Sunday, May 15, 2011

Training Schedules

I've been thinking a lot about where Siaga -should- be in his training. I mean, if he hadn't have gotten so sick, if I had had help when I was younger, and if I hadn't been so terrified of him in spring time when he would have all this extra energy from not working in the winter time. He and I could be doing what ever we wanted by now. He's in his prime. But no... All those things happened. And because they happened, he's now seven years old, in June, and only green broke. But despite that, he's made amazing progress.

My first ride that I took on him around the front yard here at home, I admit, I was quite nervous. I was afraid that he might decide to give me an impromptu dismount. I was thinking "We'll be trail riding by the end of summer." He's been home for a month and a half. It's not even the end of spring yet, but I've found myself riding him, calmly, happily, around the field, around the woods, in the neighbors woods, over the ditch, down the road.

Despite my first fall, it has been overall uneventful. I know I could have brought him to this point years ago, had he not been so ill in his second year, but he might not have come this far in such a little bit of time. Already, I've started asking him for more, a little each time. I've asked him, each ride, to accept something new that I do from his back. Like spitting from the saddle, in just about any direction. Or talking loudly, laughing, laying forward to avoid branches or to adjust a stirrup. Or moving my arms all around, or patting him on the rump. I've asked him to stand by the creek and do nothing but stand. I've asked him for a trot, and it took him a few seconds at first, but he gave it to me.

I've asked him to always walk up steep hills rather than bound up them, and to pick his way carefully coming down. I find myself riding with relaxed reins and his head relaxed more often than not. And even though he's always paying attention to me and does what I ask, it's rare, unless I say something to him, that he flips an ear back to me. Eh. So long as he is paying attention to me, I guess it doesn't really matter if he doesn't appear to be listening all the time.

When the ground hardens up a bit again, and I don't have to worry about quagmires of mud, I'm going to start working him on a trot more often. I want to have the trot mastered before I ask him to give me that beautiful canter of his again. Despite the circumstances of how that first canter with him came around, I'm excited to ride it again. No. That time, I didn't think of ice cream like I did on Taz. I was far to panicked, though the back of my mind was going "Oh wow.."

Anyways. I know I'm rambling. Rambling in blogform lets me straighten out what's running through my head at any given time.

Also... I really have got to get the farrier out. Like ASAP. ._. *bad horse mom has timing problems while working two jobs*

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