Thursday, March 1, 2012

Moving On (UPDATED w/ Video!)

Our lesson last night was good. I think we reached our goal of Spirit and myself both having an enjoyable time. It was hard to be calm when she was rearing and got away from me while trying to longe. Then ran around the arena like a banshee with all my tack on. >.<  (I found humor when I was forced to yell "Loose Horse!" a la SmartPak's Stuff Riders Say videos. Here's a link:)



But we had ourselves under control by the time Laurie arrived and we proceeded to have a good, productive lesson. We worked on stretching at the walk, but not letting her jerk the reins from me. We worked on slowness at the trot and canter, and very clear half-halts. We did some leg yielding on the rail and down the centerline. All in all, a good lesson. On a scale of 1 to 10, Spirit's willingness was about an 8. Much improved from our last few rides.

UPDATE/EDIT  3/2/12 - VIDEO FROM THE LESSON:



In other news, we are moving boarding facilities! Laurie moved her training operation to a facility that is comparable in pricing, and has asked us to move our horses so that she doesn't have to drive out of her way just for 2 riders. Overall I am looking forward to this change - I love the community feeling and support of being part of a training barn, and I learn a lot by watching others ride. Its a little tough to leave fabulous Rancho Linda Mio, but sometimes that's just the way things go. Storm is moving today, and Spirit is moving sometime during my wedding or honeymoon. KM and Laurie are taking care of it, so I'm trying to just relax and go with the flow.

1 comment:

  1. Being able to (ahem) relate to a bad lesson, I'm glad yours worked out. Fear just plain sucks. Tension sucks, Unwilling partners suck.

    Keep working. Smile - it really helps. And most importantly, know that there are millions of us out there just like you! We're all just doing our best and worrying that it's not enough. :0)

    Karen

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