Goals Thread...

[Rosie B]

Flight and Klark_Kent - I watched your videos. Both are lovely. Lovely horses and lovely riding! Klark - I really like the clinician's approach. Don't get worried, don't change what you're doing, just persist in clearly explaining/showing the horse what to do and he'll get it eventually. Love that!

Sue B - How's the weather in Idaho? Around here all I've had to deal with so far was a couple mornings of below 0 temps... no snow yet thankfully! And this morning was a balmy 8 degrees C! (46 for you south of the border). So I have been able to continue riding outside without having to make any modifications for footing or temps. Fingers crossed that this continues and we have a mild winter. Last winter was epic, so I think we deserve a break.

[Chisamba]

I succeeded in a goal I did not even have! My big mare is very reactive and spooky, and i decided to put on my big girl breeches, and ride her bareback around the yard. When i first got on and she felt my legs with no saddle she humper her back a bit but we hacked around all over the outdoor down to the barn, to the apple tree where i picked an apple for her, and back. she looked but stayed relaxed and did not deposit me in any puddles, and oh, she splashed through the puddles with no worries. I felt like a kid again and she was great. so we have a little more trust between us now which is huge.

[Tuddy]

Around here all I've had to deal with so far was a couple mornings of below 0 temps... no snow yet thankfully! And this morning was a balmy 8 degrees C! (46 for you south of the border).

Whereabouts are you located? I am in Saskatchewan and it was -14°C this morning with a windchill making it feel like -19°C. That is 8°F/-3°F for my neighbors to the south.

I am not complaining though, this time last year it was -40!

[Rosie B]

I'm in Saint John NB. I remember we had snow on the ground at least for a few days at a time by this time last year. And at the end of November we had about 10 cm that stuck around for a few weeks. I am thanking my lucky stars that the weather has been so nice lately. Fingers crossed that it continues!

[Sue B]

Uggg, the wind has been miserable. it was 28 F this am with 25mph wind gusting to 35. Yesterday it was in the 30's with only a 15mph breeze but it was snow/raining. Been like that all week so I have not ridden. I know, I am a wimp. Meanwhile, Tio's wound is gradually healing and Rudy is charging up and down the hills chasing Tio trying to stay warm. He is wearing his Rambo, but this California boy is NOT fond of winter. Seriously, he sun bathes when it's 100 F degrees out while Tio hides in the shade.

[Josette]

I will not complain about NJ weather in the future. We tend to flip flop between mild versus heavy winters and this year may be the mild one. Fingers and toes crossed....

[calvin]

Winter Goals:

1) after he is clipped, school my horse 4x / week, hack 1 x a week as weather permits; and hope horse is jumped 1x a week (by someone else). My focus is throughness, suppleness, contact. Specifically, over the next few months, my plan is to work on getting better (steadier, more elastic yet constant) contact; work on getting better half-halts with the effect as described by Galopp and the dressage literature: there are significant holes in my work. Work on downward transitions which result in the front of the horse touching down lightly instead of collapsing on to the front end. Try to nail those changes.

2) see if a second horse I ride frequently is ready to go back to work (pulled a shoe a while ago, and was NQR) - so groom and lunge at W - T and see how he is doing. If he is sound, bring him back into work with a gentle Training / Level one program.

MEANS:

3) as one means to the goals, take a lesson from my trainer on her horse either once a week or once every 2 weeks as work / weather / circumstances permit;

4) as extra motivation to keep working hard, attend a Cindy Ishoy clinic with my horse in December; and

5) to ensure I do not expire, continue working with my personal (fitness) trainer 2x a week: cardio, core, general strength and cross training. I find it essential at my age (Senior Rider!). I do not want to ask for extra walk breaks, nor to find that I am "out of my good energy".

It is dark in the evenings. It is cold. It is nearly winter time. These threads are VERY helpful in motivating me to ride.

[Tuddy]

It is dark in the evenings. It is cold. It is nearly winter time. These threads are VERY helpful in motivating me to ride.

