Thursday, February 7, 2013

February Goals: The Foxie Edition

While I'm sitting around, twiddling my fingers waiting for the funds to pile up sufficiently to buy a future pony, I have a perfectly usable one eating me out of house and home.


The Foxmonster.

AKA "Currently sound for flatwork" Foxie.

In the last month, I've been an intern, and thus riding Fridays, and usually Saturday nights. Not a whole lot of consistent work, but such is life. Since it has been so gross and icy and snowy, Fox has a lot of energy. Thus we've been doing a lot of cantering around and general asshattery (pardon the term). 

February Goals:
- Do more bareback dressage : Fox and I had a couple of good days lately with doing shoulder in/haunches in bareback after she softened up and stopped being a brat about her back. Plus, it's a great work out.

- Work on going bridleless : I intend to start riding with my neck strap so I can start doing simultaneous cues (pull back when I pull back on the bit, etc) so we can start going bridleless. We also will work on our vocal cues (especially "woah") as I intend her to be a mom horse. 

- Work on ground work and lunge cues : Since we can't play in the round pen, as it's definitely too icy/snowy/etc and probably won't get to until mud season is over, we might as well make do with what we have and play on the ground to keep the ponybrain from self destructing and maybe even getting a "woah" that doesn't involve reeling her highness in like a bass. Fox has spent the beginning of our last few rides on the lunge line and really enjoys galloping around (while swinging her head around like she thinks she's a total badass) and burning off some energy. 

- Work on evenness under saddle/bitted : Her highness is amazingly uneven, and needs to be more flexible, especially to the left. We'll do carrot stretches every session and work on lateral work to that direction. 

I think that should do us for the month - I'm hoping to be on a T/Th/Sat schedule, so work should get done!