Quick Thinking and Quick Feet

Goggles and I made it down to JT's for a jump lesson on Monday morning. I was delighted to find the jumps still in the arena. They had been there 8 days ago when I went to watch a friend's jump lesson, but because the footed arena is also the dressage arena, jumps move in and out. But we got to do it! 

We started with the long approach to the diagonal green, then right hand turn to the long approach to the blue crossrail oxer. Then left all the way around the ring to the short approach to the diagonal green and around short approach to the blue crossrail oxer. We trotted in to all of these. He wanted to pick up the canter the first few times but then settled into a nice trot rhythm. Then we added in the bending line from the short approach green vertical to the green vertical on the quarter line followed by right hand turn to blue bending line. The first time through I didn't ride him to any particular spot and we hit the blue oxer at a half stride. He politely chipped and still went willingly. The next time I rode him up to the spot with a bit more of a forward canter and he got there very nicely! It was really, really good for me to have the corners and things to do. It kept me landing and thinking and therefore kept him focused and doing productive things with his time rather than screwing around because I hadn't given him direction. 

Then we added in the one stride, sneaking both ways around the first vertical so we did just the one stride first. He again was quite polite and trotted in, did the one stride, and cantered out. He did sort of carry on (thank you kind dressage judge for my new phrase for bucking lol) in the corner after once, but came back to me very quickly. And I'm getting much better at sitting, stopping the screwing around, and then kicking him forward. Finally we put it all together and added the 5 to the 1. He clobbered the first jump the first time because he was staring at a horse in the distance. But he didn't land bucking and still let me ride him forward to the one, so that was nice. He knocked it again the second time because he was behind my leg because he was pooping. The third time was the charm and he did a lovely 5 to 1. Then we put it together with the blue bending line around to the 5 to the 1. He was absolutely super, so we finished on that. 

The past two lessons it has felt like all the homework we have been doing has been paying off. He's let me keep him in the trot to the base of the fences and when he's cantering things, he's being polite about it and keeping a relatively steady rhythm without rushing. I vaguely remember a similar (but much earlier LOL) point in Yoshi's journey where it seemed like he suddenly understand not just the over-under-through, but understood that I had to have some input and that a steady rhythm was very much desired. 

On the way home, he marched RIGHT onto the trailer. I had opened the door to find him actually eating his hay when we arrived, so I was already encouraged, and then he led straight in without hesitation for the way home. Who is this horse!?!? And did I end up with a F-you 4's instead of F-you 5? Although I'm sure saying these things means we're going to hit another step back soon... 

He solidified that he is in fact a grown up now on Tuesday when we went schooling at Majestic. He loaded up easily, chilled in the field by himself initially and then showed only mild interest when another horse arrived and then left to school. 

So profesh

I had gotten new correct connect reins. They replaced some short crappy ones I'd dug out of my tack trunk after retiring a pair of year old Plymouth Smart Pak ones that were looking sketch AF already. I like a lot of smart pak brand items but hadn't done strap goods before and don't think I will again. My left middle finger joint between my MC and P1 has been super sore lately so I thought the correct connect would be handy (haha...) Anyways, I thought I saw online the correct connect came with rein stops so I didn't actually check. They didn't. Womp womp. JT removed my running because "I like you and don't want you to die." And I didn't actually miss it because holy shit, Goggles new grown up leaf continued. 

We stuck mostly to entry fences and mostly to trotting them. It was such a productive schooling though. I started out wanting to really duck up his neck a stride early, dunno where that new stunt came from, but JT sorted that out pretty quickly. The goal the whole time was positive forward thinking. We made him sniff a spooky white top cabin but decided we'd bring AT back to hop him around some of the scarier stuff the first time. But he did all the entry fences and a few BN very willingly. He chilled with friends but was also happy to leave them or be left. He was so relaxed I kicked my feet out of my stirrups while we walked between areas on the course. 

Again, loads to work on, mostly positive feeling ride to the fence, keeping his feet moving at the same tempo to the base of the jump, and keeping his shoulders and balance up, but my gosh did it feel great to go out there with a relaxed, confident horse.