This ^^^^

I try to get to the barn by 4:30 and done riding by 6. And yes, all of you winter riders have me starstruck, as this is my first winter in many that I will can call myself a winter rider.

[klark_kent07]

Sue B and Flight- Hopefully we can keep updating with progress on the changes and compare rides/notes and stay positive when it all goes to shit

Rosie B the clinician, Kim Weston, is such a wonderful horsewoman and has the best approach to training that I have ever come across. She is very thorough on the basics and everything is done with the horse in mind but she's not afraid to push you out of your comfort zone and see what you/your horse are capable of. She is also brilliant at in hand work and previously we had a play with the short steps from the ground and this time we were able to start them under saddle as well. I didn't get any video of that though unfortunately!

We are starting to struggle with the heat while all of you are dealing with the cold. And it is also our off season now until around May next year as we get too hot/ wet in Northern Australia to compete or train heavily until then. I do have a jumping clinic and competition next weekend though, we had so much fun at our first one a month ago that we decided to have one last go at jumping this season for a bit of fun. And the jumping can only improve the jump in Kent's canter anyway so it will help with the changes and it's great to strengthen and loosen his back too.

[Moutaineer]

Big black horse is settled into his very fancy (but rather unfriendly) clinic digs for the weekend, my tack is clean, my boots are clean, so we are ready to go.

It is beyond frigid here today and very windy. I hope it warms up a bit tomorrow. I find it hard to unbend and relax in these temperatures, let alone my poor horse--he is not a fan of cold wind. We will be letting the side down with our ratty old back on track saddlepad tomorrow rather than the spiffy new white one, in the hope that it works its magic on him.

[Flight]

My flying changes stuff is pretty boring now! Just asking for them occasionally when his canter feels ok and only doing one or two per session, so he only does them when asked.

It's getting hot for us, yesterday was a hot 38degrees with a really strong wind.. I stayed inside.

[Brydie]

It's getting hot for us, yesterday was a hot 38degrees with a really strong wind.. I stayed inside.

Got up to 42-43 degrees up here, it was insane! So happy to ride today with a high of 23 degrees.

My trainer rode Red for the first time today. We really need to work on softening his jaw as he's locking it as a resistance to use his body. I really need to start pushing him up into the bridle, get him stepping under for him to soften... as always MORE LEG!!! Hopefully will get to take some video tomorrow.

[Moutaineer]

Excellent first day of clinic.

Guess what? we worked on straightness... and we were not alone. I think everyone worked on straightness, particularly at the canter.

He was such a good boy. It certainly helped our relaxation and work ethic that this barn and indoor complex is kept at a constant 53 degrees...

(They had just finished mucking out this morning when I arrived, and there was a guy busily dusting down each individual stall front bar. I've spent the day feeling like I've been followed every step by someone with a damp cloth and a broom.)

[Sue B]

Moutaineer, sounds like you had a good clinic, even if you were stalked by "the help". lol Rudy also does not like winter weather, especially the wind, and so I ride with a quarter sheet. I got mine thru Horze, it is wind and rain proof with material similar to a Rambo blanket. He really, really likes it and it makes warming up a lot easier on me.

So Saturday was beautiful here but I had to go to Ketchum (200 mi roundtrip) with ds to get him outfitted for skiing so I did not get to ride. It was breezier with a bit of a bitter east wind yesterday but I drew on Rosie's strength and went for a ride. After a nice jaunt through the fields we went to work, focusing on what? Straightness! His new trick was to fling his hind quarters to the right when doing a right lead cc. He was NOT pleased when I insisted that he stay straight and maintain the exact same tempo whether in cc or true canter. He kept dropping into trot until I made him take the cc on the circle, at which point he decided I was serious about this straightness thing and he went to work. Can't blame him for avoiding work since I haven't ridden much, but boy is he fun when all the pieces fall into place.

Tio's wound is 90% closed up with no more swelling at all and very little tenderness. Maybe after the upcoming bitter cold snap (temps in the single digits for turkey day) he'll be good to go. Meanwhile, he's bored and looking for more trouble.

