Riding and Archery on the Shanhua Grassland

Actually, when I was young, I also learned wrestling at home. I remember that there was a trick in wrestling called 'tie legs' or 'trip legs'. Once, on my way home from school, a classmate and I, who were both good at wrestling, exchanged ideas about the 'tie legs' technique. At that time, we were just having fun and actually wrestled on the street. He wasn't as tall as me, but he was much stronger. He stood there like a young calf. When I came up and used the 'tie legs' technique to trip him, he was unaffected, and I ended up tripping over myself. My head hit a rock, and I got a big bump. A classmate who was even shorter than me didn't give in. He said he had learned martial arts and wanted to try. He took a step forward and punched me, and the little classmate raised his fist to block the punch. He didn't block it, and his nose bled. We were all frightened. The classmate who had bled wasn't worried about it and comforted us, saying that it's okay to bleed, and learning martial arts won't be without injuries. We calmed down. From then on, I came to the conclusion that without a strong body, no matter what sophisticated skills, they are all zero. Or, let's go and see archery.

Mongolian Wrestling on the Grassland

Upon arriving at the archery field, there were tourists practicing archery. I heard 'shoo' sound as the arrows flew like shooting stars towards the target. Unfortunately, they missed. The tourists were very frustrated. Seeing me arrive, he invited me to try it. This activity is worth a try. I confidently took the bow and arrow, but I found the bow was quite heavy.

In ancient times, generals were usually divine archers. Ancient books often mentioned generals with amazing power. It was said that the Han Dynasty general, Fang Bao Jun, Ma Yuan, could open thousand-chrysanthemum mountain with one arrow. He shot a hole through the mountain in Guanglin Mountain, which is now a famous scenic spot in Guangling. To commemorate General Ma Yuan's bravery, a statue of him riding a horse and shooting an arrow was erected in front of Fang Bao Park. It's a commemorative monument.

I can say I am a 'old archer' now. When I was young, there was nothing to play with at home. Archery was one way to play. Back then, we were poor, and the bows and arrows were all handmade. There are plenty of bamboo everywhere in my hometown, which is a good material for making bows and arrows. Bamboo slices make the bow, and hemp rope makes the bowstring. When you pull the bamboo pieces in the middle with two hands, the bow will bend. A bow is made. When I was a child, we all stood in the empty village or grass yard and compared who's arrows shot higher or further. Of course, whoever has a stronger arm can get first place. Later, we compared who's arrows are more accurate. First, we drew a circle on the wall to make a target. When the target is not enough, we can shoot in the yard, or shoot fruit in the garden, or shoot citrus fruits or orange peel, so everyone will cheer for us. Later, we even shot chickens and ducks as targets. As long as we shoot them down, adults will applaud us. From then until now, it has been 20 or 30 years, right?

It is said that there are two main archery styles: Mongolian and Mediterranean. I don't understand these, anyway, as long as you can shoot arrows, and you can shoot them accurately, it's a good archer. I walked up to the shooting range and found that the distance to the target was about less than 100 meters. I took a deep breath, pulled the bow, and released the arrow. The arrow didn't hit the target, which made me a little uncomfortable.

Nearby was the horse racing field, and people were performing horseback riding. I saw a rider standing on the galloping horse, hiding under the horse's belly and then jumping back on. In a short time, he raised the flag in his hand. It was as if the horse under his saddle was not a galloping horse, but a desk that would not move in an office. This amazing riding technique is like a circus. But I know that this is a skill that grassland nomadic peoples all possess – riding horses. Soon, the horse races began, and the pastoralists who participated had already lined up on the track. I looked closely, and they were those young men who rode horses to welcome us. When the gun fired, the horses ran wildly like a rushing river. The hooves beat the ground, and the falling sand looked like raindrops. Why could the Mongolian cavalry under Genghis Khan sweep across Eurasia? Take a look at these galloping horses, and you'll understand. If thousands of cavalry groups charge, plus arrows like raindrops, I'm afraid everything will be smashed into pieces under the hoofprints of ancient mountains and seas.

After watching the horse race, I went to see horse-grooming, which is to catch the horse you want in a group of running horses. This is not only difficult but also dangerous. Think about it, it's difficult to grab a wild chicken, let alone a running horse. A woman actually did it. She didn't succeed the first time, but she caught a horse the second time. This horse was very stubborn. Finally, she caught the horse and dragged her off the horse. Fortunately, there was a helper to help her subdue the horse.

I used to draw horses, and when I was a teacher in elementary school, I taught students to draw horses. But my hometown has no horses. My drawings of horses are all copied from paintings. In my memory, horses are a rare species. Later, I really saw living horses when I entered the city, and I even saw people riding horses on the road. The '' sound of horse hooves is still clear in my memory. At that time, I wanted to experience riding. Now, I'm on the grassland, and I'm surrounded by horses running. If I don't ride a horse, it's a wish fulfillment.

There are horses available for tourists to ride, and pastoralists provide protection for riders. It's safe to ride. But when you actually ride a horse, you always feel the reins are shaking. You always want to tighten your legs to stabilize the horse. But the pastoralists said that the speed of the horse is determined by the tightness of your legs, so if you tighten it, the horse will run faster. So even though I can't hold the horse steady, I don't want to tighten my legs.

I had heard that a rider can control the speed of the horse by tightening or loosening the reins, but I still couldn't control the horse's speed, and I was always worried that I would fall off the horse. I knew that I wanted to ride a horse like a warrior in ancient times, but now I can't even sit steady, and I'm always worried about falling off. This is really the mentality of wanting to ride a dragon.

A pastoralist noticed my mentality and comforted me that the horse was very docile and well-trained. I knew that these horses could be ridden by tourists, and there were pastoralists to protect them. Worrying about falling is unnecessary. Because I fell off a cow when I was young, although I wasn't seriously injured, I fell very painfully. That memory always lingered in my heart. However, I still persevered with determination and apprehension under the protection and encouragement of the pastoralists and tried to ride for two or thirty meters before I took a posed shot and rushed off the horse. My son also relied on the support and protection of the pastoralist and his own efforts to perform a show.

But finally I accomplished the wish to ride a horse.