Tina and Figure 8

We had a hard rain and everything was muddy and slick when it was time to ride. I took Tina into the big arena, with a plan to focus on soft turns, and suppling her more. Her responses are getting softer and softer and her understanding better all the time.

We rode for a long time - from 1.5 to 2 hours. I actually was able to help and coach Chrissy from Tina's back, which was great for me. We played with straight lines on the rail and soft turns off the rail. Then we did figure 8's until she got very soft and willing and understood the pattern under saddle. She was so relaxed and willing and learning well. I'm getting a little more firm with her and expecting more from her as we develop her into a mount. She's doing well! This was a great session!

Chrissy was playing with softening the back up and lateral flexion. Cowboy was very bracey to the right for some reason. I coached her along, then offered to hop on her horse. His brace was pretty good to the right so we started to build a soft feel. I rewarded quickly and extremely often until he started to understand that I was asking for so little, it was easier to comply. We then worked on backup and turned it into yo-yo game. His back up got very nice and efficient and after a bit of time, I could tell he was starting to "think" backwards instead of just going through the motions. I enjoy the hell out of that horse! He's so different than my horses.