Kells Accent On Xcellence. Photo by Sarah Cade
When I originally bought my fuzzy, mohawked, awkward-as-all-get-out Morgan gelding in 2009, I didn’t intend for him to be an eventer. He was an untrained 2-year-old and was, quite frankly, a bit of a stinker. I’d planned for Onyx to be a Western pleasure/trail/games/hunter project to start under saddle, tinker with for a few years, and then sell as a 4-H horse or all-arounder for some spritely young rider to enjoy.
And then I caught the eventing bug.
Sometimes, I wonder how my riding life would be different if I hadn’t added a safety vest and medical armband to my wardrobe. Honestly, it probably wouldn’t be that different; I still ride Western, go on long trail rides, enjoy barrel racing and other games (though admittedly, I’ve never gotten close to breaking the sound barrier), and love popping over simple jumps with the rest of them. But throw in an additional expensive obsession sport (not to mention another saddle), and suddenly I found myself on a much different path with Onyx than I’d anticipated.
Onyx and I have done a lot together in a relatively short amount of time. From winning our first jumping class together, to our bridleless jumping demonstration at our barn’s open house, to our fourth place Beginner Novice finish in this year’s Steepleview Horse Trials, Onyx has proven to me that he possesses the versatile qualities of the Morgan Horse while retaining the spunky attitude and demonic cuteness of the proverbial shaggy highland pony.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Because I bought him as a resell project, the question was never “if,” but “when” I would sell him. There were many days that I thought about keeping Onyx for the rest of his life so we could continue to embark on ridiculous adventures together. But as my love of eventing grew, so did my need to own a horse with a greater desire to fly over jumps than snack on them. And while Onyx enjoys jumping and is more honest and straightforward than most large horses I know, I realized that his size and personality wouldn’t make upper-level competition feasible down the line. It was time to find Onyx his next home.
Fortunately, Onyx wasn’t for sale for long; he was purchased by a wonderful woman who has been riding him in lessons for over a year. Everything seemed to line up perfectly. He’s staying at the same barn! I couldn’t be happier for either of them, and though it will be weird at first to not be “his” main human anymore, this is a positive next step on my journey to full-on eventing addiction.
My tribute to Onyx will be short and sweet (like him… when he’s not channeling his inner shaggy highland pony). While there are countless things that I will remember about this amazing black horse, there are a few that stand out.
First, there was the time that I went shopping for a young Morgan gelding, and saw Onyx do this:
Onyx (left) and friend, doing what young geldings do best. Photo by Lindsey Kahn
Then, after bringing him to his new home, I discovered that tying him up in the barn for a few minutes led to this:
Holy crap. Photo by Lindsey Kahn
After an extensive groundwork education, starting him under saddle was one of the happiest and most rewarding experiences of my life. After a few weeks under saddle, Onyx was a cocky little pro. Our first trail ride off the farm went like this:
Riding at Lake Elmo Park Reserve. Photo by Sarah Cade
Then, there were the “Hot Dangs” that we heard during our many clinics with Ralph Hill:
Riding in Ralph’s clinic, 2014. Photo by Jackie Metelak
There’s the way he makes short work of stadium courses, using his smaller size to beat larger, faster horses at the agility game:
“Hang on, Ma. I got this!” Photo courtesy of D&G Photography
And last but not least, I will always remember our best and final cross-country round together at Steepleview this summer, after which I crossed the finish line with joyous tears of exhilaration:
This photo is now hanging on my wall. Photo courtesy of D&G Photography
Thanks for the rides, Little Boy! It’s time for our next adventures.
