Goddard Park

Ok! Where were we?

Thursday had a not-so-great ride in the indoor at night. Things just felt off. I couldn't get a really forward gait from her, and I felt like I was riding her neck, not her back. She was in a pretty bad heat, so I have that some of the credit for her carousel-like-action. Maybe the saddle was in a weird position, too. We w/t/c, ran through a dressage test once or twice once I got her a little more forward, and called it a night. Ride time about 35 minutes.

Saturday actually had a pretty decent ride. We went in the indoor during the day because when I got there it was POURING out. Much better about forward, and when I used my stick on her shoulder to get her to keep cantering, she swished her tail but kept going. Fair. Worked on some softening stuff, she's really getting it. I think it's helpful that I don't ask her to be soft every ride, the whole ride. I feel like that might create some tension, so instead I've just been working on asking her to be soft, releasing when she does, and then asking for some sort of transition. Kind of like what Mugs talks about trying with her young horse on one of my favorite blogs. Elle's been figuring out on her OWN that it's easy to stay soft through the transition, which is pretty awesome.

Sunday a friend of mine from work, Jessie, agreed to come trail riding with us at the beautiful Goddard Park. This was only Elle's 3rd time ever trail riding, and the first time we had to trailer somewhere to do it. I went and got Pepper, Jessie's mare, first, mostly because I wasn't sure if Elle would kick out if a horse came up behind her in the trailer. I'm almost positive now that she would not. After a brief (3-4 minute) struggle with loading, we were off!

Got to the park after an easy drive and unloaded. She stood tied with no problem for me to saddle her up, even though she wanted to stretch down and eat grass (I tie them tight enough that they can't get their heads down below their knees...less of a chance of getting caught on something/tangling themselves up). I had brought a mounting block because I'm an old wimp, so I hopped on after minimal adjusting. Went into the ring to see if she needed to be warmed up at all, and after about 5-10 minutes at the w/t/c (mostly trot), it was clear that she did NOT need to be warmed up. She didn't care when Pepper went back to the trailer and she couldn't be seen, and only called to another horse once. I asked for some through work in the ring, got it, and decided that I was NOT going to work her hard before the trails. If she needed to be worked after, I was game, but I wanted to set this up to be as fun for her as she would let it be.

And let me tell you, did she let me relax!! I would say that 95% of the ride (3 hours or so) was done on a very loose rein (buckle or almost buckle), and while she spooked twice (no idea what about), once she jumped around she settled right back down. There was none of the nervous energy that I had gotten from the past 2 trail rides, no jigging, and she was completely present the whole time. I will say that I think she likes being in the front better, but I'll have to test that theory some more - Pepper is a little girl with short legs, and she doesn't walk as fast as Elle. When she was in the front, Elle may have really just SEEMED to be up her butt a little bit because she's got a bigger stride. We encountered runners (one of which came up behind us stealthily without announcing himself), kids, bicycles, dogs (both leashed and not, grr), people, cars on the road, water, other horses, everything! And there was nothing she was truly worried about. At the real beach, she didn't love the idea of getting next to the waves - but Michael explained to me a long time ago that some horses have an issue with the water coming up to meet THEM. I didn't force the issue, and we went into water up to about her knees at the boat ramp. We'll work on the ocean thing sometime when there's less people at the beach. The other thing she was nervous about was a guy sitting on his bike letting us pass that decided to throw his hand out to try and pet her as we were going by and he was about girth-area. No spook, just a cocked ear, a sideways glance, and a curve of her body. No thanks, sir, I'd rather you not pet me.

She was ALSO really great about hills and trailblazing. Hills had always kind of been a sticky spot, because she was hesitant about going down them, especially if the footing was questionable. Not on Sunday! She was completely willing to go straight down them instead of a) putting on the brakes or b) serpentining down them. Her balance is getting so much better and I think she's starting to trust me.

There was one hill that we would NOT take the girls down, frankly I don't see how people take their horses down it(if they do). It was really darn steep, long, and had hard footing with roots sticking out the entire hill. So, we ducked through the woods to go a safer way, and even with vines, trees, leaves, and pine needles, Elle picked her way through and was very compliant. Good pony! On an aside, I thought maybe I was being a wimp about not taking her down the bad hill - we came back the same way, and when we got to the hilll, looking up it, we decided to definitely not go UP, either. And I'm not a chicken about going up! So it must have actually been pretty treacherous.

Now that I know how GREAT she's going to be, next time I want to trot/canter more (we only walked and trotted a little bit), AND take my camera so I can get some pictures!!!

