Once again, it's always the rider's fault, not the horse's.

So, I’ve discovered that I’m the cause of the problem with my horses and their jumping. No surprise there, but it makes me sad. I had a lesson with Oliver Saturday, and I wanted to address some of the pulling issues that I’d been having with him during the xc school where he figured out that he had no brakes. The last time Christan rode him over fences was this past summer, and she was having me ride him really forward as he tends to stall out and not use himself. So, I would practically loop the reins and push him at a good clip towards the jump. Then, we started work on balancing him before the jump, so what do I do? Start to pull. I’ve tried really hard to not hang onto him three strides out, but I guess I do it without realizing it. C thinks the trouble began with Sam – in an effort to balance him before the jump, I’ve sort of held on to him at the last stride and then released, which causes him to jump over his forehand. When I balance and then let go the last few strides, Sam jumps well. The same thing is happening with Oliver. In an effort to get him to reach for the bit and put some weight in my hands, more like Sam does, I’ve been allowing him to hang, because I’ve confused pounds of pressure with hanging (with Oliver – with Sam, I seem to know what I’m doing). So, I’ve let Oliver hang on me, which causes him to not carry himself to the jump, so he grabs the bit and runs at it. After a few aborted attempts where Oliver blew me off and ran past his distance, C got on. She fought with him a few times, and then proceeded to show me how she could canter him to the fence with almost NO contact at all, and he just cantered on softly, jumped the jump, and landed softly without any pulling or change of pace – like a hunter. She put me back on, and I realized that I’ve been carrying him, especially in the canter. What I think of as too light is actually correct on Oliver, as he’s a naturally very light horse. Once I realized that, I was able to lope him to the fence as well, without interfering, and we were able to find out spots.

I think that this started the xc at Denny’s, because I seem to remember hitting every single spot dead on until he realized I had no brakes (I think it’s about when we were cantering down a hill), and then he started to pull on me. So, hopefully this isn’t a long-lived problem and we can fix it fairly quickly. I was disheartened by it, thinking that I’m going to ruin Oliver, but Christan assured me that she would help and that it wasn’t a big deal.

Oliver gets us lost on Christmas Eve

So, you know how they say "give a horse his head and he'll find his way home"? Apparently that homing instinct is not bred into, or rather bred OUT of, Trakehners, since Ellie was lacking it and now it seems that Oliver is, too. Sam definitely has it. Last time I got lost (gee, this seems to happen a lot!) in Weymouth Woods, I gave Sam his head. He dropped it, snuffled on the ground, and then made a beeline towards home, withouth leaving the trail once. Such a good boy.

Oliver and I, and Emma and Austin, all went for a trail ride. It was supposed to be a short one, but somewhere along the way I turned right instead of left (or vice versa) and found myself somewhere I hadn't been before. I gave Ollie his head, and he immediately set off into the woods, off the trail. Since he was so positive about where he was going, I let him lead. Poor Emma and Austin had to follow along, picking their way through some heavy forest underbrush, and we went on this way for a while, until I saw that Connecticut Ave. was dead ahead of us! Exactly the OPPOSITE direction we were supposed to be heading. I have no idea what Ollie was thinking, but I was plenty annoyed and worried about the dogs. I started back the way we came and when we came to a T in the path, one way obviously headed towards the barn and one way the opposite, again Oliver tried to go the wrong way, but I manged to convince him that my way was the better way. We eventually made it back to Bethesda, at which point I took the dirt road back home because of Emma and Austin trailing along behind. Poor puppies.

So, the good things about this are 1) this was Oliver's first time out by himself on the actual trail. 2) He was incredible - didn't do anything wrong, and marched along like he was enjoying himself (and he probably was, up until when we got lost). He even went through the water crossing right behind the pastures. 3) He went down the dirt road with only a little coaxing in a few places (all those scary Xmas decorations). I swear, this guys just keeps getting better and better every time I ride him.

Oliver the XC Rockstar

Took Oliver to Denny's for some xc schooling with Christan yesterday. Being the wimp that I am, I tried to weasle out of it because the skies were dark and grey and it was starting to rain - yuck. Now, I'm not normally this wimp-ish when it comes to rain, but I'm not as motivated when there's nothing in particular that I'm working towards. No shows in the immediate horizon, so wah - don't feel like riding in the rain and getting my adored Antares all spotty. But C was excited to bring Coda to Denny's, and I was her ride, so she told me to stop being a baby and that "eventers ride in the rain". As it turns out, I'm glad I did.

It was warm, so it wasn't too bad that it was misty and drizzling, and it also made me realize that I need to clip more of Ollie's coat (which I accomplished today). Margaret was there on little Fisher, who was a wild child, Michelle on her lovely grey (I'm such a sucker for a dark dappled grey), and this woman Suzanne whom I've never met before, on a nice jumping, but hot, Appendix mare. So, we had a bunch of babies, and Oliver and Fisher were a bit wired, for some reason. Christan thought Oliver looked fine, but he didn't want to stand still, wasn't happy about the misting on his face (kept shaking his head and groaning - how funny) and I could feel some tension when I was sitting on him. This boy needs to go to a LOT more places so he learns to chill like Sam does. We also had a sticky moment getting him into the trailer - apparently he hasn't quite gone through the whole good-bad-good-really bad - good cycle. It didn't take long to get him loaded, though. I wonder if there's something about the trailer that bothers him - I'm going to get some ear plugs and see if that helps him at all. He's never been one to munch hay in the trailer - Sam will suck the hay bag dry, but Oliver hardly touches it. Of course, he hasn't exactly been a lot of places, either, so I'm sure that will change with time. He's such a laid-back boy in every other aspect of life.

Anyway, we all warmed up and trotted around. I didn't want to canter, although Oliver did, because I know his balance is still suspect cantering downhill, and Denny's place is all up and down hill. I also had his Nathe loose-ring in, which he does fine in for flat, but probably wasn't the best choice for a horse that enjoys xc as much as he seems to (more on this later).

Since we all had babies, we started by trotting the timber "x" - Ollie cantered two strides out and popped it with gusto, charging up the hill. Since he did that so well, I cantered the x, then cantered on over to the "spooky" red rails (for some reason, those rails spook a lot of horses) which Oliver could care less about and just had the most perfect jump. For the first half of our jumping, he acted like a pro. He jumped everything I pointed him at, from a canter, with the best spot, and just acted like he was having a great time. I was having a great time - Margaret told me that the look on my face as I was jumping said that Oliver was my Big Boy now. She's right - I get such a kick out of riding him, especially xc - he and I just click, and he fits me so well. She was also surprised that he hasn't been doing this long - really started training in March - as she said that he looked like a seasoned campaigner. Nope - it just clicked early with him and he seems to enjoy it, and he's pretty bold and brave, too. Funny - when I bought him, I wouldn't have used those two adjectives to describe him.

About halfway through, Oliver discovered that he really had nothing in his mouth and proceeded to ignore the "whoa" cue, which led me to pulling on him and not releasing before the jump, which led to icky jumps because I didn't have his canter round and balanced beforehand. I had no brakes. Christan told me that she would have had me jump much bigger fences (we were doing a mixture of BN and Maiden stuff), but I didn't have any brakes and I thought that was wise as I was really riding his mouth more than I like to. Next time, I'm going to put his full-cheek/D-ring back in, and ride him the way the first half of the session went. He did do something that made me incredibly happy, though. We cantered over the log, which is my bugaboo fence, and Oliver did fulfill my expectations by spooking at it in mid-stride, but when I clamped my leg on (instant reaction), he accelerated the last few strides and jumped it neatly. Yay! I love the fact that that was his reaction to my leg on - go FORWARD. Lovely. I'm trusting him more and more every day.

We ended the day by trotting the ditch, which he needs to do a lot, as he is still a tad looky about them, and then had the most perfect leap off the bank - nice and easy, not like a greenie at all. He also did not hesitate going through Denny's water, which is very deep at the moment. I'm so proud of him! While we were untacking, Christan told me that although she knows that I like the Oskar babies, she thinks Oliver may be exceptional even then. I think he's pretty darn fantastic. He's got everything going for him - looks, temperment, movement, size, and most of all, he's the sweetest thing I've ever owned.

So, I'm feeling much better about my decision to sell Sam.

The boys get their teeth floated....

....and wow! - what a difference! Well, I don't know yet about Sam, but Oliver was a completely different horse. Percy Page came out to do the farm's horses, including my boys, and I really liked that he did them without drugging them. There were a couple of painful spots for the boys (sharp edges) but both of them were very good about the whole thing, albeit a tad surprised. Percy spent quite a bit of time explaining to me about what he was doing and why, and I found out why vets tend to miss certain areas.

I rode Oliver afterwards, and he was wonderful. I started off by asking him to stretch into the contact at the walk, which was hesitant to do, but he did eventually give me a decent stretch. At the trot, though, is where I felt the most difference. He would start to stretch, and then back off, and then go a little bit further, like he was testing out the feel, and in no time at all I got great stretching at the trot, with actual weight in my hands - it felt like he was stepping into the bridle and gently tugging at the bit, which has never really done before. I asked for the canter, and on both leads he stepped into it without inverting, and even gave me a decent stretch in the canter! Needless to say, I was thrilled. I think this whole time the bit has been hurting him, which is why he was reluctant to truly trust it. I also rode him in the Nathe loose ring, but I think the difference was really due to the float.

Sam was also very good today - perfect, in fact. I rode him before the float, so I don't know if the float would make any difference, but his canter work was better than usual. I really made sure to get the transition promptly, pushing him into the outside rein and holding it very steady, and he really rounded through into the canter and I even felt him round his back in the canter itself, which is a breakthrough as he always tends to hold his back in the canter. Alltogether a good day.

Gearing up towards Oliver's first HT (with me)...

...and I'm feeling the nerves kick in. Truthfully, I'm more worried about that damn dressage test more than anything, and it's just a walk-trot! Pathetic.

