Feeling complete again

... as I'm allowed to ride!

Started riding again yesterday and also test drove the new saddle. Well, you do get what you pay for... From the first moment I sat in the saddle – let's bear in mind, also after nearly a month out of the saddle! – I felt so secure and comfortable in it straight away. I wasn't 'looking for' the stirrups, or feeling really forward and unbalanced, like I remember I had been feeling in my last saddle when I sat in it first few times. I also remember thinking – when I started to use my previous saddle – that all saddles take time to get used to and I am just being awkward. However, I can now honestly say that what a load of... A saddle should feel comfortable from the get-go, for both horse and the rider. You shouldn't have to feel like you're losing the stirrups every time you raise trot (unless the stirrup leathers are too long of course!), and you shouldn't have to feel really 'light' in your seat, hence making you feel more unbalanced and not making you feel very confident... 

But enough about saddles. Although, I have to say, I made my friend, Becca, sit in the saddle – when we returned from a hack this afternoon – as she's ridden Rainbow and knows the old saddle, before I untacked Rainbow. Becca agreed – apparently it felt comfortable straight away, she was amazed too. :) Happy days.

I rode yesterday a little 30 min private lesson with our instructor. I wanted someone with me, even though R has been a good girl. I figured having someone shout instructions and feedback to me would help me get back into it, without me having to think about things to do with R.  It was a very basic lesson of mainly walking, trotting and cantering in circles of various sizes. Rainbow played ball and was listening to me, and going quite nicely too. Fair amount on the bit and managed to keep my leg on too. However, my flagging fitness after the break meant that we had to walk a bit more than I would have liked to, as I had to catch my breath.

Today I had agreed to go out for a hack with Becca. Her loan horse is currently out of action, so Becca took another mare out with us. Rainbow has been in the paddock with this other mare, so they knew each other, however we were told she wasn't a good lead horse, but very docile if she followed another one. So, on our first hack out, Rainbow and I had to act as the leaders.

I had this glimmer in my head that wanted to my favourite route around 'churn', which Becca was a bit surprised about when I expressed my enthusiasm for a 'proper hack', as she had expected us to poodle around a very gentle hack around some villages. But no worries, we decided to go through the village and see how it goes, and if the girls behaved, we'd take them up the road where I had suggested. 

All went well and Rainbow was a really good lead horse. The only challenging bit came, when we were on the road towards the churn, and there was an empty beer cardboard box, ominously showing its white underbelly in the bushes. Rainbow is always a bit head up at this point of the route, as sometimes there are sheep in the adjoining field. Rainbow doesn't like sheep. No sheep this time, but R figured that the scary box must have been 'part of the scary sheep gang', and 'it was not supposed to be lurking in the bushes the way it was lurking!', so she stopped, took two steps to the side and turned around, kind of ready to flee. I whipped her quickly back around the full 360 degrees, as I wasn't up for running away with her towards the main road, thank you very much. I sat in the saddle as quietly as I could and kicked R on. Becca and I exchanged glances without saying word, which roughly went like this.. 

Me: "My horse is scared, she doesn't want to go past the box. Can you help and lead?"
Becca: "This horse is not a lead horse, you have to lead us past the scary box...Sorry!"

So I did. Rainbow's neck arched and eye nearly bulging out of its socket, staring at the box, as she tentatively marched past the box and blew air out of her nostrils. Me sitting heavy, keeping leg on and giving her praise. Gooood girrrl...

We continued up the road with no problems, did a bit of trotting and walking. The [loose] plan was to do a little controlled canter on a specific grass verge, if both horses behaved. I explained to Becca, as we were approaching the canter spot that I usually just raise a gentle trot, make sure R is listening and then almost accidentally slide into a controlled canter. Becca was up for this, but as we began trotting on the verge, R was listening but Becca's mare was getting a bit heated up by this and even though Becca managed to control her, they were virtually doing a canter on the spot as the mare was rearing to go. I admire Becca's coolness and collectedness as I turned to speak to her, asking if she was Ok, she was serenely sitting on this horse that was ready to explode into a full canter, and just said "I am not sure if cantering is a good idea today." 

We walked past some houses and bushes, after which there was another expanse of grass. Becca suggested we'd trot on the road and then slide back onto the grass verge, so she could make her horse listen to her and to not always associate grass with cantering. So we did, and we all trotted up really nicely on the verge without anyone trying to explode. 

The road back home was a lot less scary than on the way up. The scary beer box only aroused a glance from Rainbow, but nothing else. We got back to the yard and I turned Rainbow out to our paddock where Zara was already waiting for us. Zara greeted us with an enthusiastic neigh and both girls proceeded to grazing in their fly masks (the flies still haven't given up here!). 

Tomorrow we have a jumping lesson. Looking forward to that!