Not too shabby for having a weak stifle! This was my lesson on May 23, 2010. Photo by Janet Macklin.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Please note the sparkling clean legs!
Not too shabby for having a weak stifle! This was my lesson on May 23, 2010. Photo by Janet Macklin.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
The Sun is finally shining!
The last two weekends we have had awesome sunny lessons! Dandy has been having some issues with his right hind leg (slight drag) but the vet said it's not serious, just a weak tendon in his stifle that can be strengthened by lots of trotting, hill work and jumping (yay!) Unfortunately, he not allowed to do any tight turning, so courses, round pen and lunging are out of the picture. Also, he can't be ridden in deep dirt, so I can't even use the race track to burn off energy.
I've been feeding him about about 4 quarts of Ultium each day along with a weight gain supplement, and although he has been gaining weight quickly, he's turning into a total lunatic. Now that he can't use the track or round pen, I'm the sorry sucker who has to TROT all the energy out of him! Well, it could be worse! The vet said I should ride him more not less, so at least he will gain in body condition instead of lounging around with his leg elevated...
I've been feeding him about about 4 quarts of Ultium each day along with a weight gain supplement, and although he has been gaining weight quickly, he's turning into a total lunatic. Now that he can't use the track or round pen, I'm the sorry sucker who has to TROT all the energy out of him! Well, it could be worse! The vet said I should ride him more not less, so at least he will gain in body condition instead of lounging around with his leg elevated...
Monday, March 8, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Shit happens...
The truck is truly cooked this time...engine needs a rebuild, so for the present there will be no more lessons at LCCC. On the plus side, I bought a 2009 Jetta Diesel, so I will be able to get much better mpgs on the daily trek to Loveland.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Saturday Riding
I rode Dandy today to prep him for our lesson tomorrow. When I went to the barn Thursday evening, I discovered that he had a 11" by 1" scrape on the inside of his right flank. There was also a four inch scratch lower on his rear cannon bone that had bled. His leg was slightly swollen. I figure he must have been rolling and stuck his leg through the fence and then yanked it out scraping his whole leg. It wasn't terribly serious, but I got a bit upset that it could have been much worse.
Today, the swelling was entirely gone, so I practiced cantering and counter-cantering, trotting figure eights and ten meter circles and simple lead changes. He's getting really good at changing leads. In fact, I don't have the bring him back to the trot. When we're cantering on one lead and I push with my inside leg and bend him the other direction, he takes a trot step and then jumps right back into the canter on the other lead. I hope we'll get to work on flying lead changes soon...
I took him over a single crossrail about a dozen times in both directions, and he seemed to be moving out really well. Thursday night, he was a bit short at the canter with his leg sore. This was the test to see if he's ready for a lesson tomorrow.
Paige is giving me a group jumping lesson along with a few other girls around my age at the barn. She said that when they did a group lesson over Christmas break, she had them switch horses halfway through, so they could feel what it was like to ride another horse. If I let someone else ride Dandy, I'm worried I'll never get him back!
Today, the swelling was entirely gone, so I practiced cantering and counter-cantering, trotting figure eights and ten meter circles and simple lead changes. He's getting really good at changing leads. In fact, I don't have the bring him back to the trot. When we're cantering on one lead and I push with my inside leg and bend him the other direction, he takes a trot step and then jumps right back into the canter on the other lead. I hope we'll get to work on flying lead changes soon...
I took him over a single crossrail about a dozen times in both directions, and he seemed to be moving out really well. Thursday night, he was a bit short at the canter with his leg sore. This was the test to see if he's ready for a lesson tomorrow.
Paige is giving me a group jumping lesson along with a few other girls around my age at the barn. She said that when they did a group lesson over Christmas break, she had them switch horses halfway through, so they could feel what it was like to ride another horse. If I let someone else ride Dandy, I'm worried I'll never get him back!
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Lesson at LCCC
Dandy and I had our first lesson at Laramie County Community College on Sunday morning. It started at 9am, which meant that I had to leave the house at 6am to get down to Loveland, load Dandy and bring him up to Cheyenne. The whole time I was thinking it had better be worth it, and it totally was!
Dandy loaded without any trouble, though he was not pleased when I threw a winter blanket on him just before loading. He was so upset by the strange blanket that he rested his head on my shoulder for almost a minute to calm down. He went in the trailer the first time I asked, but I unloaded and loaded him about five times before shutting the door just for practice. I was worried he might think he was setting off on another 9-day road trip.
