# How to End Up in the Equine Industry Whether You Want to or Not. A Case Study.



## lostastirrup

Well we have wheels. Yesterday myself and a friend drove to Billings to look at a one horse trailer. It's a four hour drive. We we're taking a recently borrowed (I am going to buy it) Chevy trailblazer. We get there, and though it is not a young trailer it had minimal rust, solid shackles and springs and a straight axle. The owner also had just put new tires on it because she wanted to send the college kid home with something reliable. The floor was solid, and after cleaning out a wasps nest we headed out. We swung by a jiffy lube to grease the bearings, got free service and an education on bearings and how to check them and then we drove back to Dillon. Haven't put the horse in it yet, so we shall see. But that's always something that can be worked on if it doesn't go so hot.


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## AnitaAnne

Lovely story, brought tears to my eyes! Heart horses are the best  

Exciting to have a rig to carry Nick places!! Have fun :smile:


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians

Your Nicky purchase sounds like when I bought my old Lucky. He was 2 and sweet as could be but not going to be a great school horse so the trainer wanted to sell. She had a lady come out to try him but asked me to ride him to demo what he knew. I didn't like the lady and no way, no how was she getting that horse. I made him buck (he never had and never did again) and rear (same story) and got him to "bolt" with me. Ok, it was a credible hand gallop but I leaned way back and flapped my legs and arms and generally acted terrified. She never even got him. Score! Then the trainer pulled me aside and told me in no uncertain terms she knew what I had done and that she expected $1500 on her desk by noon the next day. Back in 1980 something that was a fair chunk of change for a 2 yo green broke, short, stubby little GRADE QH. One of the very best horses I've ever had and we kept him until we PTS at 32. Sometimes the heart just knows.


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## lostastirrup

*First Ride in the Toaster for Nick*

@Dreamcatcher Arabians that is a handsome boy, and looks well worth the 1500. Though that is still a chunk of change for a green 2yo grade qh. How did you get into Arabs? 
@AnitaAnne I love this dude so much. hes really standoffish and I'm fairly certain he gives me the finger whenever I turn him back out, but somehow we work, and since he didnt work for literally anyone else Im pretty proud of him and us. 

I moved him yesterday in my new wheels. He got in in less than ten minutes; so that is a win in my book. once in it was clear I need to order him a helmet for his nogan. hes not stupid, so he didnt bump it, but Id hate to be in a situation where it was needed and not have it. Especially if its a cheap investment that would save his life in an accident. Ive heard too many horror stories about whacks on the head that killed the horse. my trailer is 40+ years old, and very well taken care of, so Im rather pleased, there is no man door so the horse has to get in by himself. 

As for the ride. Nick sang the song of his people the whole way down the road. when we got to where I board in the winter/school year. he tried to turn around, and nearly folded himself in half. Scared me to death. But hes a bright pony, figured it out and somewhat indignantly waited to be guided backwards by me and my best friend (who is quite possibly the best hand with a horse on the ground) once out of the trailer I could finally breathe easy, and we took him up the "hill" where he thinks hes something of a Big Deal in the herd. he was happy and trotted around reuniting with friends. Will ride him this afternoon. hopefully will get a video.

photo 1: safe and sound about to be turned out. 
photo 2: just loaded up.


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians

lostastirrup said:


> @Dreamcatcher Arabians that is a handsome boy, and looks well worth the 1500. Though that is still a chunk of change for a green 2yo grade qh. How did you get into Arabs?


Every horse has their person and every person has their horse. Sounds like you 2 found each other. That trailer you bought looks sweet, really nice condition for its age. 

LOL! How did I get into Arabs? I'm a sucker. I grew up riding OTTBs, fell in love with Lucky, he was my first QH and kind of got forced (didn't take too much) to buy him. And about the time Lucky was 18 we retired him from showing and brought him home. He needed a pasture pal so I started putting feelers out for a horse that nobody wanted anymore, didn't care, sound, unsound, breed didn't matter, sex - not an issue, color - not an issue. One of the deputies I worked with asked me if I wanted this little Arabian mare he and his wife had bought. The horse totally didn't work for either of them, matter of fact, she really disliked them and the feeling was mutual. They told me her lead manners sucked, she wouldn't load in a trailer, wouldn't bathe, clip, lunge, tie or do a freakin' thing for them. So, I agreed to come meet the horse and if we didn't try to kill each other, I would take her since I didn't care what she did or didn't do. WELL! She led like a dream, lunged like a champ, bathed just fine, I clipped her ears without a halter, and said I'd take her. Well of course, that hurt the guy's feelings, that the horse did all of that stuff for me and wouldn't do squat for him. So his wife got on, immediately got dumped, so he was "gonna show her who was boss". She tossed him so hard he missed a weeks worth of work and earned the nickname "Blue Butt". I went over to see if I could load her onto their trailer because they knew she wouldn't load for them. The only problem I had (and EVER had with her) was getting out of the way fast enough because she loaded herself so quick and well. 

I brought her home, let her settle a few days and then saddled her up to see what was up. First thing, I used an English saddle because her Show Records said she was an English Pleasure horse, so no western saddle for me. I got on and she got to trotting and it didn't take either one of us long to figure out saddleseat was not something I knew anything about. So you know what she did? She started doing little half halts to let me catch up to the motion until she taught me how to ride saddleseat. I bought a saddleseat cutback saddle and rode her in that thing for 15 years. She did trail rides (she was awful on trail, didn't like messing up her pedicure but was not going to let me ride anybody else), she did team penning, sorting and then we got going over some low fences. She was 14 when I got her and she died when she was 29. Her nickname was, "She Who MUST be Adored". She was hilarious, totally owned me and let everyone know it, would scrape her teeth on the corral rails at dinner if I was too slow (and I was ALWAYS too slow), loved her 'spa days' and was just in general an AWESOME little mare. She made my husband and me fall head over heels with the Arabian personality. Her registered name was Lady Barbieri (Barbary) and we called her Lady B, Lady Bug, Bug and of course, She Who MUST Be Adored.


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## lostastirrup

This was yesterday,. He was really spicey, first ride back in the school year barn. This is the upper arena and I think he was just so so happy to be able to school on dirt and not grass. He wasn't bad, just really wanted to go. 

The warm-up: 
Nick wanted to trot and go the second I got on him. So this time instead of shutting him down I let him be a bit aerobic and we schooled canter and trot before walk. I wanted him to open up behind his wither and reach forward, which I think helps him travel straight, other than that, I let him set the pace, as long as he kept a consistent rhythm. 
https://youtu.be/7pOMs8wzWbE

End result:
I think I would like to get more collection and flexibility put of him, but I'm happy with how he went and how much he was reaching with his legs. He felt good in the back, you can see his spine swinging in his tail and I could feel it in my core riding him. 
https://youtu.be/1DKtfAUazkk


Excited to see what this school year does for us. I'd like to get good at single flyings. And fight with the beast of our laterals. 


This is definitely the right saddle. He is so so free in his back.


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## lostastirrup

McNickers has settled in well to the winter barn. I love having an indoor arena and some camraderie of someone to ride with. Usually there's a few people that I can chat and goof around with at the barn. I like that, but it's hard on my productivity and my school work so I've been going to ride later in the evening. 

Yesterday I had a friend out, she's a great hand on the ground so I had her help me with my piaffe, no photos unfortunately because I had her manning the dressage cane. But lots of photos of our warm up and some bareback and bridleless afterwards. Nick loves liberty, because the devious blighter gets to sorta do what he wants and I cant make him do anything I can almost feel him cackling "haha you are at my mercy" he's like a freed ten year old in a candy shop. 

I also have decided that teal and grey are our colors. He looks like a model. 

I won't ride tonight, exams, but I will go grain him and doctor on a friend of mines horse that is out of town. 

Video is of a few days ago. I am pleased with how he's going. 
https://youtu.be/AO0F_ipuFdk


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## lostastirrup

School has been horrid. I'm stressed out a ton and do a lot of homework. I have 3 classes I have to teach myself in.. because the professor does not.. but at this point I'm used to it. I just wish they weren't my hard classes. 

Nick has been lovely. Slowly building him up and putting muscle on. He's honest and willing to work so it's been fun. Still sticky on some laterals-, but in hand helps and I'm taking them slow so as not to disturb the Prince on his tuffet. 

Winter is pretty much here, so my days of getting to use the uncrowded outdoor arena are coming to a close. It stormed today so we stayed inside. A young girl was having a western lesson so we did stretchy warmup stuff for about 20 min and stayed out of their way. When she was done with her lesson and I was riding, she thought it would be fun to play copycat... Which I had to admit was pretty cute. Apparently I ride a lot of squiggly lines and transitions so was a bit of a challenge. It was super adorable though. 

https://youtu.be/LciKUf2S4wM

Nick is starting to look like a normal horse, the hunter bump decreases everyday.. either that or he's putting muscle over it I can't tell. The farrier I hate with a passion. Is coming out this week to do feet (he did Nick 2 years ago and is coming up to this barn for the first time) so we are waiting a week and a half to get our pedicure. There's a Halloween schooling show on the 20th, all the AQHA events but we'll go and goof off. It's a good experience. There's even a costume class. Which I don't know what I'll do or if I will do it at all. 

Otherwise, life has been rather grey, and I'm very glad for my shiny (well less so now that he's starting to fuzzy up) red spot of pony joy. 

I ordered a double bridle, I got a good deal so I figure it can hang on my wall and inspire me. It's a knock off PS of Sweden and I really love the rolled leather and anatomic noseband and crown piece. I think once we get there it will be a good bridle for him.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Nick is adorable! I love ponies, they have this cheeky, playful adorable look on their face that makes you just want to hug them. Though you said Nick isnt the most affectionate type. He's a cute boy, seems happy to work and glad to have a purpose in life. 

Hope you love your new bridle!


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## lostastirrup

Sundays are super busy at the barn. And so the arena was crowded and full of people jog trotting around in laps (like seriously doesn't anyone get bored?!?) So after about ten minutes I'd had enough and decided to brave the wind on the hill for some space to actually school. The upper arena is right by Nick's pasture... His happy place... Where he does not have to cooperate with the insistent biped. So he was naturally a little displeased to be made to work when he had just walked by HIS GATE . Well... I guess he had a lot of energy... Because we had a little spook and he decided he wanted to run. The footing was not great so at first I figured I'd just let him run a bit and let him slow down on his own... Didn't want to make him slip when he was already leaning... But yeah. Nick has no bottom... So eventually I just one reined him. 

https://youtu.be/1JudonuLuvY

The little stinker. 


On the other hand despite being a spicy little rocket we got some nice counter canter loops and the simples keep getting cleaner. 


https://youtu.be/Xq9KbZEPx7Y



Also the lady I took a lesson with is alright with me trailering out for a weekend and doing a few lessons right on top of each other like a Saturday and a Sunday. Which would be neat. I sent her a few videos of Nick so she could see kinda where we're at. 


I also tried to channel my inner Pinterest dressage diva and wore red leggings as breeches.... I don't think I will do that again. It's not attractive just ridiculous.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Beautiful pictures! lol well isnt he a spitfire, he seems like a cheeky, playful pony. He looks like he's a fun horse to work with, smart and playful. But definitely has his opinions.

Good luck with your lesson I hope it goes well. He really is very cute. I like the spit fire side of him. It's cute!


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## lostastirrup

Well the schooling has been going slowly but surely. I really pushed his laterals a couple of days ago and it wore his short little back out with all that stretching and threading. So he got a day off and we did work in hand the next day. 

Yesterday I rode him again and about 20min into our ride something spooked poor pony and in true Nick form he flung sideways. What was unusual was he wasn't coordinated about it- but it was quite the spook. He lost track of his legs, I was just trying to stay up and back on him in case he fell, and his right fore jammed into the ground as he went down. He came out of it fast and trotted off,. But he didn't trot off okay. Right fore was sore. Swung off the moment I felt it and walked him out. Trotted off to see lameness and there was some slight hesitation. Untacked and we walked out for about fifteen more minutes- he trotted off okay by the time I went to put him back out, but he didn't go running up the hill like he usually does. So of course I'm worried. 

Nick has never been lame. I'm not kidding. The number of times up until this point where he's lost his feet, or taken a bad step have been zero. I'm concerned it is his feet, as they are long and he wears them unevenly so they are longer on the outside, but the farrier can't come out til the 24th. I don't like waiting 2 more weeks. Sigh.


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## AtokaGhosthorse

I just love this horse. His face is so ridiculously cute and expressive!


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## lostastirrup

AtokaGhosthorse said:


> I just love this horse. His face is so ridiculously cute and expressive!


Thank you. I love him too. He's definitely opinionated! Not just his face is expressive lol.


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## lostastirrup

Well the little blighter is not lame. I think we need to trailer out to somewhere with trails and burn off some steam. The cool fall air is turning him into a little firecracker. My warmup is just an attempt at revving down the engine. Little angry piaffe steps, bucks and attempted bolts... Yeah... Now I remember why I hate fall. But hey! He has energy and we can get through those counter canter loops with all that bold snorty power. So can I really complain? Will hopefully try and run through the 2nd level tests this weekend. Anyone DIY'd a dressage ring? I'd like to send a video into Better Dressage Scores but they require all letters be visible and I have no letters. 

It's 30 degrees, I'm cold and he's fit to explode.


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## AtokaGhosthorse

Glad to hear he isn't lame! Perhaps it is indeed just the change in the weather? They all seem to get fresh and frisky this time of year. Playful to them... concerning to the weak and frail humans that ride them. LOL


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## lostastirrup

AtokaGhosthorse said:


> Glad to hear he isn't lame! Perhaps it is indeed just the change in the weather? They all seem to get fresh and frisky this time of year. Playful to them... concerning to the weak and frail humans that ride them. LOL


Makes me want to dig out my lunge line... I hate lunging... And I rarely do it, but the poor dear is itching to run and I have no where to do it.


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## AnitaAnne

lostastirrup said:


> Makes me want to dig out my lunge line... I hate lunging... And I rarely do it, but the poor dear is itching to run and I have no where to do it.


Just turn him loose in the arena, he should work it out...


For Dressage letters have painted them on concrete blocks, last forever...or use Dollar Tree foam board and wire spikes.


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## lostastirrup

AnitaAnne said:


> Just turn him loose in the arena, he should work it out...
> 
> 
> For Dressage letters have painted them on concrete blocks, last forever...or use Dollar Tree foam board and wire spikes.


I think I'm going to pick up some paint stirrers for spikes and those Walmart wood letters and paint them and seal them. 


Probably what I will end up doing lol. Watch the little freak buck run and fart scare himself.


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## lostastirrup

Pony dearest got a warmup then a trail ride. Amount of training that got done: 0.
Amount of fun that was had: 10. 

https://youtu.be/LNygRVbMgbA


Also: the barn car.


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## lostastirrup

How quickly the body forgets. 

I think I've had a saddle for 2 months now. And today after I rode I hopped on bareback. Apparently my brain can only handle one thing at a time because my second nature bareback riding took some getting used to again. He's such a fun fellow though! 
He's getting actually decent at his laterals. Which I thought would never happen. His left is always a step ahead of his right (collection is better right though) so the right has sorted out it's leg yields and the left is already trying to rock renvers and trevers. 

The bareback: 
https://youtu.be/L91_AlMMRps


Horses are weird. 

Very pleased I upped his grain and started putting oil on it. The plump fellow was the only one looking toasty and happy turned out on the hill. I don't blanket and they don't have a built shelter so I try and stay up on his weight to see him through the winter. - I do have a blanket,but it only comes out when we have freezing rain or biting wind and cold. 

I try and follow the "any two rule" for blanketing:. If there is any two of 1. Cold (sub 0 farheneit) 2. Wind (must be quite the blower, it is MT after all, the wind never stops) 3. Precipitation 
Then the blanket goes on. Honestly though, last year I blanketted him for 2 nights and that was it. Horses are hardier than I think a lot of people give them credit for.


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## lostastirrup

Well... I'm knee deep in midterms and I can't decide if I should drop a class or not... I've never done that before.. and I don't want to. But I failed the first exam and have done poorly on the quizzes. It's not a hard class, but it takes time and brain power that I have been spending elsewhere- ie the 3 engineering/physics classes I teach myself in.. 

I have exams Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday next week and I kinda want to burst into tears. One is a 5hr exam. I just want to curl up in a pile and rethink my entire life. Do something easy instead... But I know Id be disappointed and I'm so close to being done. 

My pony is good. I see him sometimes in between studying and the schooling has been going well. We're working on getting a nice trot extension (it's not the most beautiful thing yet) and those laterals which get better and better- although pushing them sparked a resurgence in his rearing problem and so I put a "cheater's draw rein on him for about 10 minutes for one ride. It's just the lead rope clipped to the girth's d and then up through the bit on one side. I prefer it to actual draw reins as it only pulls on one side and the weight of the lead rope tends to keep it loose... I'll see if I can find a picture. When he starts to go short in the neck and start to rear I can tug him gently down on the draw and then quickly release. It helps a fair bit, but I try to never "work" in it. I think it's good for teaching but bad for training. I don't want either of us to rely on an artificial aid, but I do want him safe. 

Anyhoo. There's a schooling show tomorrow. We'll show HUS, English Eq and western horsemanship. None of which are our disciplines. But it's nice to go and goof off. We basically ride a dressage flat class. So it's good for getting used to the hullabaloo. I was going to do the costume class... But I haven't put a costume together and I need to study rather than sew. 


Picture 1: cheater's draw rein
Picture 2: sunset last night
Picture 3: my favorite barn cat.


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## lostastirrup

Did a schooling show this morning. Well. Dressage pony didn't place high among the why-does-every-gait-have-four-beats? QH's but he nailed one pattern class, probably entirely on the fact that his simple change is clear, beautiful and can be done through the walk. The judge had one comment "your pony does well to keep up with the big quarter horses" which made me wonder if she'd ever seen an Arab before lol. This fellow has a bigger engine than most QHs and when we school we lap everyone. The pictures were not great, my camera has been wonky but ah well. I attached an "eh" one which isn't particularly clear, it's of us peering at the pattern posted. And then one of us walking out of a class. We tried horsemanship (western riding) came dead last and had a good laugh. I guess to be competitive we will need to add at 1 or more beats to all of our gaits. 

I'm tucked in to studying and trying to stay focused and calm about school. We shall see.


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## lostastirrup

Another friend had pictures 🙂 she's riding the dark bay TB with the big star. We both kinda had to just had to deal with riding in the show for just the experience.


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## lostastirrup

I had another thread about mysterious white patches not totally consistent with how his saddle rests, but I've also been a little suspicious for the last week as to whether or not we've once again "out grown our tack" 

Sent pictures of my saddle on Nick to a saddle fitter recommended by a trainer that occasionally I get lessons from. She thinks his saddle is now too narrow, and inclined to agree, he's been super super awesome and then all of a sudden(like the last two weeks getting incrementally more "eh") he's dodgy in the contact at canter and hard to ride. So looks like that could run a solid $300+ that I have not budgeted for. I'm really not sure what to do. I had her put me on a list for when she comes this to side of the state again, and I'm hoping that's far enough away that I can save/work to afford it. I'd also have to trailer to another city (Butte is not an English riding metropolis) so there's gas for that too. 

For now I will take some of my own advice and rig up a surcingle and half pad. Sigh. Gosh darn round pony .. . . I love that he's muscling... I hate that i have to go back to bareback. I loved having tack. 

The saddle can only be widened about a cm, but it can be reflocked, so maybe there is hope.


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## lostastirrup

https://www.theconnectedrider.com/blogging/saddle-fitting-the-arabian


I think this adequately explains my life struggle.


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## lostastirrup

Well awhile back Nicki got this bump on his hip wasn't lame or tender so figured it was either useless to fix or expensive to fix. Turns out it's both. But I should never try and sell him because he has a fractured pelvis... From playing too hard. The little blighter managed to put so much tensile force into the ligament that attached there that he broke or cracked the tip.. 

his teeth also got done (why the vet was out and the hip got checked) Which is nice. Excited to try out "his new face" after sedation I was holding his head and he fell asleep and promptly started snoring... So that was pretty cute. Although heavy. So heavy. 


Picture is of him still rather out of it


Also a piece of smoky quartz I found in his pasture.


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## lostastirrup

I think I better clarify. 

The bump got looked at by a vet tech when I found it. I called a vet friend (albeit a cow vet) to consult, and the consensus was- it's not cancer, he's not lame, it doesn't appear to hurt, just keep an eye on it.


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## lostastirrup

Well, life and pony has been tootling along. I'm laughing at my saddle dilemna once again, but I absolutely adore how he goes when he feels free. I lunged him tonight because he was full of the cold air and grain, so I got to spend some time ogling his trot. So much suspension it makes me giddy. It's not over the top like some warmblood but he definitely is very elevated and floaty. I rode him bareback and to be honest I just did enough to confirm we could cope bareback and still listen to the aids. Since his teeth have been done he's very "push to the contact" he's never heavy, so it's a nice new level of communication. I was gushing about him to my boyfriend, who's family is very "ranch" and they all roll their eyes at my short, round, spooks at everything pony thing, but really when it comes to show and performance horses- he's really low key. He keeps easy in a herd, he is sociable and pliable, you can happily leave him tied for hours, heck you can throw the rope over your car antenna and he does well, He loads like a dream, never cribbed or windsucked, doesn't kick the sides of the trailer, and other than easily startled by fast movements toward his head, he's really easy on the ground. Under saddle he's not easy. But he's predictable. I love how he rides, I can hop on him in a halter, with nothing but a handful of mane or fully decked out in tack and he's always a willing if extremely forward team player. He's just so so fun. For a first horse I got insanely lucky.

I feel like I won the jackpot with him. He's kinda been a diamond in the rough. Too many bucks, rears, and bolts for a lot of riders, but underneath it all and with a lot of work came my lovely fluffy propane tank. Everytime i see his round silhouette coming toward me from the pasture I can't help but grin.


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## lostastirrup

I'm nursing a lonely Halloween drink, but I had a love ride today. Bareback. But glorious. With the kind of canter that makes you want to be Alec Ramsey on the Black and just put your arms out like you're flying. I went so far to just drop my reins, and was shocked and pleased that on no contact with literal flopping reins Nick stayed in a beautiful floaty uphill canter, he stayed framed up for the length of the arena, approximately 10 strides then went flat in the corner... But it was so so so so lovely. His trot is stunning to watch- but his canter is a gait I would happily die in. It's just so so uphill, soft and yielding. Gosh I love this pony.


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## lostastirrup

We're back and cruising along bareback. I took some photos of the impression my leg made in his dandruff on his back, because I have decided to sew us a bareback pad that we actually like and will use. I hate too much bulk under my legs, so I'm making a pad with front blocks, gel + felt half pad seat, and small rear blocks. I want it mostly to soften my weight on his back (because I know for a fact he moves better with a little padding). For know we are enjoying something of an Indian Summer autumn with no snow. So we got to use the upper arena. 


Took pictures. Nick is ready to debut his modelling career as Dover's next bridle hottie.


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## lostastirrup

Well I snuck a ride in this morning... It had snowed and he was wild. Didn't lunge before I got on and in true Nick form after he got frustrated with collected canter he threw a buck and took off... Which meant I did a flying dismount (where you swing your legs behind you and land at the shoulder while they are running and you hold the reins and run with them) i ran beside him til he was at a manageable trot in hand. I need to remember if I'm going to grain him up I need to deal with the "pomp and circumstance" that comes with it... so out came the lunge line,and he got a good run about. He was breathing pretty heavy so when I got back on I just did walk stuff for about 40 minutes, which was probably good, since he hates it and we rarely do it. We worked some spiral in and out, some shoulder in, renvers, a few steps of very disgruntled half pass, and then some relaxing leg yields and turns on the haunches. 

I miss my saddle. I think I'm going to have it fit to him if I can instead of selling it. I got the number of another fitter out of a town an hour closer... So might try that. I know I can do it all bareback, but I don't like it. I feel like I waited so long for a saddle and have been cheated by the gods of fate that throw loaded dice for ever getting anything around an Arab barrel. 

Photos are from the last few days: 
Somewhat decent conformation shot. 

The babies loose in the indoor arena were super cute. 

Trying out a toklat bareback pad, better than the last one I had, but I still hate it. 

And selfie


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## lostastirrup

Not able to ride today, not because of weather, but school. But a barn friend sent me this of Nick. That's one well insulated happy pony if you ask me!


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## lostastirrup

After writing a 35 page report and exams that have consumed my life and soul so much so that Thursday night I collapsed on a couch on campus and a grad student woke me up in the morning for classes. My best friend came in to town, so we went to breakfast, a fabric store (I have an Etsy shop) and then the barn. Pony was fresh, but I did lunge. And of course pictures. He's so so fun and floaty. I'm wearing my "old country" sweater, apparently it was given to my pastor's wife in Scotland and her children refuse to wear it (they are not barn people and so do not understand the magic of a warm wool sweater). Even with the wind I was toasty and warm. I love how he rides. He was a little spit fire but was very good. He's fluffy and happy and full of winter spunk. What a joy of a pony, what a breath of fresh air after the hell that was this week.


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## lostastirrup

I had a really good ride today, and I thought I'd note the things that made it so good. 

1. We walked for an hour before we did anything else- my mom called so I put her on speaker phone while I warmed up pony dearest.

2. We didn't do any movements that I didn't know if we could 100% get. We still did all the same things, but I did piles of prep work, and the result was that if I asked for something I got it with quality. If I didn't feel he was at all ready, I didn't and I waited a stride. 

3. We did shoulder fore on a circle, then spiral in in all three gaits before we tried shoulder in, renver and half pass. Half pass is very new to him, we only do it in walk, but it was honest, tension free and he was thinking SUPER hard. 

All in. All it was lovely. Now I need to go do the things I've been putting off since Friday lol. 


Some more pictures from my ride on Saturday. He was so so cute. 
And a silly I did at Walmart.


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## lostastirrup

Well since daylight savings time hit I'm stuck riding in the dark, so no more videos 😞 and mostly in the indoor 😞. I don't know why but Nick isn't great in the indoor, or it could be that I prefer it outside so I'm projecting. 

In good news though- we have an appt for early January with a saddle fitter an hour away, so I'm excited. I was looking at old videos of him, and I'm eager to get back to working in tack again and having a pair of clean pants to my name. 

A brief list of love bareback things though so I can remain grateful:

1. My butt stays warm. 
2. My seat always improves with bareback.
3. He is always more free in the shoulders bareback. 
4. Speedier tack up.


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## lostastirrup

It's cold and I'm ill. Rode yesterday and neither of us were enthused given the weather. However we did a little bit of schooling. I think we'd both like a week off to nurse fatty foods and do nothing given the cold front. 

Presently curled up in a pile at home when I should be doing Etsy orders, pages of reading, studying for fluids etc. But I'm not. I want to sleep. Also the author of the princess bride died.. which is sad so soon after Stan Lee. 

Pony is fat and happy on the hill. Glad I went with his upped grain and higher protein content, because he always seems at ease and toasty warm even in our frigid weather. I think I'll dig his blanket out for his trailer ride in January but otherwise he's pretty happy. 

And this is a side note, but I've been small my whole life. I weigh about 105 and I'm mostly happy with my body, it's been a good little biological machine for me, but IT CANT KEEP WARM. I can get under six blankets but unless I'm already warm it just insulates how cold I already am. Which is peeving. I think I will dig out this thing- fleece/canvas overskirt (see photo) for a trail ride sometime this week (who am I kidding with Thanksgiving the only option is Monday) because it's so freaking cold and I am miserable. Be a good opportunity to ride Nick through the drive through again.


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## SueC

Dear @*lostastirrup* , you need one of those things that sits between your mattress and bottom sheet and heats your bed, that we Aussies call electric blankets but I believe you lot call mattress heaters or something. Then you'll be toasty warm, and making excuses to use your bed to study and do office work (quite possible with a laptop, believe me ;-)). I always had trouble getting my feet warm in bed until I a) got married, and b) got an electric blanket.

This photo wins the double cuteness award - have you framed it and put it on your wall yet?










Glad you're having so much fun bareback; must get back to that myself, after foot fracture etc. Sorry you were/are ill - when I feel like that, chicken soup of any description always helps. Even my speedy chickenless chicken soup, which is just soup pasta boiled in chicken stock, with slices of cheddar cheese and a heap of parsley added at the finish. The cheese melts into the stock - mmmmmh, delicious, but I'm such a cheese freak anyway...

I think you need an award for your journal title.

























































































And I hereby promise to give _Firefly_ a real go starting this week! ;-)


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## lostastirrup

@SueC 

I actually was looking at those at Walmart the other day, my SO lives in a camper trailer right now because hes debilitatingly allergic to the black mold in his house and I thought he'd like one. But I might need one too! We do call them electric blankets and I had one as a kid (grew up in Alaska) and used it til it went to sparks and pieces. 
At present I have a system:
Step one: socks. 
Step two: arrange blankets so the bottom layer is the folded flannel duvet cover, with two down comforters next, followed by the microfleece, fleece, proper quilt, and lastly the heaviest blanket I own- a jean blanket. This method traps heat in middle layers and the weight keeps it close the body. 
Step three: do the best possible impression of a rotisserie chicken in front of the heater until uncomfortably toasty. Remember to have the tea water going 
Step 4: tea in bed until tea is gone. 

At one point last year I was really under the weather and my mother made two flat rate boxes full of homemade canned soup with bone broth (bonebroth is homemade too!) and so I've been eating those. She's kinda a saint of a lady my mom is, and she thrives on looking after people. Can't wait to get home for Christmas and see her and the rest of my ilk; hopefully my cousin's don't kill my boyfriend. 

My grandmother wants that one framed too. She rode as a child on her dad's strawberry farm and she and her sister were quite the hands; and I'm the only one 3 generations down(about 45 total grandkids between her and her two sisters) in her family that rides. I even have an old bridle of hers that went on their show horse Shamrock, who was some sort of TB that they got "dumped with" during the Great Depression, but he was a good horse (although he was prone to rearing so Nick is in good company) and there's stories and stories about him and my great aunt Ramona. 

As for thread title "Borrowed Knickers" is Nick's registered name (pending his dams owners gets stuff mailed in but we're in no hurry at this point lol) I thought it was hilarious and a good way to get remembered as you come into the ring. 

It's warmer out today so may try and ride. Although I think Nick may want the week off, he's getting a bit sour and it seems unfair to work him when it's this cold and I'm not on my game. We might just trail ride if the roads are good/I actually do anything today.

I'm curious about riding an SB (that is what sunsmart is right?) bareback. Are they rough to trot?


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## SueC

lostastirrup said:


> I'm curious about riding an SB (that is what sunsmart is right?) bareback. Are they rough to trot?


Sunsmart is a STB/ French Trotter cross, and has a lovely comfortable trot (and canter)... more on STB / Trotter breed trots here, including his French great-grandmother's, who was my first riding horse... and photos of everything...

https://www.horseforum.com/member-journals/why-i-gotta-trot-645777/page205/#post1970555803

Also his back is nice and broad and well-muscled, with relatively low withers. High-withered, narrow-backed horses kill bareback, especially when you land when jumping your horse... :shock:



lostastirrup said:


> Step three: do the best possible impression of a rotisserie chicken in front of the heater until uncomfortably toasty. Remember to have the tea water going
> Step 4: tea in bed until tea is gone.


:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: The imagery!

The tea thing, we do too, mostly because we need fluids and because my DH has English DNA. We add one step: 5. _When tea is gone, make more tea._ We actually drink our tea out of the biggest soup mugs we could find...

Bone broth is even better than chickenless chicken stock! What an amazing mother, dropping you such nutritious fare! Have you considered one of these for your boyfriend for Christmas?










Your grandmother sounds amazing - as do various extended family you related here.

I knew about your horse's registered name, which had me go: :rofl: as well! Do you know the person who named your horse? Perfect application to journal title, but somewhat dubious choice of horse naming. He doesn't _look_ like a pair of borrowed knickers, and who borrows knickers anyway? By the way, there was a racehorse in WA called Pogue Mahone - this is actually Irish Gaelic for "kiss my ***" but the local registrars didn't speak Irish Gaelic! Bwahahaha! :Angel:

Glad you're feeling a bit better.


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## lostastirrup

I know the infamous horse namer very well. It was me... Yes. I own to that sense of humor. 

I have a few of those mugs myself. Mostly they get used for coffee as they hold what my coffee maker designates as "4 cups" when I have exams. 

I guess I've always imagined STBs to be a lot like TBs which tend to be narrow and rough trotters, though there are exceptions. That was an interest read about trotters. I like the look of the French mare. Sunsmart on the beach looks very athletic though I can see where the racing probably makes it hard for them to come over the back. Nick has a similar problem with being high headed, and it's been very difficult to overcome, because the underneck is easy for them to engage quickly, whereas the topline takes stretching then engagement, so a horse that has learned to travel high headed is always fun to try and rehab. Another one of the things that didn't occur to me when I bought Pony, but ah well. Its still a habit that occasionally rears its ugly head (literally) but for the most part teaching him to go forward from the leg to the bit has helped rehabilitate his muscle using instinct. 

Let me know what you think of Firefly. If you're having a hard time with the first episode I'm sure your hubby has a favorite he'd be happy to show you, then you can go back and see the intro. Although the intro is very good.. actually it all is.


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## SueC

:hide: 

Oh no! I've committed a _faux pas_! You named him yourself! Good thing I didn't joke about psychiatric assessments for horse namers! :rofl: It does show imagination though, and humour - my least favourite horse names are ungrammatical and tired homophones. Here's a rant from my journal on the topic (I named Le Chasseur, Classic Julian, and Sunsmart, for these reasons; and Romeo was already named, and is actually Durham Town, which is OK):

_Names had been a bit of a sore point. My parents had named a mare Teen Force, for goodness' sake, like some kind of 1970s adolescent superhero gang, or a teenage boy band. And ridiculously, their most successful horse, a lovely chestnut stallion whom I refer to as Chip, they registered as More Chips. But then, Australian Standardbred names are often nothing to write home about; they are frequently mis-spelt homophones or weak puns, like Hezavillain, or, from a current race programme, Tellmetoattack, Ella Gant Player, Gotta Xcellerate, and Hy Leexciting - have you ever heard so much tripe not coming from a parliament? Has it never occurred to these people that horses are beautiful creatures and shouldn't be stuck with such tacky monikers? That they deserve real names, not the best efforts of a drunk Scrabble party for people who failed spelling?_

There you go! :rofl:

Yeah, STBs / Trotters have carriage horse and riding horse ancestry, and a totally different conformation to the TB!

Your Nick (AKA Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington / Nearly Headless Nick???) is certainly a handsome fellow. Why do you think he was needing neck muscle rehabilitation? Was there a history, or just general Arabian genes? Arabians (my main riding horse for three decades was one) and most other working breeds and wild horses I've seen tend not to have faces vertical when working, as it's not the most efficient thing for locomotion, and it actually impairs their vision - I kind of see that as a special move for ballroom dancing (AKA dressage). That said, a few horses are "upside-down" in the neck, and Sunsmart certainly was when he came off the track - courtesy of the harness headchecks etc...
Hope you have a nice productive week and some nice riding too.:cowboy:


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## SueC

...I just watched this:






No wonder you're pleased with him - he's got terrific impulsion and carries himself beautifully. I don't see how the QHs could beat him to be honest, except judge breed preference. ;-) Something about the Arabian - like riding rockets that could go off at any moment - great fun - and they're so serious about moving! And you're a fabulous rider. Bet your grandmother thinks you've got lots of her genes!

I'm going to share a video with you that we took when my mare was ancient (30) and had quite a sunken back. She'd been retired for three years and one day, after grooming her, I just jumped on her back on impulse. Because I'm 5'11" and she was 14.2hh, it wasn't hard getting on her!  She was wide as a tank though, and together with the sunken back it meant I was tipped backwards on her bareback at that point, and could not get my legs under me - when she was still working, she was lunged a lot, which kept her back in great condition. So this is not exactly our heyday, but I smile looking at it, because even as a really old horse and no riding for years, she was all go.






This was us three years before, the last year she was my main riding horse:




























And at a gymkhana when I was about your age:










She was Crabbet / Polish. What are Nick's lines? He doesn't look like those odious show poodles they are breeding for the halter ring today, he looks and moves like a proper working horse.


