More Saddle Time With Flame!

LESSON 12/ RIDE #2 & 3:  Herself was feeling a little sassy today and played the keep-away game with us when we went to load up. She showed off her athletic nature on the terrain of the rear pasture which has some inclines, rocks, treefall logs and more. It was something to see! After a little fuss we got her and she loaded up like a pro. We then hauled over to Pioneer Park Arena which is a short 15 minute haul from home. Weather was nice but breezy. The park had lots of kids, kites, balloons, dogs and more bouncing all over the place. Think about that for a second. New place, breezy and lots of scary objects. And here we are hoping to get in a productive and focused session.

We tacked up Flames Remedy (Annie) and went into the warm up pen which is probably close to 50’x100’. We had real rain last night so the sand/footing was much like the beach at low tide. We reviewed the groundwork from yesterday, including Lunge for Respect 2 and Yielding the Forequarters. All in all there was noticeable improvement over yesterday. Call that a win! She is really getting into the ground work which is something she had never really experienced before in her reality.

Then it was time to ride. She was still a little sore on her right front foot (she is getting shoes later this week) so we decided that comfort and focus was a better plan than lots of loping under saddle today. She did the Cruising Lesson and One Rein Stops at the walk and trot today. We worked on leg/seat cues for turns, Lateral Flexion and Yielding the Hindquarters at the Standstill. Laurie and I both rode her so really it was ride 2 and 3. At 220# I am probably the heaviest thing Annie has had on her back in a LONG time. She was a champ! We ended on some wins and called it a day. She them got to hang out in the livestock run next to the BIG arena while Argent and Ronan got to work. Annie pretty much ignored the pre-teen girls who wanted to pet her and the distractions from the park didn’t seem to phase her. Best part of the day (for me) was when I entered the run Annie trotted right over to me and put her head on my chest. This generated many “squees” and “awws” from the pre-teen girls and their Mom.

It was a good day!