We had a play day rather than a formal lesson at Pony Club this past Sunday. One of the parents organized some games for all us riders - things like pole bending, backing through obstacles and relay races.
It's always fun to do something that is not so focused mentally. Playing games like this forces me to just ride rather than try to do every little thing perfect....which in the end makes me a stronger, more confident rider and helps my fussy little mount get over herself and just do the job. :)
Having said all that, the ride didn't start out all that well for me. I was nervous riding with a big group since I had decided that the whole group thing is what made the trail ride so awful. Plus, Zoe and I were experiencing a new arena together (Black Walnut, up on Cottonwood), which is okay except that this particular arena has mirrors along two of the walls. Zoe freaked when she came up on her reflection - just who the heck was that other horse that appeared out of no where!!! So with my nerves and her hyper energy, we weren't a good pair. I had trouble bringing her back to me and just plain making her stand still.
Cathy M. saw all of this and kindly offered me the use of her horse, Traveler, while she got Zoe under hand. I quickly agreed to the switch. Traveler is notorious for his complete lack of enthusiasm for anything taking place in an arena. Getting him to just. move. forward. at. a. walk. is a challenge.
So imagine my surprise when after going around some poles Traveler decides that the bag on the barrel ISGOINGTOEATHIMOHMYGOD! He quickly backed up a step, flipped a 180 and started to move off in the opposite direction of that horse-eating-bag! I was already starting to lean down to get an envelope out of the bag when all of this started, which really was a good thing because I had a good hold of him with my legs....so I managed to sit his whole freak-out. I'm quite proud of that, actually. :)
After that I never was able to get him to approach the barrel (although we tried several times) and he was very, very skittish when any envelopes were brought towards him.
I jokingly commented to Cathy that if I'd wanted excitement, I could have just stayed on Zoe!
So, lessons learned from my ride on Traveler:
1. Don't assume that just because a horse is normally quiet it'll stay that way!
2. A solid seat is based from the waist down - my hands weren't all that necessary to stay with him as he moved off that barrel.
3. My connection with Zoe is stronger than I thought. I discovered while riding Traveler that I take some of the things I easily do with Zoe totally for granted. Like just turning - I don't even have to think about it with her. I look in the direction I want to go and we just go. It's amazing, really, when I think about it.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
This is fun?
Pony Club and Horsemasters took advantage of the recently clear weather and went on a trail ride at Bennington Lake. E and I were both very excited to join in; I love a chance to ride somewhere other than the arena at our barn and I'm sure the horses like the change as well.
I wasn't worried about taking Zoe (or Monte, for that matter) up to the reservoir since they have both been before, and we actually had a decent ride then. So my nerves were not jingling as we loaded up. (I'm basically trying to say that my energy was calm, so my horse shouldn't have gotten anything spooky from me....)
The moment we unloaded, Zoe started to jig and dance around. Just getting her tacked up was a bit of a challenge, but I thought that once I got on her and we started moving she would begin to calm. Boy was I wrong! And by the way, Monte really wasn't much better...
There were about 10 other riders going along with us. Most were calm; only Zoe, Monte, a Tennessee Walker and a very green Morgan were having any visible issues. Right away my girl decided she needed to be near the lead, but not actually in the lead. The baby Morgan got that position. But I had to work to keep Zoe off his tail; I felt like I was yanking on her mouth almost the entire ride! I tried keeping her busy, side passing back and forth, but she was still frequently jigging and spooking.
Monte decided that he needed to be right behind Zoe. But she decided she hated him and actually kicked out at him a few times when he got too near! (That's not a fun feeling, by the way, having your horse kick out while you're on them.) It's safe to say I had one of the worst behaved horses on the trail.
Luckily, there were no run-away moments for Zoe and I. E did have to dismount once when Monte just plain refused to go down a somewhat icy/slick hill. Zoe stumbled and fell to her knees at one point (she was too busy watching imaginary monsters and didn't pay attention to the trail!), which scared me a bit, but we quickly recovered.
