Fun with Lass

Oh my goodness I love this horse!  :)

We're back jumping together again!  I've been waiting for this day for ages! 

Now it means no more Lass free rides, which is sad; I'm currently going through a bit of withdrawals as I'm not going to be riding till Friday.  Haha.  But it's worth it!

Sunday I went out and rode her a bit over jumps, and dragged the Brother along as my spotter/photographer.  Lovely ride and she was obviously just as happy to be back as I was.  :)

Forgive my position, I don't know what happened to it here! :P

Then we had lesson on Monday.  Gymnastic again.  I am bored silly of the gymnastic.  Lol.  Usually Coach doesn't have us do the same thing three lessons in a row, but we were riding with a different group and they hadn't done it yet.  So Lass and I demonstrated and it was fun.  Didn't go much above 12-18" as one of the girls had a pretty good fall when her horse bucked going through it, and Lass is after all still coming back into work.  We had just one "moment" where I took a bit too much of a hold on her mouth between jumps, after which she was a bit grumpy.  But overall a great lesson and a great way to come back!  Also I got to ride in Coach's saddle, which has officially spoiled me for life.  Especially compared to the rock-hard, awkward saddle I usually ride in.  ;)

Happy.  :)  I love this horse.  Have I said I love this horse?!  And I'm insanely glad that she's back!  And Rhapsody came up to me in the pasture when I went out to get Lass, too, and let me scratch her face!  I suppose this is why horses are addictive. ;)

Step Backward

So I followed Rhapsody around the pasture for a good hour on Friday and though we got close to a catch several times, she got progressively more angry with me and with the rope and I ended up just leaving her to her own devices.  Sigh.  Normally I don't say that a horse is "angry" with me but the look on her face was so close to it!  Ha!  It was just her "Leave me alone, I am happy out here, don't touch me" look.  I also am pretty sure she's in heat so that doesn't help much.  Especially since a couple of the geldings in the next pasture are being rather flirtatious with the girls.  I gave them the whole "Give it up, you can't do anything anyway" lecture but of course it did no good.  ;)  Too bad they can't understand what we say!

Rhapsody did let me scratch her with my hand quite a lot though, and let me approach her much more rapidly than before, so I suppose that is good.  Also there were a couple times where she followed me for several steps when I retreated!  Woo!  We'll get to the Catching game yet!

Then rode Lass with a couple friends and she was sound and happy still.  :)  I'm hoping to coerce the Brother out with me to take pictures this afternoon.  I'm supposed to ride her over some baby crossrails and since my general principle is not to jump without a spotter, I'd like someone around if possible.  Besides it's always nice to have pictures. :)

Next Level...I Hope??

Had lesson today with another girl I haven't ridden with before.  Rode the Mr. Wild through a variation on the same gymnastic we did last week--pole, bounce, vertical, bounce to about a 20-24" vertical in the middle and about two strides to a smaller crossrail at the end, followed by a diagonal one-jump line.  Overall it went well.  We had our moments of everything-going-right and many more moments of everything-going-not-quite-right!  Haha!  Nevertheless Wild is pretty good about telling me when I'm riding really badly, and there were only a few times today where he "hinted" that I might be getting too close to his limits (fortunately his hints consist only of hyper squirrelly-ness, nothing dangerous!) Coach was hinting that we would do "fun" things like riding the gymnastic without reins and/or stirrups, the ideas of which, to be honest, scared me to death!  I was almost glad we didn't ride so well so I didn't have to do that--especially the no-stirrups stuff.  I think I should at least be able to canter stirrup-less before I go jumping without the things!

Yes I have ridden for 7 years and never had a canter session without stirrups.  Don't ask.  I think everybody's assumed someone else already taught me that stuff.  Well...that is my big secret...ha.

