Unfortunately, due to a perpetually frozen outdoor arena and no indoor, Limerick has had a less than ideal work schedule of late (BOO). We've had snow and ice on the ground since Thursday and the temperatures have been frigid with unbearable wind. This sucky weather has not kept me from the barn, but it has kept us from doing more than walking, until Sunday... enter batshit crazy pony. Sunday, the ground was starting to thaw and was rather soppy, but the ring was still a frozen rock, so Kimmie and I opted to work in the front field, hoping to work off some of our horses' energy.
It's been so long since then that I don't remember all of the details, but the gist of it is that Limerick was seriously insane (for him... keep in mind that even his insanity is rather tame). He tossed his head and chomped on the bit, jigged, pranced, etc. Even though we were out there with Jazz, he was still insecure and kept looking around for him/going towards him when possible. He also threw himself into upward transitions and kind of exploded, trying to get his head down and run with me... super fun! That was about the time that I realized how precarious I felt and how potentially slippery the ground could be, so I asked Kimmie to hop on and see if she could get him to listen better and stop running around like an idiot. He tried the same crap with her, but she kept him together and let him run around in a controlled manner for a few minutes, which did wonders for his brain! Then I hopped back on and asked for one more canter transition, which he was good for, so I called it a day.
Meeting Jack for the first time!!
Snow :)
Snuggles (real name Jack)
Kimmie and Snuggles
He loves me
Me and Limmers. I'm wearing my weirdly awesome face mask
Today, I rode the infamous Houston B for the first time ever!! It was also my first time really riding (more than walk) any other horse besides Limerick since I got him in August, and boy was it different. I was originally just going to briefly hop on and walk around, but Hill encouraged me to trot a little bit. His trot was by far the most radically different gait from Limerick's and has a very distinct bouncy step to it. It felt a little choppier, which definitely was not helped by the fact that I rode in Hill's saddle and stirrups (she's 5'5", I'm 5'10") because I didn't expect to do much and didn't feel like changing them. Needless to say, I felt like a jockey...
Huey's canter is by far his best gait! I had no intention of cantering and didn't know how Hillary would feel about it, but she told me to go ahead and ask him for the transition since it was going so well. His transitions are amazing :) So much more immediate and responsive than Limerick's, which really drove home how much Limmers and I need to work on them. The awesomeness of his transitions (walk-canter especially) also shows how well Hillary has done riding/training him, as well as how much he has improved lately (leaps and bounds)! His canter is also much smoother and maybe less expressive than Limerick's, and I was actually able to sit it successfully. I often have trouble sitting Limerick's, especially without my back brace, so it was a nice change.
I also briefly rode Lim, who was a fire-breathing dragon after being cooped up in a stall for 24+ hours because of crappy weather. We went on a fun hack in the freezing cold with H&H and then schooled some canter transitions. He had tons of energy today, was a little bit hot, and therefore super responsive, so I actually got some walk-canter transitions. He was good overall, if a little distracted, and we ended on a good note. Like Hill said, she and I have a lesson tomorrow and we're playing musical ponies!! We'll both post with how that goes, but it should be a ton of fun and good for both of us :)
first attempt at trotting in superrr short stirrups
In Huer's hay nest
So that we can remember what the sun looks like when it decides to disappear again
Because of the hurricane that is currently causing evacuations and chaos up and down the east coast, weather here has been less than stellar. I'm talking winds strong enough to blow my SUV around, no sunshine, and intermittent rain. We might even get some snow tomorrow, which would be fab! This is where the "I can't believe I rode" comes in. Limerick had not been worked since Friday, it was freezing and windy as hell, I was by myself, and there were cows in the field directly next to the ring. Combine that with the horses in a bordering field galloping around and carrying on, and I was not so sure that we would get anything accomplished, if I even managed to stay on. Here is where my pony, the saint, came to the rescue.
The beginning of our ride was a little bit iffy, as the cows started freaking out and MOOOOOINNNNGGGG right as I got on, which conveniently coincided with the carryings-on in the back field. Limerick stood as I mounted and then immediately turned towards the galloping horses, kind of jolted forward, and then when I pulled back, he started jigging. However, as soon as I regained his attention and started repeating "WOAH," he chilled out and mostly just snorted for a few more laps. When I decided that he wasn't going to be a total freak, we actually got to work and started walking/trotting a trot pole. It was pretty cold and my nose would not stop running, so we cantered both directions and I tried to stay in two-point for as long as possible, and then I called it a day. Overall, it was a very successful ride and I was happy with the Lims. I also got to use his quarter sheet for the first time, so I was thrilled about that! It took me a while to figure out how I wanted it, but I determined that the best arrangement is to put it between the flaps of my saddle. Today was a case of extreme wind though, so it was blowing around quite a bit, which Limerick luckily did not seem to notice. Now for some pictures from my ride on Friday, which involved hacking around in the big field behind the barn... I cantered in an open field for the first time, and it was awesome :)!
the location of my Friday ride
LIMMERS' EARS
The mass exodus of cows that so conveniently occurred during my ride on Friday...
Finally, a lovely video of the mass cow exodus that took place during my ride... must watch with sound to get the full effect:
