Don't Look a Gift [Harness] in the Mouth

 When your barn mate asks you to play hooky to do horse stuff only a half hour away, you take the afternoon off and go do horse stuff! The National Drive takes place spring and fall at the Hoosier Horse Park, and recreational horse drivers gather from all over the country to socialize, attend clinics, take private lessons, and participate in the driving-centric tack swap (our reason for attending). 

This kind of invitation is kryptonite to horsewomen

We figured we'd go look for a show harness for her cobs and potentially a ground driving/training harness for Pyro. Little did we know what the beautiful day held in store!

Hint: It was epic.

We met up with our friend Lisa, a long time breeder of beautiful welsh cobs (including the one I tried to breed Missy to, as well as the two Jen owns), who introduced us to some of her friends there at the Drive. They were getting ready to take their welsh cross mare, Sophie, out on the cross country course and invited Jen and me to ride along! 

The dog copilot was the most badass of all of us riding, lol

It was Jen's first time riding in a carriage ever, and my first time hanging on the back of a marathon vehicle. (Don't @ me if I get the terminology wrong, as I'm just beginning to learn!) The driver and her coach were so gracious and instructed us how to shift our weight to help keep the wheels on the ground around tight turns.

We got to watch how Sophie raced through the cones course and was nimbly guided through the series of gates by her driver. 

The dog's paws never left the dash

We were both grinning from ear to ear and it was evident we "caught the driving bug" right then and there. 

We did peruse the tack swap, and, while Jen didn't find quite what she was looking for, we must have been in the right place at the right time because a lady offered a free harness as we walked by her table. A little stunned, I asked what size. Turns out, it was exactly Pyro's size!

Even if it needed some repairs, I couldn't turn down that deal. I'm still learning what all makes this harness unique (I've never seen thimbles before!), but if nothing else, it'll be a great tool to practice ground driving with. 

Playing dress up!

Once I got it home, it appeared to fit Pyro quite well! The wires holding the blinders are all intact, and the only weak spot in the leather appeared to be at one end of the wither strap. It included a running martingale, which will need a stopper added if I use it. 

The one strap threatening to tear

It's definitely seen some miles, but the leather cleaned up well and is good quality. 

I'll likely replace the worn pad on the saddle with a fresh fleecy one.

The bridle was in great shape and has rings for a side check, rather than an overcheck

I'm looking forward to building on our previous ground driving work with this harness. I find it's a really great brain teaser to cycle into our work routine, especially in the winter. 

While I've driven a couple times, it has always been under the supervision of an experienced driver. I have a LOT to learn if I'm ever going to break Pyro (or Missy!) to drive. So, the next logical step was to scour the internet for appropriate books on the subject. 

My haul from the online "thrift store"

Those of you with driving experience, what resources would you recommend for a newbie wanting to do things safely?

I'm hoping to one day get to drive Pyro like this!

Lesson Recap - 10/1/2024: That's solid 2nd level work...

 I came into this lesson with Jen T. having done my homework from last time, a lot of which included an exercise of very precise transitions ridden on a square the size of half the arena. 

Happy in his work

Pyro came out very settled into his work as we started with the walk and trot. He was accurate and prompt as I asked him to trot the side of the circle, then either walk through the corner or come to a square halt and turn on his haunches to start the next side. 

Striking off in the trot

He was very quiet and steady in the bridle, which was a nice surprise. We've been working on that for so long that it was an awesome feeling for him to start the ride that way.

Being picky and asking for square halts

Once we started including the canter (trotting, walking, or halting in the corners), the wheels started to fall off a little bit. 

Pyro: Let's GOOOOOOOO

Pyro was once again prompt to strike off in the new gait, but he often rocket launched into it. Jen T. and I discussed that I wasn't keeping enough tone through my core, so I ended up getting left behind. Additionally, I started having issues asking Pyro to come back at the corners. He wanted to run through my aids instead. 

"An object in motion..."

Jen T. coached me to encourage Pyro to keep a more level balance through the canter, rather than allowing him to dump on his forehand in every stride. 

Not left behind in this transition

While this was hard for him, it prepared him for coming back to me at the corners. 

Slightly less heavy on the forehand through his canter stride

As we worked on the canter, I would ask him to halt and back in the corners if he blew through my aids. This gave Jen T. the opportunity to realize Pyro was not backing with diagonal pairs. Instead, he would shuffle back in a lateral pattern. 

Judgmental Dingo watching Pyro shuffle backwards laterally

Using our blessed arena mirrors, we ended the lesson by upping the ante, requiring him to not only back softly, but also organizing himself into using diagonal pairs. Looking for this, even when backing on the ground, was our biggest piece of homework for the week. The other assignment was to continue working on keeping my core engaged and Pyro's balance level in the canter.

Bonus: World's Best Dingo

Many thanks to videographer extraordinaire, Jen S., for dual wielding phones to capture reminders of this lesson! After we hung up with Jen T., she commented that what we were doing was "solid 2nd level work". I about died of surprise (in a good way!). Come spring, I'm feeling like Pyro and I will be prepared to debut at 1st level pretty comfortably!

