Where are the people going? What happened to summer updates?

Summer is definitely the busy time of year for us. We both work later (no point leaving work at 4pm to enjoy 100+ heat), and get to the barn later. While my lesson schedule is pretty slow right now, I've been trying to get in lots of ride time. And I've been pretty successful.

I would write you some recaps, but it seems that I've forgotten since its now been a couple of weeks since I last updated. Moral of the story: Knots appears to like courses better than grids. I think my position is improving incrementally. Dressage is slowly improving. Jellybean almost went on a trail ride, but she decided to get trapped in a fence. So she has been enjoying some stall time.

The biggest craziness was the chiropractor visit with Gracie. That deserves a whole post (which Rob suggested he might write, eventually :p), but basically Gracie got adjusted and she stopped bucking at the canter. Bam. Life changing. We will see how this situation continues to progress, but Rob rode her three times in the last week, and she continues to just canter along. Great news!

There are exciting things on the radar: jumping lesson tomorrow morning. Cross country schooling at Meadowcreek on Saturday morning. Farrier next week. Knots meets the chiropractor next week. Three Brothers Jump for Life Show August 29th. Weeeeeeeee!

In personal life land, we are making a last minute move. Finalized things on Monday, and we need to be out of our house by Sunday evening. I am going to visit a friend in NC for a long weekend at the end of August, and oh ya, my job. So think of this as a short summer break from the blog, where we only update once every two weeks or so, and the pictures are sparse. We have been updating the Facebook page more often, so check us out if you need your Jellybean fixes between now and then. Picture dump:

Byron going "laundry"

New house!

Jellybean hates stall rest.

Recaps of recent rides with Knots

In bulk format again, since I seem to be able to hit this in ebbs and flows.


Knots and I met several times lately. First ride was back to dressage basics. We warmed up in the side reins on the lunge line. It was humorous to me, because every once in a while he would throw in a silly buck. He gives me the side eye when he does it. One day I'll get a picture. Anyways, after that he was pretty good. I rode him and tried to push him into the bridle at the trot and canter. He wants to break into the next gait when I try to push him, but for the most part he is trying. He was not galloping off from my spurs! If I try to move him over, he just moves over. Sometimes not especially willingly, but he moves. And he isn't trying as hard to root the reins out of my hands, which is another bonus.

Our next ride was a return to jumping. The 2'3" course I set up the week before was still available, and I got ready to go. My goals were to not to have a driving seat and to get good spots (haha lofty goals...). I did ok. Knots was relaxed when I sat on my zipper instead of my seat bones. Progress!

I don't know why I am so far out of the tack, but I don't seem to be driving him to the base of the fence and then getting whiplash as we go over the jump. Still ugly, but improvement.

I was gone for the weekend in the middle here, and Knots' next ride was actually with one of my students for the most part. For our lesson, the goal was to work on position and learn what it feels like when the horse responds correctly to the aids. We aren't talking rocket science here, just horse moving off leg. So I lunged the student's horse while she lunged Knots. After she lunged Knots (who was in a mood on the line...), I rode him for a minute and tried to demonstrate riding him into the bridle, complete with swinging hips.

Then my student rode him for a bit. She was learning about swinging her hips in the gaits and letting her elbows be more elastic. Knots was ok, he wasn't a rock star, but he showed her that just because she used a spur didn't mean he would run off. He also allowed her to experience riding a horse with their head lowered.

While I don't do it often, its nice to use Knots to show students some concepts they might be having a little bit of trouble wrapping their head around. He's up to helping about four if my count is correct.

We are officially trying to attend the Meadowcreek Schooling Horse Trials September 6th. I'm hoping to feel confident about running Beginner Novice, but goldilocks is an option also. I think we are going to school either August 1st or August 8th, depending on how things go. At that point I should be able to mail in my entry and carry on. Cross your fingers rides keep going smoothly!

Horse Shopping Advice Part II: Evaluating the horse on the first visit

So you found one.

It meets most of your qualities from the list. Maybe you even have more than one horse that made it this far. Now what? Part one talked about finding a horse, and now we'll talk about evaluating a horse.

Remember, you are shopping for a horse that meets your personal goals. Even if you can check the other boxes, you still need a horse that can do what you like. Its hard to convince a finished roping horse he wants to be a polo pony, and a green-broke three year old is not a beginner horse. 'Made' or 'finished' horses aren't generally for sale on the cheap. Keep these things in mind as you look at horses, especially if you have love-at-first-sight tendencies. And remember, written or spoken words only tell you so much. That's why you need to visit!

