Last Night

Got to Gentle Giants in time to watch Christine painting a big sign (see above) to advertise the flea market there this Saturday. Also watched part of a lesson given by Instructor!Laura. And filled up water troughs and contemplated planting flowers and visited with the horses (Sailor came over to the gate to say hi) and other various things.

To ride, Instructor!Laura suggested I get Caladhin and Tabitha. Tabby, I've ridden before. Caladhin? I hadn't.

When I asked Christine if there was anything I should know about him before riding him, she said, "you'll need a lot of inside leg to keep him on the wall of the arena and when he goes to trot, he tosses his head a couple of times but it doesn't mean anything."

So I brought him in and started grooming. He was a nice boy for all that. Picked up his feet very nicely, without planting them and requiring me to tug or leaning on me after he picked them up. Which, he's huge, so he would've squished me if he'd leaned.

He was a little touchy about me tightening the girth, but not nearly as much as some of the schoolies I've ridden. Once we started riding, I mostly walked and intermittently trotted. Going on right rein around the ring, he was much easier to keep on the wall. But left rein? Not so much. And he was worse (like Carley too) on the far end. I keep wondering if there's something about that end that makes them not want to go along it or if they're just trying to get back to the end by the barn more quickly. Either way, Christine said she was surprised at how good a boy he was being for me.

Tabby was also her wonderful self. I adore that horse. She was actually the first one I rode up at GG. Of course, the whole time she was out of the pasture, her pasture buddy, Quinn, was whinnying his fool head off and acting like he'd OMG die right now because we took Tabby away from him. Tabby? Couldn't have cared less.

I actually managed to get her to canter a little in the arena which was cool because the drafties can be reluctant to do that in there. I didn't push it with her though and mostly we trotted. She seemed pretty game for anything I wanted to ask her to do, though. She's such a good girl. :)