*Gulp* Fall Schedule

Wow... I just sat down to figure out my fall schedule as close as I can for right now. I think I have it pretty much exact now and I've gotta tell ya... It's pretty crazy. I'm going to be working roughly 30 hours a week, taking a full college load, 2 jumping lessons on Sackett, I've planned out 2 lessons a week on one of Lindsay's lesson horses, and one lesson a week on Grady. (Love to take two on Grady - it would certainly be the ideal situation - but my finances are stretched as it is...) I also have my life scheduled out so that I will be riding both Grady and Isis five times a week. SO that's five rides per week on Isis, five riders per week on Grady, two rides per week on Sackett, and two rides per week on Lindsay's horse. I'll be going non-stop 24/7, but that's the way I like it. Although I'd prefer if school wasn't in the schedule! I should have my entire schedule verified and solidified by the middle of next week.

I had a lesson on Grady yesterday. It went quite well, and I was really happy because it was the first lesson with Lindsay where he's been really naughty. I know I've mentioned before that Grady will "pick a spot" to spook at and generally be difficult about. Well, yesterday he finally picked a spot. BUT the major difference was that Lindsay actually got us worked through it! It took alot of hard riding and guts... Grady was doing his leaping, plunging, bolting ****. I did lots of small spinning circles and lots of strong pushes from my seat while driving like a crazy person with my legs and whip. BUT let me tell ya, we worked him through it. By the end of the lesson Grady wasn't misbehaving anymore. He was also quite stiff and resistent. Rather than going forward in flowing happiness he was stiff and tight in his neck. Lindsay basically had me go till he gave. Basically we picked up a big canter, I held my hands wide, and I rode Grady forward, forward, FORWARD!! And he did indeed eventually give up and work correctly. So I was very happy with the lesson because Grady demonstated both of our major issues and we worked through both.

This morning I rode Grady before my jumping lesson. I took him out to the XC course and we trail rode for about 20 minutes. Then I took him out into an open area to do some work. Being out in the open like that Grady wasn't spooky, but he was doing the tense choppy gaits and stiff neck again. So I did the same thing that I did in my lesson, I rode him forward fast and hard, hands a little wide, and just kept going. It took a good 25 minutes to accomplish the job in my lesson, but today it only took about 10 minutes. The difference was amazing... We were going along, stiff and tense, and all of asudden Grady just relaxed through his neck and back and his body started to work with swing, rhythm, and relaxation. The difference in the ride was simply amazing and it was such a quick, drastic change. He literally just gave up. I cantered one large loop around the field in that nice canter before quitting.

I had my jumping lesson after, and that went really well also. We worked on jump combinations with different striding and turns. I'm getting much better at rating the speed between jumps and finding my distances. Rocky set up the jumps at 2'10" and 3 feet... And then didn't tell me until afterwards! I had no idea I was jumping 3 feet and I never really looked at the jumps and thought "that looks bigger." Rocky has been making the jumps bigger and wider so imperceptibly that I don't even notice. At the end I did a course that to me felt kind of sloppy, although not incorrect. Rocky said that it was actually really good because I had my timing right through the whole thing. She said to keep in mind that when you're doing a 12 jump course it's so fast that you don't have time to make each jump a perfect jump. She said that pretty much all stadium courses have a "messy" feel to them simply because you're moving so quick and simply can't be perfect over every fence. But she also said that even though it feels a little messy and awkard to the rider, it generally looks smooth to the audience. I'd never thought of that before, so I thought it was an interesting insight.

This afternoon I went to a tutor training session. *ahem* I was more or less told that I HAVE to pick up an extra shift as a supplemental instructor for an english class. That was the thing I definitely didn't want to do and I had to re-work my life to make it fit. I'm actually ok with it though, and I actually like my re-worked schedule better. Plus I get more hours. Anyways, so it all worked out. I also stopped and picked up a new whip at the tack store, I broke my old one yesterday while I was mounting Isis. It got caught on my shirt and snapped!!

This evening I rode Isis. It was a great ride. I've been thinking about how awesome Grady feels when he's working the way Lindsay wants him to, and I was thinking that I'd like it if Isis would feel that way. Isis and I have been at sort of a down point in our riding... It just hasn't felt that great lately. I felt like she wasn't reaching firmly to the bit and that her strides were short and lazy. For whatever reason, our dressage has just sucked lately. So I decided that I was going to duplicate Grady's feel in Isis. And boy was Isis PISSED. She had to go firmly on the bit and work alot harder than what she's had to lately. She threw her head in the air and put up a heck of a fight. I kept riding forward, driving and asking, driving and asking. Finally she gave in - and suddenly she too was solidly on the bit, very round in the back and powering forward. I most definitely had my mare back, and she was even better than ever before. Her lengthenings and medium gaits were phenominal and get this: Her first leg yield was perfect. I had been blown away by the fact that all my leg yields on Grady were great in my lesson... I had wondered what the difference was that made my infamously bad leg yield suddenly work like a charm... And I decided it must be this bigger, more forward, and more powerful horse. So whatta ya know, Isis's leg yields worked like a charm too. I can't even begin to describe how much I love Lindsay right now!!!