Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
Bode Donahue and Galaxy Walker worked together to tack up the thoroughbred lesson horse, Owl, for his next walk x trot lesson. He knew that Yui would be supervising, and based off of the saddle that the stablehand had pulled, Nulpi would be a unique student, "Alax, do you-" but the look she gave him made him stop, "Right. I'll stop annoying you." Once they were done, the mad cut Galaxy loose so she may return to her work, and he lead Owl to the outdoor arena - not only was there a mounting block, but there was also a ramp if needed to help students with mounting.
"Looks like we beat Nulpi and Yui, buddy," Bode said now as he halted the thoroughbred. He gave the horse a good pat, glad to see that the lesson horse was feeling mellow today. While he knew Owl would never hurt a fly, as a hot horse breed, even he could still be prone to antics.
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
It would seem that Bode Donahue would have a change of pace today with the type of students he had - his students were above the age of thirty and one of them, was a coworker. He didn't really mind, he loved having adult students as much as the younger ones - plus, he felt like they sassed back at him a bit less. Bode hadn't met Brayden yet though, but he had no doubt that they would get along. Finishing off his boba tea and tossing the plastic cup into the trash can, the man headed out to the outdoor arena to find that he was beaten to it.
"Ah! Hello you two! Hope you two weren't waiting on me long. Did you already warm up your bodies and your horses?"
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode Donahue settled into Helping Hooves and the part time instructor life rather well. After concurring his first week there, he was feeling pretty good about himself. The worst lesson had just been that of a stubborn pony who didn't want to move forward with it's young rider, but thankfully, that hadn't seemed to have phased Julia at all. If that was the worst he'd have for a while, then Bode was perfectly with that. He had two lessons on the book this week, one already a familiar face from running around the property.
"Sabrina! There you are," he said with a smile as the young woman and her horse, Lucifer, enter the arena now, "Looks like the weather will cooperate for us today. Lets get you into an active walk after you mount up, we'll have you do some up and downs to warm up your hips and half seat to strengthen your core. Afterwards, we'll do the fun stuff."
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
A chuckle escaped Bode at the young girl's exuberance, "Well, that is the spirit." His dark brown eyes looked to Yui, but the look she politely leveled at him told him that he was officially handling this lesson on his own, and she was taking the backseat. Ah wonderful. He returned to attention to his new student now, "Well Julia, let's first get your stirrups situated for you." He pulled them for her out of the leathers, letting the iron stirrups hand slack now, "Watch me, as you will be doing the same very soon. I want you to put your middle finger up here on the saddle," he demonstrated, "And then pull the stirup to your armpit. I want the bottom of the stirrup to hit you there. That is how we will always measure your stirrups and adjust them with the buckle as so." Another demonstration.
He took a step back from Gidget now, and nodded to the pony, "Now I want you to do it. I'll watch you." He'll save the girth for later, for now, Bode knew from talking with Yui and Galaxy that they handled it prior to bringing the pony out to the arena.
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode nodded at the young man's explanation, "Okay, sounds good. If you've trail ride then you know how to steer. I want you feel contact between Bean's mouth and your hands with the reins. It will feel like the perfect balance where she can still move forward but you're not holding her back." His dark brown eyes looked to Tegan's legs now before adding on, "I want you to move your heels back just a smidgen, slight bend in the leg...yes, that's it. Keep you heels there. That is where you'll squeeze to move her forward."
He looked to Piper, already walking along the wall at a reasonable pace with her horse, her reins a little bit more on the slack side than he cared for, but he knew why she was here, "Alright, steer Beans over to the wall and walk behind Piper and Booegy. Keep a horse's distance length between them. Kinda like cars. Active walk also." Bode stood, watching the pair walk away as he looked back towards the young woman now, watching here. Everything seemed to be going well. Once Tegan and Beans were there, he said, "Alright you two, continuous active walk for your horses. You both are going a little slow for my liking. One loop around and then we'll have you do a half circle."
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode had checked the weather this morning and knew from one look that all of his classes would be in the indoor arena today. He had an morning class with a new student, whom, he understood, was young, excited, and completely knew. The man didn't mind that, it was always fun to see a child get their first taste of being in the saddle. What he was slightly worried about was Yui Ledor-Kita being present in his class today. At least the observation wasn't a surprise call in.
