Monday, April 30, 2012

Wheels on the bus

What a fantastic week!

Sinari just peeled off work after work after work that just kept getting better. I think we've got over the fitness hump and a few other things as well. She's looking svelt and trim.

With the one bad side effect of fitness with mares is that they come into heat harder. I used to remember the Sinari who would silently cycle and not bat an eye at anything. Sinari of today, who is now ramped into some serious fitness (30-45 minutes a day, six a week) schedules thinks it's muscle beach and everything is fair game. Go figure. Time to break out the Regumate.

I've also noticed that she definitely has an ego now. Which I blame being doted on by the barn ladies left and right and being told that she's the best. While that there is no dispute of this fact, it's nice to have her ego back into the game.  

Despite this, It felt so good that we rolled through strings of PSG toward the end of the week, and started choreographing with the new music.  Seriously can't wait to put it on tape and see how it looks. The new music is Coldplay.

This past weekend we did our second session with James Houston. Four straight days of clinic (and a grand total of 7 days of under saddle work) really pushed our limits. We worked through everything and despite me feeling like I mastered the last set of work, he pushed the boundary a bit further by picking on more biomechanics, and straightness. More work in the wings for May. We'll see him again this weekend during Shannon's clinic (bringing the pony along for more schooling time with Koford and Houston). 

Sincere came back into work yesterday, he arrived last Monday and took a whirl around the roundpen just to see what we have, and then yesterday I put him back on the lunge. He wintered well, but has zero muscle, however his gaits are really consistent. I think the next few weeks are just going to be spent getting him back up to speed and starting a lunging routine. I want County to look at him to see what kind of tree we're going to have to work with and he's started on a few other things to help with the nerves of moving (raspberry leaves). 

Last week really started our season, I put out the first entry, and started looking seriously at the upcoming schedule. May is looking slammed between weekends, visitors and work. This week we take a day breather and go into a photography session and then leave for VA. Don't even want to think about next week.  

Plus there's been more good news here and there, which I'll announce in due time.

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Eyes wide open

It's been busy and not just gee, maybe I'll catch a break busy, but go to 11pm and wake up at 5am really busy.

Sinari is back under saddle from her bites, we spent the majority of the week last week just lunging, and while I really dislike being on the ground so much (my fridge and I are good friends during those periods) but the investment of the time is really paying off under saddle this week.

She's back to being super light in the bridle and collection is easier for her. She's even being a hair too smart about the lateral work and the pir's lately. I'm getting more giggly over the changes which we rolled through for the first time in about a month. She's really going to be fun when she gets the one's down.

I've been way anal about the insect bites, they are bathed every other day and coated in anti-biotic ointment and corona. She's ridden in the half pads under the square pad. It's been great for her skin the hair is growing back quicker and the blotchy patches aren't so blotchy any more.

But the concoction makes for nasty saddle pads.

So my weekend was again spent in front of a washer doing 14-15 pads and two half pads plus the left over winter wash. Not to mention polos.

A serious labor of love. 

It's been busy on the work front as well, with back to back to back scheduling moments with clinics (James is Rolex weekend, Shannon Peters is Derby weekend, breather, then James the third weekend of May then Christoph Hess and then KDA).

Not to mention having to throw together a completely new freestyle for something in July, it's going to be interesting times. So, we have to get cracking. Fitness is going to have to take center stage this month, we're going back to KESMARC for some swim time once the truck is repaired.

I find that low impact, high resistance is really handy for those who are really hard to condition. Plus it's hay season, and being chased by a thresher, while motivation for going faster, is not my cup of tea. 

So goal recap:
-Compression
Much better, but still has fading moments.
-Changes
Getting there, she still argues about the balance point on long lines. 
-Roll through 4-2 and PSG
Negatron, just lazy. 
-Rotation
Her left side pir is competition sized, her right I would like to say you can park a minivan in it at the moment.
-Soft connection
Girl is like butter now, no jacked necks or backs. 

Goals April:
-Roll through 4-2
-Choreography for FS
-Pir's.
-Changes
-Fitness

Thursday, April 5, 2012

We've got the funk

Spring funk is here too.Unlike the weather, it's not a welcomed visitor.

Rain rot is one thing (it's up and down her legs and on her belly), but what happened on Friday and have been battling until now, is something different and kinda has me baffled as how Sinari did it considering that the last run in with ants there were visible mounds of them.

Friday rolls in and I go out to the field and Sinari is hanging out. Everything looks fine until I go and scratch her on her back and she about collapses on the ground. Looking at her whithers and back she had broke out in quarter sized lumps that were wrinkling and really hot to the touch. Confused

Fast forward a few days later, and well, things are better, the swelling is gone in some areas or down to almost nothing. Sensitivity is also gone, but now comes the fallout, the dead skin is sloughing off in patch work to red patches of skin.

Needless to say, under saddle work has been canceled, which sucks. So we're lunging to keep up fitness and other things. After the third day of walking circles you get fairly creative with your routine, you start to add poles, or work on collection, she's smart enough to do walk canter transitions and a few other things.  But until I can come up with some sort of solution (possibly involved a few lambskins) on the ground we stay.