No End in Sight

 Way back when I first started riding with Jane I made a comment in this blog along the lines of 'I know I'll plateau at some point but for now I'm enjoying the progress'. 

Jane told me after that I was not going to plateau, not on her watch. And she has not been wrong. I've been riding with her now since 2021 and I don't want it to end.  Honestly, it seems that every lesson I have I say 'that was the best gait or movement yet'.  According to Jane, if you continue to show up and do the work there is no plateau, there is only moving ahead. 

This weekend I have a 2 day clinic with Jane at Krista's place (about 40 minutes away) and both horses are going in it. I'm excited because: 

1. I'll be riding with friends

2. Having 2 days in a row helps move things ahead

3. Quaid will have lessons away. 

I had to write out my goals for the clinic for both horses and here's what I wrote: 

Carmen: Continue to work on forward, straightness and self-carriage.  Julia will be riding Carmen on Sunday but I'll have her on Saturday. 

Quaid: be able to work in anew location, straightness and rhythm, improve walk-trot transitions, canter work. 

two horses getting ready for work but 
with very different feelings about it

Of course, once you write down goals it's impossible to not think about them in the rides leading up to the clinic.  Quaid continues to impress me with his basic ridableness (new word but I like it. If it irritates you maybe ridability is a better word. Spellcheck doesn't recognise either one).  I can ride him with Carmen or alone and he's fine. It's not that he's not sensitive. He is, I would argue, as sensitive as Carmen. But his reaction differs. While Carmen tends to do the big spook/spin/bolt his are more a quick splay of the legs or small scoot and then back to work.  The other day Julia was riding Carmen and she had lots of feelings to express. Quaid reacted to none of it. Even when she did a big spook/bolt he barely flicked an ear. He does worry about going by her in the ring but that's just it- he worries and then does the thing.  At one point I said to Julia, would you like to trade horses and ride the easier one?  Which is hilarious given that she's 14 and he's 4. 

Today I put out 3 trot poles. I hand walked and trotted him over them then did them under saddle. I expected some tripping/stepping on the poles at the trot. Instead he looked at them and was very careful with his feet. We only did a few passes over them and I let it alone. 

Carmen with some feelings over walking into contact

now she's over it

Yesterday we went out hacking with Julia and Carmen after our work. He was great, following along. Today I wanted to see if he'd let me open the gate to leave. He was unsure and once the board fell and he scooted. But then we went back and, step by step, opened the gate and stood there waiting. I looked at Julia and said 'I should be in the dirt and he should be over there' . But Quaid likes to think his way through pressure which is great.  Then he led the entire hack out. I was super impressed. 

leading is a great way to get him 
to being able to be solo

I know that Quaid's progress is a result of his basic temperament and all the work I've done. Like I've said, he's quite sensitive and could be, I think, pushed into being a hot horse. Our canter work is our biggest issue right now. Partly a balance issue and partly me letting go. I definitely need some help with it before it becomes a thing.  We may not be able to work on that at the clinic but I will book a lesson soon at home to focus on that. 

Carmen is also the result of her temperament and the hard work I've done (with so much help thank god). Last week I actually took her out on a solo hack. I have done that at times but with a feeling of taking my life in my hands which is not fun. Now I have confidence in my riding ability and her understanding to not worry overmuch. 

When I first titled this blog 'Journey with a Dancing Horse' I didn't really understand how much of a journey this really is and how exciting it is to discover what's around the bend.