Oliver seems to be taking more and more contact these days, which is good news. The bad news is that he is starting to bore down on the bit, one side, then the other, and it's getting on my nerves. After a good jumping lesson on Saturday, all that was on his mind today was jumping, so he spent the first 20 minutes careening around on his forehand, above the bit (which usually doesn't happen, as he usually goes behind the bit and hovers there). He had a lovely stretch at the walk, really pushing along from behind, but he didn't want to stretch at the trot, because he was too busy imitating a thoroughbred off the track. It was uncomfortable, to say the least. I eventually got him to settle and do some very nice work, but the stretch didn't come until much later, as he wasn't relaxed as he usually is. I played around with a pseudo-dressage test, practicing my turns up the center (and 20 meter circles in general), and halting. Believe it or not, the halt is the ickiest part of my test. Funny for such a lazy boy, but he wants to stagger into the halt and root his nose out like a piggy. Irritating. We practiced a few halts where I kept my leg on and kept him bending into it, and eventually he got the idea that rooting me out of the saddle was simply unacceptable. I should be happy that he's willing to take the bit more assertively, right?

Of course, he has started giving me neck-hugs when I turn him loose, so all is forgiven. He's such a SWEET horse.

Sam is really, really, REALLY coming along well. I'm delighted with the way he's progressing on the flat. The canter is getting even nicer, and he's solidly on the bit and through the back. Yesterday, I took him for a conditioning ride out in Weymouth Woods, and had a blast. We trotted and galloped along for most of it, and since his canter is getting so nice, his gallop is even more balanced - I can get up in two-point and let him rollick along underneath me, up and down the little hills, and over tree roots, and not feel him falter. The Woods are so nice for conditioning. I can't wait to take Ollie out there. I think that once we start jumping Novice height on a consistent basis again, we'll be ready for the January Frostbite. Hopefully, Joe will be home for that. That would really make my day.

First real bareback ride on Oliver....

...and both the boys get a jump schooling for the first time in three weeks! Yes, it's been a while due to Christan moving in, and Dillon and Kelly making the darn things, and all the other things associated with moving to a new barn. But they're finally HERE, and they're gorgeous. Kelly did a fantastic job on them, as always.

Sam was the first to be ridden, as I had a lesson with Christan on Friday. Margaret was supposed to be sharing my lesson with me, but she didn't come in until a bit later, as she was on Fisher right before. Marrisa was riding Brady, and Brady was (apparently) being a bit of an idiot. Brady was jumping up and down... made me realize how lucky I am to have Oliver and Sam, who both have impeccable temperments. So, I warmed up Sam, and right away Christan was after me to shorten my reins and get him truly bending. As usual, I tried to comply but was a bit frustrated as at the show, she wanted me to get him long and low because he was cranking his neck in. I really didn't understand how to get him long and low, and yet not throw him away or let my reins get too long. Argh. I had a light bulb moment when Christan mentioned that I would jsut about get it, and then let me reins too long. So, I asked her to clarify and it turns out that when I ask him for the bend, I give it away too quickly, let him fall out of bend, and then just let him noodle around, going a bit too quickly, on the forehand, and not truly coming from behind and lifting at the wither. So, I played around with opening my outside hand, lifting my inside hand and keeping my inside leg on, and holding it there until I really felt him soften into the inside hand and leg, and then instead of just throwing it away and letting my reins get long, keeping a bit more contact and allowing my hands forward for the give, rather than letting the reins slip. Once he was truly through the back and lifting, AND keeping the bend consisten, I could let the reins slip a little and allow him to go longer and lower, as long as he didn't lose the bend. I understand now!

We progressed to some canter work. His canter is getting so much better, and his departs are much more consistent. I still have to work on keeping the bend through the body, especially to the left, but it's coming along by leaps and bounds every day. C wanted us to trot over the crossrail, and the first time I sort of leaned at it, so the next time I really concentrated on sitting away from the jump and keeping the bend before and after. C asked us to canter it, but Emma and Austin were standing right in front of it, but they wouldn't move out of the way so I jumped them and the crossrail. Sam grabbed the bit before, but I think it was because of the dogs. We circled, came around again, and Sam jumped it beautifully the next time. We progressed on to a little course, concentrating on keeping the bend, and sitting away from the jump. I realized (another lightbulb moment) that I really have to half-halt away from the jump, and then soften the last stride, as Sam doesn't jump well when he's held to the last minute - he needs the freedom of adding some leg and allowing with the hand. Interesting, that - if I hold to the base, he jumps over his chest. He was jumping so well and through that day, and was very rideable, so all that hard work over the past few months has really paid off.

I grabbed Oliver out of the field, and decided to put him to the test - I led him over to the white arena in the field and then jumped on him bareback and rode him over to the gate. He really didn't mind at all, so I was thrilled about that. I also decided to clip him as much as I could. The last time I tried to clip him, he jumped away from the clippers and pulled them out of the wall, so I was a bit more careful this time. He couldn't care less about my new cordless clippers - he didn't even jump when I turned them on, so I was able to clip a bib before I decided to ride instead. Such a good boy. Anyway, I used an Easyboot on him because he had thrown his left front shoe on Wednesday, the last time I rode, and it fit perfectly, and he didn't seem to mind it at all. In fact, he was so good that I decided to jump him. He was really starting to get the hang of stretching at the walk. I found out that when I think they're stretching, they're really not as low as I think, so I concentrated on making his head disappear from view, all the while pushing him forward into the stretch. He was starting to get this at the trot, too, which is such a neat feeling. His canter work is much, much better. He's starting to sit behind, and not pop the outside shoulder (especially on the right rein), and the departs are much more consistet as well. I jumped him over the vertical a few times as a warmup, then cantered it, and then trotted over the orange traffic barrels that are out there (he looked at it briefly when we walked by, but didn't hesistate when jumping it), and then cantered the barrels, and then I decided to canter the oxer. I didn't realize that Oliver hasn't jumped anything that big, possibly ever (same height M and I were jumping on Sam and Echo), because he gave me a great big ridiculous leap over it the first time. I brought him back around, cantered over it again, and for some reason I wasn't getting a good jump over it. The third time he actually landed and shook his head and made this frustrated sound, which made me laugh out loud. He was obviously frustrated with the jump as well, so I brought him back around, cantered to it, making sure I had a very straight approach, and sitting away from it but keeping myself riding the rhythm of the canter, and we had a lovely final jump. I ended the ride with some stretching, and I got some LOVELY stretch at the trot, with him swinging his back, and we called it a day.

I LOVE this horse. I know I say it all the time, but he's truly amazing. He just seems to get better and better every time I ride him. As soon as I can, I'm going to take him for a nice trail ride, because I know he enjoys that.

Back after a long lapse

Well, it's been a while since I've posted anything, mostly due to school (work) and everything else getting in the way. Really, I have no excuse, other than I hate sitting at the computer when there are other things to do.

News on the show front - Sam went to The Ark, Frostbite, and won his division (BN) on a 31. I was thrilled, considering that my score would probably have been two points lower if I hadn't made two stupid mistakes - turning back onto the centerline too soon for the final halt, and cutting a corner in the walk. We actually scored four 8s (!), and would have gotten an 8 for gaits as well if Sam wasn't so darn lazy in the walk. He's such a slow walker. He was a bit backed off my hand xc, because I made the mistake of riding him in the two ring Pessoa (even though it's a french link), but I moved the rein up to the top - snaffle - ring for stadium, and Christan said that we had the "prettiest" stadium round she's ever seen me do - yay! Stadium is usually my nemesis, so that was great news.

Oliver is a superstar. He went to his first show, ever, and only third time off the farm, to FenRidge HT. It was a COLD day, and Christan rode him for me, as I'm a nervous mom and didn't want to wreck things by attempting to ride him at his first show. Dressage was beautiful - he got behind the bit a few times, which wasn't a surprise to either of us, but he scored a 29.5. Judge wrote that he was a beautiful horse. Stadium was clean. Christan cantered the whole course. He fell asleep in the start box, so he had a wiggly first fence xc, but he went clean for the rest and they ended up winning on their dressage score. Yay!

I also took him xc schooling at The Ark (where Sam won) and he was incredible. We had to "walk the gauntlet" down the driveway, past the mini pigs, geese, peacocks, llamas, you name it, and he was walking with Kelly on Pudge, and Christan on Connor, and he was the bravest one there. I could feel him just take a huge breath when I told him it was okay, and he just sucked it up and marched on with hardly a flinch, leading the way. He was equally good xc. Ollie didn't stop at a thing. He wobbled to only one fence - a black bench with flowers in front - but we cantered at it and I managed to stuff him over it anyway, and after that, he jumped things out of stride. He even calmly went over the spooky BN/Maiden half ditch, and led the way into both waters. He is so much fun.

I had a lesson with Christan with him this past Saturday, and we flatted, and Christan said that he is ready to really start to sit into his canter work, and she commented on how lovely he is looking. I can't say this enougn - I am so happy with him. I would buy another Oskar baby if I could afford it, and when I can, I'm going to look for one! He is most likely going to go with me Maiden to the Frostbite in December.

We are at the new farm now - the Wylie's. It's lovely, but the pasture is so damn big that I have to trek back and forth to get the ponies, as they seem to want to live by the water hazard out there. I don't know why that particular area of the pasture appeals to them so much. I've actually seen them standing in it, playing around, and this past week I drove by and saw Oliver standing on the bridge, with Sam right behind him. Funny boys. I can't wait until we get the jumps up. I'm getting very tired of flatwork. If I ever thought I could be a dressage queen, these past two weeks have proven to me that I simply cannot live without jumping. I also need the dressage arena, but the jumps are probably a bit more important.

Moving the shoulder and forward

It's been a while since I last posted, mostly due to the start of school, Joe's deploying, and all the craziness associated with it. Blech. Meanwhile, a TON of good stuff has been happening horse-wise with regards to training, so I'm going to try and be brief and condense it all into one post.