Yay Elle!!

OK, I'm really past due on an update...

I haven't felt like updating lately, or my computer has been down, or I haven't had internet. I don't know what's been up. So anyway, I figured I'd use my hour or so before I have to leave for school to give the basics of the most memorable rides I've had in the last few weeks.

After the "great canter" ride, Elle got a day or two off where we practiced trailer loading/trailering. The first day, she went right on but wanted to get back off. Rinse, repeat about 20 times. She finally got in there and stood, so we called it a day. The second day, she went on, stood, Matt put the buttbar up, and we went down to Walmart (because it's a close ride and has a big parking lot to turn around in). She seemed fine. She got antsy when I was making her wait to get off, and tried to paw at me! I was not having that. After a sound beating (not really), she stood and looked bored. Unloaded nice and got put away for the night. So, I think that whole thing that I thought was a huge issue, is going to be fine.

The next night, I rode outside under the lights, and she was kind of looky and silly, nothing bad though. I don't really remember anything from this ride!

Wednesday 8/26 I rode and didn't have a great ride. She was kind of...volatile? Just wanted to go, not use her body, and both of our minds were kind of everywhere. I've sense learned that when she comes out like that, cantering some circles really does us both good. Oh well. It was just an icky ride.

Thursday 8/27 was my lesson with Lisa Aylward. It went pretty well. She gave us some good tools, but Elle was not at her best that day, so that wasn't great. Something that I find working really well that she gave us was insisting our downward and upward transitions are soft, and doing them in rapid succession. It seemed to help. Also, small circles to get her off of her forehand before I asked her to lengthen made it feel like she was actually using her butt and back. So, like I said, the lesson was good, but I just didn't feel myself be energized OR tired at the end of the ride. She kept commenting that it was a lot to process and that I must be exhausted, but it just was not anywhere near the intensity that I enjoy in a lesson - maybe because I had BORING, "schooling" lessons for so long. So, I think I might take a few more lessons with Lisa to learn some stuff, but then definitely switch over to Morgan Adair when I can afford it.

The next memorable ride wasn't until Friday 9/4. I came out at night and decided that instead of working on how she is using herself, I'm going to work on a little bit of stamina. Even though we don't have a track or field, which is where this stuff is fun, I knew how long I wanted my intervals to be and I measured it out a little bit. 1 time around the ring at the walk = 90 seconds, trot is 45s, did not count the canter (yes, I was counting, I didn't have a watch on!) After a few walks, I started her up at the trot and wooooowhee she was hot! Spooking, blowing, being silly! So, as I had planned, we did 10 laps at the trot, for about 7 1/2 minutes of trotting. Every 2 laps, I switched direction. Then, 2 laps at the walk. Went to bring her up to the canter, and a big buck! Not a dirty one, a hot-as-heck one. So, I pushed her forward and she got super strong and on her forehand going down the longside. So, we did 6 circles, went down the longside, 6 circles, and went down the other longside. Then, 2 alternating laps of trot, and cantered the other lead, the left. The left is her much harder lead, so since she had cooled her jets a little bit, we did 2 circles, longside, 2 circles, longside, etc. Then, walked 2 laps. Then, went back to trot for 4 more alternating laps, and finished up with 4 canter laps, switching after 2.

It felt good to go out and work. While this is not the HARDEST ride we have ever done, it was the most work I have asked her to do with a small quantity of breaks. The walks were much longer than we normally do. I like this kind of work, and want to use it once or twice a week. I wasn't asking for round, or gorgeous, I just want to get her muscles and heart ready for longer, faster work. The first time I bring her to an event I want her to be able to canter for the five minutes and jump without feeling sore, tired, or out of breath!

Tuesday 9/8 I had a pretty good ride - she was offering to be round all on her own, and I was seeing glimpses of that great canter I had at one point. I thought it would be a nice idea to pop her over some jumps, which was super stupid in retrospect because it was getting dark out and I didn't have the lights on. The first couple were the best jumps we'd ever had together - she actually made a little bit of a bid for the jump, so I knew she was going before the last possible stride, and I didn't get left behind at all. We either landed on our lead or did a simple change, and did our circle. I then went to trot over a big (the poles are big) CROSSRAIL, and she stopped. 3 times. I understand that it was getting dark (stupid, stupid me), but I did make she that she knew it wasn't ok to stop, and we did get over it, then went back and did our easy, nice fence once more. I'll be more careful next time, I know that especially while she's young I need to make jumping feel safe and right for her, and present her in the best possible way. She doesn't need to be clever yet, she needs to have confidence in both me and herself.

