(Not) Winning the Lesson

This is a lesson recap without any relevant media. But it was a lesson full of important lessons, so I felt the need to write it down. And when I mush two lesson recaps together I really can't make them flow well. Sorry, not sorry, if this isn't the best blog content. 

At our weekly lesson Wednesday, I distinctly did NOT win. We worked on the supportive and spritely flat work first, including a focus on NOT holding him up and driving the canter. This does not, however, mean dropping the contact. It DOES mean not driving with my seat and legs every stride, capisce? 

Once that was sorted, we started with a crossrail, left hand turn to a vertical, loop back left to an oxer, right hand turn to my fave pink rolltop. And I missed at EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. of those jumps (excepting the crossrail, which we trotted, so how could I miss to that...) Ooookay, try again, went a lot smoother except to the pink rolltop. It's not a Butterball problem, he could care less at this point even though I make him sniff it at the start just to prove it. But he is deeply unconcerned. Honestly, I don't think I'm concerned either, but I just kept screwing it up. I was not getting the canter I wanted before the jump and wasn't looking early enough. We did a few chip strides to it, including one that I completely botched. I was shaking my head about it and subsequently screwed up the five to the two that followed. JT got a bit up me for that one, completely fair. 

FINALLY, my brain clicked in, and we got it by me looking early and creating a bouncy canter with his butt engaged and hind leg moving. We we still got an awkward distance but I supported him to it and kept riding. During all this, we were also sorting out my riding in between and during the four to the three stride line that followed the five to the two. I was letting him dive right on landing from the two and then he was flat, and we were struggling with the change. I then kept letting him get long and flat (themes, we got 'em) and a bit under the base of the out fence in the four to the three. I woahed with my voice the first couple of times through, but finally half-halted effectively in the line and got him almost too stood off the base. But because he was back on his butt, he jumped powerfully off the ground from the slightly gappy spot. 

The three main takeaways: 

- Making him hold himself in the canter means not driving every stride, but continuing to keep a soft, communicative contact

- Half-halt until he has come back onto his butt. Thinking you've half-halted isn't enough. 

- If your canter isn't one you could jump out of RIGHT NOW, do something about it and make it one that you could 

When I told JT that danged pink rolltop was gonna be the death of me in one form or another, she said "If you're winning the lesson all the time, you aren't learning and making progress." 

So here's to not winning the lesson! 

For putting up with all my shit, he got a nice looooong barnyard grazing session while I mowed and pulled weeds. He's SO GOLDEN right now. 

Side note: it is SO NICE to have a horse who GETS OVER things. Goggles was NOT spooky, but once he decided he didn't like something, he was GOING TO DIE ON THAT DAMN HILL. You cannot imagine the hours spent with the liverpool (or tarp) for him to still default to FUCK NO when he saw it. So Butterball's ability to initially think the rolltop was pretty suspicious and then progress to not giving a damn is so beautiful. I love this horse so much. 

March 2025 Wrap Up

 

	Butterball
Training rides	0
Lessons	2- jump
Hacks	2
Ground work, lunge, long line	1-     Walk cavaletti and back raises
Flat rides	6
Conditioning rides	0
XC school	0
Shows	0

Butterball and I had a pretty quiet month. I went out of town twice. North Carolina with my dad and brother at the start of the month.

Cats came along and had a fantastic time. Still breaks my heart it wasn't Pico, but such is life. 

Deer nomming on a deer block

Fox squirrel in the snow! I had no idea there were fox squirrels in NC

March snow - I thought it was fun, but I hear people who live up here are less thrilled with March snow. 

Then NJ to visit my best friend at the end of the month. 

Her super cute cat sharing my bed 

All in all, Butterball had 12 rides this month and 1 ground work session. After this most recent farrier visit I can see bruising growing out through the sole on the LEFT hind, not even the one he was lame on. I feel so bad that my barefoot experiment ended up hurting him. And obviously we missed Carolina International due to his sore feet, but in the end most of the national divisions didn't run XC because of the massive storms that blew through. So all we missed was a long drive and a CT. Well timed, Butterball. 

We seem to be back on track now because he was negative to hoof testers all around at his farrier appointment on the 24th and has been feeling great both on the flat and to jump. 

After the farrier appointment, my friend and I went for a hack around her neighborhood. There were lots of dogs, fortunately behind fences, that came bolting up through foliage to bark at the horses. Butterball was super about that and barely flinched. But he did have a difficult time with a large rock. 

SO GOLDEN!!! 

Wish I'd been sitting up a bit straighter LOL. Through clicking and cookies he eventually touched the rock. Then her dutch gelding came to investigate. I swear BB gave him a look as he snorted like "What's the big deal dummy, it's a rock"

The big news of the month was getting our re-treed dressage saddle back and new jump saddle. After a couple of rides in the jump saddle, I can safely say that it works very well for both of us! And his back has never looked so up as after a good dressage ride in the re-treed saddle. 

I got him a schockemohle off of Ebay that we both love. He's so handsome in it! 

Looking ahead to April, we're doing Rocking Horse this upcoming weekend and then Ocala International Easter weekend. My lovely coworker/friend whose house he goes to for the farrier kindly switched shifts with me after the disappointment of not going to Carolina. 

I definitely need to get more serious about his fitness in April now that things are feeling great again. And to do this I am jotting down tentative plans on my calendar for working those fitness days in. It is so easy to just hack and then flat at home and never end up doing our trot sets let alone the canter sets. Also the ground is (relatively) quite hard where I am, so hauling out to do the fitness work would be ideal. 

I hope April is off to a good start for everyone else as well!!