We’ve had a lot of storms these past few days, though I suppose we are lucky that we only had to deal with strong winds and some mild thunderstorms. It was never storming actively when we got out to the barn the past three days, but things were usually cold and damp so we elected… Read more »
the routine
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 »
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 »
Lotsa Lope
We had another beautiful day today. It feels so good to go out and spend some time in the sun. The boys were ultra relaxed during grooming, and the footing on the strip was much better. I started out with loping figure-eights pretty early and my first session of this was fantastic. Almost every loop… Read more »
I Guess I Was Wrong
A few posts ago I was claiming that it will always be windy in the spring, be it cold or warm. Today, though, was a perfect 70 degrees with sun and only the lightest breeze out of the southwest. It could not have gotten any better. And both our guys were good, too. Bear just… Read more »
Simple Lead Changes
We had such success with our work at the lope yesterday I was keen to get back to that exercise today. Steen was in a good mood from the start. I think he is more comfortable without his blanket on. It has warmed up here and I’ve been able to leave it off the last… Read more »
Shaping Up
As much as there is a part of me that likes to think I should be capable of riding all year without any lulls, I do sometimes think when the forced breaks come along, they yield benefits. Brian and I rode on Wednesday, and because it was super windy out we rode indoors. Steen started… Read more »
Spring Winds
Warm spring days mean strong winds out of the south. Cold spring days mean strong winds out of the north. So we basically have wind every day in spring. It was dry again (except for a few sprinkles right at the end), but not quite as nice as Tuesday, so we opted to ride inside.… Read more »
More Leg Yields
Since last fall I’ve been working a lot on teaching Steen to break at the poll and give me the soft feel at all gaits, and I’ve also been holding pressure on the bit to keep him collected for a few strides at a time. But where I’m really starting to feel him move in… Read more »
Last Ride of the Year
It was 50 degrees. We planned on riding outside but the winds were kind of outrageous, so we just rode inside. It was a pretty good ride. I was hoping for just a nice, relaxing time with my horse. This week I was tired and we didn’t get out to the barn much. I usually… Read more »