Jumping into Spring

 Spring made a brief appearance for a few weeks and thank goodness. We got some days in the 60s and some much needed sunshine, which lead to some much needed longer turnout times for the horses as well as the first baths of the season. 

Cinder was not nearly as amused as I was about bath time

Trainer M took a much deserved vacation, so assistant trainer I was doing the pro-rides and teaching lessons. AT I has a diverse equestrian background, and I really like her lessons as she takes a little bit from every discipline and has some fun and different exercises. She also really likes Cinder, as her own mare is almost exactly like Cin to ride, just in an Arabian barrel pony body. She made Cinder her pet project while M was gone, and the results are great.

We got to ride outside!

We had one ground pole lesson focusing on lead changes, and Cinder is about 80% of the way there. We can reliably get them over the poles, but I still struggle to get them without the pole while M and AT I can get them. I can either get her forward but lose the ability to move her laterally, or I can move her laterally but then I lose the impulsion. Doing both at the same time is hard. But thankfully now that it's warming up I can carry a whip or put on spurs, without Cinder blowing up, and that will help with the impulsion and lateral movement issues. 

I jumped the scary (to me) wall for the first time

 In prep for show season starting at the end of the month, we've been jumping a bit more as well. AT I set a fun gymnastic course for one lesson, mainly larger cross rails with bounce cavalettis on either side. Cinder really started using her hind more and I can feel more power in her jump. This past Saturday's course also had some large cross rails bounces, a couple oxers, and the wall. She actually jumped me out of the tack over one of the bounces and was really sitting on her haunches and just flipping around my leg in the turns. It's definitely the best she's felt and gone in a long time. 

Cinder gets her teeth done this week and then her Coggins and EEVCI next week and we should be good to go for the start of show season!

Word-Lite Wednesday

 I'm taking Emma's lead and doing a word-lite Wednesday instead of a wordless Wednesday. 

The past month's been rough but there's light at the end of the tunnel. The weather in February was cold, cold, and more cold, with a couple days of snow and then a shit ton of rain. It is warm now, thankfully. The horses stayed in for the two days of snow mainly because we got a thin layer of ice before the snow and walking outside was a slip and fall waiting to happen. Cinder was so wound up we spent an hour lunging and doing ground work before I could get on. We then trotted two circles before some snow slid off the roof and I elected to dismount before I was rocket launched into the rafters. 

Assistant Trainer I has been setting courses/exercises for us and draws them out on a little whiteboard next to the tack room. I appreciate that she puts what the strides are supposed to be. We did this course the week before the snow and except for coming in too quietly the first time and getting 6s across the diagonals, it was a lot of fun. 

Last Saturday Cinder felt much more like her normal self and we were able to do more than just trot a few circles, including a grid that was a bounce to a one to a one. We were the only ones in our lesson doing the grid, so we had warmed up over some other fences then waited while everyone else jumped. When we went to the grid the first time, Cinder thought she was done and was no where near in front of my leg which caused us to do a two in the first one, and then she had to superman launch out over the last fence. 

God bless her, she thought about bailing out to the inside but I put my leg on and did my best eventer impersonation and she got us out of it.

We were able to successfully go through the grid the way it was intended to be jumped. 

Spooky Season

Autumn has arrived in the past few weeks with a drop in temps and the start of rainy season. Cinder loves the colder weather and now that's she feeling much better after her abscess we have a very spicy, spooky mare on our hands. 

Halloween jump decoration is perfectly fine with her

She had an absolute meltdown in the outdoor arena a few weeks ago, when jumps that had been used at the horse show returned home for the winter and were stacked in the corner of the outdoor. She's jumped all these poles and the coop multiple times, but god forbid they hang out on the pole rack in the corner. Cinder is fine going past the spooky corner when we're jumping, but as soon as you're walking and not doing anything, she's trying to spin and rear. She got so bad during one of my lessons that Trainer M got on her and had a little discussion. 

Said scary poles and coop

She has thankfully gained all the weight back that she lost over summer so we cut her grain back and M has been making it a point to work her more outside, weather permitting. I haven't been able to ride outside since her big meltdown because by the time I get off work and get to the barn it's dark or and when I've ridden on the weekend its been raining. 

