I've had one ride with the BBMonster in the new year, late last Friday night. I keep having good luck (knock wood) and get out to the barn to find the indoor empty and dark - YAY! I hate sharing the arena and I think BB does, too. We made some changes in "back" in 2014 - aka my long dressage whip came out of storage for Miss Anti-Impulsion Von Piss At Your Spurs and for this ride, I added my running martingale (to help keep the "I'm A Wild Horse" Head tossing at bay / from breaking my nose) and swapped her back to the grackle noseband.
I was surprised, because even with the radio on (I can't decide if this helps her keep her brain in the arena or not) she was quite good. I went out of my way to handle her spooks effectively (barrels, door, human door, poles on the ground) with circling back and a good boot in the ribs/tap with the whip to keep her going forward, and then catching her popping inside shoulder. This seemed to keep her from down spiraling into Spookzilla, so I am happy with her.
We did our normal WTC warm up (focusing on going forward and forward motion keeping Miss B from being over bent from too far back on her neck) and got some good canter work, along with some on point collection > extension at the trot (and slightly at the canter) as well as some spiral work, shoulder in and leg yield. She's getting better about coming through and "keeping up" with her hind end when we leg yield and has really started to get the concept of shoulder in vs. constantly trying to "go straight" out from the rail on an angle. It was really just 45 minutes of quick work, with a long (for us) stretching walk break about 1/3 of the way in, and handful of stretchy trots, but it felt really productive and like her brain was screwed on (at least partially) throughout the ride.
What I did notice was that she seemed much more relaxed through her jaw and less tense through her mouth in the grackle - I didn't loose my "power steering" hardly at all through the spooks and while we have been working on not tucking behind the bit, I feel like the noseband helped encourage her to reach forward rather than clench her teeth and hold/hide from the bit. Of course, my brain being what it is, I'm wondering now if a Micklem bridle or a drop noseband would work well for her... happy mare happy ride, right?
I guess we shall see.
I was surprised, because even with the radio on (I can't decide if this helps her keep her brain in the arena or not) she was quite good. I went out of my way to handle her spooks effectively (barrels, door, human door, poles on the ground) with circling back and a good boot in the ribs/tap with the whip to keep her going forward, and then catching her popping inside shoulder. This seemed to keep her from down spiraling into Spookzilla, so I am happy with her.
We did our normal WTC warm up (focusing on going forward and forward motion keeping Miss B from being over bent from too far back on her neck) and got some good canter work, along with some on point collection > extension at the trot (and slightly at the canter) as well as some spiral work, shoulder in and leg yield. She's getting better about coming through and "keeping up" with her hind end when we leg yield and has really started to get the concept of shoulder in vs. constantly trying to "go straight" out from the rail on an angle. It was really just 45 minutes of quick work, with a long (for us) stretching walk break about 1/3 of the way in, and handful of stretchy trots, but it felt really productive and like her brain was screwed on (at least partially) throughout the ride.
What I did notice was that she seemed much more relaxed through her jaw and less tense through her mouth in the grackle - I didn't loose my "power steering" hardly at all through the spooks and while we have been working on not tucking behind the bit, I feel like the noseband helped encourage her to reach forward rather than clench her teeth and hold/hide from the bit. Of course, my brain being what it is, I'm wondering now if a Micklem bridle or a drop noseband would work well for her... happy mare happy ride, right?
I guess we shall see.
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