Finally: Some Play Time!

I finally got to play with Sonny today. I think it has been at least two weeks since the last time we did anything. I could definitely tell, but I don't think he minded.

It's been really muddy lately but we still were able to use the outdoor. We splashed through the puddles had a good time making a mess. I got on bareback and bridleless, and actually savvystringless because it was covered in wet sand from playing online. His warm up was pretty good online and he was being super responsive when I was on him. I didn't feel the need to push for anything and there wasn't anything specific I wanted to work on so we headed out to the big open field.

I think that was my first time riding him outside in the field without at least a savvy string around his neck. He was perfect. We cantered and trotted and did figure 8's and quick stops. Anything I wanted it was there.

My favorite thing from today was after my ride. Out in the field I got off and walked him back to the arena to get my things I left there. All the way back to the arena we had to go through grass. I played spot to spot, which I normally do. But the weird thing was: he didn't put up a fight. Every time I walked off he walked with me, no questions asked. Which is so strange for my food obsessed LBI. I am pretty sure he has never stopped eating to walk with me without there being any motivation on my part. Normally I have to use my carrot stick (or leadrope when I am not at liberty). S it completely blew my mind that he just stopped eating and walked with me. It was so relaxing to not have to worry about asking him to walk with me; he just did it. It was definitely the most enjoyable walk we have ever had together :).

Galloping through the field bareback and halterless :).

Level 1 With Excellence

I have often heard people say level 4 is just level 1 with excellence. So every time I play with Sonny I try to run a checklist through my head of the seven games and what type of quality they are. Less is more with Sonny, so I have been trying to focus on one idea per play session to really improve our overall horsemanship. Rather than focusing on everything at once, picking a piece to focus on makes a really great picture when you put it all back together. Isolate, separate, and recombine!

I could tell he was very, very sleepy so I wanted to make it short, sweet, and successful. I took his halter off and used my bareback pad for the first time in a while (I forgot how much I adore it!). I had two poles on the ground laying in a straight line with a gap between them. I made the gap my 'question box' and we did figure 8's around them. Here is how it went:

Emily Rodgers with Sonny, (Freestyle, 45 mins) Rode Sonny bridlelessand bareback today for the first time in a long while. He was so sleepy, but absolutely wonderful! I focused on "phases within phases", influencing him to respond to the "heat" of my leg, rather than actual pressure from my leg. My aim was to get him to focus on my focus, so to have him respond to phase one for direction. He did awesome! Before I knew it we were trotting figure 8s without having to use almost any leg at all. Definitely made me happy. The best part: he was flexed perfectly! For some reason flexion has been a difficult thing for us, but today he was flexed perfectly on the figure 8! Best he has ever done. He is such a superstar!

Fri 12 Oct 2012 at 08:52PM

I was absolutely thrilled with our ride last night. Just last month I posted about our freestyle figure 8s needing work because he just waits for me to use my leg. It blew my mind that last night he was so great about it! But more than anything, I definitely couldn't have been happier with his flexing. Bending around my leg is something he has never offered to do. I am not sure what clicked last night, but it was definitely something because he was flexed perfectly! I would have died to have that with my dressage horses with a bridle, let alone without. How interested! I can't wait to try it again!

Good Day

Creative title, eh? But, that is exactly how I feel.

Today I got to play with Neblina and ride both Allegra and Sonny. Yay :).

Neblina was really good. Her follow the feel is getting so much better, but her porcupine game is still not very good. I am trying to decide if I need a better phase 4 or more motivation? Hmmm. I put the saddle on her for the first time today! We played lots of friendly game and approach and retreat so it went so well! Such a superstar.

Represent ;).

Alllegra was fabulous. The best ride we have had together by far! We definitely 'clicked' today :). I love her so much!

Sonny and I also had a really good day! I played for a second online; he asked so many questions and gave me great faces! I LOVE it! Also, he jumped a single barrel..twice :). So, so proud of him!!! That was a huge accomplishment for us. I got on bareback and bridleless and played with my phases for direction. I realized I rely on my legs a lot. Although its great that I don't have to use my carrot stick or reins, I really shouldn't have to use as much leg as I do. He finally understood it was his job to stay on the circle at the walk and trot and did great! The canter was much harder. After he put effort into staying on the circle for a stride or two I stopped and he immediately licked and chewed. I stopped there :).

Snappy

Today was lesson six with Parelli Professional Juli Piovesan. She is leaving soon for the externship, so I am really glad we got to squeeze in one last lesson before she goes. I bet she will have a wonderful time, but we sure will miss her!

We started out on the 45' today; my first time playing with it in front of someone. She said we were off to a good start, but pointed out a few areas that would be good to work on. One was bringing him in to me; we have been trying to focus on it lately but he is still having trouble following the feel. She noted that I am not able to run up to him in any zone to play the friend'y game; in order to have him be more confident trotting towards me, I should practice the running friendly game. Makes sense!

