Plugging Along

Still alive... Haven't been riding much, but trainer has been riding five days a week. Man your riding really suffers when you only ride once a week. Finn's also pulled two shoes this past week. He's literally walking out of them and thankfully not damaging his hooves. I swear he's just trying to get out of work. Finn's had a major attitude problem lately. Trainer seems to think it's just a phase. He's never been in this much work probably since he left the track five years ago. He is cranky and stubborn and not really enjoying his job very much. Boo. :( He is very sound though, really for the first time since I've had him! The dressage saddle search continues. The saddle fitter let me try a County Connection that according to her thermographic camera fit him perfectly. It was insanely comfortable! My trainer rode him the night I got the saddle and he took off bucking. She thought it was just an attitude thing, and not bad saddle fit. The next day I hopped on him for my lesson and he felt like he was going to explode the second I got on him. I got off, and trainer hopped off. Took a short video of her riding (see below), and he would not track up and lift his back. Trainer thinks that because he is short backed, I'm going to have a difficult time finding a dressage saddle that fits him and me comfortably. Luckily I still have my jumping saddle that's a perfect fit. In the rides I've had on him lately he's mostly been shaking my confidence with some unpredictability, especially in the canter. The barn's getting a 2'6 packer soon that I'm thinking of part-leasing to build my confidence while trainer continues to work with Finn. Me and Finn are also signed up for the barn's schooling show (walk trot classes) coming up on October, 27th....guess I should start riding more!!

Growing Up

The Wednesday after our lesson last week I decided it was a good idea to take a 1 hour yoga class in a 100 degree room after not taking a class in a few years, and then ride that afternoon. I felt okay after yoga, actually my body felt great, but I didn't realize just how bad my muscles were affected until I tried to get on my horse that afternoon. I could barely lift my leg over the saddle. Forget about a trot and canter, my legs were shaking at the walk... Finn had Thursday and Friday off (mostly due to my own recovery), and then a trainer ride Saturday, and off on Sunday. I guess I need to remember not to push myself so hard when I go to yoga again. I was up at the barn on Friday to get Finn clipped and took a few pictures (see below).
    Finn's trainer ride went pretty good. My trainer is working on his canter and she told me that his canter is probably the worst she's ever ridden. Yikes! He is basically legs everywhere, unbalanced, nose in the air. She got a couple of really good canter strides, didn't want to push him, and worked more on his trot.
     Today was a completely different story with the canter during our lesson. 4 new horses moved into the barn today, and my horse gets seriously stressed out with change. When I went to pull him in from the paddock he nearly ran me over, did a couple of sideways leaps, and a couple of half rears. On the crossties he was dancing around, whinnying, wild-eyed, and completely crazy. I haven't gotten nervous around him in a while, but I was pretty nervous. There was also a lot of commotion in the barn. Today was a holiday, which I completely forgot about. Usually I get to the barn around 1 and it is empty. Before Finn's bad behavior could escalate even further we tacked up super quick, and I hopped on. I thought about lunging him, but there were a few people riding, and another boarder lunging her horse that was bucking, rearing and tearing around the ring in a frenzy... There is nothing I can't stand more than lunging to get bad behavior out, especially when there are other people riding.
     We warmed up at the walk and trot, and although Finn had his head in the clouds, and continued to call out to his buddies, the silliness stopped for the most part. When our trainer arrived we cantered a few 20m circles to warm up and I couldn't believe the loose, forward horse I had under me. For the first time Finn's canter felt almost normal. He was reaching for the contact and felt so much more balanced. We worked more on the canter throughout the lesson and I felt glimmers of hope for his normally choppy, horrible canter. We also worked on some raised cavaletti, and lots of leg yields.
      I'm so proud of my horse. I really thought I was going to have a horrible ride given his behavior in the paddock, and all of the excitement in the barn, but he was able to settle down and get to work. It makes me excited for show season. He really seems to excel when there's an audience watching! My trainer took a short video of us in the beginning of our ride before he settled down. His little head tossing used to turn into full out rears, luckily he seems to have grown out of that!

    

   I also put him in a Happy Mouth loose ring snaffle and he seems to go a lot better in it. I feel like in the Myler Comfort Snaffle he would just lean and pull the entire time I was riding him. In the Happy Mouth I feel like he's not so heavy, but not shying away from the contact either. I need to remember to be lighter with my hands though. I feel like the Myler taught me to be way too harsh because no matter what I did I couldn't get him forward into the contact. In the Happy Mouth I feel like it's much easier, with much less effort!  We're getting a cold front/snow the next few days. I hope to ride on Wednesday but with 10 degrees as the high Finn might get a few days off! Here's some pictures from last Friday. 

Conformation shot after almost a year together. I think he looks good, especially that nice, shiny, coat!

Enough with the pictures, Mom!