Great canter

Rode Friday day while a friend was at the barn. She wanted to see Elle go, hasn't seen her since Canonchet. I was apprehensive because it was 11:30am, but not as hot as it has been (although just as muggy). Put our regular tack on and went outside. After a brief wake-up with the stick, Elle was GREAT. I had the best canter on her. She was so balanced, so light, so bouncy. Felt like she was really powering from behind - I was so psyched! And, probably because she was so balanced, she was super easy to keep going through the corners. At the end of our last canter, she offered to be SUPER round, and stay bouncy - the essence of a real frame, and I didn't even ask for it! I guess that's when you know it's real :) Rode for about 30 minutes.

Now, Elle's had 2 days off, so back to work tonight. We DID practice trailer loading last night, and she was AWESOME. So whatever was up before doesn't seem to be an issue.

Will update tomorrow on how the ride tonight goes!

Something wrong...

Rode last night, something wasn't right. I can't put a finger on it. I changed both the bit and the saddle pad, which changed saddle fit dramatically, and her leg was a little swollen before I even got on. Perhaps the combination of the three things was off. Backwards was the best idea she could come up with, but I will say that with some resolve I got her going forwards, every time.

I knew something was wrong. So, I decided that as soon as she listened to all of my cues in a nice manner, we would quit. So, that's what we did. I DID give her a pop at the canter once - she rang her tail but surged forward. Good girl.

Got off, hosed her off, feeling her all over to see what I could see. Used Sore-No-More shampoo on her back, legs (except the icky one), neck, and butt, and let that sit and make her feel a little better. Scrubbed the icky leg with Betadine, rinsed the rest of her, and cold hosed the leg. So, our ride was short, but our TLC time was long.

No show @ OSHC this weekend, although I don't know when that was going to be posted somewhere.

Tuesday night. Rode, even though I was in a crabby mood. Elle and I were two mares in heat.

Nothing bad happened. She got a little sticky about staying in the canter. I was probably tipping forward. Again, nothing bad happened in the ride. It just didn't feel good.

That is all.

Getting there

Rode Elle last night, I got out there around 6:30pm and we both had the sweat running off of us. It wasn't so bad that I couldn't change into breeches, though, so I tacked up and headed into the indoor. The footing is a little softer inside, plus there were lessons going on in the outdoor and it's really dusty out there.

Elle hasn't been worked consistently at ALL in the last week and a half, because of the leg (which looked good, if a tiny bit swollen), so I wasn't really sure what to expect. What I got at the beginning were spooks by one of the doors! Crazy Elle. We worked through that, it took about 8-10 passes before she was completely fine down there (only spooking in one direction). She's cool, though, because she doesn't get hot just because she's spooky in a place.

Lots of trots, lots of canters, not as many transitions or circles as normal. She took what Jackey thought were a few weird steps (we were kind of looking for the worst!), so we did some small circles and then some canter-trot-canter transitions, and she was completely sound, so whatever. After she worked for about 1/2 hour, I called it a day and hosed her off really well. Going up tonight to ride and hose and scrub, and then tomorrow I have my first lesson in a LOOOONGGG time! Nuts!

Back On Track

So, leg update: Monday the leg was SWOLLEN. Blown up, heat, mushy. I almost panicked! Cold hosed 2x, ended the night with a liniment brace that I didn't wrap. Tuesday, the leg was almost 100%. She was sound, but it was still puffy in the fetlock area - edema follows gravity. More cold hosing.

Wednesday it got cold hosed a couple of times and I decided to ride at night. I didn't want to stress the leg and the outdoor was kind of hard, so we worked for about 45 minutes on 2 different things - 1, being very responsive to the leg and to the reins, meaning go & whoa. The leg got AWESOME. The reins still need work - she stops fine but I want to have that unquestionable HALT when I so much as make a W sound. She was also super easy to do circles with, not that I did a ton because I wanted to save that leg if it was still ouchy.

The other thing we worked on was trotting on a loose contact, and going into and maintaining a nice canter with loose contact. This isn't something we've worked on a lot because I've been trying to avoid bucking fits - I think that that's reasonable! However, it got really good, probably partially because we did all of the sensitivity work prior to me letting her be on the loose rein.

All in all, it was a really really good ride, especially with having 3 days off.

Did more cold hosing & Vetrolin, and she unfortunately got today off because I had a ton of stuff going on. She'll be ridden early tomorrow morning, though, and then every day in the foreseeable future. On the 23 of this month I'm going to take her into a hunter pleasure class at OSHC! Wish us luck...

