Obsessed

Flora has been a dream come true. She is so beautifully trained and so enthusiastic about her job -- the ball is simply in my court to ride her well. 

Waylon started off pretty slowly with us but things are picking up as we near the start of the season. She's quite strong and jumping her often felt like a HIIT workout. We've been gradually experimenting with bits. We started with a snaffle. That didn't last long before we switched it out to a slow twist. That still didn't quite do the trick. I was still having to wrestle her to get her off her forehand and back on her haunches; and was also getting dragged out of the saddle over the fence. We switched again to a rubber snaffle gag and that has made a tremendous difference. She's finally responsive to my cues and I can ride much lighter with my hands now. I'm also holding my position better since she's not leaning into the bit anymore. 

In December, we took her to her first show - clear round jumping at Stable View. She's a total pro. Stands at the trailer no problem; warms up with no issues. She is keen in the ring but in a good way: sharp and attentive. We did a novice round and a training round. They were pretty solid rounds. My big issue was I wasn't staying with her over the jumps. All of my horses before her were flat jumpers so I never thought much about my position. Flora is quite different. Her jump is so round, it throws me up into the air and I wasn't strong enough to stay with her. I was falling backwards after the apex of the jump - not holding enough with my core. We've subsequently spent a lot of time working on my position - and honestly, we still are. It's very much a work in progress. 

Last week, we went to clear round jumping at Bruce's Field. We did Novice and Training again, and the training round was really good. It felt great. This was only the second time jumping in the gag and it really seemed to be a game changer. 

We've been xc schooling 3 times now. Each outing gets a little more serious. The latest was the biggest test yet, with Waylon testing us through a bunch of training level combinations and questions. Flora was perfect and I felt really in sync with her. I'm feeling good - really confident! Our first outing will be at Pine Top in the Training division. The plan is to run 3 training then take inventory and possibly move along to Modified. Waylon thinks by the end of summer I should be able to run prelim. I'm so excited to be back in the thick of things! 

December Training Round

January Training Round