I've been to many, many trainers, who all preach "inside leg to outside rein", and have shown me various ways of actually riding this. Christan has added a new spin to it. She got on Ollie during one of our first lessons at Denny's, and immediately noticed that although Oliver moves away from the leg, he doesn't truly bend. I didn't know that, mostly because he tends to be a bit rubber-necked and a bit hot off the leg (gooses forward easily), so I think I've been concentrating on keeping him straight, not popping the outside shoulder, and keeping his tempo steady. Christan told me to open the outside rein, lift the inside rein a tad, and then use my inside leg to push the shoulder up and over until he bends and I connect with that outside rein. It took a few tries to really FEEL that shoulder lifting and moving over, but once we got it, he started to become more connected and the shoulder opened up, became freer, and his gaits got better and he felt more "in my hands". I also have to remember to keep my hands higher than I usually carry them, to maintain the connection, and NOT fiddle. Although I don't really move my hands/fingers all that much on Oliver, I DO tend to fiddle on Sam - mostly, it's a sponging the inside rein thing, but Christan pointed out that if I use my reins in this manner, I'm interrupting the connection and not truly riding him into my hands.

Sam - much of the same thing, although with him I can really feel the connection better, due to his not hiding behind the bit the way Ollie does. I've got to lift my hands, keep the outside rein slightly opened and connected, and most importantly on Sam - keep my pelvis slightly rotated down and back so that my lower back hollows and I'm not driving him. I didn't realize how much I tend to sit "on my pockets" and rotate my pelvis under - i.e. tuck my butt - and how much that was actually hollowing Sam out and driving him forward, so that he just curled his neck behind the bit instead of truly moving forward into my hands. Once I hollowed my back slightly, the connection became much steadier, he didn't drop the poll, and he seemed more through. I've had a bit of a time working with his canter departs, as I've been holding his head into them and not riding "up" into the canter. Keeping my hands up, instead of brace down (like Holly and Denise wanted me to do), allowed Sam to hollow and throw himself into the canter, which was incredibly frustrating. I've had to experiment with different ways of keeping the connection in the transition, and I've discovered that if I keep that outside rein connected, he doesn't hollow into the depart - at least, it's getting better. He still wants to hollow in the downward transition - gotta work on that.

For Oliver, today we had a jumping lesson. Christan rode him last week for me and told me that he didn't stop at a thing, and that he was cantering little BN courses for her. I have always thought he was spooky and nervous, so this was a revelation for me. I watched her ride him today before I got on, and sure enough, he doesn't look concerned about anything - his eye stays nice and quiet and he has a very good jump. The key to it was keeping him forward - over the first crossrail, Christan booted him in the ribs on takeoff, as he sucked behind her leg. She did canter him a few times over it, and then cantered onto a vertical, which he ran out on (he was surprised and wasn't focusing, so he thought he didn't have to do it). She quickly halted him, booted him in the ribs again, and cantered him over and I was surprised to see that he didn't get upset by the correction. She had quite a forward canter going around the arena, but after that initial naughtiness, he was an angel. She jumped a lot of stuff that I would have thought would occasion a gawk at the very least, but every time he started waving his head back and forth like he was looking for a way out, she legged him forward and he took the jump nicely. He doesn't know how to rock back and push yet, so he's taking a slightly long spot, but I am thrilled that he's jumping calmly and bravely. So, I got on, and immediately christan had me riding on a slightly loopy rein and booting him forward, especially when he started wavering on the approach (it was a crossrail that he had jumped before, so we knew he wasn't worried about it), and then jumped everything beautifully for me, too. It was really enlightening to see how calm he was about everything. Christan told me that he's really ready for a lot more stuff, and that my homework was to canter him around in a nice, forward frame in a two-point and really get him in front of my leg, and that when I jump him, just canter around over everything without stopping and keep the sessions short - she said he needs a lot of this.

Connection and balance

Had my first lesson with Christan on Sam, and we focused 1/2 on flat and 1/2 on jumping. Sam is still a bit out of shape due to his extended time off (since Lumber River), so we took it easy. The first thing Christan did was fix my hands. I have a tendency to carry them too low, with palms down - an apparently unfortunate legacy from many, many trainers along the way. Part of that legacy included fiddling with the reins, too, which Christan also nailed me for. I didn't realize just how much I fiddle with the inside rein until it was pointed out to me. So, I had to keep my elbows bent, my wrists straight, thumbs up, and the reins short enough so that I could carry them out in front of me. Leg stays on, and pushes him up into the contact. It was terribly hard not to give into the temptation of a fiddle when Sam hollowed when I put my leg on, and just sit and wait it out, keeping the leg there until he softened. Christan also warned me not to soften too much, or I'd be dropping him and inadvertently "punishing" him for taking the contact. I noticed that when I rode this way, Sam lifted through the wither, bringing his shoulders up, and reached out to the contact, instead of bending his neck right behind the poll and getting too low. I also, apparently, run him off his feet, because Christan said that when he slows his tempo down, he overtracks by quite a bit. She also said he was pretty fancy when he's put together, and that if I rode like that at a show, I'd be getting scores in the mid to high 20s. Hopefully, we'll get the chance to see if that's true!

For the canter transitions, I had to keep my hands up (resisting the urge to bury them into his withers), open up the outside rein and push him into it with my inside leg, and maintain the bend and ask for the transition. Sam's number one problem is that he isn't instantly obedient to the leg - he takes too long in responding to the canter cue. Obviously, we need to fix that problem first, but then Christan said that too many people try to ride "down" into the canter transition, by dropping their hands and tipping their upper bodies forward, instead of riding forward and "up" into the canter transition. This was very hard for me, as both Denise and Holly wanted me to sort of hold his head down into the transition. Argh. Christan's explanation made so much more sense to me, as it follows the classic principles of riding and training. Once in the canter, I have to remember to keep my hands up and ride him up in each stride, so he doesn't pull me forward and onto the forehand.

For the jumping, I realized that I have no idea how to jump a crossrail. Sam hasn't jumped in a bit, so his reaction was to charge at the crossrail and get flat. Christan's observation was that Sam doesn't "pop" off the ground and jump around the fence - he sort of drops on his forehand, and then heaves himself up over the jump. I allow him to do this, because I drop my hands on takeoff and lean at the fence and don't maintain that "up" quality of the trot or canter. Christan told me to pretend the fence wasn't there - easier said than done, even when it's a tiny crossrail - and keep the bend and the balance all the way to the jump. When we started cantering the little vertical, she put a placing pole out front so I knew when to soften and keep my leg on. She also wanted me to give him a little pop with my leg to encourage him to jump UP and around - next time I'm going to jump with a whip so that I don't have to take my leg off to pop him. The first few times it didn't work, probably because I didn't really get him with my leg, but the third time he pinged off the ground and it felt great. Christan said that it was a good start, which means that there is more to work on.

After this humbling realization that I've been running Sam at his fences and not really knowing how to bring him in balance to a jump, I decided that I cannot go Novice at any of the September shows until I can make this new feeling a habit, so I've decided to drop him back to BN for Five Points, since I have that coupon. I wanted to do the show at our place, but there isn't much time until the show, and Sam really isn't fit, and all this is new for us still. I don't want to encourage the "old" way at a show, because it isn't muscle memory yet.

In love with the new barn

I just wanted to say that I LOVE my new barn. Yesterday, I worked Sam in the arena a little and then went for a hack – we trotted up the hills on the back 40, and then wandered down to the Foundation and rode around there for a while. I didn’t go far, as I was petrified about getting lost (you know my sense of direction!), but it was really good for Sam – he had to pick his way around the roots, figure out how to balance himself up and down the hills, etc. I can’t believe that I went for so long at a place where I couldn’t do that kind of work. Now, I really feel that I can get somewhere with my riding, as I have the “tools” to do it with. Yay! Oh, and Oliver was wonderful today. He’s actually been better behaved than Sam. When I take Sam out, Oliver yells a few times, and then gets buddy-buddy with Czar. When he’s the one being ridden, he’s great, too. When I take Sam out to be ridden, he yells all the time, refuses to focus (unless we’re jumping – then he pays attention to me), and is basically a pain in the ass. Sam hates it when I take Oliver out – he yells and gallops around the pasture like a fruitcake and ignores Czar. I had no idea he would do this. He normally doesn’t mind being left behind, and he certainly doesn’t care if he gets taken away. The only time he has done something like this was when I brought Ellie and Sam together to a Denny lesson. Sam and Ellie both were royal pain the necks, which is why I swore I wouldn’t take both of them anywhere together again.

Anyway, I flatted Oliver, and he was an angel – he seems more relaxed at Denny’s, and even picked up his leads the first time without bucking or rushing into it. I decided to take him for a hack, and since he’s never been out in the wild on his own before, I was prepared for anything, but damned if that little horse didn’t just march around, looking curiously at everything. He didn’t spook at any of the xc jumps, not even the ones he hadn’t seen before, and marched up and down the hills. I remember how Karen told me that some horses are natural descenders, where others have to learn how to go downhill. Oliver is a natural. He just sits right down on his butt and shimmies his way down the hill. He's truly a joy to ride. There was a dressage trainer who’s been flatting some of Christan’s horses and the first thing she said when she saw Oliver appearing out of the woods was “What a gorgeous horse he is.”

Oh, and Oliver had his first REAL xc lesson on Saturday, with Margaret. I was a little daunted as her little Fisher (that she got from Margaret Webber, at Mapleshade Farm, same place she got Echo) was pretty bold, and jumping everything with hardly a look. Oliver didn’t look at anything in the arena, either, but it was still a little humbling seeing how bold Fisher was. Anyway, we went out to the xc field and started jumping every little thing out there. Oliver only looked a couple of times, but then Fisher looked at the same jumps, so I didn’t feel badly at all. I have got to remember to ride Ollie with a loose rein to the jump – “trust him”, as Christan says – and stay a little behind the motion. I had to slip the reins a couple of times, which still impresses the heck out of me that I’m able to do that, since I remember Diane agonizing over the fact that I had trouble slipping my reins.

So, we're off to a great start! Can't wait for the weather to cool down...

