November Goals Recap

Goals for November

 

Goals for November Recap

Me

1.        Soft elbows (as soft as I want his jaw to be) – huh… I kinda forgot about this one.  Continue into November.

2.        Track length of ride with length of warm-up, intervals, down-time, etc – Successful.  Rides tend to be 45 – 55 minutes with a  pretty standard 20 minutes devoted on warming-up/loosening-up

3.        Don’t forget to give breaks – Successful.  Tracking the length of my rides, intervals, etc helped significantly with this. 

4.        Praise more often at smaller tries – I’d call this somewhat successful.  I’m good at this when I’m alone.  I need to be better when others are riding around me.

5.        2 lessons (scheduled for November 10^th, November 24^th) – Successful!  Trailered alone for both and he was a good boy for both of them.

Gavin

 

1.        Continue growing out mane – Successful.  It’s mostly flopping over now, but still has some length to go.  Will continue this goal.  Will likely add in a skin/coat supplement as well to help with the dandruff.

2.        Get session for bodywork – with new half-pad, change in footing and size of arena, Gavin is moving like a champ.  Holding off on any chiro/acupuncture.

3.        Stick Gavin to determine if he can compete as a pony in 2018 dressage classes – per new dressage trainer – Unsuccessful.  Have a date to stick him at my next lesson (December 8^th)

4.        Weight tape Gav with Confirmation pics (do this monthly going forward) – per saddle fitter – Mehhhh – sorta successful.  Didn’t get a weight tape, but did take confirmation pics.  Will take confirmation pics every second Saturday of the month going forward.

Gavin/Me

1.        Transitions

a.       Trot to walk (a stride) to trot

                                                               i.      Somewhat successful.  A very helpful exercise.  I’m focusing more on him staying relaxed through his back and jaw and going forward into both upward and downward transitions rather than how many strides of walk or trot are involved.  He’s getting it, but I have to stay loose and play with the bit lightly to keep him from locking up.  Will continue into November.

b.       Trot to canter to trot

                                                               i.      This has been a very helpful exercise for us.  His trot to canter transitions are much improved and this also helps with walk-to-canter.  Will continue into November.

c.        Walk to canter with no trot in the transition

                                                               i.      Successful…sometimes.  He likes to throw a stride of trot in, but if I prep him with some solid trot-to-canter transitions he picks it up beautifully.  This might always be a work in progress.  Canter is hard for him.

2.        Walk squares

a.       Somewhat successful.  I have a hard time keeping him loose during these.  Makes sense – he kinda sucks back on the turns.  It’s a useful exercise, and I think it’s helping the shoulder bulge.   Just gotta keep him thinking forward.

3.        Lateral work

a.       Leg yield along wall (walk)

                                                               i.      Total success.  He’s figured this one out!  And I think it’s really helped him understand how to move laterally.

b.       Leg yield from quarter line (trot)

                                                               i.      Somewhat successful, but like the square turns – he gets a bit sucked back.  Trainer has suggested two strides sideways then forward, two strides sideways, forward, etc.  She says this is mostly him not understanding that we want both forward AND sideways.  Lots of leg yield will help.