Well, this week has been pretty much a "normal" week. Monday I stayed home and slept after a marathon show weekend in Athens. Tuesday I rode in my huntseat tack and had a pretty nice flat school, then hopped over a couple of tiny fences. He still felt pretty forward to them. Tried out a new bit that Becca had ordered; a Beval loose ring. I liked it upon first use. Wednesday I put on the dressage bridle sans noseband and walked some hills in the boy's pasture. Thursday I had fully planned to go out and have Kody take some pics of us, but I ended up down for the count with a killer headache so he got another day off.
Today was a school in the dressage tack. Susan gave me a whip, so I rode him with a dressage whip and no spurs. It was an ok day. Started out pretty good; he had a nice stretch across his topline. Began working on tranisitions, and he started to lose the connection I'd started out with. Wanted to jig instead of walk FORWARD on contact. So we practiced. Spiraled at the trot, and that was decent. Fought with him a little bit at the canter with connection, and got to trying to muscle him around like I always do. Relaxed ... it got better. Did trot/canter transitions both directions on a 20m circle, and he felt halfway nice. Ended by REALLY working on the walk/canter transition. We get it every now and then, usually well into a jump session, or out in the field. When I SCHOOL the transition, he ALWAYS takes a step or 2 of disorganized trot. So ... used the whip in conjuntion with my leg, nailed a PERFECT transition twice, then quit there.
Then he wanted to be a jerk going out the gate, so we had a little "come to Jesus" for a second. Hacked out to the end of the driveway, then kicked him out in the pasture so he can stay in tonight in preparation for an IEA show tomorrow. He was GREAT the first one, so hopefully he will continue the trend!
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