I really feel like I have gone downhill in my riding skills but I think it must just be that I've hit the "next level" and therefore have more to think about.  When I look back over the last almost-year of riding (it's been nearly a year with Coach! Can't believe it!), I know I've improved massively.  Now I'm just struggling because I can really only focus on one thing at a time.  If I focus on squeezing my ankles to ask for the jump, I round my back.  If I focus on arching my back, I don't release in time.  If I focus on releasing, I misjudge my distances or round my back or forget to squeeze!  Or all of the above!  Ha.  There's just much more to focus on these days.  So I dearly hope that means I'm at least playing around with a higher level than I've been at.  If not I should have to be sad.  Haha.

Also gave Lass her little workout and she was very nice, sound and forward.  Coach says I can canter her on Wednesday if I can make it out. :)  Definitely planning on it.  Might get some Rhapsody time in while I'm at it, too! 

In Which I Act Like an Idiot...

Girls in the field, L-R Lass, Baby, Rhapsody, Dora

I had a brilliant idea for Friday.  Had.  It went as follows:

Rhapsody doesn't like to leave the pasture because she's super herd-bound.
Lass is easy to catch.
I'm supposed to ride Lass walk/trot for 20 minutes to start getting her back into work again after her lameness bout.
Why not catch Rhapsody (provided I can catch Rhapsody), then catch Lass, and take both of them up together?

Marvelous brilliance of me!

Or...something...Halfway down the mares' field with two halters, I thought better of myself.

Rhapsody is spooky.  Lass is spooky (much better than R., but still). 
They're both mares.  They aren't friends any more.
All the other mares will find this fascinating and follow us forever.
Neither leads really really well.  Rhapsody charges forwards/sideways.  Lass just stops and pretends she can't move further. 

Bri, you're an idiot!

Nonetheless, being a real idiot, I decided to try it anyway.  And what do you know but it only took me half an hour to catch Rhapsody!  And only one little trot chase; the rest of it was all walk and while she wasn't happy to have me halter her, she did let me do it.  Woo hoo!! Our trip up to the barn was not too terribly eventful; I only have one rope-burned hand from where both girls suddenly spooked at the ever-evilly-present Invisible Monster while I was trying to fasten the gate behind us.  And I got them both tucked away safely in their stalls without any serious injury to any party.

Now Coach did call as I was halfway to the barn (leading both horses, I might add).  "You're at the barn?"
Say I: "Yeah..."
"Well I'm not going to be there this afternoon."
Me: "Ohhh.........."
"So just--just be careful."
Me: "Right.  Yes.  Absolutely.  YES."
I was very happy to see another couple boarders show up toward the end of my groundwork session with Rhapsody.  I'm not scared of either horse, and perfectly comfortable with Lass, but being all alone at the barn, with only Coach (who is a long ways away) and my family (whose car I have) knowing where I'm at...well it does inspire me to be careful.  Ha! 

Started working with Rhapsody on moving off "air pressure" (Driving game, for any Parelli people), in addition to desensitizing, bending, and direct pressure; and she did beautifully.  Pressure is a bit stressful for her so I do just a little and then rub her for a while, rinse and repeat.  She was much calmer today and I am beginning to teach her to halter/remove halter with her nose bent round toward me so she can't take off quite so frightfully.  It seemed to help as I was letting her out.

Also Lass was going about 98.9% sound even on the footing.  Happiness.  Won't be long before we're jumping her again! :)

Almost

Almost we got to a show this weekend!  A very small deal close to home but still.  However the matter of trailering proved our downfall, as neither Coach nor I have a rig and so we stay dependent on the generosity of others.  Poor Coach.  I feel very sorry for her; she tried so hard.  She is trying so hard.  I have the most awesome Coach, in case anybody was wondering whether I still think that. :)

Rode Rusty last lesson as he was my second choice for the ended-up-non-existent show.  And I have more or less remembered how to jump, thank goodness!  We weren't flawless and my back still needs serious help but much better than before.  That's a relief! In the meantime I practice sitting and standing correctly.  Sigh, bad posture strikes again.  Anybody who knows how to fix my rounded back please let me know!

Miss Lass was going sound over the weekend!  Yay!  Especially yay because Coach is trying to get us to a show next Sunday and I should feel much better riding Lass than riding Rusty as I haven't had lessons or free rides on Rusty regularly at all.  

