This Is Why I Blog

So yesterday break started! Woot woot!

Now I'm working over break, so y'know...but it's still a huge relief. :) So yesterday, being a slow day at work, I was reading old blog posts. And good grief, have I become chicken lately. Just last year I was running over to the barn as soon as school/work were done, I was riding all kinds of crazy babies, plus Coach's mare, and not a second thought. This year I haven't been riding unless it's convenient, and I've been half frightened that River will spook or something and I will go flying. Not an unreasonable worry, as I usually ride quite alone, but he hasn't given me a big spook yet, so it's something I've got to get over!

So my pep talk yesterday consisted of "Get your big girl britches on and go out and RIDE!"

So I did. :) And it was good. :) I found another schooling spot on the other side of the arena that's reasonably flat and has decent footing, so we rode up there and walked figure-eights and circles in our make-believe arena, and trotted some circles, and worked on keeping a consistent contact and coming off the forehand and actually using ourselves a bit. Well that's what I worked on. River worked on fidgeting the life out of the bit. Haha. I'm riding him in a Waterford now, so it's rather conducive to getting played with. But he was responsive, slowed and stopped when I asked, and didn't get his runaway freight train brain on. Yay! Next time perhaps we'll canter! :)

It's going to help my posture, for sure--if I ever expect him to step up under himself and stop dragging around on his forehand, I'm going to have to sit back, raise my hands, and use all the core and upper-body muscles I [don't] have to keep myself steady.

Trail ride tomorrow--Expensive Trimmer who-did-River's-feet-last-time but who really does no more than my current farrier can do is coming out, and I don't want him doing River's feet "by accident," so I plan to get there early and make us disappear for a good long while. :)