green to 100

Best.

Sunday, January 29, 2017

I was recently asked regarding something we are working with Wild Heart on: Is she just being stubborn?

I stopped and turned to my friend and answered: I never assume that. Sure- sometimes horses might have an opinion of I don’t want to do that– but I try never to start with the idea they are just being stubborn, or disrespectful or any other negative attitude. I assume they are giving me their best at the moment, and we just move forward and try to improve on it.

It got me thinking- especially in today’s social climate, but it’s something I’ve been working through in my own world.

Compassion.

Real compassion, not just when it’s easy because you already have sympathetic feelings for someone easy to love. Or the kind that says “you are stupid and/or evil but I’ll still try to be nice toward you because I’m better and right”

I want to find the kindness in me where I can authentically care for the feelings of people who are just being stubborn, or have completely opposite viewpoints from mine, or who I’ve perceived to have hurt me in some way… or how about the ones engaged in behavior I find abhorrent?

How? And how is that different from condoning it?

Note: this is not for ‘their’ sake… doing someone else a favor by being kinder- but for my own sake. It expends a lot more energy working from adversity than from love in myself. Negativity is exhausting and draining. Compassion and real love are energizing and endless. It’s for ME that I want to find more compassion and connection- so I can have peace and energy to be more effective.

I think the key for me to work on has been the concept of Best.

Let’s take my horse as an easy example.
I learned yesterday that the amazing Khaleesi won’t load in the other (left) slot of my two horse trailer.

I always load her in the right. She is a perfect loader – I swing the lead rope over her neck and click to her and she walks on.

We are working on getting Wild Heart to load in the small slot with the divider in and she is worried about the confinement.

Because I began working on her on the right side- I wanted to allow her to continue there until she was ok before making a change. So I decided to load Khaleesi on the left side so Heart might be more comfortable knowing another horse is also confined comfortably and relaxed there.

Khaleesi refused to get on the left side. Then I insisted- I walked her on- she was terrified momentarily and shot out backwards in fear.

I scratched my head. Good to know!

My first belief is always that she is giving me her best. Apparently she is worried about being in that other side – for whatever reason I don’t really care– but if I assume she’s being stubborn or difficult on purpose I now color our interactions with negative connotations and have lost any compassion, empathy and connection to her. She is now a bad horse or a disrespectful horse. This changes my tone to either impatient, angry, resentful or even defensive.

In reality she’s a horse who doesn’t feel comfortable in the other trailer slot. If I assume she is doing her best I can now help her (that is my job) to get comfortable on that side and I will be more effective if I am connected to her and my relationship will not be destroyed in the process.

I love my horse and this is an easy example.

Let’s take the co-worker that doesn’t get me important information I needed and causes me stress in my work. (Substitute any work related issue here)

I can get annoyed that he isn’t doing his job properly, that he is making my job harder and is incompetent. I can lose connection with him and be at odds.
Probably won’t help a whole lot and cause stress. Ineffective.

Or I can decide that he is doing his best. And I can decide how to work within the situation to be most effective. I can’t fire him (not that I would or wouldn’t – but that not my job) but I can realize I may need to be more proactive in requesting information more often so what I need doesn’t slip through the cracks. I can help him do his job and make life better for both of us.

In reality he IS doing his best. That’s all we get at the moment. There’s no other option. ‘He should do his job better’ is just going to set me up for failure.

Does that mean accepting underperformance?

No- if I were the boss I may talk to the employee and ask for improvement in certain areas. If the person can grow- great- if there are things bad enough that the job isn’t being done then firing someone is always an option. It may be the most compassionate thing to do as the person may not be suited for the job- but it doesn’t need to be done with hostility or disconnection.

Let’s move to a whole new layer- where the rubber meets the road. Someone harder to care about – an abusive husband, a criminal, a politician you completely disagree with… a dangerous world leader … substitute the one who gives you the most stress here.

Can one look at a husband who abuses his family and say he is doing his best?

Personally I believe yes.

That person is very likely living in pain and fear and cycles from generations past. It is sad an unfortunate. This is not an easy process- but believing the abuser IS doing his best changes the dynamic in connection but doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be removed from those he’s abusing.

But is that human less deserving of true compassion and love?

That doesn’t mean staying in a bad situation, or taking away consequences or legal punishment for those who do wrong. But it does allow me to not hold hate, anger and resentment disconnecting me from the world and making me less effective in handling the situation.

