Chicken is better than Dead Duck

I am thankful Fran was able to ride with me today on the Trailblazers ride. She broke her toe after a horse stepped on it and it was doubtful that she would be able to ride. But, tough girl that she is, we were able to take Cerra and Cheyenne out for an official trail ride with the club. There were about 50 riders and horses of all sizes and colors. This was Cheyenne's first trail ride and after her clinic experience two weeks ago, it just fell into place. 

I rode Chy for the first 3/4 of the trip and then we decided to trade horses. We had no sooner made the switch and were on the home leg when one of the rider's horse spooked when her saddle suddenly tipped off to the side! The rider got off ok and then the horse made a wild gallop up through the trail. I saw this unfolding and the horse coming at us and both Fran and I got off our horses immediately and took control of them as the other horse came racing by. She eventually got stopped by the group ahead of us and all was well, but the best part was I realized my new instinct was to get OFF to control the situation instead of letting the loose horse spook mine and have two accidents in the process. The Parelli voice spoke again--"Better to be a chicken than a dead duck!" 

And coincidentally, the charcoal chicken dinner that followed was delicious!