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> ...I just watched this:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L91_AlMMRps&feature=youtu.be
> 
> No wonder you're pleased with him - he's got terrific impulsion and carries himself beautifully. I don't see how the QHs could beat him to be honest, except judge breed preference. <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Wink" class="inlineimg" /> Something about the Arabian - like riding rockets that could go off at any moment - great fun - and they're so serious about moving! And you're a fabulous rider. Bet your grandmother thinks you've got lots of her genes!
> 
> I'm going to share a video with you that we took when my mare was ancient (30) and had quite a sunken back. She'd been retired for three years and one day, after grooming her, I just jumped on her back on impulse. Because I'm 5'11" and she was 14.2hh, it wasn't hard getting on her! <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Smile" class="inlineimg" /> She was wide as a tank though, and together with the sunken back it meant I was tipped backwards on her bareback at that point, and could not get my legs under me - when she was still working, she was lunged a lot, which kept her back in great condition. So this is not exactly our heyday, but I smile looking at it, because even as a really old horse and no riding for years, she was all go.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaBbJZgKIXM
> 
> This was us three years before, the last year she was my main riding horse:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And at a gymkhana when I was about your age:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> She was Crabbet / Polish. What are Nick's lines? He doesn't look like those odious show poodles they are breeding for the halter ring today, he looks and moves like a proper working horse. <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/love.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Love" class="inlineimg" />


Nick and your mare had the same walk! It's a great moving gait that covers country well. Nick is mostly polish lines on the dams side. Dad is a German riding pony with a lot of Arab. He's not a breeding I would recommend, I don't think Dad was all that nice of a horse, but Nick as a gelding has been a lovely little packer. He does cows, he jumps (occasionally bareback with me in bedroom slippers) he does dressage, liberty, trails, you name it. And all without breaking sweat or losing his mind, Arabs are wonderful that way. I'm sure you found with your mare especially bringing her up yourself, but the Arab brain is a dignified thing and they do a good job of reminding their human what the expectations are. You can't ride them as you would a QH or a TB theyre too proud by half. It's more of a "would you be so kind as to...?" Rather than "do this now"


I get flac from my SO's family for my wild child pony, but none of them complain when scrappy Araby MGee gathers cows from country that the QH's struggle and sweat bullets on, all with a peppy trot and a good gallop left in him for the occasional "independent thinking" cows.

As for sitting funny bareback, a lot has to do with how your hips tie in. My legs swing forward when I ride bareback and I just let them. Proper position is for in tack work, not for bareback. There's too many moving parts to worry about heels and angles.

Pictures: 1. your gymhakana photo reminded me of this one, I always like the look of an intent horse. 
2. Bareback with the leg definitely not under, if I tried it would hurt like heckle.
3. Down from the hills, QH to the left, Nick and I on the right.


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## SueC

lostastirrup said:


> He does cows, he jumps (occasionally bareback with me in bedroom slippers)...


:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Don't you lose your slippers going over the jump? Sort of, you know, continuing momentum...



> ...he does dressage, liberty, trails, you name it. And all without breaking sweat or losing his mind, Arabs are wonderful that way. I'm sure you found with your mare especially bringing her up yourself, but the Arab brain is a dignified thing and they do a good job of reminding their human what the expectations are. You can't ride them as you would a QH or a TB theyre too proud by half. It's more of a "would you be so kind as to...?" Rather than "do this now"


And I think that's so fair enough! It's a sad indictment of the human race that many prefer to ride horses that can be ordered around... So they end of with the temperamental equivalent of the dumbed-down, defeated battery chicken...

You have to be decent to an Arabian, and other spirited horses like that. But if you are, they will do so much more for you that many other horses will. And they're so versatile - my mare was an amazing all-rounder. Just about the only thing we didn't do was jump - other than over the odd low log or stream on a trail. I was at the upper limit for her and my legs were too long as well - could've had the horse clearing the fence, and my feet taking down the top rail! It's great to have a little horse with a big heart.



> As for sitting funny bareback, a lot has to do with how your hips tie in. My legs swing forward when I ride bareback and I just let them. Proper position is for in tack work, not for bareback. There's too many moving parts to worry about heels and angles.


Yeah, human anatomy comes into it too. Both my late mare and Sunsmart were/are tanks with huge barrels, and when you sit on them without a saddle, you're kind of doing the splits. And then her dipping back that time when she was really old, I was sitting uphill! On Romeo, with his narrower build, I could sit bareback with my legs exactly textbook (retired now). But yes, it's more important to have a position that's harmonious for the horse-rider combination, than to try to force a position, because then you get tension, and that kills everything else.



> Pictures: 1. your gymhakana photo reminded me of this one, I always like the look of an intent horse.
> 2. Bareback with the leg definitely not under, if I tried it would hurt like heckle.
> 3. Down from the hills, QH to the left, Nick and I on the right.


Those are great photos! I always love when horses have light in their eyes and really switched-on expressions on their faces!


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## lostastirrup

@SueC

These very barrelly horses are a bit hard on the hips are they not? 

I should crawl into my bed and do my homework there. It's been quite the pile today.


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## SueC

You know, I've always found barrel type horses more comfortable to ride. It feels like there's actually some horse there. It's probably the long femurs that make me more suited to really wide horses, than narrow ones. Romeo, for instance, has a "normal" back, and always felt weirdly narrow to me, although he actually isn't. And even though he's 16hh, my feet hang further under him than on 15.2hh Sunsmart.

https://www.horseforum.com/member-j...s-other-people-479466/page117/#post1970625803

Not finding my "elastic arms" properly on that impromptu (because on Sunsmart the head movement is so minimal, as was the case for my Arabian mare, so I struggle to adjust to a head-mover initially and clearly needed loads more practice):

https://www.horseforum.com/member-j...s-other-people-479466/page118/#post1970626237

When I'm on a "normal" horse, I feel like I'm riding a piece of paper. That's what comes of riding a French Trotter and a working-line Arabian all my formative years! :rofl:

I've looked at a lot of your clips this morning and am very impressed with how both of you are travelling. Your down transitions are super neat, and that's not always easy with a goey horse - your canter-walk transitions are excellent! It's quite a trick to get that level of relaxation with a horse that likes to run. With my Arabian mare, the up transitions were always immediate and enthusiastic; the down transitions we had to work on. I confess to using a fence to practice trot-halt transitions, for instance! ;-) (I had to do my dressage practice in a cow paddock.) And once a judge at a show! (It worked! ...and the judge actually didn't realise, which was funny, and congratulated me on the neat instantaneous trot to square halt... and we actually won that class, small country show; oh if the judge could have read my mind... that was so naughty of young me... but also resourceful... :rofl

I really had to almost do meditation on my mare to get her to relax. Like, "think" her relaxed - and be super floppy myself... Sunsmart is equally happy to transition up or down, which makes life a little easier... although I still miss that pocket rocket of a mare...

How much of your riding do you do with your mind?


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## lostastirrup

@SueC


> It's quite a trick to get that level of relaxation with a horse that likes to run. With my Arabian mare, the up transitions were always immediate and enthusiastic; the down transitions we had to work on. I confess to using a fence to practice trot-halt transitions, for instance! (I had to do my dressage practice in a cow paddock.)[\QUOTE].
> 
> Nick and your mare sound a lot alike and we do still on occasion school in a cow pasture. We do the canter-walks pretty well, but since I was so keen on them I kinda forgot our trot to stops, so those sprawl a fair bit. I will admit that occasionally we have trotted into a wall too... sometimes you must. Did you ever have trouble with getting up into a good gallop and finding there isn't a way back down out of it? A couple times I've put him into a canter a few miles from home with the intention of just getting clear of the flies and then finding that well... We are galloping and hopefully he will stop at a gate. Mind you generally this happened bareback... Probably doesn't speak for my horsemanship but I've never wanted to train professionally so I have a little easier time dismissing Nick and I's vices.
> 
> I actually have to me super careful about my "energy" with Nick, he tunes in in a really clear way. Interestingly, a mare I showed who was if I'm honest- THE MARE EVEN SATAN WOULDN'T RIDE; well she was very uppity and sensitive and dangerous, and I both loved and hated her, and she was the last of my many "projects" (I never owned as a kid, only rode and showed other people's) before Nick. And I can honestly say if it had not been for all she'd taught me about calming my emotions, learning to forgive the horse even as they throw the buck, and worry about fixing the next stride and not dwelling on the last- I would have been hopeless with Nick. Nick was really a little s*** when I bought him, and he'd never had riders who knew what to do with high strung athletic horses, if it hadn't been for that mare I would have been equally as lost at sea. Looking back she was a horrible show horse- but by golly am I grateful for the angst she put into making me a more mindful rider.
> 
> 
> 
> In other news- the weather cooperated and it was lovely today, we schooled for a bit, nothing intese just focused on getting his hip and shoulder sharp to the aids, we're starting to do a lot more work on 3 tracks and poor short-in-the-body Nick struggles a bit. So it's been work to both convince him that he has to, and to get a correct positioning, but today was very soft and yielding and we went for a trail ride afterward. There's another lady who is new to the barn and rides dressage, but she and I usually ride at different times; well we rode together today and that was nice. Her horse is a big andalusian cross, who I don't think I'd enjoy riding, but I don't mind admiring from my lovely perch on pony dearest. Big horses are such work. I'd rather my little adjustable, sure-footed Araby thing. He's too much fun. It's a unique horse that you can drop both reins mid canter stride and have them happily hold themselves up and continue along. This may also be an Arab brain thing- he likes having a facet to be responsible for. He gets offended if you're in his face too much.. not fussy... Just indignant.


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## lostastirrup

No pony update although given the holiday he will have some pie and schnapps this afternoon. I thought I'd highlight the turkey day creativity.. turkey pie, turkey cheese ball, and an actual turkey (not pictured) that weighed 42 lbs.


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## SueC

They look wonderful...and delicious...


Your horse gets schnapps? :rofl:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> They look wonderful...and delicious...
> 
> 
> Your horse gets schnapps? :rofl:


He likes schnapps.


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## SueC

Does he like beer too? We had a horse once that liked beer. And apparently pigs generally like beer. I do not. (So logically, I am not a pig. ;-))

Really enjoyed that "How to get a lame horse" and other jokes. :rofl:

If you get a hoof rasp, you can keep the hooves a little shorter between trims and not have the horse tripping... (unless you've got the horse shod of course... he's probably shod then?)

Loved those sunset photos from a while back. It gets cold where you are - does it also get windy?

Hope you have a good week!


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## lostastirrup

*It's colder than a witches....*

Well. It's been total ice. Wind cuts right through the layers, the cold is horrid. We're at an elevation at about 6000, I live where the mountain used to be at 7000 ft. So we get some pretty wild weather. They're not kidding about life in the mountains. It's frigging cold. 

So I've hardly ridden, mostly just brought him grain and waved at him from the car window. He is fat and happy though, better prepared for this weather than I for sure. Today I did ride and in true form he was an almighty fiend, threw a pretty athletic happy buck, then farted and spooked himself.. bright fellow. 
@SueC he's not shod and I could probably do him myself but Im somewhat scared to mess up his feet, not to mention they are rocks and really hard to do.


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## Tihannah

Somehow just stumbled across your journal! Wow! What a trot on your guy!! LOVE his movement! Just looking at stills of him, one would never guess the moves he's got! Lol.

Loved the story of how you found him and making him yours. You guys are a lovely pair and I agree with someone else, that sometimes it's just takes the right person for the right horse.


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## lostastirrup

Tihannah said:


> Somehow just stumbled across your journal! Wow! What a trot on your guy!! LOVE his movement! Just looking at stills of him, one would never guess the moves he's got! Lol.
> 
> Loved the story of how you found him and making him yours. You guys are a lovely pair and I agree with someone else, that sometimes it's just takes the right person for the right horse.


Yes he's kinda a bit ponyish with his belly and his hunters bump.. not to mention the perpetual peeved expression unless there's cookies or he gets to run. Kinda an oddball child but I like him. When I bought him, he was obese and very potbellied. But he moved nice, he had good angles, big knees and solid feet, so he seemed like a good choice in spite of the "cranky old man drinking decaff" look

I'm convinced that if a person has the skill and is willing to stick it out a lot of the behaviour stuff just goes away. I think a lot of the time the crazy dangerous stuff just stems from inconsistent riders and riding. Nick just needed someone willing to hang with him and do the 5 mile bolts, the bucks and the rears. I never set out to fix his behaviour I set out to ride his gaits and improve his way of going. Along the way he turned out half way broke. 


Good luck at the show! I'm super excited to see pictures. My old trainer used to say "all we want is to stay ON the horse IN the arena, everything else is bonus" which really helped me relax.. I like low expectations.


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## SueC

Hooves like rocks = Arab hooves! :rofl: Great in many ways, except the little matter of trimming and filing what amounts to marble... You have to keep your rasp really sharp, or you can cancel your gym membership...


The snow looks pretty, but I'm not a fan of icy cold either...


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> Hooves like rocks = Arab hooves! :rofl: Great in many ways, except the little matter of trimming and filing what amounts to marble... You have to keep your rasp really sharp, or you can cancel your gym membership...
> 
> 
> The snow looks pretty, but I'm not a fan of icy cold either...


It is gorgeous, and I get some stunning pictures. And when it warms up a little it's glorious. We like to head out and trail ride when it's nice and fluffy. Kinda fun to go crashing through- though I don't recommend trying canter voltes in it- a great way to have the horse fall over on you and break an ankle (been there done that) but overall the winter air is nice. I worry about ice under snow even if Nick is sure-footed, so usually before I open him up I get off and stamp around a bit. 

Seriously considering the rasp idea. I'm not sure when my usual farrier will be back and I don't like my other option.


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## lostastirrup

I snuck in a ride today. It was lovely. Pony was happy and ready to run, also he came to me when I whistled so that was awesome. We didn't do a lot of canter, I made myself school trot. And we worked on elevating the forehand just a little bit. It's not quite the same bareback as in a saddle, but we got a few good steps here and there. The thing about bareback is you can't get off the spine even if you can get out of the way of the shoulders- so we don't get our best stuff bareback, but it's the try that counts. 






Also the sky was glorious.

And the last photo is of a Chestnut Arab gelding who is very sweet, he comes running up to me I. The pasture. After I get my saddle widened, I'd like to see if the owner would perhaps let me work him, he hasn't been worked in a few years, and I've never actually seen his person, but he's a cute mover and very personable and all Nick's tack should fit him. It would be nice to have a second horse to ride.


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## Tazzie

I just found your journal and I love it! Nick is so cute! And I love your story on how you got him! I bought Izzie off of a couple pictures and videos. I paid $1500 for what was the UGLIEST yearling I had ever seen (look at the very beginning of my journal; it'll show all the pictures haha). I still say I overpaid for what I bought then, but that people couldn't give me 10 times that for her now :lol:


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## lostastirrup

*Brief hiatus from journal in the interest of passing my finals*

It's been on and off cold. So I've ridden some but not a lot. 

Next week is the week before finals and the week after that is finals. With that in my I'm taking a break from HF, Facebook etc. 

And in the interest of disaster- yesterday was a 7.0 earthquake in Anchorage AK. My family is okay, but there has been a lot of infrastructure damage. So if anyone has a prayer list needing a few more items on it- the people with no water and heat in the middle of winter in AK would be happy to take that slot.


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## SueC

Best wishes to your family, @*lostastirrup* , and also for your finals. :hug:

Good sleep every night for a whole week before and a decent complete protein in your breakfast will make you more alert during an examination. I'll beam positive revision and examination vibes over to you from the southern hemisphere!


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## lostastirrup

*Finals over, thank goodness*

So finals ended. I think I passed most of my classes, so we shall see. Headed home to AK to see my family. Will be riding a friend of mines Percheron-friesian and Rocket a TB I worked and showed back in HS. At present Nick is enjoy a "fat month" of turnout with buddies. He didn't go back to the ranch this year which makes me a little sad for him, but the roads were too nasty for the trip in the trailer and I was so sleep deprived from finals it wouldnt have been safe. 

Some final last photos of pony and some past pictures of the two "vacation ponies"


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## frlsgirl

I found you journal ! Congratulations on making it through finals.


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## DanteDressageNerd

7.0 earthquake!! Jesus I hope everything is okay! I can't even imagine, that is scary! I'm so glad your family is okay!!

Congratulations on being doing with finals, they're so stressful!! I have my first final in 2weeks. I hope I dont die! 

The horses have very kind faces, hope you get to enjoy Nick through the holidays!


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## lostastirrup

DanteDressageNerd said:


> 7.0 earthquake!! Jesus I hope everything is okay! I can't even imagine, that is scary! I'm so glad your family is okay!!
> 
> Congratulations on being doing with finals, they're so stressful!! I have my first final in 2weeks. I hope I dont die!
> 
> The horses have very kind faces, hope you get to enjoy Nick through the holidays!



Our town is on bedrock (Anchorage and Wasilla are not) so overall we did really well considering. A few lost pottery bowls, but otherwise no harm done. These are just things. We've been having aftershocks since. The dog doesn't even wake up for them anymore. It could have been a lot worse overall. 


Best of luck with finals, I discovered something really helpful this year- bringing a blanket to campus and sleeping on a bench for an hour or two at night or between exams is really helpful. I think I grossed 15hr of sleep for the week, but I made it out okay because I'd snagged just enough sleep here and there to get my good REM in. 





:runninghorse2::runninghorse2::runninghorse2:

I'm happy to be home, brought the SO with me, at some point grandma would like to inspect him, and have him play the piano for her, will try and head over there today. He has an autoimmune disease that makes him very fatigued and disoriented sometimes, so we'll play it by ear. 


I saw my old barn owner last night, it was really cold (10 F with 90% humidity) so I didn't ride. Will hopefully here soon. As soon as I finish doing the trivial niceties that go along with having a huge extended family that is very proper... Sigh. But its awesome to see everyone. My friend in MT is checking on Nick this weekend so that is comforting. I really wish he could have gone back to the ranch, it's so so so good for him and usually let's me squeeze in one really long ride before going back to endless arena circles and dodging broken bottles in medians when we ride to town. 

But in the interest of the last 5 (or 4) days to Christmas and nearly the new year, I'm going to list up some things I'm thankful for, (in no particular order)


1) my family is alive, well and safe after a natural disasters that very well could have killed them. 

2) I got to come home, and I don't have to pay to feed myself for a month. 

3) my horse is sound and semi-sane. 

4) the boyfriend was well enough to make the trip home with me. 

5) My grandmother is still among us, despite depression after we lost Grandpa and despite her health, she still is out in her log cabin in the woods putting a brave face on for the world and baking cookies.


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## frlsgirl

Great list. Lol on the “semi sane” comment. 

Wishing you a very Merry and uneventful Christmas.


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## SueC

Merry Christmas, @lostastirrup!  Hope you have a relaxing time.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Merry Christmas and good luck!! Enjoy the holidays!!

It's a good list to be thankful for


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## lostastirrup

Not a lot of an update, been riding the TB and the draft. "The behemoth and the beast" both have been good. Not a lot of video or pictures because my phone keeps dying in the cold. 

I had a good Christmas, and today am quitting my hiatus from all things life- and starting in on some linear algebra and statistics that I will be taking next semester. This should be an interesting coming semester with seven classes and two math classes, but I think we'll make it. I still haven't checked my grades- I'm petritified. I also signed up for a math minor frown_color which I hate- but it's only one more class. And I've done all the calculus already. I haven't done work with matrices since highschool (other than some programming stuff) so that will be interesting, which is why I'm studying linear algebra ahead of time. If I'm dedicated I want to master the subject before I go back, if I'm half way dedicated I should have a good understanding before I get going. So we'll aim for mastery and be happy with understanding. Online YouTube lectures are incredible things. I also have to sort out my student loan today and get some post Christmas things squared away. 


My mom got me a packing blanket that compresses really small for me to keep in my backpack and use when I need to stay overnight on campus. So I'm super excited. It's a really nice blanket. My boyfriend got me bits for the double, though I need to exchange them for the right size, but it's the thought that counts. Dad got me a radial rasp, which is exciting, because I might now have more luck keeping Nick's feet in order myself, or at least supplementing his trimming when it's hard to get the farrier out. 

The boyfriend has been here and has been very good. I took him to play the violin for my grandmother which she enjoyed. So I suppose he's now been "approved" so that's nice. 

I got a few Christmas pictures of the draft "Kricket" yesterday. The day was pretty (though cold as the ninth circle of hell)


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## SueC

Hope you're enjoying the Christmas break! I have to :rofl: about calculus, because that's also the name of the calcified plaque dentists remove when they clean your teeth. Endless mileage...


So yeah, I did calculus at university too, but my dentist removed it all... :Angel:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> Hope you're enjoying the Christmas break! I have to :rofl: about calculus, because that's also the name of the calcified plaque dentists remove when they clean your teeth. Endless mileage...
> 
> 
> So yeah, I did calculus at university too, but my dentist removed it all... :Angel:


This i did not know. I'll be sure to let my dentist know that there's a ton of calculus to take care of. 

:blueunicorn:inkunicorn::blueunicorn:inkunicorn:


Quick update. Not much horse related, except I may have a saddle on trial (jumping saddle) so that will be exciting. Be good to jump seriously again. I miss it. 

I haven't ridden much, I took the dog to the vet for a cough and found that her lung tumour has grown dramatically, so we're filling the days with tennis balls and hiking and happiness while she feels well. She sleeps on the bed with me and wakes me up with kisses since I've been home for Christmas. Vet doesn't know if she has months or a year+, so im just trying to enjoy her and have her enjoy her time for as long as she stays. She's such a quiet and beautifully dispositioned dog that the whole house is a bit mopey at the idea of her not living forever. 

Presently I'm reading "how good riders get good" by Denny Emerson and "austenland" by Shannon Hale, both are good if entirely different. I also found some poetry by Wendell Berry that Im enjoying. This one was fun. 

Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front
by Wendell Berry

Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.

So, friends, every day do something
that won’t compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.

Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.

Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.
Listen to carrion – put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.
Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?

Go with your love to the fields.
Lie down in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.
As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn’t go. Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.


I like some of his essays he's got a unique vein of environmentalism that isn't as focused on "the wilderness" and more on sustainable farming. I'm always a little bit leery of someone who lived as a recluse for 40 odd years, but still enjoying the read.


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## frlsgirl

Sorry about your dog; enjoy your remaining time with her. Mine are getting up there in age and I worry every year when they go in for their annual shots that the vet will find something. Hope you get to ride soon, that always cheers me up; when my mom was dying I spent countless hours riding Ana all over the place; it kept me from going insane.


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## SueC

There's a :hug: for both of you should you need it - that's sad. :-( Great approach, though: Make it count, and make it happy. That's what we do with our geriatric horse as well. 


Really enjoyed the poem. My own Christmas Day reading rather took some gloss off a favourite band. Imagine having a formal drug budget as part of your recording budget for an album! mg: Have I ever mentioned how much I enjoy living here, with my head under this nice rock?


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> There's a <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/hug.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Hug" class="inlineimg" /> for both of you should you need it - that's sad. <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/icon_sad.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Sad" class="inlineimg" /> Great approach, though: Make it count, and make it happy. That's what we do with our geriatric horse as well. <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/love.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Love" class="inlineimg" />
> 
> 
> Really enjoyed the poem. My own Christmas Day reading rather took some gloss off a favourite band. Imagine having a formal drug budget as part of your recording budget for an album! <img style="max-width:100%;" src="http://www.horseforum.com/images/smilies/omg.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Omg" class="inlineimg" /> Have I ever mentioned how much I enjoy living here, with my head under this nice rock?


It's one of those things we have known is "pending" but trips to the vet makes it more real. Her cough went away though so I suspect that at least was viral and not created by the lung cancer. 


A friend of mines husband checked on Nick. He knew the horse was bay, so he checked all the bays in the field :ROFL: and since they were all just fine- by logic at least one of those horses is Nick and is also fine. This is too funny for me...


----------



## lostastirrup

*An actual post with pictures of pony and video. We're back.*

Well I'm finally back in MT, had my first day back at classes yesterday. I've got a rather wild schedule, but I'm hoping to keep my head above water. 

:runninghorse2::runninghorse2::runninghorse2::runninghorse2::runninghorse2::runninghorse2:

Pony is fat. Gosh he's fat. So he's cut back on grain and we're trying for daily workouts. The little Lard was huffing and puffing from a few canter laps, so I figure about 2ish+ weeks to get fit again. I need to get up to the saddlery in Helena- probably next week to get his saddle widened. When people see me riding him bareback and I explain I need his saddle widened from a "wide" to an "X-wide" they go "What??? But he's so little, you could probably borrow my saddle to ride him, it fits everything I've put it on.". To which I have to respond "he really is that round yes... Also how many Arabs have you put your saddle on? -oh you've only put it on QH's I see. I think I'll pass" which is a little amusing.. but mostly I feel like rolling my eyes at this point. Oh well. 






This was part of our ride today. I really had to get after him with my leg... I'm starting to wonder if the cellulite "padding" around his middle is interfering with my aids. 

Anyway. Excited to see what the new year holds for us. I did make a few resolutions:

1. Become an incredible student. 
2. Treat my health as something not to be taken for granite and put some effort into eating good food and having healthy habits. 
3. Fall in Love with the process (be it school, relationships, horse) and not the end product. 

Photos attached: 
Pony today
Some Alaska


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## frlsgirl

Wow you and your pony got some mad skilz! Something for Ana and I to aspire to!


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## DanteDressageNerd

He's a really cute guy!! He looks really happy to have you back, it's a nice harmony. He's developed a lot more schwung, the arab seems to add a lot of swing. You're doing a good job with him! 

I like your new years resolutions goals, best of luck with them! I hope you're able to achieve them!

Also I love the pictures of you and Nick in the snow, super cute!


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## lostastirrup

So I've been out of town for the weekend in the beautiful Highwood mountains, so I suppose against my best "diet and excerise plan" Nick and I both got the weekend off. 

Some cool developments though- we have a little jumping saddle. It's a 16" Jorge Caraves, the tag says Germany made. I got it used and it's a ton more "showy" than I thought I'd ever have for a saddle ever. Guess we should never dabble in the hunters... But the coolest thing happened when I put it on him! It came Friday so I waited up for the mail then drove out to the barn- put the saddle on him and felt around- it was LOOSE on his withers!!! I had to add a half pad to make the fit perfect! So he has ROOM to move his shoulders in it and I just support it with a thin foam pad. I rode him briefly in it to see if I liked it- and well I'm not going to say that it was "bottom-magic" -the front-back balance is somewhat lacking, but it was comfortable, he moved well in it, and I could happily wtc and do some laterals(the last is a big deal as he won't offer, heck he'll rear, if the saddle pinches). 
Pictures attached. Yes it's red.. I don't know how I feel about that. 

Okay thats it for ponies. What remains is a disasterous hike story, no ponies involved. 

Well.. I suppose I'll preface this with I used to have a Ford taurus named Marvin. He was a good little car, and a friend of mine now has him. One year ago, I had gone to Dillon to see my pastor's family (practically family- my name made it onto their chore chart lol) and the 12yo And I decide we want to go hiking. This was March. In MT. I didn't have snow tires, and the tires I had were bald. But off we went. And promptly got Marvin stuck six miles up a mountain road. With no service. So we figured we'd walk out far enough to phone for help, ended up walking all the way out to the highway with a tiny terrier in an area known to have wolves. Our rescue eventually came and got a tow line on Marv and pulled us 'round and we got back down the mountain at 10pm. We were alright, but neither one of us has lived it down. At this point it's an infamous "family story" which by the grace of God my mother has never heard. 

Now we are significantly more careful. I have Festus- a trailblazer now, and I keep sand, shovels, granola bars, blankets and the whole nine yards in my car. I also am careful to detail where we are going, and what time to expect us back. I think I'm now slightly more mature and less inclined to disaster. Apparently I'm wrong. 


So me and the former 12yo, now 13- and her younger brother (11) decide to hike a mountain. We bring aforementioned tiny terrier with us. We make it to the trailhead in good time without too much sketchiness to the roads. Hop out and hike the most beautiful hike I think I had done in awhile. There were a lot of little creek crossings, lovely trees and sun and we had a lovely time. We hiked up to a cliff face and decided to spend our remaining time scrambling around on the rocks. We tore around on the cliff and the top of the cliff for a good hour, looked at the time, decided to head back. Walked 3/4 of the way back and I checked my key ring. One key was missing. The car key. This was now once again a "Grace and Lucy disaster hike" so back up the trail we go- 3 across combing for the key on the trail and hoping it didn't pop off the ring in one of the crik crossings. We walk all the way up to our turnaround point, comb the spot (we had stopped and had cheese rollups there) and then, though hopeless, and already planning on calling triple A from the nearest residence that would let us borrow a landline- up the cliff we go retracing our steps. Surely God looks after fools- because we find the key, perched on the top of the cliff- about a foot from the edge. The ring itself had busted which is why it had fallen off. We all breathed a sigh of relief although David (11) did admit he was hoping for a proper adventure. Back we go down the trail and we get to drive our vehicle home. Which seemed an enormous blessing. 

In other news I'm getting a few copies of my key made. 

Okay pictures all around. 


------------------------------------ 

@frlsgirl thank you! To me he feels out of it lol, and way to sluggish, but I'm glad he looks good. He has always been finnicky to put on the bit- you may hold the reins, but he really likes a quiet bit, so he's a bit delicate to ride in his front end. I'm flattered that how he goes can be a goal, especially since so often to me I feel like I'm not with it and we really need to be doing something else or different if only I knew what-. 
@DanteDressageNerd thanks. I like giving them long breaks, I think it's good for them mentally and physically even if it means they fatten up. So I'm glad you're seeing some schwung to his way of going.


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## knightrider

What a story! It's almost a miracle you found your key! Years ago, my friend lost her ring of keys while riding on my trails. For years, I kept an eye out on that trail, which I rode regularly, but never ever found those keys--a whole ring of about 8 keys.


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## lostastirrup

knightrider said:


> What a story! It's almost a miracle you found your key! Years ago, my friend lost her ring of keys while riding on my trails. For years, I kept an eye out on that trail, which I rode regularly, but never ever found those keys--a whole ring of about 8 keys.


This is why I say God looks after fools. Lady luck is too much abused for anything but divine intervention at this point


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## SueC

How extraordinary that you found your key, @lostastirrup. And what a great story!  (Always more fun to tell afterwards than to experience at the time...)

A friend of ours has taken to wearing his keys around his neck, on a string, down his shirt, because otherwise he keeps mislaying them.

When hiking / walking, I like to pop my keys into a zippered backpack compartment, or a zippered pocket, because I have nightmares about a scenario like that one you experienced.

You pony is very cute and has such an expressive face! Love the scenery photos.

I can't believe you sold Marvin! :shock: :Angel: Is Festus a brand name, or is that what you christened Marvin's successor?


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## lostastirrup

@SueC Worry not Marvin went to a very good home and I still get to see him regulararly (my best friend bought him) and unfortunately she and I have both historically been the Zaphod. Beeblebrox to his reliable if sad self. 

Festus is the name of the new (not new but new to me) vehicle. He was difficult to name, nothing seemed to quite fit, but Festus stuck. 

Putting the keys in a zipped pocket was the very next thing I did. And then yesterday I bought heavy duty key rings, and updated that.. next is to get a few copies. Honestly it's a miracle they were found at all. The terrain was perfect for hiding keys.


----------



## lostastirrup

So kinda an interesting barn day. I tried this jumping saddle a little a few days ago (Friday) decided the tree fits, but the flocking doesn't, so it's going to the fitter with me on Saturday. My aim is to come home with one saddle that fits him. Two would be a bonus. 

As for today- Nick is sore, in his neck and in his back. So we had a long massage session, and then a therepeutic ride, followed by another massage. It could have been the five minute ride in the saddle, or it could be himself tearing up and down the hills or myriad of other things. Either way, no saddled riding for now, and the work we are doing undersaddle is very very basic and large loops with a level topline and me scooted 4" back to give him the opportunity to stretch that topline. When Nick is "uncomfortable" his first instinct is to rear up and resist. He swings his head when he's not feeling well, it's an easy tell, but today I was pleased that he let me help him through the soreness, and with little more than ear flickings when he was saying "oof, this is hard, I'm stiff" so I could back off and let him stretch. I wanted to keep him aerobic and loose so he could work through the tension in the shoulders and neck and so that he could be warmed up when I went to work on him a second time. And I was pleased with that overall result. When I came back to school this year one of the promises I made Nick was 'no bad rides' I want them all to feel good and help in one way or another. Today that meant riding like an Intro level horse. 

That part went well.. but he had a dyarhea incident. I'd rather have dyarhea than stiff log-poops but we quit then and I investigated his poop. Lots of chewed up hay, but also a grain I didn't recognize from his usual rations. The facility is only supposed to be feeding hay to the horses and I give him peleted safe choice and horse cookies, so there's nothing in his grain that should resemble a kernal. So I wonder if one of the new boarders or someone brought grain out to their horse and fed them in the pasture and Nick got a little and thus an upset stomach from the different feed. He didn't seem remotely out of it otherwise, but i worry over everything. Will check him tonight and see if anything else is amiss. I also let the BO know, so they're aware. 

Attached are Nick pictures before and after work and massages, the one with the car in it is before and the pasture one is after. I think I can see a little bit of change (uplift) in his topline and how he holds his hip, but I could be deceiving my eyes as well.


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## frlsgirl

I like that you actually gave your car a name lol. And I’m at the edge of my seat reading your story about the lost car keys. You’re a great writer; it was like I was right there on the cliff looking for that key!


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## lostastirrup

*It's the little things I guess*

Saturday I was supposed to haul to the next town over to get my saddle fit. Pony wouldn't load, and we both ended up stressed and frustrated. 
Sunday I was sick in bed from standing out in the cold with no gloves and an obstinant pony. 
Monday we swallowed our pride, had a CA-esque discussion about trailer loading and had to cool out for two hours afterwards. 
Tuesday we did groundwork and rode, pushed the renvers. Upset the pony greatly. 8pm we finished up and for once I put a blanket on him before turnout. Miffed pony wouldn't even look at me. 
Wednesday morning, 6am came to pull his blanket. Went to leave, and he stood at the gate waiting "hey! We're supposed to go do something!" Followed the fence line as I drove away. 

I'm thankful he wants to "dance" with me, even when the lessons are difficult and the moves are hard. I can feel like crap about my horsemanship, about how mean I've been lately. But I suppose as long as he keeps showing up and wanting to play and be my partner, we'll keep putting in the hours. He's a good horse at heart.


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## Tihannah

I love that you LISTEN to your horse and take note when things are off. For all that they give us, I feel like its the least we can do in return. He's such a fancy little guy!


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## lostastirrup

@frlsgirl

Somehow I missed replying to your comment. It was quite the experience. I'll have stories to tell someday when I can shake my finger and give over cautious advice to teenagers who will roll their eyes and think I'm old. 
@Tihannah 

Thank you. I work really hard to be on top of it with him, a lot because if I'm cautious now we avoid vet bills, chiropractor visits and extensive times off which creates a "rocket pony" effect. 


I'm actually thinking about showing this summer. I might do first and second level so I can get the First scores I need for my bronze (I have training and 2nd, but need 1st and 3rd) and then do third next summer. I have had a total of one lesson since owning Nick and it might do to be a bit more basic rather than just jump in. Also doing third would be pushing him A LOT, we have a flying change sometimes (not solid) and we have started a trot half pass, and our extensions are nice. But I think another year would be really good before we step up. Of course this all depends on where I end up working this summer and what kind of hours.


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## frlsgirl

Working towards your bronze, wow, how exciting. 

And don’t you just love it when your pony challenges you and says “no” - super frustrating. Ana usually goes from “no” to “maybe” to “fine but you owe me big time!” lol


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## lostastirrup

frlsgirl said:


> Working towards your bronze, wow, how exciting.
> 
> And don’t you just love it when your pony challenges you and says “no” - super frustrating. Ana usually goes from “no” to “maybe” to “fine but you owe me big time!” lol


We'll see. Employment this summer is still way up in the air so I'm not sure. I need to work somewhere where I'm not camping in the field all week long so I can school Pony. 