All the stressful thoughts and feelings make it harder to make clear choices and act. It is me that I hurt when I hold onto hate- or righteousness – of being better or different. Separated.

I can’t just be more compassionate automatically, but when I take a step back in every disappointment and assume the others involved are also doing their best at the moment it makes me better at moving forward clearly.

I cannot change one person around me, but I can work on me. One day and one stressful thought or situation at a time. And as I get better and more connected I see everything around me get better.

For me, in practice, it starts at the barn. With my horses who I desperately want connection with above all else. Every time I assume a horse is acting badly on purpose I have lost connection and effectiveness to work on improvement.

When I assume she is giving me her best I find her best gets better all the time.

Rest.

Saturday, January 21, 2017

Those who know me will not find it hard to agree when I say subtlety is often lost on me.

I have a (now) favorite story where God continued to try to point me the right direction and I resisted until I finally pulled a muscle trying to go my own way. I finally looked up to the sky and relented

Ok ok ok ok ok… I get it… I’m on board and hear you now.

I can be a little hard headed. Headstrong. Deaf. Determined. It depends on why you ask.

This sometimes works to my advantage as I don’t take obstacles as problems as much as opportunities and believe anything can be accomplished with the right effort, time, and creative mindset.

However it also works against me when I’m too blind and deaf to notice the circumstances around me tell a different story than the one I thought I’d begun with.

Either way I have been making an effort to pay attention and grow to be better and more effective in the long run.

Every two or three years (usually in winter) I get sick… cold or flu. I’ve learned one thing when that does come around it’s an opportunity to realize it’s time to slow down.

In fact I’ve looked around me this week to see a compounding of circumstances that seem to be a very loud suggestion: It is time to slow down girl. Now.

I’ve got a cold – not debilitating but I don’t feel great and am congested especially at night.
Khaleesi has had a mystery mild lameness.
My new hoof boots came in the wrong size so I have to wait another week to get them exchanged.

The tempting warm temps today along with starting to feel better and Khaleesi seeming to be back on…. mostly… as of yesterday tempted me to throw on her bareback pad and go out for a light walk in the woods today.

But I remembered back to that lesson it took me some pain to learn and I thought better of it.

Khaleesi needs more rest- I don’t want a lingering injury. We still have plenty of time to get out starting later next week. I am not 100% either- and I want to get back to my old energetic self.

And those hoof boots are still not here.

When will I learn?

Well. Maybe I have 😃

In the past few days of not riding I have done a lot of work from home to put me ahead on some projects, I’ve done some laundry and basic house things that I’ve put off, and today I moved the electric fence to start getting Heart used to that as soon as possible.

I also enjoyed some barn time with Khaleesi yesterday (as I continued to monitor her lame status) and then today after putting up the electric fence walked the field and enjoyed being in the herd and spending some non-agenda time with my beloved mares.

Nothing too strenuous.

As my mentor reminds me often.

Nothing can replace true rest.

Heart: on the road part deux

Sunday, January 15, 2017

This was too good of an update not to post so here’s a brief follow up to the Heart progress blog even though it’s the same day!

Sunday was not as wet and cold as I’d expected so after some house chores (woke up and realized my barn was probably cleaner than my house...) I had some free time so decided to hook up the trailer and make it the day for the trailer.

That meant it wasn’t: we’ll check it out and see how she reacts.

It was: she’s getting on if I stay here all day and night.

I thought about the horse greats… Dorrance… Brannaman… Hunt… I can’t remember who it was that first said it:

To be a good horseman you don’t force horse to do something. No. You make it [whatever you want to get done] the horse’s idea.

Well I’m not a real horseman. At least not yet… maybe someday. I wasn’t sure I could pull off making it Heart’s idea to get into that little aluminum box on wheels- but if I couldn’t do that my hope at least was to make it happen without force. Without frustration. Without stress. (For either of us).

To be successful I needed to have no time line, and no expectations about how long she would need to sort the puzzle out.

Checklist to prepare for success:

Be able to lead her well on the ground. Not just so she doesn’t run me over- she knows the dance and performs it well. Her leading skills are excellent.
Understand when I ask her to move forward either toward me or past me depending on my needs. This is solid but not perfect.
Understand how to back. Yeah. We got that!
Be confident walking on and stepping up and backing off uneven surface. We use the plywood platform in the arena and she easily steps up and backs off without hesitation. Excellent.
Be ok with confined spaces. She used to be stalled in TN and spent some time in a confined area here at the farm when she first arrived. Check.
Work on leading through narrow spaces. We didn’t spend much time on this. I’ve heard it’s great prep for trailer loading.

