Post by {{helena}} on Oct 18, 2008 22:28:46 GMT -5
I walk back into the main barn, wiping my forehead with the back of my black glove. I¡¯m glad I got that done, I thought to myself. I had just finished setting up a jump course of 8-9 4'3¡± jumps. I walk to Johnny¡¯s stall. He makes that deep nickering sound as his nostrils shake. ¡°Hey boy,¡± I say. He has such an adorable face. Not to mention his kind and understanding eyes. I slip his black breakaway halter over his nose and continue to do so over his ears. I don¡¯t buckle the throatlatch; I feel it¡¯s too restricting. I attach the black cotton lead rope to his halter and push the door fully open. Before we take a step I fling the lead rope over his shoulders and signal him to follow me. I have been trying to work on our connection as well as our skill. He follows me willingly into the wash stall. I prefer to use these crossties because he tends to get a little ancy. I clip one crosstie to the left ring on his halter and then the other to the right ring. ¡°Easy boy,¡± I tell him calmly as he shifts around, ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡± I give him a reassuring pet on the muzzle and walk to the tack room. Somehow, I manage to grab my grooming box, saddle and girth, bridle, saddle pad, and helmet in one trip. This is a first for me. I set each item down in its designated place and pull a molasses horse cookie out of my grooming box. Johnny turns his head wishingly in my direction. I give him the cookie. He seems to nod his head in approval. I laugh at this. I carefully groom him for a good 30 minutes. I put my box away. Now it¡¯s time for the saddle. Normally, this would have been a struggle but Johnny was being totally docile today. As I loosely buckle the black leather girth he pins his ears back in disapproval. I pat him gently until he gets over it. Bridle time. Ahh, my favorite part, Johnny and I thought sarcastically. Fortunately, he made it easy as pie and accepted the bit without fuss. I am defiantly having a good day. I buckle the chin strap on my helmet and lead Johnny down the aisle to the mounting block in the indoor arena. Although he is good about standing still as I get on, he decides it would be funny to trot of as I hit the saddle. I stop him as immediately as possible and pet the side of his neck. Now that we are both situated, we walk out across the gravel to the outdoor arena. His ears perked up when he saw the colorful jumps. It was the ideal setting: nice soft sand, a sunny day, 70¢ª, and not a cloud to be seen. The second he steps into the arena, we are at work. He accepts the bit soon after I ask. He arches his so beautifully. Every muscle on his neck is bulging. I can already see his veins. He steps under himself gracefully, chomping at the bit. After a few circles, figure 8¡¯s, and serpentines, I squeeze him into a trot. He moves foreword powerfully; stretching his forelegs out and neck down. Once again, I perform a few basic dressage figures. On the outside of my next circle, I urge Johnny to a canter. He is incredibly supple and bends his body evenly around the curve. I take him across the diagonal. On the centerline, I request a flying change. We struggle to achieve a smooth transition but he changes none the less. I continue on and execute another perfect circle at the other end of the arena. Once this is completed, I point Johnny at a yellow and orange vertical with a flower box underneath. I ask him to lift his head off the bit and to switch his frame of mind to ¡°jump.¡± He does as I ask and we canter on towards the jump. As we gain on it, he picks up speed. We have had many arguments about his consistency to a jump, but today, today is a good day. I allow him to choose his speed before the jump but restrain him afterwards. I turn my head toward the next jump; a blue oxer. He perks his ears toward the fence. I can feel the impulsion rising within him. It pushes us over the fence, with a feeling of effortlessness. I continue to point him at whichever jump I choose until we have done a solid course. I bring him to a walk and send him around the arena 3 times on the buckle. Once we have caught our breath, I put him back together and trot, canter, and jump him for the next 15 minutes. Now that we have both gotten a satisfactory workout, I walk him out to the cross country field. Although he picks up the pace, he maintains a walk. We have a nice relaxing cool down for the next 10 minutes. I pat Johnny and walk him back to the barn. Once he is in the crossties, I unsaddle and unbridle him. Now that his halter is on, I put all of my stuff back in the tack room. Before I exit, I grab four molasses horse cookies. I give one to him the second I return. I place the rest in my pocket and hook the lead rope to his halter. The crossties make a loud ¡°clink¡± noise as they hit the metal posts. I walk Johnny out to his pasture and hive him a kiss on the nose. Before I let him free, I do some neck stretching exercises using two of the remaining three cookies. After these are accomplished, I slip his halter off and feed him the last cookie. He nods a goodbye and trots over to his pasture buddies. ¡°Love you, boy!¡±