Oh yeah, ds and I are going to do a 5k Thanksgiving community run Thursday morning. Weather guessers saying it might be 4 F that morning--I think I'll walk.

[Moutaineer]

We had a really good ride on Sunday as well. Straightness much improved.

This is us, out of the ghetto...

12294670_1703602099868950_2838315081571049679_n.jpg (104.89 KiB) Viewed 26319 times

[piedmontfields]

Mountaineer, you all look very "up town." Glad it was a good experience!

[Rosie B]

Mountaineer - you two are looking very polished! You don't look out of place there at all.

Sue B - good for you! Sounds like you had a great ride.

Byrdie - I don't think I could handle those temps. I can handle cold, but in high temps I wilt. lol.

Over the past few months due to diminishing daylight, I've sucked it up and started riding before work in the dark with my headlamp. This means getting out of bed at 4:20 am, feeding the horses, and then I'm in the arena at 5:00 am. I have a quick ride (30-40 minutes), then back down to the barn, finish the morning chores and am back in the house shortly after 6:00. There have been a few days over the past weeks where temps have been below zero, but my footing hasn't frozen so it's been business as usual (plus a quarter sheet for Bliss). Well I was dreading this morning's ride... Yesterday we had a downpour and then last night temps dropped to -7 (~20 F) and when I went to bed it was snowing. Well this morning was cold but clear, and despite my arena being frozen like a rock I still rode. I could only walk due to the frozen footing, but we worked on square halts and leg yeilds and it wasn't that bad at all. My headlamp died at the end (I think the cold was killing it), but there was still enough moonlight to see our way safely back to the barn.

A clinician told me this year that it doesn't matter how long you ride, you just need to get your butt out there even if it's only for 5 minutes. And I keep a riding journal where I note a few things about each ride, but the main 'metric' I track is rides per week, rides per month, and rides per year. Right now I am 32 rides ahead of where I was last year. I find doing little things like that keep me motivated to ride even when the conditions aren't perfect.

[piedmontfields]

Rosie, thanks for pointing out that metric. I really agree that getting the buttt in the saddle always yields something!

I often keep a calendar hung up in winter at work so I can see my "days ridden" and be aware of any catch up I need to do. I really do get on 5 days a week and often work her lightly on the lunge 2 more days in winter, as that is what it takes to keep her comfortable with the PSSM problems. Giving myself permission to ride "lightly" through cold and winter (which is *nothing* here compared to your area) helps me keep going.

[demi]

I also keep track of days that I ride or work the horse in some way. I keep a calendar in the tack room and tally the numbers at the end of each week and at the end of each month.

[demi]

We had a really good ride on Sunday as well. Straightness much improved.

This is us, out of the ghetto...

Mountaineer, he's gorgeous! You're a classy looking pair.

[Moutaineer]

Why thank you, Demi! He really is pretty spiffy.

I still pinch myself regularly to check I'm not dreaming and he really is mine.

I'm not a particularly sentimental or anthropomorphic person, but after our second ride last weekend, one of the auditors came and found me and told me how nice it was to see a horse that so obviously trusted his rider. I could have cried... He's such a sweet horse and he had such a confused and wretched time the last couple of years before coming to me, it's surprising he trusts anyone any more.

[Brydie]

Finally took some video last night. Posting videos from September which I hate but shows our progress since starting lessons last month (had three so far).

September
Trot - https://vimeo.com/147000831
Canter - https://vimeo.com/147000822

November
Trot - https://vimeo.com/147000842
Canter - https://vimeo.com/147000843

And was told today that I've been given a pay rise meaning I can take more lessons! Suuuuuuper excited!!!

[Flight]

Definite improvement Brydie! Very cool

LOL, love how pay rise immediately means spend more money on horses! A few years ago I got a quite a big backpay .. I put it towards an arena.... my non-horsey friends thought I was crazy.

Mountaineer, that's so nice! I'm hoping the same will be said about my young horse down the track.

[demi]

I can see the difference, Brydie! Good going!

It looks like you have an arm band on. Is it a tracking device for self video?