All in all I believed she had the trust in me and the building block to do this.

I called Nette and she met me at the barn for moral support (it’s always nice to have a friend), some fresh air, and to work the video!

Before even moving toward the trailer I got us connected and communicating with some groundwork. I led, backed, and asked to move the hind around the fore until I knew I had her attention and we were on the same page.

I think some who have horses not great at loading might solve their problems with that simple step.

Then we headed to the trailer and there was 45 minutes that looked a lot like this:

Basically I wanted to ask her as gently and softly as possible yet in the end it had to ‘get done’. In Brannaman speak: offer the good deal then increase the pressure until I could see the try.

This is tricky. I think I spent more time than I needed not asking clearly but hanging out with her feet on the ramp making sure she was comfortable and not worried.

I knew when I added too much pressure because it sent her backward down the ramp.

I also have been working on waiting on the horse. I believe it’s important you let your horse know she has time to think. I don’t want a reactive horse. I want one who knows I will encourage her to think a problem through if possible. It helps build trust. And the horse knows when you care enough to wait on them.

I was determined to out-patient my usual self and take as much time as she needed to do it on her timeline. Her comfort zone. It’s a common mistake ask a horse for something – wait a few human moments then decide “ok that’s enough… we don’t have time for this“.

So I was prepared: When my brain kicked in with ok, this is ridiculous… get on the trailer already!! I was ready to retort no goal oriented impatient self- we can wait longer!

After about half an hour I made the decision to ensure my request was crystal clear – I began to use my lead rope to drive (not to whip her- just a twirl or swing to communicate what I wanted) and added a forward invitation with my body to create almost a rhythmic rocking back and forth next to her. This seemed to break something loose and she began to shift more weight forward. She put on two feet then followed with the rear just behind.

I’m pleased with the work and after asking her to back off nicely (the second half of the process!) I loaded her 2 more times easy on, easy off.

Once she’d made it on the next couple times were quick and easy. My guess is she will now load fine. So far once she learns something it seems to stick.

So she’s really on the road now!

Heart: on the road.

Sunday, January 15, 2017

K seems to have pulled something in her shoulder and is slightly off so she’s on rest. If I had to guess it is a product of muddy fields and her self appointed job of keeping Wild Heart ‘in line’. Sometimes her bucking and galloping and sliding are less then graceful.

She came in sound from our muddy ride so she could have pulled something there and it didn’t present till the next day- or it could be a combination… who knows!?

Since we did get a good training ride in Thursday and some cold rain is coming in – a short break isn’t so hard to accept.

I have been watching her saddle fit and some winter rough hairs and after the Thursday ride went back over her topline to check for any sensitivity and she is 100% good! I went back to try the Phoenix Rising pad instead of my toklat and I believe it helped. It is the pad made to work with the saddle and it seemed to clear up any rough spots the coolback was giving me.

Trial and error.

Also the scoot boots came in and they are a size too small so I’m in the process of exchanging them too. Any ride I do get in will still be on the vet wrap and duct tape program for now.

So what about the good news?

Wild Heart:

Great progress with her!

We have been working her with saddle, and now we’ve added the bit – our choice with all my horses is the Phoenix Rising (was Imus) comfort bit. They are most known for a ‘gaiting’ curb bit (shown above) which is the bit my MFT (Faygo) rides in. With Khaleesi and Heart we will use the ‘transition’ bit that works off direct pressure- similar somewhat to a snaffle but doesn’t break in the middle with the most important feature for me being that it does not work off the concept of ‘pain avoidance’ but of clear communication.

The bit we started with has D rings that we use (not the shank rings) while her transitions bit is on order.

I can’t say enough about how good these bits are and if you’re interested in learning more- about the bits they sell and information about how bits work check out Phoenix Rising

With the ease she took the bit we moved to some ground driving with her to ensure we have some steering before getting on.

At first the long lines around her rear made her nervous and we got a few panic bucks but she is smart and level headed and after letting her realize she was ok she did great for both me and Susan.

Now hopefully she will also be less worried to things around her legs. This can happen out in the world!

She’s been ponied a few times with no trouble.

Things were going well, then Susan had a day to work that I was tied up and she was left to her own devices.

