Straight and Forward, Honest and True

Last night I rode my horse. Like for realz.

And he was bad. Of course.

Another woman was there with her horse and decided to ride with us. I'm glad that she did because Walker is a show off. He likes to misbehave when other horses are around if he's feeling fresh, and I wanted every excuse for him to be forward. I didn't even lunge him first.

I really wanted to work on the foundations - forward and straight. We weren't so straight, but he was definitely forward. He kept trying to break into a canter and was throwing little temper tantrums when he couldn't get his way. He also threw a couple little bucks (and one impressive little buck with a squeal), but we soldiered on. Sorry, buddy. It takes more than that to deter me.

It might sound weird but I like when Walker's bad. Not all the time of course, and not in every way. But Walker equates speed with bad behaviour because of his training. I'm trying to teach him otherwise, but at the very least, he picks up the pace when he's feeling it. It also gives me something to work on. I get very frustrated when I ask for something and he doesn't understand or simply can't do it (don't we all?), but I don't get frustrated when he acts out. It's just like a challenge to get the upper hand, and I do love a challenge. 

He'll settle with time. For now, we have to re-establish that I'm the boss and he actually has to do what I tell him to do. But let's be honest, he always has a little flair for the dramatic even when he's on his "best" behaviour.

I also rode in my western saddle. After many discussions and several measurements, I decided that my Western saddle is simply deceivingly narrow. It's actually wider than most FQHBs and so suitable for the meantime. However, I haven't ridden Western in about a year, and I can guarantee that while I was glad to have the security, I wasn't so glad to loose the closer contact of an English saddle. I was perpetually yelling, "Where are my heels? Can you feel my heels?" I'm classy like that.

Needless to say, after six months of little riding, I am sore as all get out this morning. My seat bones are sore and I might simply collapse from exhaustion at my desk.

I expect to do it all again tonight.

Last four days of the 30 day Instagram challenge