The vet sent me an invoice for Monday’s appointment and I realized that for the first time in a very long time, I don’t have another appointment to look toward. This is it. It’s not going to be normal to see her every two or three weeks.

I’ll probably still see her around on a regular basis, but it won’t quite be the same.

It’s funny how you get into patterns like that and what was once normal now seems weird and uncomfortable.

Two things I’ve read today that I’ve liked quite a bit.

First, an excellent post from Mustang Adventures about a defensive trail riding clinic.

Jerry walked around the arena, but with big, menacing, scary, purposeful energy. He didn’t even have to wave his arms or shout or “do anything” that looked scary, but the horses definitely got the vibe and all shied away from him, so we had to practice control in trying to walk over/through someone.

Excellent read, highly recommended: full post here.

The second is a well-written but sad article about the Grand National, and the fate of English steeplechasing in the 21st century. I love horse racing, but each year it seems to get more deadly (or maybe I’m more aware of its danger) and I take a small step back.

A giant’s claw came through the spruce. The air smelled suddenly of Christmas and a great black horse was falling. It was Paddy Mourne, an Irish outsider, and one of the things that TV doesn’t tell you is how far and how massively and how intricately these animals slide. I saw the short hairs of his belly, his hooves, and his head rising while his knees sought purchase. Everything was in motion, 20 feet from the jump that had tripped him. The rest of the field poured around him like water and then he was up and running with the herd. The jockey limped off, cradling his arm.

Death and Tradition at the UK Grand National

Don’t tell my boyfriend, but this face? This is the love of my life.

I am so trying this on Sunday!

Hat tip to Eventing Nation for this video:

My guess? Tris will pause long enough to GLARE at me, and then flip the bucket end over end. 2 seconds, max. I’ll report back!

…well, his first resolution is to get sound again already, but he also has a more traditional one.

Last week, I pulled him out of his stall to groom and fuss and work on banging his feet with a hoof pick to keep him on his behavioral improvement track for the farrier. I looked at him in the light of the aisle and my heart stopped: was he getting bloated?

I checked gut sounds, I checked gum color, I checked his water and hay, I checked his general demeanor.

No. Not bloated. Just fat.

Soooooo, starting this week, my easy keeper little mustang will have his grain cut back. He’d continued his feeding based on what he was eating at Flatlands, but he’s definitely added weight. I’m sure it’s a combination of smaller turnout + not walking around in said turnout as much due to being alone + possible differences in the hay.

I’d like stick to cutting grain instead of cutting hay, as the grain gets inhaled in a matter of minutes and the hay keeps him occupied for longer. We’ll see how the diet plan goes in the next few weeks!

Good, good ride last night. Got there in decent time, groomed and tacked up quickly.

I started out with a bit of an experiment – what I was referring to in my head as the Kinder, Gentler Warm Up. Reallyreally focusing on march in the walk – not caring about bend other than that he wasn’t inverted, or contact other than that I could just feel his mouth lightly. Lots of tapping and really encouraging step from behind. We just kept on walking around the ring, circles, around jumps, until he started stretching into even the very long rein I started with.

Next, trot with the same goal, focusing on my leg and his forward, only light contact and only asking him not to be counterbent, very soft chewing on the inside. He was sticky initially, so I let him canter with the same goal, and he blew out almost immediately; this is a horse who can hold his breath the length of a ride.

Once I was happy with his march and his forward (not without some frustrating moments for us) I started to pick up the reins verrrrry slowly and really ask him to reach for the bit through the trot, then gradually worked him up to a shorter and shorter rein and asked for lift off the inside leg. Nothing truly spectacular but good, solid work.

The canter was the best work of the evening: after all that time to stretch out, I really asked him to step up. Left clicked into place fairly easily, lowering and stretching through his neck while lifting through his withers from my inside leg. Now that he’s starting to let go of his neck in the canter, he’s become quite terrifically on the forehand, which – y’know, technically I should be going right from strength to strength, an uphill forward trot to an uphill forward canter. The idea of a heavy, flat, on-the-forehand as a sign of progress probably makes dressage queens cry. I’d like to see those dressage queens try to ride my horse on a regular basis. As long as I keep reminding him that he *ought* to be using his hind end to spring up in the canter, I’ll accept that for now the only way he can unlock his neck is to be much heavier than is ideal. Once he can loosen his neck, we will put the jump back in. It worked nicely in the trot, it will work in the canter.

Right lead took longer, but I really worked it, long sequences of half-halt/wait, half-halt/wait, kick up off the inside leg but keep him going with the outside leg and judicious whip use. He got there for a few strides and I decided done, but then the trot work was soooooooo good after that that I said, y’know, he’s not quite tired yet.

