Lots of Lessons

Driving Thursday

E is for Education. If you are joining me from Blogging A To Z, welcome! Since the blog is already daily, with topics for each day [About: Schedule], there is no specific A To Z theme. I may even skip a few letters. Gasp. Clutch the pearls. The goal for this year is less crazy, more visiting. [Ze State of Ze Blog 2014]

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Our driving education continues. We both had lessons.

Combined Driving, Greg

This is what happens when the driver is heavy on the brakes.

Saddle Seat, Katherine

Speaking of brakes …

… Snippy legit ran off in my last lesson.

It really wasn’t too bad. By the time I realized, ‘Houston, we have a problem.’ and started to react, he thankfully dropped out of it. I suspect it was more disconcerting to watch than to experience.

I was more apprehensive about an incident earlier in the lesson. We were trotting. I was requesting an extended trot. Instead of complying, Snippy [earlier lesson, photo] slowed to a walk, then stopped. We were right next to the gate, so it could have been an innocent momentum dump.

However, as he ground to a stop in front of me, I had a flash of all the things that could go wrong from here. Greg and I have been told repeatedly that you get in less trouble driving when the horse is moving forward. Back and/or up are not things you want to think about (I feel superstitious even typing this). So, I took one look at the stationary horse butt in front of me and said, ‘No sir. You will resume trotting immediately.’

Later, while he was zooming along, I had a moment to think, ‘At least he’s going forward.’

Of course, that was then. Now my brain is obsessing over the minor incidents – that I totally handled – in an otherwise stellar lesson. There are times when I hate my brain.

Forward. Forward. Forward.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott