We went to the barn on Sunday hoping for a quiet ride outdoors in the second pasture, but our plans were foiled. There were still some visitors from Saturday mini-show and they were riding when we arrived. It was a super windy, blustery day. We had hoped the rain was done for a while, but… Read more »
hackamore
Indoors in the Hackamore x2
We’ve had some weather moving through Iowa, so things have been wet and we’ve been confined to riding indoors. On Friday we found the guys out in the summer pasture, happily grazing on 13 acres of new grass. The herd has seen a lot of turnover this winter, so half of its members had never been out… Read more »
Another Day in the Hackamore
I rode in the hackamore again. I wasn’t planning on it. I thought for sure we would ride in the snaffle again and that Robin would be using the hackamore. She has talked about getting back to it a little more regularly. But she also got some new boots for Steen, and she wanted to… Read more »
And the Wind Blows
It was a pretty, sunny day, but we also had 30+ mile an hour winds out of the northwest. So it was a cold wind. Warm sun and cold wind always make a strange combination. Robin had a lot of work to do this afternoon, so I had a rare solo-outing to the barn. Bear… Read more »
Indoor Hackamore Ride
We had a storm last night, so things were mushy out a the barn. We decided to ride indoors today. I’ve been meaning to use my hackamore again, and thought the quieter indoor space would be a good opportunity to do that. Steen always seems a tad confused when I put it on him (once… Read more »
To Hackamore, or Not To Hackamore?
A few days ago Robin and I were watching a training video by Mike Bridges. It was not the most exciting of videos, but it did offer a lot of insightful commentary on bits and the variety of heads and mouths on horses. At one point he talked about how horses with thicker lips might… Read more »
And the Winner Is
It was a great year for us and horses. In February I was giving Brian lessons and trying to help him get comfortable on Bear. In December I got to see him climb on a strange horse and get nothing but compliments riding in a totally new environment. In between, I kept track of my… Read more »
Balmy Weather
We stopped at the barn for a ride on our way out of town for Christmas. I rode in the hackamore again, and Steen was great. He was giving me the soft feel at the walk and the trot and we moved in and out of the lope a few times. It was a… Read more »
Loping in the Hackamore
It was an interesting day at the barn. It was mucky out in the pasture, and Bear wasn’t about to spare Brian a trek through the mud. Steen wasn’t in the super sticky area, though, and came to me pretty easily, so we beat Brian and Bear inside by a good deal. I was mounted… Read more »
Focused on Soft
Today was the last Duke Day of the year, which means we have a little potluck and hang out while the horses get their feet trimmed. Brian and I like to ride before trims when at all possible, and it was a beautiful day– warmer than I’ve ever seen December in Iowa. We rode on… Read more »