[Brydie]

Thanks . It's amazing how much of a difference a couple of lessons make!

Demi - yes, I have a soloshot2 (just got it fixed and that was my first video using it in a few months). Will be really good to be able to video my actual lessons and actually see the difference in his going in lessons vs not. I feel like he goes so much better than those videos in lessons too, my instructor makes me work hard!

[Sue B]

Moutaineer, I know I've said it before but it's worth saying again--I am soooo happy you bought that horse. He really is such a kind and generous soul who desperately needed a home where he is loved and pampered.

So, I did accomplish my personal goal of participating in the 5k Turkey Trot yesterday, and despite the snowing and blowing, my ds and I had a great time as did all the folks who showed up. Unfortunately, I slipped and torqued my knee and hip very early in the "race" and so I had to walk it instead of running. To my credit, I did manage to walk the whole thing without limping and completed the course in just under an hour--including 2 detours to 1) put stuff in the truck and 2) to take my sweater off and leave it on the railing of the church we attend. I caught up to a former schoolmate of ds who is quite overweight near the end of the course. He was gamely trying to jog the whole thing, and so I walked beside him urging him on and then we raced the last 100 yds to the finish line. He was so proud of himself to have mostly jogged the whole race and to have finished in under an hour--very cool!

Today, right now, as I type, it is 3F. Don't think I'll ride today and I was too sore yesterday to ride too. (Not too sore for a good snowball fight though.) I fell on the ice at home on my way out to the ponies and torqued the same joints again plus did a number on my back. Seriously, I need to learn how to walk.

[Rosie B]

OMG Sue B! Good for you! If you're sore, tack of the day is having a big sale on all things Back on Track. Just saying!

Byrdie - what a difference two months can make! Good for you!

I just did some black Friday shopping and bought 700 lbs of SALT of all things! I am going to put 500lbs of it in my outdoor arena and hope it keeps it from freezing solid. It's calcium chloride rather than NaCl so it is supposed to work down to -31 degrees C as well as being safe for pets. Anyone else tried this?

And I rode this morning! Given the night I had that is a major feat. My son was sick in the night and I was up with him from 12:45 until 2:30, then I got up at 4:15 to go ride. So I'm running very low on sleep (5 hrs total) but my ride this morning was worth it. It had been a full moon two nights ago so the moon was super bright and the weather was lovely at 11 degrees C, so there was no way I was going to miss it.

Goals until the end of December: keep riding as much as I can. Keep working on square halts, honest response to both legs, and a steady connection into the outside rein going both ways. I'm hoping for a MINIMUM of 3 rides a week, but this is weather dependent. The last two winters we had so much ice that I couldn't make it to my riding arena from January to mid April. This is the purpose of the other 200lbs of salt.

What do you guys think of resuming the 8 week challenge format and starting a new thread in January? I kind of like that format because having an end date forces me to think about where I am with respect to my goals.

[Flight]

I'm very impressed you can get up so early to ride. Especially when you are talking about it being so cold you need to put salt on the ground!!

[piedmontfields]

Yes to resuming the 8 week challenge format!

[Rosie B]

Just an update to say the salt is working!!! Temps dropped to -10 last night and everything is frozen solid EXCEPT my arena. The footing is still soft and forgiving. We're supposed to get rain later in the week so fingers crossed the salt mostly stays put.

For those interested, it took 530 lbs of salt and my arena is 19 x 43m. I used Alaskan ice melt and spread it by hand using a feed scoop and a dish pan in about an hour and a half. I think it helped that I spread it on a somewhat damp day where temps were above zero. The salt drew the moisture from the air which helped it dissolve into the footing.

[Hot4Spots]

Well, just an update As you may or may not remember, after my little darling dumped me while cooling out (You know, by now I should know that a total loose rein and lack of full attention is not the best attitude when riding outside of the covered arena....), besides my bumps, bruises and minor fracture (just a little chip, nothing to do about it), it was determined that he trashed his suspensory (rt. hind). How was that for a run-on sentence?