The First Visit/Evaluation Ride:
Pack up some key tack (helmet, saddle, maybe bridle) and drive out to see the horse! Depending on your experience level, you may or may not bring your trainer/experienced friend for the first visit. Your main goals here are to see if the horse is still interesting in person.

When you arrive, watch the current owner or agent handle the horse. Is the horse friendly, neutral, or aggressive? Pay attention to what the owner chooses to do with the horse. For example, if they skip picking feet out, does the horse have good looking feet, or does the person seem worried about the horse kicking? Does the horse respect space, or is it walking all over the handler? Generally you want to see the normal routine the person has for riding the horse. This is also a good time to check the horse for odd scars, bumps and scrapes, anything that might lead to future lameness. Ask questions and learn as much as you can about the history.

Watch someone ride the horse. The owner should have someone to show you how the horse rides under saddle. Watch that person ride. Do they have quiet hands and a solid seat? Does the horse seem willing? What type of equipment are they using, big bit or snaffle? If you are buying a horse with some skills (jumping, roping, barrels, etc) ask to see a demonstration.

If you brought your trainer or experienced friend, now is the time for them to ride. They should be able to give you information on how the horse rides. How sensitive is the horse? Does it respond to general cues? Does the horse test the new rider? How comfortable are the gaits? When I am evaluating a horse for a client, I like to push the horse's buttons and try to annoy the horse, especially if the client is a beginner. I may flop around a little bit or pull and kick on the horse. For beginners, a forgiving horse is really important. Evaluating the horse's balance is another useful thing here. Greener horses will be less balanced, and that just means a longer road before taking a horse to an event. Some clients are happy with that, and some people want to buy something show ready.

Now is your chance! Ride the horse and decide if you like it. Put it through its paces and listen to your gut. If you want to jump did the horse go over the obstacles without much trouble? Did the sane trail horse spook at something it has walked past hundreds of times? If you didn't bring a trainer, I would try to push the horse's buttons as much as you can safely.

During and after riding, try to determine if the horse has any bad habits. Does it grind its teeth when working? Did you see it crib or weave? These things aren't necessarily deal breakers, but they do matter. Personally, I don't have a lot of interest in horses that play dirty. I don't mind fixing respect issues or putting time into a green horse. Everyone has different things they like to fix, and budget plays in here big time.

All in all, the first visit and/or evaluation rides should give you an idea if you want to pursue this horse. Listen to your gut! If you don't like the horse, politely inform the seller as soon as possible. Don't waste their time on someone who isn't going to buy. If you do like the horse, its time to make some decisions.
At this point, I would suggest trying to do a trial. Some people don't like to do trials, so don't be surprised if the seller is not willing. But if they will allow you to trial the horse, you can agree on terms that allow you to evaluate the horse at home. You have to decide whether you are willing to take a risk. Sometimes its best to walk away, and sometimes its best to load the horse up and see how things shake out.

What is your advice on trying out a new horse?

Mold-Pocalyse 2015

Mold. The enemy of tack. Its why people build climate controlled tack rooms. Mold just grows its ugly fuzz on the top of your nice (and even not nice) leather and gives everything a nauseous green glow.

At the barn, I get to use the instructor's tack room. Right now, we only have four people working out of it, and so there is LOTS of room. Which really means my things have spread a little bit out of control, but it doesn't matter because there is so much room for activities! We have a fan, and a mini fridge, and normally it just feels like the Hilton.

The downside of this tack room reared its ugly head this winter. It rained. And rained. And rained. And flooded everything. Including the tack room! I spent a lot of time troubleshooting. An eyewitness saw water running down the inner wall of the tack room, and so I looked to the gutters. They were overflowing, and I convinced one of the brothers to "help" me clean them out (I was mostly there for moral support and camaraderie). I nervously waited for the next bit of rain as I pushed the water up the tack room to the door so my things could dry out. I cleaned the mold off my tack.

It rained again. The tack room flooded again. My things are all in the back third or so of the room, which is also where the concrete slab has sunk or something, so the floor is about a quarter/half inch lower than the rest of the room. I broomed out more water and wondered what else it could be. I walked behind the barn and looked at the drainage. The farm is about a foot lower than the surrounding properties because someone decided topsoil was something to sell... and the property line is basically on the barn. I noticed there was a buildup of leaf litter on the concrete slab, and the downspout for the gutter didn't have anywhere to go. Maybe the water was flowing down the spout and pooling, then leaking back into the tack room!

