Ride 19: and a REAL XC jump!
Today was exciting but in good ways!
I got home early and it was a little warmer than I had thought so I pulled clothes off. And Mike decided to wash the car so... that set the ponies off. They were rowdy! Lyric was doing laps and bucking. Even Fleck was bucking.... I figured that with Mike still washing the car and playing his music loudly... I'd work Dan first. Lyric could wait!
The timing was great because Mike went to go get the jag gassed up when I was ready to get Lyric so we were able to calmly go to the trailer and get lunch. She loaded right up today and ate pretty steadily without coming off for a good bit. She did go on and off a few times towards the end, but not as bad. Then we groomed and tacked up. I opted for the jump saddle today to see if that really was what was jazzing her up. We walked up to the arena and then did our pillar walks. Then I lunged. And... she was a bit more animated at the lunge today. Nothing bad, but.... after we went left, and then turned right... I couldn't get her to come down to the halt so that I could go back the other way for a few minutes. She wasn't running, but she wasn't nearly as relaxed as the day before. But we did get some good stretching. I finally got her turned back around again and we some better stretching and she seemed to breathe. And she was good when I got on. No bolting or anything, so.. maybe it's not the saddle. Or if it is, it's early on in the game. We had a pretty good ride. She's catching on to my seat aids and diagonals pretty nicely. I didn't bother cantering today because... I had other plans. ;)
We finished with some nice trotting and then I made her walk for a minute. Then we did the gate. She's getting better at that too! Then we walked up to the cross country jumps. I just have those three little rounded coops in a line. The smallest one is probably tadpole? She walked up to it and almost acted like she would go over it, so I pulled her off. We then turned and went to pick up the trot and I realized Dan was grazing right behind it. Move Dan!! ha ha. I finally got him chased off and then we trotted to it. She squirted around it the first time so we tried again. She jumped/trotted over it. Good girl! We did that two more times and she seemed to not really care. So then I asked for the canter. Again, the first time she squirted around it. But then she got it! Good girl! So we did it two more times at the canter and she got better each time. I actually think she found it fun! She didn't bolt on landing and she was good cantering in the pasture. YAY! Good girl.
After that we headed back in and she got the rest of her lunch. She didn't want to walk in when I stood on the right side of her but did eventually. But then she backed off and was untrusting, so I went back to the good side and she went in and finished her lunch. Then back out she got to go while I played with Funny and then got dinner ready. She got to eat dinner and wear the bemer (this time with the straps all attached!). Good girl!
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