How I Spent My Birthday

 

 

Yeah……

Umm. We’ll get to that in just a few minutes.

But first I wanted to go over the side-passing that Apache and I worked on during last week’s riding lesson, since so many were interested.

If you all remember, we were having some challenges with Apache not moving off of my leg.

After realizing that Apache would not move off of my leg, Jessica wanted to try a new tactic. One which made me a little worried because I know about Apache’s nervousness around sticks, whips and crops. Jessica had me continue to use my leg, first pressing, then kicking her barrel between her front and back girth, while she used the whip to encourage Apache to move sideways, away from my leg….and the whip. No problem. Apache wants nothing at all to do with the whip. The problem for me was to keep her moving sideways, because Apache just wanted to turn and run, or back up as fast as she could. My job was to keep her nose on the arena wall and move her down and around the arena sideways. There was a lot of backwards (on Apache’s part) and forwards (that was me kicking her back up to the wall), and just a little bit of sideways movement. We were a hot mess!

After about 15 minutes of the chaotic dancing along the wall, we did finally get a few semi-smooth side passes, with the help of Jessica’s whip shaking. She learned how close (or not so close) to Apache she could stand before Apache lost her mind and concentration and just went into “Agh! Get me outta here!” mode.

So, after we were able to side pass a few steps in both directions while under Jessica’s tutelage, she had us try some on our own. We sucked. My main task was keeping Apache’s nose at the wall, while trying to push her sideways with my leg. Her main task was to either back up, or try to turn her head to evade my requests.

So, I did like all inexperienced side passing students do. I asked Jessica to hop on and see if she could turn Apache into an excellent side passing equine.

Jessica jumped on and Apache immediately knew she was in for a new experience. Jessica was wearing A Spur (I know. I asked the same thing. She had loaned one to her son earlier. Who I am to question that? lol!). And I figured that with Jessica’s assertive attitude and The Spur, Apache would be side passing like a happy line dancer within minutes.

Au contraire!

Apache gave Jessica a run for her barrels. Even with Jessica kicking, Apache refused to move sideways. The Spur only caused Apache to cowkick at Jessica’s leg, and she still gave Jessica the backwards, forwards, try-to-keep-my-head-straight dance moves. At one point, with Jessica insisting Apache stay with her nose to the wall, Apache came up off her front legs a few inches, while my heart jumped into my throat.

Man! I’ve got one stubborn mare!

Jessica did finally get about 10-15 feet of side passing on one end of the arena, but not without getting Apache’s pissy face. And then she handed Apache back to me. And since we only had about 10 minutes left in the lesson I just worked on some flexing and softening exercises until Jessica had us come back over to the cavaletti maze and practice backing up and moving through it and backing out. There was definitely an improvement from our first attempt at the beginning of our lesson, so I was pretty pleased. 

So yeah. Apache needs some more work with side passing. And we have another lesson this Thursday.

Well, I wanted to write about the photo above and how I spent my birthday yesterday, but it seems this post is already too long already. So I’ll just say that the photo was taken in Santa Fe at the Caja del Rio and there were lots of gorgeous, spirited Arabians (and a couple of Mules and a Mustang, too) that I had my hands on all day.

There will be more info coming soon….

Another Lesson, New Reins, New Pad, and the Quirt

 

Had another lesson on Wednesday, with my instructor Jessica. I wish I could afford to have more than one lesson a week. Jessica has done so much to teach, encourage, support and push me and my mare into a better safer, and more confident relationship. Oh, we still have a long way to go, but we have also come very far in such a short time, too. Just think. Before the beginning of July I hadn’t ridden my mare for a year because of my fear caused by last summer’s kicking incidents. And after just one lesson with Jessica, a week later I was riding my mare on a 7 mile ACTHA CTC ride! And now, just a month later, I’m preparing myself and my mare for back-to-back ACTHA CTC rides up in Santa Fe next weekend. This just confirms to me that it’s never too late to move forward with your goals and dreams if you have the right support, tenacity, encouragement, and training.

I also have my friend Roni to thank, too. (this is starting to sound like an Acceptance Speech. lol!) She is a good mentor for me and is also encouraging and supportive. We have similar goals in that we both want to ride in as many ACTHA CTC rides as we can, and we both enjoy riding out on the trails. Roni has also been kind enough to always be willing to come over and load up my mare in her trailer while our ranch truck has been in Phoenix with Ranchman John for his job. It’s great that we live only 5 minutes, and just over the ridge, from each other, too.

So with those two fantastic ladies to thank, I am able to continue on my horse journey once again.

(How old do I look? My birthday is this Sunday. And I’m hoping I look younger than my real age.)

I apologize for not having any photos from the lesson in this post. Apache and I were very focused and working hard during our lesson and I didn’t even have a second to pull out my camera and the thought didn’t even occur to me.

On Wednesday, Roni came over in the morning to pick up Apache and I. The previous week I had set up a private lesson with Jessica and asked if Roni could come, too, and also get a private lesson. I like how Jessica does private lessons with friends. Instead of working with each person individually for one hour, with the other person waiting for their lesson to begin, she combines the lessons into one two hour lesson with lots of individual instruction and plenty of time to practice and work with your horse with what she just taught. And then she comes over to review, assist and give pointers. It works out really well and I never feel neglected or that I’m not getting my money’s worth. Plus it’s a full 2 hour  of riding time and exercise in a professional arena. Can’t beat that.

