Ride 2.

Flatwork, flatwork, flatwork. Not really Breezy's favorite activity. However, today's ride was equally productive as Friday's. I didn't have a ton of time (riding between lessons is not really my favorite, but when I'm working both jobs in the same day it has to happen that way), so we just kind of tooled around. I'll be gone all weekend, so I'm trying to get a couple rides in before I head out of town.

We got a few steps of leg yield while we were warming up at the walk, and I continued with using a little counter bend to keep her straight on the right lead canter. Or at least thinking counter bend so that I keep her on the left rein/right leg instead of allowing her to talk me into hanging on the right rein.

I can always tell when I'm on the right track with Breezy - we go from quietly playing along into "I don't wanna do it this way." Today the temper tantrum simply came with an alternating head in the air/rooting the reins, which is easy enough to handle. I think tomorrow I'll put her in the Myler so I can have a little bit of leverage when she goes to root. Then Wednesday I'm going to have Susan ride her in a lesson so I can see what things are looking like. It's nice to have a friend who's willing to do things like that!

Also on this week's agenda: tack cleaning. I've been slack on my own stuff, and Breezy's schooling tack clearly as not been getting the same attention as her show tack. Time to remedy that before I go on vacation.

Ride 1.

This ride actually happened yesterday, but after an 11 hour manic day at the farm blogging was kind of the last thing that I was interested in doing.

It wasn't a first ride in the sense that I had never been on Breezy, but a first ride in the sense that I could take all the time I wanted to sort through things. Generally when I ride for one of the kids I'm on to fix a specific issue that's popped up, so my focus is on whatever that is.

I focused yesterday on the known big issue, which is that she has a tendency to be weak in her right hind and therefore heavy and crooked, particularly in the canter. I have a feeling that if I can get her straight and even, the minor issues will more than likely sort themselves out from there. We did a little bit of baby lateral work at the walk and trot in addition to the normal routin, and then large canter circles. My intention was to change bend on the circle, but ended up primarily using a counter-bend to just simply keep her straight when going to the right. The difference between right and left with her is pretty significant. 

She was less evil than anticipated about it all, which was nice. A lot of the time when I ride her it ends up a variation of WWIII. I'm hoping that if I walk a firm line with her as far as what I expect (without expecting more than is reasonable on any given day), she'll realize life is just easier working at that level!

I used the plain D-ring that was on the bridle already since I couldn't find either of the ones that we've been using (for the record, I don't look for bits in brush boxes.) I think I probably will stick with that for a while since I have no plans to do more than flatwork, and then use the others accordingly.

If it doesn't rain all day, the plan is to ride again tomorrow before lessons. I'm going to try and get a good bit done early this week since I'll be gone for the holiday weekend.

A new chapter...

Meet Breezy:

Breezy with her big girl panties on. Most days we're still in pull-ups.

As sad as I am that her owner Kirsten is off to college (and trust me, there were more than a couple tears today), the silver lining is that I have ended up with a horse to ride. Since I wouldn't be a good trainer if I didn't keep the owner updated as her horse continues without her, I've decided that blogging will not only keep Kirsten informed, but also force me to write on a regular basis.

For those who are not acquainted, Breezy is an 8 year old TB mare, somewhere in the 17 hand range and a bit of a tank. And that would be physically AND mentally. My sanity has been tested on more than one occasion, as has my skill as a trainer. There's nothing like an athletic bitch of a mare to test your patience on a regular basis. Which is why this blog will probably be hilarious. 

The plan is to solidify Breezy's flatwork while Kirsten is gone since that should also fix the issues they've been having over fences. The mare is a little crooked, and her downhill build lends itself to a lazy hind end and some A-level pulling. She also has been a little slow to mature mentally, so I'll be trying to deal with that as well. We're not sure if the whole attitude is just who she is or the fact that she's still wandering through her "teenage brat" phase of life. (Please God let it be a phase!)

First ride will be Thursday or Friday, and she's a 5 rides a week sort of girl. With 2 horses to ride (although Dundy doesn't get that kind of attention from me), the riding aspect of my career is about to come back in a big way!