Nick is good undersaddle for me, he's really one person and is a bit dicey and snakey for others, but what's been eating us is the trailer. On the whole, he takes longer than other horses to do the groundwork and obedience, probably because when he was younger he figured out if he resisted long enough eventually the problem went away. So I have a pony who likes to play the waiting game. So what ended up happening with the trailer is I worked on it the last few weekends having him trot on a long line when outside and allowing him to rest near, half way in, and in the trailer. The thing was, on average it was. 2-5 hour investment. I'd have people walk by and tell me to do things differently that he should know better, that he'd probably load into their trailer, that all I needed to do was "back him up a lot and he'll jump right in", and "have you managed to load that horse at all?" Which really sucked, because it seemed like all they got to see was a stressed pony being made to run around til he dripped sweat. I felt mean. I think I looked mean. But it's not like I haven't taught horses to load this way, it's just that Nick takes A TON of work to get through to. Yesterday he loaded in 2 minutes flat (photo attached) and no one was there to see my triumph but me, but that's okay. Although the childish part of me would like some affirmation. 

For something I haven't hardly ridden in a saddle he goes well. We have a lot more flexibility in the barrel now than we used to. I NEED to work on our trot extensions, but I have a bony bottom and I can tell by the ear flicks he'd rather have me in the tack for those lol. The nice thing about bareback is the horse has to be light, and in a frame all on their own. You don't have much in the way of leverage to force the issue so it makes you be creative. It's been really good for both of us, and I think long term we'll be much more elastic and in tune because of it, but boy am I tired of having to wash my tights AFTER EVERY RIDE! 


Also I got a betta fish. His name is Hector. He was a half a bottle of wine spur of the moment decision that I do not regret (worry not someone else drove)


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## SueC

frlsgirl said:


> And don’t you just love it when your pony challenges you and says “no” - super frustrating. Ana usually goes from “no” to “maybe” to “fine but you owe me big time!” lol


:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

That attitude appeals to me! 
@lostastirrup, love the photos. The snow, and the clever, naughty expression on your pony. The fish is a better fish than what? ...have you seen this?










And don't you just looooove backseat drivers? :Angel:


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## lostastirrup

@SueC
They're something. It really has been getting to me lately (hence not a lot of posts) and though I like to think I'm content on my own it wears. With the trailer loading I get a lot of suggestions and criticisms on why it doesn't seem to be working on what someone else would consider a "reasonable" timeline. Just in general him not being a showing showing horse seems to drop us down a peg. The BO is really nice but other boarders do make comments. Its like he's a second-rate backyarder because I can ride him bareback and/or he's a shaggy pony. Never mind I never put anyone else on him for very good reason without tack. Friday I got the backhanded compliment "you know they're not all easy like your horse" which is fair, to a degree. He is really adjustable and light on his feet so he's easy to maneuver. But no one knows how much I have to get with him with my seat, because he looks smooth when I ride him. No one knows he has zero brakes because I never let him out out of my "circle of aids". No one knows what it was like to have him rear up and try to go over backwards whenever you tried to go right. No one knows how skittery he was on the ground because now he's drop-rein trained and cocks a lazy leg at the first opportunity. And it's not like I haven't started colts on the weekends, ridden out the buckers, fixed a few problem ponies and at one point brought along my own projects to show. I'm just the kid on the shaggy pony, with no tack, because he must be easy if I can make him do all that. 


I want to go get my bronze. I want to have the best for my horse. I like him to have a 2 beat trot, a 3 beat canter and a forward walk. Now if everyone could just let us quietly do our thing that would be lovely. 


I'll mind it less when the snow clears and I can ride outside in the outdoor that never gets used.


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## DanteDressageNerd

I totally understand the back seat passangers and just roll my eyes. I've had a lot of that whether it was Dante or Wonder.

If it makes you feel better a good friend of mine was taking a lesson on a rather tricky mare, for the most part she does a really good job of making the mare seem easy. So in a clinic they were working on developing collection which as we know can be ugly in the beginning. Especially half steps, etc. So in the background a trainer and her student were critisizing my friend saying how they could ride the mare so much better and how easily they could fix the problems so the horse never had an ugly moment. I remember getting really angry and thinking I saw both you fools ride. If either of you sat on this horse you'd be thrown into the wall or reared over the top of. People who know the least and have the least experience are usually the most arrogant. It's like they know just enough to have an opinion and not enough to know what they're talking about. Just because they can do it on a handful of horses doesn't mean they have a clue about something with some opinions. The trainer had shown PSG but in ability no where near myself or my friend. She was a trainer who took one of my horses and this horse NEVER once reared, bolted or was naughty with me and she made it a rearing, spook monster who ran off with anyone who didn't have the skill. I was ****ED. Horse was TOTALLY amateur friendly until she rode it then it was all kinds of quirky and difficult. No idea what she did. I didnt even think it was possible with that horse. 

With quirky horses you just cant understand without sitting or working with them. I think sometimes people see the finished product and dont realize all the steps that went into making that horse or pony. Or how much it takes to prevent the horse from reverting back to what it was before. I already know with Wonder if he wasnt carefully managed, he would be back to the beginning in no time. It's management and keeping up with everything that allows progress. Rome wasnt built in a day and neither are horses and I think people who have just worked with fairly conventional horses just dont have a clue and it gets SUPER annoying. 

I really think it's because people just cant understand outside of their realm of knowledge or experience and think because of their select group of horses work a certain way that all horses must be the same. I think you get that in EVERY group. For example most dressage people wouldn't have a clue what to do with something like Wonder. I think most would get really badly hurt on him or make him into a mean, bitter, angry horse. The rider has to be so strong and at the same time so gentle. So many people just want the quick fixes and want to think this one magic solution will fix everything and they dont understand that it's a process. Or if you're progressing up the levels of dressage and are doing upper level type work most people have no idea the steps because they havent seen the process or how ugly it can get at times. It's just how it is sadly. And I think it just gives you a better perspective and understanding for others when they're working through things too. Consider it a gift  

Good luck on your bronze, I'm sure you'll get there together!!


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## SueC

@lostastirrup, you've got lots on your plate with becoming Ms Engineer, and you're making terrific progress with a very individual horse. I think you two look fabulous together, plus you are having fun, and I wouldn't care a bit about the silly comments other people make, they tell you more about them than about you or your horse. One really nice thing about getting older is that by the time you're 40, many people find you genuinely don't care anymore about the opinions of other people, except the people whom you respect as human beings. Mentally, or emotionally - the latter was always the tough one for me when I was younger. This is wonderfully freeing when it happens - and it can happen before you turn 40, as well. ;-) Let them think what they like, you're you. You can smile and suggest people become mushroom farmers. Because BS is very good for growing mushrooms.


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## lostastirrup

@SueC , @DanteDressageNerd


Thank you both. Academically Im aware I shouldn't pay any mind, it's a little harder in practice. It's weird to be at a barn that is exclusively WP, almost no one knows what I'm looking for in my horse, so I think it's hard for people to gauge where we are at. I just wish they wouldn't try. Theres another dressage rider and ahes very nice. She has a lovely Iberianx who is very neat. 

I was always suspicious that once he "got laterals" he would GET LATERALS and I think I was right. In the space of two weeks we've gone from bad shoulder in and one-side-working renvers to decent renvers both sides, shoulder in WTC and the start of a half pass. The light bulb went on finally. Which nice. The start of bendy collection (or really anything new and difficult) always brings evasions, so we're popping the occasional low "hover-rear" now and again. I work really hard to keep him err... On the ground, though I know it's only a phase and it will pass. 

I think next weekend we'll try and go fit our saddle if the weather holds. This weekend a friend came up for the weekend, a storm hit MT and she got stranded. She's a microbiology and chem major and I showed her your Amoeba poem to rave reviews.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Laterals can be really tricky for some horses and collection too. I think every horse gets a little poppy when learning half steps and piaffe too because it's asking them to get more and more over their back and load behind while they lift in the shoulder. I'm actually finding the spanish walk REALLY REALLY helps with the piaffe and I know it helps with developing the passage. I think the wbs are easier than our "off breeds" to teach passage to :lol: Usually with the wbs it's like alternating legs (the sequence and timing can be tricky to learn, have to feel it with the rib cage and foot falls) with a hold in the air in the core and a tap-tap and they get the idea. I think spanish walk really helps because it's similar sequence of aids and translates over pretty easily into passage, so the horse gets the idea. Also free the shoulder and I think really helps teach them to sit back, lift the shoulder and reach forward.

I think in hand can really help with laterals and making it easier. I'm a big fan of in hand, I wish they had good videos of how to and some of the basics because there is a LOT that goes into it. In hands is an art unto itself and takes a lot of practice. I learned mine from the Danish former olympic trainer I worked for. He's one of the best. He's an incredible horseman. He trained Tristan Tucker and they work together quite a bit for horsemanship part. He also trains Andreas Helgstrand among others. Very good trainer. I learned a lot from him. Maybe is an idea to play with?

This is in German, not Danish. Also ignore comments on it, the people commenting clearly dont have a clue what they're talking about as is typical of youtube. Almost never see anyone educated commenting and is often rude and negative. It's the same as in the US when people only read books they criticize on things they dont understand or know. Basically I read the comments and thought these people dont have a clue what they're talking about. Love armchair critics. That's why top riders dont release videos from the warm up or show the training that goes on at home. People would lose their minds and scream all kinds of stupidity and ignorance. Humans are so passionately ignorant. 

If it makes you feel any better those who cant criticize and those who can keep going. Only way to avoid criticism is to never try which quite frankly is boring imo. I guess for me it is most hilarious when people simply read books and have almost no hands on experience and think that qualifies them to criticize experts. Experience and knowledge I think are very humbling.










In laterals I think it helps to get off their back if possible. Im finally getting strong enough to do it bareback but to position for the movement and get off the back seems to help a lot. But I think so much goes into different parts of the laterals. Turn on the forehand and also moving the shoulder independently helps. When Wonder struggles with half pass right, I find part of it I can feel from the turn on the forehand because his left hind is weaker. So it requires more organization and in the half pass some horses struggle because they're moving into pressure with the inside leg for the inside bend in the half pass and them then pushing into that can be a challenge. I think haunches in helps the most because I think the struggle with haunches in for some horses is again learn how to push into a bend. I think of it as keeping the inside rein, more weight in the inside seat bone, outside leg back and wrapping them round then it's timing and organization on the riders part and it's something every single day and time you improve on or figure out something new to do it better. I had some little tricks I've found that work really well but it's impossible to describe and that's is frustrating. I think a lot of it is little tricks and things you have to feel along the way and someone can give you the idea and the rest is a lot of self work to feel it. It's hard. It's all a feel and timing thing and some horses have a harder time figuring it out then others. 

But you are right, they all work out their evasions as they learn more. The more a horse knows, the more evasions and tricks they can come up with. It's why with training and progressing in training can see more behavioral problems than when a horse is just doing training-1st or 2nd level type work. Horse knows it's body better and can figure out more ways to escape or get out from under the rider's line or from being straight.

I dont know if that makes sense and I dont know. I just miss discussing riding and dressage in general to someone who likes to discuss and think about it. It's a lot of problem solving and thinking and trying things. Some things work and some dont.


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## lostastirrup

@DanteDressageNerd. I loved your post, but I had exams all this week so I thought it best that I wait to respond. 

Your mention of "getting off their back" was interesting, when stuff is difficult I often put myself in a pseudo 2-pt to give him some help, basically comes down to the F=ma and trying to limit the "a" associated with gravity on their backs. It would help to have a saddle with a channel though wouldn't it? Ah alas it seems it is not to be (more on this later, but I'm glad I'm not alone in this struggle) for the most part his stiffness is through the shoulders. I want to start the Spanish walk (thank you for the suggestion) with him a little to address this and get him thinking about his shoulders and range of motion. When I ride the laterals, I scooch three inches farther back on him so I am very much out of the way of the shoulder blades and he can be "way out in front of me" this seems to make the most impact- and it's one of our issues with saddle fit, he has porportionally massive shoulders. They come way far back and they do have quite the swing when he moves. He's not slab sided, he's round, so the saddle that fits his barrel has to fit his shoulders independent of his barrel, since they don't flow well into each other If they're blocked- no way, no how can you get a single lateral step out of him, heck you'll get a full blown rear. So that will be something to address at some point sometime. 

With the half pass, we play in walk with a few steps in trot on a circle. We're still in the "good try" phase of YAY you kept your stretch on the outside and came over. It's not an easy maneuver for him. 

As for evasions- I think the evasions you get at the start are all going to be there as you progress. We're not aiming to get rid of them- they're the horse saying "this is hard, and I'd like to avoid this", we're trying to raise the threshold before they kick in. My old TB would have a bucking fit if you asked for forward and through the back. He still has bucking fits, but they don't kick in unless you ask for collection and half pass from him, and as an old training level lesson horse, this will never be asked of him, so he can safely and consistently tawdle around the arena. With Nick I just have to know that his evasion is violent. Don't get me wrong, he's a sweet sweet horse and yesterday I rode him bareback in a halter down the road, but I know when I start to push the envelope, I'm not going to get pretty things until we've broken it down and gotten consistent, and I just need to be okay with dealing with that. 

In other thoughts, a lot about Nick improved when I introduced cookies to our training. So after a by no means adequate amount of research I've decided to incorporate a little +R clicker training into our rides and groundwork. I was doing some groundwork awhile ago (it's been a good span since we've done much) and it occurred to me with pressure and release I have a really really good way of saying "no,try something different" and not a great or speedy way of saying "that's exactly what I want." Also with pressure and release the best reward you can give is stopping the excerise entirely and putting the horse away. With +R you can create a horse that wants to perform to please you. So I ordered a clicker and a Fanny pack and I will be one of those people. I will wait to start Spanish walk and work more on Piaffe/passage when the clicker arrives. 

It also occured to me- a thought we'll see what you think about it, QHs and other horses of varying breeding not suited to dressage are so so so much easier to start going. They don't have the balance to hold themselves in bad biomechanics when you ask for particular movements so they go on the bit and buckle down and get to work. I think when youre learning and you don't have a school master- this horse is the best second choice. Talented and green is the worst. They can put their hip, head, shoulder wherever they like and happily ignore you in movements that would make the QH fall over. Nick was like this at the start, he could canter a 6m circle all the while happily being terrible. So it takes awhile to get a "normal response to the aids" you have to be patient, and light in your seat and did I mention patient? 2 days ago I rode him in a halter and asked for a few laterals and collection and said to myself "gee when did you get pliable and willing?" It's been a process. And it's part of the reason a good dressage rider can hop on a backyard/ranch horse and make them look NICE, while having a down and out fight with a young and uphill built horse with more training than the backyarder. Just a thought. Weigh in? 

As to why I don't have a fitting saddle yet- yesterday it was -25 F the roads are really bad. And it looks like they will continue to be horrible for 2+ weeks until winter maybe knocks it off and behaves. Also I don't know why, but my 4wd is not behaving on my rig, which is really concerning to me for hauling in the winter. I haven't put a bridle on him since last week since I dont want to subject his little mouth to that kind of cold. 

Okay. I think that's close to it. . . I'm sure I'll think of more. So. Pictures. Pony got sweatered for the bad weather.


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## DanteDressageNerd

I'll try to respond properly tomorrow or on Wednesday because it requires detailed thought and consideration. But I love the pictures! He is so cute! You guys look happy together 

And good luck with the clicker training, I have not tried it but would be interested to hear how it goes. I do believe in treats though lol.

And with the qhs vs wbs thing. I think the smaller moving qhs and horses in general with smaller paces or not as much movement are easier to organize than a big moving wb. I think power type movers are the hardest to organize and gain relaxation from but they're more impressive and do well in high level dressage, suspension type movers I think do very well at the low levels but are hit and miss on whether or not they can collect and if they do collect, sometimes are more prone to soundness problems or dont keep sound, flat movers are easy to organize but are unlikely to collect, and conformation leads to different training issues. I think however when the work becomes more advanced it can be a lot easier on the big wb because they're built for it and are born with a years training past the other horses if that makes sense? But it really depends on the conformation and temperament of the horses in question. For example Layla is a wb but collection is hard for her. She takes a lot more to ride than a saddlebred I broke. But then some wbs are just built on the bit and it feels like they just naturally go in balance and start there. Then others are harder to balance and organize because their paces are so big, they're overwhelmed by them and dont have the strength to handle their movement. I rode an 18h 4yr old who had HUGE paces and was really talented but he was scared to canter because his canter was SO massive it scared him. I think he had GP potential but it would take a few years for him to grow up and find his place. He was A LOT to ride and organize. Just an awkward thing. Dev was awkward, Frankie was relatively easy. Raphael was a pain, Friday was easy. I think PRE's are pretty easy to ride but hard to make correct, similar with friesians *shrugs* 

But I 100% agree with you mentally it takes a special horse to be able to cope with the pressure and expectation of upper level and collected type work. I truly believe that's why a lot of horses cant make it past 2nd level. A lot of horses tap out at that point mentally and physically. It takes a special horse who can take the pressure and actually takes weight behind and come over the back. If you look at a lot of the "off" breed horses that do upper level work almost none of them are really over their back or truly collected but they do the tricks. It's hard to keep a horse not built for it sound and going correctly. For ex, I think Dante could be made to do upper level type stuff and do the tricks but I think to have him sit correctly and work over his back he'd have been almost impossible to keep sound or at least very expensive to. It's also in how they move behind that I think tells part of the story.


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## lostastirrup

It's 5am mountain time and I just finished up a lab, and am lying in bed trying to decide if it's worth it to sleep for 3hrs before class, or if I can since I'm so hopped up on caffeine. 


Quick pony update: the arena is ice. Even Nick (ol' rockfoot) doesn't wAnt to canter nicely on it and I can't blame him. So we're taking some low key time, while MT behaves awfully. I started clicker training with him. I dont know if it's that much different from what I already do, but whatever. Maybe it will just be a faster, sharper aid. 

I also looked at some of the tests. And "wrote out" the FEI pony one and the 2nd level one. They have the same concepts in them, but the FEI pony one is really long, and the flexibility and balanced is really pushed. Kinda scared myself looking at them, so we'll see what I decide to do this summer. I think 2nd level is very doable. But I DO need to work on counter canter and half pass if I wanted to maybe try FEI pony at the end of the summer. They have you ALL OVER THE PLACE in counter canter. It's a little terrifying. And simple changes from counter canter... Back to counter canter... I understand why it's important, but I don't have to like it. 

Lately we have pushed the medium trots and Canter's when the footing is good. We do not have a trot half pass yet, but that may change as he gets stronger. We have a nice shoulder in. If I'm honest I don't like trevers, I prefer renvers, but I guess it's just something to practice.


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## DanteDressageNerd

I think sometimes in the mind the laterals can be blocking. Heck I'm always figuring out something new in the laterals. ALWAYS something new that makes it just a smidge better. They're tricky to do well and master, think it's all of our goals. I also prefer riding renvers to travers. I feel if I ride too much travers it is easy to create a crooked horse and they want to travel crooked but for whatever reason with renvers I feel afterwards they are straighter and truer in the bend and contact *shrugs* I dont like doing too much haunches in, once they get it. I'm like cool. We'll do more shoulder in and renvers then throw in a line of haunches in. 

I also am careful with teaching counter canter. I got it too well installed on Dante and since then have trained the flying change with it. Else they get too good at counter canter and dont want to change. Could do a 10m counter canter circle on Dante pretty easily. He was king of it. Then once they have the change still riding counter canter so they listen to you and dont assume a change or get into auto changes. Quite tricky, shame the weather is so bad. 

Jeesh I hope you can get some sleep!! I couldn't imagine being an engineering student. My Bf is an electrical engineer and I'm logical and I like some tech but not my thing. My brain doesnt work that way. It's really-really tough, so major kudos to you!!


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## lostastirrup

Today there was simultaneously a thaw and a snow storm. Though when we rode- Nick went like a trained horse and we played with the idea of a little Piaffe in walk. In trot he was nice and springy but I could hold his steps with my abs. So that was an awesome feeling. I also put him in a collected canter (footing has been so terrible he's been four-beating like crazy) and was able to have that same "wait for me" feeling where he was just so so under himself. If the arena hadn't been so busy I would have played some more. 

Last thing: pet peeves: if you're riding your horse, don't be scrolling through Facebook at the same time. I get that this specific WP horse is basically a brainless couch, that's had the sass trained out of it, but for the rest of us, we'd like it if you'd know where you are going


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## knightrider

Oh, @lostastirrup, you are describing my daughter! I just hate it when she pulls her phone out while we are riding through beautiful woods, birdsong, deer, and other wildlife . . . and her nose is in her phone. When I say something, she gets really upset with me . . . and her horse is not a dead head couch. Her horse can bust up in a buck or rear at times. The mare behaves better for her than for me, and I've wondered if it is because my daughter is so relaxed up there, looking at her phone. Could be.

My daughter is not really into horses, and I am pleased every time she rides, so I dare not make too much of a fuss about it or she won't go at all. But, how I wish she would enjoy being outside, hearing the birds and the breeze sighing through the pines. I like to think that when she is grown, she will look back and remember some of the fun and tranquility of riding in the forest.


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## lostastirrup

@knightrider

Yes. It's something I don't understand. I think I got into dressage because it's about the only thing I can do to focus my whole brain. I can't imagine riding in such a way that I'm bored enough to be on my phone. I will admit to shoving the phone downy bra and talking on the phone while cooling out or going on a trail ride. 

Being in the moment is an acquired taste I guess?


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## SueC

@knightrider, if you take your daughter abseiling, I'm sure you can have a phone-free experience! :rofl:

I don't get it either. I don't even want an iPhone, I do all my online stuff on a proper computer, not a small annoying device for Lilliputians. I have a dinosaur phone that I have for the sole purposes of phoning people. mg: And I like to concentrate on the outdoors, thank you very much. I would find it intrusive to be chained to an Internet connection...


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## lostastirrup

@SueC 

I think "no screen time" is like essential to mental health. Heck. "no contact" time is even better. What my SO was really really sick for months on end, it was wonderful to be able to just say "you know what. For 4 hrs, I'm going to be in the middle of nowhere with my horse, and no one can contact me."


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## SueC

That's a marvellous feeling - out on a horse, with noone knowing exactly where you are, like sort of disappearing off the planet!  It's a profound freedom. Also hiking like that.


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## lostastirrup

​


SueC said:


> That's a marvellous feeling - out on a horse, with noone knowing exactly where you are, like sort of disappearing off the planet!  It's a profound freedom. Also hiking like that.


One of the magical reasons I love field work and I love rural life. I want to just be and have no one know. 

Probably also the reason I love Emily Dickens.


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## csimkunas6

lostastirrup said:


> ​
> One of the magical reasons I love field work and I love rural life. I want to just be and have no one know.


Same! Initially when moving here I was a bit worried on how rural it was going to be, we absolutely LOVE it! Its so nice not having people out and about constantly, coming up to the house, calling/texting. Awesome way of living and being!


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## lostastirrup

@csimkunas6

MT is the best in that regard. 

During the summer I worked for the DEQ and took water samples in the middle of nowhere. The work involved so much hiking. But I loved loved loved how isolated I was. I'm not a social creature so that much nature and audiobooks while I drowned bugs with ethanol and scrubbed algae off rocks with a toothbrush.


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## csimkunas6

@lostastirrup we're not all that social either LOL. We think we are until we go out to Billings, or any other more populated areas, or have get togethers and then we realize, we dont like people all that much. 

That job sounds awesome! Sounds like a job you could really think and just enjoy being outdoors! Since we've only been here since Thanksgiving, we cannot wait to see the area in the summer! Although from what Ive heard of our area its pretty much the same without the snow LOL


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## lostastirrup

@csimkunas6

Yes. You're a bit east for the joy of the Rockies,but you're right by the Yellowstone (floating!) And eastern MT has its own charm. 
Also Glacier Natl. Park isn't all that far (honestly coming from Alaska I've yet to be phased by the length of the road trips) in the summer it's a stunning state and you should really get out and about. I might be showing in billings one weekend this summer. If I am would you want to meet up?


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## csimkunas6

lostastirrup said:


> @csimkunas6
> 
> Yes. You're a bit east for the joy of the Rockies,but you're right by the Yellowstone (floating!) And eastern MT has its own charm.
> Also Glacier Natl. Park isn't all that far (honestly coming from Alaska I've yet to be phased by the length of the road trips) in the summer it's a stunning state and you should really get out and about. I might be showing in billings one weekend this summer. If I am would you want to meet up?


We def want to explore more!! When I picked up Squishy, we went to Great Falls, that was the area we originally were going to move to but the house we wanted there had too many issues sadly. 

Depending on when most definitely!


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## frlsgirl

Am I too late to complain about people who have their phone in their hand while riding? Total pet peeve. At least pull over so that others can pass you.


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## lostastirrup

frlsgirl said:


> Am I too late to complain about people who have their phone in their hand while riding? Total pet peeve. At least pull over so that others can pass you.


Not too late at all. I mean I get it if you're on a trail ride, but like, it's the middle of winter in a crowded arena, you're basically dancing in prime equine realestate. WE ALL WANT TO BE THERE. So you moseying around without a care, is kinda in the way of those of us that do care and are trying to compensate for you not knowing where you are and avoiding a collision.


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## knightrider

Quote from @lostastirrup


> I have a pile of horror stories from just one summer with the mare and the TB. I'm hoping Nick is different.


Could you please tell some of those stories in "Horse Talk" the thread, Imaginary Day From Hell--Any Horse Event?

I'm sure there are lots of people who would like to read of your misadventures.


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## lostastirrup

knightrider said:


> Quote from @lostastirrup
> 
> 
> Could you please tell some of those stories in "Horse Talk" the thread, Imaginary Day From Hell--Any Horse Event?
> 
> I'm sure there are lots of people who would like to read of your misadventures.


They were pretty much the same misadventure over and over again with some creative comments at the judges booth lol. 

Some quotes from the judge:
"This horse looks frightening"
"Ugly, but tactfully ridden"
"Very patient rider on willful and emotive horse"
"Nice braids" 
Me after being dismissed and thanking the judge for judging us: "I'd like you to know she was lovely in the warm-up. She doesn't usually go like this."
Judge: "really? You seem a bit practiced at it."
I can't figure out if the last one was a compliment.


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## lostastirrup

Looking back it's funny. But I can recall being mentally and emotionally broken by the whole experience at the time.


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## DanteDressageNerd

lol sometimes I think judges are socially awkward people. I've known a few. On one hand if they are set for the occasion and have enough wine and quality things are quite happy and on the other, if on the spot tend to be sorta awkward :lol: I dont know. Think they just get tired of seeing horse after horse, person after person sometimes too. Then some judges are never much as riders and so maybe dont really understand what they're seeing (especially with "L" judges) they're hit or miss. Some have experience and it's people who really know something then just get an "L" judge for fun or it's people who showed 2nd or 3rd level on like one horse, have no training experience and get their "L" *shrugs*


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## lostastirrup

@DanteDressageNerd 
Actually our AK club only ever had in S judges, we had a few riders at GP and I12 as well as a lot at 2nd and third. I liked a lot of them. I think they gave us fair marks. They definitely recognised the crapshoot they were watching for what it was.


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## frlsgirl

You gotta keep in mind too that horses get nervous at shows some to the point that they are unrecognizable. Last show, a bystander asked me if Ana is a youngster and if it’s her first show. “Um no, she is broke ride....well sort of”


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## lostastirrup

*Pony buried to his chest in snow!!!*

Okay .. not quite... But like belly high. 

-30 F temperatures. (that's -34 C, not far off of -40, which is the same Celsius and Fahrenheit) are on the horizon. For the first time in ever Nick is wearing a blanket two days in a row. Super unusual. Spring could not come sooner. 

The arena is still frozen, hasn't been dragged in awhile, but we can do the canter transitions (one or two strides, then back to walk or trot) but no canter work. I can't fault him for saying no when he's working on a glorified rock. The half pass in walk and trot is working together. We are working with the clicker, and it's made him sharper, quicker to try and when he knows what excercise he's doing he's all like "Siiiiiiiiidewaaaaays we go!!!" With a lot of effort. It's not always right, but the crossover is there, and the bend is. He feels like a 16 year old driving on the highway for the first time, concentrating really hard, but it's a lot to organize. 

I tried to get a video... But I had literally set my camera on the fence when someone invaded that part of the arena (there was space elsewhere) to lunge a horse and scroll around on her phone at the same time, with no idea where her horse was traveling, so I couldn't safely work around them. So bareback pasture boarder moved to the corner of the arena and attempted to trot nicely around the trail equipment. I am a little peeved. 
But for the most part, with this storm season, I've gotten a lot of space to myself, so I shouldn't let that ruin it. 

Some pictures of miserable pony. And a throwback to three summers ago, which I'd love to have again in a heartbeat.


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## AndyTheCornbread

LOL! I love how he goes through/over water like "Noooooo it's going to kiiiiiiiillllllll meeeeeeee!!!!". The other videos in your feed fed in my youtube after that. What are you majoring in?


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## lostastirrup

AndyTheCornbread said:


> LOL! I love how he goes through/over water like "Noooooo it's going to kiiiiiiiillllllll meeeeeeee!!!!". The other videos in your feed fed in my youtube after that. What are you majoring in?


Geological engineering and hydrology. Know anyone who needs a summer intern? What kind of engineering are you in? 

Yes. I'd had him a few months then, enough to know him. Water has never been his cup of tea (he swims now) and I'd hopped off for something, and couldnt get myself aboard again. So I hopped across, because there was no going around and I think we had an argument across the pond. A miniature revolution if you will, though I won this one.


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## AndyTheCornbread

I am a computer engineer which is a computer science degree combined with an electrical engineering degree, minor is mathematics. My oldest son is doing his mechanical engineering degree right now at University in Washington State. You two must be fairly close in age.

You are in for some fun math classes if you have to take fluid dynamics for the hydrology portion of your major  Don't worry though it goes by pretty quickly and before you know it you will be out in the workforce. We do take summer interns at my work but usually they are EE, Physics, or CS majors. Have you checked with oil companies in the shale oil fields?


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## lostastirrup

I haven't wanted to.. I have an aversion to the bakkens... Something about a distinct and entire lack of trees. I had an internship lined up,but the funding didn't come through (government agency) so now I'm throwing a wide net.

I'll actually have a math minor when I'm done (it's only one extra class). I think if you can be strong in math it's almost as good as being clever in the physics. I liked Differential calculus, though I thought I would cry at the time. Fluids was an intense time in my life.. but I liked the concepts. Thermodynamics has been my most impactful thus far- it honestly changed the way I looked at the world and gives me a better perspective when I open the hood of my car. 

This is my 4th year in school, though I have one left, can't seem to leave i guess. Kudos to your son.. mechanicals seem to have the heaviest classloads.


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## SueC

Very funny clip, @lostastirrup. Sunsmart was exactly the same when I started with him! :rofl: Total hydrophobe-cum-drama queen...


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## lostastirrup

@SueC I think it's all a ploy as I KNOW he will happily stand belly deep in water when turned out with his buddies. He got over it, although the illuminating moment when he attempted to jump the 30 ft creek and failed, landing with a great splash near the opposite bank is something I never want to do again. After that the SO's sister and husband sandwiched us between their two ranch horses and we became better acquainted with water that way. 

Also I found this old picture of me with a donkey I rode in Haiti and it made me think of you. I was wearing my "donkey-riding-dress" thus named because it was the same color as the donkey.


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## AndyTheCornbread

I got to thinking last night that if you want an internship in trees and mountains some of our clients run hydroelectric dams in the Western states and they may have the kind of internship you are looking for. At any rate it can't hurt to get a hold of them and ask. The first three that came to mind are the Bonneville Power Administration, Avista, and the Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribes. All three of them might have the kind of internship you are looking for. BPA is the largest of the three and has the most dams. One more to try is the the US Army Corps of Engineers, you don't actually have to join the Army, they are just a part of the Federal Government that controls and builds huge dam and reservoir projects all over the US. I have a cousin that works for them and their internship program is pretty good: https://www.usace.army.mil/Careers/Internships/


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## lostastirrup

Thank you @AndyTheCornbread ! I'll look into those!


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## SueC

Omigosh, that's so unbearably cute! :dance-smiley05::dance-smiley05::dance-smiley05::dance-smiley05::dance-smiley05:


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## frlsgirl

Oh my gosh that video of Nick is so cute; are you sure he's not a Morgan mare?


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## lostastirrup

@SueC it truly was an idyllic childhood. We would borrow the donkey from a friend, and at 4 years old I was turned loose to gallop around Bonne Fin where we lived. I fed the donkey bananas. I don't remember her name. But we had fun. 

@frlsgirl Ana and Nick could definitely be twins. The sheer number of "opinions" that a 14hh creature can muster is a bit surprising. Nick is funny, he'll tell you 'no thank you' and he doesn't actually know what to do when you insist. It's been one of the funnier things in his training. "You mean- we can't just stop doing something because I don't like it?!" 

It's been cold. It's finally warmed up. He actually wore his sweater for most of last week and weekend. Hoping for a nice trail ride today and an arena ride tomorrow as temps get above freezing. 
He got a massage by a gal at the barn, which freed up his body and stride tremendously. She worked on his back, which meant she had to stand on a chair- to great objection by pony. And some hilarity. He got through it but I about died of laughter by his sass. She ended up working him on the line around the chair til he felt that standing by the chair was preferred to trotting around the chair. 
Silly pony. 

And after digging myself out of my parking spot 4 times in one weekend and having to call triple A on Monday while sick with the flu- I am picking up a set of chains. I'm sick of this winter crap. In other news, I have a heavy western saddle pad, and it makes a great traction blanket. Probably the most use I've ever gotten out of the thing.


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## frlsgirl

He’s so cute. I recall Ana’s first chiropractic adjustment, she was so offstandish like “um shouldn’t you buy me dinner first before u start touching me?!?” She had trouble relaxing as everything was highly suspicious. Now she knows the drill and is able to relax. Maybe after a few massage sessions Nick will learn to love the attention and realize that she’s there to help him


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## lostastirrup

frlsgirl said:


> He’s so cute. I recall Ana’s first chiropractic adjustment, she was so offstandish like “um shouldn’t you buy me dinner first before u start touching me?!?” She had trouble relaxing as everything was highly suspicious. Now she knows the drill and is able to relax. Maybe after a few massage sessions Nick will learn to love the attention and realize that she’s there to help him


Nick is okay as long as people aren't above him. He was very yielding otherwise. I think he was concerned that she'd try ans get on. He's standoffish of other people getting on. And well, he's a little suspicious too.


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## lostastirrup

*Brief update before break*

So I haven't updated much, but the cold finally quit and it's been sunny and beautiful the last few days. Pony is doing well, and he's been riding beautifully too. The arena thawed enough to canter and by luck- I was demonstrating how to ask for whichever lead you want from a beginner, and so doing simple changes on a line. I did three in a row, and Nick went- "hey! I could just do a flying?" And it was so lovely. 
His clicker training has come along too as well. I have a target he's supposed to stick his nose too, which took him a bit to learn because he naturally doesn't like things touching his nose (don't ask me why.. I don't know) but he's overcome that in pursuit of the cookie. It's been interesting to see what the +R community is like. From reading articles one can see that it's almost parelli-esque in it's fanaticism. To the point that some people say that any pressure of any kind is cruel. I read one article where a woman spent weeks teaching her horse to raise it's back because she thought the reflex reaction to scratching the underbelly was cruel. The book I have "how to train your horse to do anything" is not extreme, and the undersaddle work is a mix of +R and negative removal. To me it's like raising a kid- you must have a balance of boundaries, consequences, and affirmation- otherwise how could they come out to be a well-rounded individual?
I'm leaving for AK for a week on Friday, so I had to take the betta fish down to a friend's, so we played with her QH, so there's some good 'ol AQHA eye candy in the pictures. She wanted to try this weird cross under hackamore she made- at which I rolled my eyes, but when we put him in it we found that he could be much more effectively ridden one handed (she's an amputee) and he went really nice. I shoved my hand in my pocket and worked him like she would ride and got him bridled up nicely and over the back. Then she got on and I explained how to ask for it herself, with really good results. 
We then made a pie and I drove home Sunday night.


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## SueC

Wow, what a fantastic way to cut strawberries for presentation!  Must try that idea next time I top something with strawberries, it's so pretty!


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## frlsgirl

Awww look at Nick being all sweet. QHs and their people are a different breed. But I’m sure they say the same thing about us who are owned by divas. Have fun in Alaska!