So I used my boots to make a 'ditch' for the water to run somewhere else. I made sure the barn foundation was higher than the surrounding dirt, and I crossed my fingers. I broomed out the water in the tack room and cleaned my tack again... At this point the moisture was in the air, so even though I cleaned the tack, it was moldy again within about two days. Ugh!

The next time it rained, the tack room still flooded!! I was really running out of ideas. I was considering taking my things home, or maybe just burning all the moldy things (not really, I'm broke). And then I happened to be in the tack room on another rainy day. And I saw water coming UP THROUGH THE FLOOR! Ahhh!

Now we needed to figure out how to fix the floor, before the next rain storm. Robert and I dutifully googled concrete fillers, and we bought some kind of caulk to fill in the floor. Five tubes later, we felt like the crack was all sealed up. And so we waited again...

And it rained... and rained... and rained...

And the tack room was mostly dry!!! Finally! We took all the blankets and saddle pads and washed all those things and only brought back what we needed. We cleaned all the tack again, and washed off everything else that was moldy. And mold-pocalypse was survived!

[No pictures, because it was just too depressing]

Another riding update

Well summer camps are all done for me, and the barn is closed this week so everyone can catch their breath and enjoy the holiday weekend. Whew!

I have one more week of teaching, and then I can go back to summer, which is to say more work on side projects. In barn land, it means I might be able to ride more than once a week with my only my lessons and no subbing. I have actually managed to ride all the ponies a time or two since last I updated you, but they were quick flashes, so I'm going to update all at once:

Jellybean:
Jellybean and I got to ride one Saturday morning. I don't have to lunge her anymore before riding her, and she is better and better at steering. I switched her from a full cheek snaffle to an o ring snaffle, because I am lazy and already have that bridle set up (mold-pocalypse 2015). We worked in the jump field, and she was good at the walk/trot/canter. We didn't do many small circles, since I had too much junk in the arena. We did have a few moments when a trailer was being hooked up that Jellybean was distracted, but since I suspect she was "spooking" to get out of work a couple rides ago, I just ignored it.

We also went over a baby x a couple of times. This x was probably 6-10 inches tall (monstrous!) in the middle, and so we walked over it a few times and then trotted. Jellybean didn't seem to remember that she wanted to go around the jump, so that was a good thing for her to forget. The first two times she trotted over the jump, she decided it was HUGE and jumped it like it was about 2'3". Cute Jelly.

Anyways, she is doing well when I actually get to ride her, and maybe there is a dressage show in her future this fall.

Knots:
Whew! We have been moving along, slowly in our dressage training, but moving. Knots got to go to pony club camp this summer and learn all about relaxing in groups and schooling some of the new cross country jumps. I rode him a couple of days after he returned, and I'd be lying if it wasn't one of the most frustrating rides I've ever had with him. I have gotten spoiled being the only one riding him the last few months. All our rides have built, since there was nothing between them. Unfortunately, he forgot lots of concepts I was hoping were more clear in his mind. I keep trying to woo-saw and catch my breath, but the hopes I had of jumping a 2'3" course were dashed when we were galloping away from my spur and throwing our head up to evade any contact. We ended the ride in side reins trying to remember something we worked on the few weeks prior.

Gracie:
I actually rode Gracie! No photographic evidence, but it happened. We rode in the big arena and I wanted to see where we were with her cantering. We walked and trotted really slowly, and I felt like the wasn't running along. She tends to get so fast she is just tripping over herself, and then has to run along. Of course, when I say run, I mean trot extremely fast. Anyways, we cantered, and after she stopped her little buck and roll routine, I tried to do a few more transitions. If my weight was on her back, she wanted to buck and roll. If I was in a half seat she was much better. Sigh.

I think the course of treatment here will be to call out the chiropractor and see where that gets us. Its the cheapest of my options (lameness exam, neuro exam, etc), and if it helps awesome, if not we need to save up for the more expensive workups. Cross your fingers. My plan is to schedule mid-July.

So I guess a few rides in the last few weeks. I'm hoping to have a more regular schedule, because I would like to consider Meadowcreek in September... but we need more jumping and XC schooling before that becomes a reality.

Barn cat snuggles

In the Land of the Summer Camps

Sorry for the lack of updates, summer took off with a bang! Some of the highlights:

Robert got to ride on his first trail ride! We went with Maggie and Jackson and some of Jackson's family off to Indian Spirit Springs, which is an awesome little place not far from the barn. They have lots of open space, they are always friendly, and its rarely crowded. Of course, riding in between rain showers generally lowers the attendance.

After the trail ride, I got to have a final dressage lesson before Maggie went to AT with the National Guard. I don't remember anything in particular, except I shouldn't ride without spurs the ride before a dressage ride. Unless I want to deal with "But you didn't make me yesterday!"