Anyway, I had a lot I wanted to work on to prepare for the following weekend’s ACTHA CTCs in Santa Fe and I had bought a bunch of new tack that I wanted to try out first before we left.

After realizing that Apache’s pony-sized pad, while perfect in length for her back, was not wide enough over her barrel and caused a small swelling from her saddle’s metal cinch loop because of all the squeezing and kicking I had to do to get her to move faster, during our last ACTHA CTC. I could have just wrapped the metal in some fleece, but I also wanted a thicker pad to protect her back, too. So I ordered a Toklat Cool Back Orthopedic pad through the Long Riders Gear website, and it finally arrived 4 weeks later, the day before my private lesson. I immediately washed it as per the instructions, and tossed in the dryer, but the suede leathers were still damp when I placed it on her back in the morning. I am happy with the fit, but the extra thickness under the saddle took some getting used to and the longer width required me to shorten the cinch on the off side because the buckle sat in a weird a half-on/half-off the pad location. I think Apache appreciates the thicker fleece of the pad, though and Toklat advises that the more often you wash the pad, the softer and fluffier it will get.

(Photo was taken after yesterday’s lesson, just before she was loaded onto the trailer. I had rubbed some SWAT on her legs and belly before the lesson and it really picked up the dust. But you can see that Apache was one tired pony!)

 

I bought a new set of black cotton trail reins from Chick's Saddlery, too. My other set of favorite reins are also black cotton, but they are split reins. These new trail reins are the looped, barrel style, but are 10’ long. This is something I’ve looked around for a long time after I used a comfortable pair of Parelli cotton reins last year, while riding Rosie and Etta Bay out on the trails. I don’t mind the split reins when just riding normally, but have found that with my slowpoke mare, trying to stay coordinated while steering Apache and swinging the poppers at the end of the split reins, over her withers, can be a challenge. The ends of the reins tend to get tangled up underneath my horn bag and the saddle pad, and I keep getting distracted while searching for and extracting the ends of my split reins. These new cotton trail reins are very comfortable in the hands and much easier for me to use.

Which leads me to my last piece of tack. Because I have the new looped reins, I don’t have the leather poppers to swing over Apache’s withers or smack her rump to get her moving. So I bought a Western-style leather Quirt.

I had seen old time photos of quirts being used by cowboys/vaqueros, but I didn’t know any modern era folks who had used one themselves, until one of my favorite blogs My Country Genes, posted excitedly about her new “Magic Quirt” that she bought for her slowpoke Fjord mare, Lew.

So, I figured if it worked for her, then maybe I should try it, too.

So I ordered my quirt from Chick's Saddlery for just $8.00. And after deeply oiling it to make it more supple and soft, I just have to say that Deanna is right! I introduced my quirt to Apache during Wednesday’s lesson and I can attest that quirts are easy to use and very effective. Quirts truly are magic! 

      

But it was time for the lesson……

Apache was eager and quick to step right up and load into Roni’s 2-horse bumper pull horse trailer. My mare seems much happier when she has a job to do and somewhere to go.

 

Jessica had her arena set up with a few ACTHA obstacles and the plan was to work on some of them, including 1)opening a rope gate, 2)lifting a board off one barrel and moving your horse in a circle around the two barrels to place the board back onto the same barrel, and 3)backing up/side-passing, and maneuvering through a maze of cavalettis. I was looking forward to practicing on all of them because they are obstacles we’ve either not learned how to do yet or that we’ve not done well with during an ACTHA CTC. Unfortunately, Apache and I only worked on the cavaletti maze, because Jessica recognized that was something we needed to focus on.

After we attempted two sections of the cavaletti maze that was set up into an “H” shape. We backed up straight, then turned right, then bended slightly right, straightened up and then backed out. We didn’t do too bad until after we bended to the right, and then I was having problems getting Apache straight and we kept clipping or stepping over the cavaletti on the right side, instead of backing completely out of the maze. Jessica noticed that Apache wasn’t being as soft as she could with me, even though she was trying hard to give me what I asked for. And instead of moving away from the pressure of my legs, she tended to move into it.

Jessica had me get to work on flexing Apache’s neck, disengaging Apache’s hips, doing turns on the forehand, and side passing. We had a lot of work to do. And it was already a hot day in the mid-90’s, but we were determined.

The softening work was quite challenging because Apache’s neck is pretty stiff and she tends to get bracey during steering sometimes. She tried a number of evasive techniques at first, including pulling her nose down as low as she could get away with and trying to turn her head upside down. I discovered that she really liked having me pet her head, scratch her cheeks and rub around her eyes when she flexed her neck. I think it was an incentive for her to become soft.

