We spent Saturday with more young ones – this time of the human variety. Brian’s sister came to visit, bringing along her husband and their two children. Their son is three and a half, and their daughter is just one. We, of course, had to take them out to meet the horses. We had beautiful… Read more »
standing
Getting Somewhere
We got to the barn early today and had the place to ourselves. Laredo came all the way out from behind the windblock and sloshed through the muck to get to me. He is, in fact, the best of our three horses about coming to us, I guess because we started working on that with… Read more »
Some Good Hours
Saturday we got invited on a little trail-riding expedition. We headed out in the morning. It was a group of six horses and riders: 3 paints, 3 quarter-horses. Which is actually kind of funny because the breed selection of at our barn is fairly diverse. Unrepresented breeds include Arab, American Showhorse, Saddlebred, Warmblood, Applaoosa, Thoroughbred… Read more »
Venturing Forth
We had some rain last night and this morning, so footing on the strip was going to be mushy. Also, our boys have had a couple hard rides recently and they aren’t in super good shape. We don’t want to over-do it. But it’s spring break and the weather is fantastic, so while Brian and… Read more »
Finding the Haunch
I’ve ridden three times since my last post, and each ride has been a bit better than the one before. I’ve been thinking a lot about precision, and keeping Steen in that delicate place where he is relaxed but still energetic. I’ve also continued to try to emphasize exercises that force Steen to engage his… Read more »
The Good Kind of Fall
We’ve had a mild fall, so even though today was chillier than it has been, it was by no means cold. When we left the house it was in the mid 50’s. Every year I forget what best to wear for various temperatures, so I tend to head to the barn over-dressed and remove layers… Read more »
Some Interesting Rides
It’s been quite a week at the barn. Saturday Our friend Jean came out to take some photos of us and the horses. She got some nice shots of us hanging around on the second strip. And our first ever “family photo.” Sunday The horses were in their winter lot with bales to munch on,… Read more »
Soft to the Touch
Yesterday was another great ride. Steen’s starting to put on his winter coat, so he’s turned nice and dark dappled brown and is way softer than usual. Yesterday he was also soft to the bit. We had more great groundwork before the ride. He was yielding to backwards pressure on the slobber strap before I… Read more »
The Inconsistent Path Forward
Sunday was Duke Day, and Steen was very much in need of a trim. It was raining when we got the barn, and we beat the farrier. We brought the boys indoors and they were wet and jittery, but we took our time grooming and gave them a little chopped hay, then rode indoors for… Read more »
Turning Towards Fall
We had a wet Friday so didn’t get our normal afternoon at the barn. Today it was cool and overcast when we pulled the boys from the pasture. They even got their first serving of chopped hay for the season, which they both seemed quite happy about. Steen was attentive from the start today. I… Read more »