Bummin'

Got up to the barn tonight after a long day (fighting with Matt and then spending time with my family raises my stress level to about an 8), and I was looking forward to a nice, long ride on the flat.

Went to pick out her feet and her RH leg was swollen. Not at the back, or on the inside, or in the joint, but on the outside. This, in fibrous tissue language, relates to: the suspensory, the check ligament, and the digital deep flexor tendon. In bone talk, the splint bone.

She was also off. Not head bobbing, not even SUPER off, just...not right. The leg, though, is not mushy or hot, it's pretty firm, but there is a definite bulge on the side of her leg.

So, cold hosed for 20 minutes, and then ended up wrapping all 4 legs, the "bad" one with Kool Out Clay. I didn't want to leave it alone, but I didn't feel comfortable sweating it with Furazone, either, until I did more research on that.

I'll be out in the morning to see what I've got. My theory is that she hit it on something, although I'm not sure how. I've learned from these years with horses though, that sometimes (most of the time) it's better NOT to ask how.

Rode Elle yesterday in the middle of the day, and the sun & heat again made her a little sluggish and unresponsive. I need to work on that - our shows, events, and trail rides are all going to be in the middle of the day, hopefully with the sun out. She needs to listen.

She wasn't bad, just not very forthcoming with energy. Once I cantered her, the trot got better, and we worked for a little bit on, "more, NOW." It got a little bit better. I felt deep in my seat and heel, but I did feel like I was rocking up her neck a little bit.

We went for a NICE canter, me in my half seat, all the way around the ring, and we maintained it through the corners. It was good, I was happy.

She felt nice after a bit, and the fences from the previous few days had all been lowered to "us" heights. So, we went to the first one, and she was GREAT. I closed my calf a little bit, not my spur, and stayed the same. She pointed her ears to the fence, and made a great effort over it. I was really impressed by her!

We ended up working on 4 different fences, all out of the trot, and she was good to all of them. I even was good! Not spectacular, but I'm so used to jumping Harley, and it's been so long since even that. I keep expecting big jumps over little stuff, or to be jumping big stuff! It'll get there, and she was a star - never even looked at a fence that I was pointing her at.

I think that the place that we need to go, now that I know she's okay with the fences, is to gymnastics. I think they do great things, especially for young horses, and they might keep her momentum going through the whole combination. I need to invest in a tape measure!

Last month's goals and setting some new ones

July's report:

• Elle got ridden 13/31 days this month. Those number suck. Why do I have such a motivation issue?
  
• Didn't get the trail riding done, but looking back it was either pouring or the nighttime when I went to ride, every time.
  
• We CAN canter all the way around the ring, both directions, 2x!
  

August's hopes:

• Ride 20/31 of the days this month.
• Trail ride 1x on the other side of the road by the end of August.
  
• Taking her to a busy show (probably H/J) by the end of August to let her hang out and go in the warmup or something (just to see how she is with lots of other horses around)
  
• Trailer out to trails (Carolina? Apple Knoll?) by August 16
• Start jumping Xrails and small fences again (have 2 sessions by August 16 and another 2 by the end of the month)
• Take a dressage lesson by the end of August
• School XC by the end of September
• REAL dressage show by the end of September

Soooo.

Elle had yesterday off, because I suck at life.

Today! I put the Pessoa on her, plus some sheepskin/leather open fronts (since I just found out that polo wraps do nothing good), and hit the ring.

She was super soft and forward at the trot, and GREAT at the canter. She was a little distracted once a car showed up - her head would NOT come to the inside - but her turns and stretch were really good.

I decided to jump today! I looked around at all of the jumps set up, and the one that best suited our needs was a blue wave vertical with a pole kind of over it, kind of just on top of it. We did it from both directions a couple of times, from the trot, and she was GREAT! Actually jumped it, never looked, etc etc. I need work, and lots of it. I was rusty and I was ready for her to just clobber over in the trot, and I got left behind. I'm going to try some more tomorrow or the next day.

After the jumps, she wasn't cantering, but I could pop her up into the canter a stride or two after landing and we would canter our circle.

Don't feel like writing much but yay!

Not feeling much like writing today, had a pretty lazy and very uneventful ride. I tried one of Jackey's Pessoa's on Elle, but because of how sluggish we both were, I really couldn't tell how well it fit her. So, I'll try tomorrow when I'm riding in lower temperatures.

On the run

I slacked. I didn't ride yesterday or today. As a quick note, I GOT A TRAILER!! So it's officially time to get my butt in gear and ride, ride, ride. New goals for the month coming in the morning.

