Thursday, 15 May 2014

Getting Into a Groove

As we prep for our first dressage show (first pure dressage show ever!), we've settled into a good ride routine.  Groom with BOT back warmer, tack up and go straight into a long trot to get into the groove of things.  Toss in a couple canter transitions to get the blood flowing.  Move into circles and serpentines, asking for more shape and to step up underneath himself.    From there we move into whatever exercise I want to work on that day.

This set up has been working really well, and I've noticed a big difference from when I use the back warmer vs not.  After playing around in the sandbox for a while, we head down the trails for a short hack to unwind and relax a bit.  When we're hacking away from home, Koda is a lot easier to relax and enjoy on the trails.  Our hacks are short, but still really enjoyable.  It was so nice to be able to take him down the trail on a loose rein enjoying the sunshine and smells of spring.

Bliss!

Rollin' after a job well done
I'm going to introduce a bit of lunging with the vienna reins to help him work those muscles a bit more, and that we can do at the yard so save gas and time!

In the meantime, I had some fun with scrap wood and paint to make a couple fun jumps.  I'm not exactly the most artistically inclined person, but I'm handy with straight edges and a can of paint.  The plank is going to be attached to a pole, and the black frame will have a tarp put on it to be used as a liverpool or fake ditch.

Ditch on the left, plank on the right (green side)
Canada flag without the leaf as the opposite side 

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