A rainy start to the week, so we wait, and hopefully plan out our show for next Sunday! :)

FINALLY!

I have pictures :D

But! Better than that! 











I at long last CAUGHT this girl! 

In the field!  Okay it took me almost an hour of following her around but still!  I'm pretty sure she hasn't been caught at least since July and maybe longer than that. 

I decided to make things easy and simple so she didn't get the idea she got caught and then got her hiney worked off, so we just did some very simple groundwork...mostly desensitizing (which she needs a great deal of anyway) and moving off pressure.  And I hopped around with my foot in the stirrup as if I were going to mount, and swung half up and then got off.  And then I created a halterish thing out of baling string and put it on her before turning her out.  Now I'm worrying it will hurt her somehow.  But it's baling string for goodness' sake; it will break if she scratches her nose.  I think we'll be okay. 

I also took a few pictures today as I'm writing a children's book and intend to have the ponies star in it. ;)


Lass thinks everyone else is making a big deal out of nothing.  This picture, by the way, hardly does justice to her really; she is much prettier than this but she was a bit obsessed with her grass...as usual. :)  So I didn't get any really good pictures of her.















Rhapsody, Surge, and the baby think they're hiding from me behind the trees.

So a good day.  I am the tiniest, tiniest bit disappointed because I'd been hoping to canter some ground pole courses to get myself back on track for riding real jumps, but Rhapsody took too much time and besides all the jumping horses were either gone or in lesson.  But only a very very VERY tiny bit disappointed.  Mostly very happy. :D

Fall Break = Barn Time :)

My lovely bosses told me I didn't need to come in to work on Thursday afternoon or Friday, so of course I went over to the barn again.  ;)  Rode Wild on Thursday and had a lovely walk-trot-canter session on the flat, nothing special as the world was totally soggy from rain in the morning.  But he was being super nice with the bit, not grabbing it out of my hands or jerking, and coming on the bit and then stretching down nicely.  Don't know whether my riding is really that much better (lol), whether he was just calmer because we had no jumps up, or whether he really likes that bit.  But it was nice anyway.  After 15-20 minutes or so I decided it was a perfect day for a trail ride and we went out all the way almost to the river and back on a loose rein, again very relaxed, enjoying the gorgeous fall day and the colors and the warm sun and well it was just one of those perfect rides.  :) 

Friday I intended to see if I could catch Rhapsody but no such luck.  Coach had tried to catch her on Wednesday and...well let's just say it isn't just me who has difficulties with her.  Haha.  So she was skittish and barely touchable on Friday, let alone catchable.  After a little time persuading her I wasn't going to eat her alive, I went and got Lass for her exercise ride.  She was nearly perfectly sound on the footing, didn't want to trot on the grass actually, so I was happy. 

Tired after all that riding.  ;)  And now break is nearly over, sadness.  I could stand three-day school weeks every week! 

And Fall Break Begins...

Yay for no classes till Monday!!  And what better way to start fall break than with a ride??  So today I went off to the barn after my last class for a free ride. 

Coach had asked me to ride her Thoroughbred a bit since she (the horse that is) is just getting over some deep-muscle soreness after a bad trim and needs some gentle regular exercise.  So we did walk and trot on the grass for 20 minutes or so, while Coach was riding one of her off-track project horses.  I love Lass (her horse).  She makes me feel like an equine genius even just doing simple flatwork.  Haha.  Now it helps she was unusually calm and quiet today, but still.  So I focused on keeping my legs steady and fixing my posture--a.k.a. not slouching--and if my back's soreness is any indicator, I did pretty good.  Ha. 

After that we turned the horses out and at Coach's suggestion I went back up and caught the Bay Boy.  I was going to ride with her again but since her horse proved hard to catch, she decided to take off early.  ;)  So the Bay Boy and I had a ride to ourselves while other instructors were getting their lesson kids ready.  Overall it went all right.  He was spooky--unusual for him--and rather dull off the aids, but otherwise okay.  After the first couple canter departs, though--I was working him mostly on transitions since those are his sticky spots--he seemed to get "sour" and was avoiding the bit and trying to throw his head around and buck.  He did get a couple good bucks in after slipping on a big canter circle but the slip wasn't my fault this time--he was throwing his head down and not paying attention, so he got unbalanced.  Since we were getting worse rather than better, I opted for a trot round without issues in order to quit while we were ahead.  Someday I really want to have the time to work with this guy regularly. 