When I finally got her soft and flexing willingly, we naturally moved right into disengaging Apache’s hips and doing turns on the forehand. I noticed that in the beginning Apache and I were both struggling and very confused. But once I learned how to communicate what I wanted with Apache then a light seemed to go on in Apache’s brain and she began to comply while licking and chewing. As we continued to practice, she became softer and more willing and quicker to comply with my requests. She’s a horse that thrives on positive encouragement and the more I rubbed her neck, scratched her butt, and told her “Good Girl!”, she seemed more eager to give me what I asked for.

But side-passing was a much bigger challenge…..

(Because this post is already way too long, I’ll continue this story in another post.)       

Letting Go of The Reins

 

On Saturday Apache and I participated in our second Group Lesson over at Jessica G’s ranch and I made some huge strides in my horsemanship journey. And Apache has surely benefited from our time spent at Jessica’s, too.

We got some rain on Friday night, so I spent some time grooming Apache while she ate her breakfast, to remove most of the caked on mud before we left for the lesson.

Then Roni came by  to pick us up and Apache did a perfect job loading on her trailer, and we were on our way.

There were 10 of us in the group lesson, and as usual, Jessica went around and asked each of us what our goals were that day. She always has one or two foundational riding techniques to teach us during each 3 hour group lesson, but in addition to that, she finds the time during each group lesson to work individually with each person and their horse, on whatever goal they are wanting to achieve that day.

Apache was attracted to this 5 year old green-broke, gelding John Mule and they enjoyed a little flirting.

 

She literally makes each person’s goals her own and finds time to help them during each lesson. Have I mentioned a few times already, just how much I appreciate this Instructor? She is amazing!

During my previous group lesson, Jessica’s chosen foundational technique for her students, was learning and practicing side-passing. Even though, for me, my focus was just getting back in the saddle again, Jessica still encouraged me to work on side-passing with my mare.

During my second group lesson, which happened to be only my third ride on Apache in a year, including the 7+ mile ACTHA competitive trail ride Apache and I did together just the Saturday prior, the main techniques Jessica taught us were Turns On the Forehand, and Turns On the Haunches.

This was a very eye-opening, educational lesson because many of us didn’t even understand how to recognize or execute either one. I learned that “On” was the keyword for understanding which part of the horse’s body was supposed to stay centered while the other part moved in a circle around the stationary body part. For instance, Turns On the Haunches, means the Haunches stay stationary (imagine your body weighting down “On” your horse’s haunches), while the forehand moves around them. And for Turns On the Forehand, imagine your body weighting down “On” your horse’s Forehand, while your horse’s haunches circle around the forehand.

Roni and Halley Cat discussing technique.

I also learned that both of these foundational riding techniques are an important basis for all riding disciplines. For instance, barrel racers should know how to do the Turns on the Haunches because this is used for correctly pivoting around the barrels at high speed. And Turns On the Forehand are very useful for trail riders who want to open and close gates and for doing lateral work and maneuvers.

Jessica talking about how to perform the techniques.

Jessica had us practicing both techniques while on the fence, with our horse facing a dressage letter. For the Turns On The Forehand, we had to keep our horse’s head on the letter, while we moved/pivoted their rear legs/haunches either right or left. For the Turns on the Haunches, we pointed our horse’s rear end, or haunches, to the letter, and moved/pivoted the horse’s front legs, or forehand, either left or right.

Roni and Halley Cat working on the turn on the haunches.

Apache is very challenging to move off my legs, so we had a hard time with these maneuvers, but we did make some small steps in the right direction and I was quick to reward the smallest try.

But we also focused intensely on the goal that I asked Jessica to help me with that day:

Getting my mare to easily move up into a trot and canter on the trail, and having her maintain that steady pace for as long as I want her to.

This was our big challenge during the Founders Ranch ACTHA Competitive trail ride. While I can consider some of her slow walking and stopping being related to her being tired and out of condition, since this was her first trail ride in a year, it was also her being lazy and disrespectful, too. And while I enjoy a long, slow, relaxing trail ride just me and my mare, sometimes I like to ride with others and keep up with them. And after recuperating from the ACTHA ride with bruises, swelling and sore legs, hips and thighs after suffering from painful Charlie Horses and leg cramps, caused by having to constantly squeeze and kick, trying to move my mare up into a faster walk or a trot for 7 miles, I knew I wanted to ask Jessica for help in teaching me how to give my mare a little gas when it was requested.

And since she was a judge at the ACTHA ride, she knew about our issues and was eager to help me work with Apache.

She first had me alternately, in time to Apache's pace, to bump/kick, Apache’s sides as we walked to keep her rated in a more forward, steady, quicker pace. It worked to an extent, but I think Jessica realized that we needed to do more, because Apache tends to ignore pressure on her sides, even with more and stronger squeezing and kicking.

So, she showed me how to use the leather poppers on the ends of my cotton reins to swing it side to side across her withers, “popping” Apache to encourage her into a trot. It worked!

And what I was most happy about is that Apache didn’t get pissed and buck me off. lol! Seriously, I have been avoiding using too much pressure for fear of causing just that, because my first horse, Baby Doll, was very sensitive, a quick mover, and highly reactive. Too much pressure would make her really crabby and cause her to throw her head up or down, buck, spin or bolt. Thankfully Apache is nothing at all like my first horse.

