Easy Peasy

I don't have any great new photos or media to share to prove it, but oh my, is that big brown horse ever coming along!

I keep track of what I do each day at the barn. On my calendar, I note who I rode and for how long. I also jot down whether it was a good ride or whether someone had a bad day. I was looking back over my calendar for the past few months and noted that Izzy has boatloads of stars and smiley faces next to his name. 

Hard to decipher, I know.

When I get on him now, he starts out sighing and snorting as his ears flop from side to side. Most days I have to boot him a bit to convince him that yes, I genuinely would like a trot.

From the first step we take, I ask for a stretch down. We stretch down at the walk, and then we stretch down at the trot. And now that he can, I insist on it all the time. He no longer trots around with a hollow back. His back has suppled up so much that he is physically able to stretch. 

Now that his back is looser, we're tackling his stride length. It's not pretty, but I am asking for more, more, more at every stride. He now stays soft in the bridle as I ask that inside hind leg to step deeper and farther. We don't have that longer stride yet, but it's coming. 

I'll never get tired of seeing that.

The canter is also getting more balanced. As with Speedy, I am starting to insist that he step into the canter with his hind end instead of launching forward with his face. We can now do lots of trot/canter transitions without him panicking and charging through my hands.

I have a pretty full show calendar planned out this year for Speedy. so there isn't any room for Izzy. He still has some tension issues to deal with anyway. I have my eye on next year though. If he keeps improving at the rate he's going, we might have a decent chance to be successful at a show.

Horses though ... they love to surprise us!