Summer camps started last week, and boy are they fun! I have helped with summer camps off and on since I was about 13 years old, and I still love helping people get a quick taste of horses. We had a good small group to start out with, and our new staff members jumped right in. We had some personal growths, and our camps are all full until the last week!

It has been a little bit crazy with camps and my extra class I'm currently taking and the class I'm teaching. I mostly missed Jellybean's birthday! I say mostly, because I was teaching a lesson when someone asked me how old she was, and I just said four, until Robert pointed out that the day was in fact her birthday!! I guess that makes me a bad mom. Hopefully I can improve... Which also reminds me that we didn't mention Gracie's birthday on the blog, although we congratulated her on making it another year without impaling herself on the day.

In other news, I managed to get bucked off a lesson pony. He's a sultry five year old mustang/QH who generally just jogs along. Once in a while he decides he wants to be done, and he does a couple of baby warning bucks, then actual bucks. Sometimes a kid falls off, but mostly he is ridden by adults so it isn't a huge problem. Anyway, one of my students was sitting on him when he decided to be a jerk, and she fell off. I got on and worked him through the exercise he didn't finish with her, and then I started to canter him around (another trigger). He didn't like that and bucked a little, so I spurred the crap out of him and pulled on his head, and he sent me up into the air. One of these days I'll be able to keep my shoulders straight up and down, by this day they fell behind me and I landed on my booty. We had a meeting with Jesus on the lunge line, and I got back on and walk/trot/cantered him around. He was done. The kid finished up, and the day was done.

Anyways, calm before the storm this week before another week of camp. I'd like to imagine I'll ride, but with work and camps and lessons, I don't really see June being a good month for me. Until next time :)

Jellybean meets some new friends

It is challenging to even write when the weather is crappy for this long... it has basically rained almost everyday for over two weeks. Bleh. At least at the farm, we have decided the constant rain has streamlined the drainage, so its definitely drying out a lot faster these days. 

Anyways, so over the weekend it was dry enough to ride in a couple select places, and I decided to get Jellybean out in the morning before our planned afternoon trail ride. I groomed her a bit and noticed some nice little rain rot on her back. Not bad, just the beginnings. Oh an some minor thrush. Thanks rain and mud. I cleaned all that mess up and then put on some tack. Jumping saddle and dressage bridle. Mixed messages. 

Have I mentioned I am starting to dream of nicer tack? Like the kind of stuff that is comfortable and fits the horse really well? Crazy right. Good thing summer camp is coming up...

I decided to ride in the big arena and didn't even bother lunging, because grown ups now. Jellybean was a little bit excitable and seemed kind of spooky... this isn't really normal behavior. I was working on our safe circle and walk/trot/cantering and then she shied away from something and I let her stop working to check it out. I think she filed that one away for next time... 

After we went through our paces, I walked over and watched the girls working with Tank to jump a single upturned bucket. Apparently this is a pony club game, and the Tank was definitely in training to win it. Jellybean took notes. All buckets are not scary.

I had talked to the girls about riding Jellybean, since I decided she needs to do more grown up things, like be ridden by different people. Right now, Jellybean is still a little bit resistant about steering. She mostly works off your seat, and she isn't completely comfortable with a lot of contact. She likes to back up. Mostly I have been putzing (I know, its hard to type. I feel ashamed). 

The girls have different strengths and challenges, but they are both brave riders, and if Jellybean did try out her little baby bucks, both girls could have ridden her through them. My major goal is to not have anyone fall off of Jellybean, even though I realize that is more hope than goal. 

Oh, and the other motivation for having the girls ride Jellybean came from Facebook Saturday morning. One year ago I posted about Jellybean w/t/c in the arena. Surely I have moved past that?! Or I need to be moving past it if I'm not... (cue the guilty looks). 

So after I rode her we all went over to the cutting pen after switching to one of the girls saddles. Then they both rode her at the walk trot in canter in both directions. I asked them what they thought about her training and if they noticed anything interesting. 

Their comments talked about her lack of balance and how sensitive she was to seat aids. She isn't too responsive to leg, which was why they rode her with the dressage whip (always bring some back up). 

All in all, successful. One of the girls is infatuated with another young horse at the farm, and has been riding the young horse in her spare time. I offered to the other girl to ride Jellybean when they have a "young horse" ride. They can work on similar things together, and watch each others back. Hopefully this will work out for everyone for a little bit! I'll keep you posted. 

Too bad I only took pictures in basically one direction...