There are not many Christmases in my memory where 1) I had the chance to ride and 2) I overheated in my fleece sweater. 2015 will go down in my memory as a gift.

Not exactly under the tree, but there in spirit, was my physical gift: a new saddle for Freedom. Now, I know that all my readers are going to have one of two reactions. You will either nod your head enthusiastically and think, “of course!” Liz absolutely needs another saddle for Freedom because Zelda got one this year. Or you will shake your head and wonder if I had to build an extension onto my house to store them all. Nope, no extension. I send them to my husband’s warehouse when they are not in active rotation. But this saddle is special. I’ve wanted one for at least a year, but they are hard to find on the used market in the US. I was so excited when I found this one.

Freedom was honored with the Christmas ride, partially because I needed to ride in the Christmas saddle and also because he’s such a pleasure to ride. We had a lovely 5-mile hack but it was so warm that we mostly walked. Freedom has a full winter coat right now and even at our leisurely pace he worked up a sweat.

It was practically surreal being able to enjoy the warmth of the sun beating

down on my back at the end of December. Freedom was very well behaved, despite having had a week off. He kept spinning the roller on his bit; a sure sign that he would have preferred to be moving along faster. Unfortunately, the warm weather also brought out a plethora of families and dogs, so we needed to stay off the wider trails. As it was we had a few “exciting” moments when dogs ran up behind us, wanting to play. Just as well that new saddle has such nice grippy leather; I needed to get home in one piece so I could cook Christmas dinner!

For all of you who celebrate Christmas, I hope you had a wonderful one, filled with friends, family and (hopefully) a Christmas ride!