When we arrived at the indoor arena, which was HUGE (I'll get some pics at my next lesson), Dandy was agitated. I tacked him up as quick as I could, brought him in the building and tied him up with a row of horses. The instructor, Suzy, had everyone introduce themselves and say why we had signed up. She's originally from San Diego and her expertise is mainly dressage. She told us that she is into yoga, which was evident in the lesson that followed.
Suzy taught us a breathing exercise and had us practice for a while on the ground. Then we brought our horses in the arena (which is so big it had arena seating) and mounted up. We mostly just walked, clearing our heads and practicing breathing. This was surprisingly difficult for me, because I realized that I have been concentrating so hard on my riding position recently that it was difficult to only think about breathing.
I have improved my position tremendously in the past few months according to Paige, but I discovered that all I think about while riding is where my heels, toes, calves, seat, hands, shoulders and eyes are. This was a bit upsetting. I've been working so hard to be a model riding student that I've become obsessed in the head.
It wasn't until about 45 minutes into the lesson and after a long talk with Suzy that I finally calmed down and only thought about breathing. We spent the whole lesson just walking, but it was kind of exhausting breathing so deeply. Dandy calmed way down, and I let him have a very loose rein. He seemed much more relaxed than he usually is. After the lesson, I loaded and unloaded Dandy a few more times without difficulty and headed home.
It wasn't till yesterday that I felt the full benefits of the lesson. I went down to ride Dandy last night and it was like we could do no wrong. I used the breathing mainly during the warm up instead of taking that time to force myself into the perfect position. He seemed enthusiastic and energetic, and everything we practiced (even the counter cantering) we got right the first time.
I quit riding after only 30 minutes, because I felt like we did everything so well. Even though I wasn't thinking about my position constantly during the ride, it looked correct in the arena mirrors. Maybe I'm starting to get a feel for the correct position so I can actually relax and let muscle memory take control, but I think the breathing exercise definitely cleared my head so I gave clearer signals.
My next lesson at LCCC is the Sunday after next, so I'm going to keep practicing like a good little student until then. I think that these lessons will help to balance out all that I'm learning in my lessons with Paige. I guess it wouldn't be worth all that driving if it was more of the same.
Dandy loaded without any trouble, though he was not pleased when I threw a winter blanket on him just before loading. He was so upset by the strange blanket that he rested his head on my shoulder for almost a minute to calm down. He went in the trailer the first time I asked, but I unloaded and loaded him about five times before shutting the door just for practice. I was worried he might think he was setting off on another 9-day road trip.
When we arrived at the indoor arena, which was HUGE (I'll get some pics at my next lesson), Dandy was agitated. I tacked him up as quick as I could, brought him in the building and tied him up with a row of horses. The instructor, Suzy, had everyone introduce themselves and say why we had signed up. She's originally from San Diego and her expertise is mainly dressage. She told us that she is into yoga, which was evident in the lesson that followed.
Suzy taught us a breathing exercise and had us practice for a while on the ground. Then we brought our horses in the arena (which is so big it had arena seating) and mounted up. We mostly just walked, clearing our heads and practicing breathing. This was surprisingly difficult for me, because I realized that I have been concentrating so hard on my riding position recently that it was difficult to only think about breathing.
I have improved my position tremendously in the past few months according to Paige, but I discovered that all I think about while riding is where my heels, toes, calves, seat, hands, shoulders and eyes are. This was a bit upsetting. I've been working so hard to be a model riding student that I've become obsessed in the head.
It wasn't until about 45 minutes into the lesson and after a long talk with Suzy that I finally calmed down and only thought about breathing. We spent the whole lesson just walking, but it was kind of exhausting breathing so deeply. Dandy calmed way down, and I let him have a very loose rein. He seemed much more relaxed than he usually is. After the lesson, I loaded and unloaded Dandy a few more times without difficulty and headed home.
It wasn't till yesterday that I felt the full benefits of the lesson. I went down to ride Dandy last night and it was like we could do no wrong. I used the breathing mainly during the warm up instead of taking that time to force myself into the perfect position. He seemed enthusiastic and energetic, and everything we practiced (even the counter cantering) we got right the first time.
I quit riding after only 30 minutes, because I felt like we did everything so well. Even though I wasn't thinking about my position constantly during the ride, it looked correct in the arena mirrors. Maybe I'm starting to get a feel for the correct position so I can actually relax and let muscle memory take control, but I think the breathing exercise definitely cleared my head so I gave clearer signals.
My next lesson at LCCC is the Sunday after next, so I'm going to keep practicing like a good little student until then. I think that these lessons will help to balance out all that I'm learning in my lessons with Paige. I guess it wouldn't be worth all that driving if it was more of the same.
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