Elf On A Shelf
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As a few of you seem to like reading my random updates I will keep using this one thread for new stories every so often rather than creating new ones.
Today was a rather entertaining day! All of my horses were fresh as daisies which made for some interesting rides!
Over at yard 1 we have a gallop set up that looks like this - a furlong sand circle with a 1.2f woodchip circle round the outside of it. Both of these gallops you can go straight off of onto a woodchip gallop that has 2 corners and a 3.5f straight up a hill. You can also just go up the straight from another point missing out the bends.
Sky was first and he has been being an absolute hyperactive toad since he has been back in and today was no exception! His work today was to trot 4x each way round the sand gallop, canter 2x round and lob up the straight. Instead it went a little something like this - fly sideways squealing onto the gallop, trot down to the circle at the speed of light, trot round 3/4 way before seeing the patch of ice that is still there so that required spooking at and shooting off! Next circuit Sky decides it would be more fun to bounce his bum sideways and kick out at the ice to try to break it. This carries on for the majority of the trot 4x4 until most of the ice was smashed to smithereens. Other bits of the 4x4 involved broncing, squealing and shooting forwards when the horses on the outer track cantered past either from in front or behind. The cantering 2x2 didn't get much better! The lob up the gallops was a success though! Before squealing and cannoning off back down them then cantering sideways back into the barn ... Sky is having great fun and truly loving life!
Next up was the Boris Bike! Boris is a horse that takes a lot of getting fit and winding up but when he is fit he is super good fun! The key to any lazy horse is to get them uber, uber fit so they are no longer lazy. Boris was just going for a nice easy 1 up as he runs next week so of course that means I had him up front, had him bouncing on the spot before ploughing off up the gallops and having a whale of a time!
Fatty was doing the same as Boris - 1 up. Fatty is not overly pleasant to ride on yard 1's gallop. He knows he can bowl round the circle, get his head longer and lower coming off the circle and going round the bends, lock his jaw a bit and be a big numb headed git! And that is exactly what he did! He turned into a numb git! With some broncing added in just for good measure! He likes a good bronc does fatty! He runs next week too. I would love to hunt him, round the fields he is a total dream ride, sits nicely in your hand, bowls up and down hills all day long without breaking stride, goes first, last, in the pack etc. He jumps for absolute fun too! But first he must be a racehorse!
My lovely wee Donkey was my last ride at yard 1. He has had a few weeks off over christmas and has come back absolutely bouncing! And bounce he did ... My legs are still sore now from clinging on to his spooks! He literally goes 6ft sideways from underneath you in a split second! I have lost count of the number of times my ankle round my cantle has saved me from hitting the floor! He spooks at nothing either! He does it just because! I would love to have a speedo on my to see just how fast he goes sideways! Donkey was supposed to be trotting round the fields by himself - I opted to join the babies on the woodchip circle for safety reasons as it was his first day over at yard 1! So we lead one of the babies who was very good all things considered! But my god was he strong! He spent his whole time pulling my arms out in trot when he wasn't spooking! I pity anyone that tries to do dressage on him! He doesn't do white bits on the gallop or at the sides! Blue, green, red, silver (or whatever colour bandages we have that week) not a problem! But white? That's just too scary to contemplate and must be leapt over/round at every oppertunity no matter how many times he has already gone past it! And of course he sauntered back into the barn on a loose rein like the quietest little pony on the planet - toad!
Over at the other yard I had Bucket Heed 4x up. He is in good form with himself too! He has grown up a lot now too and doesn't chew all of your tack as soon as you start opening his door! He likes walking his way to the front of the string these days and on the trotting bits he has been learning to leg yield. I know my pelvis is squint and I need to get it sorted so my horses always go left better than they go right and Bucket Heed is no exception. But he is clever and learns quickly. On the gallops itself he is much stronger and knows his job a little too well. Each time you turn he get stronger and keener. He is cantering halfway round the turn and cannons off these days - a habit I will be trying to get him out off as he needs to wait for his partner! He still canters back down without picking up the bit though and so long as he never learns to pit his massively big head against you cantering down hill I am quite happy!
Last lot was another horse on his first week back in work but Mojito is a wee dude! He saunters along quite the thing! He is a proper fat wee pony! That was an entertaining lot! Dodger is at the same stage as Mojito - day 6 of work and was broncing and bouncing on the spot at every gate we went through. 2 that ran the other days had their first day back and were jig jogging too. Then we had the new horse who got ridden for the first time in the school yesterday and came out hacking for the first time today. He was the quietest one of the bunch! For a 4yo straight off the flat he put the older boys to shame! He walked out quite the thing, did a gate or 2 and ignored all the antic going on around him! He might just turn into a bit of a dude!
