Although this fall has so far been mild, I know the cold will set in any day. I want to do a better job riding through the winter this year. To that end, this weekend I finally sat down to make something I’ve been thinking about putting together for about two years. I gathered my… Read more »
transitions
Long Saturday Ride
We rode on the strip again today. It was windy and chilly and Steen was a bit restless during grooming, tacking, and even walking outside. I was initially afraid he was going to be spooky. I started out with a bit of groundwork as usual, and today he really wasn’t interested in moving off the… Read more »
Fabulous Lope
The weather has continued fair but Brian and I have been a tad sick. I don’t get sick often, and sometimes it seems like I get almost sick. That’s how I’ve been this week. I don’t have any overt symptoms, but then when I exert myself I bit I revert briefly to feeling awful. It… Read more »
On Learning
Last week we didn’t ride as much as we have been, mainly because we had the vet out to float teeth on Tuesday and we wanted to give the horses’ mouths a break after that. Then went to Chicago for the weekend. So I have three rides to cover today. We rode last Sunday, Tuesday… Read more »
Long Lopes
The weather has been beautiful and this is making it so much more possible to have some truly enjoyable rides. Today we rode in the second pasture and my goal was the same as last time – to work Steen through all three gaits, giving him a chance to really settle at each. Steen started… Read more »
A Step in the Right Direction
We got to the barn early again today, and although it didn’t cool off much in the night and it was pretty humid, there was a nice breeze that kept things from feeling too bad. I did some groundwork with Steen before mounting. I’ve been starting to teach him to side-pass from the ground, and… Read more »
Two Fast Rides
I’ve spent my last two rides in the new saddle. On Friday, we rode on the strip. Steen started out very relaxed and we had some good trots. The ground was nice and dry and he was feeling balanced and attentive, so before long I transitioned up to the lope. He was mostly good at… Read more »
Just the Two of Us
It seems like it has been a while, but I did go out with Robin on Friday. I just got lazy and didn’t blog about it. I was worried about Bear’s swollen ankles and decided to have a relatively easy day of groundwork. I thought it would also help with his somewhat increasingly bad behavior… Read more »
Transitions
The morning was wet and we also had some things to do in the early afternoon, so we didn’t get out until after 2. But it was one of those gorgeous June days: sunny, slightly breezy, temps in the low 80s. The horses were a little lethargic from standing in the warm sun all day,… Read more »
Steen the Sluggish
It’s been hot. It’s definitely been having an effect on every body’s energy level. We went out today to find the pasture herd just hanging out by the water, We tacked up in the barn aisle to get out of the sun for a bit, then headed out to the pasture. Things started off poorly… Read more »