Contrast

Had a not-so-good ride last night.

To make a long story short, she ended up feeling rushy and I grabbed her head back instead of loosening and pushing her forward (what always makes her slow down and balance up). We ended up fighting for our stops with that bit, something I really didn't want to do. I'd honestly rather go back to a bit that she's going to grab at than one that is making her open her mouth and brace, so I'll shop around for a little while but in the mean time I'm going to put either the eggbutt french link or the oval mouth D on her. Actually, what I really want is the french link loose ring, so I just have to stretch the bit guards over that.

I got off feeling like it was a really, really crappy ride, but made myself stop and think about some things:

• All except 1 of our circles was easy
• We can canter around the indoor, both ways, for "as long as I want" - atleast a couple of times
• Her transitions were perfect - we worked on walk NOW, trot NOW, and canter SOON (I give her a few steps of trot from the walk to bump up)
• She didn't even THREATEN to do anything mean
• Our lead changes are down to 2-3 trot strides, both on a serpentine & a figure-8
• I can ask her to counter canter, and she can do the straight sides and about 1 turn before she gets on her forehand and unbalanced
  

So, honestly, I need to think of how far that has all come and just keep working on it. Rome wasn't built in a day, and her muscles can't be either.

Oh, and another thing worth noting, when she gets "hot," I can either loosen my reins (sometimes she breaks to trot/walk) or circle her and she comes right back.

A Good Ride

I'd have to say that last night's ride was a good one. I got on (more perfect mounting) and Elle seemed forward and interested in work. She trotted off with only leg, no spur, but was also very sensitive to her halts. It felt good.

We made our way around for a while and then started to do some real work. I'm having a lot of trouble going to the left with her - it's like she doesn't know how to travel that direction. At the trot, she constantly wants to counterbend and pop the left shoulder in. We worked on some leg yields and me riding very straight rather than always having her bent, but honestly I just never got the right feeling. When I take that lesson with Lisa, that's going to be something I bring up.

Right lead canter was great; I even asked her to pick it up off of a loose rein once she was a little tired. I couldn't complain at all, and we even went for a big canter around the whole ring. The left lead canter, not surprisingly, left something to be desired. I've always had trouble bringing her around on a circle to the left, and last night was actually better than it normally is, but not great. It got me to thinking. She was really dropping her shoulder and bulging around the corner. I thought about my shoulder and realized my left one was completely dropped and that I was probably leaning in through the turn (or what I was trying to make into a turn.) I decided to try a form of "arching my back," which is like one of the 7 sins when it comes to riding and being soft. However, what I was really doing was lifting my shoulders and bringing my shoulder blades closer to each other, while leaving my back soft. Let me tell you, it really worked! So, that's what I'll be working on; maybe I'll get one of those Shoulders Back devices...

Came back from Canada, got an email from Kristine that Elle hadn't been good, but hadn't been bad, and that she was shitty for mounting. I'll take half the blame for mounting, as she's been perfect about the mounting block, but I know she's bad about the "stairs" set up we have so I just avoid it.

Tacked up around 9pm last night (Monday), got on (perfect), and started to circle the indoor.

She wasn't nice for a while. How I'm best describing the feeling was that she felt like she had a ton of energy, and at first decided to use it by bucking. I got the first legitimate kicks and bucks that I have in a WHILE. My solution? Beat the crap out of her for a second (just until she went forward, even the tiniest bit), and carry on my day. It worked. It took about 3 "episodes" to get it figured out, but she got it. After that, we got forward.

She was kind of strong, but for whatever reason, I didn't care last night. We walked, trotted, and cantered, and she was frisky but she had knocked off doing the bad stuff. I didn't like having that bit in her mouth because she was strong and I felt like I had to use it. That's not my intention right now.

We walked, trotted, and cantered, and then moved on to the "course" of poles that were set up. There were 2 lines - a 5 stride (or 6, I can't remember) and a 3 stride, plus 2 diagonal and 2 single straight fences. I started off trotting her over all of them, and then we cantered the singles and diagonals, just meeting them in stride, either straight or on a circle. Somewhere in there on a diagonal she changed her lead, and I was disappointed that I didn't feel it, but I really can not for the life of me think of where she did it! But, alas, all of a sudden we were on the correct lead.

I wanted to try the two related distances with her, because I've only once jumped her down a line that wasn't a gymnastic (not that these were jumps, but they require some planning on her part). At first she wanted to break going into them, or take some funny steps and get weird through them. After a couple of times, though, we got perfect striding through them, and I was happy. She was super jazzed up, which was fun.

