Friday, March 5, 2010

Reluctant to ride

I don't know if it's been some left over exhaustion from my last trip to DC, not feeling up to dealing with Cibolo's issue, or just tired from the pace of life, (maybe a bit of all three) but I was reluctant to ride this week. I didn't head out to the stables yesterday - had too much work to do I decided, even though it was an incredibly beautiful day and I probably could have snuck out.

But today Mireya wanted to go to the stables. She so rarely wants to go, that I never let an opportunity like that go by. So we loaded up.

Initially I didn't even plan to ride. Just brush and love on horses. But Cibolo was in an incredibly loving space. He wanted to hang out with us and after a bit I decided to saddle them both. Only after taking great big whiff of horse fur.

God, I love the way horses smell.



Sierra rode Lily, Stephanie rode Cibolo.


Lily was misbehaving a bit, turning to bite when mounting. She never connects, never comes close, really. It's just a threat. We need to see what that's about. She's very cinchy, and hasn't been ridden consistently and can become a pill under those condition. Still, I wonder if this behavior is pain. I'll be checking out her back more thoroughly next time we're out.


The riders headed out and I played horseshoes with Mireya.


We set up our field: the little stump was 10 points, the inner circle 5 points, the outer 1 point. Then we named it. The Stump was the barn, the inner circle was the arena, the outer was the trail. Miss the whole thing and you were in the pasture.


Mireya is a horse shoe shark. Don't ever play her for money.

Here she is with her first ringer. First of many.


Cibolo rode very well, I hopped up on Lily at the end to just do the cool down (the larger saddle was on Cibolo so rather than switch saddles I just got on Lily instead). Lily was a bit hot, they'd done some running and she wasn't done. But the kids were getting cold, and it was time to wind things down.

So we worked on some mental things. Backing. Turning. Giving. Lily needs more consistent work, something she'll get now that the days are getting longer and the weather is more rational.



Cibolo is a different story.

It's interesting. Stephanie had worked on Cibolo through his fit with the wind. Then, when I took him out in the wind, he did fine.

I worked him through his fit with the inclines. Then, today he did fine on the inclines.

I don't know if he really learns that fast, but I am proud of the progress he's making. Hopefully my reluctance to ride (I do think I'm just mentally wiped out from work) will lift by Sunday. We have another chance to ride then.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cibolo does sound like a quick study. I have those reluctant days myself, so I know what you mean.

Leah Fry said...

We all have those reluctant times. The guilt for me comes from the fact that since I do work full time and have an hour's commute each way, the only time I get to ride is on the weekends. Like you said, sometimes, for whatever reason, I just don't feel like it, don't have the energy, etc. And I have one like Cibolo, where sometimes you just don't feel like dealing with the crap. I try not to beat myself up too badly about it.

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

It's amazing how much better kids do with horses than we do. I think they just don't have all the baggage and the second guessing and over-thinking we do. They just get on and ride and deal with whatever comes up without over-stressing.
I wish to be that way again, don't you?

The horsehoes game is cute. I want to play that with Jenna someday. I don't know anyone around here that uses horseshoes, though. lol!


~Lisa

Jocelyn said...

dont feel bad there are plenty of rainly cold days I dont feel like it and even worse when its sunny and beautiful outside!

Cactus Jack Splash said...

I agree, we all have trouble motivating ourselves to ride on occasion. There are times it is best to honor that feeling and take a break, it is good for the mind. I give myself a "have to ride by" date when I am feeling like that and stick to it.
Enjoy your ride this weekend

allhorsestuff said...

Yes, I do understand as well about the riding blues that come on sometimes...energies low, apprehension high. I just sometimes know that I should not ride...for what I may transfer into the saddle.
Yours did sound good this time, nice surprise!

I love playing horse shoes! My dad made the first horseshoe pit in a park in Orange county...cause he loved the game so much. It was the first thing, my husband did with him when we went to meet, after our engagement... Dad carried them in his trunk -at-all-times!
Thanks for the memory!
KK

Wolfie said...

I am pleased for you that Cibolo is coming along. Funny, I was reluctant to go out to the sables yesterday evening after work. I found myself making excuses, but I went.

BTW, I rock at horseshoes! :-)

Shirley said...

The issue with Lily might be a result of poor saddle fit; if her back checks out fine, you may want to check the way her saddle fits.It may be the cause of her pain, the bars may be digging in or bridging, which means they put pressure at the front and back and don't even contact in the middle. I did some research and have posted on saddle fit on my blog today, I found some interesting stuff on YouTube.

Grey Horse Matters said...

Sometimes I think we all just don't feel up to the whole thing. Grooming, tacking up, riding, untacking etc... But you really did ride even for a little while, so that counts. Have fun on Sunday.

Fantastyk Voyager said...

Lately, when I go riding, I've been doing it bareback because I just don't feel like taking the time and energy to tack up. Plus, I really need to clean and oil all my saddles before I use them.

Fantastyk Voyager said...

Lately, when I go riding, I've been doing it bareback because I just don't feel like taking the time and energy to tack up. Plus, I really need to clean and oil all my saddles before I use them.

Kristen Eleni Shellenbarger said...

I love your daughter's name..does it mean anything? :)

Unknown said...

Sometimes being girthy or reacting to mounting is more likely to be a rib out of place than a back issue. It's very common for horses to slightly dislocate ribs in the girth region. Just something to check out! Carmon