Long Day

 Today was a long day. But at least it wasn't a work day. :) I got up early when Mike left for Louisianna but was able to go back to sleep for a little bit. Then I woke up to someone banging on the gate. I'm guessing it was Dan. I got up and fed and turned Fleck out with Dan for a little bit. They were pretty decent together. I sat on the couch for a little bit and talked to Mike and then got ready for my lesson. Oh, and..I knew I shouldn't have left the lunging stuff in the round pen. Today I found the tub in the pasture, flipped over and open.... I found one side rein in the water trough... one is still missing. Luckily my dinosaur stirrup covers were still in the tub, but... my lunge line is missing too. Oh Dan!

 

It wasn't a great lesson. It started out well! I was cheerful and optimistic. We had some fairly decent trot work and then we added the leg yield. He's better to the right stil... he's not dumping onto the right shoulder quite as bad and wasn't twisting his head quite as bad, but it is still there. And Rana wants him to go more sideways. Like how Kelly E had me work on a long time ago. Sideways!!! But still forward. So that's our homework. Working on the zig zag leg yields in an effort to get him supple and smooth and evenly in both reins. Then we went back to the trot on the circle and it spiraled terribly. Tracking right too of all things. I got so frustrated and took it out on Dan. His tongue came out. It was pretty bad. I feel like I'm battling the same thing I battled to the left, but now on the right. But my brain can't follow the process this way. Basically... he's not in the left rein, so he's hanging on the right. He's throwing his whole body to the left because he's collapsing on the right shoulder. And his haunches are way out. Except... that's not what my brain is telling me. My brain is telling me that his haunches are in, his left shoulder is out, and I must grab onto that right rein for dear life because otherwise he's going to fling to the left and fly outside of the arena. And when I let go of that right rein... that's what happens!!! So... my brain isn't wrong. Except it is. What I think I'm feeling is not exactly what's happening. So my correction is counter intuitive. But why oh why can't I figure this out and believe it?!?! So... now that I can think it through.. it makes sense. He's still dumping on the right shoulder... it's just that he's motorcycling onto it. So while it feels like his body is flinging left... it's centrifigal forces I'm feeling, not the actual body flinging left. It's flinging ME left...  OOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH... now that makes more sense! (I literally just got that... or made it up in my head... maybe it's entirely opposite, but whatever, it makes my brain happy which means maybe now I can make my body cooperate and do what my trainer says to do rather than what my smartass brain thinks is best). SO... I must...

• Sit right
• Hold the connection in the outside rein, but soften when he softens
• for the love of all, let go of the inside rein!!! Like throw it at him... repeatedly. I can use it for bend, but I must leg go more than I use it.
• Inside leg to outside rein. More inside leg.... even more inside leg
• Ride haunches in
• My brain has to think of riding a half pass to the right. 

Anyways... maybe eventually I'll get it. Rana had to break the spiraling cycle we were getting into and got on. And wanted me to try him in a regular bit rather than the nathe. She felt like a double jointed bit might help me and that him going behind the vertical isn't related to the bit, but just an evasion on his part. So.. we'll see. I feel like it doesn't really matter to him one way or the other. He goes about the same in any bridle, any bit, any whatever. Which, isn't a bad thing. Anyways... I did feel a little better because she had to work fairly hard to get him to behave. Of course maybe that's because I screwed him up so bad first. But I got back on and maybe it got a little better. 

Then I put him in the trailer while I watched her ride Marvin and about halfway through her ride, he started pawing in the trailer. I watched him for a minute but then decided he had to pee and wasn't just bored so I went over and let him out. He barely made it off the ramp before he peed! Well, I may not be able to ride, but I at least know my pony front and back. Sigh...

Then we got home and I was about to turn him out and go get some food before Freddie came... and Freddie came! eeeeeks! Good thing I was home. I had to move Mike's car though. We ended up putting the pad back on the right front to see if that helps him with his straightness until I can learn to ride better. So we'll see. After his turn, I turned him back out as he was pawing at the gate, while we did Fleck. Then it started to rain and Funny freaked out in the stall! I don't know if she's ever heard rain on a tin roof! And sweet Dan came back to the barn to comfort her. Awww... no wonder she loves him.