Another point she brought up is that if I can't get responsiveness on a 12' line or 22', then it won't come on the 45'. Duh. Just like how we test everything online before we ride, I should test responsiveness at a shorter distance before trying it on the 45'. Lightbulb! We played with the 'snappy game' that she showed me a few lessons ago. Although this time it wasn't so much about the back as it was about the response. Again, I need to make things a game! Although Sonny was backing from phase 1, he wasn't putting very much effort in at all. So I did a really subtle phase 1, 2, 3, don't make me move my feet, phase 4! After a few of those, he stood at attention and gave me a really great face. Huh, how interesting!

Along with that, she encouraged me to start playing more with his faces. Again with backing, back him up until he asks a question or has a better face, then reward. I need to make backing seem like something other than a punishment, which I feel like might be how he interperates it.

Finally we played with some sideways. After the snappy game, he was really focused on me. We went sideways his bad direction and it was beautiful! He went so far and barely went forward. Definitely out best sideways that way. So exciting!

After that I got on and we played with all of the same concepts. Being snappy and responsive. He was totally focused on eating, zero attention on me as we followed the rail. We transitioned to sideways game along the rail. Juli wanted me to focus on seeing how he responded to each of my phases. In the beginning he was just "nom nom nom" grass!! After a few minutes, we had him thinking sideways after I only shifted my weight, and he stopped eating. Huh, how interesting!

From there we played with a figure 8 to help improve his transitions. It really helped me figure out our strengths and our weaknesses. Perfect timing to be able to address those weaknesses before our clinic this weekend!

Now I am itching to go ride and play with all the things we covered today!

Smart is the New Black

I received two packages in the mail this week: both item's were black in color. When you put together the whole picture, black and purple look so good together ;).

The first item to arrive was my Smart pad! Next was new, black stirrups. These were the kind I used to have with my dressage horses, but I just went with cheap ones when I got my wintec. Now that I have a great saddle, a really nice pad, and am riding more, I thought better stirrups would be a good investment.

My phone is on its death beg, which is why the photo
is so awful. But you can see my pad and new stirrups!

Turns out I was right! Yesterday I rode with both my smart pad and new stirrups. The stirrups are a lot nicer than the old ones because the bend, allowing you to really stretch your heals down. I had no idea how much they helped until I rode in them after using non-bendy ones for so long. They were so nice; really made me whole lower leg so much more comfortable.

The pad was great, too! I am not sure if it has to do with his feet, the red light, or just the saddle pad in general, but my saddle felt so secure today. Yesterday was my first day riding since Jesse helped me with all of the above, so I can't tell what the variable is. Regardless, the smart pad is a keeper!

I forgot my shims, but not a huge deal with the same pad! Had I forgotten them with my theraflex, the dry spots would have been atrocious. But, even without shims, and a very light sweat, he only had a minor dry spot behind his withers. How cool is that? I am going to try to play with shim patterns next week and will post my findings here.

Sonny must have been pretty happy about the pad and stirrups (okay, maybe not he stirrups), too, because he was fantastic! One of the best rides we have had. I was planning on trail riding down the lane to the road that my new farm is on, but that didn't work out. As we road down the lane, Sonny was calm, responsive, and forward. He wasn't trying to eat grass, he followed the trail (the road) better than ever before (maybe is has to do with all the follow the rail we have been doing lately?), and was overall just a joy to ride. On the one side at the end of the lane is a mess of trees; in those trees is a bunch of garbage, mostly old tree trunks, branches, tires, etc. Needless to say, Sonny usually get's a little on edge as we go by there because everyone knows mountain lions hide in tree piles in Ohio. Yesterday, he barely looked twice. We walked all the way to almost the end of the road without even a flinch; he just followed the trail! I was ecstatic! Towards the end of the lane I saw a Doberman, who in-turn saw us. He was barking madly and I wasn't sure the fence around him was sturdy so we headed back; I wasn't going to risk ruining all of the great things Sonny was offering me to get chased by a huge dog. So we headed back and rode around the front yard.

He was being so good; he was oddly relaxed and maintaining this beautiful gait, at the trot and canter. He loves to blast around when we are outside but he was being so great yesterday! I played with circles and figure 8's around the trees and he really put effort into the patterns. I used the lines in the lawn to practice straightness and overally just tried to keep him interested and guessing what was coming next.

I ended the day with some canter serpentines. I used to do them all the time with my dressage horses, but never with Sonny. My intention was to just practice a combination of a) picking up the correct leads based on my body position and b) to practice turns without using my reins. The turns were a bit of a challenge, but when we made big, wide ones I didn't have to use my reins. But, the transitions were fabulous! We were going canter-walk-canter, picking up what ever lead I wanted, without using reins or barely any leg. Awesome! So excited about how our freestyle is coming along. Most importantly, I am completely enjoying it. I have never loved riding so much. I hope Sonny feel's the same!

Summer breeze.

It's Rides Like These

Today I had a really, really good ride with Sonny. We have always had trouble with freestyle, but I feel like something really 'clicked' today. 

