Challenges

Today was full of challenges for Miss McKenna, along with the promise of future challenges.  I only managed to turn her out in the arena for about 3 minutes before a few people wanted to ride since it was raining.  She seemed tired from our lesson last night, so I figured I'd just get on and see what happened.

We started our ride by walking around next to my friend and her mare who has been rehabbing for 8 months from a stifle injury.  After a couple minutes we came around a corner and the other mare lost her marbles.  She jumped straight up and took off bucking and farting. McKenna lifter her head and pricked her ears at Bess, but that was it.  No freaking out, no nothing. I was so proud of her!  Through out the ride Bess kept having moments but it never phased McKenna.  Good baby!!

Our challenge tonight was the right lead canter.  McKenna didn't want to pick it up when I asked but kept trying to jump into it when I didn't ask.  She started having a bit of a meltdown as we were trotting around, so we switched to going left and went till she calmed down.  Once she was back with me mentally we switched directions again and worked on lateral work at the walk till she settled down again then we picked up the trot.  She kept twisting her head and trying to hop into the canter but once she gave me two nice circles in a row we called it quits. No point in pushing the baby any more than I already did.

 I made plans tonight to take McKenna down to a mountain trail course with my friend on Saturday.  The course is at a local show ground (they have an A rated H/J show there every year), they turn their main arena into a mini mountain with trees, logs, water, hills, and all sorts of things.  They have a big mountain trail show every fall (my barn owners had one of their horses show in it last week winning reserve in her division) and leave the course up for about a month for people to haul in and practice on. I took Buddy a couple years ago to school and had a blast.  My plan with McKenna is to hand walk her around everything and if she's good to ride in the western saddle.  I have no grand plans for anything, I just hope she's calm and able to relax.

Buddy and I goving over a giant bridge

 

 

Other sie of the bridge.  That's a water fall going in the background.