AWESOME day!:)

Rode the boy today. He was a SUPERSTAR! Decided to ride in the little arena today instead of just in the pasture. He went back into PWF mode; rounding, reaching for the bit, attempting to bend, etc. We found a perfectly lovely trot rhythm, and warmed up on a nice, loose rein. I actually walked/trotted for about 5 minutes in my 2-point, and while he did want to get a little fast at first, he settled in nicely. Worked the leg yield at the walk, and performed shoulder-ins both directions for the first time today. Did those like a champ. Worked on the turn on the forehand ... that one needs a little work. He doesn't move readily off my leg (as evidenced when he decides to not MOVE, despite me "beating" him, lol), so the 'totfh' is sticky, at best. We're about 33% on that.:) Cantered BEAUTIFULLY on the left lead, staying soft and balanced despite the fact that the ring is unlevel and has virtually no short side. Deciding to continue our jumping work, I had set up a slightly bigger crossrail than what we'd been doing in the center of the ring with a trot pole. He has now decided jumping isn't too bad, and now tries to canter in all the time, so I will have to get him to relax and trot in without riding "backwards", and creating a stop. He needs a ton of pole/caveletti work, but we all know that's a little hard to do until the ring is finished. In the mean time, I'll do what I can when I can, and hopefully we'll be ready to do our hunter pace in October.