It started yesterday, when I rode in my new bareback pad for the first time. Love it. I don't know how i lived without it? Anyways, when I first got on Sonny yesterday he was slightly obnoxious; he was pulling the leadrope out of my hands, diving down to eat grass, blasting around as fast as he could, and overall just not being a very good partner. Like usual, I put my hands of my ears and "la la la la" pretended that it was okay. After a little bit I thought to myself 'would an alpha mare allow this?' Of course not! So why was I? I then made it a point to be a good leader and the change was immediate. 

Purple! 

I was more particular about every single thing I did. When I wanted to him walk (even if he was eating grass), he needed to start listening to phase 1 or else he got a quick 2, 3, and an actual 4, not just a 3.25. Before I knew it, he was walking off when I smiled with all four cheeks. He doesn't even do that in the arena, let alone while he is eating grass. Huh, how interesting! 

So today I started off online with the bridle on. He is getting really good about seeking the bit; even after I take it off he tries to grab it again :). But there is still some unconfidence with it on. He knows how to respond to pressure on it, but chops every once in a while. So today I just left it on him while I did everything: grooming, while he ate grass, while I played online, and for the first time in a long time, while I rode. I am still not 100% positive this was a good idea; I could have easily blew his trust/confidence. But, I thought back to level 1. When you first introduce the carrot stick, you take it everywhere until it becomes a part of you and your horse. You do the same with the 45' line in level 3. So I thought I might as well apply the same theory to the bridle. I won't use reins with it until he is confident, but until that point I want it to be just like a second halter. 

Grooming while the bridle is on.

Once I got on, he walked off when I smiled with all four cheeks, even though he was eating grass (insert huge grin here). I had set up four cones as a question box in the middle of the arena. I started my ride off with that to get him interested. The first thing I did was move his hindend around to face a different direction in the box. I realized when I put my leg on, he marched his big butt right around without moving an inch forward and I didn't use reins or have to use my carrot stick. Whaaaaaat? (insert shocked face here). Since when is my horse so responsive? Of course I went on to test the other direction, his bad way. Again, he marched right around without even thinking a hair forward. Now I was really blown away. He always associates leg with some kind of forward and I always have to use my stick to remind him that it doesn't. So today it finally clicked that leg does not mean go. Win :). 

I went on to play with the question box, the clover leaf pattern, and follow the rail. All of the above were better than ever before. It obviously stems from our new found knowledge of left not meaning go. For the first time ever, I could guide him at a trot and canter with my leg without going faster. Before, he would be fine at the walk, but in the trot and canter he would just blast forward whenever I put let on. Today he put effort into the question box without being rude and diving towards it. The clover leaf pattern was next to perfect; I could use just my eyes, belly button, and leg to do an entire clover leaf at the walk, and only minimal carrot stick at the trot. Then, for the first time ever, he actually put effort into following the rail today. For some reason that has been a huge problem for us. Today I could do entire laps at the trot in the huge outdoor with only 1 correction per lap. Wow! We even started follow the rail at the canter and made it down one long side without any corrections. That is HUGE for us (since normally he just blasts around and pretends to be a race horse/cutter/reiner/bronco). 

It's rides like these that reassure me that we our on the right track and our freestyle will be exactly where I want it to be if I keep up the perfect practice. It is really easy to see someone riding (um, Kalley Krickeberg, anyone? Her spotlight at the Tour was truly unbelievable) and be discouraged about where you are with your own riding. But, the last two days made me feel confident that we are on our way! Before you know it, we will be exactly where I envision us, it just takes time and perfect practice. 

Sorry for the book, but I was just thrilled with everything tonight. I am so excited with where we are and where we are going. Good, better, best, never let it rest! 

 Oh, how I love him. 

Yee-Haw!

Sonny and I had a fabulous ride today! Even though it was hot, he was surprisingly active.

We warmed up online and went sideways over the barrel twice. It was only his good direction, but it is a start!

I haven't rode in my saddle lately so I got on and walked around a bit to get adjusted. I really wanted to focus on transitions because his downward transitions have been really slacking lately. During my walk warm up I really monitored my breathing and energy and that seemed to help a lot.

Once I got into the trot he started getting a bit frisky and pulling his normal "I am going canter and dive into the middle of the area so you stop me". I always push him forward, but usually that behavior upsets me so much. Today, I didn't let it bother me at all. I put a smile on my face and YEE HAW off we went! I really pushed him and played a passenger lesson. Thankfully, I have a really good seat. I felt like we were bouncing off of walls and going all different directions but surprisingly, I enjoyed it. Normally I like to go back to my dressage background and hope for a collected canter along the rail and get upset when that isn't how it is. Today was the total opposite: we had cutting horse moves as he dashed to one side of the wall at the last second (sightly scary, with a touch of adrenaline). I think the fact that I was able to laugh it off and hang on made it not so fun anymore because it didn't take long for him to relax into this beautiful canter. Huh. How interesting!

After calming down we had some great trot circles using my only my carrot stick! Hopefully canter circles are in our future. I will be anxious to see how he is the next time I ride!

Such a happy face ;). 