Bucket Heed doing what Bucket Heed does best - sticking his tongue out!
Today was a rather entertaining day! All of my horses were fresh as daisies which made for some interesting rides!
Over at yard 1 we have a gallop set up that looks like this - a furlong sand circle with a 1.2f woodchip circle round the outside of it. Both of these gallops you can go straight off of onto a woodchip gallop that has 2 corners and a 3.5f straight up a hill. You can also just go up the straight from another point missing out the bends.
Sky was first and he has been being an absolute hyperactive toad since he has been back in and today was no exception! His work today was to trot 4x each way round the sand gallop, canter 2x round and lob up the straight. Instead it went a little something like this - fly sideways squealing onto the gallop, trot down to the circle at the speed of light, trot round 3/4 way before seeing the patch of ice that is still there so that required spooking at and shooting off! Next circuit Sky decides it would be more fun to bounce his bum sideways and kick out at the ice to try to break it. This carries on for the majority of the trot 4x4 until most of the ice was smashed to smithereens. Other bits of the 4x4 involved broncing, squealing and shooting forwards when the horses on the outer track cantered past either from in front or behind. The cantering 2x2 didn't get much better! The lob up the gallops was a success though! Before squealing and cannoning off back down them then cantering sideways back into the barn ... Sky is having great fun and truly loving life!
Next up was the Boris Bike! Boris is a horse that takes a lot of getting fit and winding up but when he is fit he is super good fun! The key to any lazy horse is to get them uber, uber fit so they are no longer lazy. Boris was just going for a nice easy 1 up as he runs next week so of course that means I had him up front, had him bouncing on the spot before ploughing off up the gallops and having a whale of a time!
Fatty was doing the same as Boris - 1 up. Fatty is not overly pleasant to ride on yard 1's gallop. He knows he can bowl round the circle, get his head longer and lower coming off the circle and going round the bends, lock his jaw a bit and be a big numb headed git! And that is exactly what he did! He turned into a numb git! With some broncing added in just for good measure! He likes a good bronc does fatty! He runs next week too. I would love to hunt him, round the fields he is a total dream ride, sits nicely in your hand, bowls up and down hills all day long without breaking stride, goes first, last, in the pack etc. He jumps for absolute fun too! But first he must be a racehorse!
My lovely wee Donkey was my last ride at yard 1. He has had a few weeks off over christmas and has come back absolutely bouncing! And bounce he did ... My legs are still sore now from clinging on to his spooks! He literally goes 6ft sideways from underneath you in a split second! I have lost count of the number of times my ankle round my cantle has saved me from hitting the floor! He spooks at nothing either! He does it just because! I would love to have a speedo on my to see just how fast he goes sideways! Donkey was supposed to be trotting round the fields by himself - I opted to join the babies on the woodchip circle for safety reasons as it was his first day over at yard 1! So we lead one of the babies who was very good all things considered! But my god was he strong! He spent his whole time pulling my arms out in trot when he wasn't spooking! I pity anyone that tries to do dressage on him! He doesn't do white bits on the gallop or at the sides! Blue, green, red, silver (or whatever colour bandages we have that week) not a problem! But white? That's just too scary to contemplate and must be leapt over/round at every oppertunity no matter how many times he has already gone past it! And of course he sauntered back into the barn on a loose rein like the quietest little pony on the planet - toad!
Over at the other yard I had Bucket Heed 4x up. He is in good form with himself too! He has grown up a lot now too and doesn't chew all of your tack as soon as you start opening his door! He likes walking his way to the front of the string these days and on the trotting bits he has been learning to leg yield. I know my pelvis is squint and I need to get it sorted so my horses always go left better than they go right and Bucket Heed is no exception. But he is clever and learns quickly. On the gallops itself he is much stronger and knows his job a little too well. Each time you turn he get stronger and keener. He is cantering halfway round the turn and cannons off these days - a habit I will be trying to get him out off as he needs to wait for his partner! He still canters back down without picking up the bit though and so long as he never learns to pit his massively big head against you cantering down hill I am quite happy!
Last lot was another horse on his first week back in work but Mojito is a wee dude! He saunters along quite the thing! He is a proper fat wee pony! That was an entertaining lot! Dodger is at the same stage as Mojito - day 6 of work and was broncing and bouncing on the spot at every gate we went through. 2 that ran the other days had their first day back and were jig jogging too. Then we had the new horse who got ridden for the first time in the school yesterday and came out hacking for the first time today. He was the quietest one of the bunch! For a 4yo straight off the flat he put the older boys to shame! He walked out quite the thing, did a gate or 2 and ignored all the antic going on around him! He might just turn into a bit of a dude!
Bucket Heed doing what Bucket Heed does best - sticking his tongue out!