Or maybe I was out of the way 🙂

She took a suggestion I gave and hand walked Heart on the trail for a couple miles. Heart isn’t ready to take a solo rider away from the herd yet (or we are not comfortable with that step yet) but if we want to take her on an intro ride in early March she’s going to need to be ‘ok’ with Susan taking her solo- separate from her buddies.

This is our creative solution to getting their relationship moving even if the riding isn’t there yet. Starting on the ground.

Then Susan worked her in the arena and rode her as well.

Next step the following week was another arena ride that went so well we went right into her first trail ride since coming home to live with us.

She was perfect! We left lame Khaleesi in an outdoor stall and took Faygo and Heart for a few miles loop in the woods. It was a nice first ride and Heart walked calmly from start to finish.

I’ve been really pleased with heart’s progress and Susan has been doing great work together with her. In the year she has come to ride with me Susan has really upped her game and it’s fun to have someone to ride with and work together with that has the same goals of horse relationship and doing things with the horse in mind every step of the way.

We have been helping each other hone our ability to observe and be always closer 100% leader which is what our horses want from us in order for them to give 100% to us in effort. It takes some focus and effort but is so worth it.

I’ve been pleasantly encouraged by the process with Wild Heart all around. Between her great mustang genetics, solid mind and her good start with Jennifer it’s been even better so far than I’d hoped. I’ve heard what great horses these mustangs are, but seeing is believing as I watch her from session to session.

It is like learning = survival in her; not that she’s in fear, but every step we take together she picks up amazingly fast and is ready for the next level. Learning is important for survival in the wild.

Looking back ten weeks ago – the night she springloaded off the trailer in the dark, head high and worried about a new environment I wasn’t sure I’d get her into her stall without being trampled… I went home, sat on my couch alone and thought: I certainly hope I know what I’m doing!

So it is gratifying and relieving to see things going so well. Susan and I have both agreed to keep the process slow and only do what we feel confident will be successful.

Never put any goals ahead of this horse. Or any of our horses.

I am glad to say that I don’t regret this choice for a second though when you’re deciding what to do at the time it’s hard to know if what you hope and believe will be… will actually be.

We will keep her moving along the trail and hopefully Susan will move from hand walking to a solo ride in the next month.
If we can just get her on the trailer we’ll be in good shape to take her to Blackwater in March (Camping and intro ride).

We’re on that too!

Mud.

Friday, January 13, 2017

She asked if we could find some mud to train in.

After frozen ice and snow with a low Sunday night of 3 degrees, the temps rose to almost 60 Thursday with bouts of rain coming through.

This ridge road was a total mess in spots. After climbing to the ridge (which is a big climb) we chugged through the worst of it at a walk, trotted when we weren’t so deep, and enjoyed the more forested areas where the footing was pretty nice. It took 4 hours to do the 13 miles of out and back – we definitely got in a good training ride!

The new scoots have just arrived (not in time for the mud ride). I was shocked at how well the old boots (duct tape and vet wrap program) held up even when sucked completely into mud holes.

I twisted a front renegade about mile 8 and put the muddy thing back on Velcro and all. At that same stop I pulled her into quicksand basically to get on in a good spot at the edge of the trail and as soon as I got on and she pushed herself out of the muck a back boot twisted around. After fixing that immediately we were off and not another loss through more mud and some decent trotting.

Excited to try the scoots. Report soon!

Not Riding Today

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Middle school. At least I’m smart enough to ask for guidance from those who’ve gone before me…

Today I had a phone call with my mentor… the question: what do I need to do to be sure K is ready for an early 50 in March this season?

Should I be considering an LD to start off our season?

What has her schedule has been like lately.

Not a lot – she’s mostly on rest through the holidays… just some light rides. I’ve started to pick up a couple decent mileage rides (10-12miles) but it’s not easy right now. We have very little speed with the boot issues and footing in general.

Any riding you’re doing there isn’t light work. I’ve seen your trails.

I really believe in the power of rest.

She’s been though two seasons now? And her first 50 last year?

Basically… this last season she completed 2 LDs (Leatherwood and No Frills) and 3 50s (Biltmore, OD and Iron Mountain)

Those are all serious 50s. The Biltmore has almost the same elevation as the OD but it sneaks up on you over time. It’s why so many lameness pulls happen there. They don’t realize how hard the horse has been working because the hills are so gradual. At least at OD you know when you’re climbing the mountain.

This 50 in March should be an easy start for you. It’s pretty flat with friendly footing.

Keep to a light schedule but get her out on a couple 20 mile rides. You aren’t trying to race or top 10 with her, she has a solid base from her first season and unlike humans horses will hold their fitness.

