A Horse, Of Course

Northern Kalea Peninsula

(This is a thread from Mizahar's fantasy role playing forum. Why don't you register today? This message is not shown when you are logged in. Come roleplay with us, it's fun!)

The vast mountain range of Kalea is home of secret valleys, dead-end canyons, and passes that lead to places long forgotten or yet to be discovered.

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Lani Stranger on October 23rd, 2018, 6:46 pm

“Uhh, are you sure I’m not too big?” She glanced at the horse in front of her. He seemed like a sturdy mount, and clearly bored with whatever the mortals around him were doing. She had asked the older human to learn to ride, and he said he would teach her, she just thought it might be on a bigger horse.

“Yeah, miss six foot, you’ll be just fine.” He said, patting the horse’s nose for a brief moment. He came up to her shoulder, and the horse’s shoulder came up to her shoulder as well. Regardless, she felt a little large, she always felt a little large. “Yeah, what are you waiting for, hop on and I’ll walk you around the camp.”

“Okaay.” She feigned confidence. She had never ‘hopped on’ a horse. She typically sat in the cart, she always sat in the cart, horses were hard. Lani reached out to brush the horse’s fur on its neck in front of its saddle. There was a warm dry feeling to it and she could feel the dirt clinging to her fingers, but didn’t mind nearly as much as if it was oily. In perhaps the most awkward fashion she could emulate, the mixed girl stuck a right foot into the right stirrup, placing one hand on either side of the saddle and prepared to pull herself up. She could feel the horse shift to brace itself beneath her, but the human interrupted her before she even started to get on.

“Woah, woah, what are you doing?”

“Getting on a horse?” She asked, unsure of what she did wrong.

“Not like that, you aren’t. Have you ever gotten on a horse before?”

“… Not from the ground…” Lani reluctantly shared, unsticking her right foot from the stirrup and stepping back.

“Okay, that’s fine. Watch me.” He said, directing her towards the front of the horse so she could see. He did not hand her the reins, but clutched them in his left hand. In a smooth, experienced movement, he placed his hands on either side of the saddle, and stuck his left foot in the left stirrup. He pulled himself up with his arms and swinging his right leg over the saddle, inserting his right foot into the stirrup off of memory. “Mount the horse from its left near side. Place your left foot in the left stirrup and launch your body up and over. Next, lift the right leg gently over the horse's back and insert your right foot into the right stirrup.”

“You make it look easy.” She said, watching him dismount on the same side, and then motioning for her to switch places with him.

“’Kay, go for it.” He nodded to her, still holding the reins. She followed his movements and instructions as exactly as she could, sticking a left foot in the stirrup. She was flexible so it was fine, but she could already tell this stirrup would be too short for her. Hoping the saddle wouldn’t move, she squarely placed a hand on each side and ‘launched’ herself up. She miscalculated, and ended up having to gruelingly slowly pull herself upright, before swinging her right leg over the back of the horse. It took her a minute to find the stirrup with her right foot, and she tried not to kick the horse while she did so. She felt the creature shudder under her when she tightened her thighs, but the human soothed the horse easily.
User avatar
Lani Stranger
Wanderer
 
Posts: 649
Words: 697231
Joined roleplay: March 21st, 2014, 11:48 pm
Location: Wind Reach
Race: Mixed blood
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Mizahar Grader (1) Overlored (1)
Wind Reach Seasonal  Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)
2018 Mizahar NaNo Winner (1)

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Lani Stranger on October 23rd, 2018, 6:47 pm

“Okay, see not so hard? Now, make sure you’re sitting right.” He draped the reins over the horse’s neck which made her nervous, but the beast hardly reacted, still relaxed while people climbed all over him. “You’re going to want to sit up straight, imagine drawing a straight line through your ear, shoulder, hip, and heel.” He said, lightly poking the parts of her that were supposed to be in line. Her legs were far too long for the stirrups, and so she could straighten her ear, shoulder, and hips, but her heels were vastly out of line.

“I think the stirrups need to… thanks.” He was already loosening the buckle at her right foot, adjusting it lower so that it lined up for her. He walked over and did the other. She felt like a child’s doll toy sitting in an unnaturally straight position atop this toy horse. She wiggled slightly, trying to balance her weight without messing with the alignment.

“The bulk of your weight should be resting on your bum.” He said, stepping back to check her posture. Nodding to himself, he stepped forward and began wiggling her feet. It felt like she was supposed to take her heels out of the stirrups so she pulled them out, and he sighed.

“No, no. Your toes should be higher than your heels, and your feet should turn in. Don’t spray them like a toddler. Remember, you're sort of hugging the horse with your legs. You shouldn't squeeze the horse too tightly, but have your legs curved inwards towards the horse.” She stuck her feet back into the stirrups, trying to follow his direction. It didn’t feel natural, and she didn’t know how to ‘hug the horse’ without squeezing the thing between her legs, but she tried, holding tense in the proper position.

