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Moutaineer

Good luck, exvet and have fun! I think it's a tough time of year to hold a show, immediately after the holidays. So many people are coming off 2 weeks of family obligations and barn down time, and I can see many employers taking a dim view of further time off. The organizers have been hounding our g...

Moutaineer

Oh, dang, Exvet. That footing is going to take forever to settle unless they water and drag the heck out of it. What a waste. And what a risk. I had the most lovely ride this afternoon. We've been doing some ground work to start for the last week or so and it really makes a difference. I'm not very ...

Moutaineer

I had one trainer who got completely fixated on one thing we could not do very well, and just could not move past it. Nor could she give me the tools to fix it. And looking back on it, it was an annoyance rather than a major stumbling block, and by ignoring it and doing other things rather than work...

Moutaineer

I think my trainer thinks Potters has more potential than I do... and she's right. Which is fine by me!. But she's also well aware that he's very easy to brain-fry, so she thinks our rate of progression is A-OK for keeping him happy at this stage in his life. We've tried to get greedy a few times an...

Moutaineer

What a gorgeous picture, Flight! Quite cold here, but no snow in sight. Which is fine by me, except we do live in a ski resort so the locals are restless... Riding in snow is tricky here. Either the thaw/freeze cycle means that you rapidly get to a point where you don't know what's going on undernea...

Moutaineer

I've got the damned cough too. Bought it back from California and can't shake it. I guess I should go see someone at this point.

Moutaineer

Exvet, it was just such an interesting experience to me to be at a big show like that. My biggest disappointment at the November show was that i didn't get to watch much of the CDI as I seemed to spend my life schlepping back and forth between barn and arena and taking care of "stuff." If ...

Moutaineer

I hope you all had a lovely, peaceful Thanksgiving day, and the opportunity to work off some that turkey today! We put Potters back in the double earlier in the week, for the first time in well over a year. And trainer has me riding with a Fillis grip, which feels very foreign to me, but because it ...

Moutaineer

Chisamba and exvet, I have nothing but the deepest respect for you as horsewomen and as knowledgeable, compassionate human beings.

Moutaineer

Congratulations, Flight! Awesome! Sounds like quite the experience... And I totally get the walk to the arena thing. Day 2 of my show I sent my boots down to the arena on our rented golf cart (riding to the arena was more than Potters could cope with, what with all that was going on.) That was all f...

Moutaineer

We were joking at the show that we'd paid an awful lot of money to go to CA to get our horses a bath in November.

Moutaineer

My original plan was to give Potters a trace clip on Friday, but then I looked at the temperatures... it might have to wait a week until things are out of the single digits for lows!

Moutaineer

Ooh, I have some pro photos from the show. Let's see of I can load a couple...

Moutaineer

So glad you and Kora are OK, Aleuronx! How in the heck does one T bone a truck and trailer for God's sake? Oops, Chisamba... and yes, wedgie underwear gets tossed in the trash. I have no help on the curling. I'm having a bit of the opposite problem at the moment. But I thunk I have used something si...

Moutaineer

A funny that I forgot to mention. The horses and trailers were all well on. their way to Thermal from Utah and I was about to leave home when I had a frantic call. Someone had opened the trailer tack room and discovered that Carl Hester, the barn kitten, had stowed away with them. I'm designated cra...

Moutaineer

Home and somewhat decompressed. We had another highs and lows ride on Sunday morning. It was very windy and quite brisk. We started with nice trot and walk work, a good start to the canter work, then when I put my leg on for the second canter half pass, we had a bit of a rodeo instead, and we ended ...

Moutaineer

Well, we went over as directed to familiarize ourselves the GP Arena late this afternoon only to be told by the FEI steward that we weren't going to be allowed in there. I'm not sure how she even still had jurisdiction as her CDI show was finished and it's the national show in there tomorrow, but th...

Moutaineer

Sooo.... this morning was a ride of 7's and 4's. Mr P was on one, and we were in an arena we hadn't had a chance to warm up in that apparently has dead people stacked in one corner (according to 3 horses in our group, who all had issues in the same spot.) So we had 3 significant spooks, a kick out i...