The mounting block was strategically placed there for a certain red mare

But we've also had our share of spooky things in the indoor. M has been setting a lot of gymnastic exercises with the poles/cavaletti/brush boxes and Cinder took a lot of offense at being asked to trot into the exercise above. She thought it would be much easier to go around the boxes than over them. How dare we ask her to use her body and sit on her hind end over two little bounces. I foresee a winter of skinnies and gymnastics in our future. 

Assist Me

 Trainer M's program includes two assistant trainers, ML and N. ML usually teaches the beginners, while N usually plays more of a barn manager/show groom role and teaches when M is on vacation. Well, Trainer M has been on vacation for the last week and a half, so not only have we had our first lessons with both ML and N, but Cinder has been ridden by both of them as well. For those that are counting, N was person #4 to ride Cin, and ML was #5. 

sharing the last of the show pics

I was a touch skeptical going into my lessons with both AT ML and AT N, mainly because I haven't really seen them teach much. I have seen N ride, and she's a very soft, sympathetic rider so I figured she'd be ok with Cin. I got good reports back on Cin's pro-rides; she did try to pull some "who the hell are you" shit with N, but they worked through it. ML told me she's a sucker for a chestnut mare and prefers the hunters, so she loved Cinder. ML also took Cin out on her first trail ride around the property and said she was perfect. 

I've have enjoyed my lessons with both ML and N. The weather's been cold and rainy, so we've been focusing on pole and cavaletti work in the indoor. We struggled a bit in our lesson last Thursday doing a  quasi circle of death, it was cavaletti on the short side, to a cavaletti bounce, two strides to another bounce on the long side, ground pole on the short side, to another cavaletti bounce then a short five strides to a ground pole on the other long side. Cinder said no thanks, that's a lot of work, and kept trying to duck out to the left when we were tracking right. N mentioned that I was dropping my inside shoulder, which I've heard plenty of times before, but suggested I think about dropping my outside shoulder to square myself up and help hold a counter bend so Cin can't run out to the left, and I've never heard it phrased like that. It really helped. I have to remind myself that it's good to lesson with different people, even if it's just to hear something I've heard dozens of times said in a different way that makes more sense. 

New Rhythms

 Cinder seems to have settled in at MDT. The first few rides she felt wound up and a little manic under saddle for a bit, and then would settle. This weekend when I rode she didn't feel that way, even though we had a windstorm both days. 

We had our first group lesson last Thursday. It was just me and one other ammy, though there will usually be three of us. We started in the indoor arena working over some very narrow, about 3', trot poles. Depending on how we approached the poles, we were to turn on the rail and leg yield out to the them, or do them on the rail and then leg yield to the quarter line. Cinder was slightly confused at the tiny poles, but when we went to canter them she took full advantage and sidestepped them a few time. Definitely a test as to how accurate and straight your horse is. 

I watched a bit of the lesson before mine and Cinder was visible through the open window

We then moved outside and after a couple of laps to see everything, started jumping. Trainer M set one single fence that started as a cross rail, then a vertical, and then a bigger vertical. We did each height once each way. For Cin and I, it was mainly just for M to see where we were and how Cin goes. She was great, just hopped over the fence each time without any issue. The other horse in the lesson, a hotter OTTB jumper mare, had had some time off and was jumping for the first time in a few months and was very excited. They did a little more work than Cin and I did, and I'm 99% certain Cinder really liked that aspect of group lessons. Stand in the middle and chill while the other horse works? Sign her up. 

M rode her twice last week and noted a few things that I have also been wanting to work on. We spent a bit in my Saturday lesson talking about how Cin needs to have a bit more of a metronome quality to her canter, which is easier in the summer and in a bigger outdoor vs a smaller indoor, and how she can be a bit noodley to the fences.  In my lesson we worked on asking for more pace and impulsion in the canter, and then did some lead change work. We started by cantering a figure eight and asking for a simple change. Cin quickly figured out the game and would offer a flying, but would trail her hind end a stride or two. Trainer M then put out a cavaletti and had us ask over that which helped. Cinder was definitely getting tired, but held it together and  we were able to end on a good note. 

