Wizard Rides 343, 344, & 345: A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You

Wednesday, 3/13/12

After work, I rode Wizard in the indoor arena. I set up a “course” of trot poles: line, diagonal, line, diagonal. We worked in bending, with shallow serpentines, and incorporated the trot poles into the ride. He was responsive and less swishy with his tail. He only pinned his ears once during the ride. It seems like the Springtime Wizard is back.

Saturday, 3/17/12

Wizard and I took a quick trail ride with Sunny and Lily. We took the short loop around, and then returned to the indoor arena for ring work. Wizard did not pin his ears at all when I got into the saddle, which was a first in months. Hooray! His hind foot slipped once while we were working on transitions from our little trot to our big trot. I also think he felt a tiny bit uneven. My friend could see it when he went around corners, too. Hmmm.

Curiosity got the best of me, and we tried a little canter work at the end of the ride. Zero improvement. Swishing tail, pulling on the bit, uneven in the hind end. Oh well.

We took the short loop again at the end of the ride, and then I sponged him off. The weather is incredibly warm, and Wizard is basically living outdoors these days, which seems to be very good for him.

Sunday, 3/18/12

My local tack shop was having a 20% off sale, so I finally picked up the Tory Leather Jumping Hackamore that I’ve always wanted to try. It is basically a piece of rolled leather with rings for the bridle and the reins. There is no criss-cross, and there are no shanks. It’s really basic.

I rode Wizard in the indoor arena, and he rode pretty well in it. He was very relaxed, but we did lose a lot of our refinement/bending/etc without a bit. I couldn’t really create any impulsion, so he was sort of dinking around the ring without using himself. Brakes and steering were fine. I did a lot of work on serpentines to keep him listening to me and to work on getting him bending around my leg. We were able to do transitions within the trot. The hackamore was a great tool for my equitation, too. It enabled me to keep a steadier contact with the reins, because Wizard was not fiddling with the bit. I was able to get him to stretch down, too. Wizard just likes the fact that he can eat bigger carrots with his hackamore than he can with his bit :^)

Like Saturday, I felt a little unevenness in his gait- it was super subtle, but I felt something. And we have about 2 weeks left of Lyme Disease treatment- woo-hoo! Then, I’ll have the vet come back out and evaluate him and decide our next step.

Wizard Ride 217: In Particular

Monday, 2/28/11

So on my quest to have more organized rides, I ended up having one more unorganized ride :^P

Wizard had a few days off and I did not let him play in the arena before I rode him. He was well-behaved, but I could tell that he was very “hot”, reverting back to his Seattle Slew War Dance during our trot work. Our ride was short, and we worked on transitions and simple bending exercises. At the canter, Wizard was snorty and unfocused- not disappointing or surprising. Oh, and my back is bothering me again. Hopefully we’ll be back on track soon.

JR Ride 9; Wizard Ride 52: Cue Theme From Rocky…

Thursday, 2/26/09

Today’s soundtrack: “Gonna Fly Now”, aka “Theme From Rocky”.

Players: An equine photographer, her mother, and two Italian stallions.

OK, so I did not swallow any raw eggs, but I certainly got my exercise today. Today’s training sessions began with a walk in hand on the trails with JR and my mom. JR was so much more confident on the trail today than he was the last time out. He’s always well-behaved, but I could tell that he was more relaxed this time, like he understood what we were doing and he was totally cool with it. The trail is a 20 minute loop and I walk fast. Mom kept up with us and all three of us were all warmed up and ready for the ride.

JR felt fantastic today. We worked on the exercises we did with Sarah last night: figure 8, skinny figure 8, serpentine, and adjusting our trot speed. When we were doing a forward trot, JR slipped into a canter for a few strides. A lot of green horses have awkward canters, but JR’s is quite wonderful! It’s springy :^) By the end of the ride, JR was again reaching for the bit a few times. He was relaxed and his rhythm was more steady. I rode for about 15 or 20 minutes- I was really pleased with our progress.

After our ride, I grazed JR and took a few pictures of him- he’s learning how to stand and pose for photos.

I gave JR a good grooming and put him in his stall.

Next victim: Wizard!

I tacked up Wizard and we walked the same 20-minute loop again. Wizard has a huge, magnificent walk and it took way more energy to keep up with him than JR. He was also very good on the trail- he looked excited but never misbehaved. Mom gamely kept up with us. By the time we got back from the walk, my mom and I were both exhausted! Walking at top speed with a strong horse over soft terrain is a full-body workout, that’s for sure.

I longed Wizard for about 15 minutes, working on moving the circles up and down the arena in both directions. My mom agreed that he looks more comfortable with the shoes. I mounted up and rode for a few minutes, working on our walk. Wizard was a little more energetic than usual, just like he was last night. He listened to my cues, but seemed more on his toes. You can see it in the photo below. He whinneyed when another horse called in the barn. When I had him relaxed and listening, I hopped off and put him on the longe for 3 rotations, just to see what he looked like when he was wound-up. He looked like he felt- on his toes but still behaving.

