Rodney’s Exercises as of January 2015

This post is to chart any progress and to give me ideas when I draw a blank.

Easy
From doesn’t faze him to actively builds his confidence

groundwork & trail obstacles
weave poles
360o within a square of poles
wading thru a kiddie pool
cross a “bridge”
standing on a platform
(all in-hand)

mission specific mounted & pre-mounted work
Standing by mounting block (practice couch), in-hand

Medium
Successful but difficult on some level. Mentally taxing.

groundwork & trail obstacles
moving sideways along a pole, in-hand
moving back, sideways, & forward, in-hand
red light, green light (matching the pace of the handler)
weave poles, mounted
lunging

mission specific mounted & pre-mounted work
couch: standing in park with me aboard

pen: walking, mounted
circles: 5-10m at a walk, mounted
lateral work: a mild inclination to shift his weight sideways when asked, mounted
cavaletti: walk over two in a row on lowest setting, in-hand & mounted
jumping: walk over low, very low, crossrail, in hand & mounted
(Milton is usually in the area for the mounted work, providing herd support.)

jump: trot a cross-rail & low vertical, in-hand, actual leaping involved!
(It has been pointed out the exercise meets the criteria for my first New Year’s resolution: jump a horse. Both horse and rider had all feet off the ground, albeit briefly. Granted, that is what I said. I think we can all agree this is not what I meant.)

field walks: small loop, mounted, Milton for moral support, team walk (2 horses, 2 people)
field walks: big loop, in-hand, Milton for moral support, team walk or tandem (2 horses, 1 person)
hill work: in-hand with Milton for moral support, team walk
(Milton is right next to Rodney for these exercises.)

Hard
Causes tension behaviors: jaw crossing, teeth grinding, neck curling, rushing, fussing, putting hooves to his ears and pretending this is all a dream.

groundwork & trail obstacles
long-lining

mission specific mounted & pre-mounted work
riding area: walking around the ring, in-hand

transitions: walk to trot, in-hand
jumping: on a lunge/long-line
(In light of above, he may be better at these.)

field walks: walking anywhere by himself, in-hand
hillwork: walking, mounted, even with moral support

Discussion
As you can see our mounted work has advanced from standing still to creeping along with the enthusiasm of a post-surgical patient being forced to walk the length of a hospital hallway.

Must remind self that progress is progress, no matter how slow.

Any suggestions for specific exercises for us to try?
~~~

Arthur 12 21 14

Epiphany Recap

I’ve already talked about my riding revelations for 2014.

A minor one in February:

Saddlebred riders do not want obedient horses … No one wants a Saddlebred who asks, ‘What next? What next? What next?’ They want one who says, ‘Hot damn. Here we go.’ Obedience Epiphany

A major one in October:

Instructor decided on long-lining to improve my rein handling … I get along with horses who go from the seat, such as Previous Horse and Sam … I need to learn to use all the tools in the toolbox. I have a responsibility to communicate with my hands as well as with my seat.

Now that I am aware of my hands, I have a better understanding of why I disliked driving so much … Of course, identifying a problem doesn’t mean it goes away overnight. Progress is being made.

I’m starting to apply this under saddle. I still prefer Sam to any other horse at Stepping Stone… Knowing I will have some control over my destiny makes me – somewhat – more comfortable with idea of riding the other horses. [Camp Tweets]

What did you learn this year?

2013 Feast of the Epiphany
~~~

Percy roof 1 1 15

On the 12th Day of Christmas: Twelve Months of Horses

Final Ad w cover-2015

The 2014 version of the calendar is 11×17, spiral-bound on heavy paper with dark, crisp printing. I assume 2015 will be similarly well-produced. For information, see Kimry Jelen: Calendar

Disclosure: I have no dog in this hunt. I have ordered my copy. I am getting no advertising fees. I just like the pretty pictures.

(Artist’s images. Used with permission.)

2013 On the Twelfth Day of Christmas: 12 Lovely Horses

Update: updated ad images, 1/6

On the 11th Day of Christmas: Eleven Years a-Passin’

As with #8 [Resolutions], I had a more serious post that collapsed under its own weight. Instead, a thought for the future.

11 Milton

In 11 years, Milton will be 18. I will be 63. Our combined age of 81 will still be nineteen years short of the requirement for the The Dressage Foundation’s Century Club. As the title suggests, horse plus rider must be 100 or more. It’s nice to be too young for something.

26 + 63 = 89. Still too young.
26 + 63 = 89. Still too young.

2013 On the Eleventh Day of Christmas: 11 Paddock Masters
~~~
On a unrelated note, Google surfing for ideas turned up this deluxe foosball table:

11_thebeautifulgame_4

11 – the beautiful game
€48,500 and it’s yours.

On the 9th Day of Christmas: Nine Pounds a-Droppin’

Yesterday looked forward. Today looks back. How did I do with the 2014 resolutions?

Weight “My third goal for the year* is to lose weight.” [9th]

Victory! Taken off & stayed off. Show vest buttons with ease. [Progress: photos at end]

No thanks to me. Credit goes to an obliging metabolism and an outstanding chef. I simply eat what is put in front of me.

Magazines “One of my goals for 2014 is to get re-energized about writing for money.” [7th]

Bzzzzt. You can’t win if you don’t try. Early in the year, I bought a stack of equine magazines. I diligently dissected the articles and the ads. I pondered topics. I pondered approaches. I wandered off to do other things.

Maybe the time of a career based on the straight-up magazine article has passed. I should reinvent myself. Maybe my time with equine publications has passed. I should expand my horizons. Maybe I am a lazy slug. I should get off my ass.

Or all of the above.

Jump “Therefore, eight jumps would mean a hunter class would mean I was riding & showing & jumping.” [8th]

Not even close. Not even the one, almost, pseudo jump of 2013 [Midwestern Mounts: #11]. The horses that I ride, don’t jump. The horses that jump (or should jump), I don’t ride.

A few times, I was able to step in with advice during a jumping session. Not that I am an expert. I’ve just taken so many jumping lessons that I know the tricks. Nice to find out I hadn’t forgotten everything.

Score
One success. One failure. One that was neither. Thirty percent, grading strictly. Good for a batting average, less good for a carton of eggs. Fifty percent, grading generously.

Bring on 2015!

2013
On the Ninth Day of Christmas: 9 Pounds a-Droppin’
~~~
Since posts are better with pictures, another unrelated but seasonally appropriate illustration.

The person who gave me the pretty ornament this year [Present], also gave me this one:
DR ornament 1986 wm

1986? That doesn’t seem possible.

The sharp-eyed among us may notice that this ornament was not on the tree in yesterday’s photo. I took it off for this photograph, put it back on, took it off, & forgot to put it back on for my third attempt at a decent shot of the tree. Those Breyer stirrup ornament are shiny! And not in a good way.