Working on My Knees

When I got to the stable on Friday to ride Mia it was already warm, I even took off my hoodie before I walked into the barn. Mia is still shedding, though not as bad as last last week, so grooming was quicker. Since she still has a good bit of her winter coat still covering her body I decided that it might be a good idea to leave her BOT butt blanket off. She was definitely…

A Frustrating Ride on Magic

Last Sunday my grandson, who was visiting me, got his desire to go riding again after six months of not getting up on a horse. We rode at Shannon's, and I gave up my ride on Cider so my grandson could have a less frustrating ride, so I got the opportunity to ride Magic and get frustrated! Shannon did not mind me switching horses, she knows that Cider is much more…

My New Wellep Bit Signals How My Hands Need to Improve...

And it is the “zing” of the cable through the mouthpiece that shows me how I have failed through the decades to truly follow the horses' mouths.

From the first day I tried the Wellep bit I have marveled at how I finally found a bit that ameliorates the bad effects of…

Further Progress

My hands continue to improve, they are steadier and and more acceptable to the horses.

When I got up on Cider last Sunday I was prepared for her to decide that, on second thought, she did not appreciate me changing to the JP Dr. Bristol snaffle. Hey, she is a mare, the weather is spring like, her coat is…

I Did Not Have to Warm Up My Bit

It got up to 80ºF a few times this week. I wore my summer riding clothes, the horses were not buried under exercise sheets, and all the horses are shedding out rapidly.

My…

My New Bit Gives Me a Chance to Improve My Riding

After looking at an ad for a Wellep bit for over a year, I finally had enough spare money to buy it. It was described, and the picture showed, a Wellep Mullen mouth Full Cheek Snaffle. The web site's title was Wellep Western Bit, which confused me because on the Wellep bit web site there was no mention of Western bits! I finally ordered it and…

The Cold Wind Just Drained All of My Energy

Our extremely persistent moderate drought is easing. The ponds are filling up again, our local river has stopped looking like an easily fordable creek and we are seeing persistent mud again. This is good in many ways, at least the soil will have enough moisture to grow the first Spring hay crop! So I do not complain too much about the rain. Of course…

It Seems Like I Cannot “Feel” My Upper Back

All through my riding career, most of my riding instructors (at least the good ones) have gotten after me for “slouching” in the saddle. As long as my MS was not too bad, I could work around my slouching back, but it has held me back my entire riding life.

You see I did not KNOW…

I Discover a New Muscle in My Back

This was a good week, I got to ride all three horses!

It was so warm on Sunday Shannon did not even put the butt blanket or neck cover on Cider. The ring was a little squishy because of the snow and rain last week, so all I could do was walk. Cider gave me an indication that she wanted to…

Spooking from Gunshots and Dodging Raindrops

After two weeks of not riding due to the freezing temperatures or rain I was very glad to get a lesson on Wednesday. The two weeks of not getting out much resulted in my body becoming a LOT weaker! Debbie and I have decided that if I use the Equicube for a few minutes at the beginning of my lesson my back…

The Deep Freeze

Even down here in the sunny South it has been COLD this month. I feel so sorry for all the horse people further north than me, because it has been so COLD the past two weeks. This is North Carolina, we are not supposed to have weeks of bitter cold, we are not supposed to wake up to single digit temperatures. We are not supposed to have weeks of bitter north winds.…

Bingo Reverts to His Old Habits

Because of the cold my riding schedule got messed up. Wednesday morning it was 19°F at the stable, I had already rescheduled my lesson because of the weather forecast. Debbie was willing to give me a lesson on Thursday morning, but then Debbie called me about how she had to baby-sit…

Winter Rules for Now

Yesterday we got our first real snow this winter down here in NC. It snowed steadily for a few hours yesterday afternoon but it was too warm for any of it to stick, even my porch railing was bare. Friday morning it felt so cold, damp and raw when I opened my front door that I KNEW that Mia would curse me out if I tried to ride, even with two butt blankets on her. “Are you…

Backs, Equine and Human

Wednesday, during my lesson with Debbie, I had to work on Bingo's back and on my back.

When I started my ride on Bingo it was super, super obvious that Bingo's back still did not feel good. Because of this I spent over half of my ride up in two-point since Bingo DID NOT want me sitting down on the…

Even at 31 Years Old Mia Still Improves

Mia is old. Mia is ancient. Mia has arthritis problems in her hocks. Mia has the most sensitive mouth of any horse I've ridden in the past 47 years.

I have been riding Mia for 8 years, accepting the fact that she will never, ever become completely sound. All this time I have been…

I Move My Grip Up an Inch or So

When I talked to Debbie before my lesson on Wednesday, I told her about my hip bursitis and that I would not be very ambitious, no “rider's push-ups”, limited 2-point and limited posting trot. I had been hobbling around all week and I did not want to do anything that would trigger my hip bursitis again! I asked to use the Equicube so I would work different…

I Triggered My Hip Bursitis

Last week, when I rode two horses using my regular Prussian Sided stirrups with the Super-Comfort stirrup pads, I triggered my hip bursitis. My hips used to bother me many years ago until I bought my Back on Track boxer shorts and started wearing them every day, and last week was the first time in YEARS that my hips hurt, specifically my left hip joint, especially…

My Heels Creep Up Again

In my search for more stability while doing the “rider's push-up” exercise, it occurred to me that my double-offset Prussian sided stirrups might be destabilizing me while I bent my hip joints so I could touch the horse's neck with my chest. So I dug out my pair of regular Prussian sided stirrups, bought another pair of the Super-Comfort stirrup pads, put the new pads on…

I Get to See Debbie Riding Bingo

This week at Debbie's stable I got to show her how I “customized” my new Free Jump Collar so I felt comfortable using it on a horse. I used a combination of a Western curb strap, a 1” metal ring and a doubled up stirrup leather attached to the girth to keep the collar down at the base of the horse's neck, I added a pair of “breast-plate Ds” to the breast-plate…

When the Weather Interferes With My Riding

It has been a frustrating week for me as a horseback rider! I missed out on riding Cider last Sunday because the weather forecasters were predicting rain in the morning, so I called Shannon and we canceled my ride. Sunday morning there was no rain and I was miffed, until later in the afternoon when there were…