On the final stretch of trail (about the last 100') a dog jumped up in the brush. That was pretty much the last straw for Zoe; I could feel her bunching up under me, so I dismounted and chose to walk her down to the parking lot. I had to remind her of her ground manners, but once we did a little re-schooling (only about 20 seconds), she was her wonderful self again.
If only I had had that wonderful pony for the rest of the ride!
A friend taking pictures commented that even though I claimed this was a far from stellar ride, I am smiling in every single picture she got of me. What can I say? Any moment spent on my horse makes me deliriously, irrationally happy! This is true in lessons as well. All the other students will be so serious and stone-faced and there I am, laughing and talking to my horse the whole time.
I'm crazy, I know. ;)
...And to answer the first question: Yes! This is fun!
Group shot, with Molly's ears in the foreground (Isn't she a great photographer?) ;)
I wasn't worried about taking Zoe (or Monte, for that matter) up to the reservoir since they have both been before, and we actually had a decent ride then. So my nerves were not jingling as we loaded up. (I'm basically trying to say that my energy was calm, so my horse shouldn't have gotten anything spooky from me....)
The moment we unloaded, Zoe started to jig and dance around. Just getting her tacked up was a bit of a challenge, but I thought that once I got on her and we started moving she would begin to calm. Boy was I wrong! And by the way, Monte really wasn't much better...
There were about 10 other riders going along with us. Most were calm; only Zoe, Monte, a Tennessee Walker and a very green Morgan were having any visible issues. Right away my girl decided she needed to be near the lead, but not actually in the lead. The baby Morgan got that position. But I had to work to keep Zoe off his tail; I felt like I was yanking on her mouth almost the entire ride! I tried keeping her busy, side passing back and forth, but she was still frequently jigging and spooking.
Monte decided that he needed to be right behind Zoe. But she decided she hated him and actually kicked out at him a few times when he got too near! (That's not a fun feeling, by the way, having your horse kick out while you're on them.) It's safe to say I had one of the worst behaved horses on the trail.
Luckily, there were no run-away moments for Zoe and I. E did have to dismount once when Monte just plain refused to go down a somewhat icy/slick hill. Zoe stumbled and fell to her knees at one point (she was too busy watching imaginary monsters and didn't pay attention to the trail!), which scared me a bit, but we quickly recovered.
On the final stretch of trail (about the last 100') a dog jumped up in the brush. That was pretty much the last straw for Zoe; I could feel her bunching up under me, so I dismounted and chose to walk her down to the parking lot. I had to remind her of her ground manners, but once we did a little re-schooling (only about 20 seconds), she was her wonderful self again.If only I had had that wonderful pony for the rest of the ride!
A friend taking pictures commented that even though I claimed this was a far from stellar ride, I am smiling in every single picture she got of me. What can I say? Any moment spent on my horse makes me deliriously, irrationally happy! This is true in lessons as well. All the other students will be so serious and stone-faced and there I am, laughing and talking to my horse the whole time.
I'm crazy, I know. ;)
...And to answer the first question: Yes! This is fun!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Pig Pen
Zoe, rolling in her favorite dirt spot in her pasture.
Remember the character from the Snoopy cartoons, Pig Pen? Always dirty and traveling around in his own cloud of dust? Lately, it seems that my Zoe is channeling her inner-Pig Pen full time!
Even after a full brush-down, she is still dirtier than most of the other horses at the barn before they are groomed! My mare just loves to roll in the dirt. It's the first thing she does whenever she is put into her pasture and by looking at her muddy coat, I assume it is a favorite activity throughout the day as well. :)
I love watching the horses stand up. Such an awkward process, actually.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Christmas boots
Last November or December, Zoe actually cut up the heel bulb on one of her front hooves during a ride. She has a wonderful, full stride but sometimes overreaches a bit and clips her front hooves with the hind. I'm sure this can't feel all that great and it definitely could lead to infection, so I needed to have a way to prevent this in the future.