Back in the Groove

 It seems Cinder's excitement in our first ride back wasn't a one off; she was amped for most of last week. I had my first lesson back last Friday, and Trainer A told me that she had already ridden Cin earlier in the day since she had "that look" in her eye when being turned out. And she was still really up for my lesson. Not going to lie, I had some major nerves, and almost asked A to get back on her for my lesson, but managed to push through. 

Finally got our ribbons from USHJA Outreach 

Cinder had Saturday off, and then was hoof perfect for our ride on Sunday. I did free lunge first, but from the start her eye was softer and she wasn't as manic in crossties as she had been on Friday. I even worked up the courage to use the whole arena, and trotted and cantered the ground poles set out. 

I had another lesson on Monday, and again, Cin was perfect from the get go. All the jumps had been taken down to piles of poles, so we warmed up quickly on the flat and then started trotting and cantering the piles before A set them back to jumps. We mainly trotted everything, as they were little and Cinder couldn't be bothered to actually jump them, except for a crossrail with brown poles that was evidently very impressive and she overjumped every time. I did get left behind a couple of times, but once I figured out she didn't like that jump, I was better about anticipating and staying with her. We finished by cantering a few things, and thankfully my eye didn't disappear in the few months I didn't ride. We quit early since Cin was being so good, and then I had me pose for the pic above since the sunset was so pretty. 

Winter Work

 I know its still technically Fall, but it feels like Winter. The days are dark and short, its cold and wet, horses are bundled up in their blankets, and show season is over. Our rides lately have been more focused on finesse and flatwork, and less on jumping and course work. 

No stirrup lunge line lesson for No Stirrup November

We had our first lunge line lesson last week, and I was happily surprised at how well it went. Giving up control of the reins was hard for me, but a good 50% of the lesson was at the walk so it wasn't too bad. We started out with lots of stretching and rotating of body parts. Cinder was slightly confused with me waving my arms and legs around, but was more than happy to just walk a slow circle around A. She got more concerned once we started trotting and I flailed a little up there. I realized I haven't really done no stirrup work with her; I've done some at the walk but haven't trusted her up to this point to do it at the trot. Thankfully her trot is pretty darn comfy, and once she figured out she was allowed to do a western jog and I found my balance, we had a fun time. 

Just in case you think Cinder is all grown up now, she went on a hunger strike and refused to eat her supplements so now she gets a small scoop of candy with her grain.

About half of the IL horses in the barn were/are still in Thermal for their winter circuit and when they're gone not a lot of jumps are set. One of their at home assistants set up a fun little box exercise, with a one stride going up the center line, a bounce going across from E-B, and four single fences going diagonally out from the corners of the box. We played around with that configuration for a couple of weeks, doing the jumps as singles, then trying to angle them and do the two on each side as in and out. Cinder was very confused the first time we tried the angled in and out, but jumped no matter how poor my steering was. Once she figured it out she kept going for the direct two strides, instead of the bending three trainer A wanted me to get. 

She was in full blown heat over the weekend and was much more interested in where the other horses were than in working.

We also had lessons where Trainer A took the jumps down and we did different pole exercises. Walk poles, trot poles, canter poles, trotting into the box and halting before the trotting out of the box, etc. We even attempted a turn on the haunches in the box, which Cinder thought was very stupid. I told her to channel her 12.5% APHA pleasure horse blood, and she said no thank you, I prefer to go over the poles, not move my body around them. 

The Fun Stuff

 Last Friday I was happy to see a few fences set up in ring for my lesson. My brain was still fried from our dressage heavy lessons and jumping felt so much easier. Our warm-up was pretty short and sweet, focusing on getting Cinder forward with minimal effort on my part. We did some shortening and lengthening of her stride to check adjustability before we started to jump. 

Cin's nickname in the barn is Hotdog, so when I saw the Mane Jane hotdog spur straps, I had to get them. Now I'm on the hunt for a hotdog charm to clip into her braids. 

