Bonus Ride

 Today was a weird day! It stormed HARD last night. Like heavy heavy rains, lots of lightning, and some heavy winds. There were tornados in Mississippi I think even. And it was rather warm. Well, ish. It was like 60 degrees today, although other than the brief hour or two the sun came out, it was pretty overcast and damp and chilly for being 60 degrees. And then tonight, it's dropping to 30 and the winds started up this afternoon. Very windy! But, I did get done with work at 3 and was home by 3:45. I was going to try to ride with Kelli but the arena's at Ashland were closed and Kelli didn't want to risk trail riding with as wet as it was, so... I was on my own. I was tempted to go to Ashland as Dan and I haven't trail ridden in forever, but... by the time I would have gotten there it would have been 4:30 and it gets dark so early, so... I opted to lunge and ride at home. Which was a good choice! I was able to lunge, ride, adjust him, feed, and then it was still 7:30 when Mike and I got to dinner. 

 

When I caught him they were up by the arena so I took a peek! I LOVE MY ARENA! There was a few puddles but shallow and the footing held up great. I didn't even get any more run off than previously (pretty sure) despite the massive heavy rains! 

So we lunged first and he was pretty good. I did put two ground poles in the arena. I didn't plan ahead or I would have done alternating raised poles and done more, but.. at least I got two. He was a good boy and lunged nicely over them. And he was picking up his feet better today. So after a short lunge... I got on. We practiced our homework and he was super. We even did some leg yields and some transitions. It was only 23 minutes of riding, but... it was worth it! Afterwards I put his back on track sheet on for a few minutes, then I adjusted him and did some fascial work. He was so happy. Then I bemered him, fed him, put his dino jammies on, and let him go. Good boy!

Credit where Credit is due

Ok... I'm trying not to spiral. Today was a little rough. As was yesterday. But also.. my horse is amazing! 

We had a lesson today and we took Lyric with us. I put Dan in the pasture while I worked and rode her first. He was pretty good. He called a few times and ran a bit but wasn't crazy. So yay! 

Then it was his turn. He was filthy... again! Oh well. I brushed the crumbly bits off where his tack goes and we headed down. I lunged him first and Rana thought he looked pretty darn good although a hair sluggish. She suggested that I work on adding in some poles so he has to engage his hind end more. So we can do that. And yay because last week she didn't think he was strong enough for poles yet. She thought he was looking a hair better. And yes, much straighter in his footfalls but dragging those toes a bit. She said to reward him for holding his head up a little higher too. Which is what I've been doing... and also I told her I added in transitions to help keep him from just peanut rolling. 

So then I got on. We started out at the walk and she was fussing at me for being straight in my spine... keeping my legs long.... my toes up... and my hands soft and following. Then we picked up the trot. And he felt a hair off in the beginning. Not bad... a step or two. Rana didn't say anything so I ignored it and carried on. And it was so subtle. But then his tongue came out. Again. A lot. Sigh... And then Rana mentioned the lameness. Sigh. We decided to see if we could work him out of it. She explained that when he wasn't reaching for the bit.. he just got a bit compressed where his neck ties in. And maybe that creates the lameness... whether it makes something hurt... or whether it just blocks him??? So we really focused on getting him to carry himself and reach for the bit. I had to close my leg, and add contact to the rein, holding the outside rein, and wait for him to bend and stretch down and out. Then when he does, I can follow him and let him go forward into my hand. So we did that and he got MUCH better. He started using himself better and there was no more tongue issues. And he felt bouncier and loftier and sounder. So... she said at the end that she really thinks it's a "rein lameness" because a true lameness wouldn't go that sound. I hope she's right. She also said that I need to remember that he's going to fatigue so get some good steps and get out/change direction/rest... so that he doesn't over do it and get angry again. 

So then I hosed him off because he was super sweaty and we grabbed Lyric. I loaded him up and then tried to load her up. Nope. We spent... oh... at least 2 hours trying to get her on the trailer. And poor Dan just hung out like a good boy. At one point I unloaded him and let him graze for a bit and pee. And he did. And then I tried to put him on the other side of the trailer to see if she would load. Nope. So then I put him back on his side and threatened to leave Lyric there. Then I ended up backing the trailer up into the barn aisle, acing Lyric, and Rana showed back up and we finally got her on. But Dan was so good the whole time. He was mugging me for cookies (and got a lot too!) but he was so patient. 

And really... going down this rabbit hole of biomechanics and posture... he really is a good boy. He tries. He does. And he keeps on trucking despite his issues. I told him today how proud of his I was. And a little proud of me too. I made him. :) Now if I can just figure out what's bothering him and fix it... so we can get back to doing all the things he loves to do!