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## DanteDressageNerd

Awww Nick is so cute, something about ponies and the cheeky look they wear is so charming. Hope spring comes soon! Always the best part imo. Dont think horse people are lovers of winter :lol: lots of extra work with snow and ice.

The strawberry pie looks amazing!! Nice work, really pretty!

I think Qh people can be their own type too :lol: think people fixated on breeds can be too because they're so used to their horse or types they work with that they become inflexible and unable to understand that not all horses are the same and you cant just do a, b, c and it will work on every horse. I think tend to get more rigid and less flexible :lol: I think it helps a lot to try everything and multiple disciplines to have a good feel and be adjustable to different horses and be more innovative in the training.


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## lostastirrup

*A hiatus from HF*

Hi all. I have kinda been paring down to the essentials as I hit the final five weeks of school. I have a lot to do, so HF and others are just on a back burner. Nick is great. And we can't wait til spring truly arrives. Hopefully you'll see us showing 1st, 2nd and some FEI pony come summer but presently my life is up in the air and my academics have me buckled down to work.

I'm blocking HF to self enforce some focused work, but I can't wait to be back after the end of semester and look forward to reading piles of everyone's journals. This is such an encouraging community.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Good luck with studies! Keep focused and do great things! We believe in you and the super dressage pony!


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## SueC

Yes, best wishes with finals! I too will often put our Internet dongle in DH's briefcase for the day if I want to really get focused and get things done! ;-)


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## lostastirrup

*The Long Update: everything that's happened I the last five+ weeks*

This is going to be a bit long, as spring happened and suddenly, since the road cleared my world got a whole lot bigger. To start I suppose we have that I went home for spring break and we put my dog down. That was heartbreaking. She's been an incredible family member for the last nine years and we are missing her so much. She had lung cancer and she showed no signs of slowing down until a month before "It was time" She had the best disposition, the best personality and in a family of introverts she was the one extrovert that brought us together. We had gotten her from the pound several years ago after my lease horse died and from day 1 she was "one of the pack". Saying goodbye sucks. and there's some cruel twist of fate that says of all the animals the most empathetic and the kindest should only get ten years. I won't dwell since I might still cry.

Pony Updates:
Two major things have happened: 1. we have a saddle and 2. we went to a clinic. All in the same weekend to boot. 
It happened like this- a Facebook post went up for a trainer I'd ridden with once that she was looking for demo riders for an R judge training. I said I'd bring Pony, and I figured I'd just pad up my jumping saddle and call it good enough. Well I thought about it- and I hate my jumping saddle for anything but two-point, so I called the saddle fitter out of helena to see if he could fit us in on Friday. He could. So Friday morning I skipped class and hooked up the trailer to drive pony 1.5hrs for a saddle fitting. We left a little later than intended since apparently the fence went down between two pastures the night before and suddenly Nick was way out about a .5 mile walk and not so keen to be caught. But I did get him in, and thanks to the clicker training we'd been doing and the 20+ hours of work we'd put into it- Nick loaded in five minutes flat and we headed down the road. my trailer is a single horse straight load, so the fact that anything in their right mind gets in is a miracle. I tie up his tail and blanket him to travel since it's rather open and no day is warm at 60mph. If I don't bandage his tail it streaks out behind us going down the highway....
Well we get there safe and sound unload and the fitter looks at pony and looks at the saddle and says "he can't be that round" then he goes and gets his traces and finds that YES INDEED this Here IS a barrel with legs and the tree needs to be widened. 

If you've never seen a tree being widened it's very very cool. Basically he took the pannels off and put the saddle in a clamp like the kind you see in a woodshop. The clamp applies pressure on the gullet plate and it deforms and "flattens". When he had it as wide as it would go that way-he took a mallet to it and gave the "wings" of the gullet plate some good whacks until it resembled a shape much more like the shoulder of my pony and less like the roof of a house. After it fit the tracing he had done of the back he sewed the panels back on and we tried it on pony. He added more flocking to the middle to reduce the bridging, but truly the thing probably needs a complete reflocking. But it fit his shoulders, I could ride with a bridge pad and pony once again had tack that fit. We loaded up and went home. The next day we'd agreed to demo ride, so I packed us both a lunch: him hay- and me fruit snacks and boiled eggs and we hitched up again and headed off. Get to the barn unload. settle him into is hay and find out im also slated to ride a double lesson at 1:45. Cool I haven't had a lesson in over a year and this is the first time I had ridden in the saddle in about 6 months. It definitely felt weird. 

So arriving the barn was super hushed and kinda uptight and I kept thinking "if it's like this all the time I don't think I can see lessoning here again." Turns out when I got on to ride my lesson with who I assume was the trainer I'd ridden with once before, I was wrong. Nope, I was riding a clinic with an S judge. I shared the lesson with a lady looking to ride Training and First. It was okay. but I was 15 minutes late because they'd given the clinician the ride time of 1:30 and me the ride time of 1:45. And truthfully we didn't work on anything groundbreaking. We just kinda puttered around the arena and did some training and first level stuff. Mostly leg yield honestly. So as a lesson it was disappointing, as an experience for Pony who hadn't been anywhere "high stress" before- it was very good. I was pleased to say he handled it like a champ and rode about the same as he usually did with some inconsistency I think that had to do with having a saddle and having a confused and nervous rider. But he had nice canter to stops and walks- since we got a little bored with what was going on in the lesson. Mind you we still did what we were told- just with a little "extra" Then later that afternoon we demo ride, got lost twice since I didn't know the test well and loaded up and went home. I was a bit exhausted and went to bed at 8. Its worth noting hauling your tiny horse in your tiny trailer is extremely stressful. He was so good, but that's the love of my life back there. 

Since then we have been schooling quite a bit more intensely, working on really getting good at counter canter which we kinda ignored this winter in the crowded arena with frozen footing. We got a few NICE lead changes the kind that result, from a cue and not his decision that counter canter isn't fun. His laterals continue to improve and at some point sometime I think they will be super nice. We've also been doing a lot more +R / clicker training to really good results. I like how it makes him really want to work. And because if he's not learning something he's bored- we started to do liberty work with the clicker which is pretty fun. It's not any different from any other training, just teaching them how to respond to cues that don't involve a bridle or halter. I also want to teach him the bow but I have not started it yet. I have taught a horse to bow before, and they can get a little nervous, so I think it's best to go slow and really work on the foundation and the things he enjoys so that the slightly frightening stuff can be approached with confidence. 

Beyond that- I have an engineering internship about .25 miles from my house and I start Monday. so that's exciting.. Tomorrow I may take Nick riding up in the Highlands. 

Okay pictures:
1. Sparrow. our beautiful dog
2. Nick at the fitters
3. The fitter widening the saddle
4
.
.
. miscellaneous pony pictures.


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## SueC

@lostastirrup, welcome back! 

I'm so sorry to hear about your dog. :hug: This is always the hard part. We said goodbye to Romeo while you were in hiatus because he was heading downhill and we didn't want him to have any bad days. But dogs don't live until they are 34. Jess is turning 7 this year and it seems like it was only yesterday we got her, and she's already middle-aged. It goes too fast with dogs. :-(

Bwahaha :rofl: though about your saddle fitting. Sunsmart is a barrel too. If you're ever in Australia, riding him should feel quite familiar. :rofl: And that imagery of a horse's tail flying behind the trailer... you're killing me. :rofl: Amazing how your training is working out though! I totally get why you're stressed trailering...

So that saddle you fitted to him, what's the history of that one?

The riding is sounding good. Have fun on your internship - and enjoy the "commute"! ;-)


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## lostastirrup

@SueC 
Thank you. I've been getting caught up on journals. Spring (or fall in your case) is not a bad time for twilights and endings. Though I wish the dog could have enjoyed another Alaska summer. My mother thinks she held out until I came home. Thirty plus years is a long time for a horse. It's so beautiful that he got to live out his golden years so pampered and well looked after, not a lot get that, and I think it may mean the world,-- and split the goats from the sheep when it comes to owning horses. 



I bought the saddle at the end of last summer. It fit briefly, and then it did not. Such is life... And barrel shaped ponies that is. I'm riding a TB mare for a friend and I laugh since she's 16.2 but standing next to Nick (they meet me at the gate) she's clearly half as wide. I have to pad up my medium tree with thick pad to fit her narrow self and in the meantime my tiny pony is in essentially a draft sized tree.



Pictures of some nice Montana scenes. 
I think I will post a video soon, he's been spicy lately with the green grass so moving out lovely. . . But also being a spirited high strung creature, so there's a mix of him being a total brat and being a lovely show pony. Truthfully I've been very lazy and not so keen to go through all the footage.


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## gottatrot

So sorry about Sparrow.

Funny about the saddle fitter not believing Nick was that wide. I've had that experience too, since both my Arabs wore XW trees and people would look at them and think they were tiny and petite so probably had narrow saddles.


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## lostastirrup

Apparently during the Post-pocalypse of the last few days my most recent photos did not post. So here they are. And a few more. 



Update:
I'm riding a TB mare for a friend. 
Pony is going well. 
I love my summer Internship. 

Beyond that, life ticks along. Today I'm moving large oil paintings in my horse trailer so that's fun.


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## SueC

Great photos!  The saddle is looking good. Nick is a real cutie, but not in the sense of a lapdog or thing to parade on a string - in the sense of a real working horse with looks to boot. :blueunicorn: Have fun with the TB! Are you ever tempted to try out top speed on a TB up a convenient slow incline with good footing? :racing:


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## frlsgirl

Congratulations on the internship!

Had to laugh at the barrel with legs comment 

Sorry about the loss of your dog. Cancer sucks! My brothers dog died from lung cancer as well; presumably from second hand smoke


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## lostastirrup

Thank you @frlsgirl. My dad took it the hardest and it seems an unfair shame to see her go. But she was so incredible while she was here. 
@SueC
There is a reason this mare didn't make it on the track. She's missing a pile of basics anyway, so we have work to do before anything fun like galloping madly around takes place. 


I will update this thread properly when I'm not exhausted.


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## lostastirrup

*Still not a real update, pics though*

I think I'm just lazy about writing. 

But Nick's tail was cut above his fetlocks not 4 weeks ago and now it's past them and nearly on the ground. I think it's beautiful.


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## SueC

Fabulous photographs!  Hope you're getting rest and you-time!


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## lostastirrup

*Public service announcement:*

Do not trim the excess strap off the bridle where it hangs down past the keepers when it's nearly midnight and you're very tired. You will missjudge. You will ruin your favorite bridle, and you will have to order new cheekpieces. 

That is all.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Sorry trying to catch up :lol:

The work on the saddle is really neat! Im really glad you have a saddle to use again! But Im sorry about Sparrow, never easy to lose an important companion. 

Im sorry the lesson wasnt too exciting or taught too much but it sounds like it was very important for Nick to get out and experience other surroundings. Also glad youre getting other horses to ride, always a good thing  

Im really glad you're enjoying your internship, sounds like a great thing!


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## lostastirrup

I have historically always been and always will be "a kid on a pony" 

Life has been to wild to update and I'm truthfully to weary of it to cough up a pony update. 

Pictures.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Aww love the pics, looks super


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## SueC

Greening up now in Montana, I see! You both look happy, which is lovely!


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## AndyTheCornbread

I didn't realize you were here in MT. It looks very east of the Divide there so are you close to the lady on here who has that pony named Squishy? You should go ride with her if you are, you could have like a horseforum trail ride for the east side MT folks  This is such a huge state the west side members would probably have to have their own. I had a lady lawyer friend from back east who later moved back who often said that the reason she didn't like MT was because she could drive 8 hours from her house, still be in MT and still be nowhere near civilization. I used to tell her that was one of the big reasons I moved here. I just don't like trailering horses across it but for everything else it is wonderful to be far from an urban area no matter where I go.


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## lostastirrup

AndyTheCornbread said:


> I didn't realize you were here in MT. It looks very east of the Divide there so are you close to the lady on here who has that pony named Squishy? You should go ride with her if you are, you could have like a horseforum trail ride for the east side MT folks  This is such a huge state the west side members would probably have to have their own. I had a lady lawyer friend from back east who later moved back who often said that the reason she didn't like MT was because she could drive 8 hours from her house, still be in MT and still be nowhere near civilization. I used to tell her that was one of the big reasons I moved here. I just don't like trailering horses across it but for everything else it is wonderful to be far from an urban area no matter where I go.


Im actually in Butte on the other side of the Divide. I really enjoy the country, and the mountains. Eastern MT is a bit flat for me.


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## AndyTheCornbread

lostastirrup said:


> Im actually in Butte on the other side of the Divide. I really enjoy the country, and the mountains. Eastern MT is a bit flat for me.


Ah you aren't too terribly far from here then. I got one of my horses from a breeder in Deer Lodge. Butte is about 3.5 hours from me. Who did you get your internship with? If that isn't for public posting you can always shoot me a PM. I am just wondering if they are one of our clients or not.


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## lostastirrup

*Something of a Nick update*

So I have not been updating much, or with much words, in short- I have felt unwell and with two horses to work and a job and friends to see it's been too much. But presently, perched in front of my happy light I feel like I can muster a proper update, and if I can't- well at least a decent summary. 

I am now taking somewhat regular lessons with trainer from another town. I trailer out and every time Nick has been good. I also am riding (trailering out to) this barn pretty frequently to ride on the good footing with arena's with letters. It's been very good for both our consistent trailering skills and for his development- theres only so much you can do in the hard packed ground of the pasture. The quality of gaits is better in good footing, with actual markers to hold me to my geometry. 

As for lessons- the first one was a pleasant reminder that I'm not an island and that I both need and can get help. It's so heartening to be able to lesson again. The second lesson was yesterday and it was also good. We ran through some test elements and worked on our transitions. There's mirrors in the arena which I love. 
Nick has been well behaved in lessons though he is not sure what to think of the mirrors (I think the pausing and nickering is him checking his handsome self out) this trainer is the second one to say that Nick could quite easily go GP, the first being the clinician from a month+ back. I don't know how I feel about that, since I assumed he'd simply stop somewhere around 4th. When I video him at home he is good but not great, but I understand that the footing is playing a huge role in his willingness to collect and have that bounce and power in the work. He also rides much differently than he looks. He looks calm and collected but often he's like riding a shot out of a gun, our submission is dicey at best. Though I'm somewhat glad that no one can see that fight beneath the surface, the constant quieting and holding til he slows. The biggest tell is the occasional angry Arab head flip,which I've allowed him to get away with probably more than I should. 
Will trailer him out again this afternoon to ride through the 1st level tests so I don't get lost at the show on Saturday. 


As for the TB mare- she has been coming along. As a combination of being both out of shape and neurotic, I have not liked her. But now as I work her I'm amazed at her willingness and her good work ethic as long as you break the aids down into very clear concise chunks. I have worked her I think very French- because I think the leg without the hand and vs vs is very easy for the horse to understand. Just recently have I added the two together and begun to ask her to get under herself properly. She is still awful sometimes and will throw her head and resist the aids something incredible when she is upset, but she is giving me good moments. I'm riding her in a flat as a pancake old collegiate saddle, it's the only medium tree i own and I have to put a folded towel under it since she is so narrow. I have a new respect for all those who grew up riding hunt seat in the 80's these flat saddles are killer on the leg and the seat. You keep your position or you dont- there's no knee rolls, deep seats or blocks to help you at all. 

Overall life has been good, though I am very tired and a little down and I don't know why. I'm just doing the things that historically have meant a lot to me since I know I will come out of this funk and regret it if I didn't work at my loves even when I feel empty.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Nick looks really good, you should be really happy  the canter is much better, more rhythmical, more uphill and he's starting to sit and come through the shoulder. Super  Much more jump to the canter.

I'm glad you've found a trainer you like and who can help you and Nick get to where you want to go, if GP is what you want go for it! And dont hold back! I think a lot of people get jealous when you have a prospect and aim for the high levels. I think they feel threatened, dont let it set you back. Keep moving forward! And make no apologies for you successes. You've earned it.

Good luck with the mare, she looks a bit behind the leg and like she is not very laterally supple or especially interested in her education. Hope youre able to click together and get what you want. Good luck!

Some horses take time. 

And can I say that background is absolutely stunning!!


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## lostastirrup

@DanteDressageNerd
The mare is the exact opposite of Nick lol. 
Dull, uninterested and not particularly bright, 
But occasionally she has nice gaits. The video was from over a week ago. Two days ago she gave me I think her best ride yet. But yes she is very dull to the leg and not in front of the aids. A work in progress. Pleasantly though she doesn't have a mean bone in her body, just no particularly amiable ones either.


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## SueC

the photos!

The sky is so expressive where you live... and it looks kind of windswept, is it?


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> the photos!
> 
> The sky is so expressive where you live... and it looks kind of windswept, is it?


Depends on the day and much less so than where I used to live farther south, but yes we have quite the weather here in the mountains. 
For example- today it is snowing. On the solstice of summer.


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## AndyTheCornbread

lostastirrup said:


> Depends on the day and much less so than where I used to live farther south, but yes we have quite the weather here in the mountains.
> For example- today it is snowing. On the solstice of summer.


Today and yesterday have been really cold. A few years ago we had a year where it snowed at least one day out of every month of the year. That was a cold year, hopefully we aren't headed that way this year.


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## lostastirrup

@AndyTheCornbread
After the fires two years ago I feel like I can take a little snow.


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## lostastirrup

*Pony and his First Dressage Show*

So on Saturday last pony and I wandered off to a schooling show. We had signed up for 1st level, and because I'd ridden none of the tests yet- I trailered him out from my barn to another one to cram for my dressage tests Friday evening. I felt like quite the college kid learning the material the night before. 

So Saturday morning dawns like a halibut rising off the ocean floor, so some Tylenol and Nexium later I got the toaster hooked up and the pony dressed up for the ride (one sheet, fleece liner and a bandaged tail) and loaded to go down the road. It's 1.45 hrs to the show ground and ride time was in the early afternoon, so there wasn't a particular rush. Arrived. Realized this wasn't a trip to the fairgrounds- rather a REALLY nice stable. And unsurprisingly we were the oldest, jankyiest, and smallest rig there (see pictures) so I immediately felt outclassed and anxious. Everyone loves to root for an underdog, but I'm sure I'm not the only one that hates being one. I was also one of the only people not to reserve a stall. And I came all alone, so fannagling the "do not leave tied horses unattended" rule with "I need to go get my paperwork and also go pee" was a bit of an art (no porta-potties to just string the lead rope through the door). But oncw we were settled with our haybag and just going to the work of cleaning up Nick and getting him banded and rememorizing our tests, all was mostly well, except for the gastrointestinal rhopalocera that wouldn't settle. I gave myself an hour's warm-up and tacked him up in plenty of time with a CLEAN white pad (I literally have been hanging onto this pad for months) and meandered over to the warm-up ring. I brought my file folder of tests with. Nick doesn't need an hour's warm-up, he needs ten minutes, but I figured in a new place with a stressed and panicking rider he'd benefit from a long walk for 50 minutes. We did 40 But close enough. 

We didn't get to ride in the show ring ahead of time, so that would be new. But we had a good warm-up and confirmed we could indeed WTC both ways, go sideways, and occasionally stop. Ride time came. 

Went in to ride 1-1 and was suddenly afraid my horse would become a "show ring @hole" where they're beautiful in the warm-up but bad for the show ring. This was not the case, and seconds after the bell rung I was grinning from ear to ear and didn't quit. He lengthened, he collected,he stopped, he counter cantered, he did beautiful 15m circles. It was glorious. I was in raptures with my horse. It's a rare creature that rides off EXACTLY the SAME at a show as they do at home. Not a glance or spook at the judge, just calm and quiet and working happily on the aids with one bauble with a canter transition (happy buck @ C in front of judge) I had ridden conservative (1st level as opposed to 2nd) but he was so so so good, and quiet and well behaved I think I could've easily done 2nd. We scored a 67.5, a 67.1, and a 65.5 (bucking and a little tired in the last test). We won the first two classes and took 3rd for the last one. I was thrilled. Then back to the trailer we went to untack and grab lunch. We sat and watched the rest of the tests from the sidelines with Nick pleasantly cropping grass. Everyone there was super supportive and it ended up being a lot of fun in spite of my earlier anxiety. 

Loaded up. Went home. Went to bed.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Im SO happy for both of your successes in the show ring! That's awesome that he stepped up and was right there with you. That's wonderful when you can go in and have good results and be proud of how you are together. Im glad you'll do 2nd. I think you'll both do great


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## SueC

Oh, well done, you! :hug: When I was reading the start of this, I thought, "Typical bloody horse show morning and nerves!" and remembered the horrible feelings I always had before taking my mare competing anywhere except endurance. I don't know what it was, and it was so counterproductive - it felt like going to your own hanging, rather than a horse show, which is supposed to be fun! :shock:

But what a fabulous result, congratulations! :clap: Beautiful photos, you look such a team. And you guys have knockout scenery where you live, wow...

I really enjoy your writing - those descriptions!!! I even had to look up a word: "Rhopalocera" - hahaha! 

On a related note, I've always liked the term _borborygmy_! That came from James Herriot's writings for me, actually - I never saw that referenced anywhere else. He was a fun writer too. Did you ever read his _All Creatures Great And Small_ books when you were little - or not so little?

:clap: :clap: :clap: again for you and Sir Knickerless! ;-)


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## gottatrot

Great job!!!

Loved the descriptions too. This was my favorite:


lostastirrup said:


> So Saturday morning dawns like a halibut rising off the ocean floor...


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## SueC

Yeah, that had me in stitches, and also describes very aptly the normal awakening process of my DH. :Angel: Is your DH an early bird or a night owl or none of the above, @gottatrot? You've heard me say this before, so I'll repeat this for @lostastirrup 's entertainment - mine definitely isn't an early bird...he sort of slowly ascends from a deep dark pit every morning and spends at least the first half hour after getting near to consciousness again semi-comatose. You have to keep the curtains closed or his eyeballs fall out. It's like he's Dracula - _not the light, not the light!_ It may be a manufacturing error (or excessive reading of Terry Pratchett novels, but @lostastirrup's going to think that's an oxymoron ;-) ). On the other hand, I'm not at my greatest after dinner. I'm the early bird, he's the night owl, and it's quite complementary: I am the morning magician, he is the evening elf, and we cater to each other that way. I'm happy to make the tea in the morning and he's happy to bring me tea when I've collapsed on the sofa or in bed of a night with a good book.


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## gottatrot

I forgot to say also that I love the picture with the little horse trailer among all the big ones. And Nick looks gorgeous in the pics.



SueC said:


> @gottatrot? You've heard me say this before, so I'll repeat this for @lostastirrup 's entertainment - mine definitely isn't an early bird...he sort of slowly ascends from a deep dark pit every morning and spends at least the first half hour after getting near to consciousness again semi-comatose. You have to keep the curtains closed or his eyeballs fall out. It's like he's Dracula - _not the light, not the light!_ It may be a manufacturing error (or excessive reading of Terry Pratchett novels, but @lostastirrup's going to think that's an oxymoron ;-) ). On the other hand, I'm not at my greatest after dinner. I'm the early bird, he's the night owl, and it's quite complementary: I am the morning magician, he is the evening elf, and we cater to each other that way. I'm happy to make the tea in the morning and he's happy to bring me tea when I've collapsed on the sofa or in bed of a night with a good book.


We both are night owls. However, he goes to sleep and wakes up instantly. He can literally interrupt a snore and begin talking coherently. I usually go down into sleep slooooowly and I think a half hour is fast to wake up. Usually I am low-functional for two hours. 99% of the time when I try to wake up, I think that maybe today I'm not going to pull it off after all, maybe it's just impossible.


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## SueC

@lostastirrup, are you a night owl or an early bird? And can you fall asleep and wake up instantly, or not?

And for some reason I have to ask - I think it's because this memory for me is caught up in the same filing cabinet drawer in my head as those memories of how sick I could feel on horse show mornings in my teens and 20s - do you ever have nightmares around exam time that you overslept the alarm and woke up mid-morning / the next day, and were therefore late for your exam?


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## lostastirrup

@gottatrot  @SueC

When I was younger we'd fish for halibut and it's much like hauling a soggy carpet up by a winch and less like fishing. They sort of just lay on the ocean floor until you manage to annoy them enough with your baited hook for them to snap at it. Halibut are really interesting though: for one, they go through both sexes in their lifetimes, and for two, they are born with eyeballs on both sides of the head and the "bottom side one" migrates as they pick a laying habit.
Pictures are not my own taken from google. 

Some mornings (like this one for example) I wake up ill and tired and grumbly and it takes a few cups of coffee to get the hamsters spinning on their wheels again. So I can sympathize with your DH SueC. Mornings can be traumatic.


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## AndyTheCornbread

"_excessive reading of Terry Pratchett novels_"

I think this is probably not possible. I have read every last one including "The Carpet People". My favorite are the ones with Death like "Mort" and or Susan Sto Helit like "Hogfather".


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## SueC

mg: What a huge fish that one is! It'd feed your family for a year! :shock:


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## lostastirrup

AndyTheCornbread said:


> "_excessive reading of Terry Pratchett novels_"
> 
> I think this is probably not possible. I have read every last one including "The Carpet People". My favorite are the ones with Death like "Mort" and or Susan Sto Helit like "Hogfather".


Im glad someone agrees. I'm listening to Mort right now as my background noise while I work. 

My favorites were the Guards books. I enjoyed the depth of character of the people and Ank Morpork

What did you think of the Shepard's crown. It broke my heart because the bones of the story were there but it was clearly unfinished..


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## SueC

AndyTheCornbread said:


> "_excessive reading of Terry Pratchett novels_"
> 
> I think this is probably not possible. I have read every last one including "The Carpet People". My favorite are the ones with Death like "Mort" and or Susan Sto Helit like "Hogfather".


Hence oxymoron! ;-)

I read _Truckers_ once and remember the little gnomes in the department store...
@lostastirrup, we just finished _Good Omens_, I'm sorry it's over, and I want to watch it all again! So excellent...


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> Hence oxymoron! ;-)
> 
> I read _Truckers_ once and remember the little gnomes in the department store...
> 
> @lostastirrup, we just finished _Good Omens_, I'm sorry it's over, and I want to watch it all again! So excellent...



They really managed to nail all the elements and characters in that one. I was impressed. And Sheen and Tennant were brilliant together. It had Terry's humour with Gaiman's "monsters in the dark feel"


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## SueC

Brett says they must have had a huge budget for this one. It really is so 10/10 for me - a big budget doesn't make a film better necessarily, what really carried this for me was the story (and all the back stories), and the characterisations and the acting - as you say, the two leads were just brilliant together - and so many others performed A1. The present-day witchfinder, did you see him on _Better Call Saul_? Amazing actor, I hardly recognised him because he was 100% someone else here. I just loved the sub-thread with the present-day witch and her boyfriend, and the four kids too - and the whole fairytale feel of it all - and the many little digs at modern life, like the M25 was invented by a demon to torture people. :rofl:

If you've never seen the old BBC production of _Neverwhere_, I really recommend it. It also has an ex Dr Who in it! ;-)


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## AndyTheCornbread

lostastirrup said:


> Im glad someone agrees. I'm listening to Mort right now as my background noise while I work.
> 
> My favorites were the Guards books. I enjoyed the depth of character of the people and Ank Morpork
> 
> What did you think of the Shepard's crown. It broke my heart because the bones of the story were there but it was clearly unfinished..



I think Commander Vimes might be my all time favorite character in the novels. I identify with that character in so much and the depth of the character build across the novels is really astounding if you think about it.

I don't care for the Witch ones of which "Shepard's Crown" is the last. I like Granny Weatherwax but the other characters I don't care for so much and that book was definitely unfinished and sad because of the back story of why it was so unfinished.

The Wizards are probably my next favorite characters after the Death folks and the Watch. I think if they ever make a bunch of those into movies then Bernie Sanders would make a very good Bursar. Every time he opens his mouth I keep waiting to hear somebody in the background yell to get him his frog pills.


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## lostastirrup

@AndyTheCornbread

You've inspired me. I started in on "Night Watch" again and realized why it is one of my favorites. I think it's impossible not to love Vimes. I read all the witch ones (and the rest as they came out) in middle school and I found them good (the first one was a bit too magicky magicky fairy land for me) especially for someone who spent her tween years as a shabby gawkward creature who hadn't quite figured out who she was and really didn't have any head for the drama that was going on around her. I enjoyed Tiffany Aching's Journey, and was sorry to see the Canon of Discworld finish out before her story matured. I enjoyed "I shall wear midnight" though quite a lot. A nice read on the topic of "listen dear, you just won't get your first love, and he was a terrible choice anyhow even though you were both good people and liked each other a lot"


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## lostastirrup

So since the show we have been rather chill. We did a bit of a groundwork intensive with about five days of groundwork only. We worked on our CaLM response to the whip, on our basics like leg yield and Shoulder In and then played with the harder laterals and a bit of piaffe as well. I hadn't been working on either piaffe or the flying changes since about a month before the show, so it was nice to work on at least one. We're doing more of going back and solidifying the basics since Nick is really good at LOOKING good while being totally incorrect at the same time. So little me needs to up her game and stop settling for "good enough". Pleasant pony has a lot of try in him, and he is such a sweet cookie. So I think we've made some? Progress. 

As for the mare- well she's a bit of a neanderderthal. If you let her sit longer than a day or two you lose piles of progress. But on the whole she has managed to put a few concepts in her brain: my leg means forward. My hand doesn't mean stop and it doesn't mean flip your head (sometimes contested) and we're adding a little bit of leg yield to help her get connected. Her upwards transitions are okay now, a opposed to the awful they were before, but she has this hollowing so ingrained into her mind as she goes up into canter, she's a peach to try and make quiet and biddable and straight. But it's a work in progress. And to my benefit, since I ride pretty much alone at night/evening she's fairly safe and not super fussy. Although like Nick there's some chronic rearing under the surface. Its funny- I was never careful when I was in Highschool and "fixing" broken flatwork. Now I'm careful and a little bit afraid. Not a terror but a "your brain has recently become an expensive investment... Do you really want to pick a fight? Or could you find a gentler way to get this done?" Turns out there's a gentle way to do a lot of things (not all). But time and patience keeps the fireworks to a minimum. 

My junior/senior year of high school I had an AQHA mare that hated her life and yours. I finished up that summer show season feeling a bit broken as a rider because of her finnnicky-ness and lack of cooperation. And then along came Nick, who was more frightened, more reactive, more confused, and more athletic than her. And then all the painful lessons of the things "that just didn't work" and so needed to be replaced with something so much softer and quieter came back. If she was my crash course in strange, Nick's been my thesis. And looking back I could not have made her what I wanted her to be- she just didn't have it in her, but I'm very grateful for what I learned on her, she gave me the tools to be able to match my heart-pony and make him into what I wanted in all my horse-less childhood. I have that mare to thank for a lot of the horsemanship that I have today. 

So thank you Cruiser, you were awful and you broke my heart, but I needed you. 

Photos:
Cruiser

Assorted Pony+ pretty skies. 


I got a cat. "Misty"


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## knightrider

> My junior/senior year of high school I had an AQHA mare that hated her life and yours.


Love this expression!


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## lostastirrup

Annnnnnnnnnd




Pony is lame. Either stone bruise or absess. I can't tell. Its better today than yesterday, but still off when I turned him back out after soaking his feetsies. He's very well behaved for it and gets a lot of cookies.


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## AndyTheCornbread

Have you been anywhere he could stone bruise? Sorry to hear your horse lamed up. I hope he gets over it quick. Has this happened before with him?


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## lostastirrup

@AndyTheCornbread This is actually the first time he's ever been lame for more than three consecutive steps. But he very well could have stepped wrong on something in the pasture, it's not a manicured field so much as a sand gully with some boulders. 

I was hoping to take him to a show at the end of the month. But we shall see. 



He's definitely better than yesterday. But I can see that hesitation. I'll see if I can upload a video from the first night he was lame.


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## lostastirrup

Its almost not visible in hand. But undersaddle it's very clear. I hopped aboard to get a video so I could know which leg I needed to soak and baby.


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## AndyTheCornbread

The buzzer startled me, totally wasn't expecting that. Yes, I can see some hesitation and there is one point in the video(1:15-ish) where he does a major head bobble type limp but all in all, whatever it is doesn't seem to be all that bad. Are you sure it is in the foot itself not somewhere higher on the leg like a slight muscle pull or something like that? A lot of times with small injuries like this that aren't vet worthy I never find out what caused it, it just goes away after a few days rest and recovery. I hope this just heals up quick and goes away for you guys.

Also how tall are you and how tall is the horse? My ex was 4' 10" and my mother is 5' 1" and both of them ride and from the video it would seem you are about the same size but that could be an optical illusion.


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## lostastirrup

He stress tested the same. And felt very free except for "bad steps". I took a pair of hoof testers to him yesterday. And he seemed a little ouchy on the LF. Hard ground makes a huge difference in how he moves. So he looked sound yesterday in the arena but was lame when on the road or out in the pasture. 

I'm 5'1.5" Nick is 14hh.


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## lostastirrup

And I have not yet called the vet. Ours jumps to his x-ray machine faster than you can say "that doesn't seem relevant here" and will happily charge you $300 for the inconclusive useless endeavor.


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## AndyTheCornbread

Yeah there is no way I would call a vet for what is probably some mild bruising of some sort or another. If one of mine was acting that way I would check the hooves real well to make sure there is nothing poking him and then ride a different horse for a few days until he was back up and around again not acting sore. Like you said earlier it is probably some type of mild pasture injury.


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## lostastirrup

Yes. Calling the vet hasn't yet hit my radar. 
If I wasn't looking at showing relatively soon I'd just let him dink around in the pasture for a few days. But as he's pretty much my main horse, and meets me at the gate everyday, we soak feet.


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## SueC

If *I* had to go to the vet everytime *I* was slightly lame or moving slightly asymmetrically, we'd have to sell our house... :Angel:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> If *I* had to go to the vet everytime *I* was slightly lame or moving slightly asymmetrically, we'd have to sell our house... :Angel:



Yes I think at this point most of us riders are no longer "using sound" I would hate to see my PPE

-arthritic mare of short stature with small feet. Markedly lame traveling left. Old fracture visible on X-RAY healed incorrectly. Smashed dock of tail and significant loss of vision in the right eye. Heaves.
Add to that the words "chestnut mare" and only the meat buyer would take me.


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## SueC

:rofl:, @lostastirrup! That's hilarious!

Let's see, what have we got on the market here? Hmmmm - "Bonded older mare-and-stallion pair of workhorses, approx.18-20 years old, unable to produce foals or be separated for long periods of time, used to working in tandem when in harness, and doing long trails together when at leisure. Male has glowing red eyes and bad attitude, female neighs constantly, both have odd senses of humour which show up in various ways. Require special feeding with a mix of organic produce; refuse kibbles or manufactured convenience feeds. Work sound most days but tend to limp and groan a lot until warmed up properly. Paddock sound when not work sound; sometimes horizontal and apparently lifeless for hours. Mare has at least three healed fractures in the feet; stallion has healed cracked ribs from jousting and a healed cracked phalange from random striking out during a fit of bad temper. Both horses ageing but still presentable. Good workers, softies underneath the crabby surfaces. Will only be sold together." :Angel:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> :rofl:, @lostastirrup! That's hilarious!
> 
> Let's see, what have we got on the market here? Hmmmm - "Bonded older mare-and-stallion pair of workhorses, approx.18-20 years old, unable to produce foals or be separated for long periods of time, used to working in tandem when in harness, and doing long trails together when at leisure. Male has glowing red eyes and bad attitude, female neighs constantly, both have odd senses of humour which show up in various ways. Require special feeding with a mix of organic produce; refuse kibbles or manufactured convenience feeds. Work sound most days but tend to limp and groan a lot until warmed up properly. Paddock sound when not work sound; sometimes horizontal and apparently lifeless for hours. Mare has at least three healed fractures in the feet; stallion has healed cracked ribs from jousting and a healed cracked phalange from random striking out during a fit of bad temper. Both horses ageing but still presentable. Good workers, softies underneath the crabby surfaces. Will only be sold together." :Angel:


Can i get the story behind the "glowing red eyes"?


