Transitions with Gem

Had the MOST amazing ride on Gemini tonight! Every session is better than the last. Amazing.

I didn't have a lot of time and it was drizzling, so I knew rain was coming soon. I really, really wanted to spend some time with him and decided to tack him up and ride him in the arena. He started off a little tense but within a couple minutes, he blew repeatedly. I just think he is still getting over some baggage about having a rider on his back and he tenses up by default. We walked for a minute or two and then moved into the trot. He felt light and under himself and his transitions were amazing. When he felt soft and relaxed, we went to trot/canter transitions. He has become so in-tune to my seat and his transitions were the softest and lightest I've ever felt. I was seeking a nice working trot, but he wanted to go into the canter. We played with that a bit and I would reward him any time he stretched those legs out and gave me a nice working trot.

His transitions down were equally soft as up. I played with transitions through all 3 gaits and then added the halt a few times. I was so impressed by his try and attentiveness.

After about 30 minutes, I got the nicest transitions of the session and called it a day. We played with the gate a little, helping him learn to sidepass over lightly for opening and closing the gate. I tried to find him some grass to eat, but he wasn't all that interested. It was getting dark and wet, anyway.

Looking forward to some Gem time this weekend. The trail rides are really turning him around (as well as the play time, of course!).

Runnin' and Jumpin'

I haven't ridden Gem in a few days and I knew I needed to get him moving. He's been in a stall and run (large run) for a few weeks now. It's great if I can keep him exercised, but if he's in there for more than 2-3 days I pull him out and do something to get him moving.

I pulled out Rain, Z and Gem and put them into the arena together. Then I sent them in different directions. Boy, how fun! Bucking, kicking, rearing... they were having fun! What was super interesting was when I asked them in, Gem came trotting over from the opposite end of the 120' arena. My mares came too, but Gem came with energy and they really seemed to be be conflicted by his leadership and mine. Made me smile to watch them think things through.

Next time, the video camera goes with me. Z was especially animated with her movements in mid-air. Awesome.

Cowboy and Zarah

Zarah was quite the RBE today. I decided to do PPL on the property at the trot. That horse is so fast! It seemed to really calm her and after 5 minutes or so, she started to move her feet slower. We then went into the arena to try PPL at the canter and just move her feet more. She calmed way down and I got a great, soft trot that had tons of elevation. Lovely feeling.

Then, I played with Cowboy for Chrissy and tried to help her understand to bring her phases down and start giving Cowboy something to think about. He was very fun to play with! We played with a very subtle send on the circle, some sideways, some falling leaf, and transitions. Then, I hopped on and really focused on the bending/suppling exercise I learned from Josh Lyons. Basically, I ask him to turn until he's soft and supple then go the other way. We did it at the trot and he was really getting better as we went. He's a stiff necked horse and I really believe that's partly why he's so bracey. I offered to ride him a few more times for Chrissy to soften him up and get him moving and partnering. Such a nice horse.