Old farrier watched me nail a shoe and just said 'you're rushing'

I was at a barn in Clifton last Thursday, halfway through my third horse, and this guy in his 70s I'd never met just stood there watching. When I finished he said 'you're rushing, the foot tells you when it's ready not the clock.' I was trying to get done before rain hit but he made me slow down on the next one. Had to re-set two nails on the front left that I would have missed if I kept my pace. Anyone else had some random old timer call them out like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

logan_anderson4016d ago

My buddy had something similar happen to him over in Cumberland last fall. He was trimming a paint mare and some old timer leaned on the fence and finally goes 'you're talking to the horse too much, the hoof will tell you where to cut.' He was trying to be all friendly and chatty while he worked and honestly I think it threw him off his game. He told me he had to go back and fix a flared wall on the next trim because he wasn't paying attention. Those old guys have a way of cutting right to the chase without being mean about it.

rose_clark8116d ago

Oh man, that's brutal but also kind of hilarious!

charlieh7415d ago

Yeah that rings so true. You can get distracted trying to be polite and lose that focus you need. Those old timers just watch and wait for the right moment to drop a piece of wisdom like that. It's actually kind of refreshing when someone cuts through the small talk and reminds you what you're there for. Your buddy probably won't forget that lesson anytime soon either. Sounds like a good thing in the long run even if it stung a little at the time.