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## SueC

OK - this is basically a little fantasy of Brett's. He likes to think he has glowing red eyes, in a parallel universe. I don't know if it's too much Dr Who (another oxymoron, I'm sure) or if it's from the end of the clip for _Boys Don't Cry_ by The Cure. He also says that the surname Coulstock actually means "_The Smiter Of The Foe_."  I have no compunctions in going along with such harmless products of a fertile imagination. :Angel:

Go to 1:45 here for the beginning of the glowing eyes idea...


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## lostastirrup

*Trails, timing the changes, and the evermore elitism of dressage. Also he's sound ag.*

@SueC
I feel like a workhorse stud with an attitude and broken ribs from jousting very well could have glowing red eyes. And I feel even more strongly that people would pay for the novelty. I'm sure his "mare" is very patient with him and affords him sunglasses when the glowing red eyes have to go out in public. 

*what on Earth is up with dressage these days? And do all these brands even know what "horse poor" is? *

I had intended to show a rated show this year, but due to finances it did not fly. Show fees were almost $1000 with memberships and I was plainly shocked. When I showed in Highschool our local club did a pretty good job of keeping class fees low and stabling reasonable. I camped out at the grounds in a single person tent and lived out of my dad's Subaru for the weekend feasting on Chef Boyardee, poptarts and fortune cookies. I wore hand-me down show clothes and sat the trot to avoid having the judge see the giant red clay stain on the backside of the breeches (The next year I was smart and bought 3 pairs of white Walmart jeggings) since I had been able to reasonably afford to show one horse (I had a few other horses I rode for the owners that they footed fees for) I figured I could afford to show my horse for one show. Oh no. Class fees were upwards of $60, no tent camping allowed on the grounds, and neither was sleeping in your car allowed. Membership fees were huge for the local club and USDF/USEF. Stalls were 1/3 of what I pay monthly for board per night. And you were not allowed to bring your own shavings, but they would happily sell you some for an arm and a leg. The end result was the biggest nope that ever noped and I decided I needed to stay home. I'm horse poor. And I thought a lot of other riders were too, but if the prices indicate anything about the "market" of dressage, I'm way below the target audience. Which brought me to the vexation that has been driving me crazy for the last couple of years. If you're on FB or Instagram or any other SM you've probably seen a growing trend in "Equine Couture" with matchy- matchy- tack and equipment, satin saddle pads, extremely stylish breeches and glorious stable grounds to background it all. Don't get me wrong- I'm all for looking tidy and presentable but it's over the top. The horses are more a backdrop for an overpriced fashion statement and how well you ride is not as important as how put together you look. The same matchy- elegant set ups with the custom saddles and $100's of dollar outfits are often paired with draw reins and tie downs and tight flashes. To me the fad of the aesthetic presentation is taking away from the horsemanship- which I've long defined as "getting your horse out day after day irregardless of the weather and trying to do better by them than you did the day before" and thus slowly stacking the building blocks to making a great team, a better seat, a quieter feel, and a more willing mount. And as far as I can tell- spending 100's on breeches and saddle pads doesn't make much of an impact. 
Which brings me to the question- what the heckle happened? Is it the fault of social media? Of the riders? Of the trainers? How do we take a sport culture and take it back to the mud and the dirt and the hard work that defines it? 
I guess I'm just rather peeved. I will however not apologise for me "something of a rant" 
Also someone called my trailer a "piece of crap" and I'm feeling deeply wounded since though cheap and old it is solid and it has faithfully and reliably performed it's duty; which has probably further fueled this rant. 

*pony up in the timber or "a really nice trail ride by ourselves since no one wanted to come along thank you very much" *

On a more jovial note I took the pony up into the mountains and had a glorious four hour ride up in the timber. A barn friend told me about a nice Sandy trail that met up with another equally lovely trail and it was just down the road too. So I loaded pony up and we made an afternoon of it complete with a picnic lunch. Usually most of our "trail riding" only happens when we go out to the ranch to move cows. Pony was wonderful and very good and made excellent time. I don't know how far we went since I'm as directionally challenged as the average lemming but he was moving at a good clip and it certainly seemed like we went down three valleys and up three hills/very-small-mountains. There are pictures. 

*how a clueless amateur gets the changes since she's clearly never done this before. *
On Thursday I trailered out to a gentleman down the road who has a lovely arena and is an even lovelier host, (this has been a weekly thing now) and we ride and critique each other. We worked on laterals and our geometry in a lettered arena. And as a resultpony felt very under himself. So when he jumped to canter and just felt _there_ I asked for a change. And i got it. Which is pretty much how I always ask for a change. I don't really school them. Or plan to school them, but when he has a good day and feels ready- i ask. And it's given me pretty good odds for success. Someday I will need to be able to get them on my time and where I desire them exactly but for now I like how this works. I like how it keeps him calm and gives him confidence and I can build on success. The lady I bought Nick from I watched school her upper level horse in the changes in such a way that he was a nervous, heavy, late behind wreck, every ride they worked on the changes and there was not much for improvement. But there's a better way if you're willing to take the time and you don't have a lot of help, and you don't have any idea how to train them. I can feel if he's ready, if he may offer, and I can ask. And so far- though he is far from being perfect, he is calm and he changes in front and behind and he Canter's off without getting heavy. We have plenty of time, and we will take advantage of it.


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## DanteDressageNerd

I think there are a lot of dressage divas and snobs and I suppose I always found it amusing when they'd over horse themselves because it was a pretty horse but they couldnt ride it. Then they'd trash talk every other rider spreading gossip and I remember thinking these are not happy people. They think buying stuff and throwing money around will make them better but they dont learn. Just enjoy your horse, take lessons with a competent trainer but they go with the trendy trainer and clinic with the trendy clinicians regardless of if they're good or not and basically pay to be told what they want to hear. 

I think in US trainers will lie to your face and take your money. I've heard so many trainers who imo arent qualified telling their clients their horse could do the GP if they just pay for more lessons and most of the time the horse would likely struggle to move out of 2nd level because it cant sit. Or IDK I've seen a lot of ugly things, I dont miss where I used to live. It is SO SO political and trainers at each others throats, even though almost all of them suck. They can ride something made or is a natural but cant ride anything not born for it. Cant problem solve or sit the croup down, encouraging their students to have tight still hips to look still and equitation pretty but have no feel. I dont miss it. 

I really think it is American culture of materialism and egocentrism. A lot of people dont care what the truth is, as long as they "appear" a certain way. I feel like it's a culture of arrogance and people trying to place themselves over another in any way they can. Competition based without respect or compassion for one another. I feel like a lot of people are really fake. I know not all Americans are like that but there are a lot and that is often how clients are. I also feel America is very service based and I am often amazed by how people in service industries kiss the butt of their clients. In Europe, it is not like that. People are expected to be responsible for their own stupidity and selves, do something stupid you cant just sue somebody and get your way to make up for stupidity. I feel services are fair and respectful here in Denmark but they dont kiss anyone's butt. I also think another factor is the legal culture in the US of the truth being what you can convince people to believe, rather than what is. I feel here the two faced, talking out the @ss way isnt tolerated and people see through it pretty fast. I think people are @ss holes and it's hard not to take it personally, I know I would too but I think sometimes it's good to remember they only do that because they feel inadequate in themselves in some way and feel bringing you down will lift them in some way. People are petty and most often the most petty people are the ones who say well I just call it like I see it and it's like no you're just really rude and think insulting other people will make you feel better but it doesnt.

So those are some ideas for why it is the way it is. Culture and what is tolerated. Here if you have money and want to ride, sure you'll spend money but you'll also be expected to work your @ss off. It's political here as well but different. I think a weakness here is a lot of those riders you see on the national level is they have never sat on anything that didnt have a natural ability for it and wouldnt be able to ride a horse like your Nick or my Wonder at all because they've always ridden something with natural suppleness and ease or agreeable temperament and have a very set system and are not flexible. Horse fits in system or gets the boot. Not all but a lot lack the sort of problem solving or dynamic thinking it takes to try an out of the box type horse. 

I think that is wise and a good approach, it's important to put the idea of a change in there and not make counter canter too good that they cannot change but it's a good approach and mind set. I think schoolmasters help a lot with the changes, last year when Id lesson on Image we'd have to do 4 time and 3 time changes. Getting the count isnt easy. As well as proper canter pirouettes and how to use the half pass to improve the change, so sometimes half pass change, half pass change, etc. All the exercises piece together. Sometimes they're just there and other times it's tricky. I remember at a show watching a trainer whose ridden the GP chase a horse into the changes, then a horse was late so she grabbed hold of the curb spurring and spanking a horse like a cowboy in a tight circle beating on it for being late in a change. I was always amazed by the horses who tolerate it. I dont know of any Id ridden that would just sit and take that kind of treatment. And they were back to work, horse wasnt tense or worried just back to work. That was in the warm up, Id be scared of what happened at home. I can say some interesting things Ive seen in the warm up. Seen a former olympian (not the one I worked for) sit a horse down he put so much pressure on it to sit, the horse just sat down like I cant do it. Even people at the top of the sport, I think a lot of people would be SHOCKED if they saw what happened behind closed doors because they go into the arena and look AMAZING, in harmony and pleasant but behind closed doors that isnt what happens in the training. A lot arent rough like that but I really think people would get a wake up call.

But Im glad you have a good time in the mountains. I am really envious!! I'd love to go into the mountains to see such nature! I bet pony and you love it and it's a great way to clear your head!


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## AndyTheCornbread

I think the culture of appearance and egocentricity that has become pervasive in America is what you are running into. It started long ago, before you or I were born. America prior to the 1960s was a culture in which character was most valued. A man's word was his bond etc. Everything was very much about character and personal responsibility. Since the late 50s early 60s we have gradually been shifting to a culture that favored extroverts and materialism and is about appearance/personality not about character. It used to be the quiet guy who got the job done and was always true to his word was who society valued. Now culture values whoever's life appears the most perfect on instagram, twitter, facebook, and in person as well etc. but the trend started far earlier than the internet and social media. Those things just feed into it faster. If you have ever read "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking" the author talks quite a bit about this shift in culture from a culture of character which favored introverted traits to our current culture of personality that favors extroverted traits. I think what you are seeing in the dressage world is a manifestation of that larger culture shift.


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## lostastirrup

@AndyTheCornbread I haven't read that book but it sounds interesting and I suspect it's something my whole family would like- everyone but my mother is painfully introverted. 
@DanteDressageNerd
I'm sure you're right. Its a little frustrating. The market has changed from functional and workmanlike to pretty and pretty only. If only I could throw that much money around.....


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## gottatrot

I also agree with how you are teaching changes. It sounds like a good way to keep the horse calm and learning without over facing them. 

Too bad about the expensive show. It's sad that they make horse sports so unreachable by the average person who doesn't have a trust fund.


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## lostastirrup

gottatrot said:


> I also agree with how you are teaching changes. It sounds like a good way to keep the horse calm and learning without over facing them.
> 
> Too bad about the expensive show. It's sad that they make horse sports so unreachable by the average person who doesn't have a trust fund.


That settles it. I'll simply go and get a trust fund.


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## DanteDressageNerd

If you find a trust fund, let me know how you did it! I'd love to know the secret! If we had all the money in the world right?


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## SueC

Will this help?










If anyone spots these, we'd like one too!


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## SueC

...and what on earth???










Hahaha! I see I'm going to have to come back and read all about it!


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## lostastirrup

*We ride dressage! I swear!*

Trail Ride up in the Mountains
Sunday pony and I went up in the hills with a friend and rode up to the lake. I had never been before but my friend had. Pony was good. The ride was lovely, and pony and I swam. Please enjoy the pile of photos.


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## lostastirrup

cont. 
I tried to pick pictures that had only my picture in them, as my friend is not on this site.


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## DanteDressageNerd

That looks so awesome!! Id love to do a ride like that into the mountains and into the water!! That looks like such a blast on a warm summer day!! Look amazing


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## AndyTheCornbread

Really beautiful pictures. Looks like your horse doesn't think water is going to kill him anymore :smile:


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## lostastirrup

AndyTheCornbread said:


> Really beautiful pictures. Looks like your horse doesn't think water is going to kill him anymore :smile:


Hes quite gotten over himself and learned to enjoy it. I did pull his tack off and took him deeper. But no pictures. Too fearful for the safety of the phone.


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## SueC

Those are wonderful photos - I'm glad you had a lovely time! 

I'm totally spoilt seeing photos of everyone around here in their amazing scenery!


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## lostastirrup

*We had a bath.*

It was a little traumatic. I don't think we'd ever had one before. Someone was a bit stressed. But after a few set-backs (literally) that didn't win him his freedom (thank you nylon halters) I had a clean and contrite pony. 

Also the trailer got some decals. There's a painted toaster on its side in the future.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Aww Nick looks so pleased with his bath :lol: I do not imagine bathing is his favorite thing ever.

The trailer looks nice, what does the toaster symbolize?


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## lostastirrup

DanteDressageNerd said:


> Aww Nick looks so pleased with his bath :lol: I do not imagine bathing is his favorite thing ever.
> 
> The trailer looks nice, what does the toaster symbolize?


When I bought the trailer a year ago everyone who saw it about busted out laughing. It almost immediately got dubbed "the toaster" because of its overall shape and small size. So it finally got its fancy name on the side so it can match all the brand name trailers. Today I'm picking up a paint pen and will do a little doodle of a toaster under the name. 


And well yes- he totally hated the bath. Flipped his lid a few times being ornery.


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## lostastirrup

*The toaster.*

Behold.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Oh lol super then! I love you sense of humor


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## lostastirrup

*The free spirits in my life.*

I am not a free spirit. I'm a down to earth mostly logical creature who has bouts of surrealism about her budget and schedule which lead to things like pony purchases, unplanned and poorly thought out road trips, and a failure to cook decent food. But I am unlikely to break the law, do much of anything rash, or take unnecessary risks.

Apparently there are two free spirits in my life who think things like fence lines and twenty foot drops off of porches are mere social constructs to be torn down and replaced by the freedom of the new regime- namely munching grass with the neighbor's (three miles down) miniature ponies and very cute foal, and yowling for help when suddenly stuck in a bush. 


To such creatures in my life who will remain unnamed: it wouldn't kill anyone to have some restraint and be sensible.


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## gottatrot

^^^^^Haha, so funny! Very cute.


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## SueC

:rofl:, @lostastirrup!

...and so funny that you have christened your trailer "The Toaster"! Now I have to tell you about its namesake in Sydney, a building referred to by that name that never should have gotten built where it did, but the people behind it had deep pockets, expensive lawyers and connections in the "right" places...

When I was living in Sydney and newly arrived there, I took the ferry into Circular Quay quite a bit. People on Sydney ferries will actually talk to you, and one fun lady was taking it upon herself to be my local interpreter of all things Sydney. As we were going past the Opera House, she said, "And there's The Toaster!" ...you what???

She explained it to me. Here's a link with a photo...

The Toaster, East Circular Quay

Thank goodness for demolition explosives.... :Angel:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> :rofl:, @lostastirrup!
> 
> ...and so funny that you have christened your trailer "The Toaster"! Now I have to tell you about its namesake in Sydney, a building referred to by that name that never should have gotten built where it did, but the people behind it had deep pockets, expensive lawyers and connections in the "right" places...
> 
> When I was living in Sydney and newly arrived there, I took the ferry into Circular Quay quite a bit. People on Sydney ferries will actually talk to you, and one fun lady was taking it upon herself to be my local interpreter of all things Sydney. As we were going past the Opera House, she said, "And there's The Toaster!" ...you what???
> 
> She explained it to me. Here's a link with a photo...
> 
> The Toaster, East Circular Quay
> 
> Thank goodness for demolition explosives.... :Angel:



Yes. I think your toaster is more an eyesore than mine. At least no one has put a lawsuit against us for being ugly. 

Though I think the trailer toaster is "endearingly homely"


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## SueC

I love that naughty-looking cat, @lostastirrup, and hope you and Nick are having a great weekend!


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## lostastirrup

@SueC
Nick is out on spell for a few weeks. He'll come back up to the stables on Sunday next. 

So I'm sure he's having a lovely time with a good break


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## SueC

Sounds like he's having a spell, but you aren't? ;-)


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## lostastirrup

I'm not I'm busy at hydrogeology field camp (and I'm not working so I'd rather not pay board) so he gets to go out to the ranch and goof off for awhile.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Haha I love Nick and Misty, they are giving you a show and removal from your logical ways and into the realm of possibilities. 

I'm sure Misty always says to herself, if you believe you can then you can :lol: like tear apart toilet paper rolls and create mischief. Or Nick, I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky!! So he did and went on his own parade to introduce himself to all who would behold him! Go Nick and Misty for showing your the ways of the radical, the wild, the free spirits!!


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## SueC

lostastirrup said:


> I'm not I'm busy at hydrogeology field camp (and I'm not working so I'd rather not pay board) so he gets to go out to the ranch and goof off for awhile.


Have you ever noticed how our horses get to goof off way more than we do?

:music019:


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## lostastirrup

*Nick's Back, First day of classes, and a summer in review*

A Summer in Review

While I felt crazy busy, and worn out and nervous at my new job/internship, I had an incredible summer.
On the personal/non-horsey level, I found a job at a company I adore, with coworkers i like and with a mentally challenging work to engage me. My boyfriend of 3 years who in the time I've known him has been perpetually sick with an autoimmune disorder (CIRS) is finally on the upswing after over a year of setbacks and intermittent treatment. My mom was able to visit me at my apartment which is something she's wanted to do since I switched schools, and we had a wonderful time. I recently got a cat, an adorable former half starved potato field kitten that a good friend of mine nursed back to health. She passed through one home before she came to me, and her past owner was wonderful, but unfortunately Misty murders plants. she is such a rambunctious vocal floof and I think she will stave off some of the loneliness that every school year/winter brings with it. 

_on a horsey note_
Nick has had an incredible summer. He looks the best he ever has, working with a saddle that fits. He's come a long way in his training, beginning the summer with poor laterals, and some serious work needed on his trot work. Now he gives me clean changes, renvers, trevers, Shoulder in, half pass, and leg yield, and most of the time he does it without complaining. The best part I think of his development however is not a "just this summer" thing but a 3 year process of going from spooky and insane to still sensitive (and he always will be) but a workmanlike, willing creature who can bust out through the junipers and the willows on the trail and then the next weekend be taking home the blues at a show. He has also become a frequent hauler and has blown me away by how willingly he jumps up into my tiny cagey trailer. He has become so consistent that I have no qualms about hauling him after work over to a friends and then back the same evening, at least twice a week. And not once has he told me "no". Considering the 30+ hours that went into that with traditional pressure and release training, and then the most successful and if I'd been smart I would have tried it first- positive reinforcement clicker training-- I'm very pleased. That trailer was $500, and has been worth every penny, since it's meant pure freedom for me, and the ability to get out and enjoy training and trail riding opportunities at the drop of a hat. 


Now as my last year of school is ahead of me, and after that I don't even want to guess at what life throws, but I'm confident in my ability, and I'm working on my failings, and you will always find me riding through it from the back of a little bay pony.


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## lostastirrup

the lesser known use of clicker training-- teaching your horse to take really cute selfies:blueunicorn::Angel:


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## DanteDressageNerd

That is really wonderful to hear your bf is starting to feel better, health issues are such a frustrating beast. 

Misty is so charming and such a cat :lol: I always enjoy her stories. Glad you've had what seems a very full summer before the start of semester from he!l *Wish could insert theatrics of lava* but it sounds like itll be quite intense!

I think with highly intelligent horses with an unknown and abusive past, it just takes time to work through all the layers. It isnt like working with a clean slate or taking something through without a past. Sometimes have to try unconventional stuff or take a different approach or be creative. But you've done great with Nick and Im glad he has grown and changed in your care  

I hope clicker training continues to go well! I love the selfies!! And all the pictures in the wilderness!


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## lostastirrup

So in spite of giving myself either a hernia or a cyst jumping stirrup-less I took Nick out on a trail ride after class. We rode up on an old rail trail, with the aim of riding a few gallops, since in theory we will event at the end of September and my half seat could do with some conditioning. 

Honestly I feel so lucky to be able to ride where I ride. The scenery is incredible, and this broad low gradient Sandy trail was just begging to be galloped (and we did). The rail trail cut through a lot of granite, so we rode through a lot of canyonny (not true canyons) area that had ME thinking of mountain lions, so I'm not sure how McNickers managed to be mister cool cucumber, but he didn't care a bit, so we had a glorious ride. He was also quite the game little pit pony and went straight through the tunnels without a pause (he must not have been gelded right either since theres the balls of Chuck Norris im sure hanging under his tail) And there's a video of it, although it stops when I had to dig out my headlamp so we could see. 






This may be incongruous for a dressage rider- but I don't really believe in arena horses. I don't think that all our show sports should be the end-all, be-all of horsemanship, and I certainly think the horses are happier if they get to kick around on the trail or doing some job. Also health wise- the variety of footing and excercise is a way to build the strength they need for the arena work without stressing the joints, so its a win win. Also you dont find out about your partnership in the arena where everything is controlled. No, trust is tested where both the horse and the rider have to operate and make decisions independently with the other in mind. Its perfecy possible that these thoughts are a coping mechanism for not wanting to work on our half-pass, but there are only so many sunny days, and plenty of miserable winter ahead to practice going sideways.


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## gottatrot

lostastirrup said:


> He was also quite the game little pit pony and went straight through the tunnels without a pause (he must not have been gelded right either since theres the balls of Chuck Norris im sure hanging under his tail)


I agree! Super brave! I'm sure Chuck Norris would ride in the Toaster too, just because he was that studly he didn't need a trailer that said so.


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## DanteDressageNerd

Go Nick!! That's a really brave pony! He's come a long way from the pony scared of everything to going through a dark tunnel. Im impressed! It's a testament to the trust he has in you 

lol how dare you shame the arena by leaving!? The arena calls you back home to do laterals where you must suffer in silence!  Nah I think it's important to do more than just arena work too. I think horses who do a variety of things tend to be less sour, happier to work and stay sounder longer. Variety of terrain, having to negotiate their feet and footing. Working on hard ground strengthens the ligaments and bone. The body adjusts based on use. 

But I have to say I am so glad I dont have to worry about mountain lion anymore, when I lived in Oregon and Washington and went out a lot. It was a concern. I remember being with my old event horses and running into coyotes and another time Im pretty sure wolves. But they left us alone. We dont really have wild predators in Denmark.

Nick is so handsome, I love his alert expression. He knows he's good looking


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## SueC

Looking at your photos is like going on holidays for me, @lostastirrup. :cowboy:

Your summer seems to have been a full one, but with a little bit of you-time!

Also, my diaphragm and intercostal muscles usually get quite a workout coming here. _Pony vs Doom Tunnel_! :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Good to hear you've found a better training method than pressure-and-release. Did you ever see this? Similar to the technique you've adopted, and amazing to dip into this blog!

https://augustusthemustang.wordpress.com/

Hope you have a happy autumn!


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## lostastirrup

@gottatrot 
I thought he was quite the macho Man. I wasn't going to make him ride the tunnel, since they make me, a human being who is logically aware that it is likely safe, nervous, I can't imagine what kind of instinctual alarm bells go off for Pony. But he just kept walking so on we went. 
@DanteDressageNerd 
Maybe it's also a symptom of wanting to step back from the dressage training world. Don't get me wrong- i love dressage and I love riding it, but I think I think I'd do both Nick and I an injustice if we didn't get out and explore the world. 
@SueC
I'm glad I can provide some amusement. I have such a wonderful time up in the mountains, glad you can enjoy it vicariously. 



In other news I'm off from riding for 8 days and will be hopped up on pain meds. So hopefully that ride will keep me for awhile.


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## lostastirrup

An excerpt from a letter I sent a friend. 
More pictures and full description of 14 mile ride to follow at some point sometime. 


I had an experience yesterday that I want to share with you. I was riding Nick up on the old Milwaukee rail trail that was put in in 1941. It's a super cool trail all through the Butte Highlands, and because it was a rail trail there is a relatively easy gradient and it's wide and well kept. There are also two tunnels and a bridge over an 160ft crevasse. Last week I rode through the first tunnel. Yesterday I rode the whole trail and a few extra miles besides. I came up on the second tunnel and from the distance I thought it would be shorter than the first, because from a distance- the physics makes the image from the other side project like a camera obscura almost- so that looking in- the exit is almost the same size as the entrance. Easy I thought. We'll be through this in a minute. Well it was not shorter than the first tunnel. It was much much longer. As you start in the light from behind makes it so you can still see a little, but as you get farther and farther inside, the light from behind fades and it's darker than the inside of a cat. I could not see the walls. I could not see Nick beneath me. I could hear our footsteps but that was it. I think that was the closest I have ever come to complete and utter darkness. And when it's that dark, you can't see proportionally, you can't see how far you've come or how far you have more to go. All you can see is the tiny tiny light that is the exit. Horses have better eyesight in the dark than humans, so for the previous tunnel I had counted on Nick's ability to navigate- but he was stumbling. He couldn't even see his feet. So to keep us straight and get to the other side I watched that tiny light with more focus than I think id ever given anything. I kept it in the center of my vision and kicked Nick on. We stayed straight. We watched the light. And after approximately an eternity we came out the other side into the beautiful connifer forest. I had the thought- this is how we are in our troubles, when we get into trouble we don't get the privilege of knowing how long they will last or the complete nature of them because the darkness is so accute. But. If we keep our eyes on the light, and the hope of Christ, and move straight on the narrow path, we are assured in Christ that we will reach the other side. We don't get to know when or how, but the only thing that can pierce that darkness is the light of Christ and he has promised a safe passage. 

Colossians 3:2-5
Set your minds on the things that are above not on the things that are on Earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears then you also will appear with him in glory. 

1 Thessalonians 5:5-11
For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. So then let us not sleep... For God has not destined us for wrath but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Who dies for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up just as you are doing. 

Hebrews 12:12-14
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight the paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone and for holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 

Micah 6:8
He has told you oh man what is good; 
And what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. 



Hey. I may make a Sunday school teacher yet.  maybe you could use my analogy in your book since it has tunnels. 

The last picture is of Nick over an 160 foot crevasse looking for all the world bored out of his mind. He is much braver than I. "I've crossed bridges hundreds of times- what's another to me?" Quite the change in a horse that used to think butterflies and streetsigns were scary. 

Please call sometime. I'm available in the evenings always. 

Love you. 
-grace.


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## knightrider

Oh wow, that was just beautiful. Thank you so much. I needed that as I go through my long dark tunnel with only a tiny pin***** of light ahead of me. Thank you again!


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## lostastirrup

knightrider said:


> Oh wow, that was just beautiful. Thank you so much. I needed that as I go through my long dark tunnel with only a tiny pin***** of light ahead of me. Thank you again!


Boy the anti-swearing algorithm is getting touchy lately eh? Glad you liked it and it could encourage you.


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## lostastirrup

*Toaster Adventures*

So technically Sunday was the first day I was allowed to ride, but I started back Tuesday and felt fine with light riding bareback and enjoying cool evening walks. Because of a horse camp, none of the barn amenities (like the arena) were available to me or any other boarder not enrolled in the camp, so we had a weekend of trailering out for adventures. Friday we ended up just doing conditioning on the sand hill behind the barn because there was a thunder/rainstorm and I don't haul in storms (much less enjoy trail rides in them) and the Indoor arena was off limits (camp). But Saturday, while the clouds looked dubious- was still nice enough to get out and about, so we headed a few miles down the road to the national Forest. This was the trail i previously posted about, though I had a significantly longer ride (14-15 miles). And we worked our way up into the highlands. We rode two tunnels and a bridge 160 ft above the river +road. And Nick was a very good cookie. I swear I don't know what made him so faithful and willing. I was telling another boarder when I got back to the barn "I'm not sure why, but this horse has never told me no." And I have asked him plenty of questions that had I been a horse I would've screamed and turned and ran. But you put your leg on and he walks on without a pause, dropping his head to be careful and delicate over the bridges and into the shadows. Part of me wonders if I have asked him to do things so outside of his nature that his instincts don't even flicker- a horse in the wild would never be in a tunnel or naturally find itself standing in midair with a few planks beneath him. So maybe- these experiences are just alien enough that he can take them all in stride and wander on like "well that was neat! Got any of those trail signs for me to snort at?" Whatever it is, I can't take credit for him, I can just enjoy what he gives me. The horse no one can catch, the horse that used to rear and go over backwards, the horse that wouldve been labelled dangerous and unmanageable. Well he rides out in a halter on stormy nights and he happily puts himself to the dressage and will wander off into the unknown with both ears *****ed forward and a spring to his little araby step. I am so very thankful for him, and how lucky I am to have a horse while in a period of life when most have to give up riding, and that he has turned out to be everything small horse-less me at 7 years old was pining for while reading King of the Wind. This one is one in a million.


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## SueC

I've got vertigo just _looking_ at that bridge, let alone riding over it mounted! 

It's wonderful that you have the right horse at the right time!


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## knightrider

> he has turned out to be everything small horse-less me at 7 years old was pining for while reading King of the Wind. This one is one in a million.


Yes, indeed, he is! And I couldn't be happier for you!


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## gottatrot

Did you have the King of the Wind Breyer horse? He was close to Nick's color.


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## lostastirrup

@gottatrot I never owned either, I borrowed KOW from the library often. Recently I stumbled across a copy in a second hand store, but instead of buying it I just read through my favorite parts on the spot. I like it when the pair spend the summer just riding around the godolphin estates banished before it turns out his get are killer racehorses. To me it's the first instance of peace they get and I like the idea of being set aside from the world in the English country side. 
@knightrider thank you! He is such a cool cookie. And he's so much fun. I had a barn friend tell me he was the nicest horse boarded out there which is nice to hear among the fleet of WP horses and riders who think he's a speedy half broke lunatic. 
@SueC I'm not a heights person- i don't mind them by i have a solid understanding of my mortality, but I was so curious about what he would do that I got to the other side and had forgotten to be frightened. 

It's funny. You start a trail ride on something of a hot horse with both hands on the reins, feet in the stirrups and the phone-camera tucked away in a closed pocket. Two miles later both feet are untucked the camera is in one hand and the horse is cantering along on the buckle while I sing off key tunes to ward off the bears (a habit from growing up in alaska- bears do not appreciate poor vocal renditions) 


Yesterday I dragged the outdoor arena, brought up a friend's horse for some turnout in the arena while I rode and hopped on bareback because it was late and I had to ride by moonlight (once again indoor arena was off limits) I have to bring Nick to babysit this one since he's rather nervous without company, and he's quite athletic. But I can usually turn him loose in the ring and school while he enthusiastically Canter's and trots behind us making Nick more than a little peeved "I'm trying to concentrate and this big baffoon keeps cutting me off!" He sticks both ears out to the side when he's upset, and I felt for him so we left our large friend to his craziness and rode in the adjacent field. 

Nick is always the softest bareback. Probably because most of his training was done bareback, and it's by nature a much closer "talk". There are definite advantages for both of us riding in a saddle- we would not have come as far as we have this summer without one in our training but there are things that are just so nice about riding bareback. I think my favorite is that there's not a single step of a stride that you miss when you're bareback. You can't get into the stirrups, or press into the seat of the saddle. You stay with the horse. You could post if you wanted- but really to get the rhythm and sit the trot is such a nice rhythm as is the canter work where the collection is easy because the timing of the aids feels innate. 


I must go do math.


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## Aquamarine

lostastirrup said:


> As for the ride. Nick sang the song of his people the whole way down the road.


I know that post is a year old, but that bit made me crack up. Sounds like my girl when I moved her from where I bought her to where she is now boarded. 
And now for any future move, it shall be known as the song of her people. :rofl:

BTW, I'm from Great Falls. I've lived in WA state now for as long as I had lived in Montana (20+ years), but I'll still always be a MT girl at heart.


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## lostastirrup

@Aquamarine

First time in a long time trailer trips are always traumatic for someone. If it works out right- it's just the owner white knuckling it because the love of their life is being towed along behind them at 60mph in a tin can. Since that post Nick went through a training period to become a reliable loader and has gotten his "frequent hauler" card and steps in with a sigh and tucks into his hay. I'm sure yours will settle into it just fine as it becomes a habit. I will say- it was one of those things I'm glad I've invested in it being a solid habit. The world gets larger and more accessible when the horse can reliably be loaded. And some of the stress is then taken out of having adventures. Best of wishes to you with yours, what breed is she by the way? Have you had her long?


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## lostastirrup

Nick and I loaded up and went down the highway to ride the XC course a few hours away. He was a good little go getter and pulled me to every fence. Sometimes a little too keen. But he schooled nicely. And was clearly having fun. He has perky ears and you can see his enthusiasm when he's riding the gallops. He's so funny, he has a pony ish attitude to things where he makes up his mind and gets quite intense. But he's also pony enough that he is perfectly happy unloading on the street and wandering into the backyard to munch grass for an hour or two before loading up again and heading home. He's quite cool and he's a good bud. We will likely go again next weekend and ride it again.


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## lostastirrup

Had a lesson yesterday. It was a lucky break that one of my classes got cancelled on the same day the trainer was coming out. I wore my breeches and boots to class. Left five minutes early went to the barn hooked up the trailer loaded pony got to the other barn tacked up, rode, had a lesson (which was absolutely wonderful and so helpful) untacked, loaded again, headed home unloaded, unhitched and drove straight back to campus to give a presentation- still wearing boots and breeches and still smelling slightly of pony, though I washed the grime off my hands in the water trough. That was nice. 
Presently we have an event this weekend that I'm quite dubious on my attending owing to the fact that the weather may not cooperate for the trip down the highway. If it does it will be wonderful and miserably cold and there will be pictures. For the moment I am trying not to get my hopes up. 

Nick is going well and is just now starting to get fuzzy and I'm starting to add oil back to his feed for the "winter warmth diet" he's quite fit and enjoying life. He has a fairly good flying change now which is nice. Generally speaking when I want it I can get it and it happens straight. His laterals continue to improve (we got to work on them yesterday in the lesson too which was nice. ) We have been going up to the horse park the last two weekends to ride the XC course and he's been really good. Rating nicely now and taking the water jump like a pro. It's funny this horse that used to not touch water will now leap off a ledge at Mach ten land with a might splash, look extremely pleased with himself and then clamber out the other side. I'm getting help with my jumping from a barn friend. Which is nice, because up until this point I have not had a lot of jumping instruction and my methods were essentially "point horse at fence and pray to God almighty for deliverance" I guess you never know how much you don't know until someone helps you get started on that knowing. 

A few pictures of pony from the other night. I have not gotten video of him in a long time and I wish I could- but I ride mostly in the evenings now when the light is bad and I don't know where my phone holder went that attached the phone to the fence. 


Anatomic bridles and Pony. 

Pony does not need an anatomic bridle. He's never given me any indication one way or the other on them. However they are beautiful. And fads are the fodder of the aesthete. So I guess we have 3? Contoured crown, anatomic noseband etc. etc. etc. I think they are lovely and frame the face much better. I HAD a mare who probably wouldve benefitted from one, and I wish I had at the time the knowledge and the money to outfit her. But for Nick where the throat lash lays and the noseband attaches matters not, especially given how loose I always leave them.


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## Aquamarine

lostastirrup said:


> @Aquamarine
> Best of wishes to you with yours, what breed is she by the way? Have you had her long?



Thanks so much.  

She is a Yakama mustang. I bought her in early August 2019, so not long at all. She was just over a year old at the time, and I separated her from her mother and baby sister, and felt kind of bad about that - but I also knew that in the wild that may happen anyway. It was hard to hear her whinnies as we moved, though. She's made friends at the stable and she is very social with the other horses. She often nickers when she sees me approach, which warms my heart. <3


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## lostastirrup

https://www.horseforum.com/rider-wellness/hug-your-horses-808089/


That's pretty much the update I have. 

However. We did event. And I will post the pictures and the details after we have our first ride back in a month + it seems like a curse to share them now.


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## SueC

I am so sorry you had an accident, and am so so glad both of you walked away from it intact. :hug:


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## lostastirrup

Thank you @SueC 
We are both rather pleased to be here after that mess of an evening. 



