anyone brave enough to post??

Dee - I love the second pic! You look incredibly happy!

Errrr

I have to ask ladies, my biggest problem as a large rider in a western saddle was dismounting, what with the issues of not wanting to have all ones weight on one stirrup to step off, then trying to navigate excess flesh around the saddle horn, without getting a bra (industrial strength) caught on said horn, well I struggled.

I bought an Abetta Endurance so get away from the horn issue, and of course English is easier still, so how do you dismount safely and elegantly as a big girl with a western saddle?

Bra on the horn is a killer. Have gotten hung up once and it scared me silly. I think I keep my hand on the horn , my left, so that my bra can't get over it. But, I have had my pants get hung up on the horn, my wasteband, when the hrose I was riding reared and I leaned forward and found my "evil twin" (my muffin top family) going over the horn. Then, when said horse started to buck, I could not sit up straight and ended up literally hanging off the side of a bucking horse, by the waistband of my pants. That was a bad moment in my head, but pants ripped and laid me down in the dirt, nice and gently.

My good friend stitched 'em back up and now I call them my Frankenstien pants.

It was one of the best moments in recent memory - the first time I'd been on a horse in 20+ years. I don't know which made me happier, the fact that I actually had the nerve to try to ride Dancer, or the fact that she didn't try to kill me (like she did her last rider) or the fact that she didn't buckle in the middle from all that weight!

I've only hooked my bra on the saddle horn twice. Once was last year, decided to run barrels on my old mare and it'd been so long I forgot just how hard she launches off the line. Leaned into it with her, caught my bra and sure enough ripped the center, thank god for the sports bra over the top!

Did find a pic of a bigger me since tiny called me out
This is me on one of the touring Lipizzan stallions at their home barn 4 years ago. It was a lot of fun!

I have always been a little "fluffy" while I had horses...even in my younger days, but nothing like now, of course. I always kicked out of my right stirrup and swung over, but my upper body was well over the center line of the horse, so I kept myself "counter balanced." I would support my weight with my arms - even as large as I am now, that's not too hard. Then kick out of the left stirrup and drop to the ground. Actually, slide out of the saddle to the ground. Haven't hung my bra on the saddle horn.

Only two bad things with my dismount...I seemed to have developed some "belly rolls" and they don't much like my sliding down out of the saddle. Especially if my shirt rides up and it's bare skin sliding down the leather...ouch.

The other thing? Definitely to remember - NOT to dismount on the downhill side of a tall(ish) horse - the drop is farther than you think! Knee is still a tad painful!

Great pics, everyone! And such nice horses - I'm not even going name those I liked the best, all are just gorgeous.

You can leave my mutt out of that gorgeous list - she's butt ugly...but I love her anyway!

Me an Lunan 13.3 fell pony










I have lost 16 lbs since these were taken and now on a weight management programme to help me shift the weight. My ponies are my reason to lose the weight :)

JOE,

Your horse is SO CUTE!