Weekday Plans - w/c 23rd Feb

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sheep

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Things are feeling a bit less miserable, maybe it’s the brighter mornings or little bit of daylight creeping into the evenings… but that, coupled with a little bit of more cheerful weather, is def helping.

Plan this week is to get back on board, the driver there is that OH is likely going away with work for a month or so as of next week, so it’s probably better to ride before he goes 😂

Any big plans with anyone else?
 
Not big plans, but I've shifted work hours for a few weeks to 8-4 so we can just about get 45 mins riding outdoors as opposed to 30 mins indoors later. Feels like a big shift and a bit more positive!

We have eventers dressage on Sunday, but have realised that we can't practise too much because clever mare learns the test and then anticipates everything. So we have to do some of the moves mixed up with lots of other things, so we are practising in secret!
 
Rest week for standie after the physio declared him NQR on his right hind last week upon trotting him up without his hoof boots on. I'm really hoping that it was just due to him being barefoot on the gravelly lane but the catastrophiser in me has my head going to all sorts of long term lameness places, especially after coblet. I might take him out in hand on Wednesday to see how he is moving, before deciding whether its a vet job or not. Gutted as we were due to do a 20k PR yesterday and another 18km one next Sunday but I withdrew from both.

I can hack friends endurance pony on Wednesday afternoon who will be glad of the exercise and my teen daughter and I are going to use a xmas gift voucher and head to Cannock Chase trekking centre next sunday for a 2 hour fast hack which will be lovely as their horses are wonderful.
 
Equine communication seminar this evening! Opportunity to test swapping around my office days before we have to do 3 a week after Easter 😭😭😭

So tonight is a test of time management, might pop in the school for 15-20 mins.
Tuesday likely day off
Ground Work Wednesday
Lesson Thursday
Hack Friday (sunset at 17:55!!!!)
 
Finally, after a few interrupted weeks with various things, we are finally back to normal.

This morning was a 50 minute interval hack

Tuesday & Thursday will hopefully be 2 x fairly brisk hacks. But Thursday might need to be a slower pace more recovery type hack, we'll see how he goes.

Wednesday will either be a lunge or jumping session depending upon time..

Friday is a flatwork/polework lesson with our biomechanics coach.

Probably no days off for a little while as the Spring grass is certainly springing through the mud here ... !! So hence the active recovery type hacks rather than just a day off - wiith his EMS even 30 minutes brisk walking in-hand is preferable to nothing.
 
Seminar last night was FANTASTIC, I went in thinking I'd know most of it and was wrong which is delightful.

Also managed to ride for 25 mins as a fellow livery did my nets for me 💕 and Sadie was also fantastic in the rain. Both our balance is feeling much better recently, she's flexible, shes adjustable, she's asking to canter even if she still can't hold it for very long on the left. Very good Monday!!!

lightweight duplicate remover
 
Monday - Last day of Sean Coleman clinic, traver, renver in trot and canter with canter then introducing flying changes back to the "correct" lead. Got it both ways :) Then travel home and unpack. A very long day for both of us.
Tuesday - Back to work for me and field time for Amber
Wednesday - Day off
Thursday - PM travel to SQH for their 2 day Ranch clinic.
Friday - Ranch Riding clinic - back to patterns, straight lines and one-handed riding after the previous weekend focus on all things gymnasticysing.
 
Half day today at school so I'm heading up to the horses about 3 and walking standie in-hand the 800m to a little sand school to do some pole walk and have a play at teaching him to side up a mounting block at liberty. We did it with coblet and it was such a valuable skill to be able to mount anywhere whilst on a hack.
 
On track so far, 45 minute brisk hack yesterday && 40 minutes polework this morning to add to Monday's session.

Loving the lighter mornings/evenings and actual sunshine ☀️
 
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Managed a lovely 45 mins in the daylight yesterday evening, I thought it might have been a bit nothingy but the mare was floating beautifully, really relaxed and responsive, which perked daughter up no end. Nicest schooling session I've seen them do! It's often when you least expect it right, when you put pressure on to achieve and progress things is when you end up feeling a bit meh. And we've nailed some of Sunday's dressage moves without the mare realising we were even trying to, which is good. All downward transitions into walk now require us to do something else in walk before trotting again, because the 3-5 strides had turned into 3-5 strides jog whenever walk was asked for. That's gone now. We can also now stay straight on the centre line instead of impressively leg yielding in every direction, unasked for!
 
