Tag: horses

Animal Olympics

Posted on

I was at the Waterfront this morning, ostensibly taking my daughter to meet up with a friend, but actually, to secretly watch the Synchronised Sealing.

And they didn’t disappoint:

Wow, check out the Artistic Impression.

Ooh, look at the Technical Merit.

From there, it was a quick race home to change (not me), and then over to riding for an informal gymkhana. And I can’t help but think that Paris 2024 missed a trick by not including the egg-and-spoon or three-legged horse leading [yeah, that doesn’t sound great, but all limbs remained intact, I promise] alongside the dressage and show jumping in Versailles. Something for LA 2028 to consider.

I got several hundred photos there too, but I simply don’t have the time or energy to edit them right now.

Tomorrow is another day.

Back for the moment

Posted on

A first horseriding lesson (not me) for what seems like a lifetime, all because of that weather.

And we’re sneaking this one in before the next cold front comes in tonight.

But it’s already making itself known with a cold northwesterly barreling in off the ocean.

There’s a Feels Like temperature of 3°C.

I’m trying to shelter, but the henhouse shed that I usually hide behind got blown away by the storm last week and has yet to be reinstated. It’s not great, but I get it: why mend stuff ahead of more horrible weather when it’s probably just going to blow away again?

The grooms have been making hay (no pun intended) by painting the jumping poles and turning one of the barns into a storage unit for giant drinking straws. A lovely juxtaposition to the drab, grey conditions outside.

On the drive over here I was once again struck by the signs of damage all the way over the mountain. The only people who have benefited from the last fortnight have been the Cape Town woodchip and sawdust cartels.

So. Many. Branches.

So we’re braced for another 18 hours of heavy rain and nasty wind.

Roll on summer.

Please.

One from the (long) weekend

Posted on

I mentioned our day out at the horse show on Monday. I was there as the photographer for the riders from “our” stables. But I was also there as a husband to, and a father of, a couple of the riders there.

I’m getting better with being around horses, although you won’t find me on the back of one.
My daughter, however…

Here she is taking it easy on this round – at least height-wise – having just last week conquered the frankly terrifying (to me, at least) 90cm mark of “things that horses jump over”. She’s surely old enough now to know better, for those devil-may-care days and juvenile lack of any fear to have passed.

Right?

But… eish…

I’m so impressed. And quite regularly quite scared.

Photo by 6000.co.za.
Thanks for taking the time to take it, edit and share it – all free of charge, too.
Much appreciated.

I must point out that all the riders and families (including my own) from the stables are always very thankful and grateful for the images.

Other people? Mmm. Not so much.

9 minutes

Posted on

A hugely busy day, but for good reasons, with an afternoon out at the races in Durbanville (passports in hand for the Boerewors Curtain), watching this guy do his thing.

A creditable 3rd place in his comeback race, following a long lay off during which time he lost his balls.

Eina.

And back from the Deep North just in time to head out to dinner to celebrate the end of the Boy Wonder’s Prelims, in 9 minutes time.

So, like I said, busy – but good. 🙂

Day 499 – ITAP

Posted on

One of the things that was ruined by our recent family Covid experience was Mrs 6000’s [landmark] birthday, which was thoroughly annoying, because [landmark] birthdays don’t come around all that often. And one of the plans for that day was for her to go on a gentle horse ride with her friends around some of the local vineyards, followed by a picnic in said vineyards. That didn’t happen because of self-isolation and general crappiness.
But we did manage to get that to happen today.

For the kids and I, the brief was clear: deliver the picnic to the vineyard in time for the end of the ride, and get some photos of the ride for posterity. No problem: I’ve proven that I can drive and the horse place/vineyard is almost literally just around the corner. I can set the boy loose taking photos and the girl and I can unpack the picnic stuff.

And so that’s what we did.

While the boy was away doing his thing, the girl went to chat to some of the remaining horses at the stables and I was left alone with the birds: Jackal Buzzards, Drongos, Sunbirds, White-Eyes – feathery stuff everywhere. And when the boy came back, I decided that I had to shoot the Flycatcher that had been flitting around the car.

This was quite a big deal, because it’s the first time I’ve been out of the car for 3 weeks and the first photo I’ve taken in over a month. I only had to go a few metres from the car to get the shot, but that was knackering enough, especially with a football match to stay up for this evening. But, bread and butter shot of a cute little bird posing on a nicely-textured horse fence: couldn’t resist.

Now just to edit 175 various images of ladies on horses. And maybe a nap.

(Definitely a nap.)