“Good?”

“Good enough.” He grinned, casually reaching up to the horse’s neck and snagging the reins off its neck. Lani rolled her eyes. “Now these western reins are easier than eastern ones. They aren’t looped, so just double fist ‘em.” He handed her the reins, and she leaned slightly forward to grab them. It was a small workout for her abs to steady herself back straight. She split the reins into each hand, letting the top feed down into her fist so the tails fell below. The human didn’t comment on this, so she assumed it was right, or at least okay.

“And now we kick, right?” She asked, eager to get going. The road looked smooth and far in front of her, and she wanted to see if she could get the horse to run.

“Uhh, no. Each horse is trained real different; this guy listens to vocal cues. But before we get him going, there is a few more things.” The man was still standing real close to her and the horse, close enough that she didn’t feel comfortable getting the creature started. “When the horse is moving, you should move the reins with its head. He responds to pressure on his face, so if his head is bouncing while he is trotting and you aren’t allowing for movement, he will assume you are tugging and want him to slow, and you won’t get a steady trot.” The human reached up and pulled some slack from her reins, she was still holding them, but there was much more room for movement now.

“Now check if you have the right length, by pulling those reins towards your chest—“ Before he finished, Lani did so, and the horse began to pull back, scaring the halfblood enough for her to let out a little shriek and drop the reins. The horse stopped, and the human laughed, patting the beast of the shoulder. “Yeah, I was going to tell you that he would move.”
User avatar
Lani Stranger
Wanderer
 
Posts: 649
Words: 697231
Joined roleplay: March 21st, 2014, 11:48 pm
Location: Wind Reach
Race: Mixed blood
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Mizahar Grader (1) Overlored (1)
Wind Reach Seasonal  Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)
2018 Mizahar NaNo Winner (1)

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Lani Stranger on October 23rd, 2018, 6:48 pm

“’Would have been nice to know beforehand.” She sighed, leaning forward to reach down for the reins she dropped.

“You’re too eager,” He teased. “Pulling will stop the horse if he is moving, but if he is stopped, he will move backward. You want to have enough slack to let your horse’s head move, but not enough to force you to lean back if you want to slow or stop him. Unless your horse responds to that, but this guy doesn’t so that isn’t what we are going to learn.” He explained, helping her adjust her grip on the reins, and then motioning for her to try again.

This time when Lani pulled the reins into her chest, and the horse stepped backwards, she was prepared. She tightened the slack slightly so she wouldn’t lean back and then nodded at the human who gave her a thumbs up.

“Reay to go?”

“One more thing before we get started.” He held a finger up. “You have to learn how to steer. This guy responds to rein steering, but some follow feet cues and words. To steer him, just pull on the rein that is the side you want to turn to. If you want to turn right, you’ll pull the right, if you want to turn left, you’ll pull the left. Never both, he will get confused and stop. Now try.” She pulled the right rein to her side, across from the human, and he shook his head. “Oh yeah, for steering, you want to pull into your hip, not your chest.” He remarked, and Lani loosened the rein once again, pulling her left rein, this time angling it down into her hip. The horse turning its whole head easily with her movement, not fighting her direction. She realized she pulled to much because it also tried to step back to turn more completely to the left, and she loosened up on the rein.

“If I pull too much, he starts on his own.” She observed.

“Yup!” The human confirmed her note, and patted the horse on the shoulder once more. “There is a more relaxed way to steer him that only involves one hand, but since this is your first time, lets stick to a direct form of steering.”

“Okay, now you can get going. I’ll start him for you, since he responds to verbal cues, but then we will stop him and you will try. Okay?” Lani felt her nerves flare up as he said this. She didn’t feel entirely in control of the creature she was riding, and it made her nervous.

“Umm, yeah, okay.” She agreed, not entirely certain she was ready but willing to do it anyway. The human stepped back from the horse then, and gave two quick clicks with his tongue. Slowly, the horse shifted his weight and then rolled forward, starting on an easy walk. Lani was startled by how joltingly the horse walked, riders always looked so smooth, it was hard to keep her stiff posture.

“Relax your spine! Let your hips roll with the horse, it’s easier.” Lani tried, confused by what he meant. How was she going to keep her posture if she relaxed her spine? Still it did help when she did. The halfblood kept her shoulders tight and back, but letting her hips move with the horse, which negated much of the uneven feeling. Only now her legs had relaxed from their awkward hugging position, so she tried to tighten them back up. This must have started the horse in some way because he began going faster, which shocked Lani.

“Woah, woah, woah!” She gasped, pulling the reins up her chest immediately, which stopped the horse quickly..
User avatar
Lani Stranger
Wanderer
 
Posts: 649
Words: 697231
Joined roleplay: March 21st, 2014, 11:48 pm
Location: Wind Reach
Race: Mixed blood
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Mizahar Grader (1) Overlored (1)
Wind Reach Seasonal  Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)
2018 Mizahar NaNo Winner (1)

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Lani Stranger on October 23rd, 2018, 6:48 pm

“Hey, you’re alright, girly.” The human was walking along beside them and stepped forward, patting her leg. It felt kind, but weird coming from him.