I wanted to end the ride on a really relaxed note, so I put her up into a canter and then once we got our stride I loosened my reins, and we went all the way around the ring in a canter to the left. I felt for the first time that she was just listening to my leg and carrying herself, instead of me having to hold her together. Then, going to the right, I started the canter on the relaxed rein and we again went around the ring. As soon as I pulled her up, I hopped off and loosened the girth. She was done after a nice cool shower :)

New bit

Rode last night, again under the lights, despite the fact that in the barn she was SUPER worried about something. It started with a helicopter, something she's never been worried about (I trail rode her the morning the Blue Angels were practicing...), and sure enough the nervous, wet poops came along with a huge case of ADHD.


Anyway, I decided to try a different bit on her, half because I was meaning to (I had an oval mouth D on her and it was super easy for her to get strong in it), and half because she was spooky and strong feeling. I decided to try a Dr. Bristol Slow Twist Full Cheek.

Now, I don't know a lot about bits, I'll admit it. Everything about this bit screamed that it might be too strong for what I was trying to accomplish (a soft, responsive horse that has a little respect), but I put it in her mouth, pulled my gloves on, and off we went.

I really like the results I got. She wanted to be round like, the entire time (no idea if this had to do with the bit or me INSISTING that she be forward), I had great adjustability within her gait, and our steering was PHENOMENAL. Not that it isn't getting there on its own, but finishing out our circles has been a little tough.

So, I'm going to keep riding in it with a super light hand and see where I get.

Got my ass in gear on Monday night after the trailering (er, non-trailering) debacle and rode. Rode hard, for 45 minutes. We were both sweaty and tired after the long day and long sessions.

I couldn't get her settled down, but my position felt like dogshit, too. When I say she was unsettled, I DON'T mean that she was bad. She really wasn't. We were riding in the dusk, with no lights on, and she didn't look at anything. She didn't kick or buck, and she was very receptive to leg. But I was in that mode where I didn't feel comfortable, and she felt TOO forward, so I took my legs off. I forgot until the very end how good it feels to put your leg ON when they feel fresh. Just leg, not spur.

Finally, at the end of the ride (which consisted of minimal walking, lots of trotting, and lots of cantering - circles, that is), things felt ok. Not great, but ok. Again, I've got to repeat, she really wasn't being disrespectful, she was actually giving me a lot of what I've been asking for. I was just feeling chicken I guess? That I Can't Get Deep In My Seat-My Stirrups Feel Too Long-I'm Going To Lay Up Your Neck-And Have A Death Grip On Your Mouth feeling. K.O. pointed out that my saddle isn't doing me any favors...brings me down to my next quest, a different saddle.

Tally ho, time to go ride.

Trailering Woes

Tried to take Elle down to Canonchet today for a field trip & a fun run through the field. Couldn't get her on the trailer. I tried for about 40 minutes, no way Jose. She got really shitty and careless at some points and for that got a big whack, other than that she was just really weird. She looked genuinely concerned about the trailer.

After sweating and swearing, we went up to the indoor for some lunging where she was PERFECT. So, I know it's not that she was just "in a mood" today, at least not completely. Went back, would not go on the trailer. She was willing, however, to go on the off side of the trailer, with significantly less frustration. I can't haul her on that side though, because it's all rusted and f'ed up.

Part of this whole thing is respect, absolutely. At what point do you say maybe she's not just being a bitch, though? Do they have intuition?

I'm going to work this week with the rope halter, really getting her to respond to moving when I say move. I have noticed her getting pretty rude about wanting to eat grass, etc etc, so that needs to be fixed and maybe it'll help. I'm also going to ask Mike if we can do some training with her when he comes to shoe her next. She's due.

Then there's the issue with the trailer - I need to find out what Karen's looking to get for hers. I'm completely of the school that Elle needs to go where I say to go, no questions asked, no matter what, but...let's just say it wouldn't be bad for me to have my own, nicer trailer.

Under the lights...

Rode Elle last night after a long day of running around. I almost bailed, but it was a really nice night for a ride so I turned the lights on, tacked up, and went out.

Perfect for mounting.

Started off "meh." I just couldn't get my position. It was one of those feelings where my brain was telling me where I needed to be, my body was GOING there, but I just couldn't find the right spot, or tone, or level of relaxed. I started her up and tried to just be soft.