So for Christmas I specifically requested some bell boots to protect those precious feet. :) And look at the wonderful boots E picked out! (Tiger stripes makes total sense since she still sleeps with a giant stuffed tiger every night.)
I also got a new helmet (Yeah! My very own helmet!) and some very nice riding gloves. It was a great Christmas, indeed.
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Making it last
Zoe is now wearing a coat of many colors on the coldest days.
It irks me to no end that our horse blankets end up being fairly useless after one, maybe two, years. I get that the horses are hard on them but since the darn things cost so much, I've been attempting to fix the rips.
Last year, I tried mending them with thread and needle. That was only somewhat successful. This year, I'm trying nylon patches I found at the local fabric store that are meant for tents, umbrellas, etc. They are cheap, waterproof and the best part, no sewing required! Just peel off the back and stick them on.
So far they seem to be holding (although, she's only worn her blanket a handful of days). I have learned that the area I stick the patch to needs to be clean-ish; it appears that dirt doesn't help the patch adhere to the blanket. :)
You can just see the patches on Zoe's blanket.
The fur on the right belongs to her pasture mate, Cami. :)
It irks me to no end that our horse blankets end up being fairly useless after one, maybe two, years. I get that the horses are hard on them but since the darn things cost so much, I've been attempting to fix the rips.
Last year, I tried mending them with thread and needle. That was only somewhat successful. This year, I'm trying nylon patches I found at the local fabric store that are meant for tents, umbrellas, etc. They are cheap, waterproof and the best part, no sewing required! Just peel off the back and stick them on.
So far they seem to be holding (although, she's only worn her blanket a handful of days). I have learned that the area I stick the patch to needs to be clean-ish; it appears that dirt doesn't help the patch adhere to the blanket. :)
Saturday, December 3, 2011
It's getting better!
Wow! I have been quite delinquent in my blogging and so much has happened in my horsey-world.
A couple of weeks ago Elizabeth Anderson was up from California visiting her sister (a dear friend of mine). And lucky for me, Elizabeth agreed to give me a couple of lessons while she was here! Now, I've only had instruction from 2 or 3 people, but I've watched E with many more instructors...and I have to say that I clicked with Elizabeth the best out of any of them. It was amazing!
Our first task was to teach Zoe (and me!) to walk/trot/canter in the round pen. As Elizabeth said, Zoe has been "leading the dance" and it is time for me to take control of her feet and her pace. Easier said than done. :) With practice, however, Zoe and I are getting better at this; I can consistently get her to transition between trot and canter. Getting a walk is challenging, but we will eventually get it! After working with Zoe on this before each ride, I have found that I have a more willing, less "rushy" horse. Just this one thing has changed my rides for the better so much.
When tacking up, Elizabeth had me change back to the French link (I had begun using the curb/Kimberwick again a week or two before, to get some control back). I was a little nervous about this, but she's right that I need to learn to ride my horse correctly and not rely on tack to do the job for me.
Our second task was to work on my seat and position. Elizabeth really had me concentrate on where my seat bones were and how I was sitting in the saddle at all times. The visualizations she gave me really clicked in my mind and by shifting my body just a bit this way and that, Zoe and I achieved a more synchronous ride. I have so much more control over my horse's pace and direction and I can actually (finally!) feel when I should be posting! Yeah, a major breakthrough for me!
Now don't go thinking that we are ready to start competing or anything; I am still very much a beginner and quite frankly, I can barely keep myself together for more than a few seconds at a time.....but it's a beginning.
After Elizabeth left, I had another lesson with Patti Jo. Towards the end of our hour we were doing an exercise that involved small 10 meter circles and for a brief moment (5 or 10 seconds) it ALL finally came together! Zoe was going smoothly, back rounded up, nose down, and I was in the right place as well.
It was heaven! I could feel the difference and I want more of it! :)
Unfortunately, I haven't had many rides this week (I went from 3x a week to 0x! Yikes!) Cold weather and mud season are fast approaching. In fact, here's a pic of my princess, in all her grimy glory!
This is what I find most days when I arrive at the barn now - a dirty, muddy horse. There's no quick grooming these days!
