Horseback Riding For Black Women

Face your fears and have some fun

“Woah, this is high,” That’s what I thought and said out loud when I walked up the plastic steps and tentatively sat in the saddle. It’s been over 15 years since I last rode a horse. At that time I was young, fearless, and ready for any adventure that came my way. Now at 33, I think twice before trying the go kart, going down the water slide or diving into a new thing I haven’t done before. Suddenly, I’m wondering, am I safe up here? Will this horse buck and throw me off? Will I somehow end up with a broken back and in a wheelchair like the old school superman? I’m wondering why the instructors didn’t give me any instructions. Did I miss the tutorial? I pulled up to the farm stables and they said here is your horse lets go… What? I’m not ready, I need to be eased into this.

I’m wondering if I should get down. Then we get going, my body starts balancing and rocking to the beat of the horse’s steps. Down the path into the meadow we go. I ask the young instructor behind me how long she has been riding. “Since I was 5 years old ma’am” she says with her kind of southern drawl. As she talks, I realize she is only a teenager and she looks so confident and secure on the horse. I look terrified that I will fall off at any minute. Thank God my horse Dolly is a pro. She follows the leader without any prompting and understands where to start and stop. She doesn’t want me to touch her face, but she seems to like a nice rub on the bum. I like Dolly, she is solid.

We stop near a peaceful waterfall to eat lunch. They had packed hearty turkey and cheese sandwiches so thick I had to spread my lips as far as possible to put the sandwich in my mouth. I enjoyed the lunch, and the break off of the horse. Back on solid ground I remembered the how nice this gift was. That my husband had gotten me exactly what I wanted for my birthday, an adventure. We hop back on the horses to leave. This time there is no step to easily hop in the saddle. I had to do it cowboy style, leveraging the back of the instructor to support my body weight I threw my leg over the horse and hopped on the horse like I’d been doing it all my life. We took the 10-minute ride back to the stables. This time around the ride was more steady, my body knew how to adjust to the horse’s body, how to balance in the core, feel more secure. I loved every minute of that ride.

When I came back my husband, T greeted me with a smile. He had just met a herd of sheep while he walked on the farm and it freaked him out. I laughed because we are really city people. But that short time in Serenbe felt magically peaceful. We waved to the sheep, took pictures with the horses and headed back home to city.

The Inn at Serenbe

The Inn @ Serenbe is a great place to stay for a romantic getaway. They have a farm, restaurant, spa, and horseback riding and golf. The horseback riding was a perfect treat for weekend fun. If you go at lunch time, its a little more expensive, but you get a nice packed lunch from the restaurant.