Debbie Enjoys Bingo's Transformation

Fall has arrived, and I hope it stays around! Once again I can wear some of my Back on Track stuff while riding, the neck wrap, the back wrap/brace, and the BOT T-shirt. Hurrah!!!! I did not bother with the fly sheet for Bingo (though I did put fly spray on) and Bingo could wear the BOT exercise sheet all through the hide. Happier rider, happier horse, what…

Sam Gives Me a Lesson

Debbie could not give me a lesson this week since she went to the OTTB makeover to support one of her daughters who has been schooling an OTTB she bought. So Debbie's other daughter Sam gave me my lesson. This week I made sure to wear my ice vest and the heat did not affect me anywhere near what it did last week when I did not wear my ice vest.…

Has Bingo Turned the Corner?

Bingo has been very good, a statement that I despaired of making when I started riding him.

Bingo was used for two birthday parties, two days in a row. He was ridden by girls, I got the impression that not all the girls were Debbie's students, and did walk and trot. He behaved, he did not scare…

This Time Bingo Remembered

Earlier this week Bingo had a different rider, a rider different from me in many ways. His rider is a man that goes to Debbie's church and she had been telling him about Bingo and his handicapped rider, me. This man has cerebral palsy, disabled, unable to drive, and I don't think he had ever been on a horse before. Somehow this guy ended up with a Western saddle and…

We Change to Titanium Double Bridle Bits

Over a month ago I learned about Fager Bits (https://www.fagerbits.com) on the COTH forum. When I went to their site I learned that they had titanium bits (at least the mouthpiece is titanium) and, wonders of wonders, they had titanium double bridle bits that would fit Bingo (115mm Weymouth curb and 120mm…

Any “New” Situation= “I Don't Remember ANYTHING!”

Sorry for missing last week, I had ridden three times and I was simply exhausted. This week I just rode Cider and had my lesson so I have a tiny bit more energy.

Sunday, when I rode Cider, the weather was absolutely wonderful. Not only did I not need my ice vest to stay cool,…

I Got Myself New Safety Stirrups

After I fell off Coach last year I realized that getting safety stirrups might be a really good idea. I started looking around at the various types of safety stirrups, some relatively cheap like the Peacock stirrups, and some extremely expensive ($600.00 USD on up.)

I was familiar with…

On Friday I Forgot My Ice Vest

Southern summer, hot and humid, mid 90s for highs, mid to high 70s when I ride, and the air feels like you could carve it with a knife.

After hearing my story of my minor adventures with Bingo during my homework ride, Debbie decided on Wednesday that it was time for a lesson in the…

Is the 2^nd Riding Ring in Another Universe?

Due to some chaos on Wednesday morning I did not get my lesson with Debbie. I did get to ride there on Thursday, and when we set it up I asked Debbie if I could use my double bridle on Bingo even though I would not be in a lesson. She had no problems with my request which was nice, it means I am using the double bridle correctly and not…

The Heat Wave was Hard on Me

I ride earlier in the morning during the summer, 8:00 AM, and while the temperatures were somewhat lower in the heat wave it still felt like a sauna when I opened my front door. I wore my summertime technical fabric riding clothes and my ice vest so I could at least ride some without too much harm but between riding and getting my house ready for house-guests that…

I Try Another Bit with Bingo

Hot, humid weather down here in the South. The lows have been in the mid 70's F, which sounds really pleasant until I open my front door into a sauna. I really appreciate being able to ride earlier in the morning during the summer heat, but the humidity tends to be worse earlier in the morning. My ice vest is really helping me to cope with the heat, I am so glad I…

Bingo “Forgets” Stuff at Summer Camp

Last week I had to delay my lesson from Wednesday to even earlier on Thursday since the stable got a load of timothy hay delivered, and they wanted to store it right away since rain was forecast for later in the day. All week I had obsessed over how Bingo did in the camp, but I did not call because everyone at the stable had a busy week.…

I Work on Stabilization

Debbie's first summer camp is next week so both of my rides on Bingo this week were geared to continuing his preparation for being a lesson horse for a kid who may not ride well.

I found this mildly frustrating, it really needed to be done but I had to take a break on developing Bingo's impulse. Bingo…

I Prepare Bingo for Riding Camp

First an update on ice vests. When I realized that my FlexiFreeze ice vest was causing me an allergic reaction to the neoprene I went on-line to see what other ice vests were available. I found the Kool Max ice vest from Polar Products. It is not as flexible as the FlexiFreeze vest since instead of lots of ice cubes enclosed in plastic the Kool Max vest uses 4” x…

Trying Out My New Ice Vest

I have MS. Heat is bad for people with MS. This year my body told me that my wonderful technical fabric summer cooling shirt and breeches were not enough, and a long term forecast I saw warned of the possibility of over a month with no relief or rain (fortunately that forecast was not completely accurate, it has cooled down a little and we are getting rain…

Bingo's Mouth Stayed Closed!

But first an update on Cider. She has been flinching just about every step (though more or less trotting “sound”) so when it came time in my budgeting I finally gave in and got her some Back on Track stuff. I bought her exercise boots, for both the fore legs and her hind legs, and a BOT exercise sheet. It is getting hotter so we just use the exercise sheet after we…

A Single Jointed Bradoon Improves Contact

As I lay thinking about my previous week's lesson I decided I had to do SOMETHING about Bingo's bradoon on the double bridle. Since the French-link eggbutt bradoon seemed to be encouraging sucking back, iffy contact except for a few steps, and great resistance to halting and backing up, and I decided that Francis Dwyer might have a good point about…

The Final Cold Morning of the Season

This Wednesday morning it was quite crisp, 45°F with a brisk breeze at dawn and it did not warm up much in time for my lesson. I had to put my cold weather breeches back on and I could wear my BOT back brace without getting too hot. I even used my home-made bit warmer on the bits.…

Is the Double Bridle EASIER for Horses to Understand?

This week was the fourth time I used a double bridle on Bingo. I continue to be totally amazed how this horse who was VERY resistant to hand aids has settled down and is now showing definite signs of understanding my hand aids. Even though my curb rein is sagging enough so that I do not bring the curb chain into action, when I give hand aids…

I Rode Bingo Twice This Week

This was a good week, I got to ride Bingo 30 minutes at a walk twice this week, once for my lesson and then I FINALLY got a “homework” ride in.

Wednesday I was so glad to see that clouds of hair did not come off Bingo when Debbie groomed him! He is still shedding, but a lot of his undercoat and…