Y/ELM+ Protection's second Pathfinder has been released: Musse.
You might have caught a glimpse of this previous martial arts star turned rider on our instagram already.
The stable
Q ( 01 ) Hi Musse, what have you done today?
M: Today I have been shooting for Y/ELM+ all day.
Q ( 02) What is the philosophy of your stable?
M: Preferably come back with a horse. With THE horse, actually, I would say.
Q ( 03 ) Are there any do’s and don’ts in the stable?
M: Where I've been writing the most, in the last couple of years, it's like it's a good thing to fall off for some reason.
It's a good laugh for everybody. So if you fall off a lot, and no horse gets hurt or anything, everybody will be happy about it. So it's a do, falling off, I would say.
Q ( 04 ) Name one person your stable could not do without?
M: Me! No, not really! I'm not of any use to be honest.. I would say that the owner of my stable, Sandra. And Patricia as well. Because without them I wouldn't be riding at all.
Riding
Q ( 05 ) What is your idéa of good horsemanship?
M: I don't know too much about horsemanship, but I think preferably I like to have a happy horse. And I am not sure if I am the person to tell if they are happy or not, but you know if they can be among other horses, I think they will be quite happy.
Q ( 06 ) What is your best ride ever and why?
M: I think my best rider ever would be with a horse that was named 13–12. It was in Mongolia. It was the first time I rode it.
That horse was from the station 13. And it was Horse number 12.
That's why they named it with a number. They only had numbers.
It was an amazing ride because it was quite aggressive at first. But then, somehow I lost the other people I rode with, and I rode 13–12 for maybe three hours. It was just magical. You know, he was so good to me and he was running wild. I fell in love with that horse and I haven't seen him again, which is sad I guess. Unfortunately I wouldn't recognize him today, because I have horse blindness. But I think 13–12 is the one!
Q ( 07 ) Worst fall, and how did you get back up in the saddle again?
M: I was trying to do my third race as an amateur jockey and while there, something happened with the stirrup. I don't know if it broke or whatever happened, but I I fell in front of the horse and the horse sort of stumbled over me. A muscle in my stomach broke, as well as a rib.. I was bleeding from the from the chin and when I met the doctor that day I fainted and broke both lips and eyebrow. That was my worst for sure!
I didn't get up on the horse again that day, but as soon as I could move again, I was back in the saddle.
Q ( 08 ) What is your opinion on safety?
M: I always wear protection. Always a safety vest and always a helmet. Because I fall off a lot and I think it would be stupid not to have it on.
Personal
Q ( 9 ) When did you start riding?
M: I started in 2009. I had done some riding before but not too much. I was offered a spot at the Stockholm horse show. The organizer told me there was a competition for people who had been on TV. They had the chance to compete against each other. I didn't win that time.
The year after they asked me to come again, and that time I won. Then I did that for about five years. In my case it was really, really hard at first, because I had only been riding a handful of times before. But through that competition, I really fell in love with riding horses.
Q ( 10 ) How did you discover riding and what made you want to do more of it?
M: I've been practicing martial arts for most part of my life and in 2012 I did surgery to my neck. That resulted in me not really being able to use my hand, and I had a lot of other problems as well, because of my neck.
Not being able to do martial arts was of course really, really sad. So riding sort of saved me, because I enjoyed it so much – and I think it has some common grounds with martial arts in many ways.
My background in martial arts really gave me a benefit in riding, because my sense of balance. So you know, I was really lucky.
Riding means a lot to me because I really enjoy doing something with somebody and in martial arts you always practice with somebody and it's the same thing with horses.
You have to have the company of a horse on the course, otherwise there's not going to be any riding...
Q ( 11 )What would you like to say to young people curious about writing but afraid to take the step to start?
M: I think it's probably quite scary to start riding. I was really lucky. To get the chance to do it in the kind of manner that I got to.
I think it can be very intimidating to start riding because of it being very expensive, and in many places, it seems like it’s a really a big leap you have to take, to get into riding.
It is very easy for me to say this now, but as a young rider you have to look past all of that that.
You can’t really think too much about what people think about you getting into riding. They might say you look like a donkey riding horse.. But they have to mind their own business, and you just have to get on with it. For your own sake.
I think that's the only good advice I can give.
Q ( 12 ) You have performed elite level martial arts, been a TV host, right in books and directors films, and now you write. Is it possible to pinpoint what has driven you to embrace these particular things?
M: I mean, now I'm riding horses. But it's not a job. It's really a hobby. So it's not like I want to be riding horses full time.
But I like things that are a bit scary. And that gets me really excited. And I think all of those things you mentioned have something in common – that thing where you really have to force your way in to make things happen.
When it comes to martial arts, it is forceful, because it's violence. And writing books is.. it’s a fucking mess.
Making movies (or in my case) shooting as a director, is also something where you really have to embrace some kind of stupidness to get into it.
I think maybe that would be the common ground. Because so many people have tried and failed in these areas. And to really get where you want, pushing and pursuing is needed.
Q ( 13 ) Have you become more cautious about what you involve yourself in over the years?
M: I wouldn't say so. Because riding is as tough as martial arts. It’s just another form of expressing the same feelings. For me at least.
I remember thinking riding was more macho than martial arts when I realized you can actually die if something goes wrong.
Still, a lot of times I'm really scared when I ride so I think it's more about being scared and embracing that feeling. Keep trying even though it's many times very scary.
I think being scared is also a part of why I do it. Maybe it's about survival. I don't know.
Q ( 14 ) You’ve been for a while now. What do you think is important to change in the riding culture?
M: As I’ve said before, riding is very similar to martial arts.
There are a lot of different styles and races, and just as in martial arts I have a feeling that everyone is saying that what they do, is the best way to go forward. Which is not always true.
It seem to be very rare that people borrow ideas from each other or look to what others do to evolve in the sport.
I would like to see some kind of openness and looking to find similarities amongst us, not the other way around. We are all riding horses and learning from each other would be the best way to go forward, If we’re just open to it.