Smart Boy

 You know... Dan and I don't get enough credit sometimes! For me... I created quite a lovely little beasty! For him.. he's quite a lovely beasty! When I remember to use my seat aids.. he listens. Really well! Today we rode at home. I raised my stirrups a hole, which I think will help my leg. Hopefully. Anyways... we did our lunging warm up and he's already straighter! He pretty much started out straight. yay! So after I got on we walked a bit and then did our figure 8 walk both ways. I focused on my seat aids and my weight aids and he's pretty darn good. He tried to get a little crooked in the neck today, but when I paid attention to it, he happily obliged and went straight again. We then did our figure 8 at the trot... and then we did some regular trot work. But we still kept it slow so he was balanced. Then we did some very subtle leg yields and half passes. And he was super. So then we finished with some nice transitions from the trot to walk to trot. And then we had a nice halt and a nice reinback to open the gate. And then he "closed it" with his nose! Good boy. We hacked back to the barn and met up with the other ponies again. Good boy! 

Good day

 We got back from Louisiana yesterday evening. JUST before sunset. And just close enough to sunset to not really have time to do anything. Sigh. Oh well. The good news is that Dan saw me and was waiting in his stall for me with his ears pricked!!! And then didn't snarl at me when I came in for snuggles! Granted, it was dinner time... and he did have a scab in his ear that was super itchy but still, I'll take it! 

 

Anyways, after a little bit of sleep in this morning (Oh how I missed my bed!) I got the ponies fed. Then I had to drive Mike to the bank and then Mountain Motor Sports. He bought another bike. Then I barely had enough time to get back home, change, and grab Dan to meet Kelli. He was so dirty too!!! Like... crusted globs of dried mud on him. Gross! Guess I should have left a sheet on him this morning but it was so warm and I thought he wanted naked time. 

 

Anyways... I lunged him first. He's doing so much better and staying straight on the lunge. I don't have to work as hard to get his right hind from swinging laterally on the left lead. So we didn't do a ton because... he looked good! So then I swapped the cavesson out for his bridle and got on. We started with our slow methodical walk with haunches to the left (going with what I've been seeing on the lunge). Then we did the figure 8 at the walk with haunches left. And.. .at the end (I think it was the haunches left one) he gave a big sigh and licked and chewed. Interesting! We did both ways and then we went to the trot. We did our big figure 8 trots doing the haunches in and kept the slow trot. Then I did a little bit of trotting without focusing on the figure 8. I did ride haunches in when tracking right, but when tracking left I tried to ride straight in general or shoulder fore. It's definitely harder tracking right. Kelli watched and said he looked pretty good. There were moments where he lost his balance and fell a bit but then we got back to a nice steady level balance too. yay! I could feel it too. It's easier to feel his balance when we're slow trotting and not running. She did say that when I let him stretch to the buckle, he immediately fell onto his forehand. So... there's that. But overall, it was a good ride. A short one, but good. We then went on a short trail ride... to the lake and then back around the small lake. I was tempted to swap out his bridle and give Kelli her bit back (I was trying the new one in the right size again) but opted to just head home. I was hungry and didn't want to overdo it with Dan. I felt like he had worked hard and he lost his hind end a few times on the trails and in the ring so I didn't want to fatigue him. And I had the girls to work. 

 

I'll probably ride him at home tomorrow and then Tuesday we have our lesson with Rana. :) 

Happy Thoughts

 Today was a good day. I let my brain just.. be. I slept in. I fed ponies. Mike left for Louisiana on his motorcycle. It's Sunday. I have nothing scheduled and no one to attend to, so... I breathed. I did paperwork this morning as it was cold. Then I ate lunch and listened to some classical dressage podcasts. And then I went to go play with the ponies. 

 

The hawks were all over my pastures today and very active. It was so cool! Anyways, I started with Dan and.. my head was in a good space. Thank you for that God! I know that's mostly you. I was just.. not rushed, not frustrated, not in a hurry... So I groomed Dan and did a tiny bit of body work. He got the bemer. And then we went up to lunge. With his saddle cause I'm lazy and not carrying it or walking up and down again. 

 

He was naughty! He got loose twice and the second time he got loose somehow he managed to flip the lunge line over a fence post... then turn and go the other way... essentially lassoing himself onto the fence post. I saw the post get pulled about 1 foot in the direction before Dan came skidding to a stop. Honestly, I think I was more worried about my expensive fence than Dan at the moment. It was a bit scary though... because had Dan not stopped... I'm not sure what would have happened! And luckily Dan was not hurt or flipped or anything. (I did adjust his poll later and checked his neck). And he stopped long enough for me to unwrap the line from the post. And although he did try to get loose again, he didn't. I was a bit more determined after that! Spicy boy. But we managed to get some nice trot work where he was tracking straight! yay!

So then I got on and we rode. We did our homework. And it was good. We did our walk and trot figure 8's with haunches rigth, then haunches left. And then we did a little bit of regular trotting, focusing on the same things. Then we even did a tiny bit of leg yield which was quite nice! I also focused on "giving to the heavy and riding to the loose" reins and it does straighten him and make him more even in the connection. Cool :) 

 

We didn't ride for very long but it was cold and we had lunged and I had the other two to work, so we walked back to the barn. Good boy!