The March ride is pretty flat- it will be good to find a flatter 20 [miles], and that time of year that area mud will be a challenge. I know you have rocks and hills, but can you train in some mud?

Yep. Mud. Check.

Also a trace clip is your friend. You have no idea if it will be unseasonably warm or unseasonably cold. Just a clip under her neck and chest will help her cool if it’s hot but won’t be too much if it’s cold.

The thing I hear a whole lot from experienced riders who tend to keep a good horse for many years: there is no substitute for rest.

This is a good thing for me to hear. It means I don’t need to feel stressed and guilty because I’m not riding 5 days a week when work is busy. Worried because the weather and footing is prohibitive for speed and distance.

So my goal is to take an ‘easy’ couple of rides each week and get three 20 mile rides in before February 25.

And trust she’s good for it.

Boot follow up 2

Saturday, January 7, 2017

Woohoo!

One more ride with 100% boot success. Only about 8 miles but a fair amount of trotting, slick footing, hills, and snow.

Temps were colder than I’d anticipated and no sign of the sun.

I used the vet wrap to help snug the boots and keep them from twisting. In the end the Velcro was completely frozen closed so no chance of them coming undone with snow pack but the bottoms could have still come apart and they did not!

I’m still excited to try the scoot boots as I’m short a front now and using the spare backcountry glove which was tight and frozen on to her hoof! I could hardly get it off once back at the barn. It stays on but it’s too tight and for the long term would rub her heels.

And the last bit of good news is that our saddle fit seems good. The pad with 2 shims appears to be working well. She has no trace of sensitivity and though a few white hairs are lingering on the right whither area and sometimes I see rougher hairs, we are still clear with her back for now.

Stay warm out there and I’ll check in next week!

Winter Conditioning : Brought to you by Duct tape and vet wrap

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Determined to continue training despite hoofwear woes I put my broken boots back together as best I could and dug through the old chest for anything I could get on her front foot to keep on the trail while waiting for the new scoots.

I found a long past use easyboot trail of Faygo’s whose Velcro has seen better days. With the help of a hammer I tapped the boot shell on (at least it’s not coming off easily!!) and pulled the gaiter over and did my best to put the dead Velcro in place- now we just need some duct tape (red of course) and fingers crossed it would work for the day.

The boot is a little tight and I wondered about rubbing on her heels but didn’t think that would be a long term issue with a ride or two before the new boots come.

Then I went back to my size 1 renegade on her other front and did a little prayer.

For her hind boots- that have begun to work well after reshaping- I found some chips in her hoof from the nail holes and that made the size 0 boot loose on her hoof so that I could twist it back and forth.

Not good.

So I took some vetwrap and went around the hoof to enlarge the foot only in width. Boot too tight! At least it made a difference. I pulled a few layers off until it felt snug without being tight, then secured the boot and pulled the vetwrap down to be sure it wasn’t on her coronet band.

Another little prayer and we were off.

Gorgeous day even though the forecast called for high winds and a wintery mix. Instead we were blessed with sun and occasional breeze.

Susan and I did 12 miles on decent trail and the boots withstood water crossings, mud, soft hoof-turning footing, and walk-trot-canter. We did some pretty hard fast canters occasionally and not an adjustment or lost boot the entire day.

She’ll drink out of a mud puddle but in a stream she’s always picky about where the water is best. Usually it’s inconvenient for me… here it’s right under a grapevine.

I am hopeful the back boots are now a good fit but the losses on my fronts recently make me think they aren’t quite right. I may play around with the vetwrap to make sure the boot can’t move around on the hoof. That could be a good long term solution no matter what boot she’s in.

At least we’re getting miles for now and not sidelined with no hoof protection.

I anticipate getting the new scoot boots next week hopefully by Wednesday.

Trial & Error (& Error…)

Monday, January 2, 2017

I’m not sure if this is a good first post of the year or a bad one.

The January 1 change over to a New year seems somewhat man-made and arbitrary. In fact, if it were up to me I would have separated these big holidays out more over the year. It’s a lot to throw at us all in less than 2 months.

Sometimes I feel a type too rational to get excited about imaginary human calendar celebrations.

But we humans- even me sometimes- do to attach expectations to man made ideas and feel some new beginning on January 1, or that our birthday (or entire birth month for some!) is a time we’re entitled to special treatment… or that we should gather with family and be happy at thanksgiving and Christmas.

