This Week

Friday, May 1, 2009

I'd like to say this first snapshot is of me riding trouble-free under that scary tarp with no worries at all. Alas, that is not me at all, but CC-- on Elvis, who naturally trounced along through the tarp curtain without batting an eye. Today the weather was not so good: humid with some rain splatter. If it's raining really hard, I don't ride at all. And if there's thunder, forget it. I did think of Sally Swift several times while in the ring today. I thought of that string on my head, pulling the top of my head to the sky. And when I went to get Lilly collected, I pushed her forward so her power was coming from behind her. In Centered Riding, Sally says the hind legs do all the work and the front legs just go along for the ride. She says it's like a wheelbarrow--when you push it, all the energy comes from behind. I also tried to get Lilly to side pass. She doesn't do it very prettily, that's for sure. First she'll try to go in the wrong direction, and then she'll just keep stepping backwards. Finally I sidepassed her in front of a fence so she couldn't back up anywhere. That was better. Other times she'll swing her hind end around so much that it is the most crookedy and raggedy sidepass you have ever seen. Raggedy Ann Brumby! Last summer I tried to side pass her to a mailbox that is set up in the ring. In the mailbox I had put two little beanbags, and I had a plan to sidepass to the mailbox, grab the beanbags, and then hustle to a bucket across the ring where I would drop the beanbags inside. This didn't work at all from the get go, because not only was the sidepassing virtually non-existent, my brumby decided she was terrified of the mailbox! Today when I was done riding Lilly and gave her a bite of carrot for being such a good brumby, she put her face in my armpit as if to say she really loved me. Adorable.



Here's a picture of Elvis from yesterday. I will never get tired of seeing horses making funny faces. Occasionally I meet someone who thinks horses are very bland creatures with no personality. Boy is that ever an inaccurate assessment!








1 comment:

Paint Girl said...

I'd love to take Brandy through the scary tarp!
I have always wanted to do some type of trail challenge with her. Ok, not always! Probably not a couple years ago!

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