We started over fences with a cross rail on a diagonal going back and forth, stopping on a straight line. We then moved on to two brush boxes that were set up on the center line with no standards. I was slightly worried because Cin can sometimes get wiggly to jumps without standards and has run out before, but she was totally fine with these. 

There were two outside verticals set and we did those in a big circle. A wanted me to make the circle big enough that it wasn't a jumper turn to them, but not so big that I was cantering in space forever. The first time through them Cin was a bit behind my leg and I had to move her up a bit to both. They weren't bad jumps, but not super great ones either. During our second pass I thought I had her in front of my leg, but when I went to steady to both fences she broke to the trot. But third time was the charm. We did a circle before starting and I made sure to rev her up a bit and both fences flowed really well. We quit on that good note. 

The barn hosted a Muddy Princess mud run over the weekend and they parked in Cin's pasture and she was concerned about it

For my lesson on Monday, A asked if I wanted to jump or flat. The same few fences were set up, along with a mini jump chute. To both of our surprise, I said flat. The jump configuration was a little boring and why waste time and effort on them again. In the trot work we did some small circles, focusing on bringing the outside shoulder around and getting Cinder to really sit on her butt. A said she wanted to play around with baby walk pirouettes, something Cin's never done. It took me a few tries to understand how much I had to whoa with my hand, but go with my leg. 

After a few attempts each way, as I was coming out of a pirouette, A told me to canter and both Cinder and I were like WTF? I asked and she kinda scrambled into it. Poor Cin felt overwhelmed but she stayed with me and kept trying. A would have us canter a few circles, back to the walk, walk pirouette a time or two, then back to canter out of the pirouette. Our attempts were very rough and much more huntery than real dressagey, but I was proud of both of us for toughing it out.  Cinder said it was very hard work and that she was very tired. I told A that it was really fun and that I like this type of dressage. 

Mental Game

 After the show Cinder got a few days off, then a couple light rides by Trainer A. I had a lesson last Friday, and A wanted to pick up right where we left off at the show, and had us do a brief flat warm up, then got right to the jumping. I was 100% expecting a flat lesson after the show, so I wasn't mentally prepared to just jump right into the jumping and I let my anxiety get the better of me a bit. For the most part, my mental game lately with Cin has been great; I've been managing her spookiness and baby moments at home and at shows really well and I know I'm capable of riding her through just about anything and I know she's going to jump whatever we put in front of her. But last Friday I started doubting myself a bit. 

The show photographer hasn't posted anything or replied to the email I sent so all you get is blurry screen shots

Trainer A handled my mini meltdown really well, and had me do flat work and would occasionally call out for me to pick up a jump. Lots of transitions, figures, changes of directions. Basically she said she was treating me like a nervous horse and giving me a lot to do without time to anticipate anything. And it worked. We ended the lesson on a good note. 

Always pat your pony

I flatted her last Sunday and then asked A what we were doing for our Monday lesson. Usually our Monday lessons are flat, and we jump in our Friday lessons. A wants Cin to jump in the martingale, so I wanted to know A) so I could mentally prepare, and B) know what to tack her up in. A told me I could pick, and since she's gone at a horse trial this weekend and I don't have a lesson today, I said jump. I (always) need more help over fences, and I didn't want to go too long between jump lessons and let any insecurities build up. 

So tired

It was almost 90* during my lesson, and heat=a very behind my leg Cinder. We did a quick and dirty flat warm up while A finished the lesson before mine. Over fences we warmed up with a single on the center line before A had us move onto two single diagonal oxers. She had us do the long approach to both of them, working on getting our pace along the short side and maintaining it and not picking to fences. I kept seeing a slightly waiting distance to one of them, but I made it work and A said she was happy with it. The other one I was able to see farther out and could move Cin up to it. A had put the single on the center line up a hole and then had me take it from the opposite direction we had warmed up over. I kept not being able to see the distance and Cinder was fairly tired and we had a couple pretty awkward jumps. The first time Cin didn't realize it had gotten bigger and pretty much jumped into the top rail.  I finally started riding and packaged her a bit more to add a stride and it worked out much better. We quit with one nice one since both Cin and I were hot and tired. I was very happy that even though I couldn't see the distance to the center jump to save my life I trusted Cin to get us over till I could pull myself together enough to help her out. 

