The Po' Po' Chev....

My poor 97 1/2 ton Chev with 260K on her... I tell you.... she really gives me 200%. I dont look forward to the day I have to let her rest, because you know they just dont make them like that anymore. She was loaded to the gills today. 5 passengers, and 3 horses with all our gear. Leaving is not a problem as its all downhill ... but its YIKES on the way up the 800' drive as 4 wheel drive may not make it up snowy road loaded... but honestly and who wants to jack knife back 1/2 way up? NOT ME! So thank you MISS BLUE and MY OL' CHEV another day & we made it.

ANYWAY A PRODUCTIVE day it was. Charlie Baby and Misty all ridden and ridden by a couple different people. Misty got her cantering in by both her riders which is a huge plus. Charlie got his side passing in and release worked on. Even some cantering! YAY! I am so proud of him as he will be 3... March 27th. Baby will be 4 April 27th.... exactly a month apart? Wow I didnt realize that.... guess I wont forget it now! Baby worked on her head set in rythm and cadence. Hard for her with her naturally extended gait in the forehand, its almost like her ass cant keep up.... hey babe... mamma knows what you mean :)

Even Taylor worked on the "feel" through the reins with me double up behind her on Baby. Then trotted a little on her Misty girl. Well enjoy the video.... just showing you what we all worked on today.... hoping to hit the beach on Thursday and maybe next weekend.... weather permitting.

Any day that we ride is never a day wasted :)

Its time to look in the mirror....

First OFF ... thank you mom for freezing your bubushka off waiting for me to "get it"

Well I was quite tickled at what I accomplished today.... admittedly not so much at first.

I will admit right here and now that it is tougher than I expected, training 3 horses, with all the time I NOW have, but still it doesnt seem to amount to much when you figure it around weather or daily events. I want to ride more, but the fact is, I AM putting forth the effort & it doesnt seem to be getting better than this unless I board ONE of my horses at an indoor.

On a seperate note, spending what I do on gas and arena times for 3 horses, I dont have the funds for lessons. We all need them, really we do. The knowledgeable eyes to tell you what to do & when is great but at $40-$50 hour, I just cant right now. I'm saving for"clinics" or "jumping events" for this spring and summer.

With that said, I can now move on to ....

THANK YOU VI!

Inside rein, inside leg and his head dropped nicely with the correct leg and hand position. Once he got his grove on ... it was like I was riding a trained horse! It was only for a few moments that we were in unison and it felt great... my job will be maintaining that feel throughout our sessions over time. I cant believe it was my postioning that was holding back our progress! Amazing!

Although it seems like I was not absorbing at the time with my fussing screaming stead, I was subconciously and can honestly say it was the most productive time I have spent with Angel since I have had him! Someone to give me their 2 cents on what they think is going on with me and him and why we arent jiving at times is priceless! I cannot wait to work on that with him again. Hopefully it will take half the time to get to where we were at the end of our freezing cold session.

You think you know what you need to do to get the job done, but then someone comes in and shows you a more efficient way to communicate with your horse ...WAM! It hits you, you knew that... why werent you doing it? What is the excuse for poor posture and hands anyway? You have mirrors in the indoor and you havent utilized them? LOOK AT YOU... FIX IT!

Well, I feel like the clouds have lifted and blue skies are coming through! The sun should be shining in a few more sessions and we will be making great progress!

WE thank you... again and again. Hopefully when you come next time... it will be warmer (for MOM!) and we can move on to greener pastures!

JANUARY.... I cannd feeeel m' finnahs!

We all can agree that winter riding in New England is a challenge to say the least.
Its more than that to me ... its exhausting! No really. By the time you shovel your trailer out, hook it up, load it up with everything (still knowing in the back of your mind ... I am forgetting something), then fetching the horses, loading them up, driving 15 minutes to the indoor, unloading your gear and horses, tacking up, warming up - you then realize either you (A) Have to pee or (B) cant feel your fingers or toes.
The horses dont like the cold either. You can tell by how choppy their strides are or by how long it takes you to actually get a correct head set or rythm. It seems like it takes the whole time your there or limbs start freezing (which ever comes first) to feel like you are in unison with your horse. Some days are worse than others. Like for example when the snow is coming off the metal roofing while your riding... that would be considered = "shit hitting the fan"
I have told myself to just realize that I am not going to get as much done as I had hoped due to the fact that this year I have 3 horses I am training and with weather and the cold I am alternating who goes to the indoor for riding - so they all get riden equally. I am constantly feeling guilty for one or two.
Angel needs to be worked the most as he is the furthest behind in language. Baby is an old standby at only 3 (yes three folks) Charlie will be 3 this Spring - as long as I just stay consistant with him and work him he is good - but really should be worked more. Its like trying to roll three barrels at the same time across the arena - one is going to lag in momentum. Almost getting to your destination and you just say screw it and roll one at a time the remainder of the way. We will see what Spring brings.
A compilation of last winter and this winters indoor activity is good to watch to see what we were working on last year at this time.
Angels jumping progress will be available to see this week in another post.
We are hoping that next weekend will bring temps back up to 30 so we can ride indoors more comfortably.