The month in Calgary was wonderful. Spent lots of time with Lisa and her pup, Hunter. While he is big enough to be a horse, he is still a dog. Lisa still has the horse costume, saddle and bridle. They now use it for Halloween, instead of the stampede.
I certainly missed Dancer! It has been a month since I was in the saddle.
I brushed him, saddled him and then played Parelli games before riding. He was not as sluggish as yesterday. This evening was nice and cool for riding.
I tried to remember all the pointers Melanie Thompson gave me when I rode. Keep a good contact. Use the dressage whip to bring on a good strong horse trot. If he canters when asking for a faster trot, ride in tight little circles, keeping the canter. Then ask for the trot. You need rhythm at the trot, and I can't remember the third thing! Also, I am to squeeze my inside leg on all gaits, just as the inside leg moves forward. Moving that rib out of the way of the back leg sure makes for a nice ride.
We practiced lots of trotting and cantering. I still only rode for 40 minutes as I haven't ridden in a month.
Dancer stood just in the hall by the arena where I unsaddled and unbridled him. He waited while I put all my equipment away.
Dancer enjoyed a cool down, then lots of grass before he was put in the paddock. I practiced the finer skills using the Parelli stick while he ate.
It is great to be back in the saddle.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Monday, July 29, 2013
Dancer Recognized Me!
I have just spent a month in Calgary visiting with our daughter Lisa and her grey hound Hunter!
I called to dancer and he turned right away and was looking at me with his ears up!
His colour has changed so much. He is almost a golden bay with lots of dapples. I groomed him in the shade where he could eat the grass. Then, we played with Parelli for ages in the arena.
I am so lucky that I have Jessica to look after Dancer when I am away. He looked marvelous.
I have contacted Melanie Thompson for dressage lessons. She is going to start immediately! I met her at the Renaissance Rider's spring camp. I'll have to write on that another day.
I called to dancer and he turned right away and was looking at me with his ears up!
His colour has changed so much. He is almost a golden bay with lots of dapples. I groomed him in the shade where he could eat the grass. Then, we played with Parelli for ages in the arena.
I am so lucky that I have Jessica to look after Dancer when I am away. He looked marvelous.
I have contacted Melanie Thompson for dressage lessons. She is going to start immediately! I met her at the Renaissance Rider's spring camp. I'll have to write on that another day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)