September 2024: A change of pace

I can't believe this month is almost over. As with all of life, it has had both ups and downs.  I've not had as much saddle time as I normally would (only 7 rides in September so far!) due to struggling with both physical and mental health a bit more than usual. I overdid it at CrossFit a couple times (easy to do as I challenge myself) and have been hit hard with PMS as I try to deal with PCOS/unbalanced hormones. 

This month has been a dry one as well.

That being said, I've still made time to interact with Miss and Pyro as much as I can (often ground work or lunging), and I've leaned on the support of my husband and barn family. 

Pyro regretting the day I met Kate Little... because now he can't get away with pecking order challenges.

Connecting with the horses and humans who are important to me has been the highlight of this month, and it's definitely more than just a silver lining of slowing down a little bit.

Spotty critters definitely included

Missy's arthritis has been an off and on problem still since her right front pastern injection. She has good days and bad, but I try to keep her moving regardless.

Motion is the lotion

On her good days, I'm able challenge her a little either on the ground or in the saddle to improve her fitness and biomechanics.

Encouraging her to bend through her body and flex through her joints on the lunge

She seems to be enjoying the retired life (especially going for hacks in the sunset), but I've also burst her bubble a little bit with ground work guided by Kate. 

She has always been the most tolerant mare... but maybe not the most respectful. This day I saddled her but never swung a leg over because we started to have a conversation on the ground. She was not impressed, but she WAS more attentive. 

Missy after I ask her to be soft and responsive and respectful: "this is bull$#@!"

Thankfully, I was able to balance that out with pony rides, which she seems to really enjoy. Some of my friends' kids got to enjoy her on the leadline, and one little boy in particular giggled the whole time. 

The queen lives to be doted on, and she knows when she has littles on her back.

Pyro is quite sure that he's all that and a bag of chips this month, especially as we start to see some cooler mornings. I'm still blown away by how much he is maturing physically and mentally.

Mary helped me guide him through a free jump chute with a 6'6" spread oxer. This inflated his ego so much I was amazed his head fit through the barn door. 

That said, he's still definitely a baby in a lot of ways, and we're feeling out how to balance and work together in a way that includes mutual respect and excludes bracing against one another.

Lots of "advanced leading"...

...and backing have been needed.

In the 4 times I've ridden him this month, I've focused on asking him to fit me and match my seat without me having to pull on his mouth (which always causes him to retract his neck). We've got a long way to go, but I think we're heading in the right direction.

Although he's still very talented at being a llama

While I don't have much photo evidence, I've really enjoyed the opportunities to just hang out with my barn mates the past few weeks. I've gotten to sit with Mary and Jen to provide moral support as Eva learns about standing tied, help ensure Connor's western cinch was done up correctly so they could pony Eva, talk through the woes of figuring out why picky horses won't eat their hay with Trish, acknowledge the peace of quite mornings in the stable with Deb, and grin along with Sandra as she finds joy in learning Connor's buttons.

Eva learning about the wall of truth and patience

As the show season comes to a close, I'm thankful to have a chance to listen to my body and change gears, enjoying my horses with no goals or pressures besides continuing to grow together and be the best horsewoman I can be. The stable is a place I can celebrate with others on my good days and find solace on my bad ones. May we all be so lucky to find that in our lives with horses. 

Lesson Recap - 9/3/2024: The Start of Collection

 Yet again, Pyro had me grinning from ear to ear... in a DRESSAGE LESSON.

Is that even legal??

Going into this lesson with Coach JT, I said I wanted to improve Pyro's ability to carry himself, especially in the canter. Her response was the first step to building self carriage was true collection. 

Starting in walk, then building to trot and canter.

Pyro and I are still struggling with me setting clear boundaries of where the bit can go and him respecting and softening to those boundaries. I had an "aha!" moment when Jen described that in collected work, while I can firm up and soften in my hands, my arms shouldn't follow. His head should stay in one place through the entire stride, no matter the gait. 

You can see how he naturally wants to take bigger steps with his front legs than his hinds, dumping into his chest, rather than sitting. 

Once I set clear boundaries, Pyro inevitably went through the SDAA (shock, denial, anger, acceptance) cycle until he finally found the answer of shaping himself to accommodate me. 

We still have a long way to go as far as sitting and lifting his back, but he starting picking his feet up, flexing through his joints, and carrying himself lightly into my contact. Baby steps!

I had to be diligent about making sure I didn't lean forward, loosen my boundaries, or simply accept whatever he offered though transitions. In downward transitions especially, I tend to automatically give my hands and let him become a llama, rather than encouraging him to stay balanced. Though JT's coaching and encouragement to build my own awareness, Pyro gave me some really lovely moments of his first true collection. 

Starting to lift his withers and lumbar spine and get his hind end under himself. 

Obviously, this requires the next level of strength from him as well as consistent riding on my part, but I'm loving every step of this journey with my boy. Good boy, Pyro!