I have two thoughts on these man-made days of high expectation…

First: I like to hope any chance I get to see my family is a good thing and find traveling for Thanksgiving to be ridiculously expensive and sometimes wather prohibitive. It makes me resent the cultural manipulation that I won’t be happy if I can’t see them on these ‘more important family days.’ And I want to feel special every day- not just on my birthday to be honest.

Second: I am now set up for disappointment if I don’t have a great fresh start on New Years Day. What if things I’m struggling with don’t magically reset into success? It’s a lot of pressure.

Not that I’m unhappy or negative, but life is full of the day-to-day routine, the long road of struggle before success and things that just don’t go how you want. And somehow my real life movie doesn’t care that it’s New Years Day and I am entitled to a day of joy and miracles.

It’s ok. I’m always the realist and reality is pretty good if you don’t have unrealistic expectations!!

After a few days of high winds and cold rain, then issues at home needing immediate attention (actually a hot tub malfunction that is serous to sort out before we drop back to sub freezing temps and have bigger problems) I was determined to take advantage of a mild day on Sunday, January 1, 2017 and take a good ride, get some of these needed miles in and continue my hoof boot & saddle fit trial and error scientific process.

With a slightly late start, then a long barn process of hoof cleaning, rasping, measuring, and extra boot adjusting to try out a smaller size on the fronts… I finally got on the trail almost 2 hours later than I’d hoped.

I had my doubts about the smaller front boots: they were just a little too snug. I have heard renegades do not function well too tight- slightly loose is better.

New Years miracle for us?

Hardly.

I was determined if the time wasn’t there for mileage, we would test and work with speed. This ride started with a healthy warm up walk and then trotting as much as footing allowed (which was mostly decent).

I kept constant watch over her feet (not my favorite way to ride) and we got about 3 miles of good movement- seemed maybe we were doing ok…

Then the first front boot came apart.

I didn’t have to go back far to find it. At that point I gave up. I’d brought a spare but just didn’t have the energy to keep the experiment up- at least that was a small triumph: I can say for sure smaller front boots were not going to work.

So I picked up the boot and headed home moving out when the ground was soft enough. Another mile and the other front came apart.

Yep, I can rule that possibility out.

Good news seems to be the back boots after filing and shaping have been staying on for the miles and speeds and mud. For the moment they seem to be basically successful.

So after returning to the barn on a disappointingly short ride on my less than glorious start to the New Year, there are a few more things to celebrate.

I went back to the heart pad and added 2 shims instead of the 1 I had started with. It wasn’t a hard test ride, but no rough hairs and her back looked great when I removed the saddle. No sensitivity.

I’m still loving our relationship, we are staying in a good cycle right now. There are sometimes periods where I struggle with my horse and feel like we aren’t on the same page and it’s more of a fight or argument than a friendship- but this winter we have struck a particularly harmonious chord and I love spending time with her, and it is obvious that she feels the same.

If I can sustain that for longer and longer periods I will consider that a great thing to celebrate for 2017.

And as a true new beginning I put in an order for a pair of Scoot Boots for her front feet.

Now that I lost a front shell I have to do something and with my recent hoof boot-shape research these look like a good one to try.

What I like about them:

Only one part… no gaiters or cables
No Velcro- at all.
Good drainage.
Super flexible material.
Supposedly don’t twist or come off.
Appear ridiculously easy to put on/take off.

The dream…. running along the beach into the sunset with a set of hoof boots that never twist, come off, break apart and are easy to put on and off!

Rear view. The materials are super flexible so I hope no rubbing…

Green to 100 is moving the trial and error boot experiment to a new boot altogether and have some hope it might bring a more successful solution.

Thankfully I don’t hold out for miracles- just put in the day-to-day effort through failure after failure knowing that I just have to keep at it long enough and dedication pays off in the real world. We will find an answer someday. And gain knowledge in the meanwhile.

Above all remembering to be grateful for all the things that are going right.

Happy New Year to all of you and I hope every new day brings a reality with contentment and everything you need each moment!

Middle School

Friday, December 30, 2016

Winter has come. Now I’m getting ready for Khaleesi’s second (full) season. I am not completely new to endurance, but I’m far from an experienced rider. I suppose figuratively I’m moving into the awkward middle school years.

This winter I am taking a horse with 5 LD rides and 3 successful 50s under her hooves and trying to balance some R&R with the physical training for another season starting early with a new ride in March.

