Linda Rides May!

Linda rides May! 5/20/2010 Ride 24.

A bit hectic because Linda was waiting at 4 pm when I got back with Tabooli and Tabooli's farrier was there to tack on the pulled shoe AND I had another lesson coming at 5:30 pm.....Tabooli got his shoe on, May got her saddle on (oh boy this Larry Trocha versatility ranch horse saddle made by Jim Taylor fits her better than any of my own horses...finally a comfortable saddle that fits...!) and off Linda and I went to the round pen.

A bit of ground work, a bit of warm up riding by me and then Linda got on and....guess what?  May just stood there!  No fidgetting at all.  Of course when Linda asked her to walk off, she went sideways but that was just due to an uneven rein and leg pressure.

Walking and then trotting! We talked about how light May is and Linda worked with using her rein and leg aids to help May go in the drection Linda wanted.   It took a few minutes to coordinate the idea that leg pressure can change depending on the position of the horse.  For example: turning right and using the right rein to direct as well as the left leg to push to the horse right, but then the horse turns too sharply right and maybe even drops her shoulder. One solution: decreasing right rein pressure and using the LEFT leg to sort of hold the horse up and straighten her out. Since May is light, figuring out the degree of pressure change needed is the key.  Worked out well! Yeah! 

May Ride 23 5/18/2010. Just got on and rode. She was tense but we walked on out of the property and into her first real ride "in the neighborhood". Took her to the arena up the road and was expecting to walk, trot, and lope there, but instead we trotted some and walked a lot because she was not comfortable in this strange location! Yikes--and Dartganon was up there too.  Very distracting for May. So, we walked and when she trottend we played a faster veriosn of the stand still game--bent her to a walk instead of a stop and go on.  This was interspersed with stopping and backing if she broke into a trot.  Finally she relaxed enough to just walk around on a loose rein. I was happy to see her ratchet down, so I got off and walked her home.

Ride 11 Tabooli.  He got a boot, so I put it on his shoeless foot and took off.  It is a rubber sole and velcros on so was easy to put on.  It seemed pretty large for his foot, even thought the measurements were not too far off....  No ground work.  I rode him up  the driveway and out into the street, where I did a 180 back into the driveway since a  red mini van car was coming over the hill.  I wanted him to have enough room to move if he needed to. He needed....a little but not a lot. 

Headed up the steep trail which he found hard--no suprise, steep grade (short), lots of rocks and for a  horse with 11 rides on even ground it was a lot of change.  He handled it very well.  We rounded the corner up top and there was the old dead culvert abandoned by the side of the road.  No an issue.  There was the old dead grader. Not an issue! Boot fell off. Grr.

Replacing the boot...he wanted to eat and move..the reins were too short (but duh they are clipped on to the bit, so I could have unsnapped one side...didn't), so it took a little manuevering to get the boot on.  Got back on  and ee rode really well.  Nice foward walk, not nervous, and very willing. I talked on the phone a bit to the farrier and to his owner, but the boot pulled off again.  It is just too big I think, although I can't see the smaller size staying on that much better because the velcro fastener part around his pastern was pretty much as snug as possible but still pulled over his hoof....


Tabooli Ride 10. 5/ 18/ 2010 arena work at walk--looking for moving off my leg, soft in face. He showed progress so then we rode around the property. He was breathing heavy due to nerves but he went everywhere I pointed him. Came back and rode in the arena a little more at walk and trot, emphasis on steering and lighter. Stopped well and backed well. Rode out behind the house on the frost heave so it was soft, but his foot was still tender if he hit a rock. He also wanted to eat everything in sight but seemed to be getting the idea that that "isn't done"!  Rode to where the trail is cut off and he spooked at the no trespassing sign,--as well he should --those folks ae scary--but he did manage to face up to the sign while hiding behind a bush for protection. He actually got behind a bush to look!  Did a little more arena work which included loping and he got a little farther around the arena and picked up the lope a little quicker. Did the bridge-point, let him look and over we went. Finished with the gate--all in one go--not smooth, but no rope dropping!

Risa and Penny:
Risa has her head in the sky at the lope, but she is getting lighter and more cadenced. Also, she can easliy pick up both leads from a walk.The upward rein helps her stay lighter and though it is not doing much for her head position at the lope, it is allowing her to start to relax.  Increased relaxation = more natural head position, so there is hope. 

Penny's slow lope is getting more cadenced.  We're doing a lot of lateral work and pivots and this is helping.  Her reining spins are feeling more energetic and smooth.  They are not fast and are not even always correct (pivoting on the wrong foot sometimes) but she is pretty flat and is reaching a across with her front feet pretty well.

And three uh four, more things.  Today was a really great day and here are the reasons:
1.  Ani the Fjord (doesn't live here, I ride her once/ week) had the lightest, softest, most fantastic cantering in big and small circles. Her owner had tears in her eyes.  This from a horse that I swear hated me for at least 3 months.  If I asked her to canter she would stop dead and no amount of increased pressure would cause her to budge.  From there to today has been an amazing transformation!
2.  Linda rode May!
3. The youth rider's lesson was the BEST EVER and she did the gate completely for the first time!  Twice! A right hand push and then a right hand pull! 
4.  I got a picture of 2 snakes.
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