Unfortunately, using the popper to keep Apache rated is going to take lots of practice and continued work because she tends to stay in the trot only for a few paces and then moves back into a walk or a stop. I was ecstatic when I was able to keep her steadily trotting from one end of the arena to the other.

Jessica had us practicing the trot for most of the 3 hour lesson with the goal of working towards bringing my mare back into eventually just needing a gentle squeeze to move her up into a trot and canter. Which is something I got from Apache a couple times during the lesson, and of course, I rewarded Apache right away, cheering and rubbing her neck. That’s what I wanted, good girl!

The biggest stride we made was to move past my comfort zone so I could keep Apache moving forward, and that was done through Jessica’s instruction and encouragement.

Jessica wanted to see if I was giving mixed signals when Apache moved into a trot. Was I pulling back on the reins? I didn’t think I was, but it was worth a try to figure out how to keep Apache in a forward moving trot or canter.

So, Jessica had me let go of my reins, just dropping them onto Apache’s withers, and I was just to hold onto the horn, so that I could focus on keeping Apache in a steady trot by using the popper if she slowed down or tried to stop. Dropping the reins and having absolutely no contact with them at all, except for the popper, was a little scary because it felt like I had no brakes or steering. I wasn’t even hooked up to a lifeline, like a lunge line, so I was at the mercy of my horse entirely. 

Then to add a little extra excitement, Jessica had us doing this exercise while the other 9 riders and their horses, stood around and watched. Everyone was very encouraging, but this is where the lack of steering was very unnerving, because Apache would use the other horses to stop herself and seek protection from the popper. Thankfully all of the other horses and the one mule tolerated Apache running at them and into their sides and rumps. And I was able to get her to move past them into a trot again using the popper. But it sure was challenging, especially when a few times while trotting, she turned quickly and I got a little unbalanced. But, strangely enough,  it was also exhilarating, and even fun.

Then Jessica had her talented young assistant Katie ride Apache for a few minutes. I think it might have been because Jessica thought I wasn’t being strong or consistent enough.

So it was very encouraging for me to see that even Katie had to work hard at keeping Apache trotting.

 

Katie even gave a few pops on Apache’s rump, but that didn’t make as much of an impact on Apache to get her moving. It just basically caused Apache to tuck her butt underneath of her and scoot forward in a sort of little leap.

It was also really great to watch someone else ride my horse.

But the best was yet to come!

Jessica had all of us play some relay games on horseback. We were in teams of two and had to run to one end of the arena, stop at the cone, and do either a turn on the haunches or a turn on the forehand, and then run back to the line, and high-five your partner so they could take their turn running to the cone. I was thrilled that Katie and I were on the same team. I’d never played any games on horseback before but Katie has been riding horses since she was old enough to hold her head up, so she has a lot of confidence and experience. And she’s just plain fun!  

I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to get Apache to trot across the arena, but with a little popper-magic, she moved right up, and after we did our turn on the forehand, I was able to get Apache to canter back to the line of riders! It was so much fun!! We were all cheering for one another, laughing, and whooping it up. Such a blast!

We did the relay games for a couple more rounds so we could all get a turn practicing both the turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches. It seemed to me that even Apache was enjoying herself, too.

Afterwards Jessica had all of us do a final trot/canter beside the fence around the arena, so she could critique our equitation.

And then we had our final circle time where Jessica addressed each of us and discussed our individual progress during the lesson, offering advice, tips and encouragement. She also had each of us perform what we had worked on during the lesson, which meant Apache and I had to do some final trotting for Jessica to critique.

And of course, she had me drop the reins again. It wasn’t pretty, but it was just what we needed and I learned so much! I can’t wait until the next lesson!

Poor Apache. She really got a work out and was so tired afterwards. lol!

 

Apache’s Lesson ~ Eye-Opening

 

Apache had her ground lesson today with my instructor/trainer, Jessica. It was an eye-opener experience for me and filled with a few surprises, too.

When Jessica arrived I invited her to go into Apache’s paddock to get her haltered.

I rarely ever have problems catching and haltering Apache when I’m by myself. Even if she isn’t thrilled about being haltered, like when she knows I’m going to trailer her for the Vet, she might walk away, but once I turn my back to her, she is walking right up to me before I can count to 10 and sticking her head right into the halter, ready to go.

Except for some reason, whenever I have someone else with me, Apache tends to look at the new person with distrust and will avoid being caught. If I didn’t know any better I’d say her behavior is caused by her worrying that a stranger is going to take her away. Do horses think that way? Or is the horse that breaks away from the evil horse thieves, to gallop back to her owner a reality? Or is it just movie magic?

In the end, Jessica had to spend about 20 minutes working with Apache to get a join-up and earn enough trust that Apache would allow Jessica to get her haltered. A couple times Apache ran up the hill straight to me, but Jessica’s assistant chased her back down to Jessica. I knew I could have easily gotten Apache haltered myself, but that wasn’t the point. Jessica wanted to earn Apache’s trust before working on desensitization with her. So I let them be and watched a master at work. I learned a lot by watching and Jessica learned a lot about Apache, too.

