Sharing is Caring...

The upside of boarding is that bit by painful bit, I learn a little more about what I need in a barn verses what I want.
I want a full sized arena with room to actually get some good work done on a long side. I can almost feel the ability to share the arena with another rider without it disrupting my training plan for the day. Almost...

Just ride your line. I'll flippin' avoid YOU!

As it would turn out, I am just not able to share an arena. At all. I mean, sure there are a few select individuals who can school around me and vice versa,but for the most part, others seem incapable to coping with my schooling.
Changing directions? 10m circles? Lateral work? AHHHHH! 
It all results in the awkward "oh god, I'm trying so hard to stay out of your way but I just CAN'T" two-step which results in both riders having to grind to a halt to a chorus of "so sorry"s and "I didn't know"s... So it's probably just best for everyone if I plan my rides for when there is little to no arena traffic. I've tried so hard to get everyone on board with arena rules... but there will always be a few who just can't hang when someone else's ride consists of more than the w/t/c around the rail.
/rant over

Snow Pony!

The good news: No one else rides now that it's cold! Yay!
Sunday was another cold grey day that tempts one to remain curled up under the covers and watch dressage on dvd. So I got up and out to the barn to work a horse or three.

The Dutch?!? Oy, the dressage controversy! 

I only got Delight worked before there were beginner lessons all over the place. So I cleaned tack, brushed (and fed) the other two, cleaned stalls, swept the barn and left. What a waste of my weekend. But Delight was quite good, so at least there was that.

Today I made up for lost time with RC and Tillner. RC was first (after I cleaned his stall). He was pretty good. Every single flying change that I attempted (and one that I didn't) was clean! AH-HA! Before and after the changes I worked on making him really round (easy there, he is NOT being rollkured to death). I read the Bartles book, and there were a few concepts that I wanted to play with... And RC is, after all, my training guinea pig. Of course anything written and endorsed by the dutch has been vilified by 'purists' and classical riders all over the internet. But, seeing as they have enjoyed overwhelming success the international scene, I'm willing to read what they have to offer and pick and choose what works for me (and my horses).

Unsurprisingly, Tineke Bartles knows what she's writing about. Whodathunk? We'll have see where RC is in a month.... 

And Tilly. She and I have been in a rut. She's started to respond to the whip with a buck (not good, right?), so today we did a ton of canter-trot-canter transitions off of the seat. I ended up with one sweaty pony who could pop between canter and trot without losing her balance and rushing. Yay.

"You know 'relaxation' is on the training scale?"
"check"

Today counts as a success.