James on Frosty...It was a nice evening for a little pasture work and a trail ride afterwards. Victoria, my oldest, consented to ride, and so it was a 3 horse adventure. Victoria on Lola, myself on Woody, and James on his 2 year old gelding Frosty.
We started with some simple walking and trotting in the front pasture, in both directions, to get them warmed up. Victoria was all over the saddle, and she needs to ride more to keep her balance and muscles up. Lola stumbled maybe twice, and only in the beginning.
James and I did some relaxed work around the cones, at the trot and then at Woody's slow canter. It really helped Frosty to be following behind, as it rated his speed considerably and made him focus on his circle. We did this in both directions, and James noted that the left lead dominant Frosty was much smoother in the left circle.
I remember when I first got Woody. His previous owner hadn't worried too much about his balance, and he was terrifically left lead dominant as well. By concentrating on cantering on both leads, he became and remains, a very balanced horse in either lead.
Lola and Victoria stayed on the sidelines during our drilling. Victoria hasn't been riding enough for me to be comfortable letting her join in this exercise. But I think I'm going to be encouraging her more strongly this weekend. It's good for her and it really helps me get the horses exercised if she rides.
We finished up our exercises and then hit the trails. Frosty was much more relaxed this ride. Everyone rode well, and we finished with the sun setting and the horses in a light sweat. Honestly, we could have worked them a lot harder, but this was a nice change of pace. And my daughter rode, so that was all I needed for this ride to be memorable.
Victoria on Lola...
1 comment:
Lovely!
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