After she was haltered and had begun doing some simple desensitization work, like tossing the lead all over her body, lifting up each foot with the lead rope around her pastern or hock, lunging her, disengaging the hip, etc, Jessica was keeping a mental count of all of Apache’s interesting and unusual little quirks, and she asked me if I knew of Apache’s parentage and I said, no. I thought early on that Apache might have some Morgan in her background, and Jessica said she did notice some gaited-ness, but she believes whole-heartedly that Apache is a Mustang because her behavior is not like a typical domesticated horse.

Jessica thinks that Apache was probably born in the wild and taken away as an older filly, to be domesticated. I thought all Mustangs had a BLM brand but Apache doesn’t have one. Jessica said that doesn’t mean she’s not a Mustang. Many Mustangs that come off the Navajo Reservation don’t have brands because they are property of the Navajo Nation and not the U.S Government. Jessica shared with me that she’s had the pleasure of working with and training some of those Indian Reservation Mustangs, and in fact owns her own Mustang, a gelding, that she gentled and trained herself. It was quickly apparent that Jessica has a soft spot for Mustangs and thinks they make some of the best trail and all-around horses you can find.

But Jessica is the 4th or 5th person who has told me or suggested to me that Apache could be a Mustang, so I wasn’t being told anything new, but it was the way that Jessica spoke firmly about it, as if it were fact, that has me now pretty convinced. And it was the way that she explained how a Mustang reacts to things in it’s environment, how it approaches new things and people (always with a way out, but not overly spooky, just cautious and wary), and the amount of time it takes for a typical wild-born Mustang to trust a human, but also how loyal, hard-working and willing they tend to be once that trust is earned.

And finally, when she spoke about Mustangs having a high level of self-perseverance, it all made sense and described Apache perfectly.

I’d love my sweet Apache mare whether or not she was a Mustang or a fancy Friesian, or a lovely spirited Arabian, or just a plain old grade horse. But it does kind of tickle me to think my mare could be a Mustang. And in fact just a day ago, I was updating my personal info on the ACTHA website in preparation for next weekend’s CTC Ride, and noticed that there was no breed listed for my mare. I had listed her as a Morgan/Grade mare last Spring, but for some strange reason that space was blank this year. So I sent ACTHA a message requesting they add in a breed for my beautiful mare and typed in: Mustang/Grade. Oddly enough when I went to check my horse’s profile a few hours later, ACTHA had left out: Grade. Hmmm. Far be it from me to complain about that. I think I’ll just take it.

Anyway, the ground lesson went great and I learned some new techniques to handle Apache on the ground and how to understand her body language, too.

After I removed her halter, Apache placed her head in my arms for a full-head hug and then she wandered off down the hill of her paddock. But as soon as Jessica and her assistant left, she came right back up and hung out with me, licking my arm, nuzzling my neck, and trying to remove my hat, or just standing patiently, while I was cleaning out her water bucket.

                                   

                                               It was a good day.

Saturday’s Clinic

 

(Warning: This is a *very long* post. If you decide to read this post, be sure to first visit the potty, gather up some refreshments, and get comfy.)

I can’t begin this post without first introducing my dear friend Roni.

I first met Roni over 3 years ago while I was on a trail ride with my neighbor friend Val, of Fantastyk Voyage. Val was riding her Paint/Appaloosa/Arabian gelding, Scout, while I was riding her lovely Arabian mare, Nadia. We rode down one of the roads near our neighborhood and rode past Roni’s property and Roni came over to say Hello.

I hadn’t seen or spoken to Roni until about 2 months ago when I was photographing the April “Gone with the Wind” CTC.

Well, Roni knows my friend Theresa, the gal with the gorgeous Lipizzaner/German Warmblood named Zeema, that my camera loves to photograph and Theresa told Roni to not only contact me to buy a Photo CD, but to also get together as riding partners. And Roni did that and we got together while I was working at the Hug a Horse Thrift Store one day and spent the afternoon just hanging out and talking.

Roni is a real cowgirl and was raised on a Cattle Ranch and spent many days in the saddle herding cattle on her family’s ranch. She was very encouraging of me getting back in the saddle and offered me her help in reaching my goals.

At the time I wasn’t quite ready yet and was still overwhelmed with fear, so my heart wasn’t open to the idea of riding. And quite honestly I had no connection to my horse, nor did I trust her enough to carry me around on her back.

I did keep up with Roni, or so I thought, through Facebook. But like me, she rarely ever checks messages on her wall on FB or creates any posts, so she wasn’t getting them. Well about two months ago, I made a goal for myself to get prepared to ride and compete in the July ACTHA NMSAR CTC at Founders Ranch/SASS, being held less than 5 miles from my house. Theresa had originally asked me to be a photographer for this CTC, which benefits The New Mexico Mounted Search and Rescue Organization, but encouraged me to get back on my horse and ride in it instead. I had lots of ideas on how to reach that goal, but I didn’t have any motivation or inspiration. Well, I did…but I didn’t know how to get everything to fall into place.

Unbeknownst to me, little seeds were being planted along the way and soon were beginning to sprout.

Back in March, I was over at Theresa’s house visiting and she encouraged me to contact a trainer named Jessica G., who had helped Theresa get her 3 year old rogue, un-haltered misfit of a colt under control and trained so she could ride him in Dressage Competitions. Yes, that horse is the famous and handsome Zeema.

