....On hold....

Charlie and I have been kind of on hold the past few weeks. I've been alternating between riding him bareback and in the western saddle, but I'm really missing having an english jumping saddle. The hunt is on for one in my price range, and I have a few leads, but I also have to figure out what to do with the Toulouse....

What's going on up there?

In the meantime, bareback or western it is! I like bareback because I can really feel what Charlie is doing underneath of me and it offers a good workout on my end, but what Charlie really needs right now is lots of work on long and low and trotting with impulsion. Bareback + big trot = not comfortable or sustainable for either of us! I can push Charlie into more of a workout in the western saddle, but it continues to stay hard and stiff, even though I keep oiling it. Neither myself nor Charlie like that so much for long periods of time.

Added the draw reins again yesterday, with moderate success

We have done a lot of little trail rides, even venturing a little bit down the road. There are lots of deer out right now. Good continued desensitizing for Charlie. We saw two bucks on Monday and a doe with her little fawn this morning.

In other news, Charlie the Cat had to have a cystotomy just about two weeks ago. Poor guy had a huge bladder stone :( Luckily we have pet insurance through PetPlan (best decision ever!), so financially it was not an issue. Now he's essentially back to normal, and I've already gotten reimbursed for the bulk of the payment, which is nice.

Ouch!

A "Get Well Soon" card from Gran

Also, my sister got a job in Indiana. Since the start date was less than three weeks from when she accepted, I took a few days off last week and drove out with her to look for apartments. It ended up being quite the whirlwind tour, but all in all we had a great little trip and found a place that I think will be perfect for her.

This weekend I'm heading down to Maryland to cheer on my best friend in an Alumni IHSA competition. I almost signed up for it myself, but ultimately decided I'd rather save the entry fees for something else since I haven't jumped a course in...well...a couple of years (!). I just wasn't sure it would be worth the gamble to see whether I've still got it in me to jump an entire course on a horse I've never ridden, after having so little recent jumping practice. Emily has stayed competitive, though, so I'm anxious to root her on!

Barn Party 2014

I'm not sure how many of you have been following for this long and would remember, but back on October 20 of last year Charlie and I participated in our first Spring Hill picnic and games (we had trailered over since I hadn't moved Charlie there yet). It was disastrous. Reading back over my entry from that day (which you can read here) I sounded surprisingly optimistic and happy, but Charlie really was a jerk. He spent most of the time giraffe-style, pirouetting with his head in the air, or standing on two legs.

Not so this year! :) Sunday marked the annual Barn Party and Charlie was an absolute star.

Games are more fun in Western gear

We had a lot more participants this year than last (thank you weather gods for the warmth and sunshine!) and Charlie and I did every single game: Simon Says, Musical Stalls, Egg & Spoon race, you name it. We even tried our hand at barrels and pole bending. Charlie didn't quite get the point of "go fast, then slow down for a quick turn"...it's hard to get that long body around a tiny barrel! But we still had a ton of fun and he didn't give me one ounce of trouble. If anything he was (dare I say it?) lazy!

One of the games involved putting lots of carrot pieces on several barrels and then seeing who, in the fastest time, could make it to all three and allow your horse to eat only two carrots each time. Charlie loves this game. He loved it so much, in fact, that when it came time to try pole bending and he caught sight of the barrel marking the turn at end of the ring he raced right up to it and slammed on the brakes, searching for carrots. His face when he realized there was nothing there must have been priceless. Meanwhile I'm kicking and pulling and telling him "No, Charlie! Move! The poles! The poles!" We didn't win that one. 

Going over the rules. Charlie got bored and started pushing the pole back and forth.

In another game we had to team up and hold a length of toilet paper between two riders and be the last team with an intact strand after a series of Simon Says-type commands. Charlie handled that like a pro and we won easily, even though he was teamed with a very marish mare (she's the cute buckskin). He doesn't care about that stuff. He's like a little kid who thinks the snarling dog is "smiling."

I did switch to my Micklem after a few games so I'd have a bit more brakes

We also won the egg and spoon race which I was sooo happy about. I usually fail miserably at that one, but this time we made it through a canter and everything! Overall, of the 10 or so classes Charlie and I won four.

Everyone had such a wonderful time. Even 28-year-old TB, Prince, brought his A-game and showed everyone how it is done, blowing everyone away with pole bending and barrels. The old guy has still got it :)

Group pic (only missing Cinnamon on the left, couldn't fit everyone in the frame)

Tackling the stream of doom

Yesterday and today were much better for me than earlier in the week. I rode Charlie both days, and it was perfect and sunny outside. We had such a good time. I decided to try out my new (old) western saddle and I really like it! It looks snazzy, with a little bit of silver bling, and is very comfortable. Plus even though I wasn't originally keen on the orange-y leather, I must say it looks really nice on a chestnut.