More of the Same

 Not much exciting going on over in Cinder land. She's recovered from her fat/scraped leg and went back to work with no issues. I have decided that she's not getting advanced warning about future shows just incase she decides to injure herself right before them again. 

Trail walkies

She definitely did struggle with the heat wave we had, and will probably have again later this summer, so thanks to Trainer A and tube of dorm gel, she got her first body clip. She loved having her back clipped and was leaning into the clippers but was not pleased about her head and legs getting done. Which is what we expected, hence the dorm. I'm just thankful that her clipped coat color is pretty much the same as her normal coat color and she doesn't have that weird orangey tint that some chestnuts get when clipped. 

She absolutely does not like the sound of the water coming out of the culvert, so we spend time hanging out and grazing near it for exposure therapy

We've had some really good lessons lately, continuing to build on our lateral work and getting me more comfortable with a little more pace in the canter. My main mantra right now is "Shoulders in, haunches out." Trainer A did try to kill me in my jump lesson last week when she picked a pole up off the ground and spooked the shit out of Cinder. We were like halfway across the arena, but A was behind us. I didn't see what happened, just felt Cin tuck her butt, scoot forward, then start dolphin leaping. We recovered, cantered a circle, and were able to continue on to our next line, which earned me a "nice recovery". I'm getting more comfortable handling Cin's spooks and returning to work like no big deal, which has been really good for my confidence. 

I'm hoping we can continue this momentum going forward, as we've got some fun summer plans. I'm not spilling the beans, but Cinder is now registered with USEF and I've renewed my USEF registration for the first time since 2009. Please stop injuring yourself Cinder, we have places to go and things to do!

Feeling Good

 Cinder has been feeling really, really good lately. Between the bit change, body work, and injections, she almost feels like a brand new horse. And she's growing up mentally as well. 

She also looks very cute in her breastplate

Last Friday it was super windy, and one of the metal sheets on the side of the arena came loose. It would periodically bang against the wood beams pretty loudly. There was also a pipe at the far end of the arena that had broken, so a couple of the handymen at the barn were working on it. For the most part they were out of sight, but would occasionally drill/saw things making loud noises, and would pop around the corner of the arena and up from the ground at weird intervals. To say it was a Very Spooky Day™ was an understatement. 

I legitatmently thought about pulling the ammy card and cancelling my lesson, but I was already on and figured we could have a walk/trot lesson, at the close end of the arena away from the noises and people. Cinder started out pretty tense, and spun once at the metal sheet banging, but once the lesson started she settled. We worked on shoulder in and haunches in on a circle, going back and forth between the two before incorporating a set of raised trot poles into the circle. Cinder wanted to rush the poles, so I was instructed to bring her down to a walk three to four strides out and walk over them. We did this a few times each way before she got the idea and then were able to trot them without rushing. 

She got a massage on Saturday and was so relaxed the body worker was afraid she was going to fall down in the crossties.

  From there we moved on to trotting two diagonal piles of poles, figure eighting them. Trainer A then set them up to cross rails. My instructions were to treat them exactly like the pile of poles, and to not change anything. Cinder was great over them, and landed in a nice quiet canter each time. As I was coming around the corner to one of the x's (on the diagonal from the far end of the arena heading straight at the gate) one of the handymen drove up on the four wheeler, spraying gravel as he came into the storage space at the end of the indoor, right behind us. Cinder very slowly stopped, spun, and snorted at him. It was a very controlled spook, like she knew she needed to keep it together but was terrified at the same time.  We walked, then trotted a circle, jumped the cross rail and called it a day. Both A and I were very impressed with how well Cin handled the four wheeler coming up behind her, and that she was able to go right back to work. No need to pusher her anymore that day. 

