Just a screencap for now, more later. This is from my lesson yesterday.

More cantering courses

We had a really productive lesson yesterday. :) Here's also some video of  our last run through the 'course'.

Photos!

Basically, this is a picspam. :)






This one was a mistake...we came in severely catty-corner. He's going over the block itself. This was right after the, "you can make a mistake and he can figure it out if you tell him he can" conversation. *facepalm*










I was so impressed with his form when I was first looking at this picture it took me a few minutes to realize this was the one where he knocked the pole down. I think this was right after they'd raised it and so he jumped well but not quite high enough.


Good lord, I need to LOOK UP.

Let's March!

Got back out on the trails today for the first time since we had to stop for hunting season. It was nice to get off the farm and I think Kieran must've thought so too because he sure did do a lot of marching everywhere, LOL. We got in some nice little trots and one stretch of cantering too (so I got to practice my two point).

All in all, just a nice ride. :)

Getting some Air

I don't have anything I can make a free-jumping chute with here and the arena is too big (and grassy) to just free lunge him around like I used to do at my old barn (they had a smaller indoor ring), he'd just trot off to the other end and start grazing probably, LOL. Hence the lunge line in the picture.

Riding with Tracey

One of the other boarders and I both rode today. She was trying out an English saddle she'd just gotten (she's ridden Western for years) and I was just toodling around with Kieran. :)


I think my position has improved light years from what it used to be.


I didn't expect him to actually jump this but I think I managed to get properly out of his way.


Good pony!


Yes, we briefly switched horses :)


Canter departure


Hopping over the crossrail. Ignore us dorking out about it afterward, LOL.


Longer video, just riding around. There's a nice canter departure at about 2:33

Bah

New saddle is definitely too wide. Like, when I sat in it it plopped right down onto his withers with no clearance too wide.

That said, it felt really nice when I sat in it and a bit like keeping my leg under me would be effortless. It just fell into the right spot. So I need this saddle but narrower!


Saddle on left is the one I'm trying out, saddle on right is my current saddle.


Look at that leg!

New Saddle

That is on its way to me. :)

(Duett Presto)

Pictures from Friday!

Jessica's mom was there and took a few of our lesson. :) Click on them to make 'em bigger.

Just discovered this...

...and I'm having too much fun making gifs out of Kieran:



and

Fairy Pony!

Our barn had a fun show today...somehow we came in as grand champion. :D

There was also a costume contest...I have been DYING to do one of these for like...ever. So here we are!

Tonight

Things we discussed in the lesson:

1. I am, apparently, crooked. I find it easier to use my right leg and seatbone than my left leg and seatbone. I also sit skewed (I've noticed, now that I've been thinking about it, that I do it when sitting in chairs too). This likely helps explain some of the issues I've had with Kieran. Like cantering to the right is easier because I can use my right leg to keep him from drifting inward but going the other way is more trouble. Or how when we attempt sidepassing or turns on the forehand, it's easier when I ask him to go left because I'm using my right leg to do it, and vice versa.

2. We can actually trot (and canter!) around on a loooooose rein and not have him drift all the way inward. It just takes a lot of leg and me opening the outside rein (maybe a lot, now but still) instead of pulling back on it. And, for now, maybe tapping his inside shoulder (seriously, I was just tapping lightly, not smacking) with the whip to back up my leg. When I pull back with the rein (which is what I want to do because it's become habit even though I know it's wrong), he just sticks his nose to the outside, bulges his shoulder in, and keeps going wherever he wants. You know this, I know this. I've talked about it dozens of times, it seems. But tonight we were actually able to consistently go around at all gaits more or less straight and without too much cutting into the center (was it perfect? Nah, but it was a far sight better than before).

3. Really, basically everything we're doing is about getting me to better control my body and, in extension, better control Kieran's body so I'm not just trying to haul him around with the reins. If Jessica had her way, by the end of this, we won't need reins at all. ;) That'd be pretty cool.

Annd....no pictures from tonight, but here's a couple from our previous lesson on Saturday (was a makeup) that I didn't write about but should have while it was still fresh in my mind:






Look how he's crossing over on that turn!

We started out the lesson trotting figure eights around two barrels to get his brain on working since it'd been over a week since he'd last worked. We ended the lesson cantering in up the rail coming around between the barrels, going down to a trot, starting to turn around the other barrel (half a figure eight?) and cantering off on the other lead. :)

There was also a nice bit of trail riding that happened this weekend. Got to expose Kieran to all sorts of things: small children running up to pet the pretty ponies (*sigh*), small children on bicycles, a wildly barking herd of seven dogs (behind a fence), surveyor's tape blowin' in the wind, large (unmoving, turned off) construction equipment...all sorts of stuff. We even discovered a trail that has a bit of a slope and that we can probably use even during hunting season so we can get some work on not-flat-ground in. :)

Longing over Crossrails

Started out the day with a quick warmup on the longe, then asked Kieran to trot over a cross rail. He trotted right up to it, hopped over, cantered out. I was so pleased! So we went a few times to the left, then a few more times to the right (had to go a couple extra times because he went around the crossrail instead of over). All in all he did a good job. He mostly set himself up nicely and hopped over and didn't just barrel through.

And when he cantered around on the longe, he gave me a pretty nice, rhythmic canter clocking around whereas when I've asked him to just canter on the longe in the past, he tends to want to pull away and go reeeeeeaaaally wiiiiide. But not so much tonight! I think he liked that I was asking him to do something different.

Then I hopped on bareback and we did some walking around while he cooled out and did some more turns and circles.

So, what you're really interested in are the pictures, right?

First time to the crossrail:













Annnnd cantering out


After cantering in the second time around


Going the other way





Bonus...me making like I can mount him bareback from the ground (hah!). And yes, I photoshopped my rear to save your eyeballs.



Better bonus...the videos of him going over the crossrail:

Pictures from tonight

A friend of mine came out to watch us ride and kindly manned my camera, so here's a few pictures. :)