Another 45 minute hack this morning - different route - I had planned a relaxed, recovery, plodding hack. Pony had other ideas and we actually did like 40 minutes of continous trot mixed with un-asked for canters and some faux spooking thrown in for free 🤣
 
MuddyMonster said:
Another 45 minute hack this morning - different route - I had planned a relaxed, recovery, plodding hack. Pony had other ideas and we actually did like 40 minutes of continous trot mixed with un-asked for canters and some faux spooking thrown in for free 🤣
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Spring is springing!!! 🌺🌺🌺

We did a quick 25 mins hack last night instead of groundwork as arena was busy. Lesson this evening will still be wet but at least not freezing!
 
Took this hairy creature in the school tonrun through a test. He was unimpressed!

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Survived walking around the canter track with this one. He was very good but the horses in the field next to it were acting rather happy so didnt test any other speeds...I am very pleased about this!

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And filmed my sharer riding my original horse for an online test. You know you have a good one when you can do dressage with this in the background.

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smolmaus said:
Spring is springing!!! 🌺🌺🌺
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It's pretty standard for us hacking regardless of the time of year, especially for our shorter pre-work hacks 🤣🙈. For our routes above12-15km he paces himself better 🤣

We had a really good biomechanics lesson today, out came the pilates bands to help rectify my position faults which have crept in - pre christmas was our last lesson. But pony was super ❤️
 
Went for a hack anyway, it was in fact too late and I ended up walking halfway home as I got scared and she got scared 🙃 it was cool in a way that as soon as I thought to myself "goddamnit I mistimed this" her ears went stiff, head up, walk changed. Mind reader.

We also got spooked by a newborn, brand new to the world, baby lamb that yelled from behind a hedge (terrifying) and an electric car that started behind a hedge that was definitely a Decepticon or a Terminator in disguise. Poor pony!!!
 
Well today I paid £15 for the privilege of entering a 40cm jumping competition to try and work out why the hooligan has developed stage fright.

I mean these were raised poles (which he does all the time!) but apparently with alligators under them. It was the BRC club jumping - designed for novices - and we walked over them snorting and generally being ridiculous

Once he'd decided there was nothing terrifying he went back for 50cm where he actually jumped! Quite nicely too with an unlucky one down when he was distracted by the door and forgot he had legs.

So obviously our route to showjumping stardom is going to require a round of cross poles first 🙄

Steward said oh he's got quite a pop on him - yup, but i think it's going to take a while to regain confidence, esp as I have no idea how or why it vanished.
 
Nipped out for an inter 1 to secure regionals qualification for summer 😄

Really good boy just a genuine moment of unsureness quickly recovered and right piri was too big but he let me in to regain the softness to at least keep the steps correct which is a big tick in his blotting book.

IMG_9101.jpeg

70.88% we were the only ones in the classes but there was loads going on and he rode 99% how he does at home 😇
 
My plan went well, lol.
Long reined to friends place, got on without incident.

Friend did go and get me a neck strap - forgot one. Then called after me - you are clipped on? ( air vest).

Other than standing on a dog toy and using this as an excuse to leap through the air she was foot perfect.

Will get on at home tomorrow and see what happens.

This pony just loves working, so 3 weeks off leads to much excitement when you start again.

We did get a lot of the leaps and bucks out long reining, so think that has helped.
 
So I realise this was a thread for last week really, but will just share yesterday's triumph....took the mare to eventer's dressage run by a riding club, - her first time with us between the boards and second time ever in her life. Had no idea what she was going to do really, including in the warm up etc. It is an over 16s only club (daughter just scraped in but was the youngest by FAR), and could have been a bit intimidating with local well known eventers there (in other classes to us!), but both the mare and the daughter totally kept their cool and came out with a 32 (=68% in proper money) with three fairly glaring errors, so it bodes well for eliminating those errors. We had a couple of skippy canter steps on one of our trot circles, wrong canter lead on her right rein canter for some of it (transitioned correctly then changed), and massively cutting a corner off after completing a circle. So those marks were lower, but there were plenty of 7.5s, mostly 7s and some 6.5s on there. Very happy for our first time out and they finished 7th in a class of about 16 adults. It's the same test at Northallerton at the end of the month so we know what to work on.

But lovely day, really built confidence in them both, and for a 6yo a lovely starting point for the season.

Apols for clearly living my horse life through my daughter on these threads, but I am too heavy to ride these days and too busy supporting daughter to do anything about it!
 
I know we're now on the next week but just to round last week off

TREC PTV on Saturday & was so pleased, his ridden back up and a couple of other obstacles was the best he's done all winter season 👌

I wasn't feeling great over the weekend so had a short (for us on a weekend) hack of 14km.
 
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