The seed was planted.

Then one day, I was in the dentist’s office, with my twinling Jem, both of us getting our cleanings done, and my Dental Hygienist saw Jem’s America’s Favorite Trail Horse t-shirt, and it sparked a conversation about horses.  She owned two horses, both young, and could not speak more highly of her trainer that was helping her train them and turn them into model equine citizens. Yes, that trainer was Jessica G.

Another seed was planted.

Another month later, I was chatting with my friend and riding buddy, Loeta, who is now the Ranch Manager of Walkin N Circles Ranch Horse Rescue, after my friend Colleen moved on to start her own Equine Boarding and Training Facility at the old Cedar Hill Farm location. Loeta told me that the ranch is planning on bringing in a highly respected, very knowledgeable and experienced horsewoman and trainer to do some clinics for all volunteers at the ranch and thrift store.  She encouraged me to sign up when posted. I asked who this trainer was. Yep. It was Jessica G.

And yet another seed was planted.

Then last week, I was checking out the Ride Roster for the July ACTHA CTC at Founders Ranch/SASS and I saw my friend Roni’s name on the list. I knew it was a sign. I knew I had to contact her.

And another seed was planted.

As I was reading through the ACTHA CTC at Founders Ranch/SASS information I discovered that The New Mexico Mounted Search and Rescue had organized two Obstacle Clinics on Sunday, the day after the ACTHA CTC.

You can probably guess who the trainer is, right? Yes. Jessica G.

The final seed was planted and it was time for me to get them all watered so they could start to grow and bloom.

I contacted Roni that evening and she and I spoke for quite a while. She wanted me to ride with her in the ACTHA CTC in two weeks and invited me to attend a weekly group lesson with her in just two days.

Oh yeah. And can you imagine my surprise when she told me who the trainer of that group lesson was?

Yes, Jessica G.

Wow. The Stars and Planets were all in Alignment and things were falling into place, moving forward easily and quickly. This is how you know when something is meant to happen. When fate has decided that the walls must come down. When God shows you the way and gives you the answers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, on Saturday Roni drove over, just 5 minutes from my house to pick me and Apache up for the clinic/group lesson. John has our ranch truck in Phoenix where he is working now so I don’t have a vehicle to tow our horse trailer. Phoenix has more hours available than Albuquerque does, so he had to go where the money is. He just wishes it wasn’t so dang hot there. His tube of toothpaste and bottle of hand sanitizer exploded from the heat in his truck last week. John works outside in the 120 degrees and is thankful his airline provides drink stations for their employees. He came home this weekend and at night our temps were down to 54F degrees and he was in nirvana.

But I digress.

Roni arrived an hour early just in case we had any issues loading Apache in her trailer, but Apache was a good girl and loaded easily in Roni’s two horse straight load. Only difference between her trailer and mine is that mine has a ramp and hers has a pretty high step-up. This caused a slight problem at the end of the day because Apache was very hot and tired and had some slight trouble hauling herself up that high step. But she still did it within a few minutes without any drama. I was very proud of my girl.  

We arrived at Jessica’s ranch in only 15 minutes, so we took our time grooming and tacking up our horses. Apache was very alert and interested in her new surroundings and just seemed happy to be away from home. Tacking up, I must admit seemed a little foreign to me at first, after a year of not doing it at all, but eventually it began to come back to me and my nerves started to settle down.

Apache was a huge help in that department with her patience as I fumbled with her bridle and cinch. She lowered her head and basically took the bit right out of my hand, gently of course. She was ready to go.

We walked our horses into the arena where 9 other horses and riders, including Jessica and her horse, were just starting to mount up. Roni mounted right up and encouraged me to mount Apache, too. But I just couldn’t will myself to do it. So, as Jessica got us all formed into a circle for introductions, I stood beside Apache by her shoulder. Jessica said she wanted everyone to stand together for a while so not only the humans, but also the horses could get to know one another and become familiar and relaxed around one another. She said that it’s often difficult for a large group of horses and riders to work in an arena together because of the tense and excited energy. She prefers her students to always have low energy. And it worked. Apache was nothing but calm and relaxed and seemed to enjoy the presence of all the horses. There were several babies in the group, who had previously been very high-headed and wide-eyed, but the low energy and introductions worked well for them to relax and feel safe, too.

I immediately liked Jessica.She not only has a connection with the horse, but has terrific people skills, too. She’s quiet, calm, thoughtful, encouraging, helpfully critical, and has a good sense of humor.

Jessica had each of us in turn take her whip and introduce ourselves while sharing what our goals were that day. Throughout the clinic, I was impressed that she remembered everyone’s names and their goals, too. And our goals became hers. Later in the day as we were sitting on her barn’s front porch, I shared with her that her energy and instructions reminded me very much of one of my favorite trainers, Mark Rashid. She seemed honored and shared that she has many of his books and has a lot of respect for the man.

Normally, she has smaller clinics/group lessons, and she only offers them through word-of-mouth. But even with 10 of us, I never felt neglected or ignored. And I learned so much. Best of all was the price. For a three-hour group lesson it is just $25.00. I can honestly say it was by far, the best $25 I have ever spent.