Other big news: I finally posted Monte on DreamHorse. It is so hard to sell our little guy, I just love him so much. But it really is time to find him a good home...of course, that may take a while (which is okay with me 'cause that means I can have that many more pony-snuggles with him!). :)
A couple of weeks ago Elizabeth Anderson was up from California visiting her sister (a dear friend of mine). And lucky for me, Elizabeth agreed to give me a couple of lessons while she was here! Now, I've only had instruction from 2 or 3 people, but I've watched E with many more instructors...and I have to say that I clicked with Elizabeth the best out of any of them. It was amazing!
Our first task was to teach Zoe (and me!) to walk/trot/canter in the round pen. As Elizabeth said, Zoe has been "leading the dance" and it is time for me to take control of her feet and her pace. Easier said than done. :) With practice, however, Zoe and I are getting better at this; I can consistently get her to transition between trot and canter. Getting a walk is challenging, but we will eventually get it! After working with Zoe on this before each ride, I have found that I have a more willing, less "rushy" horse. Just this one thing has changed my rides for the better so much.
When tacking up, Elizabeth had me change back to the French link (I had begun using the curb/Kimberwick again a week or two before, to get some control back). I was a little nervous about this, but she's right that I need to learn to ride my horse correctly and not rely on tack to do the job for me.
Our second task was to work on my seat and position. Elizabeth really had me concentrate on where my seat bones were and how I was sitting in the saddle at all times. The visualizations she gave me really clicked in my mind and by shifting my body just a bit this way and that, Zoe and I achieved a more synchronous ride. I have so much more control over my horse's pace and direction and I can actually (finally!) feel when I should be posting! Yeah, a major breakthrough for me!
Now don't go thinking that we are ready to start competing or anything; I am still very much a beginner and quite frankly, I can barely keep myself together for more than a few seconds at a time.....but it's a beginning.
After Elizabeth left, I had another lesson with Patti Jo. Towards the end of our hour we were doing an exercise that involved small 10 meter circles and for a brief moment (5 or 10 seconds) it ALL finally came together! Zoe was going smoothly, back rounded up, nose down, and I was in the right place as well.
It was heaven! I could feel the difference and I want more of it! :)
Unfortunately, I haven't had many rides this week (I went from 3x a week to 0x! Yikes!) Cold weather and mud season are fast approaching. In fact, here's a pic of my princess, in all her grimy glory!
This is what I find most days when I arrive at the barn now - a dirty, muddy horse. There's no quick grooming these days!
Other big news: I finally posted Monte on DreamHorse. It is so hard to sell our little guy, I just love him so much. But it really is time to find him a good home...of course, that may take a while (which is okay with me 'cause that means I can have that many more pony-snuggles with him!). :)
Monday, November 7, 2011
Why can't you just walk?
Zoe has been more than a handful the past couple of rides. She is so full of energy, I can barely keep her to a walk. I made up my mind that I wouldn't allow her to trot until I achieved a decent walk and stop. Yesterday it took almost 10 minutes to get her to fully stop at the mounting block while I got on and another full 30 minutes to get a single circuit of the round pen at the walk....we never did try (purposefully) trotting - although she had trotted plenty! I was so frustrated with her at that point that I wanted to get off at the first "good moment" I could find. After talking to E about my not-so-fun ride, we both decided that perhaps I should go back to the harsher (Western curb) bit for a while to re-establish some control over my rushing, headstrong horse. Crossing my fingers that that helps.
Catherine has been riding Monte fairly regularly. She seems to enjoy riding him and even commented that he is easier than Zoe, which I would agree is true in some respects. He is much more willing to please his rider and he is super responsive to the slightest cue. It's really just his spookiness that makes him a non-beginner horse.
Catherine has been riding Monte fairly regularly. She seems to enjoy riding him and even commented that he is easier than Zoe, which I would agree is true in some respects. He is much more willing to please his rider and he is super responsive to the slightest cue. It's really just his spookiness that makes him a non-beginner horse.
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