Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

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Everything started out as bliss. Here I was quietly jogging down the trail thinking to myself “hey, I finally got my horse back!!”. I was planning a joyous blog post about how mellow we were in our lovely winter wonderland. I was singing to my horse, and just loving his attention to my seat and legs and my ability to drop the reins and just get in rhythm.

I figured it was partly because I got in a few good/fast rides in this week with the amazing footing and increasingly mild weather. I figured it was also because a new colt was introduced to him and his paddock buddies making for more cardio during his daily turnout. I figured it was because I had free lunged him before tacking up. Our first few canters were soft and lovely.



He amused me by grabbing food where he could, and then literally chomped off more than he could chew with a foot long conifer branch. This horse is very food centric. My friends with their TBs just do not understand me. I ended up pulling this branch out of his mouth.




Those first 40 minutes were a delight. And then we turned down the trail for home. On a section I almost always canter. And I picked up the contact (just like I usually do before I canter), and he started to bounce. What? Yep, it would seem that my quiet pony just got amped up and was raring to go. And it seems that I have trained him to pick up my cue for canter with the contact. So, instead of cantering, I used all that “natural” impulsion to work on collected walk/trot transitions. Translating what I had started on the long reins last fall to the saddle. He is getting pretty good with my verbal cues (when he is being attentive).

So I think I am going to have to change some of my patterns of where we canter (although there are always safety and footing concerns to also take into account) and avoid cantering towards home for a few weeks. Im out and about today for what might be our last trail ride for a bit as they are announcing rain tomorrow. ☔️


Comments

  1. TeresaAJanuary 25, 2020 at 11:44 PM

    Sometimes a boy just has to express his feelings. 😁

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nat DJanuary 27, 2020 at 10:06 AM

      It's true! Running home to peppermints and food is pure joy!

      Delete
  2. lythaJanuary 27, 2020 at 6:43 AM

    In the 15 or so barns I boarded at over the years, I found it interesting where people cantered. At the last barn, people always cantered toward home. The reason was, the barn was located at the top of a hill. So warming up your horse was always going downhill and then getting home was very quick! A better barn was located at the base of a mountain (legit) so warming up itself used up most of the horse's' excess energy as we ascended. A little speed near the top, and then I'd jump off and lead my horse all the way down and he arrived at the barn cool. That was really optimal for the horses, mentally and physically. I'm not the only blogger who believes that mountains train horses!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nat DJanuary 27, 2020 at 10:06 AM

      I wish I had mountains here. It would be great work for Q!

      Delete

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