Lifting hands and shifting weight

Kelly's lesson with Czar and Christan proved to be very enlightening for me. Most importantly, Christan had Kelly lift her hands when approaching a jump, and cantering, as that helped to shift Czar's weight back over his hocks instead of letting him dump himself on his forehand. I wondered about that, since when Kelly lifts her hands, Czar lifts his head, but I think that now Czar is shod behind, he is more willing to shift his weight back instead of just hollowing and pulling back on her. The transformation with Kelly's jumping was remarkable, though. As she approached the jump, C reminded her to keep her hands up and her elbows connected to her hips (something Holly is always reminding me about), and instead of getting left behind and jerking Czar in the mouth, which Kelly was worried she would do, he just jumped up and closed her angles, which helped with her issues of jumping ahead and leaning at the fence. I have been having problems with Kelly leaning at the fence, and then on the landing side, getting herself popped out of the saddle. C said it was because K locked her elbows on the approach, so that when Czar landed, he would yank her forward. When she kept her hands raised, it resulted in him jumping "up" to meet her, and then taking her elbows forward on the landing side so she didn't get popped. Wonderful. When Kelly cantered in the dressage arena, as a close to the lesson, the same result happened - Czar shifted his weight backwards, and like magic, Kelly suddenly started to follow the motion of the canter through her hips, eliminating her tendency to "post" in the canter.

So, the last ride I had with Oliver, he was hot and rushing around. I lately have been wrapping his bit with Sealtex, and he's been easier to bridle, so I think he likes the softer bit (Christan's idea). He's also being ridden back in the Isabel, as I got the suspicion that he prefers me being a bit more stable in the saddle - I have a tendency to get a little wobbly at times in the Fhoenix, due to HIS tendency to abruptly change direction or speed at a moment's notice. Thinking of that picture I have of Karen O'Connor riding The Optimist (he's pulling like a train in the picture), I really hollowed my back, pushed my shoulders back, sunk into my heels, kept my leg on and raised my hands a little to help regulate speed. He was doing much the same today - being a total dingbat in the crossties, for some reason, which resulted in a trip to the roundpen to work out some respect and trust issues. After we worked out personal space in the roundpen, I got on, and thought to myself the way I used to get Ben into his "happy space" - by keeping him very round and very deep, which helped to slow down his rhythm until he was ready to relax. At the walk, I stretched Oliver down as much as he would go, and he's starting to get it and enjoy the stretch. In the transition to trot, I rounded him a little more than I normally would, and then picked up the trot, and kept him very round and slow. This seemed to help, as he didn't race off in the trot, and then when he started to slow his tempo down, I gave him a little rein and asked for a downwards stretch, being very careful to not let my shoulders tip forward and encourage him to fall flat on his face and race around. This seemed to work pretty well. Oliver was more willing to stretch in the trot today, and kept his rhythm in a reasonable pace. Once he was giving me a nice stretch in the trot, I started to shorten and lengthen his stride in the trot - he wanted to hollow in the shortened strides, but I kept him extra round and deep when he wanted to brace and push, and the difference in the lengthened trot was amazing - he started to swing, and I could feel the suspension start to come through. When he started to feel quick, I brought him back to a shortened stride, and then when he balanced himself, I allowed him to stretch it out and elongate the stride, the whole time keeping my hands a little higher, but forward to allow the stretch. That was a lot of fun.

The big test was the canter. I've been dreading the canter work, as he likes to buck into the transition, and then prop on his forehand and jack me out of the saddle, making for a very uncomfortable experience for both of us. Again, going back to an old Practical Horseman article, I sat the trot into the transition. WHen I felt my right knee drop, I squeezed my inside leg and inside rein and thought "En-large" (as in enlarging the circle by increasing the bend and pushing off the inside leg), twice, and then I thought, "Half-halt" with outside rein to shift his weight back onto his haunches, twice again, and then thought "can-ter" with the outside leg back and the inside leg on, being sure to use both legs to ask for the depart. It worked wonders with Sam, but then he was getting pretty good about staying round through his transitions anyway, but it worked beautifully with Oliver - not only did he pick up the left lead on the first try, but he didn't buck into it, and he stayed pretty round and balanced, albeit a bit forward, through the entire canter. I made sure to keep my hands raised instead of dropping them down, and just keeping my leg on and letting him figure out the balance for himself. What a lovely canter. I haven't had a canter that nice in a while. I can't wait for my next lesson with Christan, to make sure that I am not raising my hands TOO much, and that she confirms what I'm feeling.

XC schooling at Tamarack with Oliver and Czar

Kelly and I took Czar and Oliver to Christan’s/Denny’s for a lesson – Kelly’s/Czar’s first time, Oliver’s second time. This time, I mounted him down by the trailer parking and walked him all the way up the hill and then down again to the arena. The plan was to tuck him behind Czar, as Czar is a seasoned trail horse and Oliver has yet to do an official trail ride, but Oliver refused to go behind Czar and truckled down on front. I was tickled at how he wanted to be first, even though he was nervous and sidled around. We got down to the arena and he warmed up well, even offering a stretch at the trot, and Christan had us trot over a placing pole to a crossrail. Of course, I was expecting a stop, but I guess the work that we did at Holly’s really sat with Oliver, as he trotted right up over the placing pole and hopped the crossrail like it wasn’t there. He did canter on landing and buck a little, pretty chuffed with himself. It’s annoying, but I’m not going to punish him for being pleased with himself. Christan had me really think about softening my hands to the jump, almost to the point of looping them, and Oliver jumped EVERYTHING we pointed him at without stopping or running out. Well, he did look hard at a green and white plank jump, but I kept my leg on, kept the reins loose and just sat tight and he popped on over and cantered quietly away. We progressed to trotting little courses, and I was surprised at how little contact I needed with him to the jump, and I was even more surprised at how much he enjoyed being given full rein, and how confident he grew from that. Early on I asked Christan if I was holding him too much in the air over the fence, or worse yet, catching him in the mouth, and she said absolutely not – he had this tendency to curl his neck in over the fence, but it wasn’t because of me, and she felt that we could teach him to get over that by keeping the rein very, very light and making sure to just sit still and push him across the fence. He’s just that type of horse when it comes to his mouth, but she said we can easily teach him to get over that.

We progressed to the ditch, which Oliver (predictably) spooked hard at – he’s never jumped a ditch before, just the natural one at NSE. Christan told me to not let him turn away, but keep him facing it and just sit still with a loopy rein and quietly encourage him. Kelly trotted by quite a few times on Czar to show Ollie that it was okay, and Oliver, when he went, just hopped over it – he did buck on landing (he tends to do that when he’s feeling good about himself), but I was very careful not to tighten the rein or lean at him, and we came over it again and he did it so quietly. We then did it the other way, and he didn’t even hesitate – just popped on over. Christan had us do the bank next – walk up the ramp and pop off the other side. I was nervous, as he’s never, ever done a bank and I expected him to stop, prop, and then LAUNCH off the bank. The walk up the bank (the ramp) was more spooky for him than the drop off – he wobbled up the ramp, walked across the bank, and then just looked and hopped right off, like he’d been doing drops all his life. I must admit that I was shocked. I was all prepared to grab the front of my saddle in case he Supermanned off the top – I swore to myself that I wouldn’t grab at the reins no matter what he did. We turned around, trotted up the bank, which he did without hesitating. We finished with a small log jump – his first xc jump. There was scary brush on either side, and there were a ton of deer romping around in the meadow below, but Oliver just trotted up on a very loose rein and popped over the hanging log. Wow. I mean, WOW. It’s amazing how much their confidence grows when you just sit chilly, don’t peck at them, and let them figure it out for themselves. It was also a valuable lesson for me in how little I need the reins to jump. I was riding with an extremely loopy rein over jumps he’d never seen before, and my position must be getting a ton more secure because it was so easy for both of us. Kelly and I walked down through the xc field, down the path (again, Oliver’s never been trail riding before), and Ollie took the lead, and you could feel him swaggering down the lane to the water jump – he was so proud of himself. Once at the water jump – his first time – he stopped, sniffed, walked right in, and started to paw. All on a loose rein. I really think that this horse is going to be incredible. Christan said that she thinks that he’s going to be one of those very bold, quiet horses xc. She’s not concerned about his spookiness at all – she said that some of the spookiest horses she’s ridden (Teddy, her mare Morchant who’s unbelieveable) turned out to be the boldest xc horses she’s ever ridden, and the safest, as they don’t want to touch a jump. I definitely think I’ve picked the right trainer for Ollie and me. Her quiet, gentle approach is just what he needs, and it gives me a ton of confidence as well. I just adore him!

Oliver's second jumping lesson with Holly

Once again, he was a Very Good Boy despite all the commotion going on in her arena - she was super-busy with lessons and her working students riding, so there was a lot going on. I warmed him up by myself while Holly taught another lesson, and he offered to stretch down onto the bit at the walk and the trot, and is starting to take more contact, which is a huge improvement over hovering behind the bit.

Holly set up a crossrail, and we trotted up to it and he immediately started looking, so of course I tipped forward a little and he slammed on the brakes and wheeled to the right. Holly made me turn him left and then I stuffed him over the jump, and we trotted that a few times but he was pretty looky, for some reason, for a few more passes. We then spent the rest of the lesson trotting over little jumps, sometimes stuffing him over them from a walk (like the newly painted candy cane pole). Holly stressed that I need to keep them small, as it's not about height, it's about trust, and she mentioned that Oliver, right now, was mentally "fragile" in that he didn't quite trust me. She said that he needs to get into his mind that even though it's scary, he needs to find his way between the standards and not look for a way out right or left. We also halted straight after the jumps, to reinforce the fact that running away afterwards was NOT a good idea. By the end of the session, he was trotting over every jump quietly, and halting straight afterwards. I had to remember to lift my shoulders, keep them still, keep my hands forward and turn my toes out slightly so that my lower leg kept contact, and keep my seat light (whew!). I think that I'm worried about getting left behind, so I either a) tip forward too soon and burden his forehand or b) worry about getting ahead of him so I sit back too much and then get left. If I keep my seat light, my shoulders back and my leg on, I am able to "go with" the motion so much better. So, the homework is to jump him every other ride or so, and keep changing around the jumps in the arena so that they're different, and not let him stop at anything, no matter what - he MUST find his way between the standards somehow without turning left or right.

The results of perusing Jimmy Wofford's book

Picked up Wofford's book again last night - Training the Three-Day Event Horse and Rider - an oldie but goodie. He strongly recommended keeping a journal (not the kind I've been doing already) of training timetables and schedules, especially when it comes to doing trot and canter sets. This advice is quite timely as it actually means something to me now that I'm looking at bringing Sam back into a conditioning program to prepare for Five Points in September.