Here’s Jessica on her talented dressage-trained gelding, bareback and in just a halter. Her terrific son is sitting (arms crossed) on his champion reining horse with just a neck rope for control.

 

Since no one has been on Apache’s back for a year and Jessica knew I needed some confidence, she asked me to lunge her in the middle of the arena. I’ve only tried to lunge Apache twice and it didn’t go so well. Apache just doesn’t seem to know what to do. Her previous owner told me in the year that she owned her, she had never lunged her or worked her in a round pen, and guessed that Apache hadn’t been lunged at her last home either, because she was basically used to pack kids and beginners around until the kids grew up and she was basically ignored and neglected in the corral for over a year. So suffice it to say, lunging isn’t something she’s familiar with. I used to lunge or round pen my mare Baby Doll, before just about every ride…..believing the work would carry over into our riding. Baby Doll was a lunge/round pen extraordinaire and she always did whatever I asked of her. But in the saddle….not so much.

I used Jessica’s whip to get Apache moving in a circle and even got her up into a trot and changing directions. I was very proud of Apache, especially with how she kept her energy level low when another rider had gotten off her excited filly to lunge some nervousness out of her and regain her control and attention. The filly was bucking and rearing just beside us and I had to move Apache out of their way a few times. But Apache stayed calm and paid attention to me the entire time.

We only lunged for about 10 minutes when Jessica said that was all that Apache needed and then Jessica invited everyone, who had been warming up their horses around the sides of the arena, into another group circle.

Everyone in our group seemed like such experienced horse people, confident, fearless and good riders. Noone looked down their noses at me (well, except for the fact that I was still on the ground. haha!), but I still felt like such a novice.

At one point in the conversation, Jessica spoke about fear and asked everyone, who has ever been afraid while riding or handling a horse, to raise their hand. Everyone’s hand….even Jessica’s went right up and I can’t tell you the relief I felt upon seeing that physical sign that I wasn’t alone in my experiences.

But, it was noticeable that I still wasn’t sitting on my mare’s back so Jessica took Apache’s lead and invited me to jump on. But because Apache’s not been ridden for a year, I still didn’t feel comfortable enough to do that yet. Jessica understood and without batting an eyelash, asked her handsome and friendly son, Chance, if he would ride Apache first. He was happy to oblige and it did me a world of good to see him on Apache’s back and see that Apache was not a fire-breathing dragon. It made me feel good when he said she was a nice mare and very calm.

As soon as he hopped off Apache, I decided it was my time and I stepped into my stirrup…..on Apache’s right side.

Jessica took that moment to make a comment to the group, because a couple of riders were talking about how I mounted on the wrong side. She told the group it was very important to teach every horse to accept mounting from either side, from the very start of their training. You just never know if you’ll need to mount from the right side while out on a trail, and it’s better for the horse, too, because horses tend to over-bulk  their left shoulder and their back to support a mounting rider, and then throw out and injure their back muscles, ribs and spine with the continued same-side mounting. When she asked why I mounted from the right, I told her it’s because of my ACL surgery a couple years ago and how my left leg and knee are still not 100% reliable. She then told the group that you just never know when, out of necessity, you might need to right-side mount, so it’s better to train them before you need them to know how to do it safely and confidently.

I must admit that the first 15 minutes of my mounted time was kind of embarrassing, but necessary, for the stage of healing that my mind, body and soul were currently in. Jessica and then Chance ponied Apache and I as we observed some of the riders showing Jessica their issues while riding. It was huge having to face my fears of being behind a horse, while my leg was bumping the muscled butts of both Chance’s and Jessica’s horses as we followed along. We weren’t just static, though. Jessica showed us how to turn on the forehand and side pass as we walked along and I needed to maneuver Apache into place. Both of those movements have never been strong points and caused us to lose points while competing during an ACTHA CTC. So I was grateful to be able to get some training and practice and even think Apache enjoyed having a job to do, too.

 

At one point, Jessica said she thought I was ready to be let loose. And I was. It felt great to ride my mare again. Everyone was working on side-passing which is a huge weakness for Apache and I. Jessica encouraged us and used Apache and I to demonstrate how to side-pass by keeping Apache’s nose at the fence, and then moving her horse sideways into us, while I used my leg to encourage her to move sideways in the correct direction. We did that in both directions and it was a huge success!  I was most surprised at the reaction of my fellow riders, who cheered for us and made comments about how I was stuck on the ground just 40 minutes earlier and now I was tackling tricky maneuvers on my horse. What a great bunch of horse folks to be so encouraging and supportive!

Later on, one of the ladies took some time to talk with me and shared that she used to be a jockey and had had her share of injuries, too. She told me that she too had been kicked in the face, but it had done more damage than the results of my own face-kicking injury. The doctors had to pop her nose back out of her head and reconstruct her skull. Wow. There is always someone who has had it worse off than yourself. I sure appreciated her confiding in me like that. We both shared how short life can be and how grateful we both are to be given second chances to enjoy the things that bring us joy in life.     

After practicing side-passing on our own, Apache and I just played around on some of the obstacles on the opposite end of the arena while watching some of the other riders practicing their side-passes.