Getting me more comfortable with the long spots

I had another lesson Monday night (we're switching from two trainer rides/one lesson per week to one trainer ride/two lessons per week this month) and it was the best lesson I've had in months. Cinder and I both felt on it from the get go. We worked over the raised trot poles from the previous lesson, and then started jumping a single cross rail on a circle, first at the trot then canter. I'm trying to work on letting go at the canter, and being more comfortable with a longer take off spot. We then went back to the two diagonal fences, which were now verticals with boxes under them. We did each a couple of times then moved onto a line of poles. I realized later A was trying to keep me on my toes, and not let me get too focused on one exercise or stress about doing something perfectly. It's a good strategy for me.

The line of poles was set as a five stride and A wanted me to get five, then six. Cinder isn't convinced that shortening her stride is a thing she needs to do, and it took me a few tries to get the six. It took a much more physical ride than I was expecting, but we got it done. To finish off the lesson, we did the line of poles in five, then did the other outside line which was a cross rail to some boxes. My directions were to let her flow, get the five and then don't change anything to get seven in the other line. I think I was so tired by this point, I couldn't do anything but let her flow. We go to the first pole long, but I just sat up and kept leg on her and the five worked out. We got a little short to the cross rail, but I let that go and focused on riding the rhythm to get the seven and it worked out great. Considering I haven't been jumping regularly since like October, I was really happy with how we did. 
 

December Photo Dump

 Since I’m behind in blogging, I figured I’ll just speak through photos instead of trying to get everything down. And hopefully the formatting works; I’m stuck in an airport typing this on my tablet. 

While we had some good rides at the beginning of the month, the cold weather plus a full and busy barn (IL had been at shows for 7wks and everyone is finally home again so the barn is BUSY), Cinder got a little amped and we’ve had some tense rides. A is also pushing us in the flat work and man is real dressage work hard. 

Cinder was a very good girl for A and went in the water jump with zero hesitation after not seeing it for months. She also isn’t phased by the vineyard getting installed on the big hill.

I audited an Anne Kursinski clinic and it was awesome. She’s a very old school type clinician and I was glad I wasn’t riding in it. I did get a few great takeaways (count out loud to your jump from farther away than you think and proper flat work is key). 

Cinder had a gas colic and while she seemed to come out of it well, I wanted to hang around the barn till we had poop. Trainer A offered me the ride on Sal while I was waiting. He’s a 21yr old, ex-1.45m jumper who was a stud till he was 19. He’s been teaching beginners how to jump for the past few years. He is so much fun! It felt weird riding a horse that isn’t mine, but he’s so well schooled it was great to just focus on myself for once. His owner has offered A a breeding to him so we’ll have a Sal baby to play with next year!

Two days after her colic, the temps dropped into the single digits and Cin’s barn saw snow and ice. Horses stayed in for three days, getting some arena turnout time. By Christmas (the fourth day) it was almost 60 and the ponies were psycho. I lunged Cin on Christmas and rode the next day where she proceeded to spook at the tree that’s been in the viewing room for weeks. We did lots of circles and transitions but she was still convinced the grinch was out to get her. 

We started 2023 by having a fantastic ride where she was soft, listening, and just over all really fun. We had the barn to ourselves and I think the quiet atmosphere really helped. We had a lesson the next day and while the barn was relatively quiet, both of us were more tense. It didn’t help that A really asked a lot of us in the lesson and I let my frustration at not being able to get what she wanted show. I know progress isn’t linear and that Cin is only 5 and has had an easy few weeks, but sometimes when you’re in the middle of that slough it’s hard to remember. Here’s hoping for more consistent good rides as we head into Cinder’s six year old year!

Back and Better than Before

 Since my last post was almost a month ago, whoops, Cinder has come back, and better than ever. Her grooming aversion is gone, she hasn't tried to kill anyone while getting blanketed/unblanketed, she's put some weight back on, and her flat work is improving by leaps and bounds. She's still grouchy when getting girthed up, but it's getting better and for only being three weeks into her ulcer treatment, I'm not too concerned that it hasn't gone away yet. I did buy a Mattes sheepskin girth from Hufglocken during Black Friday that's supposed to be better contoured for her body shape, so maybe that will help. 