We warmed up and things got a little better. I decided to do some of the stuff I saw Kristine & Lisa doing, which was some of the same stuff Kristine & Eric did. We started off with the exercise where you spiral into the circle and leg yield back out again. I didn't get the right feeling. We were doing it, but I felt like my body didn't stay stacked up, instead it felt like I was leaning forward a little bit. I think it DID help her to get a little more sensitive to the leg, though.

Next we did a TON of trotting. It seems like for the past week all I keep hearing is that transitions get you to impulsion. First with Lisa, and then with Eric, and then I ran into a random article online that was actually titled, "Transitions equal impulsion." So, I took some from everyone. We would trot until we got to a corner, halt, get a walk as soon as I asked (this had to be worked on because "backwards" was easier at the beginning), and then when I had a good walk, get a trot and trot a circle, then straight, until we got to the next corner. Rinse, repeat. We did a TON of this, then moved the exercise to the canter.

I was a little worried I was doing something wrong at first. When we got to the middle part of the exercise, and especially when we got to the canter part, I had a really strong, stiff horse. I almost gave up on the job because I thought I was making her worse, but as we went along and I persevered she got lighter and lighter. So maybe she was getting stronger and stronger because it was hard, but then we broke through. It seems weird, but as I think of it, it's the same thing that would happen with Harley on his hot days. He would get MUCH ranker before he would get soft. So, I'm glad I kept going.

The other thing I worked on was cantering with a loose, but connected, rein. As we would start our circle, I would maintain a stronger contact (because that is where she is still apt to throw in a buck), but when I would have a flowing stride I would soften a bunch. I was really impressed with how she handled this and how it all went. By the end of the ride, when I would collect a little bit, she would anticipate the canter, but not in a bad way. Instead of ringing her tail, bouncing up, and giving me the "screw you" ears, she was offering a SUPER soft canter at the slightest cue of the leg. So, whatever I did last night, got us somewhere that was a better place than where we started.

Where are we?

• Riding all 4 days of this weekend (Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun) FAIL. Rode Thurs & Sat, lunged Friday
  
• Riding at least 12 more times this month, plus extra lunges and hang outs 4 rides & 1 lunge down, 8 rides left to go and I have 12 days to do it in. (3 of which I'll be in Canada. Better get riding!)
  

Edited 7/19

Head Shaking?

Rode Elle today, new I didn't have much time but wanted to keep up with what I said, so I planned for a 25 minute ride. What's up with this head shaking? In her stall, naked or tacked up, on the cross ties, when I go to get on, when I'm riding...this random "twitch" where she throws her nose up. It's never side to side.

At first I thought it was being bitchy about flies, bridle, etc. But she does it when there are NO flies. Then I thought it was the saddle making her spasm, or something like that. But now she does it randomly in her stall, naked. I don't know what to make of it! It hasn't interfered with anything yet, but honestly, I can't tell if she's hurting somewhere, or annoyed, or what.

On a good note, we did a TON of canter transitions today, from the walk and the trot. We were working on transitioning up on a circle, and then ended up doing figure-8's...canter, trot, walk, set up new bend, pop into canter. Rinse, repeat. She got the transition and the lead 100% of the time, so I'm pretty happy with that.

Saddle issues...

I rode on Thursday. I was a little wimpy about getting on, and she seemed really ouchy. So, I put Kristine's saddle on her, and I felt a ton of difference, I'm not 100% sure Elle did. On the whole, I know I need a new saddle, I just don't know what to get and I don't have ANY money right now. I just want something that fits her, I'm not adverse to a changeable gullet right now until she grows.

All in all the ride was ok. Nothing spectacularly good or bad.

Yesterday I forgot my boots at Karen's house (I'm housesitting, which throws everything into a crazy spin for a week or two), so I just lunged after watching Kristine's lesson with Lisa Aylward(sp?). She DID get a big workout lunging, though, and we worked on adjustability within the gait (especially the walk), which is hard to get across on the lunge line. She was a good girl.

I need to go up and ride today before work but I'm just in such a piss poor mood that I don't know what to do with myself. Maybe some quality time with Elle would be a good thing but I've already yelled at all of the animals I'm taking care of about stupid stuff, so I'm not sure...

Setting some goals...

Elle FINALLY has an engine, and is getting better about using it. She's building some muscle too. Now I just need some brain power.