Ahh I'm tired. :)  The Coach has said I can ride every day during break but I do have to work tomorrow...Friday though I'll be back.  Forget Florida, riding is definitely the best way to spend break!

Groundwork Reflections: Rhapsody

So went out on Friday to Rhapsody's pasture with no idea what I would find.  The first thing I noticed was that herd dynamics have changed up big-time.  Three of the younger fillies have gone (presumably to the racetrack though I don't know for sure) and another mare who came somewhat recently has joined their field.  I think that in itself has kind of thrown everyone off in that pasture; no one was quite as curious or interested as they have been before. 

The second thing I noticed was that I now have a best friend forever (well as long as the carrots hold out) in the Coach's horse Lass!  She will come right up to meet me now that she knows I usually bring treats.  Ha silly girl.  Of course it doesn't help that she hasn't been worked for a week and a half because of her stiffness/soreness that's come about recently, and she is always more in-your-face when she's not getting her workouts.

Third thing was that I think we are back to the beginning again when it comes to catching.  That is good as I would rather go back to the beginning than to keep going downhill as we had been last week.  At first Rhapsody wouldn't let me get near her at all, so I just dropped in behind her and followed at a walk a little distance behind when she headed away.  Until she stopped, when I would stop also and move away.  Eventually she (grumpily) allowed me to come within about 15 feet of her, where I stopped and crouched down and waited.  Suffice it to say it took a while, but she did come up and I gave her a treat.  This happened two or three times and afterwards I could tell she was more relaxed around me though she wouldn't stay very close for a long period of time.  Plus everyone else came up (except for the new girl, who was informed by Boss Mare that she was not to come any closer), which is good for them and I appreciate it. 

So overall I find it a good hour spent.  I brought the regular halter this time, not the little rope.  I can do the rope but it's awkward to lead with, and if I'm going to put all this work into catching Rhapsody "properly" I would rather that she accepts the halter while we're at it.  I want a "no brace" catch, which is to say I want her to be okay with it all the way through.  I know we can do it; we've gotten close before, but I screwed it up last minute.  It will test my skills of being able to read body language but I think it'll teach me a lot too.  Bring it on! :)

Some Days...

Last lesson (on Monday) was awesome.  Rode the Coach's Thoroughbred, had an utterly fantabulous time, and got some very nice (and exciting!!) positive feedback from the Coach herself.  Lovely day. 

The Coach then told me I could free-ride her horse today if nobody else needed ridden.  So as I got there when no one was around (as usual), I went off to see if I could get Rhapsody for groundwork. 

No luck.  Absolutely. no. luck.  She will take the treat, but then it's "no thanks" to anything else.  So I decided, fine, if that's going to be your attitude, I don't give freebies.  I'll catch you and then you'll get your treat.  No luck there either.  I feel like we've gone straight back to square one.  So frustrating, especially after all the progress we were making!

So eventually I gave up as we weren't making progress and there was nobody to help me, and caught the Coach's horse (who will do just about anything for a treat!) and brought her up.  But a little bit of groundwork showed that she was sore on the left front, so I did the groundwork, groomed her up, checked her hoof and leg, found nothing unusual, and turned her out, after writing a note to the Coach to let her know.  Annnd then I only had half an hour left, and the other horse I've been wanting to work was scheduled for a lesson, so I went home early.

Sucks.  Haha.  But I gave myself a good pep talk along the lines of, "Some days are like this, you need to accept that this feels bad and then recognize that you did the right thing as far as you knew to do it, and that's what counts," and now I feel better.  Plus it gave me time to clean up my dear old paddock boots I wear all the time, and they needed it.  And I developed a new plan for next Friday which hopefully will make it more productive than today!