Sophie, Raquel, Izzy

Wow, it sure has warmed up again. We were taking shelter from the rain last Saturday, and now the notorious Northern California weather is back up in the high 80s. I'm looking forward to winter - that is, some aspects of it. I personally don't mind the cold, just the rain that floods our arenas and creates a thick mud that somehow gets all over everything.

I rode Sophie again and she did fine. She was bending nicely and we didn't have any "Pony ADD" due to me keeping her busy with lots of circles, transitions, etc. I cantered her for the first time and she was acting as though she wanted to buck and play a bit, so I relaxed deep into the saddle and gave her a strong leg to move off of and we got some good, balanced strides. I don't expect her to be completely balanced at the canter, she is only around 3 years old, but we're working on it and as she gets a bit older she will become more balanced.

I want to work on with her turns on the forehand and haunches,
shoulder-ins and haunches-in..s, and leg yields.

Also, doing many canter departs will help her strength
and working on straightness at the walk and trot will help with control on the canter circle.

Other things that may help with strength is riding up and down hills,
riding over cavaletti
and longeing.

Notes to self:
Remember to ride a 20-meter "SQUARE" instead of circle, utilizing every corner to rebalance my horse.


Anyways. Raquel was a bit high today so I spent a lot of time on the trot, really making her work and trying to get her in shape. She was sweating quite a bit at the end of our ride. It may sound crazy to anyone whos ridden her but Raquel needs a lot of leg. She has to be kept in between the rider's hands and legs at all times otherwise she will try to establish her own pace. She is a fun ride, however and it is very much of a "give and take" relationship between us and our communication. I also had a chance to take her into the woods to cool her down, and she was perfect out on her own as expected.

I just longed Izzy in the round pen to get her "sticky feet" moving again. I would like to get her into better shape so she is easier for the kids to ride. I worked on voice commands and did a join-up session to gain respect as well. I think with a little more time I'll have Izzy respecting almost any rider that gets on her back. She's a perfectly decent horse.