Anyway, I've been on hand walking duty since early October. A true adventure when outside of the arena (which is what the vet prefers, i.e., firm ground). We're up to 40 mins a day, twice a day on weekends, and will move up to 45 mins next week. He's had two follow ups with the vet (w/o a 2nd ultrasound), and while he's definitely improving, he's still not 100%. At last checkup, vet said I could - should I feel brave enough - RIDE him at a walk. My response was, "Please give me a bottle of ACE, 'cause the one I have is 5+ years old." Well, she apparently thought I was joking and left while I was putting him back in his stall without leaving me any ACE.

The next night, I hand walked him, then on Thanksgiving day, got out the old bottle of ACE and gave him about 1.5 cc. He was fine, obviously a little drugged, since I had to push him a bit even though we were just walking. So over the next couple of days I reduced the amount of ACE, then got on him sans any drugs on Sunday.....and he was foot perfect, calm, walking out around the arena with no nervousness, and has behaved the same for every ride since. So, my question to anyone who's gone through this process is, has he just passed from excited from lack of exercise to boredom to grateful he's doing something, anything, even if it's just walking? Or is this a sign of some new maturity on his part (he's 11 now)*? I can't base my evaluation on experience with injuries with my prior horse, who was a saint I got on and rode in a halter when he hadn't been ridden for eight months after a "minor" fracture (fractured splint/hairline fracture of cannon, left hind).

*I also have added to his "equipment" an ear bonnet and ear plugs. I know they aren't legal for showing (though I've heard they are considering making them legal), and I suppose this MIGHT be (I hope) part of the reason for his level of calmness.

As to goals - well, if/when he comes sound, I hope to get him out there - striving for more relaxation - qualify for All Breeds at 2nd Level (since our last outings were not all that good due to tension and/or spooking) and MAYBE start working on changes.

[Moutaineer]

Hot4Spots, my horse is entirely more sensible outdoors in an ear bonnet, even in the middle of winter--there are a few of us at the barn who have found this to be true. (We board in a strange little oasis that is surrounded by buildings with weird noises emanating from them and crazed neighbors, and the big petrochemical works with it's flare-offs and warning sirens. They either don't care from the start like my old boy, or they just don't get used to it...)

You actually can use an ear bonnet at an outdoor show, (I think with TD permission,) but not indoors. Puffs, no. I did find a nice ear bonnet with neoprene ears, but it was too small. If your horse has smaller ears, it might work. It was from Smartpak, Schockemole brand, I think.

[Brydie]

Had a show today - I didn't ride very well today at all! Was my first time riding at this venue and I basically had no idea where I should warm up, felt like a very rushed warm up and didn't really get enough of one. Second test was a bit of a nightmare warming up (for me). Red was perfect but I was VERY hot (although it was only 26 degrees), should have drank more, I also didn't eat all day and our test was just after 1pm which probably didn't help things (have no appetite at shows!) and felt like I needed to go to the bathroom the whole time! Was just very uncomfortable.

We scored 61% (both judges) in the Prelim 1:1 and 60% in the 1:2 (judge at C had us at 63% and the one at E had us at 58%). Felt like a bit of a backwards step from our last show... I very much want to start progressing through the levels (Red is 16 so we need to get a move on!) and the fact that it's only Prelim just doesn't have me feeling the greatest atm... (I'm very happy with him just not happy about my own riding!)

[Ponichiwa]

Brydie, sorry for your tough outing. I think we all have those. I know I have!

I'm puzzling my way through my connection issues with Kiwi, and after taking it easy and rebuilding from a Training-Level-esque posture and balance and bringing it back to 3rdish-- and hitting the same roadblocks-- I've decided that the issue is that she doesn't quite understand being rideable in collection (no vet issues). And all the level-balance in the world won't help that. So the only way out of this is, as Churchill said, through.

That said, Kiwi was a star today. Easy, uphill, and clean changes to both directions without sacrificing counter canter. Walk pirouettes are really helping my connection to the left rein, which is her hollow side. And, super bonus: got easy half-steps to both directions without any drama. No drama at all!