Weekend Warriors

Last weekend I decided to take Sonny over to my boyfriend's house for a few days. I had been planning on it for a while, but it was supposed to rain all weekend so I gave up on the idea. Last minute, I decided to tough it out and make it work. It was my last chance to ride in the fields before they planted crops and I had the weekend off anyways so I figured, why not?

My view from Stephen's window.

We didn't plan it out very well; I'll know better next time. We got there late Friday night and it had just started raining, so I kept him in the "stall" Stephen set up. Stephen has a 3 sided barn where he gated off an area about 30x15. In the back he piled straw and we kept his buckets in the front. Sonny didn't seem to mind the stall, but I think he was worried about being alone.

I got up Saturday really early and let him out in the field. He seemed to do better then, but was still looking around a lot and not very relaxed. Around noon I went out to play with him even though it was raining; I figured the more I got his mind working the better off he would be. The rain had made everything slightly muddy and very, very chilly. Within 20 minutes we were wet, dirty, and cold. This had turned out to be such an awful idea! What was I thinking?

Munching on grass and looking around.

I took him back in the stall to dry him off. I didn't want to leave him by himself, so Stephen put together 4 bales of straw for us to lay on beside him. We all took a nap for maybe an hour or so. By the time we got up it was warmer, a bit sunnier, and at least not raining. He seemed so much calmer and happier that I let him out in the field. He was so relaxed and happy. We went back in the house to dry off ourselves. I checked on him every few minutes through Stephen's window. To my surprise, he kept going from eating grass to back in the barn to relax. Huh. How interesting!

Hanging out in the barn.

I rode later that day once it dried out a bit. We had a great ride through the fields. It was a bit windy, but he was motived and moving! I felt really 'in tune' with him, rather than him being faster or slower and me.

The weather was still nasty on Sunday. But, it cleared up enough for us to set some jumps out and have fun with that!

Giant jumps ;).

Overall, I wouldn't brave another weekend in bad weather. But, we sure did have lots of fun and I think it strengthened our relationship. Can't wait to play at Stephen's again...in better weather!

Surreal

Yesterday was just one of those days that you wish would never end.

The weather was so beautiful, high 50s and sunny!  SInce it was so nice I threw a  few barrels in the outdoor (usually everything is in the indoor) and set them up for big figure 8s.

I started out online with my featherline and Sonny was so great! I played a little with Mikey's "project" with the barrels: we did a lot of things that ended with a rest at one of the barrels. After playing some touch it, I played with sideways towards a barrel and stayed at the very end of my 22.     His sideways so straight and snappy, I was thrilled! 

After he was warmed up enough, I got on and started with some passenger lessons. Once we started to follow the rail I focused on disengaging his hindquarters to bring him to a stop. At first he wanted to trot when I put my leg on, but I reinforced with my carrot stick then let him eat the grass along the rail once he did stop. He caught on so quick! Pretty soon we were disengaging to a stop with very minimal effort! I am so thankful for that clarification at Juli's workshop! 

I then played with circling and doing figure 8s around the barrels. It went so well at the walk! I could totally tell he was focused and bending around the barrels. I made sure to let him rest, or take him into the barrel and stop him when I felt like he was really understanding the circle. The trot was okay, he was very sluffish. He had been outside for a few days straight and I think he was just so worn out. After a really good circle I stopped and called it a day.

Walking around the barrel.

Throughout my riding I made sure that I kept my hand in neutral. Maybe it is from my dressage background, but even when I am not using my reins I like to stay bent at the elbow and hold my hand above his withers. Yesterday I played a game with myself and made sure I kept my index finger  touching my therflex pad (the part that connects the two sides over the withers). This was so surprisingly hard for me! I would find myself all tense because I was dying to lift my hand up! This really brought to my attention what a bad habit I have, but I feel like now that I am more aware of it I will have an easier time fixing it!

After riding I walked him down past the pastures to let him graze on really great grass. Even though we were out in the middle of an open field, I felt confident enough to take his halter off and let him eat while I tried to get as much hair as possible off him. He wandered from spot to spot, but never moved too much. After a bit I decided that we should go back so I went back about 10 feet away from him to pick up the halter where I had dropped it. I turned around and he had followed me! Once I stopped, he stopped and ate. So I tried it again: I started walking and before I knew it he was right there with me! Wow, did that make me feel warm in fuzzy inside or what? For my food obsessed LBI to walk with me out in the middle of a field full of lush, green, grass at liberty was one of those moments where you just feel complete.

Following me at liberty in the
big, open field :).

Yesterday was such a wonderful day and I look forward to many more over the summer! 

Parelli Workshop

On Saturday, Melissa and I had the privilege to participate in an online/freestyle workshop held by 2* instructor Juli Piovesan. It was an introductory workshop to teach people about not only the levels, but horsenalities as well. Juli brought her horse, Ames (RBE), Melissa brought Rydel (RBI), Debbie brought her Sonny (RBE), and I brought my Sonny (LBI).

We started out online and went through the seven games as Juli explained them a touched on how horsenalities affect how you approach the games.

Porcupine from the chest. 

Debbie showing some sideways on the rail. 

Melissa using the 'triangle' to improve her squeeze game.

