Things I've learned

Three days until my first lesson on the horse I'm leasing!!!  I have my first real ride on him on Friday and I've arranged my coach to give me a private lesson. I'm hoping this will help get me started on the right foot and give me some confidence that completely left me in the test ride. I still find it interesting that I completely blamed myself for the test ride not going super well.  While I think it's important to always look to how I am influencing the behaviour of any horse I ride but I also think it's important to be able to recognize when it's something else. It's not always a good thing to blame yourself when it means that you are missing what is really going on. Food for thought.

I had another "duh!" moment last night in my lesson.  The horse I usually ride, the beautiful black gelding, has a very hard time going round. I have learned that I have more success when I don't even think about that at all but just ride him as best I can. Of course, that makes sense because if I am riding properly, well balanced etc., it makes it easier for him. Still, he rarely is truly round but I wouldn't say he is hollow either. Last week, we had some moments that I felt were truly indicative of progress in this regard. We were both so much more balanced and soft. Then, last night, I was having difficulty with a particular exercise. We were cantering 10m circles and then through poles set up in a half-square. The circles were ok but I just wasn't getting the square as balanced as I wanted. He even broke to trot once. Eek.  I stopped to re-group and talk to my instructor. I was asking about my legs, I suspected that was where things were going wrong.

You know how sometimes the things that people say in passing actually ends up being spot-on?  Yeah. I had asked about my outside leg and my instructor commented that she wouldn't use outside leg because that would be confusing to the horse. Oh. ... OH!  I realized I've been way too active with the outside leg. It started because this horse is so long and stiff he tends to bend with his front end only, so I do a little extra stabilizing with the outside leg to keep those hips from swinging out. But there is a big difference between a supportive leg and an active one! I didn't even realize I had started to over-use it. We did the exercise again and it was so much better.  I felt pretty stupid and I am actually a little embarrassed to be admitting it on the internet :)  But what the hell, it's all about improvement, right?  I wish I had photos, but my husband (aka photographer) is out of town again. Oh well, we are back in the indoor and photos don't look very nice in there anyway. A very worthwhile lesson, I'd say.

I also never followed up with some thoughts about Edgar. It's quite simple really. So simple, I didn't really think that it would be something to pass along. Edgar is pretty green and doesn't work under saddle very often. Therefore, he is still learning to balance a rider. On top of that, the riding area is a field with uneven footing. So it's important to go slow and build his balance and strength.  Occasionally at the trot Edgar will start to lose his balance which is evident by the way he starts to rush and get even more on the forehand (yes, it's possible, lol). In the very beginning, it went from increasing speed to bolting pretty quickly. I think the bolting was mostly an evasion of sorts - he would get unbalanced and anxious and bolting was a way out.  (Side note: he also used bolting to try to get out of work. I noted the difference back in the spring but didn't blog about it specifically. You might remember when I made him keep running after a bolt, beating him at his own game, if you will. I didn't do that until I was sure he was simply being a brat, as opposed to me pushing too hard, and I think that is why it worked so well. That was the last time Edgar bolted with me. I do not think it would have worked so well if I did that while the balance was still the root cause.)

All that to say that you need to be patient. I did a lot of walk-trot-halt transitions, varying the order and duration of each. I had worked up to short canter sessions just before I broke my arm. I always made sure to transition down from canter while he was still balanced so that he could stay calm and build both strength and confidence. I suspect that the riders his owner had out to replace me weren't as patient and likely rushed him to trot and canter when he wasn't ready and/or balanced. So, he bolted with them. I honestly think it's that simple. Of course, part of it could have just been his Fjord brain knowing what he could get away with ;)

I also think it's interesting that he didn't try anything like that last weekend, even though I hadn't ridden him since early June.  I was also (again) careful to pay attention to when he started to come undone.  Hmmm, I guess I'm not terrible at distinguishing some rider issues from horse issues. Then again, even my husband could tell when he started to come undone, lol.

Well, that was much longer than I intended!  Tonka has found the container of catnip and is batting it around the house. Guess I'd better give him a little. Off to "drug" the cat and walk Hazel.

Have you ridden a Fjord lately?