This is what Apache and I love to do. Obstacles. We trained for it right after I bought her and I know without a doubt that she enjoys the challenges and the kudos (and treats) I give her for a job well done. She likes riding the trails and being around the other horses and she really liked to get away from home.

My first horse was the opposite. She was as barn-sour as they come, crow-hopping, bucking, spinning, weaving, and bolting so I would be afraid and take her back home. Sadly, there were only a handful of times that I ever fully enjoyed riding her. It was always so much work with her. I learned a lot from her, though.

But Apache is not a pasture puff. I feel a sense of guilt for not taking Apache out on the trails this past year. When I first bought her we were riding every weekend and she was happy and had no vices. Just over the past few months, Apache began stripping off the bark from two of the trees in her paddock, from boredom. She doesn’t eat the bark…just rips it off and lets it blow away. I want to save my trees and I want Apache to be happy again, so hopefully as we start riding more often she’ll stop this bad habit.

Apache and I had fun on this little bridge. We crossed it from all directions and stood in the middle watching everyone, and then backed off and practiced side passing off of it, too.

We also worked on backing-up. Last summer I had her where she’d back up just by using my leg and gentle squeezing of the reins. She seemed to have forgotten that work on Saturday when we first started and I had to use more pressure and pulling of the reins. But after about 15 minutes she figured it out and by the end of the clinic, I was only having to barely squeeze the reins and say “back” and she’d softly move backwards for me. Good Apache!

(Check out that beautiful Shire horse behind us! She’s a big girl but had the lightest and most floaty trot)

Roni was always there smiling and giving me an encouraging word. I’m thankful for her.

The previous Saturday was Roni’s first group lesson with Jessica. Her goals are to get better at obstacles so she can compete in ACTHA CTCs. She also has never cantered on her gaited mare, Halley, because Halley doesn’t have a very good “Go” button and has trouble keeping the pace. Sounds a lot like Apache.

But Roni and I both love moseying on down a trail, being surrounded by and enjoying the beauty of all that God has created, instead of being in a hurry. So a slow, calm horse is just what the doctor ordered.

Trying to encourage Apache to give a pretty pose for the camera. Didn’t work so good. I think she wanted to get back to work.

At the end of the clinic, everyone got the opportunity to canter their horses with Jessica’s critiques. I decided not to canter Apache because I was so pleased with how the day had gone and one of the most important lessons Apache has taught me, is to accept the smallest try and to not push too far. That is one of the reasons she kicked me last summer. I pushed too far….and she pushed back. Anyway, Jessica agreed with me and instead we enjoyed watching and encouraging the other riders and their horses and they cantered.

This was the first time that Roni had tried to canter on Halley in over a year. Halley was very choppy and would move from a trot to a gallop. Roni had a blast, though and never stopped smiling, while Jessica helped teach Roni how to get Halley to rate down and lope slower and more controlled.

 

Go Cowgirl!

Roni was so proud of her mare and so grateful for all the photos I took of them that day. And I’m so happy for her and so glad we got together.

Poor Apache. The lesson was from 10am-1pm and by 12pm it was close to 90 degrees, hot, dry and sunny. There was a cooler full of cold bottled water in the center of the arena, inside a tire. Apache kept asking to go over there and play with the cooler. I was concerned she might spook when the ice rattled around when she lifted the cooler up by the handle, but I needn’t have worried. She knew what was inside and just wanted me to get her some of that cold water.

She deserved it, too. Apache hasn’t carried a person on her back for a year and is out of shape. But she has a big heart and is a very willing mare. I’m so thankful to have her in my life.

I think she was dreaming of cold water in this photo. Right afterwards, I took her over to the trough and she gulped down water for a few minutes.

 

And then we untacked, loaded up everything and everyone into Roni’s truck and horse trailer, spent a few minutes chatting with Jessica and making plans for our next lesson and clinic (this Wednesday) and headed back home.

It was a great day.

I Love My Horse Again!

 

I have a lot more to write to tell everyone why and what caused me to fall in love with my Apache Mare again, but for now I’ll keep it fairly short.

I participated in a group lesson today and it turned out to be so much more, and oh, so much better than I expected.

It’s been a year since I last rode my mare due to her kicking me in the face last summer and then clipping me on the hip a few weeks later, and then threatening to kick me several times last Autumn, not to mention dealing with her Sage Poisoning and Fly Spray toxicity, and her shoulder injury that happened while riding in the Carson National Forest last July 4th weekend. It’s taken me a year to figure out how to learn how to deal with my fear, so it doesn’t control me and prevent me from doing the activities that I enjoy. Talking about these issues with fellow horsewomen and with Blogger friends, especially through Drafts with Dots’ “Fear Friday” posts has been a helpful catalyst, too.   

Last week, Apache and I spent some quality time together like we used to do before all the bad stuff happened. The change in her attitude was immediate and palpable and I felt my heart open up to her. The wall between us evaporated and we have begun rebuilding our trust in one another. I know it will be a continuous work in progress as we travel together and forward. But for now, we’ve crossed the threshold and it’s a huge start. I’m very happy because……………...

                                         I Love My Horse Again!