Moutaineer

61.45 at 3.1 for a mid-pack third place. I'm actually pretty happy with that. He was tense but obedient. We lacked suppleness, but no-one died.

Moutaineer

Well, we all got here to Thermal in one piece. Potters arrived in very good shape on Tuesday evening and I got here Wednesday afternoon after a very long drive in time to do some handwalking. The venue is vast and the arenas are a long walk from the barns, and I feel like I've been covered in a thic...

Moutaineer

Potters is chipped. Even the brand inspector said he thought that was the way to go nowadays. We had to go really old school with no photographs as their computers were down, so I have a very faint carbon copy of a 45 day travel permit with hand drawn markings while I wait for the old yellow laminat...

Moutaineer

Oops, SF. I hope you aren't too sore. Flight, fingers crossed for a nothingburger for Ding. And good luck with your competition! Blob, I hope the weather changes in favor of MM soon. Exvet, congrats on the new property! That sounds ideal! We had another solid ride on Friday. Lesson on Monday and the...

Moutaineer

Amongst many other things, I'm so very not looking forward to four more years where cheating and incivility are considered normal. It was miserable as a small business last time around.

Moutaineer

Two good rides in a row... today's was a bit like riding a volcano, but it was very snowy, cold and damp and our token Western rider was doing her thing in the arena with me, which rends to make the polite dressage horses nervous at the best of times :) However we had some good stuff. Losing the hal...

Moutaineer

Can't see your photos, Tanga! Link doesn't work for me. My first goal is to get to and survive this show in CA in 10 days time. Potters is traveling on the barn trailer which is a brand new 4 horse LQ so I think he should have a good ride down. I'm going to spread the drive over two days in an attem...

Moutaineer

I was thinking we were only half way through this period! The weather has been mostly kind, I've ridden a lot even with a trip to London in there. I feel like we've made some tangible progress. Another week before we head to CA. My lower back/SI is sore, but less so than it was, so I'm trying to hav...

Moutaineer

So happy to hear about Joplins improvement! Colic is all of our worst nightmares. Good luck, Tanga! Day off riding for me today. My back is reacting very badly to my recent saddle adjustment, and it has suddenly got very cold and damp. I'm pretty miserable. Hoping for better things tomorrow. We are ...

Moutaineer

I put in my entry for the Thermal show. By golly, they know how to charge for stuff! The actual show classes and fees are not too bad. More or less in line with what I would have to pay here. But the stabling and incidentals are eyewatering. Oh well. It's a bucket list item that I am unlikely to eve...

Moutaineer

My friend who has covered in her arena (top and half height long sides) says she appreciates it for the shade in summer as much as for the shelter in winter.

Moutaineer

We have a glorious week of weather coming up. I'm going to ride, at least 4 days. My dear friend's lovely young mare has a serious MCL injury. Guarded prognosis. I'm so sad for her. So, I'm going to enter the Thermal show. Life is short. We could go.lame this winter and be done forever, so I'm over ...

Moutaineer

I'm glad you are feeling a little better, Tanga. So frustrating when you can't pinpoint the cause, though. Torrential rain all day today and supposedly overnight to come, and much colder temperatures. Somehow my MW turnout and waterproof sheet must have got scooped up and sent out for cleaning while...

Moutaineer

I think sometimes we need to re-set our attitude when we have a horse that has had issues in the past, and say to ourselves, and to them, "OK, time to move on from that now and get with the program." Having someone outside of the daily circle look clear-eyed at the situation can be an enor...

Moutaineer

Looks like everyone is doing A-OK. Flight looks fabulous, Aleuronx too, and Lynx just looks to me like he needs lots of consistent steady work. Easy to say, I know! Mari, keeping my fingers crossed His Royal Spotiness continues to improve. Khall, glad the weaning is going wellish! Well, my DH now ha...