Yesterday was a double-whammy with both horses, as we have rainshowers/thunderstorms predicted on and off all week and weekend, and there was no guarantee that I was going to be able to fit in all the work that I needed to do.

So, here goes:
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Oliver: flatwork day
Stretching through the walk and trot, leg yields both on and off the rail, solid and light transitions from walk-halt, walk-trot, and shortening and lengthening the trot, canter transitions. Total time: 45 minutes.

There were a ton of people in the arena yesterday. Carolyn (the vet tech at the barn) brought over a couple of trailers full of horses to school - mostly western - and her daughter, a student, and other sundry people. Added to that was myself, and the new beginner boarder on his broke-to-death buckskin QH gelding, and we had a pretty full arena. It was good, though, for Oliver to get used to maneuvering around other people and horses and staying focused on me. Surprisingly, Sam had more focus issues than Oliver, but both boys were good. He's starting to really understand the whole stretching thing and even managing to keep his balance while stretching down at the trot, which is a huge improvement over just a week ago. I also did not ride with a whip, and put a pommel pad under the seat of the Fhoenix to see if that would help with the balance, so I wasn't feeling like I was playing "catch-up" with him the whole time (and being a sensitive horse, it was probably causing him to scoot out from under me). It seemed to work - the balance was so much better for me, and he wasn't shooting around and skittering all over the ring. I'm definitely going to sell the Isabell and get a riser pad for the Fhoenix. Our transitions within the trot was pretty good. I would start with a normal, working trot, then slowly bring him back and think about bouncing him up underneath me to shorten the stride, and then allow him to go back to the working trot, and quickly ask for some lengthened strides. I found that if I let him go into a working trot for too long before asking for a lengthening, he would rush and fall flat. If I asked for the lengthening from a shortened, more "collected" trot, he would give me some very nice lengthened strides (or so I can only assume, since I couldn't see them but only feel them) before falling flat on his face. The canter transition was much better today, too. The transition to the right was accurate and prompt, but he was a bit sprawly at the canter itself. I am experimenting with how much to sit down and back, and how much to lighten my seat. He gets hoppy behind if I sit on him too soon, so I guess it's more of a timing thing. The left canter lead took a couple of tries, but he's getting so much better at it. No more bucking in the canter, either, which is why I'm sold on the Fhoenix saddle.

Saturday, July 5, 2008
Sam: flatwork day
Stretching through the walk and trot, small circles at the walk to get him bending off the leg and not the hand, canter transitions. Total time: 30 minutes.

Not a real intensive day for Sam, as he is stil relatively unfit from his "vacation". I really am convinced now that when Sam is a pighead, it's because he is having difficulty breathing. I also used the pommel pad as a riser under the Fhoenix saddle, because I was wondering if the balance would be better for me, and it really was. So, both boys have a tendency to travel uphill - Sam because of his training, and Oliver because he's built that way - and I need to rise the back of the saddle to compensate. Luckily, it's treeless so I don't have to worry about it pinching at the saddle tree points. In fact, with the pommel pad underneath it, my leg falls behind the knee roll where it should, which makes my seat aids far more effective. Sam was happily stretching around today, and when I brought him back and shortened his frame, he was quite happy to do so. His canter transitions, especially to the right, were very smooth and he didn't hollow, and I played around with really lifting him through my seat in the canter itself and was amazed at how light and springy he got. In addition to that, he was willing to stretch down in the canter itself, which is something we've been struggling with on and off for about a year now.

In which KIM learns not to ride the brake and the gas at the same time...

....and Oliver breathes a sigh of relief. It's amazing how much horses humble you, and teach you that there isn't a chance in hell that you know everything there is to know about riding. Sigh.

Oliver, and to a lesser degree, Sam, has been an a$$ lately. Since BOTH of them are being a$$es, my guess is that the cooling weather has something to do with it. Monday (it's now Wednesday) was a breezy, gorgeous day - the kind that makes you smile just being out in the weather. I had just had a bad day, which probably should have told me that maybe I shouldn't be at the barn, riding, but I was hoping to clear my head and put in a good ride since the weather was cooperating so nicely. Wrong. Oliver obviously had other ideas. I've been struggling with saddles on him, primarily dressage saddles, as he is so freakin' uphill that everything I sit on him tends to ride pommel-high, regardless of how well the pommel arch actually fits. The treeless saddle seems to make him the happiest - he doesn't object to being saddled after I ride him in it - but it is the worst culprit when it comes to riding pommel high - having no tree, I tend to get shoved back into the soft cantle, which makes me feel like I'm riding with my legs out in front of me. I really need to get a lift-back pad for him and see if that's any better. I tried riding in my Isabell, but not only did I feel like I was sitting a mile above his back, he was bucking into his canter transitions. Not fun. I worry about the day when he actually gets GOOD at bucking - right now, they'r mostly irritating. If I remember correctly, Miles started off that way, too. So, on Monday evening, I had the Fhoenix on him, and all he wanted to do was race around in the trot, so I did a ton of transitions to get him sharper off my aids and really force myself to use my leg and NOT take it off of him, which is what I want to do when he's going around like a sewing machine on crack. He did start to settle well, but then persisted on bucking every time I asked for the canter depart. His right lead was perfect, but the left was nonexistant, and he was getting frustrated, and so was I, and eventually he showed it by doing a half-rear, grabbing the bit, and running off. That made me mad, so I grabbed the inside rein, booted him into a doubling move, and then proceeded to make his life hell as he spun around and around in circles. When I finally let him out of the spin, he was wide-eyed and very, very obedient. In fact, he was perfect. I doubt he'll try that maneuver again for a while.

So, with that last ride leaving a bad taste in my mouth (as well as Sam just being piggy and rooting around on the bit, either inverting or lugging around), I wasn't too happy about riding today, but he needed to get ridden, as history shows that he doesn't do too well with too many days off. Since I have a Holly lesson on Monday, I thought it would be good timing to do some jumping, as well as letting some mental pressure off the little red-head. Btw, he's no longer so little. He was standing in the crossties (the ones closest to the lounge, which he's never been in before and I have been nervous putting him there, as he can be a bit spooky, but Jackie was in the other crossties shoeing horses) and being a saint, when Dany said, "Kim, he's growing!" I looked at him closely, and sure enough, I think he's grown an inch in the wither. I think that before, he was just under 16.1 hands, and now he's over that and closer to 16.2. Maybe that's why he's been an a$$ - he may have been trying to find his balance during a growth spurt. He was standing there all relaxed, so his height is probably accurate at that time.

The crossrails were set up so that they were about 6-7 strides apart, as well as the other things being left over from the cancelled show. I took him over the shark's tooth plank first, as the crossrails were a tiny bit bigger, and he did an enormous jump but never once did he stop. In fact, he jumped everything today - landed bucking a few times, but I think that's more to do with me not giving him quite enough of a release and possibly a bit of exuberance as well. So, I figured out that a combination of what Holly and Christan wanted me to do worked quite well. I trot to the jump with a light, soft rein, keeping my leg on and a slight hollow in my back. Arms well forward and slightly wide in case I need to steer, and then even when he's wiggling to the fence, I don't accidentally pop him in the mouth. Oliver has such a nice jump when I really stay relaxed and ride him to the fence, and give him the freedom to jump and move forward. I think that I was anticipating a runout so much that I had too much of a hold on his face, and he didn't know what to think - go forward? Stop? Slow down? and then would put in a big, awkward cat leap which would leave me behind the motion, so I would accidentally give him a little tug in the mouth over the jump, which would make him speed up on the landing side. I wasn't yanking him in the mouth, but I wasn't really letting him move out, either. Like I said, he jumped everything I trotted him over, and even cantered a couple of jumps. His confidence is growing and mine in him as well.

I also really believe that Sam's allergies have a huge part to play in how cooperative he is that day. On Tuesday, his eyes were a little runny and when i tried to put him on the bit, he started to make a little wheezy sound, and as I stated above, he was truly an ass. I think he panics when his breathing is obstructed and that's when he fights me. He hasn't been on the Clarity that long - maybe three days - and I can't give him the drops as regularly as I'd like, so here's to hoping that the Clarity works for the little guy. I hope so - he's too good of a horse to lose for a few months due to allergies.

Oliver goes to his first Christan lesson

I'm running out of ways to introduce these blogs, so I've gone back to the old standard. We had our first lesson with Christan today. He's really getting good about loading into the trailer - pretty soon, he'll be walking in without a thought like Sam. He hauls beautifully, no scrambling or pawing, so that's a relief. You'd never guess that he's only been in a trailer three times (two of which are with me).

Today was HOT. In the upper 90s, I think. Luckily, there was a good breeze blowing occasionally, which kept us from overheating. Oliver unloaded from the trailer and had his worried face on, but was very good, considering this was his second trip away from home and he'd never been to Denny's before. For a horse that's never been tied before, he was standing like a champ. He even let me saddle him without doing our little two-step dance we go through at the barn - maybe he's getting used to it? I can't tell if he doesn't like the saddle and is anticipating pain/discomfort, or he's spooky about the saddle pad flapping around. Who knows. Anyway, I hand walked him down to the arena because he has never been on the "trail" before, and other than some wide-eyed looks around and a couple of reminders not to get ahead of me, he was golden. We got down to the arena and walked around a bit. Last time at Holly's, he snorted and looked cross eyed at some jumps - today, he hardly glanced at them. He did spook once at something rustling around in the bushes beside the arena, but I can't blame him for that. We walked around in the field by the bank complex and then over the pile of poles that served as an entrance to the arena - he looked, but went very carefully, and on the way out of the arena, LAUNCHED himself over it, which took me by surprise. Since he had never been "trail riding" before, this was a huge accomplishment for him.

Christan was a bit late getting to the arena, so I walked him up to the barn. I was stupid and started to wipe out his eyes, letting go of the reins (which were over his head, as he had his running martingale on), and he spooked big-time at something and got away from me, cantering down into the field by the dressage arena. Stupid me. He got distracted by a horse in the nearly field and they played piggy-squealy games, which gave me ample time to walk up and catch him - piece of cake. I was a bit red-faced when one of Christan's working students came up to see if I needed help. He's a good boy, though.