“I’m good.” She confirmed, bristling slightly at the concern.

“Alright then, go for it.” He stepped back again, and Lani lost the confidence.

No big deal, just a click of the tongue. She worked herself up, glancing over to make sure he was far enough away, and adjusting her position. She fingered the reins in her now sweaty palms, and then gave a sharp two clicks of her tongue. Unlike the last time, the horse lurched forward, and Lani tried to loosen her spine again, while keeping her legs tight. Her nerves were not helping, and within a few ticks she was pulling the reins to stop the horse again.

“Okay not try turning the horse around and coming back to me.” Lani glanced back to see the human had not moved. She tried to not sigh, and pulled tight on the left rein, angling it towards her hip. Just like the last time the horse made a sharp left turn, and began turning in place when she kept pulling. She stopped once the horse was lined up with the direction she wanted to go, but in the time it took her to loosen the rein, the animal had kept turning a bit. With a gentler hand, she tugged the right rein to try and adjust him in the right direction.

Only she pulled too far, and now the horse faced too much to the right. Getting a little frustrated, she gave a sharp tug with the left, and the horse did not respond, stamping it’s foot instead.

“Be gentle!” The human called, watching her. Lani sighed, inhaled deeply, and then gently pulled the left rein into her hip until she felt the horse begin to turn, and then stopped. Now it was more or less lined up in the direction she wanted. She gave herself another second to make sure her posture was good and her reins were adjusted, before clicking her tongue twice.

This time when the horse started forward, she was more prepared, and she rolled her hips with the horse’s gate, and after a few short seconds she was back over by the human, so she pulled the reins into her chest, and slowed the horse. So far the only thing she couldn’t seem to mess up was stopping the thing, but still she was proud of the short fifteen feet she had ridden successfully, even if it was at a slow walking pace.
User avatar
Lani Stranger
Wanderer
 
Posts: 649
Words: 697231
Joined roleplay: March 21st, 2014, 11:48 pm
Location: Wind Reach
Race: Mixed blood
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Mizahar Grader (1) Overlored (1)
Wind Reach Seasonal  Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)
2018 Mizahar NaNo Winner (1)

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Lani Stranger on October 23rd, 2018, 6:49 pm

They had woken up early to do this, but now the sun was peaking over the trees and the camp was beginning to stir.

“Nice job, now for dismounting,” The human stepped up, gathering the reins from her hands. She willingly let them go, and then immediately rubbed her fingers, realizing she had been white-knuckling the reins, and her finger joints were complaining of the strain. “I’ll hold the reins this time, and you basically just copy what you did to get on. Swing your right leg over, and then lower yourself off on the left side.” He instructed. She had to reach down to unstick her foot from the stirrup, but then she swung it over, balancing all her weight on her left foot. Once she was completely on one side, holding herself up by her arms, she pushed off to drop to the ground on her right foot, and then manually unstuck her left foot from the stirrup again.

“You had your feet too tight into the stirrup, you should be able to just pull them out when you’re done. Remember: toes above heels.” He reminded her. She leaned forward, pulling the gathered cloth of her pants out of her crotch and grinned at him.

“Thanks man.” She said, then offered her hand. He didn’t flinch at her very unlady-like adjustments; he was likely used to it. He grinned, shook it, and then spoke. “Actually, if you want I don’t mind waking up twenty minutes early for the next couple of days to help you practice.” He offered slightly more friendly than the half-Eypharian would have liked, but she needed the practice, so she could deal.

“I would like that.” She agreed, before turning back towards the camp to return and help with preparing for that day’s journey.
User avatar
Lani Stranger
Wanderer
 
Posts: 649
Words: 697231
Joined roleplay: March 21st, 2014, 11:48 pm
Location: Wind Reach
Race: Mixed blood
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 5
Mizahar Grader (1) Overlored (1)
Wind Reach Seasonal  Challenge (1) Power Fork (1)
2018 Mizahar NaNo Winner (1)

A Horse, Of Course

Postby Ssezzkero on October 23rd, 2018, 6:49 pm

+5 Riding, +1 Observation, +1 Acrobatics, +1 Horsemanship, Riding: Mount a horse from the left side, Riding: Posture, Riding: Foot placement, Riding: Holding western reins, Riding: Eastern steering, Horsemanship: Different horses respond to different riding cues, Riding: Pull to break, Riding: Click to start, Riding: Move with the horse, Riding: Dismounting
User avatar
Ssezzkero
Player
 
Posts: 439
Words: 249053
Joined roleplay: July 24th, 2014, 4:14 am
Race: Dhani
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes
Medals: 3
Featured Character (1) Mizahar Grader (1)
Overlored (1)


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests