Clever Friends

I have some very clever friends, borne out today by this lovely study of Moo by Sarah Cameron. I can't really thank her enough. It captures my man perfectly, that certain sadness in his eye (so true to him) brought a tear to mine.

rusty

I can't remember the last time I long lined but following discussion of the topic and the fact that Interdressage have a class dedicated to it (well anything goes really, lunge, longline, ridden) I decided to give it a try.



To say I'm rusty would be an understatement but Moo was his usual obliging self. Need to work on straight lines, lateral work and keeping the bend correct on the circles, oh and not dropping the lines!

Indian Summer

It's been a real scorcher this last week and everyone, human and horse alike, seems to be happy with the last blast of summer. I've been playing with the liberty again with Chapiro, working mainly on free shaping (successive approximation) where I'm looking for the tiniest hint of him trying to stay with me and rewarding it. It makes no sense to an onlooker but it's already bearing fruit in a small way. There is a small part of Chapiro that stops him from 'giving' himself to me, on a lunge, lead or ridden he can cope but set him free and he can't make the link but it's definitely improving.

Today he was a little 'alert' in the school but by relaxing the neck and asking him out and down a little he finally chilled. We worked on my current ridden project of separating the aids into voice, weight,rein/leg. I started 100% with voice as that was the easiest to transfer from ground to ridden work but now I'm transferring this, firstly, to hand/leg aids (hand says stop, leg says go etc) and then to weight aiding. Ultimately it will be a light weight aid but having a three fold aiding system should theoretically give me  a lot of choice when training different movements.

I've been deliberating about Moo lately, to the point that it's rendered me useless! The fact that he got tight and sore again after the canter work has really bugged me, maybe it was nothing to do with the canter work but the fact that it winds him up and stresses him makes me think it was. We haven't really done any ridden work for a couple of weeks but this morning I figured that I should just keep the walk and trot work going and just wait and see.
He is such a star that boy, no work for a few weeks and I slapped on the bareback pad and away he goes. I had a real emotional surge sitting on him, I just love this horse. We worked on lots of lateral work, playing with half pass and pirouettes and I didn't sense any soreness or tight areas...onwards and upwards then.

Weekend Horses

At the week-end Lydia and I were invited to visit about 2.5 hours south for a friendly competition/get together organised by Helen . In spite of a rather drizzly day (can you believe we had not a drop at home even though it's badly needed) we arrived as the riders were coming back from the orienteering part of the Trec, it was great to finally meet all these folks that I've known 'virtually' for a while. After a super curry for lunch the competitors started on the 'obstacles', a couple of small jumps, bending poles, ducking under a line of flags, walking over tarp etc After the girls had finished Lydia was very lucky to have a go on Polo, who was a superstar (thanks Hollie), and then got to play with Gandalph, Chester and Seraphina. It was a lovely day and really fired Lydia up. Thanks Helen and all the gang who made us feel so welcome. On Sunday Lydia and I worked Chapiro and he was a little star, it's hard for him to adapt to her as I use a lot of voice aiding and of course Lydia's aiding is slightly different but he coped well. After some pole work in walk and trot we then raised the poles so he was having to really lift and stretch, Lydia finished with her first canter on him and a daft grin on her face! Good week-end, Lydia and Polo (receiving sustenance from Tanya).
Ali and Seraphina on the course
Big 'G' (Lydia's fave)
A short, badly filmed video (I was too busy chatting oops)

really showing off now

Yahoo the boy done good! First canter in the school and no problems, two transitions from trot to canter on each rein, every time correct lead and no excitement just calm and business like; I so love the boy :)) I'm so happy that he has a lovely balanced canter and that he seems to enjoy this work, makes me realise that I'm maybe not so rubbish after all as it's only me and him, nobody else's input. Can't wait for more although I mustn't be impatient. Sadly the batteries died on the camera before the canter work but I'll capture it another day.

13th September 2011

Another good session, still a little tense when we start out but relaxing very quickly. A little leg yield and baby shoulder fore and an old exercise I haven't used in a while, basically designed around Kyra Kyrklund's stopping/starting and turning on a square principal (she designed her's from the same place I guess as Udo Burger and others....). Fundamentally you ride a line until you feel the horse trying to control the line (a shoulder leaning, a hind wavering...) at which point you change the line in an equal and opposite way to that which the horse is trying to take. Take as an example the horse throwing his 1/4's to the right, I would change the line by bringing the left shoulder around to the right and thus changing direction by 90° in the process and taking a new line across the school. We ended with some reinback which was improved after yesterday's session. Then we tootled off down the hill and had a trot back up, about half way up I voice cued canter and he didn't even hesitate.....he has such a lovely canter and I think it's nearly time to ride it in the school.

clever boy

I haven't done very much mat work with Chapsi for a while. Not because I don't think it has value (I know many are yet to be convinced) but because I haven't really needed it with the work we've been doing. However, as part of building up his strength behind I want to do more reinback both ridden and in-hand/lunge so I want to tidy up the aids and reaction time. As soon as I threw the mat into the school his eyes lit up! It's quite bizare because in a whole session of clicker work he will only get about two small hands of nuts but it certainly fires him up. Today he was on top form, straight on to the mat and standing square and after a couple of attempts he was backing from just my voice and then we tried a few with me stood at his side (to mimic the lunge position) and me sat on the mounting stool to his side each time he took a couple of confident strides so we called it a day and finished with a stretchy lunge. Very clever boy today. Oh yes and he will now let me spray the anti fly product onto a sponge right beside him and then wipe it over him....still a way to go but a step in the right direction. I was pleased that Heather OK'd my trot position, I've been panicking as the Barefoot is a very different feel to a treed saddle but if anyone is a good judge in these matters I'd say it's her.