Once Christan got down to the arena, we trotted around and concentrated on slowing down the tempo and getting him to stretch down and go to the end of the reins. Christan commented on how uphill he was, and how Oliver was tracking up even though he was still a bit tight behind, and that once he gave through his back and stopped being "hesitant" behind (which will come with balance), he's going to be a lovely mover. She thought he was very cute and told me that if I wanted to leave him there, I could :^). It was good to hear nice things about him, as I'm falling more and more in love with the little red-head each day.

She set up a simple gymnastic, starting off with trot poles all on the ground. We walked through them and really encouraged him to stretch his head down for a look. I then picked up the trot, and the first time through, he trotted the first three great, and then got a little quick and cantered over the last few (which were set up for a canter stride anyway). Christan told me to give him a little half halt after the three trotting poles and then get out of his way. A couple of more times through it, and Oliver was a champ. Christan told me that he was very catty, and looked to have a nice jump.

She then set up a cross rail after the first three trot poles, and told me to come and just stay out of his way. I was anticipating a stop, as he tends to be looky over the first jump.Of course, he proved me a liar. He just trotted up to it, and then popped over it like a pro, and then quietly cantered over the remaining poles. Wow. Good boy. She put up a little vertical after the crossrail, which he fumbled over, because he had no idea where his body or legs were. I've never jumped him over a combination that was anything less than four strides away, so this wasn't a surprise. I was also getting a little too far ahead with my upper body in an effort to grab mane, and Christan said that Oliver didn't know how to lift his shoulders when I was putting my weight onto him, so she said to stay back and press him ahead of my leg - to "send him ahead of me". Easier said than done - it still felt like there were legs going every which way. Christan said it was important not to chase him or drive him to the fence, as we don't want to start causing him to rush - she said she would rather have them stop and look than rush blindly on. Interesting, but it makes sense. Oliver steadily got more and more relaxed over the exercise, until we were doing the crossrail, one stride to a vertical, and then another stride over another crossrail, and then cantering over the two remaining poles. He is really starting to learn where to put his feet, and he was getting very relaxed over it, which is a huge bonus. She then had me end with trotting little individual jumps with placing poles in front (to help him with his take-off stride and keep me out of his mouth), and he even jumped a purple plank without a peek. I was thrilled.

Christan said he was very fancy, and was going to be a super mover once he learned to let go of his back, and said that he was very brave - just a little clueless over where his body needs to be. she said there was nothing to worry about bravery-wise, which is a bit of a relief to have my gut confirmed - I have always thought he was very obedient and tried hard to please, but it's nice to have someone confirm that for me.

All in all, it was a very successful day.

I think he's grown! Maybe standing next to him when his eyes are out on stalks makes him look bigger, but he's definitely taller than I remembered, and he's more filled out. He's such a good-looking boy.

In which Oliver gets to jump his first oxer....

....and learns a little lesson about jumping the jump the first time. It was a hot, hot day, and Oliver seemed more composed than usual. I think that the Corrector pad, with the shims in the back, really helps level out the saddle and keeps my leg more underneath me, and stops me from tipping my pelvis out behind me, which seems to run him on his forehand. I never thought that there were drawbacks to being built uphill. I don't know if the Fhoenix is going to work for him as it tends to sit uphill as well, so maybe I've got to keep the Isabell and use it on Oliver exclusively, keeping the Fhoenix for Sam. Damn. Wish I could use the same saddle on both horses, but they're polar opposites in build from each other, so what can you do?

He was awesome on the flat, actually. We did lots of transitions within the trot - asking him to slow down the trot and collect a little bit, and then really asking him to power forward while maintaining his balance. When he wants to rush around like he does, sometimes, it's easier for me to ask him to move forward the way I want him to, not the way he wants to, and he finds his balance better that way. He's also getting more definite in his contact and consistent, and is even starting to stretch down in the trot and reach for the bit.

For jumping, I started to trot him over a little crossrail with a flower box in front, and predictably, he tried to stop and gawk. I growled at him, and then booted him over it from a standstill, grabbing mane as I did so, and he went - good boy. Trotted it a few times back and forth, making sure to grab mane each time, and he seemed to settle. Then, I trotted him over a few more of the little jumps out there, which he jumped on the first try. The bigger white gate was out there, and we had never jumped it before, so I trotted him up to it. He tried to stop, so I booted him over it from a pause, and he jumped it. More pats and praise. Then, we trotted over a little oxer that was set up with the brush boxes in front and the pole set on Bloks behind - he did it on the first try. Good boy. We finished by trotting over a few more jumps and then cantering down over the second. He felt like a squirrel on skates for a few, as he would jump big on the "in" and then sort of wobble down the line to the second, which made me laugh, but he was being very obedient and good.

Got my lesson with Christan tomorrow - I'm pretty excited about how he'll do!

In which Oliver learns to trailer load....

...and takes his first field trip down to Holly's in Southern Pines.

Oliver is doing quite well, with Sam on vacation. He’s starting to develop a work ethic. He’s a funny little thing – he loves to be caught and played with, and loves to have his ears and nose scratched like a big dog. He is getting funny about coming into the barn for work, though – I can’t tell if it’s because he’s anticipating being saddled for work, or if he just finds the barn a spooky place because he doesn’t spend a whole lot of time in it. He’s taken to being silly about being saddled. He was always a little spooky about things coming at him from behind, like a saddle pad or a pat on the butt, but I think I’ve gotten him over that. When I go to place the saddle pad on his back, he scoots away and tries to leave. Luckily, I’ve been working with him on cross tying and tying in general, so he doesn’t freak when he hits the end of the ties, but it’s annoying because he doesn’t DO that after I’m done riding. I can flap saddle pads and saddles all over him after the ride, and he just stands there with this expression on his face like I’m nuts, but he’s putting up with it. His back doesn’t seem sore, but I thought that maybe he was not liking my saddle, even with the Corrector pad. I found a used Heather Moffett SBS/Fhoenix on Ebay for $800, and thought I’d give it a try, as the Isabell on Sam slides around, even with the widest gullet in. And, with the widest gullet in, I can’t ride Oliver in it, even with the Corrector pad because the differences are too extreme. I’ve been riding Oliver these past few times in the Isabell with the medium gullet in because Sam’s been on vacation, and that seems to work really, really well. So, the Fhoenix was really for Sam, so he was the first horse to test it out. I was skeptical because I didn’t see how it could be different from the Ansur, which was comfy, but seemed to press on Miles’s withers. Plus, it wasn’t the most stable thing out there. I’ve been lurking on the various Enlightened Equitation boards and checking out reviews, and everybody says that the Fhoenix is so much more stable than the Ansur and more secure, so I thought I’d give it a go. He LOVES it. I had a heck of a time getting Sam’s head off the ground because he wanted to stretch the minute I asked him for it. The canter departs are perfect. No head flinging into it. The nicest thing about this saddle is that I didn’t realize just how much I tended to sit to one side when asking for bend – this saddle really lets you sit centered and really wrap your leg around them. All of a sudden, Sam’s “bad” right side isn’t so bad anymore. I’m thrilled.

I tried it on Oliver, and ehhhh…not so good. Oliver seems to like it, but I don’t like it on him. I have a tendency on him to sit with my hips slightly closed, because the horse is freakin’ uphill. That puts a lot of pressure on my lower back. The Isabell is the first saddle that doesn’t do that to me on him (the Antares does, but I can live with that as it’s a jumping saddle and I don’t spend a lot of time sitting in it), but this Fhoenix is pushing me to the back of the saddle and hollowing out my lower back. In the Isabell and the Antares, I can put the shims in the back of the Corrector and it levels it out for me, but I can’t use the Corrector with this treeless saddle, so I’m thinking maybe one of those Cashel riser pads for the back? Or just using the Isabell on him and keeping the treeless for Sam? I’m beginning to think that horses that are built uphill, with a TB-y build, just don’t work as well in the treeless saddles. What would you do? I’d love to find a solution as I’d love to sell the Wintec and just get down to one saddle, but if I have to keep both, I will.

Oliver had his first lesson with Holly last week. He hadn’t left our barn since I brought him to it from his home in SC in March, so I had pretty low expectations of his behavior. I had done some trailer training with him the week before and he’s happily getting into and out of othe trailer by himself, so loading him up wasn’t a problem. He actually hauled quite well, even with the back doors open (it was promising to be hot), and unloaded like a champ. No screaming, no pawing – I was thrilled. I led him over to the arena to get on with her wooden mounting block (all I had with me was my little plastic step stool) and he marched around the arena, looking cross eyed at a few jumps but in general, being quite good. Holly really likes him – says he’s very cute, and has a wonderful canter (which is why I bought him – his canter is incredible). We decided to jump him a little. Oliver put on the brakes and refused to listen to my leg as we approached the crossrail, so Holly said “Don’t let him turn away from the jump – he’ll never be any good if he gets away with it” and dropped the crossrail down to a pile of poles, which I stuffed him over from a walk, and then immediately turned him around and jumped him back and forth over it a few times. After that, we raised it back to a crossrail, which he jumped fine, and then jumped everything else she put up without stopping or running out – sure, there were some looky, wobbly jumps but he went over everything. I didn’t have my whip on me, which I will remember to bring next time.

I have a lesson with Christan Trainor this Friday. I’m really looking forward to it because I know how good Christan is with the babies. I’d like to get Christan’s opinion on how to deal with Oliver’s lookiness – my gut is telling me that I shouldn’t worry about it, because everything is still new and overwhelming to him. Holly’s place was new to him, and he’s never jumped anything other than the stuff at our barn and his barn in SC. He did jump everything after that initial stop, so Holly isn’t too worried, but she did say that I need to get him past that initial stop/look. That’s why I want Christan’s advice, as well as getting to play over Denny’s xc course.

In which Oliver does his first jumping school after three weeks...

...and redeems himself. I should know this by now, considering how many greenies I've broken under saddle, but Oliver really needs to be ridden very consistenly, at least three times a week, preferably 4-5. I guess I've been so wrapped up with school that I've neglected his training. Now that Sam is on holiday, I can focus on Oliver, or "Ollie", as he's growing on me more and more every day.

