the heck are you talking about, crazy?") our guide and her horse took off into a FULL gallop. Of course, this time our horses followed the leader and also took off running after the guide's horse. Again, let me reiterate that Brandon and I have NEVER had formal training to learn how to ride a horse, let alone ride a horse that is galloping! Luckily, the gallop made us get to the end of the trail even faster and I'm sure it goes without saying that Brandon and I were super excited to get off our horses!

While this experience was not what we expected (and a whole lot of what we never want to happen again), we wont allow this to be our last horseback ride. It will however, be our last ride for a while.