Just jump it

On Tuesday I headed out to the barn with the intention of doing a little bit of jumping, however I got a little bit of a pause when I pulled Otter out and saw his hind legs.

 A little bit of stocking up is normal for him, especially with the heat and humidity that we have here, but this was a bit much for his norm.  I didn't feel any heat in them that made me concerned, so I took him to the arena for a quick jog to see how he was moving.  A spin on the lunge in both directions showed me that he was feeling and moving fine - even if he had the excess fluid in his legs, so I decided I would go ahead with my plan to jump if he felt fine under tack.

I tacked up and headed out to the ring, where I had to lower all the jumps, because after 5ish weeks off from jumping I just wasn't ready to jump at the height they were set at.

Novice-ish height

With his legs, and the heat, I kept our warm up pretty short and sweet - just enough to loosen up - before I started over the cross-rail.  Over all, I was happy with how our ride went.  It definitely could have been worse after having such a long period away.  We were able to canter most of the jumps, only having to revert back to trotting one once after a  bad spot that I just didn't want to chance an even worse jump on the next attempt.  Remembering to sit tall on the approach helped a lot.  I only ended up jumping about 15 total jumps (with lots of walking in between) due to both of us still adjusting to the heat.  

After Otter was cooled out, I hung out at the barn for a while watching a few of the lessons and chatting with some of the other people at the barn.  It was good to catch up with everybody after being away!

I'm a Mrs. now....

Hey ya'll!

  So I totally had the best intentions of leaving the blog with scheduled posts while I was off getting married and honeymooning, but with the normal wedding craziness beforehand, I just didn't get around to getting them finished and scheduled - so they will be saved for another time.

  Not too much to update with Otter - he's gotten a few rides since we got back, but I've mostly been playing catch up with our house, mail, thank yous, etc, so haven't really gotten back on a consistent schedule yet.  I've spent this weekend trying to get everything caught up, so hopefully will be back to a normal schedule going forward.

  Until then, enjoy some pictures from the wedding and our honeymoon in Italy!

The view from our hotel

Gymnastic morning

I had Thursday off from work as well, but due to some appointments in the afternoon, and camp being out at the barn during the days now that school is out, I wanted to get to the barn fairly early to get my ride done before the kids got there.  I woke up slightly later than I wanted to and ended up opting to grab some coffee and a bagel from a shop on the way to the barn instead of waiting for it to brew at home (total laziness, I know).  I really wanted to jump, but wasn't sure if I was going to have enough time to set something up in the ring before camp started.

Got to the barn only about 30 minutes after I wanted to, and gave Otter a quick but thorough brushing - because of course he had rolled in the mud the night before.  Luckily there was another woman at the barn who was also trying to get a ride in before camp, and she had planned to jump today also.  She had a gymnastic line set up in the ring already, so asked her if I could work over the line also.  She didn't have a problem with this, so I quickly finished tacking up and headed to the ring.  By this time the camp kids (mostly consisting of the kids who normally take lessons at the barn) were starting to show up and they ended up jump-crewing for us.  Definitely one plus to them being at the barn during the day!  They are great kids, and while they make the barn more crowded during the day, they are fun to listen to and are always willing to lend a hand.

Quickly warmed up so I would be ready to go when the other rider was, and we started through the line, alternating who was going.   I was actually really glad she had a gymnastic line set up because it has been a really long time since we had done one - thinking 8 - 12 months? - and I was eager to see how Otter would do with them.  Historically he's always gotten a little backed off during gymnastic work or would flail over his own feet.

We started off with three trot poles, then quickly moved to the three trot poles followed by a vertical.  When the other rider was ready we added one stride to another vertical and then ended up with three trot poles to a vertical, one stride to a vertical, one stride to another vertical.  We kept the jumps fairly low because the other rider is just starting her mare along, and I didn't want to push too much after our lesson on Sunday.

Sorry for the blurry picture, dunno what my phone was doing.