Overall, we are getting along okay. I am woefully behind in classes and am in full "scramble and cut losses where need be mode" Nick is recovering well and after a chiropractor adjustment is sound in all three gaits. His miscellaneous cuts and scrapes are healing up as well. It's wintery here. And unusually, I have him blanketed when its only 20 degrees (I don't usually unless it goes Sub zero) but I know how cold feels on bruises so he's getting quite babied and doesn't appear to mind a bit. Still not riding. Maybe in a week or two (that would be 3-4 wks from the accident) we will tootle around a little. He is a very good cookie and has picked up where he left off with clicker training. Now we stand on door mats, walk exactly in step, and are starting some liberty stuff directed by a whip. I'm trying to do things that will be fun for him and useful down the line, both in dressage and just regular handling, and in preparation for "the trailer question" which I wouldn't blame him one bit for not wanting to go in.


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## gottatrot

Very nice to hear Nick is sound now. That is great news!


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## lostastirrup

Pony pictures. For some reason I couldn't upload them yesterday.


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## lostastirrup

https://www.equisearch.com/discover...wJ7TFymYBqS1ZEGcQIANKQu_mIUaw1d1Cr0N_DxVoRXhQ


I don't usually post articles but this one is a solid one. I reread it post accident, and it felt just as relevant as before. I thought it interesting that within the same article that fear based training was discouraged, CA was lauded- the guy who said "the more you scare them the calmer they get" however her bit on the emotional learning aspect I think applies to both horses and people. I haven't driven the freeway since the accident. I have gone 65 on an in town hey/Rd and done okay. But I can't bring myself to get on the highway, much less drive over a bridge. 

It is possible Nick will get PEMF treatment that will require I trailer him (I think HE will be fine) but I will have to cross that bridge where the wreck happened. I don't know if I have that mettle in me even if I went 10mph on a sunny day. I have driven that road hauling a trailer 20+ times. Enough I should know that it would be alright. But there's a huge emotional mark there that just kinda yells "you will never be that lucky a second time, and you will never drive a trailer as safe as the one you had" and the feeling as we flipped and trying to get to Nick as fast as possible knowing it wasn't his fault that he was trapped and scared just kinda eats at me. If it was just me in the wreck I think I'd be okay just a little rattled. When it comes to the idea of putting Nick back in a trailer and taking him anywhere I just feel frozen. I need the quiet rider in the article for the roping horse. Someone to help me put away this fear so I can keep on.

I think Pony has seen his way through this trauma better than I. He got a stall. He got hay. He had a bad day, but it turned out alright and soon he was playing with his friends and suddenly his person only wants to go for walks and feed him cookies. He has his pain. He has a soft tissue injury in the hip, so he's getting chiro and massage- but he feels well, is only a little stiff and seems very happy. It's just me who's struggling to come back from this. And part for that is that even though academically I know he will heal, it's hard to know an adventure I took us on hurt him. And I have been told he will make a full recovery. I'm just scared he never will and my choice has cost him something he won't get back. 

It's been a rough couple of weeks. I have a concussion. I have class. I have work. I can't slow down and all I want to do is curl up in a ball and cry. I live alone. I need to make it to the end of semester with C's. I need to get through this.


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## gottatrot

I don't know if this will help you at all, but I'll share just in case it does.

For me, it is helpful to think of emotions as a physical response, and logic as a separate thing. So I try to overcome fear and post trauma by considering the two separately. 

Any time you have had a brain injury, your emotions can be affected. I'm not saying you wouldn't have the same post trauma after such a bad accident without the concussion. But I would say to take into consideration that your emotions may be more volatile due to the concussion. 

For example, after a stroke I see many people crying or laughing uncontrollably, but often they are baffled because they don't feel they should be having such a strong emotional response to a small trigger. After concussions, there can be a similar effect, although it is usually not as extreme. My suggestion is to allow yourself to feel what you are feeling, but not to make big decisions based on those feelings, accepting you may feel more upset for a few weeks as your brain recovers. 

After a bad experience, what I do is accept that my body may release adrenaline, I may feel fear and my heart may race. But if I logically believe that what I am doing is not overly dangerous, I try to go through the motions and do it, in order to get my body to stop having that reaction. That is, if I believe it is an important thing for me to do. 

It is normal to have those kinds of physical reactions. Your brain is trying to keep you from ever going through such a thing again. But your subconscious brain on its own can't really assess if something is dangerous, just because an accident happened. 

When my dog was kicked by my horse, I was hysterical when I rushed him to the vet. A couple weeks later, I went in to pick up some medicine at the vet, and when I went to the desk, my heart began racing and I broke out in a sweat, and felt terrified. I realized it was my body triggering alarm since the last time I'd been there it had been a dangerous situation. But I stayed in line and took deep breaths, and eventually my body realized it was really safe to be there. 

Now it's a different thing if you decide logically that it is too dangerous to trailer your horse ever again. But I don't believe that is the case. Logically, I believe you had a freak accident, and maybe it would be wise to continue to trailer your horse places but avoid days there might be black ice. I believe you will have to face all kinds of physical responses, emotions and fear to feel safe trailering again. But I believe you can train your brain and body to feel safe again if you push through and have a few safe trips. 

You can take or leave the advice, it's just what I believe. To me it is sad when people limit their dreams because of fears. I know people who dream of riding but are too afraid of falling off, and those who dream of travel overseas but are too afraid to go on airplanes. In the worst cases, a person can become imprisoned by their fears, such as my relative who lives in a small, bare room in a nursing home because of fears of germs and dangerous chemicals. Don't let fear limit you, life is full of risk every day.


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## parider

Ya know.. I read these stories, and without the images, I'm into the 2nd paragraph, and have a whole mental image of some overly small, kinda dumpy horse, that you paid WAY too much money for.. THEN !! I see the pictures of him - he is wonderful, handsome, strong with a kind eye I think. Wow, what a different image than what I conjured up in my head. 
Congratulations to you - great story, wonderful history together, I wish I had something like this! Good luck to you both.
(Edit after seeing how many, many, many pages before me - I had just now read your first post. but, great to see such a long history with you both, sorry about your accident,, I'm thinking you both are gonna be fine tho.)


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## lostastirrup

Thank you @gottatrot that makes a lot of sense. And I suppose it's only a phase. I intend that we will return to a normal that involves trekking and trail rides and paces and shows off property. For the moment- we're about to hit winter so he's not going anywhere until spring. Hopefully by then I've handled my can of worms.


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## SueC

Dear @lostastirrup

Seven years ago, I was slowing down on the highway to turn into our turn-off, when someone crashed into the back of my car doing 140 km/h, which is 30km/h above Australian highway speed limit.



It was like a bomb had hit me. Glass went flying everywhere and I was airborne, with the car. I was very lucky not to suffer major injuries - the car wasn't just crushed from behind, it also got spun into the opposite lane, where thankfully there was a gap in the oncoming rush-hour traffic. I was very sore from contusions and unfortunately, because the car was crumpled so severely that the interior fittings all smashed together and hit the front seats, received an impact to the spine that caused a significant relapse of an old lumbar region injury. But like you, I was OK and walked away from it. (And thank God I didn't carry a dog in the back of the car that day.)

And like you, I had PTSD from it, and that's completely normal after a life-threatening accident. For a couple of months after the accident, I broke out in cold sweats whenever someone in traffic tailgated me (it is actually really dangerous for people to do that, needless to say...) and my heart rate would double, and I'd take evasive action from the tailgating and just talk myself through it. It wasn't easy, but I was aware of the difference between my subconscious response, and my logic brain which could do the risk assessments for me and take appropriate actions. You've got an excellent logic brain, which is like the pair of safe hands and the "driver" you can trust to keep you as safe as you can be. Feelings are feelings and there for important reasons - they are also about safety, so that a zebra would learn to run earlier after getting bitten on the behind by a lion once, for example. But you can make risk assessments about those scenarios, and I agree with @gottatrot that this was a freak accident and if it was me, I'd be avoiding potentially icy days for trailering as a concession to what happened. And I'd not trailer again until I felt better, and do small trips first, probably in company. Just be gentle with yourself. :hug:

I'm so glad both of you are OK. I know I've said that before, but I still feel that way. Those photos you posted, I looked at them and was so glad you were both around for those photos to be taken, and not six feet under. Sometimes, dreadful things happen. Mostly they don't, but we can never take life for granted, and after experiences like this, it often drives up our appreciation of the everyday even more than we already felt that before. So while you're going to have cold sweats and stuff like that in triggering situations for a while (and those eventually fade, and then you're just extra-careful, which is useful), what you're also going to lastingly have is an extra shade of "wow" when you watch a lovely sunset, or a rainbow, or waves breaking on a beach, or a friend smiling, etc.

Very best wishes

Sue


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## knightrider

> I live alone. I need to make it to the end of semester with C's. I need to get through this.


You may live alone but you are not alone. Those of us at HF care a lot. Praying for you and hope you heal, both physically and emotionally. I've known several horses that were in bad accidents and got right back on the trailer. You will be in my prayers.


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## WildestDandelion

A year ago, I was traveling internationally with my best friend. Upon landing in Germany, he began to feel ill. We got on a train out of the airport, he collapsed into a seizure. It turned out he had an aneurysm burst. I had vivid nightmares for months and months and months. Dreaming about trains, airplanes, him etc. So many things triggered me. Being around him triggers me. it was absolutely horrific, the worst experience of my life. But what I have found is, with exposure, the feeling begins to grow a bit more dull. The fear does diminish. The nightmares go away. Things get better. Exposure therapy works for a reason. And the reason why Nick is doing so much better emotionally than you are is because he doesn't have the same logic center of his brain that allows him to think through everything that happened, how it could have gone differently, choices that could have been made... the truth is, this was a freak accident. Conditions weren't ideal but you were accounting for that in your driving and set yourself up for success as best as possible. Give yourself time, show yourself grace... I know it's hard when you have things piling up. Just remember this is only a season. You will heal.


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## lostastirrup

Oh geez that's quite the "crunch" @SueC I can't imagine the kind of whiplash that went with that. 

Thank you all I'll get there and maybe talk with a counselor when I get some time. I appreciate the prayers, concern, empathy, and council. You guys are all incredible and tough cookies.


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## SueC

lostastirrup said:


> Oh geez that's quite the "crunch" @SueC I can't imagine the kind of whiplash that went with that.


Would you believe, zilch? The guy who hit me had really bad whiplash, and his car was totalled as well. But I had no whiplash, presumably because I was relaxed before impact (and had a good head rest), and that was because there was a semi-trailer coming out of the intersection I was turning into and I had all my attention on that, and so I didn't look in the rear-view and see that the guy who'd been driving behind me didn't stay in his lane but followed my tracks and was about to hit me... :shock: He was probably not even looking at the road, he was speeding (this we know), and talking or texting on his phone if you ask me...

Big :hug: to Nick from me, and to you! Hope those bruises are clearing quickly.


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## lostastirrup

Once again a short pony update. I'll put in a proper update after exams tomorrow. 


In the vein of SueC's accident. The phone is great for audiobooks and speaker phone when driving. But one hand on the wheel and the other on the coffee cup is a much safer alternative. Blows me away how people can be so callous with someone else's life.


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## Knave

Somehow I got unsubscribed to your journal. I am so glad he is looking spry and that you are healthy! I’m sorry again about the accident. 

It is good for me to read what everyone is writing to you because I struggle with panic attacks driving. I know you will overcome this.


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## Acadianartist

I'm so sorry to hear of your struggles recovering emotionally from all this. I think Nick will be fine. Stop beating yourself up. Have you told your profs what happened? Some might give you extra time, or be a little more forgiving about handing in stuff. We are all human. 

I have never had an accident towing a trailer, but a few years back, I was involved in an accident that traumatized me. I'd been in a few fender benders before, but this one was awful because I felt so powerless. Basically, the road iced over very quickly at dusk one evening and I pulled over to put my jeep in 4-wheel drive (I could never get the shift on the fly on that jeep). I saw lights coming behind me, and someone in a minivan clipped my side mirror. At that point, it was all very minor, but the driver of the minivan slammed on his breaks on the ice, and began spinning. When he finally came to a stop, I had already pulled into an off ramp to make sure I was out of the way of traffic (this was a two-lane highway), and the minivan was in the middle of two lanes, facing traffic. A man stepped out, and the light was on inside the minivan so I could see kids getting up off their seats moving around. I yelled to the man to ask if everyone was ok when another car came along and slammed headfirst into the van. Then another car did the same. And another, and another. The family in the minivan luckily got out before the second car hit, and we were all standing on the side of the road watching this all unfold. The road was so slick, no one could stop. An ambulance arrived and parked in front of the pile of cars, turning on its lights, and someone slammed into the ambulance! It was just horrifying, and I felt like maybe if I hadn't pulled over on the shoulder to put my car in 4-wheel drive, the van wouldn't have clipped my mirror (I was off the road, to be clear, and there was no one in either lane so lots of room for him to get around me), maybe none of it would have happened. The police came, firetrucks came and shoveled loads of salt onto the road. In the end, there were at least 15 cars involved. Even writing this now brings back bad feelings. 

But here's the thing, I was a nervous wreck driving in winter conditions after that - something I've done my entire life. I would shake, couldn't breathe, I had some pretty serious anxiety. But I have to work, and I have two kids that need transportation, so I would force myself. Of course I was exceedingly careful, but still, I would get out and drive in the middle of storms to get my kids at school when they would close mid-day due to snow. Eventually, my confidence came back. I am no longer fearful driving in winter conditions, I no longer skip a beat when I feel a wheel losing traction for a second. I'm careful and deliberate, but I no longer feel the anxiety I felt before. So you will overcome this. Nick is fine. You will be too. 

We're all pulling for you.


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## lostastirrup

It's been heartening to read everyone's own walks through very reasonable trauma and anxiety. @Acadianartist @WildestDandelion and @Knave I think I can certainly feel a bit viscerally that anxiety. The little bit of slip is the start of warning bells and panic. And poor visibility- even if it wasn't a facet of my accident, scares me. I did however get back on the highway this week. Just for a little spurt. But I did do it. And it wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be. 

I also, have been given the all clear- in fact the "please do or he'll get dangerously fat" to put Nick back into light ridden work. He gave me wtc both ways on a large loop with a long frame with no problem. Having confirmed that there's nothing "broken" but just weakness, that will be the end of our arena excercise and we'll do walking, trotting and hill work in a trail environment for the majority of the rides and we'll see where we are for strength for collection in a month or so. He also got a chiro adjustment yesterday that dealt with that remaining hip tension. 

As for me- I have a counselor appt on Monday and an appt with the dean, because this head injury is far more debilitating and impactful on my schoolwork than I thought. I was lucky in that it is not major, and hasn't affected my reading and writing- but it has seriously slowed and made painful any critical thinking work I do. Which for engineering coursework- is pretty much all I do. Last week's breakdown was I think in part due to exhaustion from minimal sleep, stress, emotional pain and an eternal brain fog that went with hitting midterms not two weeks after the accident after missing most of the material from not being there or from being foggy during the classes I did attend. That being said. I think I only failed one exam- too bad it was critical. 
Unfortunately this is the end of my college career and anything I drop that is required means I have to come back for another year. So i am hoping to pass with C's. Some classes are I feel in jeopardy and I'm just hoping to scrape by on my "not firing on all four cylinders and occasionally the engine doesn't even turn over" brain. 

But here is a picture of me on pony. 
And event pictures to follow soon when I get them. I'm proud of how we did even if it ended in disaster- though in hindsight I wish I had stayed home.


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## AndyTheCornbread

FWIW almost no company you apply to will look at your college GPA. In over 20 years in the engineering industry I have had exactly 1 company ask to see anything more than a diploma and that was Garmin, they asked for my transcripts. I ended up turning down the job offer anyway as it didn't pay enough at what they offered but AT&T did so it was their offer I accepted right out of university. 

Q: Do you know what you call a medical student who got straight Ds through college? 

A: Doctor

for 99.9% of the job market the only thing that matters is your diploma. Especially once you have been working in the industry for 5 years or more. Then they don't usually even ask for your diploma.


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## Acadianartist

Glad you see you back riding! Sounds like it went well. Also glad to hear you got back on the highway. That's the only way to get over it, keep doing it until there is no longer an anxiety. 

But Andy is right about the grades. Worse comes to worse, you've messed up a term. You're ok. Nick is ok. You are both on the path to recovery. Students fail or mess up a term all the time because they get cancer, have a severe injury, have a death in the family. or just a total burnout. It happens. I know it's expensive, but you get a "re-do" in that you can come back and take the courses again if you have to. It's not the end of the world. If someone ever asks why your grades dropped for a term, tell them you were in a major accident and had a concussion. You can pick up again next term, when you'll hopefully be feeling more like yourself. But in the end, you are ok, and that's what really matters. 

Also, no one ever asked to see my diploma either. I doubt any of my employers looked at my grades.


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## gottatrot

Acadianartist said:


> Students fail or mess up a term all the time because they get cancer, have a severe injury, have a death in the family. or just a total burnout. It happens. I know it's expensive, but you get a "re-do" in that you can come back and take the courses again if you have to. It's not the end of the world.


I'm sorry about your classes. I hope you can realize it's not a failure on your part, but it's unavoidable because of how your body is responding to the accident. My brother had to take a year off engineering classes in college because he had rosacea in his eyes that flared up, they got so inflamed he could hardly keep them open, so he couldn't study all those hours. It was only a year difference in the long run, and he's been a mechanical engineer for many years now.

I remember how stressed I was in college about failing or missing a term. The thing is, a few people in my classes did fail out or had health issues that held them back. They still all finished and sometimes I wonder why I was that stressed about it, since in the long run everyone still ended up finishing and getting out there working. 

Counseling is a very good idea, and could help with your healing quite a bit.
It's great you are able to ride Nick again, and I think that will be also a good part of the healing process.


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## ClearDonkey

lostastirrup said:


> It's been heartening to read everyone's own walks through very reasonable trauma and anxiety. @Acadianartist @WildestDandelion and @Knave
> 
> As for me- I have a counselor appt on Monday and an appt with the dean, because this head injury is far more debilitating and impactful on my schoolwork than I thought. I was lucky in that it is not major, and hasn't affected my reading and writing- but it has seriously slowed and made painful any critical thinking work I do. Which for engineering coursework- is pretty much all I do. Last week's breakdown was I think in part due to exhaustion from minimal sleep, stress, emotional pain and an eternal brain fog that went with hitting midterms not two weeks after the accident after missing most of the material from not being there or from being foggy during the classes I did attend. That being said. I think I only failed one exam- too bad it was critical.
> Unfortunately this is the end of my college career and anything I drop that is required means I have to come back for another year. So i am hoping to pass with C's. Some classes are I feel in jeopardy and I'm just hoping to scrape by on my "not firing on all four cylinders and occasionally the engine doesn't even turn over" brain.



This will not be the end of your college career, I can promise you that. It is past Monday, and I'm really hoping your counseling appointment and appointment with the dean went well. The dean of your university is meant to be your advocate, and at least at my university, will extend course deadlines and even the length of courses for you. Your accident was not your fault, and your struggles right now are not your fault either. Any human will understand this, and they will help you. It would've helped a lot more if you would've went to the dean the second you were diagnosed with a concussion, so you would've avoided all of the crappy feelings with struggling on your midterms and being foggy, but you are doing it now. You are doing everything that is in your best interest, and you are strong. You will make it through this.

Feel free to message me privately if you need any private support - I am also in college, and have struggled/am struggling with anxiety and PTSD, not to mention the fact that I am also concussed and feeling frustrated with myself right now.


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## lostastirrup

Thank you @ClearDonkey
I'm getting by. 


Pony update. Apparently he feels great and despite my attempts at low key excercise and conditioning he really wants to put his dancing shoes back on. We come up the hills and do a small canter circle and he just kinda thunders up under himself and acts quite ampy, he thrown a couple flying changes on a straight so I think I'm getting my pony cue that we need to be doing something more interesting. So we may go back to actual work as per our usual schedule and hopefully that will satisfy the pony. He usually is on a mix of conditioning rides, trail rides , and some dressage and jumping (jumping is out entirely until the cuts on his legs get hair over them) and bringing him back into work we've done very little. I do have to remember how very very fit he was before all this, and it's not like all that wasted away. 

Also curiosity bought him a new bit before the trailering fiasco, and it's a knockoff verdibend. He seems to quite like it. It's not massively different than a copper mouth lozenge but it is a fixed ring and the shape is slightly different. I think he's better in it. But it's really hard to say. He certainly isn't worse.


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## lostastirrup

*A little update.*

I am aware I tend to the "short entry" format. Mayhap that's a result of too much abstract and tech memo writing. But anyhow- another short update. In list format. .

1. I drove the highway last weekend for about 300 miles cumulatively. Albeit going 35-50mph on an 80mph freeway, but it was night, windy and I'm a white knuckled wimp. 

2. I got older. A whole year older. And I ate a pie for the occasion, and got to see some adoptive family and SO. It makes you want to grow up quickly and have a family of your own, getting to join that one for the weekend. Good people. 

3. Nick has lost his last scab and other than having slightly more "view" in the "view between the ears" he is back to normal. It's cold here so we've only been riding bareback. It's funny when you're not forced to saddle-less by finances its lovely. He's such a good cookie. 

4. Some thoughts on pony dearest and the "flighty reactive horse" 


So a bit of a view from above, at one month out from the accident. And a bit of a lauding of my horse. When I got Nick 3.5 years ago, he was "another crazy Arab" wild eyed, athletic, could leap sideways in .02 seconds at the sight of a butterfly. I bought him and didn't set out to fix it. I'm lazy. I could ride it, so I didn't care if he would launch himself left or right or rear up or bolt and not stop (that's what fence lines are for right?!) I just wanted to ride his beautiful gaits and enjoy his athletic ability and maybe show off a little. Not exactly cosmic and moral goals, but nonetheless it got us out and going. I think at the core Nick is a kind, clever and thoughtful horse. But where he was then was survival mode, the best things about him were tucked away under stress and a little fear. Had it been 3 years ago when we had the accident, Nick would have snapped his legs and bludgeoned his head to death in a minute. I didn't work on our relationship. Never tried "join up". I worked him fairly and rode a lot of trail miles. And somewhere up on the ridgelines he ended up being a smart willing partner that was game for the world. It would have been nice to never have learned how really and truly incredible this horse is when he's in a heckle of a bad situation, but I'm so very very grateful. What a horse that can be upside down on the side of the freeway in a metal can and still listen and go still when asked to go still, to move when asked to move. And to do it all for hours. I could reach down through the slats and touch his neck and pet him, but that's all. And what a wonderful soul of a horse for whom that was all that was needed. There's a lot of things that are incredible about Nick, his gaits, his natural collection are selling points, but his beautiful brain and disposition are what means the most to me. Nick will always be cat-like. He'll jump when he hears noises and spook when things are spooky. And some trainers would say that means he's not broke. CA methods would look at him and say he's green, or mean or both. His round penning is crap (he jumps out) so most natural methods would think him mostly feral. He can play no games- except for the ones he devises himself, and he thinks "your space" is simply the place to be when you're drinking alcohol or eating chocolate. He has opinions. He'll say no to questions. More people have been bucked off him than have stayed on him. Of those that stay on, I haven't seen him make any attempt to be a compliant biddable dressage pony. But at the end of the day, he's absolutely incredible, intelligent, kind, forgiving, and he genuinely enjoys the work. The evening before the event, I swung up on him bareback in a halter to canter round the xc course and get a look at the fences with the flowers on them, the week before that he was launching himself into the water complex and schooling the changes at home. When I'm nauseous with vertigo (something rather common) he rides soft. When I'm 100% he's like a little dragon. When he needs to be the calm one he's the calm one and when there's opportunity and need for a little fire and vinegar, then he's Marguerite Henry's King of the Wind. I'll yield he's odd and sensitive to ride. But. He's. So. Stinking. Cool. I got lucky. And I got lucky in that I didn't send him to a trainer, or throw in the towel with his antics, because I doubt that 2 horses in 10 could be his kind of smart and kind and trusting especially when the very worst, most frightening thing possible is happening. 

This Thanksgiving, though far away- I am enormously grateful for my horse. And this Halloween I think we'll eat caramel and drink schnapps and enjoy ourselves.


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## knightrider

Amen to all of that. You have an amazing horse and most likely will never have another one like him. I am so glad it was you that got him.


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## SueC

Hello @lostastirrup!  Good to hear things are going well, and:

:happy-birthday8: :cheers: :happydance: :winetime: :racing:


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## lostastirrup

November has begun, and with it the Advent of No Stirrup November, which leads into "well just ditch the saddle December it's too cold" so I am presently intentionally riding without stirrups. Which isn't much different from my regular riding, when I usually get frustrated with them about 15 minutes in and cross them anyhow. It's odd, I've lways felt more comfortable and able without them when schooling. Don't get me wrong, if I'm galloping a trail or long trotting- I do invariably want my stirrups. But for arena work- everything just goes so so much better without them. I can ride more with Pony, and he seems happier and more buoyant when I ride without. I think in large part because resting the feet in the stirrups has the potential to change the seat dramatically. And since I
1. Grew up riding bareback at Mach ten around the neighborhood.
2. Rode most winter's without a saddle because Alaska is miserable all through highschool 
3. Spent the better part of 2ish years riding saddle-less on Nick before I got my present saddle widened to fit him.
4. Am usually too short to fit the stirrup leathers on other people's saddles when I hop aboard others' ponies, so they get crossed. 
5. I did get that stirrupless/reinless lunging treatment while lessoning there starting out. 
I am so much more comfortable with less and I have far better nuance in my seat. 
I think having stirrups do add security, depending on how the rider prefers to ride the spooks and bucks, and since you can really wrench your back riding a buck or spin sitting really deep if you get the slightest off kilter. Although I find I invariably lose my stirrups in any buck/spin of actual magnitude and I don't think it has affected my "staying on statistics". I think it's a matter of how you learn to ride in large part, and then what styles you gravitate to as you progress. I really liked the dressage growing up because I could use my whole brain while doing it, which I struggled to do in anything else in life, so I went to learning the seat and was helped along by weather and circumstances. Isuppose it's fitting that I'm "lostastirrup" on this site, since by luck, preference, and habit, about half the time I'm on a horse they're crossed over the pommel- if I have a saddle on the horse at all. That's my thoughts on No Stirrup November, though I'm less keen on the November part. 


In pony update:
Holy mackerel he's riding nice. Really nailing the collected canter in and out of the lengthening. Trot needs work (it always does, it's not our best gait) but is coming along and developing the rang eof collection. I've stopped asking for the changes- since it's snowy now and they frighten me to do on the snow since he can get quite spicy after them and I'd hate for him to slip. We have however been playing with the piaffe idea. Basically collecting the walk to get the rhythm of the piaffe, and then adding the whip and verbal aid that we use on the ground for the leg lifting. Consistently I get 1-2 steps and then we go forward out of it. It's not quite a piaffe but it's also not not a piaffe. It does help him to sit more at trot and canter and is having a big impact on his "falling down neck" and jump in the canter while staying through in the back. I got some good transitions while in shoulder in yesterday which was nice. The last lesson I had before the wreck we worked on the Shoulder in and transitions through it to increase engagement in WTC and between so that he holds his shoulder up through the transition. Nick is no longer put out by the effort and gets down the rail with good energy. I do need to ride during daylight. Yesterday I did and realized while I was on him that if I had brought the camera stand I could've gotten a video. Ah well. Mayhap soon. 


Query: does anyone know a good way to manage winter dandruff? This is the first year Nick will be consistently blanketed and in spite of the excessive currying is still shedding "snow flakes".


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## gottatrot

lostastirrup said:


> Query: does anyone know a good way to manage winter dandruff? This is the first year Nick will be consistently blanketed and in spite of the excessive currying is still shedding "snow flakes".


If you find the cure, let me know. I rub lotion in the base of the mane, which seems to help some. Amore's mane is so thick it doesn't breathe, and her winter coat makes it worse, so she gets the dandruff.


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## lostastirrup

gottatrot said:


> If you find the cure, let me know. I rub lotion in the base of the mane, which seems to help some. Amore's mane is so thick it doesn't breathe, and her winter coat makes it worse, so she gets the dandruff.





One trip to the local natural pantry and I've found the solution. It's this stuff! It's some kind of vegan soapless soap. Only cost $6 and if I dilute it 4-1 and put in an old fly spray bottle and spray on then brush out with a dandy brush it pretty much takes the dandruff out.


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## lostastirrup

*The event description. At long last.*

Over a month out, I do think I should go over the event, since that part of the day went well. 

In the interest of safety I trailered him up Friday night as opposed to Saturday morning which was my original plan to save myself from having to get a stall. But I figured even though my ride times were going to be late we should give ourself the time leeway so we didn't feel the need to drive speedy on the way over and cause a wreck. 

I got there 8ish since I had to leave after class and it was a few hours drive and longer with me pulling a trailer- because even then I refused to go fast hauling pony and was known to go 35 if I didn't like the conditions. Nick unloaded and got tucked into his stall and I met my "neighbors" who were lovely and had come with a beautiful grey connemara pony. Nick I thought might be a little stressed stalled, but apparently the allure of hay he didn't have to share had him well pleased and he relaxed into the evening. After he was settled and I was as unloaded as I needed, I pulled him out and rode him bareback in a halter around the course. It was late and dark but they'd put up the flags by the fences and I wanted him to have a chance to look at them. He was very good, and though he clearly wanted to run from the amount of jigging he was doing he stayed with me and we meandered around. Showing up as late as we did meant we would not get a chance to school the courses like the folks who had arrived earlier in the day could. But he's a good cookie and walking around seemed good enough. 

I spent the night at one of my best friends, and we had a great evening. 

Saturday, I got to the grounds around 8 fed hay again, and went and finished up paperwork in the office. My other best friend was coming over to watch and take pictures. Because it was a bit nasty and windy cold they served hot cocoa and coffee. Which was glorious. I gave some to pony. My dressage ride time was 12ish.
We hung out and groomed and walked around the grounds with our connemara neighbor to spend the morning. BF got there (she is one I have been riding with for years, and went on the trail ride up to the lake with. Her horse is a large grey aqha) and I had Nick tacked up and waiting in the stall. Warmed up (well attempted to) and enjoyed my horse. Hew was quite good and did a very nice dressage test complete with standing square at the end. So the test was about two levels below where we are schooling and I did get dinged a little for riding him more framed like you would a more advanced horse. But all the same he was ahead of the pack by a pretty good margin after dressage. I think the score was like a 75 (in dressage speak) so we were doing pretty good. 

Next was xc. We took him back to the stall and I switched tack. My xc colors, and really my colors throughout were red and blue. I know you're supposed to put a fair amount of thought into your xc colors, but unfortunately my saddle is red and black, and I had a saddle pad I had made back in highschool that fit my jumping saddle well that was blue and red. So thus my decision was made for me. Luckily to complete the ensemble all I had to do was buy a pair of red galloping boots, since I had blue breeches, xc vest, had brought a blue scarf with me, and had a red sweater that would fit the weather. I think we looked quite classy, however I still would have liked to ride in something more muted like brown or green. Well at least we could be seen. 

Like all shows it was a hurry up and wait and after we jumped a few fences to confirm we still knew how we pretty much walked around and until our turn on course. Nick rode like a little champ and pulled me right to every fence. He over jumped nearly everything, but they were not big so it hardly mattered. Ideal time was essentially for riding s leisurely canter/trot if you needed since it was a schooling show, but Nick was having none of it, and that seemed boring to me too, so we galloped around and ended up with a pile of time faults. Oh well. 

SJ was similar, except we slammed on the brakes in front of a birch tree jump and ended up deer jumping it from a standstill, but hey he went over it and didn't even think about running out, just wanted more time to consider it. He over jumped everything else by about 1-2' I think in large part because he had never jumped fillers before and some of the fences were far far stranger than our usual brown poles and blocks. Even with the sudden loss of momentum, he got an okay time and he had no faults. 

We cooled him out and untacked him and then looking at the weather decided it was wise to head out asap before the next day's weather hit. Loaded up, and well the rest is what it was. 

Found out a few days later that we had come first. So that was neat. Maybe next year, we'll do a few more events and we'll go up a level since clearly 2'6" is too low for launch pad pony, and his dressage is solid. They are a really fun atmosphere. 


So I was going to upload the photos. Instead I think I'll just link the Google album. Someone please let me know if it doesn't work. 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/C32dANmXXAwWbRcG8


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## AndyTheCornbread

Google album worked fine for me.


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## SueC

It's great to know you two are recovering from your ordeal and sounding back to near normal.  Re the dandruff, it doesn't happen to my horses (who are blanketed much of winter) if I have canola meal in their ration - about big coffee mug's worth will do it. It's high-(good)-oil and has a useful range of amino acids too, and horses with canola in their ration have an unbelievable shine in their coats as well. It's high-calorie, so something else might need to get cut back to compensate. Always great for keeping weight on a poor doer, and was a big factor in keeping Romeo happy and in reasonable shape until age 34 - not that Nick looks like a poor doer!

When you were talking about arena work going better for you without stirrups, I remembered I had exactly that experience with my (now deceased) Arabian mare as well. I sat deeper and was more in tune with her without stirrups. It was actually harder for me to do her dressage training with stirrups!

I hope you both stay warm. We're starting to get our first really hot days here in the southern hemisphere. Saturday is going to be a scorcher!


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## lostastirrup

Nick has a cough. Vet can make it out to see him Thursday, so fingers crossed he's enough better by then that this can be dismissed as viral, or it can be something that can be dealt with quickly so that Nick gets back to happy go lucky pony. He let me touch his ears today which is a sure sign he is under the weather. 

For now, we are blanketing 100% at night, and during the day too depending on the temperature and the conditions. I'm taking him for walks/work in hand since I think light work is good for getting them to take deep breaths so they don't go pneumatic (I'm assuming it's the same for horses as people). He's also getting spirulina mixed with apple sauce about 30g daily, and a full dose of electrolytes. I am likely 100% overreacting. But it's my one horse, and since the accident I'm far far more prone to babying him.


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## Knave

I “liked” it because you are such a good owner and doing everything you can. Good luck.


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## lostastirrup

Vet looked at him. Because of the rain while everyone was putting up hay this year, this year's batch has a lot more dust/mold in it. Because there are not pens available so that he could be fed individually and have his hay soaked, and there aren't better boarding situations available, so given the present situation, I'm going to pick up some immuno-stimulants that he can have with his grain tomorrow morning and we're going to try and give his immune system a bit of leg up on it, and hopefully get him feeling a bit better. I also ordered some Lung EQ since it has good reviews for helping with similar ailments. We don't want to suppress the cough, since I was right that he needs to clear the air ways so he doesn't get pneumatic. So that's how things will proceed with pony.


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## lostastirrup

Well Nick is into his pile of drugs- he's on a few different ones and is essentially being treated for heaves.. I'm supposed to work him long and low a little so he will "drain" a little. Due to exams, homework, and weather, I haven't ridden him, but I've been able to work him in hand and do lots of liberty and lunging, and oh boy is he draining. I take a microfiber rag out with me to mop his nose and mouth, since the shear amount of mucus is incredible. I think he's feeling a little better with some drugs on board, but because he does have a hay cough and it could develop into heaves I'm hunting for somewhere else to board or seeing if hay and conditions at his present barn can be improved.


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## knightrider

Hope he recovers quickly. So sorry you are going through this.


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## lostastirrup

The pony update: 


Health: Nick has been on Primarin (I think, it's in my feed bin so I can't make sure the name is right), ventipulmin syrup, and prednisolone pills. He's at the point where he's having everything other than the antibiotic every other day and he only has one day left on the antibiotic. Honestly I haven't seen a lot of improvement since he's been on the drugs. His coughing has been consistent, and he's had days of absolutely hacking up mucus. Since heaves is related to hay quality, I've had a few conversations with the BO about moldy hay being fed. He has stopped feeding end bales (most moldy) but is still feeding bottom bales (fairly dirty) I think they are used to cutting corners for the horses on pasture board- I can't imagine them feeding the crap hay to horses in the stalls. So I am looking for new boarding situations, but there's not a lot in the area. Today, I actually saw some improvement. He was still coughing, but it wasn't wet, and there was almost no mucus. I was able to ride him for the first time in awhile, I'm supposed to be riding him and working him long and low so he gets a chance to drain. But I have been a bit limited. Sunday I tried to give him a ride and he- hot and fiery from the steroid spooked while I was bridling, exploded, ran down the fenceline and then turned around and ran back, in the process absolutely obliterating the bridle that was halfway on his face. So much for riding that day(RIP Micklem). Today he was hot hot hot. But after a long lunge, I was able to work him long and low in WTC. It did take me about twenty minutes to settle him after I got on even with the long lunge. But we got there and we got good rhythmic gaits with a long stretch and he coughed a fair amount, but not as badly as he coughed when I first noticed his ailment. 