Game Plan!!

 

So.... I needed today. And yesterday (good friends and good moral support). And I've got a plan! Back to regular lessons with Rana and I'm just going to do what she tells me. ;) ha ha! But seriously though. I don't know enough to know when I'm getting sidetracked vs pulled off the path, so... I'm just going to trust her knowledge and skill. And.. I'm going to listen to my horse. Because quite frankly, no matter who I'm "following" or what path/route I take, if my horses is unhappy... or his musculature or posture looks awful... then I need to reevaluate. If he's happy and his muscling and posture look great, then.. that's the answer for him. So tomorrow I will take "Start" photos and then in December I will take a progress photo and see if we can get him back to happy again. Looking back... I'm pretty sure his posture and muscling were looking amazing when I was lunging him and doing pillar work and then it fell apart again when I started riding and doing pillars under saddle.  So hopefully we can get him back to happy again. 

So anyways, we got to our lesson and I had him in his saddle and the lunging cavesson. We started talking and she explained that yes, I needed a soft connection for positive tension/tone. And that also the soft connection would help him be straight, which was vital, especially for him. We also talked about how I needed to just be in the moment and focus on what I had underneath me and not get ahead of myself or frustrated about the timeline. But then at the end of my lesson she also said that she thought we would see significant changes in a month and that if we can hold true, we'll be where I want to be quicker than it seems. She said that right now, his posture and muscling was awful. And that he definitely did not need to be cantering. 

So we started off by lunging. Oh.. ha ha... well, while we were talking he inched toward Brie and was like "watcha got?!". She was eating a poptart and was like "it's a poptart dude!". I told her he that he LOVES poptarts so she asked if she could give him some. I told her of course and she held out about half of her poptart and he snarfed it in one bite! I was like "oh dude.. you didn't have to give him that much... I thought you meant a little bite". And she was like "well, I wasn't going to give him that much but he just went for it". Ha ha. Ooops. Daniel does love him some poptarts! Maybe I'll have to start buying him some as rewards. hee hee. whoops! Sorry Brie. I owe you a meal.  So anyways, back to lunging. We started off and it actually went pretty well. Rana reiterated a few things that I had sort of gotten myself confused about...

• Tracking Right: His left hind swings wide, so push his shoulders out to fall in line with his hinds. Aim my shoulders and whip at his shoulders and push him out. 
• Tracking Left: He is tracking wide behind but time it's because he isn't bending. So aim my intensity at his barrel... 

So then, she was like... "yeah, I'm happy with this.. nothing to fix... hop on"!. Yay! At least I'm not screwing that up too much. So I put his bridle on and off we went. Basically... it's not that he's haunches right or haunches left.. he's just crooked, too fast, and on the forehand. So, we worked on riding the haunches in figure 8, where you keep the haunches in and the bend to one direction (say left) no matter whether you are tracking right or left. 

• Slow and precise steps. Slow it down and make each step intentional. Speed is his cheat and speed makes him tip onto his forehand. The Economy trot 
• When riding haunches in, even in the figure 8, the haunches must match the bend, so... no bending left while haunches right. 
• Sit on my inside seat bone (or the seat side that the haunches are in). Don't let him throw me to the other side
• Long legs... toes up, heels down. He should respond to my leg pressure. Not my heel. If he doesn't, tap him with the whip near the girth. I should aim to *DO* less and *FEEL* more. 
• Don't worry so much about his head, but focus on a soft connection. With even reins and even hands. If I need to lift the inside rein some, that's okay. But make sure to coordinate the inside leg with the inside rein.
• When riding haunches in, focus on riding outside leg to inside rein. 

So we pretty much did that the whole lesson. We started at the walk and then went to the trot. And he felt good. And he was happy. He didn't stick his tongue out... he chomped a little bit but it wasn't a nervous fretting chomp so much as a "this is hard" chomp. So yay! Rana said that I did a good job and rode well. :) She also said to try to lunge him every day, but not for very long. And to lunge him before I ride. And she bets that in a month, we'll be looking good. So that's the plan! 

Oh, one other thing! Rana mentioned that when Dan stays slow (in his correct tempo) his front foot is straight underneath him when he is bearing full weight. When he is tipped onto his forehand, his front foot is back underneath him. Well, when it's back underneath him... where are the hind legs supposed to go?! DUH!!! Ooooooooooooh! That makes sense. If he's tipped onto his forehand, his center of balance is a bit behind him, so his front legs are a bit behind the plumb line, which means his hind legs have nowhere to go, so his stride shortens. And his hind legs are then out behind him... pushing him along, but not in a good engaged way. Which then just throws the energy onto the forehand, dumping him back onto the front feet that are still stuck behind him too. So it's a vicious cycle. 

Meh Ride

 Rode at home between massage and farrier visit. Meh

not bad.. just not good. I'm so confused.. not sure what to do or not do. Also worried about shoulder girdle injuries and the girth. ugh...