I sat astride Cody, trying to get comfortable in the saddle. As I tried to will my hips to relax, I wished I had been taking yoga classes more seriously. I imagined the tolerant, toffee-colored half quarter horse/half Arabian wished I had been eating fewer pepperoni pizzas.
"Well, he is more used to carrying little kids," said Hope Rosenthal, owner of Marcody Ranch. "But he's fine."
I grew up in Texas, and I own two really nice pair of Tony Lamas - one
brown, one black, both alligator hide. However, I hadn't ridden a horse
in ages.
Lately, I had been dreaming of riding horseback on the beach or exploring the equestrian trails that transverse Volusia and Flagler Counties. However, I had painful memories of the special soreness that arises from a long ride without proper preparation. I felt it would be good to slowly break in my backside before riding off into the sunset. Rosenthal agreed to get me started.
I arrived at Marcody Ranch, near Samsula, early on a weekday. Lucy, the world's happiest dog, greeted me at the gate and escorted me into the barn where Rosenthal introduced me to Cody, the "Cody" half of "Marcody."
Rosenthal adopted Lucy from a shelter. She is apparently part border collie - her mission in life is to herd the horses.
Lucy watched patiently as Rosenthal handed me the currycomb and the
brush and showed me how to rid Cody's coat of stray dirt. Learning to
ride is more than a matter of figuring out how to get into the saddle
then manage to not fall off, she explained.
"You learn more than just riding," she says. "It's about love, care, responsibility - and respect for this very large creature" that, if it wanted to, could kick your teeth out. So yes, learning to ride also involves learning how to be safe around horses, which is largely a matter of mindfulness and empathy.
"You have to always be aware of the horse," she says. "Horses are very emotional, very sensitive."
Perhaps that's what draws many of the students, she suggests. While we might think of horses in terms of cowboys, today's typical riding student is female. "I have 50 students, and probably 47 of them are female," Rosenthal says. About 80 percent started riding as children, typically around age 5 or 6.
A few minutes later, I helped saddle Cody, climbed onto his back, then sat there worrying if I was about to make a fool of myself by failing at a sport dominated by 5 ½-year-old girls.
After a few instructions - the basics on steering and stopping a 1,000-pound animal - Rosenthal mounted Ice, a beautiful black half-quarter horse, and bade me follow her on a tour of the ranch.
Lucy loped along beside us as we rode and talked about riding. Rosenthal has been in the horse business "one way or another for 15 years," she says. She and her husband started the Marcody ranch three years ago.
"This had been a longtime dream of mine," she said. "But I lived in Long Island, so it was out of reach. It would be very hard to do this there, with the land prices."
Currently, 17 horses live at the ranch, including Rosenthal's own horses and some boarders.
"Owning a horse is like adopting a pet," she says. "You need to be prepared to take care of it for the rest of its life. And they live 25 to 30 years."
As I settled into Cody's four-gait rhythm, I started dreaming of owning a horse, or at least having regular access to one I could take for rides along local equestrian trails. There are places nearby one can ride in relative wilderness, even camping overnight from horseback.
Horses are very expensive. However, leasing is an option, Rosenthal says. For about $200 per month, one can lease a horse, so it's available to ride. That includes feed, boarding, vet bills and all. She continues to own and use the horse for riding lessons, but it's available when the lessor wants to go for a ride.
Most of her students learn to ride so they can compete in the ring, Rosenthal says, although some just want to get fit.
"It's really whole body," she says. I agreed. After less than an hour on Cody, I was already starting to feel like my every muscle had been run through a wringer.
"And we just walked around," Rosenthal says. "When you do more advanced riding, you really use some muscles - it'll sure get you fit."
For more information, contact Marcody Ranch at marcodyranch.com, or phone 386-424-0123.
Lately, I had been dreaming of riding horseback on the beach or exploring the equestrian trails that transverse Volusia and Flagler Counties. However, I had painful memories of the special soreness that arises from a long ride without proper preparation. I felt it would be good to slowly break in my backside before riding off into the sunset. Rosenthal agreed to get me started.
I arrived at Marcody Ranch, near Samsula, early on a weekday. Lucy, the world's happiest dog, greeted me at the gate and escorted me into the barn where Rosenthal introduced me to Cody, the "Cody" half of "Marcody."
Rosenthal adopted Lucy from a shelter. She is apparently part border collie - her mission in life is to herd the horses.
Lucy watched patiently as Rosenthal handed me the currycomb and the
brush and showed me how to rid Cody's coat of stray dirt. Learning to
ride is more than a matter of figuring out how to get into the saddle
then manage to not fall off, she explained. "You learn more than just riding," she says. "It's about love, care, responsibility - and respect for this very large creature" that, if it wanted to, could kick your teeth out. So yes, learning to ride also involves learning how to be safe around horses, which is largely a matter of mindfulness and empathy.
"You have to always be aware of the horse," she says. "Horses are very emotional, very sensitive."
Perhaps that's what draws many of the students, she suggests. While we might think of horses in terms of cowboys, today's typical riding student is female. "I have 50 students, and probably 47 of them are female," Rosenthal says. About 80 percent started riding as children, typically around age 5 or 6.
A few minutes later, I helped saddle Cody, climbed onto his back, then sat there worrying if I was about to make a fool of myself by failing at a sport dominated by 5 ½-year-old girls.
After a few instructions - the basics on steering and stopping a 1,000-pound animal - Rosenthal mounted Ice, a beautiful black half-quarter horse, and bade me follow her on a tour of the ranch.
Lucy loped along beside us as we rode and talked about riding. Rosenthal has been in the horse business "one way or another for 15 years," she says. She and her husband started the Marcody ranch three years ago.
"This had been a longtime dream of mine," she said. "But I lived in Long Island, so it was out of reach. It would be very hard to do this there, with the land prices."
Currently, 17 horses live at the ranch, including Rosenthal's own horses and some boarders.
"Owning a horse is like adopting a pet," she says. "You need to be prepared to take care of it for the rest of its life. And they live 25 to 30 years."
As I settled into Cody's four-gait rhythm, I started dreaming of owning a horse, or at least having regular access to one I could take for rides along local equestrian trails. There are places nearby one can ride in relative wilderness, even camping overnight from horseback.
Horses are very expensive. However, leasing is an option, Rosenthal says. For about $200 per month, one can lease a horse, so it's available to ride. That includes feed, boarding, vet bills and all. She continues to own and use the horse for riding lessons, but it's available when the lessor wants to go for a ride.
Most of her students learn to ride so they can compete in the ring, Rosenthal says, although some just want to get fit.
"It's really whole body," she says. I agreed. After less than an hour on Cody, I was already starting to feel like my every muscle had been run through a wringer.
"And we just walked around," Rosenthal says. "When you do more advanced riding, you really use some muscles - it'll sure get you fit."
For more information, contact Marcody Ranch at marcodyranch.com, or phone 386-424-0123.
Leave a comment