Blanket Swap

The car thinks it's only 8 degrees out now, so Lindsey and I re-blanketed -- Gracie has the heavy-weight, Demi has the mid-weight, and Pico is still naked. 

Snow Day

Only not quite all day....  it was beautiful this morning, so Lindsey and I got a ride in then.  Now it's snowing.  I know we need some snow.  Am trying to be cheerful about it.  Louses up my riding a lot though. :^(

Yesterday my barn time was spent holding horses while Rochelle trimmed their toes.  We went ahead and pulled Gracie's front shoes and left her barefoot.  She hasn't been without front shoes for any significant time for over a year now.  Last year I pulled them for about three weeks, couldn't stand it, and put them back on. Back when she broke her coffin bone she was barefoot for 7 or 8 months and was still tippy-toeing around at the end of that time.  Yeesh.  

This morning we tippy-toed up the road about 3/4 mile and back again as a warm-up, then spent some time in the arena.  Half-steps are slowly getting better.  I begin to wonder if she will get worse at getting out of them as she gets better at getting into them.  Not sure how to dodge that issue. Left canter is *so* *much* *work*.  It helps to keep my left hand high, right hand low.  She really wants to fall on her left shoulder the moment I let down my guard.  Today she wasn't particularly interested in taking the right rein.  That said, we did have some okay canter squares.  I just have to ride every stride.  every stride.  Print that on the insides of my eyelids will you please.

Yesterday

Back to the loop with Gracie, but followed by a short time in the arena.  Left lead canters are getting better, but we were distracted by the ogre that sometimes visits the far end of the arena or maybe it was Erin's Mad Rapist Murderer. At any rate it was clearly searching for a chestnut mare to eat for lunch and Gracie didn't want to have anything to do with it.  Yeesh.  Back to the old "bend is non-negotiable" discussions for awhile.  

Once that was taken care of we worked on canter serpentines.  So perfect on the right.  Getting better on the left, but that right rein thing...  Eventually we worked our way down to the walk and spent time turning on the right rein and lifting the left front leg instead of falling on the left shoulder.  Seems to help if I hold that hand up much higher than normal and keep the right rein very steady (and yet remain soft and following).  Worked hard on sitting in the direction of travel in the corners.

The loop is easy

Schooled Gracie yesterday - lots of left lead canter work.  We can find that left hind leg faster now.  Then worked on canter-walk-canter.  Still really hard.  I mean really hard.  She pops me right out of the saddle, drops the right rein completely, throws her haunches all over the place.  sigh.

A little half-pass, trot and canter.  Sit in the direction of travel.  Not the outside.  The inside.  Also hard.  Left canter half-pass to straight to leg yield was better.  I am catching the hind quarters before they go flying off into the distance better.

Today I rode around the loop twice on Pico and once on Gracie.  Pico did a little leg yield at the walk and a little shoulder fore at the walk.  Mostly worked on tempo at the trot.  And relaxation of course.  He was his usual cute and adorable self.  Gracie loped a bit -- still amazes me that she can hold herself up well enough to lope now.   

Piaffe and Right Rein

I think it's going to be right rein all spring....

Started with Piaffe today -- I can stand in the barn aisle-way and get Gracie to lift her hind legs fairly quickly and without fuss, but to sit on her and let Frances ask for the same thing is much more difficult!  We did get some good steps, but it's much more challenging.  I need to get someone else to work on it with me at home.  From that we moved to half-steps.  I need to ask very slowly, keep my legs well back, and click in a good rhythm - that clicking part is really really difficult for me.  I think I need music in my ear that is approximately the correct beat, so I don't lose rhythm as I click.  So, in and out of half steps.  We did get some good ones and Gracie's trot is better after working on them.

Next we cantered around - 20m circles with a change of direction, so we focused on the canter-walk-canter transitions.  When I know I am changing directions I keep the outside rein, when I am not planning a change of direction I pull on the inside rein.  

On to trot half-pass.  Trot left,  turn on to center line, half pass a few steps left, straighten for 4 or 5 steps, change bend, half-pass right 3 or 4 steps.   Keep that right leg on her to keep the hind legs engaged and stop the hind end from swinging right as soon as I try to change the bend.  The change of bend is the shoulders coming around my leg not the hind end wiggling all over.  

Last, Canter half-pass.  Exercise is to come around the end of the arena, half-pass to center line, canter straight up center line 5 or 6 strides, then half-circle to wall, half-pass to center line, etc.  Nice and repetitive. Relaxing.  On the right we were pretty good - nice, balanced half-pass, if I held my left rein we could be straight up the center line and could get a decent half circle.  To the left......  the right rein issue reared its ugly head again.  It takes the right rein to hold the hind quarters straight in the straight part of the exercise.  I didn't usually have right rein, so we changed the exercise.  half-pass to center line, then leg yield back to rail.  I have to think haunches for to get the hind end over where it belongs in the leg yield (straight behind the shoulders).  We did that once successfully and by then Gracie was cooked.

Great lesson with a lot of stuff to work on at home.  Next lesson Thursday after Christmas.

Right Rein

Round the loop with Lindsay K today, then into the arena to locate the right rein.  I am really good at letting myself be sucked into sitting left and pulling on the left rein.  We worked on half steps bcz that seems to help Gracie find her balance, which in turn helps with the right rein.  Then 10m canter circles to the left.  She did sit right away, but still leans in and sucks me onto my left seat bone, talks me into dropping my left shoulder, etc.  A little shoulder in helped a lot, and is getting much better.  

One flying change each way.  Not fantastic, but not awful.  We are ending up a little more balanced after the left to right change.  Long ways from sequences.  I need to close my eyes to feel her hind legs, so I can ask properly. (tiny ask or she kicks out).

Half steps -- legs way back, sit forward.  In is hard, out is easy.  Also worked a tad on lifting hing legs at the trailer.  She offers the front steps, so if I get the back steps we will have piaffe. :^)

Loop on Pico yesterday.  Working on standing up instead of leaning on shoulders one way and then the other.  Did the hind leg lifts on him also just in case he wants to start piaffe soon.

Piaffe

Spent yesterday's lesson on Piaffe.  Started with Frances on the ground tapping the front of Gracie's hind legs one at a time with the Piaffe whip.  The goal was to get her to lift them, hold them up and forward, with no stress.  Gracie started out irritated, but as long as she got a treat every time she lifted her leg politely she was ultimately happy.  I did the same thing with her today and she obviously figured it out yesterday (especially the treat part).  

From there we moved on to half-steps.  Trot on a circle, collect, collect, collect, then move on.  To collect I have to shift my legs waaaay back and sit more forward, off Gracie's loins.  It's challenging to get her in and sitting, but then she moves off well.  I had more and more right rein as we went on. 

Then today I worked on the same, plus some 10 meter canter circles.  Left lead is going much better! There is some engagement of the left hind and a little right rein -- I still need more finesse, so I don't hold her up with the left rein.