He had gotten to Helping Hooves early to check in with Yui, say hi to Cayenne, and check in on the lesson pony of the day: Gidget. The tiny paint mare looked up at him and then went back to ignoring him. Hopefully, she would be feeling it. Bode checked his watch, enough time to go grab himself a coffee from the breakroom before it was show time. He headed his way there, poured himself a cup of coffee and allowed himself to relax, clearing his mind of any negative energy and thoughts.
After that, once his cup was done, he washed it, headed to his locker to grab his personal lunge line, and headed to the indoor arena. Yui was already there, with Gidget who was saddled up and ready. The pony looked complacent, but he figured she knew this was just another day in the life of being a lesson horse. Beside the pair, small girl was also there, and not a parent in sight. They must be in the lobby.
"Hi Yui," Bode greeted with a smile, before looking to the small girl, "And you must be Julia. My name is Bode. I'll be helping with teaching today."
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode smiled at the two students, both equally confident despite the difference in experience. A chortle of laughter escaped him at the joke that escaped Tegan, "Well, the only thing I can promise you is that you'll have more knowledge at the end then when you started." Dark eyes watched Piper mount up beautifully before she took Boogey to the fence. His gaze soon shifted to Tegan, who successfully got up in the saddle, but he could tell by body language alone that Beans was ready to rumble. Still, he knew that the paint mare typically was laid back, so Bode didn't knock her out of contention quite yet. Worst case scenario if she proved to be too much for a simple day of walking, he could pull another lesson horse quickly or even Cayenne.
"Piper! Please keep Boogey along the wall. I want an active walk from him. Just because he'll be walking this whole time, I don't want him to think it's an excuse to be lazy. After I talk to Tegan a bit, we'll get you doing some core and balance work on him."
Bode then strolled over to the other pair now, giving Beans a good pat before stepping back, "Now that you're on Beans here, how are you feeling? Good? Nervous? None of the above?" His gaze glanced over Tegan's posture now, "Tell me what you know about riding. I will say your mount was excellent. I haven't been able to get the download on everyone yet from Yui."
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode Donahue had been shocked when he ran into an old acquaintance, Stephanie King, at the local horse. Truth be told, the man always thought they could be good friends, but with her being based in Florida and himself in Massachusetts, it had been hard to keep in contact between traveling and training. Still, Stephanie had been a great show buddy, and it had been shocking to see her compete in the advance class just last week. It had been pure coincidence that he had ran into her, but even in that short time, it felt they picked back up where they left off. Bode had managed to get her UK number, promising that he would hit her up to hang out.
Well finally, that day was here. The stars aligned, well, more like their schedules, and he was heading for a small bar to meet up and hang out with her for an hour or two. Their classes ended at the same time, and downtown Hickstead was on the way back to his loft. Bode knew he had loads to ask her about - mainly how she ended up in Hickstead of all places. It was probably a simple reason, but the fact that it had happened had still blown his mind. Hopefully he hadn't come off as needy, or worse, like he was trying to get into her pants - that really was not the case. He just seemed to have a miserable time at making friends recently, the man felt like he talked to Cayenne more than people lately, and that was quite sad.
But today would be a new leaf. Bode had gotten to the bar first it seemed, not that he minded. It was still happy hour and the bar hadn't even begun to get crowded or rowdy. Sitting down on a bar stool, he waved down the bar tender for a beer and a glass of water. Once they were placed in front of him, he took a good sip and then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught her. Putting down the glass, Bode smiled and got up, "Steph! Glad both we could finally find the time to hang."
There had been no lessons on the schedule today for Bode Donahue, which meant that he had unbridled (yes, pun intended) time with his mare, Cayenne. It had taken a month or so, but his Canadian Warmblood finally made it to her new home last week and had settled in nicely. She had always been a quiet traveler in the states, but the man wasn't sure what to expect when it meant crossing an ocean. Thankfully, the mare had handled it like a champ and it hadn't phased her in the arena either - the English weather felt almost like home. He had cooled her down, stripped her of her tack, and brushed her off.
