The first one is my mothers and my fjordhorse gelding Unik. We bought him when he was 9 years old. That was a little more then 15 years ago. Today he is a healty 24-year old who enjoys life with light riding, good food and horse friends. He is the sweetest and always has time for some treats and cuddling.
I've loved horses for as long as I can remember and I've been very lucky since my mother share the passion. That meant that I didn't even have to beg to begin riding at a riding school. When I was six my family bought a sweet fjord gelding named Unik. He was 9 years old by then and he was just the sweetest. I continued riding at the riding school for a few years before I fell of a little, grumpy, black pony mare at a lesson. I wasn't badly hurt but I got scared and that combined with the fact that we got a new riding teacher (whom had no respect for her students and whom I didn't trust) made me take the decision to quit riding.
I didn't quit entirely, I still took occasional rides on Unik and I was in the stable a lot, just to care for the horses. I was satisfied with my occasional rides and simply taking care of the horses for quite a while but as time passed by the urge to ride regularly rose. A riding teacher I knew, and trusted held riding lessons at another riding school and I decided I wanted to try again and I got a place in her group. I rode there for a few years and slowly but surely regained my confidence and motivation to ride.
When my trainer quit I did too, at least I quit my riding lessons. Instead I took up riding lessons for a dressage trainer. Unik and I definately had our ups and downs during these lessons but slowly we got things right and we went to our first dressage competition. There were only 3 competitors in our class and I didn't have high expectations (hell, my only wishes were that I wouldn't fall off or forget the programme) so when the results was announced and me and Unik was named winners I couldn't have been any prouder.
My sweet, stubborn fjord and I had actually won our first dressage competition! That was huge to me since people had told me things like: "Don't expect to much, you do have a fjordhorse". We went to a few more competitons and we were mostly quite high on the result lists, earning a few ribbons (I wasn't competing for the ribbons. As long as I was happy with our performance I wouldn't have cared if we finished last, but I wont lie, it was nice to see that the judges appreciated our performances).
The second one isn't really mine. He is owned by my dressage trainer. He used to be her competion horse but he got injured and his career ended. He wasn't ridden for at least a year to give him time to heal the injury. My trainer asked me to slowly begin riding him when I did my work practice at the stable. And I wasn't hard to convince. I've been fond of this horse since I saw him for the first time.
My dream horse has, for as long as I can remember, been a chestnut mare with a blaze and 4 white stockings. Poppes (also called Prinsen (The Prince in Swedish) since I've always seen him as unattainable) was exactly that, except that he was a gelding instead of a mare. Now that I'm a few years older and wiser, I'm happy he's a gelding since I've ridden enough horses to know that mares are generally not my cup of tea :)
Poppes is a gentleman with a little nerve. He's quick to flee if something spooks him but as soon as he realize that you are on his back he stops and almost apologizes for what he did. He is the sweetest horse to ride and care for, yet no horse for a beginner since he gets nervous if he doesn't understand what you want him to do.
He is also kind of a local celebrity on dressage competitions in this area, eventough he doesn't compete anymore people still talk about him when my trainer is out with her younger mare.
Anyway I began riding him slowly and I quickly fell in love with him. That was 4 years ago. The first two years I shared him with two other girls. A friend of mine and I shared the weekends and school breaks and another girl took care of him during the week. This because my friend and I went to a boarding school and we were only at home during the weekends and school breaks. Shortly before we graduated the girl who took care of him during the week quite so it was just me and my friend left. We shared him and talked about leasing him for real since none of us could afford to lease him alone we decided to do it together. Unfortunately my friend had second thoughts about it and had a disagreement with the owner so she decided not to lease him. I was sad since I wanted to have him but couldn't afford him on my own.
Fortunately for me, the owner and I, made a deal which made it possible for me to have him as my own. And, with a little help from my mother, he has been like my own for the last year and a half!
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