Otter was great throughout the whole thing - he was soft and relaxed and really using himself over the jumps, and stayed balanced even after the line.  I did have to remember to keep my leg on over the trot poles or he would lose some impulsion and struggle over the first vertical, but after a few repetitions, I was much better about it.  It was great to have him be so soft and relaxed over the jumps, but still being snappy about his knees and legs.

After our ride I hosed him off, cleaned my tack, and then put rubbed some liniment into his legs.  While grazing Otter on Sunday, I was talking with a few of the other girls and we got to talking about windpuffs.  Otter has had some moderate windpuffs on his hindlegs pretty much since I got him.  He raced fairly heavily for 5 years, so I really wasn't surprised.  They aren't the gnarliest ones that I have seen, and they do go away if he is wrapped.  The vain part of me wishes that they didn't exist on his legs, but considering that they are just a visual blemish, I usually push them out of my mind.  Anyways, the girl said that on her old horse she had good luck with getting windpuffs to disappear with rubbing Surpass into them.  When she retired the horse, she still had pretty good results with rubbing liniment into them daily.  So I'm going to try the liniment route for a month or two and see where we get with that.

Lazy, or just exhausted?

Tuesday was suppose to be a barn day..... buuuut with all of the rain that came through the south (although I am very thankful that we did not get as much as parts of Texas), and having some wedding stuff to do, and just being tired and needing a bit of a day to relax, I decided to give Otter  (and by Otter, I mean myself) the day off.   So, I slept in a bit, then hung out with the dogs while I watched some TV and made a few calls to check in with the vendors for the wedding.  Finished the day with some shopping.  Definitely was the type of day that I needed, even though I felt a little guilty for not visiting Otter.

So on Wednesday, when I finished up with work, I headed out to the barn even though the weather was sucky.  Had to ride in the indoor around lessons due the the outdoor rings being flooded (it had stopped raining by the time that I got there) .  Cleaned off the muddy pony and tacked up, then headed to the ring.  Had a fairly good dressage ride.  We did our norm - bendy shapes at the walk and trot to warm up, did some canter, then walk, some lateral work at the trot and some more canter.  He was pretty good - really responsive to my inside leg and would balance up fairly quickly with an outside half halt.  He just felt a little off - not lame off- just not quite as balanced and forward as he normally is.  It honestly might have been me - I was really tired and actually had trouble making it home after our ride (at 5pm....).

We aren't good at the selfie pictures

Surprisingly though, he didn't grind his teeth at all during this ride, which is why I ended the ride fairly early.  Still not sure why he does some days and doesn't on other days - but the consensus at the barn is that at this point it's probably out of habit and we just have to work to break the habit now.

Sunday Jump lesson

I had my jump lesson Sunday morning, that I woke up dreading a little bit.  We had gone out Saturday night, and while I only had one margarita and then a glass of wine later in the evening, I woke up with a slight headache/hangover.  Then the fiancé surprised me with a tablet (I’ve been wanting one for a while), and so I really just wanted to stay in bed and get it all set up. 

 *speaking of tablets: any suggestion for apps to notify me when the blogs I follow get updated?

 Headed out to the barn, solo this time, and found out that only one other person in my group lesson was able to make it, so was really not looking forward to how hard we would have to work.  Got tacked up and headed to the outdoor jump ring to warm up.  He warmed up pretty good again, and my trainer came out so we started trotting the crossrail to warm up, then did the little gate a few times.  The other girl then moved on to a few bigger jumps, and when she took a break, I started cantering the crossrail.  That went well, so we moved on to the gate.  Otter was great –cantering away after jumps like a little hunter pony.  Even when we had a couple of shorter distances (nothing like the underneath the fence we used to have), it still didn’t rattle him and he stayed balanced and without the dramatics after the jump.  We then took a break, while the other girl jumped a few more. 

 When it was our turn again, our trainer had us jump the oxer coming down the center line, which requires a tight turn and short approach to it, and has to be jumped at a bit of an angle to avoid hitting the jump a few strides behind it (the joys of a small jump arena).  He did great, so we changed direction and started jumping it going up the center line.  The first time we jumped it this direction, he jumped it huge!  And I may not have been expecting it, so we *may* have ended up going outside the arena because I wasn’t prepared for the turn.  The next few times were much better.  We took another break while the other horse and rider did a different course.