[Moutaineer]

Here's to no drama! I had a lovely and drama free ride today, too.

[DollarHorse]

Joining this thread late, after a fall of NQR/crazy/sore that finally culminated in an abscess. We're back on track, now, and seem to have recovered soundness of both mind and body (knocking on wood).
My December goal is to get used to living in shoulder fore per recommendation of my trainer, and really work on straightness and not letting him take over. The hardest part of that straightness is ME... I have a nasty left lean that I need to correct. I'm at least at the conscience incompetence phase with THAT particular problem. With letting him take over--we do great in lessons when trainer catches me before we go off the deep end. I however get a little lax when I'm on my own (does he really need to respond to my half halt right now? maybe he just needs a moment? maybe this one will work?) We had a great ride yesterday WRT to that problem, so hopefully we'll continue the trend.

[Flight]

Brydie, did you show at Clarendon?
We all have off days but I'm finding you can't rush this dressage process, it really takes quite a long time to get it right. Unless you are riding fulltime, it's going to be a slow process. Just take what the overall things are and see if you can keep working on fixing them. Next time you'll know where everything is too, I'm always a bit off when I go to a new venue.

I had a comp too, for some reason I clearly cannot ride up the centreline properly!! All (so 4) of my CL were "straight but off CL". I swear when I go in, I have plenty of room and I'm aiming right for C. What do people do? Aim for C between your horses ears? I thought that's what I did
I rode the 3.3 again, only one EOC this time LOL. My horse did a flying change in the CC (my fault, I would have had my leg too far back and pushed him around a corner) so I just made him do one back and then I went to the wrong marker.
I kinda know the judge, so I spoke to her afterwards and she was awesome. She gave me heaps of pointers, not only on what I need more of now (more carrying behind, more uphill through the withers, more bend in lateral work) but some exercises on how to get it.
Also, interestingly, that by doing 2 flying changes (she knew the first one was accidental) other judges may have given me an EOC for them because they are not required at this level. I should have trotted/walked and changed leads.

My goals. Go back and work on lateral stuff, get him much more responsive to my aids to get much sharper reactions.

[Brydie]

Brydie, did you show at Clarendon?

Yep! I was seriously off my game that day, but that's ok (we really have progressed a lot lately). Think we will try again there in Feb!

Regarding the centrelines - my usually straight ones were slightly left of centreline this weekend! That's awesome that the judge was so helpful (and yay for improvement for only 1 EOC, next time 0!!!)

Goals for the rest of the month:
- Do stretches with him every day I ride
- Get him sharper to my leg aids... he's a lot more forward than he used to be but it's still a problem in tests.

[klark_kent07]

My trainer has Kent for the next week or so to start the changes, hopefully he gets the idea and we can progress from there!
We went to the jumping clinic and competition last weekend and had so much fun again. We trained around 80/85cm on the Saturday and just jumped 60cm on the Sunday in the competition. No ribbons, but 2 lovely clear rounds and then a rail in the jump off. We are certainly never going to be jumping superstars but it's nice to do something a bit different at the end of the season. Here's a picture from our ride out around the tomato paddocks with my Kelpie Kama

[klark_kent07]

We have clean changes!!! Trainer rode 2 days just working on the straightness and sensitivity to the canter aid then asked for the changes yesterday, the third ride, and got clean changes on both leads. She has another ride on Kent today, then he has 2 hack days with me and a day off. She wants to ride him all next week as well as she is really enjoying him and wants to consolidate them a bit more. She said they are very uphill and are going to be really nice changes when they are more on the aids. They are very big but no silly business so I'm very excited and can't wait to try myself!

[Flight]

Awesome!!!!! That's great news and very exciting

[Brydie]

We have clean changes!!! Trainer rode 2 days just working on the straightness and sensitivity to the canter aid then asked for the changes yesterday, the third ride, and got clean changes on both leads. She has another ride on Kent today, then he has 2 hack days with me and a day off. She wants to ride him all next week as well as she is really enjoying him and wants to consolidate them a bit more. She said they are very uphill and are going to be really nice changes when they are more on the aids. They are very big but no silly business so I'm very excited and can't wait to try myself!