He has started Lung EQ today and I'd like to evaluate how he's doing on it in two weeks, and also 6000iu of vitamin E. So we will see if that helps I can comfortably afford to maintain him on those if they are as effective for us as they have been for others. 

There is a lot of angst tied up in this, I've been quite livid at the Barn owners for even feeding moldy hay. Their facility is alright, but they are the only boarding barn in the area, so I think sometimes they dont put a lot of effort into care since it's hard for people to go anywhere else. Since I'm not a big money boarder- I am on pasture board, and I do not pay the trainer for lessons or training, I doubt I'm a very convincing voice. But if this continues, or they go back to moldy hay, I'm very likely to move him all the way back down to Dillon (an hour+ drive and ~60 miles) to a facility where I know the hay is good, even if it means I can't see him very often. 


One of the things we have been doing is in hand work, we do all our laterals and some trot work. My friend got some video of his baby piaffe, no I don't want a critique, I'm 100% aware he is not rhythmic and it's a bit of a struggle, this is progress, and it's showing that he is getting comfortable working with the whip on his haunch, which was previously an instant explosion. 







Anyhow. Horse pictures.


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## SueC

The piaffe session looks like a great start, @lostastirrup!  Like everything new, it comes together gradually. I'm really sorry to hear about your boarding / feed situation and hope you find a better place soon. That's a lovely horse you have, and no horse should be fed hay that gives it respiratory problems. Poor Nick got really ill from that cost-cutting the BO did, and now you're shouldering considerable costs in veterinary treatment. :evil: ...is it possible to find a situation where you can supply the BO with hay you've selected yourself? (Or where the BO doesn't feed any mouldy or dirty hay at all?)

Many years ago, when my family started with horses, we were barn boarders, and after a few months, the BO stopped mucking out daily, and did it weekly - the whole place smelt of ammonia from the urine, and the horses were in filthy boxes. We left that establishment pretty quickly, as the BO seemed to think there wasn't a problem...

Great photos - and impressive sky!  Give Nick a get-well-soon hug from me...


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## lostastirrup

@SueC 

Im hopeful. And I'm looking. It's a tough year for hay. But some things are worth the extra expense. We have a similar issue with ammonia in the indoor arena. I maintain and drag the upper/outdoor arena myself so I don't have to work Pony in the indoor to avoid the high ammonia in the air.


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## Acadianartist

So sorry you're having to deal with this cough @lostastirrup! I hadn't gotten caught up on this thread for a while... I was hoping everything was going smoothly for you after your accident -- and I see you're making great progress! But this coughing has to be very frustrating. 

We went through this with Harley. He was diagnosed with heaves, put on Dex the first winter we had him. At the time, he was boarded at my neighbors and their indoor was horribly dusty. The vet said that's probably what caused it, but it never went away, even after we stopped riding him in there. And I hated giving him Dex. He was on all sorts of things, and eventually, I had a vet who is a friend, and actually a small animal vet (but with training on horses, he just doesn't treat them anymore) come and do acupuncture on him. It helped. He also suggested Ventipulmin, but I see you're already doing that. After 28 days of ventipulmin, it was over and never came back. Of course I also steamed his hay all winter so there's that... not as much work as it sounds, but since you're boarding, it's probably not realistic. The good thing about steaming is that the heat can kill some of those nasty moldy spores. I do hope you find a better situation, but I can't imagine how you're dealing with all this on top of your coursework right now. 

Do remember that Nick will be ok for a little while longer in his current situation. He is being treated and the BO is aware of the fact that there is an issue with the hay. Don't feel guilty, you are doing all you can. Harley coughed for over a year, and would also throw huge gobs of mucus, but with the right setup (24/7 turnout, steamed hay until he got better, back to regular dry hay now, then 28 days on Ventipulmin followed up with Zev or Respi-free whenever he gave the slightest little cough), we cured it. He can hold on a little bit longer until you sort things out and finish your university term.


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## lostastirrup

Thanks @Acadianartist, I was thinking of you and Harley through this and how you were able to manage it. I'm hopeful good hay and a leg up for his lungs with meds will be all we need. It's a catch 22 here if I stalled him it would be worse I'm sure but he could have his hay soaked, on turnout he gets the dregs and his hay cannot be soaked. I'm hopeful the hay stays halfway decent and I can hound the BOs enough that the moldy hay incident (they were feeding moldy hay for 2ish weeks) doesn't repeat itself, and Nick can get back to feeling better. He seems peppy, and other than the coughing has been very much his usual self-but I worry, and I don't like to court respiratory issues.


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## lostastirrup

So as for pony. He came off the meds. And honestly I didn't see enough change by them to really say they helped. I'm still salty about the barn situation, but I was unable to find another place to board. So we stayed after I felt assured the hay quality would not decline again. If it goes back to nasty I am moving him. He has started to improve, five days post meds. So at this point I'm convinced not science or medicine are governing his health rather some occult fates are rolling dice or something equally as statistically plausible. I have been riding him. All long frame with his neck below the horizontal and in front of the vertical to assist in draining. When I spoke with the vet last- he said not to bother blanketing- but if I blanket he does better. So I blanket. It seems to help. He has a high neck midweight that I use a lot. 

Gave some baby jumping lessons down one town south for a friend on a well behaved AQHA, it is heartening to see a horse who will never over jump anything just because the laziness is infinite. So I think we have the makings of a crossrail champion, and the pole work and low rails have made the pair much more adept and confident in the ring than before which is cool. 
Also I held a terrifying bird that looked like a fat bowling pin. And a few chickens. They terrify me. So I call it a triumph and a character building episode.


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## lostastirrup

*Pony, Thanksgiving, and some thoughts on Pony health. also stray kittens.*

With Pony's weird cough that didnt respond really to drugs, I somehow managed to leave him in his midweight blanket over thanksgiving break with a friend looking in on him, and I went to see Mostly Family (as in they are not family but they might as well be) and my SO. So after dumping an extra scoop of Lung EQ in him and making sure he was as snug as a bug in a rug, I left him and myself, my friend and my cat went to her (the friend not the cat) parents house for thanksgiving break. She drove, since while I'm gaining confidence, Im agonizingly slow- far more than is necessary for the conditions. Had a lovely thanksgiving with lots of naps, cooking and baking, board games with a 10yo (which I won) and yet another 40lb turkey that had to be literally squeezed into the oven and cooked from 7am to 6pm. Since apparently everyone is lactose intolerant now (myself included, darn mysterious allergies that show up in my twenties) we had no turkey shaped cheeseball this year. ah well. 

After a lovely break where we headed home and nearly ran over what we thought was a chunk of dirty ice in the road but turned out to be a cat. at which point I jumped out of the vehicle with my coat and went to go check on the thing. It was slow moving, and while it tried to get away it was no match for me in slippers hopping through the snow and i managed to throw the coat over it and wrap it up. Misty rides loose in the car on my lap, but we bring her carrier with, so i had a place to stuff the cat. after stowing the hissing dear unfortunate soul we turned around and went back to the house where we discovered the cat was a 4-5 month old kitten who was practically bones of the earth it was so skinny under the floof. It brightened considerably when offered food and turkey, and it was decided that the kitten would stay there while my friend and i continued home. The plan was that they (mostly family) would take it to a shelter this week- but the angry little floof has apparently won their hearts and so now its getting worming and shots and it will be staying. It was probably feral- but young enough to be tamed. It hisses, but once you pick it up it starts to purr immediately so perhaps if he/she (too much floof to say) minds itself it will have a happy home where people are inclined to pamper it. At least I can hope. If it does not work out there with the kiddos and the terrier, it will come live with me and Misty.

Once back in my town I checked pony. The cough was gone. I rode him the next day and he was fabulous. The day after that not so much.. the cough had returned. At which point I about nearly went to pieces. I stopped work immediately and got ahold of my vet tech friend. I would call my vet- but honestly Im not really sure how thorough he was with Nick and his diagnosis and I didnt want to pay more for a "gee thats weird" So my friend said a few things that made sense- 
1. Nick was undoubtedly immunocompromised from the accident. And although he looked and acted fine, he was more susceptible than he usually is to ailments.
1.5 Poor (rotten) hay combined with a potential bug going around (new horses have been coming in and several of the "fancy" stalled horses have been seen coughing as well) would be just the ticket to land Pony dearest with a bad cough. 
2. The amount of mucus and that Nick never struggled to breath just had a hacking cough, would be more indicative of bronchitis or a virus even if he wasnt running a fever. Also we dont know what his "okay" temp is since he better be sedated if you want to put a thermometer up his butt. She thinks that its possible that he had a respiratory infection either bacterial or viral which the course of antibiotics and steroids wouldve done some good for- and now he is in that irritated airways phase kind of like a person would be. 
3. Nick did not seem like a heavey horse to her. Really the only symptom he has is the cough (was wet, now dry) and she says that heaves can be overdiagnosed in horses since its a pretty serious illness and most vets want to be really on top of that possibilty. 


So on this vein- and since i didnt see much effect from the steroids that he was on- present plan is to maintain Lung EQ dose and to do nothing but walks in hand until after the new year. At which point we will reevaluate. Given the fall he's been through and the cold of the winter we're having its perfectly valid that he will take some time to recuperate. 
I am treating him like a heavey horse, since at this point I dont know- but I am hopeful that this wont be something that will be career limiting for him (even on 24/7 turnout hes a hot mess to deal with when hes not in work.).


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## SueC

I wonder if we have the same bug as Nick, @lostastirrup - as my husband and I have had bronchitis for a over three weeks now (it started as a cold) and just when we think it's gone, it comes back again. Maybe we should be on LungEQ too. Let's see which of us recovers first - Brett or me or Nick. ;-) I'm just having yet another raw garlic clove. It does seem to help, and it certainly will reduce the spread of the bug since it keeps people at a distance. :Angel:

Your MIsty must be the most relaxed cat ever to ride loose in the car like that! I had a cat once and it used to travel in a carrier and carry on like a surly banshee from the beginning to the end of the trip - _reeeeeowr, meeeeooowrrrrrr, reeeeeowwww_ - barely stopping to breathe.

That was a wonderful kitten story and it made our day - I read it out to Brett, who loves cats!  In celebration of all things feline, I will post a piece of music.


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## lostastirrup

@SueC Yes. It does seem a lot like a human head cold. Hope you and Brett get to feeling better. Are you feeding up on garlicky soup and marshmallow and liquorice tea? I'm glad there's some cat people about. There's something so lovely about a floofy cat. I adore my cat (Misty) and she's such a character (and yes she travels like a dream).


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## lostastirrup

Well. Finals are finally over. And this is probably the least confident ive ever been in passing my classes. Fingers crossed. Arcane sacrifices made.. hopefully this semester "floated" I have no idea. 

As for Pony, Havent seen him in the light of day in well over a week. By the time i get out there its dark. Pleasantly I can recognize him at half a mile, from my car window, and not wearing my glasses by the shape of his butt- and whistle him up to the gate so neither one of us have to suffer too much the cold. Ive endeavored to take his respiration rate every time i am out, but with cold hands, pony fluff and the fact i cant (and never have) been able to do more than one thing at once- the best I can do is confirm that yes- he appears to be breathing, and is thus alive. As for the cough. He hasnt coughed once in our 10min lunge sessions and I have only seen snot once. I think? the Lung EQ is at least some good respiratory supporting diet. I read about some connection between vitamin E deficiency and overall health, and at least in people- spirulina has a really significant effect on respiratory health in asthmatic cases. whether or not that crosses over to ponies- i havent seen much studies. It certainly cant hurt. and whether or not Nick's improvement is just coincidental to that addition to his diet or not- i might as well keep him on it through the spring as a safeguard. We may go with Heave-Ho for the summer/fall when the allergens (at least that i notice in me) are the worst, and they have the benefit of being able to do a vet consult from their organization- which i would really like- even if its only over the phone. Thats pretty much the content of my pony life. My apartment is a wreck from finals week and i blew up a mug in my microwave again and i desperately need to clean it up but its going to keep til tomorrow since I feel like between working and doing projects and caring for pony and not hardly sleeping i should let the ceramic lie where it has fallen and go to bed.


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## Aprilswissmiss

That's great to hear about Nick, some improvement it seems? Hopefully his immune system is bouncing back.

Ah, sleep... It feels so nice to get so much of it once school is over. I would also have left the ceramic wherever it fell. I got two hours of sleep Saturday night and three hours of sleep Sunday night. Last night, I slept until I had to drop my car off at the dealer at 8 am, went straight back to bed, and didn't wake back up until the dealership called me in the afternoon to say my car was done.

Don't feel bad about grades, everyone hits a rough semester at some point. This is the worst semester I've ever had, which makes sense since I entered it with all the stress of half the family's cars being totaled in the same week and my sister being in and out of the psych hospital, among other things. Definitely a GPA-lowering semester, unfortunately.


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## lostastirrup

Aprilswissmiss said:


> That's great to hear about Nick, some improvement it seems? Hopefully his immune system is bouncing back.
> 
> Ah, sleep... It feels so nice to get so much of it once school is over. I would also have left the ceramic wherever it fell. I got two hours of sleep Saturday night and three hours of sleep Sunday night. Last night, I slept until I had to drop my car off at the dealer at 8 am, went straight back to bed, and didn't wake back up until the dealership called me in the afternoon to say my car was done.
> 
> Don't feel bad about grades, everyone hits a rough semester at some point. This is the worst semester I've ever had, which makes sense since I entered it with all the stress of half the family's cars being totaled in the same week and my sister being in and out of the psych hospital, among other things. Definitely a GPA-lowering semester, unfortunately.



That also sounds super stressful. It's a miracle we college kids wander out of university any less than half deranged. I sure could use a lot of sleep. Like piles of it. 

I think Nick is on the mend. Between the accident and this he's pretty much gotten the semester off. Which honestly I'm a bit jealous of. I wish I had just dropped everything after the wreck and taken the time to just get better. But I didn't because I'm a stubborn dummy. And I'll still graduate at the exact same time... Possibly with a lower gpa. Oh well. At least it's over for now. I think I'll go buy a new shower curtain to reward myself.


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## Aprilswissmiss

lostastirrup said:


> That also sounds super stressful. It's a miracle we college kids wander out of university any less than half deranged. I sure could use a lot of sleep. Like piles of it.
> 
> I think Nick is on the mend. Between the accident and this he's pretty much gotten the semester off. Which honestly I'm a bit jealous of. I wish I had just dropped everything after the wreck and taken the time to just get better. But I didn't because I'm a stubborn dummy. And I'll still graduate at the exact same time... Possibly with a lower gpa. Oh well. At least it's over for now. I think I'll go buy a new shower curtain to reward myself.


I told my coworkers I'm going to eat myself into a food coma and sleep for a week. I feel like I really need it.

I think April has plans to turn winter break into a break of her own with this strange lameness! I bet she knew I was planning to at least double the amount of long trail rides we go on and do some hill work over the break because she really needs it. The first time I rode her after not riding her for about two weeks around Thanksgiving, she was begging to take off at a gallop every minute of our trail ride, except for one pause to say hi over the fence to the dalmatian we always pass. She's thriving in the cold and has so much energy to burn off.


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## lostastirrup

They really really do seam to know....


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## SueC

I hope you get a chance to really relax, you've had such a rough semester, @lostastirrup. The ceramic can _always_ wait when you're tired like that. Good to hear the pony is feeling better! And I forgot to answer your question about garlic soup - not specifically, like the Spanish, I just put it in general vegetable soup etc and have raw garlic when I feel really bad (but then my husband won't kiss me :-() - and marshmallow tea, which we don't have here, but I am always happy to eat marshmallows - or put them in a hot chocolate... ;-)


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## lostastirrup

@SueC Glowing eyes, distaste of Garlic, and aversion to the morning sun? Are you sure Brett is not a vampire? 

Marshmallow root is wonderful for sore throats. You can make "real marshmallows" by making a meringue and using crushed Marshmallow root, it's also wonderful in tea.


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## SueC

The funny thing is, the only time we had a sore throat was at the start, and we fixed that with a hot toddy straight away: Juice one (unsprayed) lemon, cut up peel and put in glass jug and pour over a mug of boiling water, stir, strain into mug with the juice and a big teaspoon of honey and another big teaspoon of brown sugar, and a good dash of brandy. That was an old recipe we read and it's very tasty and effective.

It's just coughing and periodically feeling as if ants are crawling around inside your respiratory tract... we've been getting gradually better, but just when we think we've recovered, we get another bad day. Bit like the swine flu (which we had the pleasure of having ten years ago when it went around in Australia) - comes and goes - but not a flu, just a nasty respiratory bug.

Garlic, large amounts of wasabi, VapoRub are all helpful. The real marshmallow recipe sounds great! I must ask the local witch if she can source marshmallow roots... :Angel:

And your suspicions seem well founded, I do think Brett has vampire DNA... :rofl:


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## lostastirrup

SueC said:


> The funny thing is, the only time we had a sore throat was at the start, and we fixed that with a hot toddy straight away: Juice one (unsprayed) lemon, cut up peel and put in glass jug and pour over a mug of boiling water, stir, strain into mug with the juice and a big teaspoon of honey and another big teaspoon of brown sugar, and a good dash of brandy. That was an old recipe we read and it's very tasty and effective.
> 
> It's just coughing and periodically feeling as if ants are crawling around inside your respiratory tract... we've been getting gradually better, but just when we think we've recovered, we get another bad day. Bit like the swine flu (which we had the pleasure of having ten years ago when it went around in Australia) - comes and goes - but not a flu, just a nasty respiratory bug.
> 
> Garlic, large amounts of wasabi, VapoRub are all helpful. The real marshmallow recipe sounds great! I must ask the local witch if she can source marshmallow roots... :Angel:
> 
> And your suspicions seem well founded, I do think Brett has vampire DNA... :rofl:



Hmmmm. I've never tried that, although I do have some Brandy in the cupboard. 
I love the wasabi technique. There was an old online game that was around when I was a kid I think it was called dragon fable or something like that, but one of the more memorable plot points was a wizard dying and being brought back to life by a spoonful of wasabi, the game was pretty well done, and the lead up and the humour was spot on. Ten year old me busted out laughing. 

He sounds like a nice vampire. Far better than the single dimension emotionally unstable creatures that for some reason young adult romance is obsessed with. 


A good vampire book: "The Reformed Vampire Support Group" by Catherine Jinks. A most excellent parody. 

I did not like Dracula.


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## SueC

lostastirrup said:


> He sounds like a nice vampire. * Far better than the single dimension emotionally unstable creatures that for some reason young adult romance is obsessed with. *


And not just in vampire fiction, it seems - nor is it wholly confined to fiction of any sort. :rofl: I wonder how that ever got to be mainstream attractive... :Angel:


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## gottatrot

lostastirrup said:


> A good vampire book: "The Reformed Vampire Support Group" by Catherine Jinks. A most excellent parody.


"What We Do in the Shadows (2014)" is one vampire movie I found funny. Quite irreverent, might be a little gory for some.


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## lostastirrup

Ill have to watch that.


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## lostastirrup

Meet the new kid. 


This is "Fletch" a blm mustang out of Nevada. Been holding off on posting at all and about this kid til she was well settled. More on how she ended up being a thing and the ride that has been my life lately to follow....


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## lostastirrup

Something of an update:


My life- covid19 and the semester from hell saw me move out to my SO's family ranch and in with his mother. Going well, she likes the extra hand, and together we drink a lot of gin and cuss at cows. 

Critters- we are now +2, a new horse and a dog that I picked up while the shelter cleared for quarantine. "Kote" looks like a heeler but fetches and chases birds. He thinks calves are scary. "Fletch" is a 5yo mustang who fulfilled my project horse requirement of "cheap, sound and ponyish" so now there are four of us. 

Nick- riding well, is a little tubby from Dr. Green but his life has become a mix of cows and rough country and the fact his person still likes doing the fancy stuff. So he's muscled and (hopefully) slimming now that his workload has once again doubled (he's the only broke/not pregnant/sound thing around at the moment) as for his dressage- I send videos to a trainer and do homework but it's not something I'm feeling very driven at at the moment. We did a couple 3rd level tests that went okay and other than swapping leads during the counters during the FEI pony tests he's being good/progressing well. I feel like we've had a saddle for barely a year and he's jumped a pile of levels so I should probably take some slow time while the creek is clear and beautiful and the sky is bright and enjoy some opportunities that I probably won't have again when this season ends. There will always be arenas. There's only so much skinny dipping and arrowhead hunting and canyon exploring available to the world and it's rapidly disappearing. 

Misty- is still the most adorable floof with five pointy ends and a love of murder. 

Kote- 8mo sensitive creature that I'm praying to God comes onto cows at least mildly. 

Fletch- had her first ride today and was a good cookie for it. Excited to see how she develops. I like how she's built- she's very 'leg at each corner' as thelwell would say, with massive knees and feet and not a bad hind leg to boot. Her face is something of a trunk, but as a Scots-Irish woman I can identify with that curse, so we dwell on her long luscious locks instead. 


Oh and I'm restoring a sheep wagon. So there's that too.


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## Aprilswissmiss

WOW, the scenery!

I already love Fletch. She has some big, solid feet on her, overall sturdily built without being "heavy." My type of horse! My future has had a BLM mustang in it for a long time, and seeing her adds fuel to the fire.

Please keep us posted as you see fit - this is fantastic reading.


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## csimkunas6

I seriously love her build!! Love those big Mustang feet for sure! Originally my dream horse was always a solid bay, how I got into bald faced overo paints, I will never understand!

Nick looks great! Looks like a gorgeous place! Any closer to me by chance? LOL!


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## lostastirrup

csimkunas6 said:


> I seriously love her build!! Love those big Mustang feet for sure! Originally my dream horse was always a solid bay, how I got into bald faced overo paints, I will never understand!
> 
> Nick looks great! Looks like a gorgeous place! Any closer to me by chance? LOL!




She's sturdy as an oak table. And a nice size and strides out with the big guys for sure.. so if you are looking for something broke for that pile of kiddos, if she doesn't find a vocation as a cow puncher/eventer she'll make a cool kids horse. Im hoping she'll find her place here. But we'll see what she wants to do and I know I tend to demand a high level of athleticism and performance that not all horses really feel inclined to (thank you Nick for enduring my Idiocy) and it's okay if they move on if they find the right place. 


I think I'm so many hours away. I'm a hop from Wyoming. You're a bit more eastern. I'm lucky to be where I am. This country is surreal.






Also... Something golden hit the ground this am.


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## egrogan

> she likes the extra hand, and together we drink a lot of gin and cuss at cows.


I'd like your family to adopt me, please :wink:


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## lostastirrup

Another few and far between update that is 90% pictures and not that many of them. 


Summer has gone. Many horses have been rode. I'm getting an MRI done and a neuropsych eval in the hopes of getting the old thinking box operational enough to get back to classes. 

Nick has spent the summer doing a lot more jumping than usual, and it was honestly a nice break. Fletch is well on her way to being miss epic jumper pony- she's been to her first show and went home with 3rd place. Jumping .7m comfortably, and with her knees to her chin. She's very honest and she tries really hard to do the right thing. 

For anyone wondering:
Purina mineral tub: 48cm high
Upright barrel: 95cm high
Front hood of an old ford truck: 82cm high (makes a great skinny/spooky jump)

I've finally acquired a trailer and it's not quite roadworthy yet- but I'm working on it with the help of an old Vietnam vet who's helping me out and showing me how to weld and wire. 

The sheepwagon: it's on hold. Hoping to finish it by my birthday. Not a lot of work left to do but it's been on the backburner.


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## gottatrot

So great to hear an update! Nice jumping!!


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## lostastirrup

I'm back (sorta) some interesting things in the works moving forward. Overall update: Fletch found new home being a jumper pony/show horse for a small adult. And Nick and I are going on a long trip to go do something interesting in our recently finished trailer.


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## lostastirrup

*Toasters? The Grand Canyon? Is Wyoming staffed by Satan's Army? Aren't you supposed to be studying?
A few answers for those curious what side of the planet I fell off of.*


Because Covid, a bout of pretty nasty depression, ongoing concussion symptoms, and well 2020 imploded- I spent much of the last year living with my SO's mother out at their ranch. It was good for my soul. I got miss Mustang, and when I wasnt working or learning the ins and outs of a cattle operation (i fixed a lot of fence. whole lotta fence) I got to ride a lot. I also had disposable income- thus I purchased a lot of tack and actually got myself to some schooling shows and clinics.








_Nick giving the 3' triple bar plenty of clearance. He's best suited to the dressage ring..._
​








_Fletch the mustang at a show_​
Mind you, the last few years has been a story of yours truly not having tack or trainers or arenas to work in sometimes. I love schooling my horse and riding dressage but I've learned not to have it be the end-all be-all of what I do with my horse because 1. I wasn't in the best place to pursue it with any intensity that would be fair to Pony Dearest and 2. Honestly not really showing any competitive nature with so much other fun things to be doing (read in- jumping, swimming, trails, feral mustangs, trekking, etc. etc. etc.) So we goofed off most of the summer and early fall with the occasional schooling ride thrown in that invariably ended in the creek playing splashy splash. 








_Summer was fun, so so fun, probably one of the best of my life. _​
Enter: the Grand Canyon in late September. A buddy and I decided on a whim to drive to see it when our days off eclipsed. We broke down and had to scrap the car in Salt Lake city. We called one of my best horse friends and she like the hero she is drove down and picked our sorry selves up, getting back at 2am and she going to work at 5am while we damsels in distress slept half the day away. To thank her I bought her two rides in an upcoming dressage clinic (a discipline I'd recently gotten her to try with her horse and she enjoyed), and because she didnt have a working trailer (axel broke while going to get my feral at the time mustang Miss Fletch) I signed myself up and we took the Ranch's gooseneck. 

Well long story short, at that clinic I ended up being offered to come intern with the clinician. And because when the road forks- you take it. I started to plan a winter haul across the country with Nick to go and actually pursue this whole dressage thing.








_Nick and I at the clinic in october_​At the time of the clinic I had recently purchased the Toaster 2.0 and was about halfway through my restore. And I did not yet have a truck. So I spent October-September finishing that up. Enjoy the Photos, that whole restore could be a thread all to its self, but it wont be because I am a lazy writer. 

*Trailer Restoration Photos Click here*

We started driving the second week of January, and because of the joys of trying to title a homemade restored trailer from the 70's with no title we left in not ideal weather and started a white knuckle trip across the country. I had my days planned at about 500 miles per day. The most we ended up doing was 430. Which brings me to Wyoming. Apparently the wind blows in Wyoming. Who knew? That state was supposed to occupy a day and a half of travel. It ended up being three. 200mph gusts, yours truly getting major ptsd from her past trailering accident, horrible truckers nearly killing us twice, and I was about in tears every night figuring out how on earth I was going to gather the courage to get behind the wheel the next day. Nick traveled like a champ and did everything we asked of him: eat, drink, poop, and load. Somehow we made it through the hell that was Wyoming and nearly kissed the ground when we hit nebraska. We quickly got off the interstate and pretty much drove the rest of the way on two lane highways and state roads since I dont think I will ever haul going over 70mph again in my life without hyperventilating and traffic makes me nervy. We stopped at a friend's halfway through nebraska and got some truck repairs done there and had a chance to rest and ride. My driving buddy- incidentally the same one who went on the disastrous Grand Canyon venture with me, got to try a ride on a little aqha mare, and Nick showed off exactly what doing nothing and eating straight alfalfa for days will do to an arabx and was a little fiery. A couple more blessedly uneventful days later we made it to our destination. 








_Just another one of the big rigs_​
My driving buddy flew home a few days after we arrived, and I settled in. Nick is in a herd of geldings, he has a round bale and he's learning a lot. When I'm not chopping ice, sweeping the aisleway or riding in between I do two classes online. Im getting to ride some pretty cool horses, some client, some the facility's, and some school masters. I'm loving one of the draft cross mares who's on my list and she's teaching me to appreciate a different type than Im used to. Besides her I have a wb mare, a few client horses, Nick obviously and a few others on my list. Though today- its so cold and miserable I'm sitting indoors and writing this til I go out for evening chores. Anyhow. Enjoy Pictures. 










_Snow photos, we took the horses out into one of the pastures on a beautiful day_​








_I love riding this mare, shes a totally different type than I'm used to. _​








_another fun mare, we found the "forward" going for gallop in the field_​








_Nick schooling in the indoor. his leisurely days are over for awhile._​


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## knightrider

This is so wonderful and amazing. Gorgeous pictures. Your trailer restore is awesome!!! You did so much work. You are so brave to go back and do the very thing that was so disastrous . . . with a similar trailer. Kudos to you. I am so glad to read that things are going well. The pictures show it.


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## gottatrot

What an amazing update! It's exciting to hear you're having this great new opportunity. Glad you made it safely. The pictures are beautiful.


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## lostastirrup

*Working Student Thoughts*
*about a month and a half-ish in*

My life is quite simple and basic at this point. Get up. Do barn chores. Ride horses. Do barn chores. Go to bed. 

I could elaborate on what the training entails- but I think writing about dressage is about as interesting as watching paint dry. Go play with ponies. Or don't. Make them travel through and together. Or don't. As long as everyone involved is happy more power to you. 

That said, I really like dressage, I like how zoned in it is. I like the creative possibilities it makes for how, where, and in what manner the horse goes. And I like being in a place where its a focus and I have help and the opportunity to ride a lot. I've gotten homesick- the sky is a whole lot closer here and there's no mountains, but I've been really really happy and enjoying myself, which is lovely because I think I've spent the last two years as a Depresso Bean if I'm honest. So its nice to want to get up in the morning again without manufacturing motivation. I am actually living closer to my SO now (he moved, then I moved) and I've gotten to see him twice, so we are slightly less distancey relationshipy than we were before, but it still involves some serious tanks of gas. 

Nick- Going well, Is happy to come out and do the work as long as there's enough compensation (oatmeal cream pies) to warrant his effort. He's putting on some more muscle and is getting into actually having a consistent job that's not ran by my whimsy. We have the halfhearted goal of Prix St George. But again. I'm not actually competitive and I more just enjoy the riding. So we shall see. Also showing is expensive- which is a really really really good reason to not. 

Pictures anyone?


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## gottatrot

Very nice update. What breeds is the draft cross? She's pretty cute.


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## SueC

Wow Grace! 😎🤩🎃😀 I'm not that regular on HF anymore so I've only just read your update - which I thoroughly enjoyed. Really super trailer restoration. And those wonderful photos! 😍 Even before I got to the bit about your big move across country and why, I was thinking, as I always have looking at your journal in the past, how well you work with your horse and how incredibly well-balanced you are when riding. So I was not at all surprised that you got offered that internship. I'm sorry the trip across was so stressful - and glad that nothing untoward happened. I'm glad you're somewhere interesting and different and able to develop one of your many skill sets further. I hope you have lots of fun and many worthwhile experiences both in the horse setting and in other settings, on this particular adventure. ❤ Look after yourself. And your writing is always beautiful and honest and funny... keep in touch! Send us updates! 🌻🌟🌈🐙


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## lostastirrup

*Ongoing Thoughts*
*from God's third pass hand me down to horses*

Thanks @SueC , @gottatrot (she's percheron, TB and WB), @knightrider for checking in with me. Im not often on HF myself. Its in large part simply become a place to catalogue what on God's good earth I'm doing, and I do that rarely and sparsely when I do. When I have a spare minute I will try and catch up on everyone's journals and lives. 

Assume I am dreadful, suckish and probably don't know what I am doing and have been doing it wrong for the last 20 years I've been on the back of a horse. The position that took me bareback at mach10 across the ranch's rough country and made me feel all chuffed up about my "seat"- well its not good enough; its under construction. The way I've been asking for shoulder fore? It interferes with flying changes; fix it. My following hands? Can they even fairly be called that? I am embracing being a shoddy rider, and they horses I'm riding are thanking me for it. They are going better, I'm becoming more tactful and coordinated and feeling and overall: less_ useless_. I couldnt be more happy with my bad riding and the critique. It's getting so much better. 









_half pass, stirrupless on this amazing schoolmaster mare who has forgotten more about dressage than I will ever know. _​
As for Nick- the goal is get my 3rd level scores for my bronze with him and see if he wants to do my 4th and Prix St. George scores as well (lord pony must be willing to participate). 3rd is very doable, the changes (4s and 3s) for 4th and on I'm less confident on- but we've both learned and improved a lot and I have the opportunity to sit on schoolmasters now and again to get the feel of things. Nick did plant his feet about two weeks ago and went from schooling all the bits and pieces of the upper level stuff to being a zinging ping pong ball arab who wouldnt quit flipping his head and trying to take off. It's not uncommon for him to go a bit haywire in spring, but I think this is the first year I've actually cared because- yours truly is trying to achieve arbitrary accolades from the dressage gods (usdf). We went back to the basics. and we hit a few more trails and emphasized having fun and hopefully channeling a bit of the carefree, mildly intoxicated adventure feeling we had last summer. And we also changed how we warmed him up- all this has been for the good- and we're back to something that is a more participatory pony- yesterday schooling pirrouettes (my favorite. cause so so fun) 











_Nick, after two months of steady progress chipping towards solid 3rd and questionable 4th, threw in the towel and said "find some way to make me want to do this." So we went back to the basics. like walk trot canter on the bit basics. Because progress isn't the accumulation of skill but a cha-cha slide of epiphany and idiocy._​
I have also caught saddle jealousy. This barn rides Countys. They are divine, and I've gotten to ride some wonderful small seat, short flap ones and have vowed when I'm rich and famous I will get myself one. But for now- my kids dressage saddle will just have to wander up the levels with me. I've put so much into the stubben to get it to fit Nick too I'll hard pressed to find something else to suit him short of custom saddle. 

I could make this post longer- but well- Im quite lazy as a writer. Enjoy photos. At some point I want to talk in depth on "off breed" dressage horses and how theyre not "off breeds" at all. but. today is not that day. 










_Another draftx who is educating me. _










_Nick out hacking bareback. Training mixed with adventure keeps the pony contented. That and cookies. _









_Talent and desire comes in the most unexpected places- this mare is one of my hottest ferrari-esque rides. She wants to do the work so badly and comes out with incredible adjustability and quality. I would never have thought of a percheron as an up and coming dressage horse but to look over in the mirrors and to feel her makes me grin from ear to ear and rethink the fine and tall warmbloods._









_This mare pushes my zen. Can I be an emotional sponge enough? _









_. Turns out piaffe/passage and the changes aren't the hard part its those niggling basics. _









_and the greenest of beans on my list. Its really cool to "discover" what's inherently excellent in a horse. 









Green piaffe. Nick. _
​


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## egrogan

Would you believe when I bought Izzy years ago, they threw in a short flap County Competitor with her, because it was tiny (16.5") and the short flaps didn't appeal to anyone else? I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I rode all over in that little saddle and eventually sold it to a mom whose daughter was starting in dressage. I have a real soft spot for them. They aren't so unreasonable used if you decide to splurge for yourself.

The pictures are gorgeous- what an adventure you're on!


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## Tazzie

You are getting to ride some pretty awesome looking horses! And Nick is looking fantastic! Nice work!! I feel you on the Arab moments too. But I'm glad you know how to help Nick through it! I just wanted to say what a lovely rider you are! You say you're crap, but seriously you are goals from the pictures! And that little green bean is so adorable <3


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## lostastirrup

@egrogan No chance she's looking to rehome that saddle again is she? I would bet something wide enough for a well sprung morgan would fit a similarly rotund Pony-dearest. 

@Tazzie what is it they say? when you feel like the cleverest person in the room, its time to find a new room. I went through something similar when I started engineering school- here were us a pile of the smart kids in highschool, probably the top 3% and suddenly you found yourself being the dunce on the stool in the corner. I'm glad I dont have to feel clever to be okay anymore- especially now since the brain box now runs at about 40% efficiency.. Long story short I drove across the country to be told to look up, ride inside leg to outside rein, and count.


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## Tazzie

I love that saying! And I understand it completely. I've gotten shredded over the last year and still working to improve on myself. But seriously, I love all the pictures you posted. Nick is just the cutest little guy and I LOVE that trot picture of him (the one you posted about the niggling basics)! It's overall just a wonderful snapshot of you guys! I do so hope you post more often (though it sounds like you're swamped!) I just love following yours and Nick's journey!


