Finding Neutral

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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 slack to pick up on each side. And I ride one-handed.

My usual process is that I use my passive hand to shorten the slack and then my dominant hand makes contact. I don’t fuss about stopping, but request to slow to a canter or trot. And then release. Im also happy when I get an ear, confirming that Q remembers Im there too.

In addition to riding with a lot of slack, Ive also become quite distracted with my photo opps and video shots. And sometimes Q has taken advantage of that.

Most of the bolts were when Q was feeling very energetic and was looking for spooking opportunities. But last Sunday, we approached an intersection with lots of cross country skiing traffic. We let a few skiers go by, and then the next ones behind signalled for us to cross next. Usually its better to keep the horse facing skiers, but since Q is totally chill about skiers, I trotted across the wide path which put us on a trail we call “Kings Road” where we almost always canter. As we cleared the intersection, Q pinned his ears and bolted. It took me a good 5-6 strides to bring him back. In part because of my rein slack, in part because he was primed for canter, in part because he was really spooked. No doubt the swoosh swoosh of the skies on our heels with the flying poles was a big factor.

There is a lot of trust involved in letting go. And Im still learning. But Ive also seen much progress.

Flying mane on Trail 32










Comments

  1. TeresaAFebruary 9, 2022 at 11:49 AM

    I suspect Q's blog says "saved servant again. She still appears ungrateful" :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nat DFebruary 9, 2022 at 3:55 PM

      You captured him perfectly! Those spanish egos are quite impressive! 😂😂😂

      Delete

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