After I spent last week house/puppy-sitting and thus not getting to the barn, Steen and I had another good ride today. We did the same route again, and he was a little better behaved the whole way around. We walked for most of the ride, and I loped him again for two sections of the… Read more »
lope
The One?
Today I finally went to the barn again. Steen’s feet were trimmed on Saturday, but we were out of town half of Friday and all weekend, and the insanity of a few rush jobs coinciding with our trip kept me chained to the computer all week. However, this morning I woke up to see a… Read more »
Between Storms
We’ve had a crazy string of summer storms rolling through Iowa the last couple weeks – two a day sometimes, just crashing in with thunder and lightning and dumping tons of water. Add the weather to that whole running a small business thing I’m doing these days, plus some foot-related issues lingering from our long… Read more »
Starting Them Young
Today Steen and I had a glorious ride that involved no spooks, and a sustained, balanced, steady and not at all crazy lope out on the trails! Then we came home and I untacked just in time to receive some very special visitors. My friend, Adele, and her son Ben came out to meet Steen.… Read more »
This is November?
Today found Brian and me at one of the oddest stores in town. Buying grain. To haul to the barn. Luckily this was possible, since all our tack is no longer in my trunk, but rather in a tack locker. The weather has been gloriously, unseasonably warm the last few days. We found Steen and… Read more »
Barn Weekend
Last week we got a lot of rain. I went out for a solo ride on Tuesday, during which I was having a hard time getting Steen to walk away from the barn. Then it rained and rained and rained for the rest of the week. On Saturday the farrier came, so I held Steen… Read more »
I Could Get Used to This
On Sunday, Brian and I returned to the barn, where we first made a few modifications to the saddle we’re using. I replaced the nylon tie-strap with a leather one, since the cinch is also nylon, as is the off-billet. Although Cal is not our horse, I have pretty strong convictions about nylon and soreness,… Read more »
Events
Today, Brian, Steen and I all had new experiences. For Brian and I, it was a shared experience. We went to Catalpa Corner to watch the eventing. We had never been to a true eventing competition, so we found it very interesting. At first, we just walked around, staring at all the tall, athletic horses… Read more »
Casting Shados
Yesterday Brian and I headed to the barn in the morning for Brian’s first ride at the new place. Steen has gotten so mellow about being handled and tied. He was practically nodding off while Brian groomed him. I think the new environment and all the changes combined with consistent handling in spite of the… Read more »
Up a Notch
Yesterday I had a busy morning but decided I wanted to get two rides at the new place under my belt before the planned group outing on Sunday I intend to attend with Steen. So, I dashed out to the barn after a morning of work on a new logo for a client, and found… Read more »