That means getting her ready for an early in the season 50 during the worst 2 months for weather in the year… adding complication: she is in that off season (and off grass) muscling and body shape and fa-la-la-la-laaaa it’s hoof boot season.

I’m always up for a challenge.

First the body shape. Due to the fact that we aren’t a causal trail riding pair I am hyper aware of her body shape and it’s amazing how much her back muscling can change through the course of a year. This means her saddle fit isn’t perfect. It’s not far off but it’s bridging just enough to be annoying.

She looks good overall but her back muscling is less than in her peak

Yes. I know some people swear by treeeless but as of now I don’t believe that is the option for us. I’ve ridden in a Freeform for weeks at a time with a good pad to help distribute the weight but I was never as comfortable, and I’m not lightweight enough to avoid creating pressure points. Her back did not improve in the treeless.

Last spring, however, after moving to the wide tree her back was 100% all season. Every white hair gone, not a sensitive spot in training and all 50 mile rides. The trainer we spent a few days with in the summer concurred that Khaleesi loves the saddle. Keep it.

Until this late fall winter and she went into more down time and the grass sugars turned over. Now I’m getting a mixture of some dry spots, some rough hairs, and very few white hairs on the right side.

There is an answer to this cycle that I believe she’ll go through a little every year. But being in middle school means I’m still working that out.

Jamie at Phoenix Risin [PR] sent me a ‘have a heart’ pad that helps with slight bridging. I have 4 shims on each side that I can put in and take out to give it just the amount I need.

There is also the possibility that the dry areas are actually due to the Supracore webbing design doing its job- the test is soreness and sensitivity. Until this week I haven’t seen evidence of soreness.

This means trial and error… saddle time… and paying attention. The tricky thing has been most rides haven’t been long or hard enough recently to create sweat at all so her whole back and body are dry! None of these rides (2 hours… less than 10 miles) are going to cause real painful spots.

So it’s a struggle to sort out how many inserts are best and should they be the same on both sides? She only has a few white hairs on the right… does that mean I need an extra shim on the right? Or does that mean I need it on the left? And what does it say about my riding? I have noticed recently that I’m still lighter in my left foot (on a trot that foot is more likely to float a little in the stirrup).

I have a gift certificate from Christmas and am considering a second pad, one that might be a better fill in during these body cycles- either with shim ability or an overall corrective pad with more foam and give. On a whim I tried an experiment and added a baby therapeutic thin line pad instead of the have a heart shim yesterday and took my first serious ride in a while.

Upon reflection that wasn’t the best idea. (Everyone has those days in middle school...) I should have ridden with the heart pad on its first serious trial in the past few weeks- but the thin line pad was a new brainstorm and thus I ran with it. Literally. We took a nice day with good footing and did about 15 miles at a good pace.

No dry spots. (It isn’t obvious with the coloring in the picture but to the touch all was wet) In fact the thinline created heat and the sweat came up through the cool back pad and the thinline had a layer of sweat. Her hair was wavy behind the withers and she was slightly sensitive in her loin area upon testing after the ride. The thinline covered too much area under the saddle in my opinion and didn’t work to only shim the lower spots.

Solution matrix: get her doing more serious hill work to help build up that muscling more again, and use the heart pad like I was supposed to. Try to keep better notes on what works better.

Second variable I have some control over (unlike the weather) are hoof boots.

I’ve invested a decent amount time and money in hoof boots even hoping early on to keep her barefoot… though she has hard durable hoofs and spent her first 5 years barefoot on various surfaces. It’s not due to years of metal shoes as mostnin the peanut gallery have suggested, but she is sensitive, and barefoot just isn’t a reasonable solution for her.

Nonetheless I do believe in at least a cycle each winter to take off the metal shoes and right now that means riding in boots.

I am curious about the Megasus Horserunners but they aren’t in production yet. If they stay on they could be a winter option for us to try… but every new breakthrough sounds good in concept. I don’t want to have chemical glue on her hooves for lengths of time as it slowly weakens the hoof wall, but from what I’ve seen and heard the Velcro tape that adheres to the hoof can be removed without too much trouble, and though I don’t know that I would want that on her hoof all year long, switching it up for a winter spell might work out.

Staying on.

That is the challenge.

After pulling shoes I directly put on our set of renegade hoof boots and went for a ride with Susan.

Lost a boot bottom.

As I pulled out my hair in thick strands I had lost my mind enough to consult the peanut gallery on the Facebook ‘hoof boot exchange’ site. What I asked was advice on what kind of boot fits a narrow long hoof. Of course the answer I got was that horse hooves aren’t supposed to be long and narrow and my farrier should have fixed them.