Yay you must be so excited!!!



Had a pretty good ride today, felt like we are progressing, and after our not so good show I'm feeling really good again

[demi]

We have clean changes!!! Trainer rode 2 days just working on the straightness and sensitivity to the canter aid then asked for the changes yesterday, the third ride, and got clean changes on both leads. She has another ride on Kent today, then he has 2 hack days with me and a day off. She wants to ride him all next week as well as she is really enjoying him and wants to consolidate them a bit more. She said they are very uphill and are going to be really nice changes when they are more on the aids. They are very big but no silly business so I'm very excited and can't wait to try myself!

That IS exciting! I am looking forward to some vids of you and Kent doing the flying changes.

[Rosie B]

klark_kent07 - that is wonderful news!! You must be so excited!!! There will be no stopping you guys now! Onward and upward!

[Sue B]

I forgot to post last week, but I am down to riding pretty much just once a week between work and crazy weather. Anyways, I took Rudy out for a play in the snow on Saturday or Sunday (can't remember which.) Rudy, California beach boy, hates winter but LOVES to be ridden in the snow. So, I took him out to the hay field and left him trot and canter all over. It is a super workout for him because I insist he use his back and not the base of his neck when we play (no bracing allowed) so he really works the right muscles and he does not shorten his neck or drop behind the vertical. Out in the field, the footing is not consistent, the snow depth is not consistent, and you never know when a rodent hole will appear, and so he reaches out for support from the bit while he watches ahead for footing issues. Out in the snow we can go all the way from almost passage to a really nice medium trot without any bracing at the base of the neck. This is a real achievement for Rudy because his huge shoulders and withers along with his ewe neck lend themselves to bracing where the neck ties into his chest. Couple that with a very fine throatlatch and you can see how much trouble I have keeping him honest to the contact. Bottom line--I love when it snows and doesn't blow too much!

Poor Tio is mad because I still can't ride him. The wound on the side of his chest has just now closed over, so by Christmas I should be able to saddle him without causing him discomfort. Tio loves winter and LOVES the snow. he will be fun to ride.

ETA: Klark-kent, Kelpies are one of my favorite breeds. My friend's dh just got one recently to herd cattle with out in the mountains. he is already impressed with how well the pup works.

[klark_kent07]

That IS exciting! I am looking forward to some vids of you and Kent doing the flying changes.

I'll post some when I get some, I'm sure it won't be pretty though!

Rosie, I am very excited! It's one of those steps that it feels like forever to get to and I've never ridden a change in my life so it's a big deal to me

And thanks SueB, I think my kelpie is pretty special. He's full on but I was aware of that before I bought him and love him so much. He wants to work constantly but I need someone to show him a bit more than I am capable of teaching him when it comes to cattle work...

[Brydie]

Yesterday we had a really good lesson (didn't get to film it but filmed today's ride).

Working on strengthening with walk to canter, shoulder-fore down the long side, then canter to walk (well attempting to) and repeat.

Left rein / RIght rein

Any advice for these transitions?

[Rosie B]

Byrdie - he's looking so much stronger!!

One thing I think that will help these transitions is if you look UP. I know it's hard to stop yourself from looking down, but it's a habit that you need to break. Looking down is pulling your head forward which in turn collapses your whole front line. This renders you less effective and as well puts additional weight on his shoulders, making his job harder.

The only reason I picked up on this is because I noticed that I was doing the same thing on one of my videos a while ago and I have been tackling it ruthlessly. I've since noticed a HUGE difference in his balance and my effectiveness. Hope this helps and keep up the good work!

[Brydie]

Rosie - thanks! I notice it every time I see photos/videos and think "stop looking down!!!" but somehow it's a habit I haven't been able to break yet :\ I will definitely think about it more (new goal!)

[Flight]

NIce work Brydie!
Yes, think ride more 'posh' as my instructor tells me. You're nice and slim and look nice on a horse, so shoulders back and chest out and be proud. It's hard when you are concentrating on getting things right though