I was particularly proud of the circling game Sonny and I had. Right off the bat he maintained a trot for multiple circles! Usually he stops during our first circle and I have to reminded him that it is his responsibility to maintain gait and then he trots multiple circles. But yesterday he was a superstar and held up his end of the responsibilities perfectly!

So his head may be cut off, but you get the point!

Melissa and I with walk circles.

After showing what all the games were, she set up some challenges for us, which were so much fun! Our first challenge was to yo-yo between the barrels without going over phase two. Melissa and Rydel did FANTASTIC with this challenge! Sonny backed really straight, but very sluggish. After doing a few 'snappy' back ups, his yo-yo was much better.

Love this picture!

Here is a picture of the sideways challenge on the rail: go sideways away from you and back without going over phase two. 

After we were confident our horses were ready for freestyle, we saddled up! We then went through all the seven games in the saddle. Juli pointed out to me that the same long phase 1 quick 2,3,4 still is affective in the saddle, just like it is online. This goes back to the point that if there isn't a good phase 4, then there is no reason to be responsive to phase 1. Light bulb!

Sonny was great following the rail!

Juli also had us move the forehand then the hindend to bring it down to a halt from a walk. In our last lesson, we practiced moving the hind end until he halted but it was a bit unclear to me. Having Juli there to show us what it looked like helped tremendously! Now that it has clicked, I can't wait to play with this!!

Juli then had two people sit in the middle as cones, then the other two of us figure 8 and circle them. This went perfectly with my lesson with Laura the other day! Sonny walked around them in a figure 8 or circle without me using my carrot stick or reins and with minimal leg. Very impressed! Trotting was a bit more complicated, but definitely improvement!

This is an excellent picture of Juli and Rydel in the middle! 

The absolute best part about the day was the relationship between Sonny and I. Throughout the day he gave me such wonderful, happy faces! Even through the yo-yo between the barrels, he had two eyes and two ears locked on me! And he never is happy about backing up. He was so happy to do things for me and to be with me that I couldn't have been happier myself. It was definitely one of those moments when everything you have been working for is suddenly right in front of you and you get all warm and fuzzy inside. :)

I would like to thank Juli for holding the workshop and giving us the opportunity to share Parelli with other people and for the wonderful experience! Also, for all of her help in general; Saturday would have not have been as great as it was without all of her help over the winter! I would also like to thank my boyfriend, for all the long nights and hard work he put into getting our trailer ready at the last minute to use. As well as for driving us there, and being such a huge help throughout the day without even complaining :). 

Lucky

Yesterday was amazing! The weather was beautiful: around 75 degrees, sunny, and a breeze. We got the shirts for Parelli - Ohio! figured out and found out they would be on time for Equine Affaire! Great news! On top of all that, Sonny and I had a wonderful ride, and it was outside for the first time this year!

I warmed up inside and he was a little slow going. I practiced what I learned from Laura and set higher expectations of him. His sideways was much quicker and more responsive today! He gave me a lot of good faces online, which always makes me happy!

We moved on to riding outside. The good thing about the outdoor is that the railing is smooth, contrary to the big posts that jut out in the indoor. This gave us a steady track to follow rather than weaving around in the indoor while trying to follow the rail. I was actually really shocked by how well Sonny did follow the rail. He is so bad about it inside and was so great outside. Occasionally he would fall into the inside but didn't take much to get him back on track. That makes me think that I am more of the problem when following the rail in the indoor than him. Oops!

That is what we call 'Bareback Butt'!! ;)

Understandably, he was a bit distracted being outside with the wind blowing and a stallion hanging out on the fence line. To get him focused I decided to play with the cloverleaf pattern for the first time. Because of the way the indoor is set up (the size and the posts along the side), I have always been too nervous to try the pattern. It actually ended up going much better than I thought it would! Starting the pattern was a bit rough; we were all over the arena going fast then slow and everything in-between. I remember Pat (in a savvy club DVD) mentioning that you want to make X (the very center of the arena) the sweet spot. Therefore every time we hit X I let him rest. My clever little LBI caught on so quick! Before I knew it, not only was he following the rail and staying pretty straight, he was listening to my aids and putting in effort to get to the center! He definitely understood the pattern because he would stay in the rail until I turned him off towards the center. Awesome!

After our lesson Tuesday and our ride yesterday, I am definitely becoming more confident with freestyle! I am excited to continue to play with it outside and to be moving towards my green sting! It is not just the four leaf clover [pattern] that is lucky, I am pretty darn lucky to have such a wonderful partner!

My lucky charm. 

Arrows in My Quiver

We had a great lesson with Parelli Professional Laura Beaver yesterday! Laura is on her way to become a 2* instructor and I feel very lucky to be a part of her journey!

As we warmed up, she made a really good comment to not use horsenalities as an excuse. When thinking about canter circles and such, I don't play the "He is an LBI, he can't do it" card, but I did find myself using that as an excuse to go slow. I know its okay to warm up slow and match his energy, but she made me realize that if he knows something and has had enough time to wake up, there isn't any reason why he can't do it as a normal pace. Our sideways game has always been inch by inch; responsive, but very slow. He has been doing the sideways game for over 2 years now, time to step it up a notch!

