![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
less good riding lesson
Mar. 23rd, 2007 04:14 pmI didn't get Bearito today :( He was ridden by K1, the woman with a fear of cantering, because he's absolutely easy at the canter, doesn't buck or anything like that. He's just a little hard to slow down.
I think they overestimated my riding ability, because they put me on Judge, a Haflinger who is somewhat new to Windrush and still fairly green. And I just didn't do well on him at all, to the point of nearly crying a couple of times as he once again wouldn't do something. In some cases, he didn't understand, but he's also lazy and we already know I don't do terribly well on lazy horses. His gaits are bouncy, as one would expect from a breed designed for driving, not riding. At the same time I got some good leg yielding out of him, and maybe it was only for a few steps, but he did it. And he knows how to bend around corners.
And trying to canter on him.... ugh. Over and over again, and I got success (for about four strides) *once*. Tina, who has ridden him more than anyone, got on him and cantered him; she of course makes it look so easy, and he was more collected and happy. She was nice to me and let me get on Bearito at the end of the lesson and canter him a little bit, and except for being a bit too fast, he was very good to me.
I shouldn't bash Judge too much; apparently he's great for hippotherapy and therapeutic riding, because he likes kids and he's pretty bombproof. While I was having my lesson, there was a little boy just outside the ring who was having a screaming fit over being put on a horse (the boy is mentally disabled and can't communicate except by screaming) and Judge didn't even notice. And he's very pretty.
K1 appreciated the opportunity to ride Bearito, but she says he's a little too hard for her to control. It's odd how I love his responsiveness and "go" and she does not. She did look like she was having a harder time steering him than I do; he's very well trained, but he's inclined to test his rider.
The upshot of all this is that I am *sore* all up and down my left side, and am going to take some ibuprofen and have a nap. The fact that I have PMS and my in-laws dropped off the Very Large Dog on their way to Boston this afternoon does not help. She's better than she was, but still jumps on people and is over-excitable. She did "Sit!" very nicely for me in return for a small cube of cheese.
I think they overestimated my riding ability, because they put me on Judge, a Haflinger who is somewhat new to Windrush and still fairly green. And I just didn't do well on him at all, to the point of nearly crying a couple of times as he once again wouldn't do something. In some cases, he didn't understand, but he's also lazy and we already know I don't do terribly well on lazy horses. His gaits are bouncy, as one would expect from a breed designed for driving, not riding. At the same time I got some good leg yielding out of him, and maybe it was only for a few steps, but he did it. And he knows how to bend around corners.
And trying to canter on him.... ugh. Over and over again, and I got success (for about four strides) *once*. Tina, who has ridden him more than anyone, got on him and cantered him; she of course makes it look so easy, and he was more collected and happy. She was nice to me and let me get on Bearito at the end of the lesson and canter him a little bit, and except for being a bit too fast, he was very good to me.
I shouldn't bash Judge too much; apparently he's great for hippotherapy and therapeutic riding, because he likes kids and he's pretty bombproof. While I was having my lesson, there was a little boy just outside the ring who was having a screaming fit over being put on a horse (the boy is mentally disabled and can't communicate except by screaming) and Judge didn't even notice. And he's very pretty.
K1 appreciated the opportunity to ride Bearito, but she says he's a little too hard for her to control. It's odd how I love his responsiveness and "go" and she does not. She did look like she was having a harder time steering him than I do; he's very well trained, but he's inclined to test his rider.
The upshot of all this is that I am *sore* all up and down my left side, and am going to take some ibuprofen and have a nap. The fact that I have PMS and my in-laws dropped off the Very Large Dog on their way to Boston this afternoon does not help. She's better than she was, but still jumps on people and is over-excitable. She did "Sit!" very nicely for me in return for a small cube of cheese.