 After she finished up, our trainer looked at me and asked when was the last time we had done a combination, which had not been for a while.  So she put together a short course of the one stride line, then the white gate then the oxer.   He jumped the one stride line like a boss- really round and really confident, while not taking too much control.  We kept it together for the gate and the oxer, and then ended on that. 

 We cooled out then I took Otter out to graze a little because he had been such a good boy!

 I have to say that I may have been a little frustrated after our last few jump sessions because I felt like we have not been able to do much with the heat and humidity, and both of us attempting to adjust to it, and trying to only have positive sessions.  Sunday’s lesson proved that even if we only jump a single jump for a few times during a session, as long as I make those jumps count, it will still help us in the long run.  Jumping wise we have not been on the same page since last year with not trusting each other to do their job correctly, and it feels like we are finally moving past that.

Dressage lesson

My lesson on Saturday was at 1:15pm, so the fiancé and I were able to sleep in a little (well, as much as the dogs would let us) and enjoy a nice morning before heading out to the barn.  On the way out there, we stopped to check on the progress of the house we are building – and it’s coming along.

 We ended up getting to the barn a little early, so we hung out with some of the other boarders and chatted before I pulled Otter out to start getting him ready.  There was a slight return of funk due to the rain and humidity that we had on the days that I couldn’t get out there, so I just curried those areas really well to get all the funk up before tacking up. 

 The lesson went really well, my trainer had us start with lots of bending so that he doesn’t get locked in his neck/jaw.  My seat has improved so much with the new saddle, but the improvement to my posture needs to carry on up to my upper back/shoulders area – She kept calling me a turtle because I kept rounding those areas instead of sitting up straight.  I really love the way she teaches – corrections she makes stay with me through my following rides, so when I start looking down or leaning, or whatever when I’m riding outside a lesson, it triggers the memory of what she said and allows me to fix the bad habits.

 Unfortunately, we are still working on getting my hands to be quieter.  She had me ride for a few minutes with my fingers almost touching to create a frame to make it harder for me to be busy with my hands while riding.  It definitely worked and made me use my seat and legs more to create bend.  We finished the lesson soon after that because I was struggling a bit with the heat and humidity.

 Went for a short walk to cool us both out, then untacked, hosed and put Otter in his stall so he could get some water and eat his dinner while I cleaned tack.  After the barn, the fiancé and I went to the store to pick up a few remaining wedding items we needed.

Wednesday jump school

This morning I really didn't feel like dragging myself out to the barn before I had to be in at work at 1pm, but I put my big girl breeches on, poured myself a cup of coffee and headed out to the barn.  Once I got going, I was fine and glad that I was going out there.  Got to the barn and was glad to see that the hives were gone.  Not sure what caused them in the first place.  We tacked up and headed out to the jump ring for a quick school.

Otter warmed up like a champ.  He has been feeling so good recently - about 2 months ago I started him on a regular Adequan schedule, and I have really been noticing the difference in how he moves and uses himself.  Mindful of how I pushed our limits with the heat and humidity last Thursday, I kept our warm up fairly short, with lots of circles and bending to get him moving.

After a walk break, I started jumping the big crossrail back and forth a few times at the trot before moving into the canter.  I had decided that after pushing ourselves too hard last time, I just was going to keep our jump session easy and short this time.  After 10 to 15 jumps, I called it a day.  We had one or two chips, but he didn't overreact and stayed balanced afterwards, for the most part though we had good distances.

I did notice a few things though - while I am so much better at looking up and straight ahead on the flat, while jumping, especially during the turns, I'm still looking down and to the inside of the corner.  I need to also regulate our canter more in between jumps.  I counted strides today and it was a bit wonky.

Otter decided picture time was over for today

The short school worked much better for both of us and we were able to end on a good note.  Have lessons this weekend which I am really excited for- seems like it's been forever since I've seen my trainer because of our schedules conflicting.