Slow going. I love that we are resting the same leg! 

Once I got on, she really brought 'focus' to my attention. From my previous dressage lessons, I am pretty good with the concept, but Laura did help me clarify a lot of things! We played with circling around a cone. WAY harder than it sounds! I kept losing my focus and either looking down at him when I used my carrot stick or looking sideways at the wall if he fell to the inside. Rather than change my focus to the wall, I need to keep my focus on the circle while asking him to move back to the correct track. Interesting!!

Blurry, but a great picture of our focus on the circle!

I know this probably sounds silly since I am LBE/LBI, but freestyle lessons are always such big confidence boosters for me. Freestyle is definitely my most challenging savvy and sometimes I am too intimidated to get out there and try things for fear of failure (which relates back to this post). Every freestyle lesson I have had (4 now) puts more and more arrows in my quiver and the more comfortable I am starting to feel with it. With summer just around the corner, I hope to continue to add to my quiver and thank everyone (especially Juli and Laura) for helping me get all those arrows!

Thanks, Laura!

Thanks to Evan for taking the pictures :).

Perfect Practice

I am definitely a perfectionist, and as Pat would say “Only perfect practice makes perfect”. Although I am always striving for never ending self improvement, there are a few times when I can get a little LBI/LBE about things and either a) not put as much effort into them as I should or b) want them to be perfect without the practice and give up when it [obviously] doesn’t happen like that.

A few of these little ‘issues’ I have mentioned before, such as mounting and stick-to-me from his right side, bridling (well, the bit) and the weave. Now that I am back from vacation and summer is just around the corner, I really want to put effort into practicing everything perfectly because nothing means nothing and everything means something.

I started out today by trying to do everything with excellence. Expect a lot, accept a little, and reward often. I had let Sonny out into the little grass area outside the barn while I cleaned his stall. Instead of just going up, slapping the halter on and dragging him back into the barn, I played with ‘how little does it take me to ___’. I guess I should rephrase that to ‘how much’ by the way things were going! He hadn’t been outside lately and the catching game wasn’t on his list of things to do. After some looooong phase 1s and quick 2, 3, and 4s, he started focusing on me and paying attention. After I got his attention and got him to walk over to me, I aimed to halter with excellence rather than shove the halter between his nose and the grass. After picking up his head a few times by pressing my fingers into his cheeks, he politely waited for me to halter him with savvy. After getting him focused on me and haltering with excellence, I played the stick to me back into the barn instead of just dragging him along. MUCH better than the usual events we plow through!

Once inside the barn I played with one of our biggest downfalls: standing while I groom. I have gotten into a horrible habit lately of letting him move around and eat and doing everything he wants while I follow him around with my brush. While on vacation, he had an entire week to do whatever he wanted, so I thought today would be a good day to practice perfectly and step up and be a leader. I kept the savvy DVD about grooming in mind and got to it. I pictured a square that just encompassed his feet. Every time he moved a hoof out of the square, I moved it back in (whether it be backwards, forwards, sideways, etc.). Then if he stood in that square for a good amount of time, he got a treat. My smarty-pants LBI didn’t take long to catch on. Occasionally he thought the hay on the ground sounded better than standing for a treat, but I stuck to it and that was the best he has ever stood for me since moving to the new barn last August!

We warmed up sooo slowly online today. I got him to perk up a little bit, but I must have interrupted his nap time today because he was out of it! I forgot my theraflex pad at home so I ended up borrowing Melissa’s bareback pad for our ride today. As I have mentioned before, I have such a hard time with freestyle because I go totally LBE and want everything to be perfect right now! Today I had the attitude that things can’t be perfect if I don’t practice them perfectly, so I aimed to really play with things I normally avoid. That includes trotting for longer periods of time, following the rail consistantly, and making my carrot stick phase 4 mean something so he responds to phase 1.

I am not sure why but it blew me away when I realized how great of a ride we had today. We were happy, relaxed, and everything was so much better than normal! He followed the rail, his carrot stick responses moved from non-existent to phase 2, we did multiple figure 8s through the question box maintaining and trot, and his downward transitions were awesome! To top it all off, he reached for the bit today and did the best he has ever done with bridling!

So my lesson of the day is: you can’t get perfection without perfect practice. I know that is common sense, but in order to live a lifestyle of never ending self improvement, you consistently have to be conscience of aiming to do everything with excellence. Although it was easier to drag him into the barn, let him run around while I groomed, or pretended our follow the rail issues didn’t exist, if I take the time it takes it is definitely going to take less time. Before I know it, he will be standing still while I groom and it won’t take long at all. Or things like finesse or going to come so much easier because he holds up his responsibilities in freestyle. In the end, the only way to move towards perfection is to practice perfectly.

Back That Thing Up

Last week I posted about having issues with backing, mainly due to respect. Well, backing has improved tremendously since then!

Tonight I played a bit at liberty. To start off, his sideways was amazing. That was definitely the furthest he had gone sideways at liberty from phase 1 without moving forward. Awesome!