I haven't been up to ride Edgar since just before I broke my arm at the beginning of June. After the arm was ok to ride again, I was hesitant to continue riding Edgar at first. It was my closest experience with "fear" and riding. I wasn't really afraid but I WAS reluctant to risk getting hurt again soon after my month off. Time off is HARD. I hate being limited in what I can do.

While I was recovering, Edgar's owner tried to find another exercise rider. It didn't go so well. Many clearly weren't experienced enough and she didn't let them try him. A couple were ok, but couldn't handle him. One girl seemed to be a good enough rider but when he bolted on her, she couldn't control him. His owner was considering selling him to a home that could actually make use of him. She just couldn't do it though.

My wrist got better but I was still reluctant to get back into working with Edgar. It is very slow going when the work is so far between. It is also difficult since there is no indoor arena or outdoor ring to ride in. I ride in a hay field.

I felt like all the responsibility for his riding was up to me. To be honest, I wasn't up for that task. It is selfish to say but there just wasn't enough in it for me. I had to drive 30-40 minutes to walk-trot around a hay field?? It was hard to motivate myself to go.

On the other hand, Edgar's owner is an amazing person. I really like her and she could really use some help. I've said it before but it bears repeating - life threw some curve balls to this family that resulted in delaying her plans with the horses that she had waited so long to purchase. I'm not going into details out of respect for her privacy but trust me, society owes her a debt of gratitude. I also really like working with Edgar. He is such a people horse, even if he is a trouble-maker :)

I had a nice long talk with Edgar's owner. I discussed with her my dilemma about wanting to work with him but also my commitment to improving my riding and wanting to move up in that respect (hence leasing a Hanoverian :) ). She can't bring herself to sell him just yet. It just isn't "safe" enough. I agreed. She has been longing him and doing other groundwork, so at least he's getting something. She decided to just let him be a lawn ornament for the next few years until she can dedicate herself to him. We also said that I would come up whenever I can, no pressure as to how often. Something is always better than nothing (as long as that something isn't making him worse, of course!)

So I went up to ride Edgar today. The last time anyone has been on him was me, back at the very begining of June. I expected some protest and bucks, maybe even bolts. But I approached getting ready as if he and I did it every day. His ground manners are so much better than in the spring! He was still playful and knocked everything off the ledge in front of him BUT he wasn't pushy with me at all.

Under saddle, he was awesome! Not one single step wrong. I was amazed. I also forgot how nice his trot feels. I could sit to it all day.
I've figured out what the main "blow-up" issue is, I think. I realized it long ago but never really put it into words, I just rode and adjusted accordingly. Now, I feel I have to be able to describe it to others. Stay tuned for my revelation, I am just too tired tonight to type!


Why am I so tired? We did a lot of stuff around the house this weekend. Along with battling grape vines that have taken over, I painted the shed.

Notice the rust. It looked worse in real life.
Also, the roof was almost completely bare of paint.

Rust be gone!The (almost) finished product. I have to say
I love this shed now. All I need are the ponies :)

Edgar Updates

I've been having some good rides on Edgar. He is getting into shape much faster than I expected, we are still taking it slow but it's clear he isn't getting tired as quickly. He is also traveling much straighter and I don't feel like I am constantly adjusting his direction - he is going where he's pointed (well, mostly...).

I also tried something new. I don't know if it was the "right" thing to do, I just went with the moment. So, Edgar was going along quite nicely, no shenanigans, when he decides to bolt. There was no discernible reason, I think he just feels good and decides to take off. This time, instead of bringing him down right away and circling back to the place where he bolted etc., I let him go. I just rode it, kept myself balanced and stayed out of his way. Within I'd say 10 strides his ears flicked and he went to slow.

Uh-uh, I pushed him on. You wanna run, we're gonna run, I thought. I swear I could feel his surprise! Again, I just rode it, steering a little. The next time he tried to slow I got after him again, just to make sure he got the point. And he did, I think. I then asked/allowed him to slow and we walked on quietly and I continued with circles, transitions etc. Not another bolt, just a nice, attentive horse. I had to giggle.

I am supposed to be heading up to the barn soon but 1) husband isn't home with car yet (grrr) and 2) it looks like rain, again (double grrr).


Have a good weekend!