Trotting

The weather's been dreadful for riding. Rain, snow, sleet, wind- we've had it all. Today, it's a lovely 60 degrees outside, but the arena is under about two inches of water. I'm itching to get back to work, but I think it's going to be a couple of weeks before the weather is consistently good. (More snow and sleet are predicted for tomorrow!)

I'm happy to report that when I rode about two weeks ago, Colt was a gem. He was soft and flexible and happy. I was especially proud that we trotted in a big circle for about five minutes in each direction. I know it doesn't sound like a lot, but ten quality minutes of balanced, rhythmic, harmonious work is a vast improvement on Colt's old routine of "run around really fast with my head in the air". He was also a champ for deworming, once Anne and I got him cornered. She stuck the wormer in his mouth, while I held his lead rope and casually held a dressage whip in my other hand!

Next month, Green Country Dressage is having a schooling show at a nice local facility that's about 30 minutes from where Colt is stabled. I've gotten permission from his owner to take him to the show! We won't be competing, but my plan is to take him and let Moe babysit him for a few hours while I watch my friend Trista compete. Moe is an old hand at shows (as evidenced by his casual attitude when he was loaded up and driven for 10 hours after not being touched for four years) and I think having a friend (or at least pasture-mate) will help Colt keep his cool in a new environment. So over the next couple of weeks, even if the weather keeps the ground icky, I can at least work on convincing Colt the trailer won't eat him.