From the sideways we moved on to two trot circles. He happily trotted along around me (even though his buddies were standing at the far end of the arena and he could have gone to hang out with them!). When I disengaged, he gave me two eyes and two ears and politely waited for me to ask him to come in. Is this really the same horse as last week? Wow! Love those happy faces!

I wanted to test our back up, because once you take the halter off nothing is left but the truth. The truth is: our back up really did improve as much as I thought! I got him to back up more than 22 feet from phase 1/2, then he waited so nicely to come back into me.

Success! Super happy with tonight!

On a side note, we had a really great time yesterday, too. It was 65 degrees and beautiful outside so we went for a trail ride! There really isn't anywhere to ride but the road we just walked a little over a mile up the road. He was so great! We went down a lane to get to the road and he trotted over nicely when I asked and came to a halt without using my reins! It is so wonderful to have a horse than you can ride anywhere on a loose rein! What a fabulous few days we have had!

Lesson with Juli

We had our fifth lesson with Juli yesterday. As always, it was a huge success! All I really wanted to focus on was the bit and improving our freestyle. 

We made some good progress with the bit! I actually put the headstall on him. He chewed and chewed and chewed but there wasn’t any freak out! And I was able to take it off once he left it alone. I can’t wait to play with some bit isolation stuff. My only concern is which bit to use. I wish it was possible to let him sample a ton and pick out the one he likes best…

Playing with one of Juli's bits. 

He had a surprisingly great attitude today. I was really, really, really happy with his faces. He cantered four laps then when I stopped him, he gave me two eyes and two ears until I asked him to come in. Awesome. Then we did play with some figure 8s. I have been way to direct-line about them. Instead of just figure 8 after figure 8 Juli told me to switch it up more to keep him asking questions. Duh, I should have known that. Within a few minute his faces were looking much better and best of all when I went to bring him in to me, he started to turn back towards the cones so he definitely had the pattern on his mind! Can’t wait to play more with that!

Look at that ear on me! 

Once I got on Juli showed me how to disengage his hind end while riding. I am not really sure why but this blew my mind. I don’t think it is a hard concept to understand, but feel like I might be a little more confident/comfortable with it if I saw someone do it. I might look up some savvy club DVDs to see what I can find. I may need to just play with it more…maybe it will just click?

She gave me some great tools for when he pulls his snotty, LBI tricks to get out of things. She also pointed out that I go right to phase 4 with my carrot stick and keep it there when riding. As much as I would like to think I don’t do this, I know it is true. I don’t think he realizes what phase 4 means. I need to make phase 4 mean something to him in order to get a response from phase 1. Maybe this brings me back to my ‘snappy’ lesson? I think so!

So my things to keep in mind: Make cantering circles a game, don't be a direct line thinker when playing with figure 8s (or anything else!), practice partial disengagement from a walk and trot, and make my carrot stick phase 4 mean something! Being LBE, I want to go play with all of that right now! But, I think we might just enjoy the sunshine today :).

A special thanks to my boyfriend, Stephen, for spending the day at the barn with me and taking so many wonderful photos! 

Time Out

I mentioned in a recent post that I started playing with the Corners Game (which you can find out more about it in the freestyle patterns or in the new level 3 freestyle DVDs) with great success. I rode last night and warmed up with the corners game and again it worked out great! Even though the corners in my arena are dark and filled with toys, Sonny definitely gets the idea. I feel like I am putting him in time out sitting in the dingy corners, but I find it relaxing and I think he does, too. He is putting so much effort into getting to the corners, he was even trotting when I didn't ask him to. An LBI trotting when you only ask for walk is huge progress! It also is greatly improving our follow the rail. He used to constantly dive into the middle of the area or hunt down the question box, but now is happy to stay along the rail to make it to the next corner. 

We played with more canter last night and it is going better! He is making really ugly faces, but canters from phase 2 so I am hoping the faces will improve with his stamina. 

A big step for us was last night before I got on. After playing online a bit I took off the lead and played with figure 8's at liberty for the first time ever. We had been working so much on the weave that our figure 8's have been improving a lot. At first they were a little sticky and he was hesitate to move forward, but it didn't take him long to realize that the pattern was still the same even at liberty and he made a perfect walk figure 8! WOW! So impressed! Of course I stopped after that :). 

Kisses from my lovebug. 

Updates

The past two nights with Sonny were great! First and foremost, his ears have been much, much better. Not as good as I would like, but a huge improvement from the past few weeks.

He is now backing up like I have never seen him. I am trying to change up the amount of steps I want but to always have a goal in mind to help myself focus. He is putting so much more effort into it! I have also started putting it to purpose more often, such as backing over a pole, between cones, or out the gate. So happy with the progress!

The weave is making slow strides. It has gotten a little better in the sense we both don't go so right brained anymore. Which I guess is pretty big, but then I stay LBE and want it to be perfect right now! Of course is doesn't work like that. But perfect practice makes perfect!

Thinking about the weave. 

