what a friggin day..

Ruger's light bulb really clicked yesterday. I've been riding her in a side pull and she's been poking her nose and generally just avoiding my hands lately. Mary has been using my bosal i bought for my pleasure horses a while back..needless to say it sat in my tackroom and rarely got used before this competition. Striker(formerly Gidget) has been coming along nicely in it, and yesterday I figured it was time for ruger to move out of her side pull and into a bosal.(sorry mary! time to buy your own!!lol)

Wouldn't you know, I rode her in the bosal and it was like riding a totally different horse! being a pleasure based trainer I like my horses with their heads down, neck level, shoulder up, and collected..so naturally that was the first thing I taught her...it took me all of 5 minutes to teach her to jog. let me just say...

THIS HORSE IS BAD ASS!! :)

We loped for the first time in a big pen yesterday, big round circles, with our head level, shoulder up, and somewhat collected. She's still a little fast for my taste, but she's a wild damn mustang with 70 some days on her! I can't be anything but proud of her at this point! She picks up the right lead every time, no questions asked. We are a little drunk on the rail, weaving about and such, but I don't think any of the competition says we have to go on the rail. lol.

I worked her on the trail too, I let my mom go wayyy up ahead out of sight and mary was way behind. She was good and learned we don't get to look at things that scare us, and we just move on. Nor do we get to stop and refuse to go forward without a smack from the popper on the mecate. We also got used to mailboxes and standing IN the lanes of traffic to get to them, that hackamore is a magical thing. love it.

Striker (formerly Gidget) was lame yesterday so mary walked her and I gave her a showmanship lesson. She trots and kind of pivots now, she will get it in the next week or so, they are too damn smart for their own good sometimes. :)

we are going to pick up Carlton at my grandma's today..i have someone coming to look at him this saturday so hopefully they will buy him!! that would make me happy at this point, I would be down a horse and Loooooving it! :)

The girls get thier first set of front shoes tomarrow! I know Ruger will be much happier on the trail with shoes on, no more "ouch...ouch....rocks"

At this point i'm friggin EXCITED about the competition! yay!

-Jenn