Negotiating Doing the Sitting Trot

When I started my lesson on Wednesday I gave Debbie my litany of the physical woes resulting from all the sitting trot I did for my lesson last week. Debbie's response was sensitive, showed that she heard me, and full of concern about my physical well-being “Well, I will stop asking you to do the sitting trot.” That was not my goal, MJ NEEDS some educated work…

As Summer Nears

It is getting warmer down here. This weekend starts a string of days at 90° F on up. On Wednesday for my lesson I had put on my protective vest, and after grooming and walking to the ring I took it off as I was just getting too warm. I did not even put it on for my ride on Friday. I am hoping to delay…

Working on My Two-Point

This week I got to ride Bingo twice, and I hope I can ride Cider tomorrow.

I got my lesson on Wednesday on Bingo. It had rained a lot the first few days of the week and the ring was SLOPPY in spite of over 10 hours without rain. Debbie suggested going over to the other slightly drier ring, but since…

A Pretty Good Week

I finally got to ride Cider again, it had been 6 weeks since my last ride on her.

Since I really wanted Cider's opinion on the Fager “Oscar” double-jointed “front lock” copper lozenge bar relief titanium snaffle, the one that Bingo did not seem to like too much, I was very happy. Shannon's grass ring was…

First I Have to Recover my Strength

Last week the weather and my health did not cooperate at all as far as riding a horse was concerned.

When I saw Debbie on Wednesday for my lesson this week I told her that I wanted to get back into riding Bingo in the double bridle, and that I needed her opinion about how that horrible…

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…

I Put My Feet “Home” in the Stirrups

I find that trying to do the “rider's push-ups” is quite challenging for me. Until my lesson on Wednesday EVERY TIME I did a “rider's push-up” I felt like I was teetering forward and back in my stirrups, my right stirrup still felt 2 holes longer than my left stirrup, and I had a great fear of falling head long over my horse's shoulder. In order to get my…

As I Strengthen My Hip Joints

Ever since I re-started taking lessons, my long term goal has been to gallop and jump again. I became so very, very week after my car wreck and the ensuing frequent exacerbations of my Multiple Sclerosis, until I was just too weak to ride faster than a walk. Through riding horses I started to regain my strength, but each exacerbation wipes out a LOT of my strength…

Bingo Did Not Like the Change in His Routine

When I arrived at the stable on Wednesday for my lesson, Debbie had to go and search the stalls for Bingo. When she brought him out Bingo was obviously in a high dudgeon over something, it turned out that Bingo was not put in his regular feeding stall, and he WAS NOT HAPPY. Ignoring the hay in front of him Bingo fussed over everything, so Debbie gave…

My Base of Support Improves

This week, as I walked and trotted around the riding rings, I had to spend a LOT of time up in two-point at Debbie's stable because both Bingo's and Mia's backs were sorer than usual. Bingo had been used in a beginner lesson the day before, he is ALWAYS stiffer after someone else rides him, and Debbie had changed Mia's arthritis supplement because Mia had…

Bingo Behaved During the Summer Horse Camp!

Two weeks ago Debbie had her Summer Camp for kids. This is the second year Bingo was used in the camp, before the first one I had been riding Bingo for 3 months, and he was not a good boy—he inverted and ran away with his little rider, who then fell off. He was wearing a soft rubber D-ring single jointed snaffle that year. Debbie did not use him the…

An Arabian Mare Can Touch My Soul

Summer has arrived down here in North Carolina, and so far this is the type of summer I remember from decades ago, HOT, MUGGY, and with many afternoon thunderstorms. Within a minute of stepping outside the sweat starts, and unless there is a breeze the modern summer tech fabric shirts and tights do not work very well. At least we are not in a drought this year,…

Bingo Does Not Want to do a Slow Walk

Wednesday was a wonderful day for riding, for early summer. Since I bought my Kerrits IceFil tights with the silicon full seat, I have stayed pretty cool, but on Wednesday my body said NO when I went to put on my grain leather half chaps, so I rode in my Moxie Air-Puff ventilated half chaps though they are a little bit…

Another Set of Eyes

When I got to the barn on Wednesday, Debbie’s daughter, Sam, told me Debbie was sick, but that she would be glad to give me a lesson.  Since a fresh set of eyes can often see things that become “normal” to my usual teacher I was happy to take her up on her offer (after checking to see that giving me a lesson would not put her behind for her other work at the stable.)  As we groomed Bingo, I was able to tell her some problems I had noticed when the little girls…

Two-Point Makes Me TIRED!

Most of the past two weeks I have been really, really tired.  This started when I finally got my whole seat out of the saddle when I went into two-point.  First the muscles on the front of my thighs started burning, and I stood it for as long as I could.  Ever since I bought my new saddle I have had fewer problems getting up into two-point (I no longer have to hoist myself up) and I have had no problems sinking down on the horse’s back (I often plopped…

Increasing My Stability in the Saddle    

When I got my new Pegasus Butterfly jumping saddle, I noticed that the saddle leather was more slippery than the leather in my old Stubben and Crosby saddles.  My riding teacher, Debbie, started getting after me more about the position of my lower legs.  Where before, when I was riding in the Stubben or Crosby saddles, she was pretty much content with the stability of my lower leg, she changed to correcting my lower leg several times each…

Maybe I Finally Got the Shims Right with Bingo

This week I finally came to the realization that, at least on horses with the croup high &/or sway back conformation, the key to getting my new Pegasus Butterfly saddle working correctly, is to shim my pad correctly.  I also established that when I made my stirrup leathers uneven (to reflect that my right leg is shorter than my left leg), my seat stays centered in the saddle without much extra work on my part.

Last Sunday I…

I Got to Ride Christmas Day!

The last two weeks have been sort of odd.  First, my gut decided that something was not right and acted up too much to ride, and when I did ride I got exhausted after only 20 minutes in the saddle.  I got my gut issues under control enough so I could go see my oldest son finally get his PhD degree, a process that has taken many years.  Between all of this I just got to ride twice, a much needed ride on Cider so I could get back to walking steadily on my…