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How to Make Your Horse Melt June 30, 2008

Posted by kimayars Arena Work (Horse) Digg! this story! Digg! this story. , 3comments

It was not quite as hot as yesterday, but still pretty toasty. I had my lesson on Tigger today. It was interesting.

I opted not to lunge first as I was afraid it would just completely drain him. He seemed mellow and relaxed, so I took the chance. I went about our little process slowly, and got on.  He stood still, but I could tell he was tense.  I patted him. We waited. Then he took a step forward. Then he ran.

I was REALLY hoping we were over that, but apparently not. There were two things I had going for me: 1) My new saddle fits me really well, so I am better balanced for moments like this, and 2) I had a plan.  I put him on a tight circle. When he relaxed, the circle got bigger. When he started racing again, the circle got smaller.  Today he was going to discover that there is freedom in relxation.  The “squirt” was over in less than a minute.  I’ll take that.

The rest of the lesson was mostly spent with him fighting me. Not sure why as there were several things different about our ride (new pad, his buddies were out on pasture, still jazzed from his initial sprint).  More than likely this was a symptom of our lack of consistent work.  There was lots of head tossing and turning upside-down that he doesn’t usually do.  We had two kind of cute shies at objects that have been there for MONTHS.  Overall he was just being silly.  I decided to ignore it and continue on.

About 30 minutes into the lesson he cried uncle.  He was soft, relaxed and AWESOME.  During the lesson we had re-introduced leg yields.  His last one was the best he’s ever done.  Seriously, it felt like we were floating.

So all-in-all it was a good ride even though he wasn’t perfect. We worked through our issues, ended on a success, and enjoyed some time with each other.  Now I just need to do that more than once a week.  :-)

Change in plans… June 29, 2008

Posted by kimayars Ramblings Digg! this story! Digg! this story. , 2comments

I fully intended to ride today, but I’m so not a hot-weather person (which is exactly why I live in the Pacific Northwest). When it hit 96 today I knew I was not going to ride. After chatting it up with Sherene for a while, I walked out to see Tigger. He was hot and sweaty just from grazing. There is no way I wanted to sit on top of a hot and sweaty horse in 95+ degree heat. So, we went to the AC haven of Starbucks.

We did get all three horses bathed today. They looked GORGEOUS. Probably the “most improved” out of the bunch was Zandee. Zandee is a one-eyed 24-year-old retired school horse who is enjoying his new life as a pasture ornament. Post-bath he showed us what a stunning blood bay he is. I wish I had brought my camera — those who knew him would not have recognized him. (Unless they saw the missing eye, of course.)

The weather should cool off a bit this week, hopefully landing in the mid 70’s by Wednesday. I’ll have my lesson with my trainer tomorrow, and Wednesday we have the farrier visiting. The goal is 3 rides this week, and with the holiday on Friday that might be a little tricky. We’ll have to see.

I am also laying some pressure on Sherene to join me at a local 5k race this Friday. The winners get pies… :-)

Some Like it Hot June 29, 2008

Posted by kimayars Run Digg! this story! Digg! this story. , 2comments

Some like it hot, but I sure don’t. :-)

Beth and I ran a little later than normal, but still early hoping to beat the heat projected for today. Unfortunately, it was already 75 by the time we finished our run.

My goal was to run for an hour today, so we left the development, ran down to the Snoqualmie Valley Trail, headed out to the golf course, and then returned. It’s a flat 6 miles, and toward the end started getting those “Ugh, I’ve been running for a long time” aches, but in general felt pretty good.

Plans for today: melt into a puddle of goo while I try and remind myself why I turned down my husband’s offer of air conditioning 2 years ago.

Workout:

Evening Birthday Walk June 27, 2008

Posted by kimayars Walk Digg! this story! Digg! this story. , 1 comment so far

My friends at work took me on a suprise evening birthday walk tonight beginning at Carillon Point in Kirkland and up to the Kirkland waterfront. It was a GORGEOUS night and I really enjoyed seeing the beautiful homes and cool shops. It’s an area that I don’t visit much, so it was really nice to see it. We couldn’t ash for a better night. The sailboats on the water were gorgeous, and we even got to see a wedding!

We finished up the night with dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, Pomegranate Bistro in Redmond.

It was a very relaxing and delightful evening! A fabulous surprise!

Workout:

Another Year Older June 26, 2008

Posted by kimayars Ramblings Digg! this story! Digg! this story. , 6comments

Today I turned 37.  The odd thing is that when I say it, it sounds YOUNG. Weird, eh?  I totally expected to bemoan the fact that I’m getting older, blah-blah-blah.  But for the first time since I hit 30, I’m really okay with it.

I’m blaming the semi-consistent running.  While I’ve had some issues with my weight lately, my joints and body as a whole actually feel really good.  I feel better this year than I did last year. That’s pretty decent.  I’ll take that.

I did resolve tonight to get back on track with my eating habits (ha ha).  Of course I had to indulge myself “one last time” with a supurb prime rib dinner.  Tonight was also further evidence that I will never be a vegetarian.  And of course I need to have my celebratory birthday icecream.  :-)

So, happy birthday to me.  It’s been a good year.  Here’s to better ones ahead.