Relearning some things

It is still pretty damn boring around here.  There is some riding, but it is not exciting stuff and the weather continues to be kind of bitchy.  Today was forecast to be decent so I packed all my riding stuff to work and instead we had a freezing fog all damn day.  It was 23 when I left work and icy, so yeah, no horse stuff, thanks.

OK, this is actually from our backpacking trip in NZ, but subtract about 50 degrees
and it is totally the same

On Sunday I did a lesson share.  That is, I scheduled a lesson but after skiing all day on Saturday didn't have enough leg to ride a full lesson so I worked him for awhile and then R2 hopped on.

Still no pictures, I swear I own a horse and he isn't just a figment of my imagination.

Fawkes' flat work is definitely making progress.  He is learning how to stretch down and out more and use his back.  He is still resistant off the right leg, but it is possible to get a response now.  He holds the contact really well without trying to pull or get heavy.

One big thing we are working on right now is control of the outside shoulder and rib cage when we come off the rail.  He definitely wants to bulge out and I am trying to figure out the correct balance of inside and outside aids to direct him.  We were trotting some poles though and I was able to really straighten him with my outside aids which is a huge difference from before.  Overall, this is stuff he knew before, he is just a) learning to do it as a hunter and b) learning to do it better.

I will likely use NZ pics for a long time to come.  Queenstown from above

Some things, however, seem to be different.  My poor little autochanger has had to relearn his lead changes.  I think the muscles he is using now are just so different and his carriage has changed so much that he and his body are confused.  R2 did a bunch of figure 8s over poles and asked for changes after the pole.  (Of course) he jumped the poles, but he never did actually change over them which surprised me.  Perhaps she was preventing that, I didn't ask but he usually will change over a jump if given the change.  Anyways, his changes are still there but you can tell he is relearning.  Once, he changed only in front left to right and couldn't seem to get the back.  Fawkes loathes cross cantering so that upset him.

Another time he threw his hind end waaay in the air and sort of flailed to get the right to left, giving himself more time to get his hind legs under control.  But always R2 had him maintain the nice canter, keeping his head down and balanced.  He had some perfect ones in there too so I am positive they will come back.  I guess we are making the 6 million dollar horse (we can rebuild him, we have the technology).  He should have a spectacularly strong back soon, I hope!

I did notice he was occasionally breaking to trot in front of the poles and R2 mentioned that as he builds more muscle that will go away.  She was trying to collect his canter and he wasn't really strong enough to hold the canter and collect.  Sometimes I get surprised by stuff like that but then I remember all the time off and all the new ways of carrying himself and all the tension and fighting in the old days and realize how many changes we have made.

Now to hope they keep paying off!  Patience, I need more of it.