I rode a bit last night. I started out with playing with corners and that really, really helped him follow the rail. Too bad the corners in our arena are filled with stuff or else I think it would have been even more beneficial. I think using corners to warm up is going to be a great motivator when working with an LBI. I also cantered a bit, but nothing much. I am not exactly sure where I should go with the canter to improve it so I think that I something I am going to ask Juli about.

I am so excited about our recent progress! I won't be able to play tonight or tomorrow night but I am dying to get back out there Thursday!

Joy Ride

I have been really busy with school lately, which is unfortunately cutting into my time with Sonny. But, only three weeks left, then finals, then a cruise, then next quarter I should have plenty of Sonny time!

Anyways, the time I have been able to spend with his has been great! For some reason, freestyle isn't out strong point. But, I have rode three times over the past week and it has been wonderful!

I realized that I am still expecting perfection while riding. The past few rides, especially last night, I really worked on just making my good better, and my better best, without expecting everything to be perfect. That made such a difference!

For one, it made me lighten up a lot. Just last night I realized I don't ever smile while riding. Which is strange, considering I am almost always smiling online and at liberty. As sensitive as Sonny is, I know he has to notice. That made me think about myself and what I am doing while riding. I spend so much time focusing on him and what he is doing, I don't focus on myself at all.

So last night I really focused on smiling, being aware of what I am doing, and actually enjoying myself! I put effort into controlling my energy, and mainly focusing on the task and myself, instead of just him. Of course, things fell into place and he was happy and I was happy and we actually had a really enjoyable ride! For once I wasn't so hung up on perfection that we actually got to have fun. Not only were we having a good time, everything was so much better than it normally is! He was following the rail, listening to my phase one, changing direction at the trot without taking off, putting effort into the question box, and even putting effort into jumping the little cross rail I had set up!

So my lesson of the day: I need to start playing while riding. Just because I am in the saddle doesn't mean I have to be serious and everything has to be perfect. It is more important to focus on me, such my energy and focusing where I am going, than to focus on him. When I am hold up my end of the bargain, he will fall into place. And most importantly, the more I enjoy myself, the more he will, too!

Busted

Sonny and I had another fantastic lesson with Juli yesterday (that makes lesson #4 with her). She had me list a few of our strengths and weaknesses and then we focused on how to better the weaknesses. Of course, our weak pattern was the weave. She really helped me break it down into pieces that were easier for me to understand. How am I supposed to communicate to Sonny what I want him to do if I am not really sure myself? So now, for once, I am actually excited to play with the weave!

Weaving around tall cones: challenging and humorous ;)

The freestyle portion of the lesson was just what I needed. After a 'non-ideal' ride Saturday, it was very reassuring to have such a brilliant ride last night! One of the problems we focused on was the follow the rail pattern. Lately (but only at the trot), Sonny has been taking off or diving into the middle of the arena. I thought he was playing the game 'you can't make me stay on the rail'. But, when I started telling Juli that he also takes off if he doesn't want to turn back to the question box, the real game was more obvious. He was playing the 'If I speed up, Emily will stop me then I can just stand there' game. BUSTED! Sonny may be clever, but he can't out smart Juli!

Asking to back (which explains my position).

As funny as it sounds, it seemed like he didn't even want to play the game anymore after we talked about it. At one point he decided to dash to the question box in order to get the rest, so we increased our pace and just like magic, and all of a sudden that game was not any fun anymore! Now that I have more arrows in my quiver, I am excited to ride again! What a great lesson!

A very 'thought provoking' lesson! :)

What's New?

First of all, have you noticed I updated the header of my blog? I have been meaning to put a picture by the title (which is why there was a huge blank space), but never got around to it. Finally I did. I like it, but I think I want to change it. I am thinking I want to change my blog colors to purple. But, it has to be simple! So look for a new design in the near future?

Here is what Son and I have been up to:

Emily Rodgers with Sonny, (Freestyle, 30 mins) Rode Sonny in a bridle for the first time in over two years today! Since I got the cradle bridle for Christmas, I figured I should start getting him more comfortable with the bit. I am not sure what happened in his past with the bit, but it must have been traumatic since nothing bothers him and he shuts down when you put a bit in his mouth. Lately I have been putting the bridle on him and doing easy things, like leading him to the pasture, so that he doesn't associate the bit with negative things. Today I put molasses on the bit (which was super messy) and rode around for a little while. I didn't do anything challenging and I never touched the reins. He let out a few big signs and seemed to realize it might not be so bad! I am very pleased with how it went and can't wait for him to experience the C3 bit!                                                                                                                             Tue 27 Dec 2011 at 08:49PM

Emily Rodgers with Sonny, (Liberty, 30 mins) Had a simple but fun day! Didn't have time to do much so just played at liberty. had some really great stick to me and he out a ton of effort into trying the Spanish walk! He also gave me some really happy faces :).

Wed 28 Dec 2011 at 06:41PM

I seem to be catching a cold, which has put a damper on my horsey time. Hopefully I will get out there today, but I doubt I will do anything. Sounds like a perfect day for some undemanding time!

My blue-eyed beauty. <3