I am not sure whether this was a planned move or an act of desperation…but the horse was always going to win the argument.
Time to make a quick, if not graceful exit.
The Mounting or maybe dismounting Yards, at the recent Blinman horse races.
The action is a little more pedestrian here but the Blinman event in the the central Flinders Ranges is another where skills that are still used on the land are put to the test or encouraged in the young.
Try this in the city and get caught by the cops. They’d throw the book at you.
Outback where the bike is an everyday work tool, you can pull a stunt like this and even have a crowd clapping for you.
The recent William Creek Gymkhana and a competition to see who could make the longest mono, and with four police officers looking on too.
The winner went about half way round the horse racing track.
Faces of the Outback…blokes from stations around William Creek and the Oodnadatta Track……doing what people do everywhere….having a bit of chin wag.
With big distances between isolated stations, an event like the local gymkhana brings people together for some horse events and a beer or two.
I had a request for some photos from last year’s Angepina race meeting and when looking for the photos I found the following little drama, which I had forgotten about.
It’s a race around the barrels and one young aboriginal boy is showing what a great horseman he’s likely to be one day.
Unfortunately his older brother was a bit too keen on winning the race and our horseman is about to be
dumped unceremoniously from his steed.
Too bad I missed the action….but there was some sympathic encouragement and comfort when the tears started to flow
Mum was soon on the scene to soothe away the hurt and shock.
“Get back on the horse straight away” seems to be the advice from one of the really experienced riders, who no doubt had been in the same situation plenty of times before,
There was an offer to use her horse and after a few minor adjustments this gutsy young fellow was back in the saddle.
Considering his size, the size of the horse and how far he could fall, it’s a pretty brave effort.
Words of encouragement and congratulation at the finishing post. The spill now forgotten..
As usual there’s been a few rodeos and gymkhanas on the calender around the bush in recent months.
The competitors give it their all. There’re all sorts of styles and techniques, some fast, some graceful but there’s no shortage of determination.
The horses seem to be just as keen as the riders to beat the clock.
