Cracking Dawn.

This last week I gave Paloma a few days off after the show as per our usual post show routine, pending she is a good ponykin's, which she totally was!

Physically I don't think she really needed the down time but I think mentally, it is important for her. She is after all a bit of a 'mental' ride. And no I don't mean mental as in crazy, more like you have to get inside her head type of ride and shock... err.. no, inspire, the right wires to come out and play.

After feeling and repeatedly commenting that I have been a serial barn absentee it was a welcome relief to arrive at the barn early Sunday morning to find the place completely desolate.

*erm, did I miss a memo? It is Sunday right?*

There were no lessons, no cars and the trailer must have left for a show... These two events alone, Sunday lessons and shows, seeming to be the only things that draw out my fellow boarders from the wood work.

Luckily though, I was able to arrange time to steal Mich away from baby Pey and her DH for a relaxing and necessary long ride.

Pey apparently sensing her mom's plan, decided to add her own opinion before Mich was able to leave. No matter, this motivated me to drag out a couple standards and poles from the indoor.

Upon Mich's arrival we decided to combine both our ideas for the day and set up a two fence, curving line to work on our control and our horse's rideability and to head out for a trail ride as our warm up. Fun!

We set a rather ugly but functional cross rail-ish fence with the bottom of the 'X' resting on a Bale Buddy... that had ripped but ALSO proved functional as 'flapping plastic spook proofing'. Thinkers we are!

The next fence, a simple 2' 7.5"- ish vertical, (ha thanks to my cheapskate ways of buying actual logs for poles), was set seven strides away on a curve.

After tacking we both headed out to mount up for our trail, I set my reins in hand, placed one foot in stirrup and all of a sudden we were greeted by kid's blazing down the driveway with their beaded bike wheels clack-clacking and leaving flying gravel in their wake.

Luckily, today, I had followed proper 'mounting' protocol and didn't fall on my face or bottom when Pal skittered sideways with a loud snot that spoke exactly what I was thinking. Thankfully, she said it, not me!

Our trail proved peaceful after the horses calmed their willies and we even had some beautiful, however, very difficult to ride, trot extensions.

Both Mich and I remarked that the horses seemed a bit wound up today so we decided to let them go for a canter on a particularly flat spot. Though, canter was not what the horses were thinking, therefore Mich and I got a crash course on 'jockey'. Which isn't helped when you cannot refrain from your laughing fit.




Back from our warm up, both horses were still very alert and sensitive, a welcome change for me and Pal. Both horses jumped through the exercise like pro's, proving what we thought was a simple exercise to be much too simple.
Looks like I need to drag the rest of the fences out sooner than I had thought.... ugh.

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Note for today in BOLD.
I have begun my 5AM rides as of 05/26/15.  I know I have to note this officially in order to force my bleary butt out of bed at that god awful hour. '.....must..... not...... disappoint....fellow bloggers/readers.... '