Friday, January 30, 2009

1/29/09 Ransom Handsome

Saddled up dressage, and lowered my stirrups a hole. Tuesday's ride, they felt a little short, and, while I had ridden Chewie for about six months with the stirrups there, all the hours in my Western saddle, the dressage irons felt good a little longer. (Note to self: Lengthen hunt saddle irons, too, and see if that helps a bit, eh?)

No side reins today in the warmups. Just ten minutes light w/t/c to open his eyes & stretch legs.

Our ride was fantastic! We both settled & relaxed on a pretty long rein, an entire "section" longer than I was used to on Chewie. (All things being compared since I'm back to Chewie's old tack.) Again, almost cantered, and chickened out last minute. Lots of walk & trot, and focus on smooth transitions. I worked a while at sitting trot, and found that, if I stretched my heels way down, thigh muscles were tight, and my seat wasn't secure. If I ignored heels, and focused on a relaxed seat, it was much easier to move with him.

Total day about 45 minutes. If I get done with Romeo moderately early tonight, I might flip the lights on the round pen & give Ransom a go again.

No comments: