The guest ranch didn't have many horses. Business was so poor that only a minimal herd was necessary. There were only ten.
Most of the herd were older animals, they were wiser, gentler and easier for inexperienced guests to ride. One horse was the exception.
One of the many "new" owners of the ranch bought him and he didn't quite fit in. He was a five year old, mixed breed, bundle of equine fun.
I had learned that the cowboys at the ranch, preferred simple horse names. Names that related to color or markings... Blackie, Brownie, Socks, Star were common. I often wondered if this made the horses easier to identify especially after a wild evening the night before. But... I came from a place where horses had regal names and chose to give this equine, a name with... character.
I called him Arizona Sun.
Sunny, as he would be nick named, was a palomino. Now I know what you are thinking... a Trigger look-a-like, but no... that was not Sunny.
He was beige... the only beige horse in existence. On a bright day he was a very light gold color... on an overcast day a washed out creme. His lighter colored mane and tail and his small blaze and two hind white socks were barely noticeable against his beige coat. In truth... he looked prettier when covered in mud.
He was a good size for a ranch horse, well muscled with a large head. Any good looks were only in his head but he did have a way of getting into your heart.
Sunny liked to play and drove the rest of the herd crazy... when work was done, all they did was eat and sleep. Sunny, on the other hand, thought of things to do.
Three Hispanic men were working on a well pump next to the corral. It was a blazing hot, Arizona summer day. They brought with them a six pack of beer to enjoy later.
They put it into the horses water tank to keep cool.
Sunny was ever vigilant. He went to investigate. Submerging his head, he felt along the tank bottom, until he found the treasure.
Strong teeth grabbed the six pack and hoisted it into the air. Aluminum was no match and he crushed the cans, spilling the golden liquid which he eagerly sucked up.
Rocks whizzed by his head as the men tried to save their beer but the only one who enjoyed a cold brew that day was Sunny.
The ranch often had special promotional tour groups visit. These small groups of travel professionals were given the royal treatment in hopes of bringing future business. One such group arrived and I took them on a trail ride.
The ride was beautiful, the desert at it's best, the horses providing a safe and fun experience.
Most of the horses...
Placed near the rear of the ride, Sunny fussed.
It was nothing that couldn't be cured with food, so Sunny grabbed a snack where ever he could and in so doing created a mouthful of green foam. Then he shared it with his rider.
Sunny began to toss his head. And with each toss, a line of green foam streaked across the rider, leaving no spot untouched. Shirt, jeans, hat... and face... all covered in green foam.
The rider, as luck would have it, was a travel writer for the New York Times travel section. The ride truly became infamous and Sunny known throughout America.
After that event, I decided Sunny needed to work on his people skills. We were part of a trail ride, up to the top of Wasson Peak in the Tucson Mountains. It was to be a challenging ride, as we were climbing to the 4,300 foot pinnacle and then returning.
We snaked our way up the mountain on a very steep and narrow trail. One side of the trail was the mountain itself and the other side dropped away into deep valleys. The trail itself was a rocky, two foot wide path.
Sunny and I were last... it was to be a lesson event for Sunny and he fretted at being so far back. He was not the happiest camper.
With out warning... in less than a heartbeat... Sunny and I were facing the opposite direction. We were now heading back down the mountain.
Performing a dressage move... a perfect pirouette on his haunches, he lifted his front end off the ground and spun on his rear legs to make the turn. Terrific... if I was riding a dressage horse.
Impressive too... if that's what you wanted to do.
Sunny had lulled me into a false sense of security... I forgot that his mind never stopped.
I now had a dilemma. In order to continue, I had to repeat that perfect move in the opposite direction, without going over the edge of the trail.
I called on all my riding skills, sat deep into the saddle and gave him determined leg commands, while firmly using the reins to control forward movement.
There was a second when we hung out over the edge... when my heart almost stopped. But only for a second as Sunny never stopped for longer.
Once again were heading up the mountain.
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