My new saddle arrived late on Wednesday. We unpacked it and I have to say it looks even better in person than it did in the photos. Today I headed out to the barn alone to meet the farrier. Brian had to work but planned to come out and meet me later. I took my… Read more »
figure-eights
Getting Better With Age
I’ve been feeling a bit bad lately that my horse’s injury means I’m putting the lion’s share of time on Laredo, who Brian and I are supposedly sharing. So today we did a swap and I rode Bear. Bear is in great shape lately. The extra hours we’ve been putting on him to compensate for… Read more »
Catch-up: Laredo
One of the downsides of the whole Steen saga is my little sprint to and from the pasture appears to have gotten my old foot injury reaggravated, so I’ve been a bit laid up just like my horse has. Yesterday Brian very kindly went out in the rain to catch Laredo for me, to save me… Read more »
No Hands
I have been focusing for months on trying to use my hands less and my legs more. However when I try to steer just with my legs, we pretty much instantly run into problems. It is so strange to me that Steen can walk a perfect figure-eight with almost no input from the reins, but if… Read more »
Getting Soft
We’ve had Laredo two months now, and he’s settling in quite nicely. He walks up to meet us in the pasture. He’s accepting of most touching on the ears and head. Getting the fly mask on and off is no problem, and Brian has been slipping the bridle off after riding. Laredo’s also really changing… Read more »
Good Obstacles
Today we rode in the tree lot again for the shade. This was my first time on Laredo out there, and things went very well. Laredo seems to be finally accepting the bit. His rooting habit is almost gone, and he’s moving off pressure instead of leaning into it. He’s also walking out with a… Read more »
Halfway There
The year is half over, which is hard to believe for all sorts of reasons. So far we’re on track for our 150 hours in the saddle goal. As of the end of the day today, I’m at exactly 75 hours. A couple years ago I started keeping track of my time spent riding. I… Read more »
Going Good
I wanted to do a hard, fast ride. It was a gorgeous, sunny day, and Steen is chubby. When he’s well-fed and warm is when he’s at his most mellow. It was a good opportunity to work on encouraging him to move out but retain the ability to think. I’ve been having issues with saddle… Read more »
May I Have Your Attention, Please
I watched a video on being productive as a creative in my field last week, and it had some interesting commentary on the brain and how it works. The major problem with how people talk about ‘multi-tasking’ is the entire concept is a myth. What we’re really doing when we are on the phone with… Read more »
A Ride in the Trees
Wednesday was windy and a little cool. While tacking we noticed the stall horses were out in the big pasture, so access to the treed lot was clear of both equine obstacles and mud. We hadn’t ridden out there since last fall some time, and Brian and I both wanted to work on slow stuff,… Read more »