every ride lately has been lovely, but I have no media of said rides

We've really been focusing on moving different parts of her body around, and asking her to take the connection and self carriage to the next level. As Trainer A said in one of my recent lessons, "The buttons are installed, now we're finessing and refining the buttons." In our trot work we go back and forth between shoulder in and haunches in, both down the long sides and on circles, and we've started shortening and lengthening her stride. I'm to focus on shortening her stride with my body, not my hands. The first time we worked on this I was nearly dead by the end of the lesson, but it's gotten easier for both of us and it seems like every ride I have to do less and less to get her to do more. 

she whacked the bottom of her fetlock and it was just swollen enough for me to put wraps on overnight. she was not amused

The biggest improvement has been in the right lead canter. That's always been our trouble direction, and it still is, but we've gotten moments where everything comes together and it's absolutely lovely. A has had me think shoulder fore in the canter, and to be really on Cin about giving to the bit. There were a couple rides where we had some pretty ugly canter before she gave in, but once she does I can soften and just half halt every second or third stride to keep her there. And again, each ride it's getting easier and easier to get her there and she's capable of keeping that canter for longer and longer. I told A in my last lesson that the canter is getting so much fun to ride, even the bad moments because I know we can get this dream canter out of it. I'm pretty sure I look ridiculous riding around with the world's biggest grin of my face. 

Plotting chaos

In the past couple of months, Cinder's turnout group had been frequently rotated, and her stall neighbor had been on stall rest for kicking himself in the leg. He had been getting very bored, and very angry, and kicking the walls a lot which I think caused Cin a lot of stress. But he's back on turnout, and can start under saddle work next week, and Cin's turnout group has stabilized. I think this, in combo with the ulcer meds has really helped. She's out with two other mares, and the three of them have become a giant chaos unit. The three of them are frequently huddled together, and two weeks ago Cinder and Jazzy were in flaming heat and taunting the boys across the fence. There's been two ripped blankets, three pulled bell boots, and one lost shoe in the month they've been out together. But the girls are devoted to each other and I'm happy that Cinder has her BFFs. 

The Good and the Bad

 Let's start with the good. Cinder has been absolutely great the past couple of weeks. We did manage to get a lesson in with A two weeks ago, and while Cinder was little more up and distracted that she has been lately, we had a couple of great breakthrough moments. 

One thing A said really clicked with me. Instead of thinking of pulling my elbows back, I'm to think of pulling them down. Once I got that visual in my head, I was able to put Cinder together and we had some really nice trot work. I can't remember elbows down for very long, and Cinder is still building muscle so she can't hold herself together for very long, but every ride since then we've been able to get that feeling back. 

We also had a lesson last week with J. I told her what A had me work on, and she expanded on that. Cinder has developed a fun little habit of popping her left shoulder out while cantering to the right, especially as we go past the gate. Friend A had Scottie out during part of my lesson and while Cinder handled her buddy being around and having to work, once Scottie left, she really, really starting bulging out towards the gate. At one point my left leg almost hit a fence post. We had a little discussion involving my left heel and her side. And what do you know, our next canter circle was probably our best one yet. She was listening, actually straight, and was able to come into my hand and we had a few strides of this lovely, floaty canter.

Someone was not happy about trailer loading practice

 

In the bad news department, Peebs reinjured himself and made the very tiny lesion he had much bigger. About ten days ago he tripped while we were trotting. He had scraped up the knee on his good leg and we think he hyperextended his bad leg to catch himself. I took him in yesterday to ultrasound the leg and make a new rehab plan. He's getting a Pro-Stride injection next week, is on Previcox and 10mins of hand grazing for now, and then we'll restart with the hand walking. I'm pretty sure this was actually part of his plan to just be fully retired. F-ing horses, amiright?

Honeymoon Over

 Baby horses are hard. I brought  Cinder home June 30th and am just now feeling like we’re approaching where we were when I brought her home. The transition from her being ridden by Trainer A three times a week and me having one lesson a week plus one ride on my own to me riding solo was rough. Not that Cinder’s been naughty or bad, she’s actually been really good. It’s more my mental state and trying not to pass along my anxiety to her. 