Got my new saddle pad in the mail too, as well as Charlie's boots, so of course I had to try out the whole ensemble (who cares that they are "techinically" jump boots?). The pad is wool on the bottom, which I picked especially for Mister Sensitive Skin, and the withers are cutback to allow ample clearance.

The cutout is perfect

Obviously I've chosen blue for his color

Our lesson for yesterday and today centered around water. Charlie has historically had a thing about crossing water. We've done it, and he's waded into a lake before, but he's not too happy whenever he has to get his toes wet so it's been a constant slow battle and one I haven't had the opportunity to work on in awhile. Now that spring is here, though, and the water is running off the mountain there are several little streams around the barn that are perfect for breaking him in and desensitizing him.

Le Petit Brook aka the Stream of Doom

Yesterday after a nice hack I decided to approach the water for the first time in six months. As soon as Charlie saw it he stopped dead and then proceeded to tray all of his tricks: spinning, snorting, walking sideways while his head is turned the other direction, backing up, half-heartedly threatening to rear (oh no you don't!)....every time he decided to give me attitude I added leg and kissed to him and made him move in some other direction of my choosing and as soon as his feet would stop moving I'd "sit chilly" (as my trainer used to say).

After several moments of calm I'd ask him to step forward again. There is a very fine line with Charlie between being assertive and being bossy, but I've learned pretty well how to ride the balance and how far I can push him, how to stay light in my hands and seat while still maintaining authority. 

If we got one step in the correct direction we stopped and he got praised. If he protested we did hindquarters over or we practiced back-forward-back-forward or serpentines until his feet stopped moving. Eventually we made it within ten or twelve feet of the stream, which was an accomplishment, but not quite good enough. 

So I gave him a pat for being brave up to that point and hopped off since I knew it wasn't worth battling more from in the saddle; we wouldn't get much further and he'd just get frustrated. With a little coaxing, and relying on our ground training work to drive him forward, I was able to get him right to the edge and very slightly dip his nose in the water. I let him drink and play for a few minutes and then hopped back on. We walked a few feet back up the trail, then turned around back toward the stream and I was able to get him within five feet of the edge that time. Good enough for Day 1.

Ok, I guess I can put my nose in

Today we marched right back down there (well, we had a little canter in the field first) and I immediately was able to get him to the 12-feet mark from the day before without much fuss. Try as I might, though, I couldn't get him too much closer. However, this time when I got off and asked him to walk forward he was much more confident and as soon as he sniffed the water and I kissed for another step, he walked right in! I was standing on the bank and not in the saddle but who cares? My horse was standing with all four feet in the stream, calm as anything. 

One foot in.....

"You want me to do what?!"

Success! Now that wasn't so bad

We stood for a good five minutes, I let him play and do whatever he wanted, and then I asked him to come out, mounted up, and we went home.

Next time we'll try walking in without me having to dismount.

Bargain Hunting

If you ever want to score some great deals on more expensive horsey items, and know what you're looking for, visit an expo a few hours before close on the very last day. Most vendors are willing to part with their used or extra inventory at bargain basement prices just so they don't have to pack it up and take everything back home.

Two weekends ago when I was in Harrisburg, as we were heading out the door late Sunday afternoon, I spied several used western saddles under a big "Sale" sign. All of them were already marked down and the guy running the booth was starting to pack up for the day. I decided to stop in.

I told him my end-of-expo budget and what I was looking for as I eyed up a small ugly leather and canvas saddle on the top rack. It was used but only lightly; the fleece underneath was in like new condition. And although it was obvious that the saddle had sat in storage for awhile and accumulated some dust and mold, all of the leather and connections seemed strong and intact.

Nothing a little elbow grease can't fix

Like new padding

Marked down to $180 was already a good deal, but still over my budget. We haggled a bit and he said I could have it for $125, I countered with $100, and he said actually said yes!

It may not be much to look at but I don't need anything fancy, just functional. As a Big Horn I knew it would be of decent quality. The leather and canvas combo actually made the saddle nice and light (great for a short person with a 16.3 hand horse), the seat was small enough for me, and it had a nice high gullet; all of which fit the bill for what I had been searching for for Charlie. 

When I got home I tried it out and while it's not a perfect fit I think we can make it work, especially for $100. I've been trying several different pads over the course of a few days and though the ThinLine pad I used today worked the best at eliminating the minor front-back rock, it was almost too thick in the front and accentuated a small pinch at his withers (see below). The saddle didn't pinch that way when I used a thinner pad, but it did rock a little more.

You can see from the hair marks that the saddle fits fairly evenly but pinches in a little in the front (right) with this pad

Next time I'll dig out my front riser and see how that works. I'm thinking that will help with both the pinching and the rock. Charlie seemed happy under saddle today so I don't think it was pinching badly, but I'll try to fix that issue anyway to avoid future problems.

Now I need to get this western boy a one-eared headstall and breastplate!