You think I should start him....WHEN???

Tonight I went for a ride on Squirrel. She was fresh and jiggy and a frickin stinker. Pam went with me and I spent a little over an hour listening to Pam talk. (And she says I talk alot..hmmm...not when SHE'S around!)

Anyway, we came back and I walked and trotted Squirrel on the pattern a couple of times, then called it quits. I was tired, she was hungry, and I didn't feel like getting tossed. (Not that she would, but she COULD)

So as I'm stripping my tack, Pam walks around. Bullwinkle was out on pasture out by the arena, and until tonight, Pam didn't give any indication that she'd even seen him. She walks up and asked if Bullwinkle was mine. I said "Yes". Then she said that I should send him out to the same trainer that started her colt.

Bear in mind, her colt was gelding, 2 yrs old and wild as a March hare! They'd never had a halter on him. They'd never trimmed his feet. To get him in the trailer, they used panels and a cattle prod. After 90 days, he was gentled, loaded and unloaded, had shoes, bathed, clipped, tied. So needless to say, I AM very impressed with what this guy can do.

So she said you have to have a reservation a year in advance - which tells me a LOT about the guy! THEN, she said I needed to call NOW to get a reservation for next year. HUH??? I said, "He's only a yearling. I won't start him until the fall of his three year old year, at the earliest."

She said, "I don't know why you do that. Why do you start them so late?"

I said, "Have you seen him? He's huge for a yearling! He's going to be a MONSTER."

She said, "I know. What does that have to do with anything? You can start him at two."

I said, "No, I'm waiting. I want him to be sound when he's thirty."

She said, "You won't even own him when he's thirty."

I said, "Maybe not, but he'll still be sound."

Umm....no. I don't ride babies. A great big doofy 4 yr old is good enough, thank you very much.