Some good times...

Well, I've just been getting on with working on the Ranch recently. We had a relatively busy weekend which was great as it meant that I got to do a lot of riding, which is the best way to spend a working day. I am actually really enjoying the 'tour guide' aspect of the job and talking to interesting people from all over the place. As the tail guide you can only talk to about three or four people, and I usually end up mostly chatting with the last rider, but its nice to get some rapport going. I have found that learning everyone's names make a huge difference to how willing they are to chat (and tip!). I always remember the guide who took us on the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb, who with a group of 10 people asked everyone their names once and then remembered all the names for the whole climb. I asked him his trick for this impressive feat and he said that he immediately thought of an association for the name to help him remember. I'm working on it and I think I'm getting better...

One of the other staff also gave me a proper riding lesson in the rodeo arena the other day which was good to teach me some better equitation and riding form. Hopefully I'll get a few more lessons over the next week or so. I've also found a saddle that fits me and I have set up as my own so that is nice not alway riding with stirrups that are too short! I'm also riding a trickier horse now called 'Banner' who has a bad habit of head tossing and pulling back in the barn. It is good to have some consistency and he seems to be getting a bit better.

We had a very funny thing happen yesterday. One of the trail rides that Chad and I were taking was a group of 8 girls on a Hen's Party. They all had a lot of fun and invited us to join them at the 'Ranchmans', a cowboy bar in Calgary later that night. Four of us from the Ranch went in and let the strings go a bit which was good fun. Somehow I was also convinced to get up in front of the whole bar and ride the mechanical bull, which was a crowd pleaser for the Stagette Party and my mates but it took a bit of liquid courage regarding the rest of the place!!

Captured on film... Listen to the advice from Chad and the cheering from the girls!! haha