8 Foot Toddlers September 7, 2007
Posted by kimayars Arena Work (Horse)
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Today was just a glorious day for a ride. The air temperature was perfect, and Rasyn was the best he’s been since moving to Sherene’s place. I’ve been grinning endlessly since my ride. *cheese!*
What impressed me the most was that while I was mounting (which has been a death-defying experience in the past) someone visiting the neighbors hoisted their child up to peek over the fence to get a good look at Ray. The fence is about 7ft tall and solid. So it really did look like an 8ft toddler peeking over the rail. They were trying to be considerate and were very quiet, but that also meant that we never heard them coming. In fact, the first time I noticed them was when I was half-way through getting on at that precarious point of one foot in the stirrup and the other somewhere over Ray’s back. It was at that moment when I heard a soft, “hoooooorsey” from behind us. Ray shot a look in that direction. His eyes were wide and he was quivered with tension. “Hey!”, he seemed to say, “There’s an 8ft toddler over there!” But he didn’t take a step. I was very proud and thankful. If he had bolted at that minute there would have been a much different ending to this story. After a few moments he realized that the 8ft toddler wasn’t going to eat us, and we walked calmy off.
Our ride was nearly the same level or relaxation and control. We worked on lateral flexions and stretching to the inside by keeping the outside rein stable and low, and suppling him with the inside rein then feeding it slowly out. This allowed him to fill the outside rein and really reach underhimself with the inside hind. Going to the right we had several moments of brillance, and finished that direction with a complete 20m circle with a lateral stretch. The left was much harder for him since that is his stiffer side, and we got one good stretch for a few strides. This is much better than Monday when he couldn’t do it at all. Even though this all happened within 28 minutes, he was sweaty and breathing hard by the end. These are muscles that are hard to engage and he’s re-learning how to carry himself. So far, he’s been an exceptional student. He earned himself a nice long stretch, a leisurely cool-out, and TWO StudMuffins.
I do believe that our relationship has changed. He’s fighting less and seems to trust me more. There is belief that it takes one year for you to get to know your horse, and another year for the horse to get to know you. So far we’ve had an amazing start, seeing as we’re exactly 3 months into our journey. I’m a happy camper.
Workout:
- Type: Other
- Date: 09/07/2007
- Time: 11:08:00
- Total Time: 00:27:55.00
- Average Heart rate: 128
- Max Heart rate: 161
- Calories: 238
Comments
Hmmm. The 8ft toddler. Glad he doesn’t live at our house. Sounds like a great ride. So happy you found Ray.