The Teenage Helpers and Horses

My two teenage helpers were Jay Wright, age 15, and Marilyn age 17.  We knew Jays' parents well and I believe they just wanted him to be occupied and out of Calgary as he approached an age where he was too old for a babysitter and too young to be totally unsupervised.  I was given a choice, I could run the stables myself or I could hire some help. Mary and Pops would provide room and board and I would have to come up with their wages out of my own pocket.  I know I paid them very little and they were still happy.  It all seemed like a lark to them and they did work hard.  Mary and Pops seemed to always find room for one more and soon the small bunkhouse was employed as a room for  Jay and the men if they stayed over.
   One of Jays first challenges was learning which horse was which.  We had several grey horses and one was very quiet and allotted to Jay as a first horse. This horses' name was Ray and he was a tall horse, Jay was not a tall person yet and mounting was always hard for him on Ray.  Another grey horse was named Larry and he was not quiet.  Jay soon learned not to mix them up even if he did think all grey horses looked the same.  I think both kids enjoyed their summers at Twin Bridges.  It was probably like going to camp only more fun and they did make a bit of money anyway.
    I believe I met Marilyn when she came out to ride one day and I ended up hiring her.   I don't believe I ever met her parents and possibly she just wanted to get away from home and be a little independent.  She was a tall girl and could soon swing up on a horse using only the mane, something that Jay and I had to work on. I found these two teens became more like siblings that I never had and I cared a lot for them.
   There always seemed to be small challenges to meet or "mini-contests" invented by this unlikely pair. One such contest was almost like a graduation.  How many five gallon oat-pails can be carried at once without spillage??  The answer is eight and that's something I would find hard to believe if we had not done it! One other challenge would be who could tack up a horse the fastest or swing up on a horse or stand up, and so it went.  I know we had many good laughs and lots of fun.
   Living at Twin Bridges was not quite as idyllic as Jays parents may have hoped.  On one occasion the little monster got into the booze the men had and overindulged until he was violently ill (all over the bunkhouse) and very hung-over the next day(when he had to clean it up).  But at least it was a harmless little drunk and he was in a safe place,
   We all looked forward to evening rides after we were finished for the day and had eaten our supper.  No matter how tired we were, evening rides were the reward for us all.  We often rode the fireguard that ran along the fence line separating our land from the Indian Reserve.  Soft footing for the horses and a not bad landing for a rider if it came down to that.  These rides were good  experience for the riders and also for any young horses we had in training.  Only Jay and Marilyn rode horses from the Dude string and then it was a horse that had not been used much that day.  Doug,Ken. and I used this time for our special and favourite horses.
   Of course we were not supposed to ride on the Indian Reserve at all , but it was a nice change of scenery. One time, the Indian Police arrived to complain about us riding there.  I laughed when I heard that Mary turned the tables on them and  tore a strip off them about their stallions breaking in after our mares.  It was true and I had a wild ride one day trying to retrieve one of our mares.  Jay and I were riding and I was using a young and fast mare named Sultana.   Across the fence, we spotted a herd of mares and a stallion and our mare was in the bunch!  Well. I would just see if I could get her back.  What a dream at best.  I had no rope(and didn't know how to use one anyway) and stood to lose my good mare plus tack, to the stallion if things got turned around.   As we opened the gate I made Jay stand guard in case I had to bring the whole herd in.  When the band of mares and the stallion spotted me they took off at a hard run and so did I !  I managed to stay with them for a time and then suddenly as I came around some bushes "POOF!" they were gone!  My blood was up and the exhilaration of the chase strong in me.   But they had literally disappeared!  It was as if they had run off the face of the earth!  I slowly rode around looking for some sign of which way they had gone but couldn't see anything that would lead me to them.  In disappointment, I returned to loyal Jay at the gate, who had been dancing up and down in anticipation of seeing his first "wild stallion".  Of course these horses were not wild in the true sense but they seemed to be to Jay.  The mare was eventually returned to us, possibly in an effort to keep us off the reserve and the mare was most likely bred.  We would have a free "catch-colt" they were called. (the mare having found her own mate as opposed to humans selecting it)  In any case, it was a ride and a "feeling of the chase" that I never forgot.