Tuesday's have become our riding day. We scramble home early from work and head north to see our boys. When the rides are good, they are really good. It helps being in the outdoor arena, weather permitting. Both hubby and I continue working on loping, side-passing, turns, ground poles, along with some work on open/closing gates etc. I am slowly getting back to where I was, working well with Koda. We haven't gone on any trail rides, which of course is the real test. I really wish my saddle time wasn't so limited...some day's I wonder if it's all worth it?
I think the biggest improvement I've noticed lately is Nemo's lope. He has slowed down and is using his top line more.
A few weeks back our trainer had the largest multi-layer ground pole setup I've ever seen/ridden through (think multiple fallen trees, with branches crossing over each other) for the horses to pick through. It was cool to watch Nemo hang his head low, and lift his feet high, as he carefully picked through them. A natural talent Trainer Patty said horses are either born with, or without. Which category does your horse fall in? Mine is in the latter, without.
A few weeks back our trainer had the largest multi-layer ground pole setup I've ever seen/ridden through (think multiple fallen trees, with branches crossing over each other) for the horses to pick through. It was cool to watch Nemo hang his head low, and lift his feet high, as he carefully picked through them. A natural talent Trainer Patty said horses are either born with, or without. Which category does your horse fall in? Mine is in the latter, without.
Yesterday's ride wasn't one of the better ones, for me. While Brad was enjoying his ride with Nemo, I was back to trying saddles - something that has become far from fun. I think I switched saddles no less then five times. Poor Koda. He was a good boy through the fashion show that was full of tacking up/down, starts, stops, restarts, and plain 'ol frustration. Communication can be such a struggle. It didn't help we were stuck inside due to the flooded outdoor arena. One of the saddle's I tried was a rough-out trainer, that made me laugh out loud! I stuck like glue. Interestingly it felt like it fit Koda the best, but had other things that weren't right (aside from the look).
They (Trainer & Saddle Fitter) think in the end they figured out what I am feeling, in the best of the bunch, among other things - the lack of a double rig. Needless to say, I am back to waiting. This whole process pretty much sucks. However, I am hopeful it will be worth it in the end.
5 comments:
Apache def. was not born with ground poles skills. She always manages to clip at least one, no matter how far apart or how small they are.
My saddle is a rough out/fake suede and I kinda like it...being stuck like glue to the saddle is a good thing in my book. lol!
~Lisa
Koda clips the poles too, usually the last one, unless he is really tuned in.
Looks are last on my list, it was the uncomfortable fit (for me) that wasn't a match. It was hard, but had some side padding on the swell that made me sit wide.
I agree 100%, stickin' to the saddle is a good thing! The rough out made such a huge difference, caught me by surprise. I sure felt why rough outs are liked so much!
Hope you find the right fit for both you and your horse. One thing you might want to consider is wearing chaps- a good pair of chaps helps you stick to the saddle, leather to leather is less slippery than denim to leather. You can get suede chaps if you want. I like to ride in chinks which are a shorter length than full shotgun chaps.
Thanks for the great reminder Shirley. We looked at chinks at the last Midwest Horsefair, and have contact info from a knowledgeable guy who makes them. Kinda pricey, but sounds like it's worth it.
Sounds like overall things are good, hope you find the perfect fit soon
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