Cayenne's amber eyes stared at him expectantly, and Bode knew that look, she was not ready to return to her stall yet nor go back out to pasture to annoy the geldings (she unfortunately proved too unruly still to be put in mares). A snort of laughter escaped the man, shaking his head faintly, "You're lucky I have my kindle in my bag." He left her in the grooming stall briefly to go and grab it, before returning to Cayenne along with her lead rope. Snapping it to the leather halter, he undid the cross ties and lead her out. Thankfully, Helping Hooves was never short of land nor grassy areas to lounge on.
The pair finally found a good spot, under the freckled shade, some where in-between the barn and the tea shop. He switched the lead rope to a lead line, allowing her four times the lengths to wander around while still be 'under control' or so. Bode inspected the grass, secretly thankful that he wore a pair of older breeches for the day, before sitting down. With Cayenne grazing peacefully near him, the man pulled out his kindle now to get some reading in when he spotted a familiar face, "Amanda!" he called out, waving, "I hear congratulations are in order for you and Waylon."
Well, the time was finally here - Bode's first lesson ever at Helping Hooves was upon him. A small group lesson, beginner only, although when the equestrian spotted one name on the list, he was a little taken aback. However, knowing Piper Ledor-Kita, she was probably doing the class to boost Tegan's confidence. It should go well though, Piper and Boogey were a good pair, and Beans was a good horse who knew how to look after her riders, "Nothing can go wrong, right Cayenne?" He asked his mare now, who gave a snort and knocked her head into his shoulder, "Yeah yeah. After this lesson. Be a good girl to Galaxy or whoever stops by to clean your stall." Giving the chestnut one final pat, he headed off towards the outdoor arena.
He had beaten the two students to the arena. That was fine though, it gave him some time to clear it off any poles and jump standards, figuring it was best to keep it obstacle free for Tegan. By the time he was finished, he heard laughter and approaching footsteps and hoofbeats. Dark eyes glanced over now to see Piper, Tegan, and their two colorful horses, "Hey you two. Ready to ride?" Bode gave pause before laughing, "Stupid question. Of course, you are." The coach flashed a bright smile, placing his sunglasses on, "Piper. I've seen you in action, but Tegan, you know the basics for mounting, correct?"
Dice roll
Odd number - lesson goes poorly Even number - lesson goes well
Bode Donahue should have realized something was up when the airport presented him with his rental car. It wasn't from this year. In fact, it wasn't last year's model either. It looked as if it was five years old, and when he had questioned the gps inside said rental car, the kid assured him it was up to date. What a sucker he had been. After all, this series of events lead him out to the middle of fucking no where, which quite frankly, he thought only existed in central Florida or Texas. No, it also existed in fucking Hickstead, UK as well. It also didn't help that his phone didn't have signal either.
This is what he got for saying that he would swing by Helping Hooves on his way to Hickstead proper. Bode remembered Yui saying over the phone that their barn was in rural Hickstead, snuggly inbetween the airport and downtown. Yet somehow, the man had been lead astray. Naturally, there were now fucking rain clouds and thunder cracking overhead. His jetlag threatened him, his venti americano loosing its power as these fucking non-LED lights lead the way to no where, "Holy hell. I am going to die out in the middle of no where before Cayenne even clears customs and quarantine." But then, he slowed down to a four way stop, the gps telling him to take a left, and as he did, Bode Donahue thought he might have saw the light at the end of the tunnel.
A fence line that is. With a barn in the distance. Holy shit. The car didn't betray him after all. Bode turned and stepped on the gas now, the little car moving its way through the road which soon turned to dirt. The wind was really howling now, trying to bat the tiny tin can, but it held on. He could hear big rain drops start to hit the roof as he passed by the main gates, not clocking the sign of the establishment. Bode stopped the car, killing the engine now. He couldn't believe he was home free. Pushing the door open, the man got out, nearly cracking his head on the mini coop as he stood. Brown eyes locked in on a red headed woman now, well, between her hair and that bright yellow rain jacket, she would have been hard to miss anyways.
As cute as she was, the sight of her made Bode frown, "You're not Lenore," he started now, "And you're certainly not Yui." A certain amount of dread began to creep up in him, matching the building rain storm that he was stupidly standing in. A crack of lighting woke him from his stupor, as he scurried to join the woman, invading her space underneath the awning of the building, "Sorry. I'm Bode...Bode Donahue...please tell me this is Helping Hooves Horse Sanctuary and Stables."