The day after bringing her home we had a lesson with my regular trainer J and it went really well. Cinder was her normal laid back self and J was happy with how she was going. Our next couple of rides is when the wheels started falling off. Cinder got a little spooky at the far end of the arena, I got even more busy and burnt out at work and my anxiety got the best of me. I was scared to ride her in the spooky end, scared to push her when she was being resistant, and just generally terrified I’d come off her again. 

It didn’t help that I got a message from one of Trainer S’s (the first trainer I sent Cin to) students telling me that while she wished me the best, me posting about Cinder being good for me was hard for her to see because she felt like I was being mean to S. She felt like I was lying and proceeded to tell me about how other trainers had done was worse things to her than what S did to me/Cinder. You know what’s not great for an already anxious and stressed out person? Someone they really don’t know that well shitting on their experience and saying how they’ve had it worse so you shouldn’t complain. I was pretty much ready to sell both my horses and live as a recluse at that point. 

And of course during this time J and I couldn’t coordinate our schedules for another lesson. We did finally have one a week ago and I spent the first ten minutes dumping all my emotions onto J. We came up with a game plan going forward and actually managed to have two other lessons last week as well. Each lesson and each ride has felt better and better. I’m feeling much more confident with myself and Cinder, and J has told me that I’m not allowed to put Cinder up for sale. She, and Trainer A, fully believe that Cinder will be the horse I want her to be, I just need to believe in myself, my riding, and in her.

1.25 out of 2

 Technically I had a lesson and jumped both horses last week, just one lesson was abruptly cut short. Peebs has been s l o w l y transitioning onto his summer paddock with more grass, and has had a bit of the fresh grass crazies last week. So before my lesson on Wednesday I lunged. He had a couple good sized bucks to let loose, but looked fine otherwise. 

We warmed up on the flat, felt fine. Trotted two crossrails to warm up, felt fine. Landed after the third crossrail and came back to the trot for a few strides before walking. Trainer told me to pick up the trot again and let him go on loose rein. Not fine. It was slight, but Peebs had a head bob. Changed directions, and yep, lame. Not drastically, but lame. Trainer came over and pulled off his open front boot (but not his bell boot) and didn't feel or see anything on the leg. Picked up his foot, and nothing. So we ended the lesson and I went to cold hose and wrap my pony.

Our first jump together

 

Before cold hosing, I pulled Peebs' bell boots (he normally lives in them) and what do you know? On the inside of his right front pastern (the lame leg) he had a small, fresh scrape. My working theory is that somehow while jumping the third crossrail he whacked himself through the bell boot hard enough to cut himself. I did cold hose, wash the scrape and put ointment on it, plus gave him a gram of bute just in case. He got Thursday and Friday off, lunged sound on Saturday and felt fine for a light hack yesterday. Fingers crossed it doesn't rain like it's supposed to this afternoon and I can jump him and hopefully do more than three crossrails. 

 

I had my lesson on Cinder on Friday, and as I was walking to warm up Trainer A asked how I felt about jumping her that day. I told her I felt great about it, provided I didn't make her go lame a la Peebs. In our flat work A had me think about channeling my inner DQ and ride Cinder a little more "collected" for a few strides, before softening and letting her go more huntery. We also started doing some baby leg yields in the trot. I was able to get her more put together in the canter than I was last week. 

 

When we moved on to jumping, A told me to just trot around and pick up fences as I felt comfortable. Cinder jumps way rounder over crossrails than Peebs does, and it took a little bit to find my balance with her and not get left behind. But as much as she tends to jump up over the fences, she lands quietly and continues on like nothing happened. Totally not phased at all by the fences or me flopping around up on her. At one point after a few fences A asked if I wanted to canter something, and then laughed at the look of horror I gave her. But I pulled up my big girl breeches and cantered the outside line like she told me to do.

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A post shared by Molly Basney (@mollybasney)

Cinder has a really nice natural rhythm that made finding the distance easy. Like I could sit up, keep my leg on and it was there. She's a bit like riding a drunken sailor down the line, but even knowing the second distance was going to be a little long, I just kept my leg on and trusted her.  She's so much fun, can't wait to jump her again!