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So I was a month early in the birthday celebrations but Q didn’t mind the extra carrots. No apologies required. We’ve been hammered by snow storms, ice storms, blowing snow, snow squalls and blizzards lately making for ferocious road conditions. I opted to stay home and make my way out to ride for the first time in a week. Q was good, although he almost quit on me twice while crossing the field we have nicknamed Siberia with some massive snow drifts capped with a few inches of tough hard ice. He plowed through though and Im pretty pleased with his bravery. Once we hit the trail network, the footing was fine and Q wanted to go very very fast. We kept it in check for our fellow rider who was struggling and finally opted to get off and walk home. We’ve all been there, right? I got off too, and we took the road back home. It was nice to walk and get the heat back in my toes. Felt like -16C. Winter can end now, thanks.

Love this guy! He has taught me so many things, but mainly to trust myself and be more sensitive. He turns 9 this week and is doing really well. No lameness, keeping his weight low to avoid the dreaded EMS/laminitis that plagues his breed, and constantly checking him for melanoma growths because of his greyness. I lost my heart horse before he came along, at the way too young age of 12. The impact is that I never take my time with him for granted. I make the best of what we have, and appreciate everything he gives me every day. He gets lots of treats, kisses and love on the daily. He taught me that you can have more than one heart horse in a lifetime. And when I drive up to the barn, and he perks his head up at the sound of my door, and I holler “bonjour mon amour”, we both know whats in store.

Conditions improved and we had a lovely ride today in fresh powder.  One of my blizzard pics went viral and I got some incredulous comments questioning my decision to ride in such conditions. Aside from the fact that conditions changed unpredictably while we were on trail … the simple fact is that nordic riders chase fresh powder like magic fairy dust. We always want to be the first to open trail, and the horses adore the loose light footing. Look at those happy ears!

Ive never ridden in a blizzard with white outs. It was wild, and I almost turned back a few times. Q was totally nonchalant as I got a chance to let him run in the arena beforehand where he bucked a minimum of 20 times. Buck to the left, buck to right, flying leaping buck with a crack in the back, bolting buck, and of course the “i want to roll but she keeps chasing me” annoyed hopping buck. Winds started blowing at gusts of 70 km/h when we were in the woods, and I watched the trees sway as they dropped their fresh wet snow and create white-outs. I was blinded more than once and just let Q take the reins. When the wind died down, the forest was magical. Narnia. When we got back to the barn, and put the horses away, the clouds disappeared, the wind was gone and the sun brightened up the blue skies. Too bad I was driving home by then.

In 10 weeks we will be going somewhere. We haven’t yet decided where, and of course we aren’t 100% in control. But somewhere, anywhere, will be where we are. Its fun and exciting to plan adventures to places you know nothing about. With everything at my fingertips it makes for accessible amounts of information that is also overwhelming. Analysis paralysis anyone? Q tossed his neck at me. A first, as we approach our 6th Gotchya and Bday anniversary. And our fifth year of riding bliss. Now in hindsight I am confidently able to express my utter gratitude at how easy Q was to start under saddle. For years I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, and so I would never say (for fear of jinxing myself and some terrible, potentially deadly accident to happen) how reliable a horse he had become. Qs reliability has very little to do with my skill, and much more to do with our connection, bond and mutual trust. He is very cued in to me, and Im usually very cued in to him. We read each other well

All is ho-hum over here, with some more normal winter temperatures and good snow and footing conditions. Ive been riding 4-5 times a week on trail and still havent seen the inside of the indoor in a very long time. Overall, good. I changed my reins last fall, moving to split reins western style and throwing out my aging english reins with the potential hazard of breaking at a most inconvenient time. It was a challenging transition, as I added another 6 inches to my supposedly loose rein contact on each side. And then I realized that I had been riding with more contact than I thought. So I polished up my neck rein and seat cues. Its become more obvious in the last month that I get caught unaware (and with a slow response time) when Q decides to bolt. He has bolted 6 times in the last month, and Ive usually been able to shut it down within a few strides. Bolting can quickly turn into a panicked runaway situation if not stamped out quickly. But with my floppy reins I have 12 inches of sla

Went out today with buddy L and we tackled the sector 3 across the road in some of the mildest weather we’ve had in a month. The day started out at -20C but as the sun rose in the sky and warmed the air, it landed in the single negative digits after noon. It was good enough that we were able to survive field crossings and a long walking pace for 2 hours! It was my longest ride since fall. The footing wasnt great, in what we like to call “punchy”. The caveat of groomed trails is that when the foliage is light (deciduous) and the hoof traffic is sparse, the grooming machine evens out the terrain but makes it evenly unbearable as the horses punch through every third hoof. The snow isnt so deep, but when it gets to 6 inches or more it makes the trail a real slog. Thats when Q starts grunting and groaning at me. Most of the trails near my barn are exceptional footing. But when we venture out we must be more cautious and slow our speed down. So walking it is. And that can be rough when the t