OFQHA Ranch Show 8/31/2024

 Did I mention we've been busy?? Last weekend I loaded up both ponies and hit the road for Ohio. This trip had two purposes: to show Pyro at the Ohio Foundation Quarter Horse Association (OFQHA) Ranch Show and get Missy in to see my best friend Sam, OSU equine vet extraordinaire, for a lameness evaluation and treatment. Had I ridden Pyro western in a while? No, but I got one practice ride in western tack (using skills Kate Little taught us) and decided it was good enough.

He makes a darn cute western pony

It was one of the hottest days of the summer when I had to trailer them 4 hours, but I hosed them down before loading, kept the trailer moving until sunset when it started to cool off, and arrived safely at the fairgrounds. 

Soggy, cool ponies

Pyro's fancy stall sign!

Pyro has seen and worked cows before, but not frequently, so I signed him up for the most inviting cow class (green boxing), the pattern classes (trail, ranchmanship, and green reining), and the rail class (ranch riding, your basic walk/trot/lope). 

Neither Pyro nor Missy were super driven to finish their grain, but were eating hay and drinking water as usual while enjoying their fans, so I wasn't too concerned.

It was a wear pink for breast cancer awareness show, and I was so blessed to get to show with these wonderful friends!

As the show was preparing to start with cutting classes, the cows wouldn't settle. By 9am, prior to being worked, the cattle were so hot and stressed that they were open-mouthed panting. For the sake of the animals, the show directors made the executive decision to cancel the cow classes that day. I didn't hear a single complaint. Everyone wanted what was best for the cattle. 

So, with that we turned our attention to the pattern classes that are held in the grassy "infield", trail and ranchmanship. Since I was a kid in 4H, trail class has always been a favorite of mine. I enjoyed having a handy horse who could work gates, back around obstacles, and sidepass over poles with confidence. (It didn't hurt that I could often win that class on my trusty leased horses.) I've trained a lot of these obstacles with Pyro, but we had never had the opportunity to compete in a trail class together. I wasn't sure how he would handle being out in the field by himself, but he stayed mentally with me the whole course.

Walk over poles (didn't touch any)

Walk over bridge (dropped his head and walked over with no hesitation)

Rope the dummy (he was very patient while I took 2 attempts)

Lope left lead into the chute (we had to correct our lead)

180 turn in the chute, then work the gate

Trot a serpentine

Drag a log (I don't think I've EVER asked him to drag something)

Dismount and pick up the right front (he decided to scratch his face and nearly lay down, I was cracking up)

I was pretty blown away by how confident and easy he felt in this class! He even took new things like dragging a log in stride, giving it a look that said, "well THAT'S weird... but okay". If a horse could shrug, I swear he would've. Not to mention I was laughing through the class and ENJOYING him. With a smile on my face and feeling proud of my young horse, we immediately started into our ranchmanship pattern. I think this is a super fun class, and it combines components of reining (circles of various sizes/speeds, spins, stops, backing, lead changes) with elements of a trail class (loping over and sidepassing logs).  We got a little fast and unbalanced in the canter (something we're working on at home), but he did everything I asked. 

I really appreciated how careful he was loping through the poles.

Doing our slow, careful spins

Big and fast circle

Sidepassing the pole

Trotting out

We managed to place 8th in a very large class with a lovely run, even though I made the executive decision to substitute a simple change for the prescribed flying change. Once again, I was pleasantly surprised by how well Pyro handled the new setting and out of the ordinary asks. 

Credit: Sorrel B Photography

Credit: Sorrel B Photography

The last pattern class was reining, which is held in the arena. We had some time before our run, so I took him back to his stall for some water, a bite of hay, and the chance to cool off under his fan. He ate and was nice and cool... but started having thumps, a hiccup that is due to an electrolyte imbalance. It WAS hot and sweaty weather, and he hadn't gotten his full ration of electrolytes for the day when he didn't finish breakfast. Thankfully, I've learned to travel with tubes of electrolyte paste for him, so he got a dose which encouraged him to drink deeply. We headed out just in time for our green reining class.

As we waited our turn, it started sprinkling... and as we entered the ring the sky opened up on us. 

Credit: Sorrel B Photography

Pyro handled the rain (which he's not used to working in) like a champ and completed his very first reining pattern (EVER) to earn us 6th place in another large class! In spite of the conditions, as well as my reins becoming very slippery, he remained willing to try what I was asking. To say I was happy with him is an understatement. 

Still smiling

Of course, as soon as we were done, the rain stopped. We technically still had the ranch riding (rail) class yet to do... but I decided I'm an adult, it didn't sound fun, he was already a rock star, and we didn't have to do it!

When you take a dressage horse in the reining pen

We ended our show on that good note, cheered on my friends, and safely trailered across Ohio for our next pit stop. 

I'm so thankful for how well these two load and trailer now that I know they need short trailer ties to keep them from looking back over their shoulders.

My baby horse has grown up and is now my fun adventure companion. Missy seemed content to just chill with her hay under a fan and soak up the retired life while Pyro stepped up to the challenge. I'm so thankful I didn't give up on this colt (he was a menace as a youngster!), and that we've grown together into a partnership. I look forward to our future adventures!