The last two rides I've longed him, once in the Pessoa and once in the chambon/de Gogue, in an effort to get him stretching more through the back and into the bit. It seems to have paid off, as he's more willing to take an honest contact with the bit. I also have found a bit that he likes - a french link full cheek. He doesn't fight the bit nearly as much as he did the other ones, and I have brakes, and he's willing to push into the bit more. I've found that if I keep my hands very low and wide, and do a walk transition the minute he charges off in trot and throws himself off balance, he's steadier in his paces and in the bridle. I didn't canter today, but we did canter in between jumps, and his canter is getting much rounder and better. I've really got to keep a hold of that outside rein and concentrate on keeping him straight, and half-halting on it when he starts to lose his balance and rush.

We trotted up to a little crossrail and he stopped, surprised. I think it's because he hasn't jumped anything in three weeks, so I turned him the other way, booted him in the ribs (I had dropped my whip; more on that later) and turned him back around over it. He jumped it willingly the second time, albeit a bit large and boundy, and we trotted over it a few times until he stopped jumping like a deer, with me really concentrating on keeping my hands low and pushing them forward to release him over the jump. We trotted over some of the other jumps in the arena - planks, white gates, etc. and he didn't stop at a thing. I was so proud. Then, I trotted him over the two trot poles to a crossrail - there were legs flying everywhere, but he didn't stop! - and cantered on down over the little NSE plank, which he jumped beautifully. I remembered to sit up and half-halt on the stride after landing, and then allow him to float to the jump, which he took out of stride. Oliver is much calmer about jumping when I don't hold him to the fence (duh). I had dropped my whip because I had this idea that maybe he was starting to rush his fences because he was getting nervous, and there is no point in hitting a horse when he's scared, so I dropped my whip. If he stopped, oh well. Lots of success builds confidence, and I think my tactic today paid off. When he stops, which is rare now, it's not a dirty stop. He did start getting a little excited as we cantered on down over some more jumps, so I called it a day and hosed him down.

He's really starting to develop quite a sweet personality. He luuuuurves to be scratched on the sides of his nose, and will stand there all day long if you oblige. He also is the first to nicker and then come up to me in the pasture, which I have always missed after Miss Ellie had been sold. I have high hopes for the little red monster, and I think he might be "The One" for me after Sam has retired and gone to his place as Joe's pasture puff/trail horse.

In which I get a case of the stupids....

....and decide to run Sam in the 100 degree heat/humidity after all, and learn a lot of valuable lessons. Today was Lumber River, habitually not a good event for me (duh - maybe not run next year?) and I was waffling about running Sam when they were predicting extreme heat and humidity. Not abnormal for NC, just abnormal in that it hit us so quickly. Just a few days ago, the temps were in the high 80s. Now, they're in the 100s, and tomorrow it's supposed to be worse still. Today, at least, we had a breeze, which made things bearable in the shade. We had lots of water, ice for after xc, lots to drink, our shade canopy (thank you Mom and Dad!), and we parked way the heck out there by where they keep the trailers full of the show jumps, in order to get the best shade. Nobody else was out there, which was amusing, and we got the best of the breeze, as well as being right next to a loudspeaker (so I could hear everything) and the wash racks, and close to the Port-a-Potties, the event office, and the xc warmup/course. I will definitely part there next time, until someone stops me.

Dressage had been moved up to 9:38, which was wonderful. They had waived coats so I wore my new Kerrits long-sleeved top, which got a lot of funny looks due to the heat, but it was actually quite cool. Holly warmed me up a little in the arena - we kept it short due to the heat - and did lots of long and low, stretchy stuff. I even got a stretch in the canter! I haven't gotten a stretch like that before. Holly was after me about my leg and keeping it still, and keeping my shoulders back, and maybe the combination of that helped. I watched another competitor, one of Holly's students, canter around in a long and low frame, and NOW I understand what to look for and what it should look like. So, that was a big breakthrough for me. Once I brought him up, Holly approved of his neck - the first time she's seen him since we really started hammering away at it - and again, I was thrilled as I was wondering if she'd like the results. Our judge was Cindy DePorter, who is notorious for her judging of the YEH at The Ark and placing that Freisian first place, so I wasn't too hopeful about our score. In fact, I was hoping for something like we normally get, and not too much higher. We trotted in, and I had a big smile on my face as it actually felt very good, and we did our first S and then wow - he picked up the canter as soft as could be and we had a wonderful canter circle. Decent transition down (gotta work on keeping him soft through those) and then the next S, and I was getting a bit cocky and didn't bend him through the last portion before the canter depart and we had a wrong lead. Yuck. Quickly brought him back, picked up the new lead, and cantered a pretty good circle to the right. Free walk was a bit sticky, since I'm always concerned that he'll break to the jog, and then we did a lovely diagonal and a fantastic turn onto the center line, up to G for the halt, which I thought we were going to nail, but Sam had a bug up his nose and flung his head down to scratch it. Again, yuck. Later on, when I checked the scores, we actually had a 3-way tie for 3rd, and a 3-way tie for 7th, which I was a part of, with a score of 36.5! My sheet (checking it later on) gave me a bunch of 7s, and an 8 on the final turn onto the centerline. If it hadn't been for that wrong lead, and the last halt-salute, I would have probably been either in 3rd (involved in that tie!) or 2nd place. So, even though she's notoriously a tough judge, I was pleased.

The start of xc was promising, as Sam was full of go, but I was a bit wobbly. I am out of shape. I need to lose weight. More on that later. Holly was pretty firm with me about my lower leg and I think she lost a bit of patience with me for God only knows what reason (I'm fat? I'm wobbly? NO idea) and it was hard to breath due to the heavy, sticky air. She also nailed me for picking my way to the jump, which I wasn't aware I was doing (hey, maybe she was upset with me for cancelling the last lesson?). It wasn't a fun warmup, but we went over to the start box and started early, to conserve his strength. We galloped out of the box and he perked up and charged over 1, the Pine Top log, and landed and grabbed the bit and went straight. I said, "Hey! We need to go left!" and had to pull him to the left, where he immediately charged down the hill and up and over Fence 2, the Settler's Run (the ginormous brush fence). Landing from that, he faltered a tad up the hill, but I got off his back and just let him coast up the hill, and then we turned left between the tree and the split rail fence and set him up for the Feeder, and it was the first time I felt him bulge slightly left. I kept a good left leg on him, opened up the right rein a tad, and pushed him over it, and he was fine. He grabbed the bit again and tried to take off down the hill, when I knew I had to set up for the Hobbit's Hut - he actually listened to me and sat back and popped over it nicely, then grabbed the bit and ran down the hill and under a low hanging branch, which unbalanced me to the right and I wobbled. Grrrrr. We had a nice gallop up, hugged the treeline and set him up beautifully for the Tavern (5), and then we had the most foot-perfect run through the Sunken Road (6a and b) - it rode just like I imagined it would. I got a lighter seat, kept my leg on down into the road, and then he just popped up the bank and got the two strides easily over the brush. Beautiful. I was thrilled. We galloped down to the Ditch, making a slight correction as I habitually go left for BN, and he sailed over the trakehner without so much as a glance. He started up the hill, and faltered a bit, so I took my leg off and decided if he wanted to trot, he could trot, but he didn't, so we cantered up the hill and then set up for the Bank (8a and b) - it rode just like the Sunken Road did - perfect. He took a big jump over the log and off the drop, and we galloped on to the grey feeder on the bump (9). My leg was swinging a bit as I tried to use it to push him over, and as the jump came into view, Sam pulled to the left and we had a very uncharacteristic run-out. Wow. I was shocked. I turned him right, spanked him once, and re-presented, and he popped over it nicely. Down to the water, he started backing off again, which was also a little weird, and he trotted through the water but popped out wonderfully over the little jump out, and then made a very right-hand turn, collected himself, and popped over the grey bench. We headed for the in-field, and as we came up to the big brown table, I felt him falter again, but he jumped it and hung a leg (or something - I couldn't see) and and he pitched forward on landing and I nearly came off - oomph. I sat up, shoved my heel down and thought about retiring, but I wanted to see how the Mushroom Log rode as it had a funky approach to it (almost no approach), so we galloped on and he seemed to kick it into another gear. We hugged the treeline, and then popped the log nicely, cantered down the hill and trotted into the water (he was looky, but that is a looky water as the water levels are low) and then picked up a canter and cantered out of the water over the Turtle's Refuge, and then up the hill (at this point, there was no reason to turn back as we were two fences from home) and up the bank, nicely bending line to the right over the brown rolltop, gallop about 6 strides and over the last fence, and then through the finish flags.

We hustled over to the cooling station and stripped off his tack and started immediately hosing him down and scraping. Poor Sam was panting like a retriever - very shallowly and quickly - and his body temp was quite hot. We hosed and scraped and hosed and scraped, and he drank LOTS of water, more than he usually does, and finally we dumped the ice into the bucket and started sponging him down with that. It took us about 15 minutes to get his body temp down where the water wasn't running hot off him, and his breathing finally started to settle, and we headed back to the trailers. Since it took so long to cool him down, I decided to scratch from stadium, since it was supposed to be even hotter the next day and I wasn't in the running for ribbons anyway.

Poor Sam. I think the combination of Dex and Tri-hist was too much for him, and his body temperature soared out of control. I learned a lot from this ride, so I don't regret doing it. First and foremost - my horse is a rock star, and the times he really kicked it into gear (most of the course), he was incredible. The times he faltered were probably times he overloaded and grayed out - it was just unlike him. I also need to run him in a bigger bit - that plastic Happy Mouth with the roller isn't enough, which is why he was able to pull me to the left. I kept the flash off him so he could breathe easier, and I'm going to keep it off, but maybe switch to a slow-twist D or something to help with the steering issues.

In which Oliver still needs to develop a work ethic...

...and Kim seriously wonders why she does greenies anymore. Boo. Time for a mini-rant - I'm so sick and tired of doing the greenie thing.