Jeez, nothing like encouraging a farrier’s God complex like assuming it their job to recreate the shape your horses hooves came in.

So I read the comments, and called my farrier (whom I trust more than any other part of my equine team at the moment) and while waiting for a callback during Christmas week, started rasping away little by little at the fronts of her hooves.

When he called a few days later, I recounted the commentary and asked him what his thoughts are, he assured me: my general rule is to take off equal hoof wall all around the hoof. That leaves you with the same shape she started with. It’s a shame no one makes boots to fit narrow hooves. Someone could make a fortune with that. But sure- you can rasp off the toes. You aren’t going to hurt anything. Just stop if you see blood… but it’s 3 feet from her heart so it ain’t gonna kill her even then… I think they’re right that your boots will stay on better – see you in a few weeks.

So I went in earnest to round out her hooves a little at a time.

Shot of her back hooves after I rasped back her toes

Is it working?

Maybe.

After the reshaping, I took about 4 rides with 100% boot success. Mostly waking, but one of them in serious boot sucking mud.

Then the true test- that solo 15 miler at speed.

They passed, but not with flying colors. I did about 60% of the ride with 100% success, then I lost a boot bottom and though I’d been vigilant to watch for them, I couldn’t find the boot when I retraced back to the point I was certain I had seen all 4.

The first boot bottom of the season I lost was a hind. This time it was a front.

I brought along a spare tire and did some adjusting- I only had size 0 for a spare and had been using a size 1 on her fronts.

The return home, including much trotting and some cantering had no boot trouble at all. This leads me to wonder if I will need to reconsider boot sizes all around now that I’ve been filing. The right fit seems the secret to success when it comes to.. well everything I guess.

Middle school. What are the right shoes?What is the right fit? Does my saddle make me look fat?

More tweaking and experimenting. So far there is obvious improvement with the reshaping plan. I’m hoping for more success this winter with serious training in the renegades without breaking the bank losing them! They aren’t cheap to replace.

Overall the renegades are still my favorite though I’ve seen some very cool options for twice the cost that I’m just not willing to do right now.

My biggest complaints with easycare though I know people love them- is they are a bitch to put on-take off, and I don’t like their materials: when I used them regularly on Faygo we wore right through the shells in one season (haven’t even come close to wearing out the renegade shells… even the few originals from 2 years ago that I haven’t lost!!) and the Velcro was useless if it got mud or snow packed in which in winter here happened often. If I lost a boot it wasn’t going back on if it had Velcro. Thankfully Faygo basically can go barefoot in a pinch. Khaleesi doesn’t move well barefoot- she slows way down over time as her feet start to hurt in our rocky terrain.

So the renegades get (yet) another chance as none of the easycare products fit Ks original long hoof either.

On some positive notes: I pulled out the heart rate monitor again and she’s still got fantastic recovery. I cantered her up a long hill around mile 12 and got her heart rate up to 189bpm at the top where we stop for the pipe gate (I was aiming for 200) by the time I pulled out my phone and got camera mode up she was down to 172 then in about 20 seconds down in the 70s.

By the time we were within a mile of the barn she was still offering to canter and the 15 miles wasn’t a stretch (thank goodness or I’d be in real trouble for March!).

Also our mental work has been paying off. We are well connected and even offering to canter close to home isn’t barn sour attitude anymore and she is just as happy to walk with me if I ask.

We had a funny moment last week while taking Wild Heart for a pony ride. As we were crossing the Jackson River still in sight of the barn I let the mares relax in the water a moment as they drank. A few more steps and we were in the deepest section when Khaleesi stopped, pawed and looked hard at the moving water before she dropped to her knees. With Heart on the lead next to me and my boots now in the river I began yelling and kicking and grabbing for my lead rope (which I drive her forward with if she gets too lazy). After I got her out of the river (without taking me for a complete swim) and celebrated a moment in not losing the lead rope in the process, and congratulating Heart on not freaking out at all in the commotion… I laughed with Susan for a good 10 minutes. What a comedy!

I am enjoying that mare as much as I ever have. The down time mixed in with trail training, bareback pad riding for balance and feel, and time spent without a clock or a gizmo to put me on a timeline or goals for speed and distance have helped in this relationship area even if neither of us feel quite ready to tackle a 50 today.

But I believe wholeheartedly that if one can line up the mental, the physical is the easy part.