After my ride, I went into the outdoor arena and stood with Wizard for about 15 minutes, watching my barn buddies ride their horses. I used it as a schooling exercise. Wizard practically fell asleep. Perhaps he was just concerned about being the only horse in the indoor ring while everybody else was playing outside? I rode indoors to keep him focused but maybe I’ll try outdoors next time if there are horses around.

Whew! It was a long day. I was sweaty, dirty, and tired at the end, but it was a lot of fun.

To my blog reader friends: I’ll be in Harrisburg, PA for the Pennsylvania Horse World Expo so there will not be any new posts for the next day or so, but I promise to give a full update when I return! Have a great weekend.

JR Ride 1 (Session 4): Macaroni and Cheese

Monday 2/16/09

JR was kind enough to keep one side reasonably clean after his bath on Thursday. My friend Sarah remarked that his color was so pretty after the bath that he looked like a bowl of macaroni and cheese. Perhaps that can be his jumper show name ;^)

I tacked him up and we did a short longeing session. We worked at the walk and trot. He broke into a canter a few times and I used it as an opportunity to bring him back to the trot with verbal cues. JR is a lot heavier on the longe line than Wizard- it does not bother him at all to pull on the line. I do my best to use pressure and release to keep the circles reasonably round. JR was barely winded when I was done longeing him. He’s getting a little fitter and not getting as excited on the longe line. Hooray!

My friend Sarah rode JR for about 10 minutes. They walked, then trotted a few large figure 8s. She hopped off and said, “Your turn!”

I mounted up and was immediately amazed how sturdy he felt. He’s just over 15 hands but he is so round and substantial that my leg did not feel too long at all.

His mouth is way less sensitive than Wizard’s mouth. He did not mind if I played with the bit at all. I need to make sure I don’t get too handsy with him. He rode nicely in the Happy Mouth bit. It allowed him to keep very comfortable contact but he also had plenty of stopping power. I’m starting to really like these bits.

We walked for a few minutes, and then Sarah prepared me to trot. She reminded me that the first few steps might be a little bumpy because he’s green and finding his own balance. The trot transition actually felt easier than Wizard’s. I think it reminded me more of Alibar’s old trot- very Quarter Horsey. We trotted on a 20 meter circle each way, then rode around the entire arena. We worked on figure 8s and I learned how to work him through the center to help him balance, as well as how to ride him past the gate, where he likes to slow down. The lesson lasted about 20 minutes, which was really the most real riding I’ve done in months. The work I do with Wizard is much more at the walk and our trot work is in smaller bits, but JR is balanced and comfortable enough to start trot work already.

It felt really nice to do some meaningful work in the saddle. Speaking of the saddle, it was sliding to the side! The girth was definitely tight enough but the saddle still slipped. JR has nice withers but he is a round boy. I’ll need to do some tinkering to see if I can get the saddle to sit better on him.

When I was done riding JR, I groomed Wizard and brought him out to the arena to let him loose and stretch his legs. He seems a little more comfortable. I’m looking forward to the farrier appointment on Saturday. Hopefully a set of shoes on Wizard and a trim for JR will have me riding much more frequently.

Wizard Ride 45: I’m a Sensitive ‘Sole’

Wednesday, 2/4/09

I smiled a huge smile as I left work at 6pm today. Although the ground is covered in snow and the temperatures are in the teens, I saw a sign of spring: there was just a bit of glow on the horizon. It was not 100% pitch black dark out when I left work. Soon, the hint of a glow will be a rosy tint on the horizon. A few weeks later, it will be a sunset. Then, it will be broad daylight when I leave the office and I’ll be riding in daylight again on weekdays! Ahhhh, the life of an incurable optimist. I even cleaned my tack today :^)

When I arrived at the barn, I turned Wizard loose in the indoor arena to let him stretch his legs. Some days, he leaps and gambols. Some days, he wanders around and sniffs the jumps. Tonight, he played a bit but seemed content to hang around with me. He’s such a sweet guy- I really enjoy his personality.

I tacked Wizard up and tried the Roma Merino Sheepskin All Purpose Pad that I got for a big discount on Tack of the Day. I really like this pad. It seems durable and it sat beautifully on Wizard. It has a bit more padding on the withers, which is exactly what the chiropractor recommended. Check out how the saddle fits him. This is a Stubben Portos. Please note how Wizard is making friends with the scarecrow on the jump :^)

I hand walked Wizard for about 10 minutes to warm him up in the cold weather, then mounted up. With the new saddle pad, my girth was a bit loose. As I reached down to tighten it, a HUGE gust of wind blew past the arena door, sending a big swirl of snow into the barn, rattling the door, and startling me. Wizard, bless his heart, startled for a moment and relaxed when I spoke to him. Gold star for The Wizard!

We walked around the arena for about 10 minutes, stretching and working on accepting a little bit of contact. I headed to the far end of the ring where the footing was best. We rode on a large circle and I asked for a trot- we trotted about 5 or 6 circles with one or two walk breaks. He still does not feel right on the footing but he is responding wonderfully to my commands. I really want to get him more comfortable so we can progress further. If it is indeed tender soles, I need to find out why and talk to my farrier about whether of not it can be resolved.

Tomorrow is Wizard’s 13th birthday :^)