I'm stuck in this rut (not as bad as before) where I ride for a day or two but then take 2 days off. Hopefully my riding every day this weekend will change that. *crosses fingers* We went to Lynn Smiley's dressage show and she was a star! No bucks, no sticky spots (not super forward but I wasn't asking for much), great trailering, etc etc. I was impressed even though we only got a 60 (=3rd)

Here's what I'm thinking:

• Riding all 4 days of this weekend (Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun)
• Riding at least 12 more times this month, plus extra lunges and hang outs
• Trail riding 1x on this side of the road and 1x on the other side of the road by the end of the month
• Being able to canter all the way around the ring, both directions, 2x, by the end of the month
• Taking her to a busy show (probably H/J) by August 16 to let her hang out and go in the warmup or something (just to see how she is with lots of other horses around)
  
• Trailer out to trails (Carolina? Apple Knoll?) by August 16
• Start jumping Xrails and small fences again (have 2 sessions by August 16 and another 2 by the end of the month)
• Take a dressage lesson by the end of August
• School XC by the end of September
• REAL dressage show by the end of September
  

I know that it's silly that I have to make goals like this for myself, and I know it's also silly that it's ok with me if I change them, but I need to just not FORGET about them.

We'll see :)

Watching the Meadow

3/31/09 Zimectrin Gold

So it's Elle's first week at her new place and we both seem to love it. There's a few things I would change (duh) but you can't find a perfect boarding place and this seems to make me happy. I've been up every day, which is something new for me!

I had my first ride on her yesterday, after she had been there for 3 days. She was good! I rode in the indoor and Jackey was there with me. It started off great (she's FINALLY figuring out the whole stand-while-I-mount thing), and then went kind of blah - no responses. So, Jackey had me doing the "ask, suggest, tell" method where I ask with my leg with the pressure I'd like to ask with, suggest with my voice, tell by popping her on the bum in a 1,2,3,4 rhythm until she moved a little quicker. It worked really well, I was happy. She's getting it. I'll see what happens when I'm there alone tonight.

Updates

First of all, Elle was wormed with Zimectrin Gold on 1/20/09. That's just for my personal records. I usually don't spend the money on Zimectrin Gold, I just do generic ivermectin every 8 weeks and 2 Strongid after the first frost and first big thaw. However, Elle hadn't been wormed in a while (oops) so I just wanted to do ZG to cover all of my bases.

Things have been going okay with the girl. I went to Mexico and when I came back, she hadn't been worked with. I kind of figured that would happen, but oh well. So the first day I got back (Sunday 1/4), we just did ground work and I let her be really silly in the indoor. The Tuesday after that, I just got on and did my thing, and she was really wonderful. She wanted to play, but not be mean, and she never did anything stupid. By the end of my ride, she was giving me every ounce of energy she had and I was really proud of her.

Since then, I've been riding on and off because of cold weather, going back to school, etc. I've probably ridden/worked with her only 7 times in the past 3 weeks, but sometimes other things take precedence. She has been great, though. I even played with a few jumps a couple of days ago.

However, I'm running into a wall a little bit. If I show her some jumps, her attitude gets so much better and she's way more fired up, which is GREAT. Transitions there without the pissyness/beating on the bum, less kicking/bucking. If I DON'T jump her, I can get the same thing, but it takes about 30-35 minutes of riding before I can get her to REALLY cooperate and get fired up. This is only in the ring, by the way. Is this a conditioning issue, a young horse issue, a consistency issue, or something else? A boredom issue? I'll keep working at it, riding more, and see if she wants to give herself over to me sooner and sooner.

Back from Cancun

The view from where we spent most of our time.

MT DEW > Corona

This is the backwards 2-spotted lady bug that flew into my purse!

Matt with the Cookie Monster that was at the mall!

Me with Cookie Monster...my dress matches!

Me getting ready to go snorkeling for the first time! And then the coral attacked me and I have a huge scratch on my leg, and now I hate snorkeling.

The boat in front of us on the way back. It was slow, we kept almost passing him! But that's not good because it was our guide. 10' fiberglass boat with a 30hp engine & a red gas can as a foot rest (and our fuel supply) in the open sea = fun.

Taking pictures while we're NOT at full throttle in the open ocean.

Getting ready to start the boat up, I think.

After our trail ride...we were alive!

Matt on Duke. Notice the chains used as reins and a tie down, and the long shanked bit :(

When we got off to change at the beach, they all layed down and took a nap (but looked dead).

Matt on his water horse. Isn't he so cute???

Matt on his super cute water horse.

Matt in the ocean!

Matt on the pony bareback.

I have no idea what my water-horse's name was, but he was so good! Coming out after our swim.

Cutie.

Wading out into the Caribbean Sea.

Matt on his little appy-loosa, El Duque.

This is one of the girls that fell off. You can see why.

King. He was so cute! And crazy but that wasn't his fault.

I'm only smiling because I like Matt. We were going home. I was sad.