So we picked up the canter again, left, and came out of the circle down the long side, turned back down a center line, back to trot, then into the right lead canter. Which clicked in even faster this time, and we got a WHOLE CIRCLE and then down a side with him giving his neck to me, cantering up through his withers the tiniest bit, and coming back to me when he threatened to break.

So then we power-trotted on a loose rein, and then we were done, back for a nice trail ride with Hannah and Tucker, and P. and Glory. Even included some trotting and cantering, which I am always reluctant to do on the trails because I don’t know the footing as well as I ought to, even after almost a year. Tris enjoyed it thoroughly, especially the parts where we were cantering uphill toward home. “Zoom, mom! There’s hay in my stall!”

Alas, no riding this weekend, because grad school sucks a lot. I’m trying to put together a good schedule for next week so we can really prep effectively for the show. I’m really not nervous, but I’d like to do well if only for the pictures. 🙂

Our lesson was canceled last night. I’d had a wringer of a day at work, and wasn’t too upset, as it meant I would get home nearly two hours earlier than usual.

I tacked him up (still no stirrups) and we rode in the outdoor ring for perhaps 25 minutes. Nothing terribly complicated, just focusing on softening and stretching and engaging. We had some trouble picking up the right lead again, but got it eventually.

The most productive bit of the ride was at the end, when I asked him for a stretchy trot. Usually he compensates for that by loading up his front end and trotting more quickly. By sitting the trot without stirrups, I was able to really focus on gathering and slowing him through my seat, keeping my leg on, channeling forward but not fast, while keeping him soft through the bridle. It wasn’t perfect, but we had several strides at a time that were just lovely.

We rode through sunset and into dusk a bit, which made it tricky once or twice to avoid Hannah & Tucker and the jumps, but in general gave everything a quiet, isolated feel that’s really wonderful. I’ll happily ride in the dark in the outdoor if the opportunity presents itself.

The plan was to go for a long hack. The plan did not take the weather into account, and it was cold and drizzly when we got to the barn. I’ll ride through all sorts of weather, but since getting my new dressage saddle I’ve become paranoid about my tack.

Into the indoor we went, to share with four other horses. Despite that, it went better than it usually does; all four other riders were pretty darn self-aware, something that can’t be said for everyone who shares winter ring-space.

Stirrups are still off the saddle, and we worked on cantering more and more. Nothing really remarkable about the ride. We’re trying to find a good balance and straightness in the canter now that I can manipulate it more. Right lead transitions have been getting better, though I lost them for a bit at the end. He was a bit less consistent in the bridle than he has been, which is no doubt due to my insecurities without stirrups.

Ultimately though we finished with some nice walk-trot transitions, focusing on coming up through his shoulders and the base of his neck instead of just flailing into a different gait. ~40 minutes of riding, and then some hanging out during which we discovered that Tris likes cranberry orange muffins a LOT. He’ll try anything food-related once, that horse.

Long time, no post. My usual pattern.

In quick updates:

Tris is gaining in strength and finesse almost weekly. T. is really, really pleased with him overall, which is great to hear. I was peaking nicely in my riding, but have slipped a bit – relying a bit too much on my dressage saddle to do the work, and less on my seat. Namely, I’m getting caught up in bracing a bit too much in the knee rolls. Need to keep my leg further back.

We’re working on a couple of things: introducing a half-halt from the seat in the canter is my favorite. Last night I cued for what I thought was a down transition…and he collected instead. Okay, then! It wasn’t perfect, by any means, but it was a lighter, shorter-strided canter with more suspension. And I had no idea how to stop it, because I didn’t want to ruin it, but I really had planned for a trot there instead.

Our next big project is transitions. He’s a difficult horse to keep consistent in the bridle in the first place – he’s always, always looking for his out – and triply so during transitions. He seizes on them as moments of opportunity, roots out and down, hollows, and generally comes completely disconnected in the 2-3 strides of transition, no matter how nice the gait before and after. I felt like my efforts to keep him with me were too fussy, too handsy, but T. and I talked through it last night and for now, too much may be what Tris needs to get it out of his head that he can do that. I should be careful of not relying on that, but for now, not giving him a moment’s peace through the transition might keep his mind away from being bratty.

I’m itching to get out and school in the field again, but will settle for the outdoor. We were there on Saturday a bit, and Tris pretended the (slightly deep, slightly mucky) sand was actually secretly quicksand. Why that meant he could either slog along at a dead walk OR gallop is beyond me. I talked him into a little bit of stretchy trot against his better judgment. We’ll work on that more Thursday night. He got spoiled by nice, springy footing in the indoor.

I’m continually rethinking any showing this summer. Too many variables to count – time, money, energy, his training, my confidence, my internship, on and on. I sincerely hope to get out to two, maybe three schooling events and all the cross-country schooling and trail-riding I can handle, but…I just don’t know yet.