Moutaineer

Back in the saddle after the best part of 3 weeks off. It was so nice to be back. Potters has been working on his tempi changes while I have been away, so that's fun. I think I may have discovered how I'm blocking him in the lateral work. Sometimes it's good to let the muscle memory lapse! I'll see ...

Moutaineer

Oh no, Mari! We love that dude! Many jingles to him and to you.

Moutaineer

(Waving from across the pond, where the weather turned cold and wet today.)

Reading along and missing my horse. Looking forward to getting back in the saddle next week!

Hoping the storm isn't too awful.

Lovely pictures, Chantal!

Moutaineer

I think i understand what you are saying, Chisamba. At some point you have to have an expectation that the horse will come to the party, also. And this may require that one insists more than one is used to or is entirely comfortable with. And I'm not talking about being aggressive or abusive in any ...

Moutaineer

I had a very productive lesson this morning. Amazing what happens when you actually focus and ride your horse...

Moutaineer

Fairly wretched ride today. Blazing hot, muggy, sweaty and insanely buggy and a Monday after a weekend off. I'm not sure which of us was crankier about the whole thing, TBH. Summer can be over about now. Oh well, it can't all be sunshine and rainbows. Tomorrow is another day and I have a lesson whic...

Moutaineer

I have my eye on that helmet too, SF. As far as breeches go, someone mentioned the Halter Ego ones. They are very nice fabric, but you need to go at least one size up from your regular size. My go-to everyday breeches are Tredstep Nero 2. They wear like iron, wash up to look like new and are a flatt...

Moutaineer

Seconded. Order the coat! We had another ride on the edge of sanity yesterday. Nothing awful, but not entirely fun either. So I put Potters on the lunge today and just let him buck and fart it out. He had a very good time indeed and came in with a smile on his face. I'm hoping that will help his bra...

Moutaineer

I felt like I was riding a volcano today. A few days off, a cooler day with spotting rain, and all his joints lubed up, someone was feeling REALLY good! And all that impulsion and energy, once (more or less) under control and directable, gave us some of the best lateral work we've ever had. I was al...

Moutaineer

I'm out of the country for a biggish chunk of September. I can get a few rides in before I go, but it gets a bit nuts trying to ride and work and do all the things related to the great basement flood... But the overall goal is to refine the 3.3 work for a show in mid-November. One of my challenges i...

Moutaineer

Rounding out this couple of months, I've got a lot more done than I thought I might. I'm healed up pretty well, Potters has had some maintenance, but otherwise has been a good solid schoolmaster. I got a clinic in, I had some solid learning moments throughout the period and I had a lot of fun with m...

Moutaineer

Potters felt really good today. A bit too good, TBH. His ears are his big tell. You want them swivelling and listening to you, not forward and pricked and looking for trouble. However, he was soft and over his back and in front of my leg. I'm a bit stressed at the moment so I wasn't riding well. But...

Moutaineer

I'm so sorry, Khall. It's such a hard thing to go through. Finding the new normal is difficult. Potters had his Osphos shots yesterday and promptly colicked and scared me half to death. The vet was still there, so a spot of xylazine and torb. and 10 minutes later he was bright eyed and bushy tailed ...

Moutaineer

LSP, evening up those stirrups should make a huge difference, certainly to Lynx's comfort. (I bought new leathers a couple of months ago because mine were ancient and stretched out and who knew if they were level or not any longer.) In the same vein, we are still diligently working on sitting center...

Moutaineer

First ride, Chisamba!! Wow. Nice. Exvet. Bon voyage to Brandon. In my opinion, for what that's worth, there is no "one size fits all" for horses (or people) when it comes to training, posture, etc. Trying to force them into what is our current view of "correct" when they are not ...

Moutaineer

(((Khall)))

Moutaineer

A solid and useful ride with Mette this morning at the crack of dawn... Her big thing for me today was "OK, now you have all the pieces and parts, you need to get your aids and reactions quick enough to be able to string them all together in a cohesive and harmonious fashion." So that's ou...

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