Oliver so badly needs to develop a work ethic. Sitting around on his little farm in SC for six years of his life has taught him to be a first-class Pasture Puff. When he first got to the farm, work was interesting because it was "new". It's no longer "new" anymore - Ollie thinks it's work with a Capital W. For some reason, he's started to trot Full Speed Ahead when we're starting out, which for some other reason really annoyed me tonight. It may have been because it was incredibly hot and sticky - note to self: when it's hot, I'm irritable. Probably not the best mood to ride in, but I think we ended on a fairly good note and it was productive, because I wasn't about to take any more sh*t from him and excuse his behaviour due to green-ness. Oliver also thought that bracing against the bit and running around like a demented giraffe was tons of fun and a way to get out of work - we did lots of circles and moving off the inside leg into the outside rein until he quit dorking around and started to settle.

The good thing about tonight's icky, sticky ride was that I discovered that if I actually sit quietly and keep myself together in the canter transition, he picks up the correct lead. Granted, he does his best camel impressing with his head scrambling into it, with haunches first swinging one way and then swinging the other, but keeping him straight into the transition is the key to getting the correct lead. Well, keeping him straight is the answer for everything, but it really hit home today as I contorted my body like a Chinese Circus acrobat trying to get the correct lead, when just sitting there and not giving up on the straightness did the trick.

Horses can be so humbling.

In which Sam goes to The Ark....

....and schools some Training level questions! Kelly and I shipped Sam and Czar off to The Ark with an "entourage" on Saturday (Erica and Corin, two eventer hopefuls). Weather wasn't looking too good - in fact, when we got to the xc course, it started raining on us. Sam was a bit of a dingbat about "running the gauntlet" - the driveway between the barn and the pot belly pigs and numerous other tame wildlife. It's a spooky area, so I can see why he would be skittery about it. I can just imagine taking Oliver through that area! Even Czar was a bit startled about the zoo critters.



We warmed up over the xrail and vertical they had out there. Clover is in full growth, so the boys were slipping and sliding around, plus the grass was wet. It wasn't an auspcious start to our day, but we discovered that the footing was better further out. I took Sam over some little BN jumps to start - he was all for that - and then we wandered in the direction of the water jump. The scary (to me) log and stone Novice/Training level jump was reversed from when I jumped it with Miles. I thought it was actually scarier this way, than the way I jumped it before - the stone is more recessed under the log rolltops, so that it looks like something is lurking under there. It looks just as big as it ever did. I actually think the Prelim jump looks more inviting. However, since this is my bugaboo, I cantered Sam at it. He looked hard (backed off a little, probably because he wanted a good look at what was underneath) but Sam, being Sam, jumped it gamely. I turned him around for another approach and this time he sailed over it. The landing is a little bit of a drop, which I had forgotten about but remembered as we were airborn for a bit longer than anticipated over the jump :^).



We schooled the lower water, and Sam galloped in and did the bending line to the boat without a hitch. We then wandered up to the woodline, with the intent of jumping the BN fishing pier and then going down into the water, but as I walked up there I saw the new Novice jump, which was built of upright timber and was on the skinny side, so I went into the woods a bit further, cantered over the Novice jump, and then cantered on down to the water, where I was tempted to do the Training level log in (I know he could have done this easily, so we'll do it next time). Such a good, honest boy.



The half-coffin came next, which Sam did like a charm (and so did Czar - I was so proud of both of them!). After the half-coffin, we did our next big question of the day. Both of us (Kelly and I) did the bank up, and then I did the bank down, and then I decided to do the double-bank up. Sam was a bit confused and wasn't sure where to put his feet, so we had a bit of a bobble going up. I went off the Novice drop down, and then turned him around and gave him a better spot gonig up the double-bank, so that time he did it quite well. Feeling brave, I decided to do the double-bank down. The first time through, it was a bit shaky as I got ahead and Sam got wobbly, but he was dead honest and we survived, and the second time he was wonderful. I think I still got ahead a touch, but on the landing side I managed to get back to where I was supposed to be with my body.



We next did the upper water, which involved cantering in (for Sam) and then out over the Training level rolltop. Erica got a great picture of us over that, and his knees were up! Yay! Apparently Sam needs the challenge of bigger fences for him to make any sort of an effort. There wasn't a good place to drop INTO the water, so I made a spot. I didn't realize that it was a fairly large drop into the water, but Sam, once again, was a trooper. Again, a nice picture of us launching into the water.



We finished up over the planters - the Novice first, and then the Training level one, which was so easy that I was very tempted to try the Prelim one, but didn't want to push my luck for the day.



All in all, a VERY good day, and I'm feeling pretty confident for Novice at Lumber River. I just hope that his allergies stay all right and he's breathing well.



Oliver also schooled well yesterday. I need to flat him more often, as he was pretty inconsistent in the contact, and he's hopping around behind at the canter at first (he does eventually settle into quite a nice canter). Jumping-wise, he's wonderful, especially when you put him in a gymnastic line and make him think about what he's doing. We got the second vertical up to about 2'9 and he just sailed over it, so it's time to focus on flat work for now, especially since we have MacNair's coming up and I really want to ride him in the Intro tests.

In which Sam starts phase 1 of his conditioning program...

...a little too late for Lumber River, but better late than never, right? We started off with a little flatwork, me in my Antares, and did lots of stretches first. To get the stretch starting from the back, I thought "nose to chest" and when he softened, a gentle push with my seat and legs to get him to stretch to the end of the rein, and when he popped up, thinking "nose to chest" once again and then the gentle push to the end of the reins. This works pretty well for Sam - it gets him to soften through his poll, which he is not always good at doing, and then gets him to push through the stretch and lift his back and start to swing. For some reason, he's switched stiff sides on my and he's now much stiffer on the right than on the left rein. It's probably because I love to throw away that right rein, so I had to concentrate very hard on not allowing with my outside rein (Sam's very good at talking me into giving him just one more smidge of rein), especially when I'm on the left bend. However, when I'm adamant about not giving it up and sending him into the outside rein with my inside leg, he is fairly quick to soften and lift his back. We still play that game every time I ride him, though.

In the canter, I had to think about slowing the trot down (think "tuck", as Denise would say) and then moving him forward into the canter, and making sure that I didn't tip my upper body at him - easier said than done. Then, I remembered I had a whip so when he didn't take the depart and started to hop around with his head flung up in the air, I tapped him and the next time, he had a fairly nice depart. On the right rein, his departs are pretty decent. On the left, they're still a bit hollow, but his balance is so much better on the left rein than on the right.

I put my stirrups up two holes and then we started to do some hand-gallop sets. He was pulling in the beginning (not hard, but pulling) and when I tried to let him out a notch and soften the rein, he just ran faster. Since we were in the arena, I didn't want him tanking off with me, so I bridged my reins and pressed them into his neck. Once he did a few laps, he started to settle down. After four laps one way, I checked my monitor and he was at about 150. We walked around and he pulsed down to the low 80s very quickly - within a minute or so. Once he was down in the low 70s, we picked up the canter the other way. We did this a total of four times (that's 16 times around the arena) and each time, he pulsed down fairly quickly, but the respiration was up a little too much for my comfort. After the last canter set and he pulsed down, I picked up the canter again and then cantered him through a little gymnastic (that was set for Oliver) and worked on coming out of the turn without sitting down, and keeping the quality of the canter up to the jump. We also did turns to the rolltop, both backwards and forwards, out there, working on getting him to jump from behind instead of rolling over his shoulder. The jumps were tiny, so he didn't respect them much, but I can feel when he jumps over his shoulder and when he actually lifts it.

Something I noticed - when cantering on the right rein, he tends to bulge left and push against my right leg, which is weaker anyway. I find that my right leg tends to swing a little more than my left, so I've got to work on strengthening it.

In which Oliver learns to jump his first gymnastic...

...and gets cocky! Which is a good thing, as he's very mild-mannered normally and very, very polite. After our jump school, he nudged me over as I was crouching by his grooming kit, which of course is very naughty but it was nice to see some spunk. He's not allowed to do that anymore, and he caught me off-guard, but he was forgiven seeing as he was a superstar today.

I hadn't ridden him about a week, so I wasn't expecting a whole lot. Optimistically, I had set up crossrail and then a little piles of poles that would eventually become a vertical four strides away, set just a tad on the short side since he would ideally be trotting in. We warmed up on the flat - it was a windy day and he was a little more forward than usual, but as explained above, he had practically a whole week off. I really concentrated on sitting UP, and keeping my lower leg very still on him but on the entire time, and pushing him out to my outside rein. Of course, he took that as a cue to trot, but I quietly brought him back and leg yielded him out to the outside rein and he stopped jigging. We cantered, first on the right lead (his preferred lead) and as usual (lately), he humped up his back a little bit and crowhopped a few strides, so I got off his back and just let him play. I think it's a balance issue with him. I don't think he's being naughty - the one time he bucked out of fun was from a pretty big jump over a 2'3ish plank. I think what's happening is that he gets so far underneath himself that he sort of kicks out his hind legs to get them sorted back out again. He never (touch wood) gets bad about it, and if I just keep my shoulders back and let him work out the kinks, he soon settles down into a nice, quiet rhythm and I can eventually sit down and start to rebalance him a little. He's got such a nice natural canter - I know I keep saying that time and time again, but it's one of the nicest I've ridden and he's not even broke yet!

Since things were going well on the flat, I trotted him up to the crossrail and predictably, he grabbed the bit and launched himself over it. I don't know, at this point, if he's doing it out of fun or out of nerves, but he landed in a canter and then cantered quietly over the little pile of poles on the ground, which is a huge improvement to a month ago where he was still gawking at anything new. I brought him back over the "x", and this time he jumped it quietly and made a very easy four strides over the pile, so I hopped off and raised it to a tiny vertical. He jumped the "x", landed very crookedly and then sort of wobbled over to the vertical, but he did jump it and I was so pleased that he didn't look for a way out. So, we came over it again and this time, he nailed it - quiet jump over the "x", four easy strides and a beautiful little jump over the vertical. Lots of praise, jumped off, and set the vertical a couple of holes higher so that it was 2'6ish. We trotted over the "x", cantered a lovely, uphill four strides over the vertical, which he "sproinged" over and landed in a gorgeous, uphill canter and came back down easily to trot.

I LOVE this horse. I have never had that uphill, bouncy feeling over a jump before! As green as he is, his balance is wonderful, and I love that on landing it feels like he's got his hocks underneath him. If he turns out to be as brave (or obedient - I'll take either) as he promises to be, he's going to be quite a nice little lower eventer for me