On joining the ranks of horse owners, I made a whole new group of friends who have become a very great part of my life. We are all ‘middle-aged’ women who spend a lot of time together along with our equine pals. One event that has become a tradition for us each year is to ride to our friend, Mhairi’s farm, where we keep our horses for a couple of days before riding back to the stables. The horses seem to enjoy this mini-break as much as we do. This poem describes the ride in 2003.

The Ride To LochLetter

In blistering heat, the posse set off,
Six riders (and Bridie and Dave),
Destination – LochLetter – for two days of fun
In the midst of the summer heat wave.
Pat practised ‘Parelli’ wherever she could,
Kitted out like a dude on a ranch,
Till Harry decided to do his own thing,
Veering off to trot under a branch.
The mares, on a mission, were walking ahead,
Both striding out nicely through Drum,
In unusual good humour, young Tansy remained
If those geldings stayed clear of her bum!
Armed with ‘throw-away’ cameras, the ride had to stop
For numerous staged photo calls,
‘Still, this is much better,’ the horses agreed,
‘Then spending all day in the stalls.’
Further on, in the bracken, the sun still beat down,
And Teasle had started to itch,
Hot and sticky, he tried to back up to seek shade,
Almost dumping poor Jill in a ditch.
Now up on Drumclune, their hoofbeats were heard
On the road that was dusty and long,
Amid all the blether and laughter and flies,
This ‘six legged’ band plodded on.
And then, in the distance, LochLetter in sight,
The equines all gave silent cheer,
Jock whickered to Tally, ‘When we get to your house,
Any chance of a nice ice-cold beer?’
Mhairi’s Shetlands were waiting to greet this new herd,
While Mo Chridh and Ginny looked on,
Jock snorted to Teasle, ‘Which one do you like?’
His thoughts were wine, women and song.
Now the journey was over, the horses could rest,
While their owners cleaned tack and made dinner,
And all in agreement, declared during tea,
The ride to LochLetter a winner!