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## egrogan

@lostastirrup , unfortunately last I knew they lived in Florida now. This was a few years ago. Wish I could help.


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## lostastirrup

An update from the tired tired working student. 
_overview: pulled the trigger on a new saddle. the pony went lame. The pony went unlame. The pony sucks at breathing. New pony. Another new pony. Big horses too. To show or not to show? That is the question. _


This entry may be a bit of a fly by. But I can hopefully cover most of the important details. 

I bought a new saddle a month back. A check came from the state of Montana- I'm assuming some kind of stimulus and I spent it on a saddle, trading in my stubben juventus for a Ryder Zara, similarish styles, except the Zara has more cushy and raised panels, a slightly different seat and cost 4x more than the stubben. I figure with 3rd/4th levels looming, maybe I should upgrade and Pony dearest was throwing enough behavioral issues (X halt, leaping rear) that it was time for something different. The Zara had a 7 day trial, and day 1 it got the pony stamp of approval when he went gloriously and then continued to be his glorious self. 


And then the blasted creature went three legged lame and his leg blew up like a balloon. I saw all my Grand prix dreams dashed on the rocks of equestrian bad luck, but a week later after being locked in a stall with poultice, wraps and ice boots round the clock, he came out completely sound, so turned him back out and away we went. He's also allergic this lush eastern greenery and keeping the heavey pony not heavey has been a feet of management and supplements and I'm assuming the tears and prayers have done something too. 









Now he's back to work and going splendidly, except for when he doesn't- I'm assuming to remind me that if I want his cooperation- I better keep the oatmeal cream pies coming. 

Anyhow. Here he is looking like a civilized beast.



































Also- since I adore the ponies, we have a fjord in for training. He is such a good kid and I love everything about him, even if his canter comes out the box feeling like a vienna-sausage hurtling through space.
















There's also a welsh that just arrived and is in for training. No photos of him at present. But he is as endearing as a little Welsh could be. 

Things above 14.2 hands:
Yes warmbloods and drafts still abound maybe I can find some photos. Also foals: I never want to breed ever. I will buy things on the ground. 

Showing: my dreams may be slightly larger than my pocketbook and mayhap we will not get out and show.


----------



## Tazzie

Nick is looking so good! Any idea what happened to make him lame? I'm glad he's not anymore! Also glad he approves of his new saddle 

Your other steeds are so pretty too! And that foal looks adorable!


----------



## lostastirrup

We are Pony Cup bound!!

Yours truly is headed to Pony cup with Nick and the fjord in training doing 3rd with Nick and 1st with fjord Pony. And hopefully those will make our bronze scores.


----------



## Tazzie

That's so exciting!! That's a goal of mine to do one year! I've heard a lot of awesome things about it! Good luck! I can't wait to hear how Nick and the Fjord do <3


----------



## lostastirrup

Tazzie said:


> That's so exciting!! That's a goal of mine to do one year! I've heard a lot of awesome things about it! Good luck! I can't wait to hear how Nick and the Fjord do <3


It should be fun. I'm not particularly inspired to compete, but ponies are kinda my thing, so if I'm going to get out and do it- might as well be pony cup.


----------



## knightrider

So excited and happy for you. I hope it all goes great!


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## lostastirrup

*The most shortened version of reality explained. 
and some photos*

I'm just going to bullet this and skip over most of the details. 


I am staying awhile longer as an assistant trainer. Basically we lost our other assistant trainer and I got offered her position. I will be here til August of '22 when I will go back to school.
I got proposed to end of summer (we went to a beach on lake michigan. It was lovely) 
I am getting married in December. Some of you are good friends and if you want to ZOOM in, pm me and I'll get you a link. 
Alright photos.


----------



## knightrider

Yay to everything! I love reading your news!


----------



## gottatrot

Congratulations!! You make a great couple.


----------



## lostastirrup

I thought I'd do several posts of "cast of characters" / "meet the horses" Nick- I will neglect. Since this is really his thread. And at the end of these- I have a new one to introduce. Anyone want to guess specs? Age? mare/gelding? Color? Breed? 





Horse 1 
"Naomi"
5yo Fidertanz mare out of an Oldenburg/tb. She's lovely and brave and a little hot but she wouldn't be a chestnut mare if she wasn't.


----------



## lostastirrup

Horse 2
"Bruce"
4yo Percheron/TB. he's pretty much the bravest most confident horse Ive ever sat on. And he's super dressagey.


----------



## lostastirrup

Horse 3
"Bowie" 
5ish Clydesdale. Here for a start. Presently the green horse highlight of my day.


----------



## gottatrot

I love them all.


----------



## lostastirrup

Horse #????
The professor himself, FEI schoolmaster Cruisewood. TB/Percheron. The sweetest horse and he makes everything else I sit on better.


----------



## lostastirrup

Horse # 4 or 5

Augie 
6yo kwpn. Looks like Joey from warhorse. Is super sweet and rides like butter. Such a good boy.


----------



## lostastirrup

Remington 
Connemara recovering and building strength after EPM. Maximum pony-tude and talent.


----------



## lostastirrup

Kalisandra 
Kwpn


----------



## lostastirrup

Lizzie 
Kwpn, the only one thus far to have planted me in the earth.


----------



## lostastirrup

How is the pony doing you ask? 
Well. Great piaffe passage. Pirouettes. Lines of changes dicey as sin. I definitely still cry over his antics.


----------



## lostastirrup

*THE NEW HORSE.*
Yep. This one is mine. 
Meet "Dagny" the mostly still feral but we're working on it auction pony project. Arrived untouchable, now is slightly more touchable. She'll sell her soul for sweet feed.


----------



## lostastirrup

*For whom the journal is named. **A* *Nick update.*

Well pony dearest is still doing his thing. The other day the weather was good and we were able to ride outside. And we didn't look grubby so the photos are nice. We have run through the PSG a few times and 4-3 twice. Getting excited for show season. Rideability is key, but he can do all that's asked of him. Piaffe to posting trot has been a magic warmup for him with some passage, he really gets straight, through and submissive. I'm really excited to get him out and do our first season in a tailcoat. Lots of work left to do. But already so far. I'm also including a conformation photo at the end. Looking at his hind end, you can see that this work doesn't come completely easy to him but soundness and training fill in the gaps


----------



## lostastirrup

Just a photo dump. I'm ready for spring weather and shows


----------



## knightrider

What beautiful horses! What a beautiful rider you are!


----------



## lostastirrup

The Dagney story


Well awhile back I did introduce "the new horse" I was looking for a project, kind of like I did with Fletch, something that was: ponyish, cheap, and young. Dagney came from someone who routinely picks up horses at auctions. Dagney was run through loose. She fit the bill- being 5-6 by her teeth, and small in stature. We ran her in the trailer in Wisconsin, wrestled a halter and catch rope on her, wedging her against the wall with the divider, and unloaded her back home into our round pen that attaches to a paddock with two buddies. Since then we've been making her less feral- which meant time in the round pen and a fair amount of bribery. She has not had my focus- because generally I only had about 30minutes I could work with her every day, and often I'd only work with her a few days a week, since in general - I'm sitting on 7-9 horses a day. So it ended up taking a lot longer to get her friendly and halter broke than I would have liked. In the end she sold her soul for sweet feed and since deciding that people aren't quite so bad she's been a delight to start. She had her first ride yesterday. Looking forward to this girl, getting her going, and producing her for sale. 










The day we picked her up in Wisconsin. 









First evening here. I'm sitting in her hay. 









The start of her domestication and change in demeanor to people involved a feed tub. 










She did a little "clicker training" to help her refocus when when wanted to panic and blow past me, so we had a fanny-pack of sweet feed and worked to create a pony that wanted to engage with her person. 









surcingle and standing tied to think. I think she's rather well built. 








along the process, positive attitude, engaging and willing. Learning all about weird things flopping on her back. 



























Quiet, uncomplicated first ride. ​


----------



## knightrider

What a lovely mare! You certainly have an eye for horses.


----------



## lostastirrup

knightrider said:


> What a lovely mare! You certainly have an eye for horses.


Thanks. Though I don't get a lot of credit for her. It was mostly luck. Bought her sight unseen off a few pictures.


----------



## lostastirrup

*Oh right. I got married. Here's some pictures of that.*
*and now we live over a barn. *

*















































































*


----------



## gottatrot

Congratulations!!! How beautiful.


----------



## Txshecat0423

Beautiful photos. I love your dress 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## lostastirrup

Txshecat0423 said:


> Beautiful photos. I love your dress
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thank you! I got it used of of Facebook for pennies really. And it was so me and I loved it. For thousands I could not have asked for anything more fitting or more lovely.


----------



## Dancing Arab

Hi, congratulations! The dress is beautiful. I’m a little late to the discussion and pretty far behind, but I just wanted to say how exciting it is to see a horse with some Arab blood get to some higher level dressage. I’ve got an Arab gelding myself named Galeno and would love nothing more than to take him get to that level. (Unfortunately he’s a little turd (sorry Galeno; love you!) and I’m a trash rider but hey, there’s always room for improvement, right? I never see Arabs at the higher levels so I just wanted go say it’s pretty cool that Nick’s there


----------



## lostastirrup

Dancing Arab said:


> Hi, congratulations! The dress is beautiful. I’m a little late to the discussion and pretty far behind, but I just wanted to say how exciting it is to see a horse with some Arab blood get to some higher level dressage. I’ve got an Arab gelding myself named Galeno and would love nothing more than to take him get to that level. (Unfortunately he’s a little turd (sorry Galeno; love you!) and I’m a trash rider but hey, there’s always room for improvement, right? I never see Arabs at the higher levels so I just wanted go say it’s pretty cool that Nick’s there


Thank you!

If you check out the beginning of this journal you'll see we've taken our meandering time and started out with even less ducks in a row than we have now. If I have any advice- it's "don't let not knowing what you're doing stop you. You never know where going out on a limb and trying something will lead you."
Good to see another Arab person. Do you have a picture of your boy?


----------



## Dancing Arab

lostastirrup said:


> Thank you!
> 
> If you check out the beginning of this journal you'll see we've taken our meandering time and started out with even less ducks in a row than we have now. If I have any advice- it's "don't let not knowing what you're doing stop you. You never know where going out on a limb and trying something will lead you."
> Good to see another Arab person. Do you have a picture of your boy?


Thank you! That’s great advise 
Here’s a picture of Galeno. He’s 11 now… purebreds Spanish Arab


----------



## lostastirrup

*What to expect when you didn't expect to be expecting*
*......I got a 2fer1......*



*
















*



Turns out Dagny is bred. She got her teeth done and the vet thought she looked "suspiciously large" turns out there's one in the oven. So sometime in the next 2ish months I'll have a foal on the ground. 

Any guesses:
Gender?, Color?
I'm not even gonna try to figure breed. I just hope it doesn't have long ears.


----------



## lostastirrup

_*Just more photos. *_








Bruce and Dagny.








Augie 








Dagny








Augie









Naomi








Cruisewood








Nick 








Naomi








Augie 








Augie


----------



## gottatrot

Dagny is dagn cute lol.


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## lostastirrup

gottatrot said:


> Dagny is dagn cute lol.


And hopefully she has a foal just as cute as she is. Fingers crossed for a filly. Would take some chrome if I could and skip the gray gene. But I'll be happy as long as mare and foal are healthy and all goes well.


----------



## Knave

Why did I think you left the forum? The horses look great!


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## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> Why did I think you left the forum? The horses look great!


I take breaks depending on how much time I have. And I pretty much just update my journal and I do a pretty shoddy job of that. But I am still around yes. I love the hf stuff because I can actually look back and see what an equestrian idiot I was- something I expect will be relevant for years to come. Because you know, horses.


----------



## Knave

I like that too. I don’t have a great memory, so it’s also nice for me to be able to see how one horse handled something and what worked when another is in a similar situation. I know it doesn’t translate directly, but it is nice to have a comparison and an idea.

I’m excited about your baby! I also hope it doesn’t have long ears, but then mules are impressive to me. I just don’t really have the need for one and would be stuck selling it, like I imagine you would. You never know, maybe your dream horse is cooking in there. Everything happens for a reason right?!


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## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> I like that too. I don’t have a great memory, so it’s also nice for me to be able to see how one horse handled something and what worked when another is in a similar situation. I know it doesn’t translate directly, but it is nice to have a comparison and an idea.
> 
> I’m excited about your baby! I also hope it doesn’t have long ears, but then mules are impressive to me. I just don’t really have the need for one and would be stuck selling it, like I imagine you would. You never know, maybe your dream horse is cooking in there. Everything happens for a reason right?!


I will say because of horses- I haven't had a boring or typical chapter to my life yet. Some days I'd like one. Somehow I don't see my next GP star cooking in the cheap, of unknown origins auction mare, but you never know. And I've made Nick into a solid little FEI horse, and he's just an obstinate potato with no brakes, so maybe Dagny's get can become something special. That'll be the next interesting chapter. Jace and I were laughing about it- we didn't expect to be expecting so soon after marriage, but here we are.


----------



## lostastirrup

...at work at the collected canter; not a lot of easy questions left to ask.....poor ol Nick.


----------



## Dancing Arab

I absolutely adore how he holds his head😍


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## lostastirrup

Dancing Arab said:


> I absolutely adore how he holds his head😍


How he carries himself has been a work in progress. He's not "born on the bit" or "easy in the connection" and I had no idea how dreadful he was til I got to start riding actually bred-for-dressage horses. Still a lot do work left to do. But a year, two years, and maybe his angry little Arab-self will go do the GP.


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## lostastirrup

Rounder and rounder. In so many ways.

































I'm starting to wonder how I ever missed the very clearly massive pregnant belly.


----------



## lostastirrup

Pony pictures. The PSG is starting to feel smooth. And there's some GP pieces getting fancy. He really gets the idea of piaffe passage. And the pirouettes are fun.


----------



## lostastirrup

The very advanced Nick working on pirouettes and the very green Dagny working on exceedingly complex things such as turning and stopping. 

(But seriously this mare is so freaking adorable it makes me so happy)


----------



## Knave

Dagny looks exceptional! She looks about equal to Queen in her pregnancy, but I know Dagny is further along. Or I guess anyways, since we both have accidental pregnancies!


----------



## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> Dagny looks exceptional! She looks about equal to Queen in her pregnancy, but I know Dagny is further along. Or I guess anyways, since we both have accidental pregnancies!


I wonder who will foal first. This is my first mare- and I'm honestly not a person who has any desire to breed. So it should be interesting. She's actually a very nicely put together horse, so depending on the sire could be something decent. But I can't say this is how I had in mind for this project horse to go.


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## Knave

I’d bet Dagny does. Queen is, according to the test, more around the 5 month mark. I know what you mean!


----------



## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> I’d bet Dagny does. Queen is, according to the test, more around the 5 month mark. I know what you mean!


We aren't sure how far along she is. I guess we'll see when the foal shows up.


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## Knave

Don’t you hate that! Lol. It is nice with Lucy to know exactly when she was bred.


----------



## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> Don’t you hate that! Lol. It is nice with Lucy to know exactly when she was bred.


I thought about "investigating further" and getting a better idea- but to my mind it changes nothing since her turnout situation is drylot with alfalfa until she starts to bag up and it will just have been money spent for curiosity


----------



## Knave

That’s where I am too. The pee test I used to see if she was pregnant was 14$ after shipping, and it is supposed to show a general idea of where they are at. I kinda had an idea, and that’s what it showed, but I really don’t know. All I wanted was the verification of if she was bred.


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## lostastirrup

Just more photos. 
First show of the year this weekend.


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## knightrider

You ride so beautifully and the horses are so beautiful. I just love it when you put up lots of pictures!


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## Txshecat0423

The word that comes to mind when I see your photos is “elegant”…just a beautiful pairing, no matter which horse you’re on!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## lostastirrup

Show pictures
A couple green horse moments for Augie and Naomi and poor Lizzie was too overwhelmed by the atmosphere to make a good showing of herself- but she did some lovely schooling.


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## lostastirrup

How my two are doing.


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## lostastirrup

Show photos. And the PSG coming up this weekend. 



Show this last weekend. Finished out my scores for my bronze medal on Augie. He did well even scoring some 70s. Goal is some 75s this season. 
Got my I1 scores on CW for my gold. Plan is to rest him until we're ready to do the GP (well until I am- those darn ones. ) 



Bronze medal horses:
Augie -1st level 
Cruiser- 2nd level (way back in 2015 in Alaska when I first joined this forum actually) 
Nick- 3rd level at Pony cup last year. PSG for him this weekend. Wish us luck. 









Augie 








Cruiser 








Nick 





Photos from the I1 with Cruisewood 










































And Augie Pictures because he's a tall handsome drink of water.


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## lostastirrup

And some Dagny photos from yesterday. 
She is such a good girl.


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## lostastirrup

A good Kentucky show. 
Augie was a star the whole weekend. 
Nick put in some serviceable tests and we had some duds either from rider error or pony-sass. I hovered around the 59.something something. Which was very frustrating. (We did actually get one sixty at 4-3, so one score done for my silver) But for a horse that's green to the level and it being his first show of the year and second rated show ever I was contented with his PSG debut. He has some dressage trouble that comes with being mostly arab- doing the extensions without trailing the haunches is hard, and really he's not such a stellar mover that we can afford mistakes. And mistakes we had. My last test I rode the PSG into 4-3 and went off course- twice. The left pirouette was more of a spinny-rollback, but by the third day I had control of it better. Its funny at home you can school and make allowances and make sure you're set up perfectly and if you run through a test and it's not perfect you can shrug it off. Centerlines are brutally honest. And going in and doing the FEI work on a horse you made yourself is so revealing. There can be no desperate. There can be no good enough. So I am so glad we got out. And after the weekend I feel like I have a much better handle on how I should school and train for the next show. We were so close to my goal- and I made such improvements in how we rode the test and my comfort-level with the work that I feel more driven and excited for our next trips down centerline.


----------



## lostastirrup

And some green horses. I've been doing a lot of starts lately and these have been the "fruits"

Dagny- you know. 


















Rhia- friesian/Belgian


























Presley- Percheron/paint


























Edit- 
I'll talk a little about head position on green horses. Obviously all these photos are of "aesthetic moments" they're pretty. The horses are round. They are learning to do the beginnings of the thing we call dressage. But none of them are really taking the connection yest and moving through like we want as an endgame. And that's okay. They're learning to turn, stop, bend and give to pressure AND do all this while trying to balance with a rider. All hard green horse stuff. Its okay that in between is inconsistent. Its a process. 

Dagny- is built downhill and her nature is to suck back and do transitions on her forehand. Getting her to lift and go out to the bridle without running off is the work. She is a lovely mover- but we will have to work to make her steps slower and for her to come more from behind. 

Rhia- is actually pretty gifted and good in the connection. She also prefers to curl, but she spends more time pushing to the bit than the other two- she is also the best built for the work out of all of them, and she has the best disposition and nature. 

Presley is the greenest under saddle. He was a bit frustrating to get going but has turned out lovely. Very elastic through his body and gaits. But doesn't have the strength to hold himself up yet. 

All these horses need to develop, get stronger and learn to carry themselves. it's not meant to be perfect yet.


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## lostastirrup

The next batch of green beans. I must admit I'm a little overrun with green horses I can't pawn off on someone else to ride, Dagny and Presley aren't yet broke enough, Rhia had her first ride with her owner yesterday (she will remain in training for a long time) And I have three that are just now getting going that I will introduce. The bay is one I am helping the other assistant trainer do her first start on. The other two are mine to do. And I have another sitting in the field to come in and break whenever I have time. I ride about 9-10 a day and squeezing in the time for the green beans is hard. 


Opal- by Gaspard (spelling?) A Kwpn by Ravel, out of a Percheron/TB/Kwpn. Really lovely disposition, so correct and with good bone and a lovely lovely mover-. 

























Eduardo- by El Mistico a PRE stallion by a 3/4 perch, 1/4 TB mare. This one is my favorite. I love his size and conformation and he is so willing. First day in the round pen with 0 fireworks 

























Oralee- by Gaspard again, out of a perch/TB mare. A little stubborn. Very elegant mover and super confident. 


































There's a Belgian/PRE still in the field "Emerson" who will come in and get broke at some point this summer.


----------



## lostastirrup

_*END OF SUMMER WRAP UP*_
_The shows, the young horses, the surprises, all that and a bag of potato chips_

Well. It's been a busy summer, hence why almost nothing has been posted here. All in all the theme is gratefulness, I'm doing my dream and I love it. I have shown so much and I'm starting to learn how to be a competitor and a test rider- which is I'm finding to be a little different than a horse trainer. I worked through a pile of young horses this summer and either they're still on my dance card or they've been passed along to other riders when they're ready for a less experienced rider. Dagny at long last had her Colt. And he's two weeks old now. In spite of not being the filly with chrome I whispered into her belly, we love him, and I'm excited to go down the long eared journey. Nick was briefly for sale, until I decided I hated dealing with the kind of buyers that buy FEI horses and every barn brat that hovers around our arena begged me to keep him- he's made himself a little lesson horse, and the kids love to hit the piaffe and the change buttons. He was up for sale for personal reasons. The husband is quite sick, and what he's listed for is not something to sneeze at. But things have worked out, and he is remaining.
and in other news I have a bit of a surprise coming up. Things are in the works. 
alright. Photo albums:
horse summer








Just a horse filled summer


95 new items added to shared album




photos.app.goo.gl





Horse shows








And the horse shows


79 new items added to shared album




photos.app.goo.gl





welcome kyle








Welcome Kyle


98 new items added to shared album




photos.app.goo.gl





Nick's sales album and video








Borrowed Knickers- GRP/Arab gelding 14hh


131 new items added to shared album




photos.app.goo.gl


----------



## gottatrot

Kyle is cute! What a surprise!!


----------



## Linoone

@lostastirrup 

No Halloween birthday, but I'm pleased to see that the little guy came out with longears after all, lol!


----------



## knightrider

You know, in every single picture, you just look lovely. Such a great seat and beautiful position. I sure enjoyed seeing it all. Thanks for sharing.


----------



## ClearDonkey

I'm glad you've been able to hold onto Nick - you and he are such a great example for someone with a non-traditional dressage breed (_cough cough me)_ to follow. I'm pretty sure I chatter my head off to my coach at least once a month about you and all the crazy cool things you've posted. You make my dreams feel possible, and I thank you for that!

I'm also excited for little Kyle! Love those long ears. Planning on dressage someday with him?


----------



## lostastirrup

Your calling might be a horse trainer if this horse is described as "fun"










One of my favorites (I'm not kidding, she is), who came with the bucking-launch-head toss pre-installed for when the work becomes mildly distressing for her delicate warmblood sensibilities.

A lucky picture. Usually her shenanigans are so abrupt that the camera doesn't come up fast enough.


----------



## lostastirrup

*WELCOME TO THE REMUDA
PINEAPPLE
🍍



































*

3yo crossbred pony gelding, he will be started under saddle, hopefully lightly shown (pony cup mayhaps) and produced for sale. 
🍍​


----------



## lostastirrup

*2022 Dressage Finals
🌨 ❄ 🥶 ❄ 🌨*​_We qualified at regionals in region 2 for nationals for first level freestyle with Augie, and had a chilly miserable weather wonderful weekend. It's been so cool to see this horse develop from a green bean to a seasoned campaigner. Alongside a 10th place finish (yay! We got to gallop around the Altech ring!) We also debuted 2nd level for a solid 66% from a difficult judge. Really pleased with the end to the show season, and excited to be back home for the winter with homework like half steps and flying changes. I'll be glad to take a break from shows and focus on the young horses and polishing up the trained horses. I'm so lucky I get to do this , so grateful that this opportunity came my way and for the people and horses that are in my team. 15yo me trotting around a ring in AK would not have believed it would be possible to hit all the milestones we hit this year:
-showed 7 horses this year
-qualifed and showed 4 horses at regionals 
-ribboned on my first trip to nationals 
-got my bronze medal
-competed my own horse (Nick) into the FEI 
-showed Prix St George, Intermediare 1 and Grand Prix: earning scores towards my silver and my gold medal 
it's been a year I'll remember for sure. _


*















































































*​


----------



## ClearDonkey

So happy for you! I was bummed that they were only streaming the tests in Altech... I was on the fence about driving down to watch for the weekend, figured the stream would keep me out of the cold, only to not be able to watch the tests I wanted to see. Oh well.

Planning on competing again next year? Fingers crossed we'll be able to cross paths.


----------



## lostastirrup

ClearDonkey said:


> So happy for you! I was bummed that they were only streaming the tests in Altech... I was on the fence about driving down to watch for the weekend, figured the stream would keep me out of the cold, only to not be able to watch the tests I wanted to see. Oh well.
> 
> Planning on competing again next year? Fingers crossed we'll be able to cross paths.


It was a miserable spectator weekend if you were outside. But the Altech was warm and the upper level freestyles were amazing. Goals for the future. Everything is more fun with flying changes in it. I'm planning to compete next year, we'll probably be in your neck of the woods a little bit. Maybe we can do some planning and meet up at a show. I'd love to see your little Morgan mare go.


----------



## knightrider

I don't think anyone deserves it more than you do! Congratulations!!!


----------



## lostastirrup

_*A few extra nationals photos from the last day:
















































































*_


----------



## lostastirrup

Dagny is back to work, with Kyle coming along. She was super for having months off. Twirled her around for a half minute on the lunge, swung up and away we went. She didn't miss a beat and is just lovely. I have so missed riding this mare. She's just perfect. Sensible, forward and so confident. I will be sad when it comes time to sell her.


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## lostastirrup

Pineapple is getting well used to all the accoutrements of a riding horse. He may have inspired the purchase of a new colt-start saddle that I used on both him and Dagny yesterday- a 16.5" Antares monoflap dressage saddle. Got it for a song because of some cosmetic damage, but I like how close it sits to the horse and how secure on the back it is- which is what my other dressage saddle lacks (it's lovely but it's panels put the rider farther from the back and it's hard to get clear of because of the deep seat and the blocks should things get hairy).


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## Txshecat0423

@lostastirrup, why does Dagny have to be sold?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## lostastirrup

Txshecat0423 said:


> @lostastirrup, why does Dagny have to be sold?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I purchased her as project horse for resale, not to keep long term. It is satisfyingly to progress a horse from not remotely accessible to the average individual to something that a variety of people can ride and enjoy. Sometimes you're not a forever home and that's okay.


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## Linoone

lostastirrup said:


> I will be sad when it comes time to sell her.


Will Kyle be sold with Dagny or do you intend to keep him as a long-term project? Just curious.


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## lostastirrup

Linoone said:


> Will Kyle be sold with Dagny or do you intend to keep him as a long-term project? Just curious.


I honestly haven't decided yet. I'm in a place with all my horses that if the right situation came up, I would sell. My question with Kyle is if I want to raise him and break him myself, or if I want to sell him before he's broke to ride. I'm still doing my research on mules and going with the flow. Nobody is finding a new home until they're respectable equine good citizens though.


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## ClearDonkey

lostastirrup said:


> I honestly haven't decided yet. I'm in a place with all my horses that if the right situation came up, I would sell. My question with Kyle is if I want to raise him and break him myself, or if I want to sell him before he's broke to ride. I'm still doing my research on mules and going with the flow. Nobody is finding a new home until they're respectable equine good citizens


This is probably a loaded question, but do you know what your long-term equine plans are? I started following your journey when it was with Nick and the toaster trailer, and now look where you are!


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## lostastirrup

ClearDonkey said:


> This is probably a loaded question, but do you know what your long-term equine plans are? I started following your journey when it was with Nick and the toaster trailer, and now look where you are!


Loosely I'm planning to continue to show and compete. Dagny and Pineapple and eventually Kyle will all move on to new homes unless something drastic happens (ie Nick dies, knock on wood). And Im starting to look for a coming up prospect to move up the levels as Nick is hitting his twilight. I'm not against either Dagny or Pineapple being the next prospect, but in all likelihood they will be for sale when they're somewhere around 1st or 2nd level and very rideable; furnishing me with the funds for upgrading my rig (I bought a used gooseneck, and am keeping an eye out for the appropriate truck).










Career-wise, I'm staying out at this barn for awhile yet. Too many irons in the fire to leave and I really like it here and what I get to do. I have goals. My silver and gold medals all are about halfway earned and I want to see those through.


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## Knave

Although I personally think it would be fun to start and ride a mule, I probably wouldn’t do it. It’s not practical for me. I feel from the outside that it’s not practice for you. Lol


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## lostastirrup

Knave said:


> Although I personally think it would be fun to start and ride a mule, I probably wouldn’t do it. It’s not practical for me. I feel from the outside that it’s not practice for you. Lol


I am torn between the fact that it would be a super learning experience and I'd have fun doing it, and it would be 3 years before I can start to think about it, that long of a time investment in a horse that if I'm honest isn't in line with my goals in the industry. And of course a mule trainer who's done mules far more than I have will probably do Kyle a greater service than I will. So lots to think about.


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## Palfrey

Love the photos from Nationals. Not many people use drop nosebands anymore, cool to see one in use.


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## lostastirrup

Palfrey said:


> Love the photos from Nationals. Not many people use drop nosebands anymore, cool to see one in use.


Thanks! My trainer takes them. I love the drop on Augie. I think using them started as a Spanish riding school thing- but I much prefer them to a Cavesson and flash.


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## lostastirrup

Putting it out there- I'm running an HF gift exchange again this year. Would love to have a few more participants, it was super fun last time. 









2022 Horse forum US/Canada Gift Exchange anyone?


Great questionnaire @lostastirrup! LOLOL




www.horseforum.com


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## lostastirrup

*First ride for Pineapple! I really like this pony!*

_I did far more ground work with him than I usually do to get on, I just felt like he needed a few more questions answered to be confident when I threw a leg over. So he's been doing lots of lunging, in hand work and yielding as well as desensitization. Really happy with him. He got a little worried and broncy for a minute but settled right down. Good pony! I'm excited to develop him. _
_































































_​


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## lostastirrup

*And then miscellaneous fall ponies *​


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## gottatrot

Oh, I love, love the ponies!!


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## lostastirrup

gottatrot said:


> Oh, I love, love the ponies!!


Me too. This is a cool one. Did his 3rd ride today and everyday am more impressed. He is as close as I've ever bought to a horse that wants to do dressage. I'm really really excited to pilot him and show him.


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## lostastirrup

*More Pineapple 🍍:
He's a really bright little horse. A great mover- I look over in the mirror like "geez this is an expensive German riding pony!- not a questionable origins something or other!" 
























































*


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## lostastirrup

*I Sold my Good horse.*

This is kinda an interesting post. A few posts back- I mentioned putting Nick up for sale for personal reasons. Well. I left his ad up, because you never know what's going to come along and I've had to come to terms with the idea that if this is going to be my livelihood- my horses will be for sale. Even the very first one. So if you haven't read in by now- Nick sold and he left for a new home. He's going to be a schoolmaster for a lady who wants to learn to ride 4th level on up. Its bittersweet- I'm sad to see him go, and I feel like I'm waving goodbye to what could have been my Grand Prix horse; but at the same time I'm proud of how far he's come, how accessible his training is to the average rider, and how reliable and elegant in the work he is. And when my truck is trying to commit suicide and there's bills and everything else I have standing in mud is either green with four rides or green with a foal at her side- it was Nick who I had as an option. And in all honesty it's okay. He's going to start to creep into old age in a few years, is a bit of a delicate flower already, and I am not at a place in my life that I can promise him maintenance into old age. I'd wanted to someday put my future kids on him- torturing them as his geriatric Arabian butt hauled them around the ring at mach ten. But my life is headed a different direction. I have young mares in training who are knocking on the door of 3rd and fourth level, I have my own projects who bring their own talent, and I have the skills I have learned along the way on the Nick adventure. That doesn't go away. I have been paid twice. The check in hand, and the experience and learning I've gained. And I cried. I cried last night thinking of him not being right outside, not seeing his pert nonplussed expression in the crossties, not playing with his lovely changes and showing off his piaffe machine abilities. But that's selfish. He is headed to a far better situation than I could have offered. And I have it under good authority that he will be spoiled beyond belief. I'm going to move on, but I cannot forget every opportunity I found while riding him, every way he pushed me to persist when I didn't think we'd ever do a line of changes without running into a mirror, when I really wasn't sure if he'd ever sit enough to pirrouette. We got there. And I'm better because of it. I'm going to miss him- but I have chosen this industry and every kind of heartbreak that comes with it; and I think it's going to actually be okay. Off to the next adventure. His understudies have big little hooves to fill.


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## ClearDonkey

Your journey with Nick was incredible to follow, and I know the journey that he has helped pave for you will be just if not more incredible. All good thoughts headed your way in this time of change!


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## egrogan

How bittersweet. Glad for Nick to be heading somewhere you feel great about - but sorry for you to lose a friend.


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## gottatrot

I feel exactly like @egrogan. I'm sure you'll keep in touch with Nick and follow how he is doing too.


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## lostastirrup

With Nick gone it's a little different, but no shortage of equines to develop. And we have a nearly pony in for winter training again (he comes every winter) pineapple 🍍 is a lovely prospect. He has a tendency to want to come behind the bridle and not come through as he's still figuring out balance and coordination. But as he gets stronger he should come to be a lovely little pony. We have aims that if all goes well he'll get out and show a little bit.


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## lostastirrup

*A Very Merry Christmas to all!*
*❄ 🎄 ❄*

*enjoy pineapple's glamour shots. Dagny and Kyle were not to be disturbed from their round bale. *
*







































*​


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## lostastirrup

*2022 Year in Review*

*January







*
returned from getting married in Montana, came back pedal to the metal getting horses going after the new year. I had Bowie the Clydesdale and the menagerie that ended up being my show string this year. Dagny was just starting to be maybe occasionally touchable. 
*February *
*







*
Starting to think hard about my Future FEI rides on Cruisewood, had some lovely horses in training and in between the bitter cold I had a lot of fun. just starting to see the talent in Augie which he carried through the whole year. 

*March*
*







*
Finally swung a leg over Dagny at long last after so long of working on getting her remotely halter broke and touchable. I think I went through a bag of sweet feed getting the girl friendly. Otherwise just pushing through Midwest winter and riding good horses.​


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## lostastirrup

*April







*
We got a patch of spring in March and cured the cabin fever with riding outside. Getting to fall in love with riding the lovely mare Naomi, progressing Dagny. Bowie went back home, and the lovely Rhia got going under saddle. 

*May








*
A few more colt starts. My FEI debut on CW, showed in the Rolex for the first time. Showed Nick FEI (PSG) and did a few more colt starts. Also did my first freestyle. 

*June







*
It was hot! Rode good horses and a few shows. I think at this point I knew Dagny was pregnant.​


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## lostastirrup

*July







*
Thick of show season. Nick did a few more PSGs couple good mares qualified for regionals. Dagny continued her education as a very fat riding horse. 

*August







*
Even. More. Shows. Debuted the Grand Prix with CW. Got the handsome Eddie going well undersaddle before he hit a growth spurt and was quite butt high for awhile. 

*September







*
Regionals. Qualified Augie for nationals. Enjoying the Vitalis kid "Victor". Bruce left for a new home. I think I'd stopped riding Dagny at this point. She was so fat. 

*October 







*
We welcomed Kyle. Nick was put up for sale. Enjoyed the quick break between regionals and nationals. 

*November 







*
Bought pineapple. Went to nationals and ribboned on Augie. Good horses. Ready to rest after show season. And excited to do it all again. 


*December







*
Nick left for a new home, a sad but good goodbye. My brother came to visit. Taking this year's horses and starting to step them up to the next level. So a winter ahead of teaching changes in prep for 2023 show season. Pineapple turns out to be a very fancy little horse. 



_*that's my year in review. Bit of a fly-by. Nice to look back and see all the changes. Good and bad. All the hard work. All the hours. On to 2023.*_​


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## gottatrot

I loved the year in review! What was Dagny doing in July where she was rearing? LOL


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## lostastirrup

gottatrot said:


> I loved the year in review! What was Dagny doing in July where she was rearing? LOL


There was a tiny ditch that she had strong feeling about. We worked through it. But some of the photos from it were hilarious. The lovely brown mare beside her is acting as a barrier.


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## lostastirrup

More of PA









































And the beautiful Naomi


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