Chaos thy name is Jetta

Yes, we got a new dog. She came with the name Jetta, but we aren't sure if we are going to keep the name....Jetta and Ginger are too similar.

She is black with white paws and all legs, tail, and slobbery mouth. She was a stray picked up by the pound in November. Someone must have cared for her at some time as she was already spayed and tattooed when she came in. It turned out that at a little over a month she was there second longest of all the dogs they had. Not sure why, but maybe because she is quite tall?

Ginger isn't sure what to think other than to make sure her ball is protected. The cats are still in hiding. Rolo has been poked in the bum by her nose, but that was it.

Now the horses are of more excitement to Jetta. She feared she was going to be eaten by Magnus. A healthy fear is a good thing I think. Rob will have his work cut out for him to get her barn safe before he goes back to work next week!

Pictures coming soon!

Oh, and if you have room for another cat...the SPCA has a special price on kitties. And there are so many cute ones. I must say the kitty houses look pretty good; lots of toys, beds, and some even have water features, but I am sure they miss laps to sit in, and black pants to shed on...

Karen

The after Christmas nap day

Rob and I hope everyone had a great Christmas, hopefully surrounded by family, friends and pets.

Rob and I had a lovely Christmas eve with his family, and then a loud one with mine. I got a little teary when mom said grace as that was dad's role and tradition, but it was a good day overall. My sister's three kids are a lot to take in when you aren't used to young, Christmas filled children though! Poor Rob got a lecture from my 7 year old neice about excusing himself from the table...Ginger on the other hand got a plate full of Turkey left over from my nephew.

Rob's mom does the traditional Ukrainian type dinner, and it is nice to have this new set of traditions to look forward to each year. Both his brothers and nephews were present which was also nice...but Rose and I were the only girls...making for a much quieter dinner.

The next time you are in the barn look for a red clothe binder...it is a scrap book that Amelia and Mirande made of most of the horses. You have to forgive some of the spelling, but it is an entertaining book and has some very cool pictures!

Once we get outside for lessons you will appreciate Rob's gift to me; a voice amplifier so the neighbours (and riders) can better hear what I am saying without me having to yell. It is pretty cool. I might try it indoors too, but not sure I want you to hear all that I whisper to the cat....

For Christmas day Rob and I went for a walk with Ginger out back. It really is beautiful back there this time of year and there isn't so much snow that it is hard to walk. Of course the horses were all on high alert as we headed back to the horse feilds...they weren't sure what we were, but apparently we were going to eat them, and even gingerbread cookies weren't enough to convince them otherwise.

Hope you all have a restful Boxing Day!

Karen

Rocket should be embarrassed

A ZEBRA can jump bigger than he can!

Still waiting for confirmation from Shelley, but it looks like she will be up the 14th and 15th for a dressage clinic. I am excited as I really like Shelley!

Make sure to talk to me this week if you want to adjust your riding over the holidays I would like to take some evenings off early if I can move enough lessons to the day times. If you have extra time to ride, let me know as well as I can do extra lessons too.

I am teaching on Christmas eve from 9:30 - 11:30. Changes to the holiday schedule will be posted in the barn.

This week in lessons we are going to be working on some counter bending. Not sure for jumping yet, but a small grid will be involved.

Karen

Dressage Clinic anyone?

Would anyone be interested in participating in a Shelley Malbeuf clinic in January? I have ridden with her before when she lived in Edmonton, but then she moved down south to the US to compete and I lost touch. Now she is based out of Calgary and is willing to come to Sherwood Park to teach if I can get enough people interested. I would likely want her up for 2-3 days, and it would be about $90 for a private lesson depending on how many took part, and something less for a semi-private.

May consider sharing her fee with another local barn to get enough people, but will also consider allowing people to haul in for a lesson if they want.

So, if you are interested, let me know!

Karen

The Christmas Party went well yesterday. Finally decent weather for it! Always hard to try to schedule it so as many people as possible can make it so tried to go earlier in the month...I also find it helps to get me in the Christmas spirit. Thank you to everyone who came.

I am willing to teach during the day over the holidays if I can then teach less at night, so if you are interested in day time weekday lessons OR if you are going to be away over the holidays please let me know so I can do up a lesson schedule.

Also, starting in 2012, all the lesson horses will have their own set of brush boots. Right now all but Kokanee has a pair, so if you are riding one of the other horses, please come talk to me about how to put the brush boots on. I will try to do up a diagram that explains it too. Zander, Rocket and Roxy all have the same kind, Gody has a different kind but they go on similarly.

In lessons this week I am not sure yet what I will be doing, but I have bought a book "50 ways to torture your lesson students" that I will be putting to use soon. It will be fun. For me.

Karen

winter...it is winter right?

I go out to the barn this morning to find rivers of melting water. Nothing like 8 above in winter to make life at the barn a slippery mess. Be very careful when leading horses, and try to stick to the paths others have taken. I have put down some sand/shavings where I have to lead the horses to bring in and out which helps, but if you try to walk on the fresh snow, you may find ice underneath!

Another note, is to watch out for Ginger a bit. She is supposed to be on limited exercise due to a paw injury, so I would prefer she stayed in the barn, or on supervised outings. It is hard to limit her though, as now she is on some medication she feels so much better and doesn't want to be stuck close to me!

Lessons this week will focus on things similar to last week; riding broken lines and using jumping at an angle to make the lines easier to ride.

Karen

Our Internet has been very flaky this week. Amazing how dependent I am on it for communication and entertainment!

Wanted to remind everyone that it is the Hillside Christmas Party next weekend (the 11th). Information is posted at the barn; we are once again doing a secret Santa ($22 value) and potluck snacks.

If anyone should feel the need to buy Rob or I anything for Christmas...we enjoy eating, herbal tea (and sometimes non-herbal), Rob likes wine, I like books or all varieties, Coregel would like a new Warmblood sized halter for her giant head, the lesson horses would like cookies, carrots and apples...and possibly new brushes, Charlie would like a cat toy, and Ginger would just like for people to eat sloppily at the Christmas party so she can help "clean up".

A new, non dollar store clock for the barn would also be nice so I don't have to fix the time every month as it falls further and further behind.

Just remember it will likely be -35 for the party...we seem to cause cold temperatures!

Karen

Finally!

With his teeth done, and his feet on their way to being somewhat normal, we finally rode Riley for the first time last night!

I lunged him first as he has been stuck in the isolation pen, and then got on him...all the while thinking "why was it I thought buying a horse based on a two year old video and gut feeling was such a good idea?". But..he was an absolute darling to ride! Took it easy on him as he hasn't worked much of late and is still in rough shape, but what a lovely horse he is to ride.

Amelia rode him for a bit as well, and she looks great on him and they seem to suite each other.

Now I need a lease rider for Kokanee though if anyone is interested!

Karen

What a week...

What a week last week was. Monday went ok, but I woke up with the stomach flu on Tuesday so had to cancel some of my lessons. I would like to thank Rob for bringing the flu home with him...

On Wednesday and Thursday the farriers were out as it seemed we had a lot of horses needing to be done at about the same time. Wednesday I also saw a new doctor for my Migrains who gave me some pills to take when I feel one coming on...not sure why I needed to see a specialist and wait 6 months for something my regular doctor could have done!

And then on Friday it was MRI day. I managed to survive it this time, but I did not say no when one tech offered to hold my hand during the procedure. I just absolutely HATE the feeling of my head being trapped and tied down! The hospital had a better system than the clinic I tried though; they had headphones that did a much better job of dampening the noise. I still could feel myself panic from time to time.

So then I Saturday I felt hungover from the MRI...being in a panicked state really does something to the body!

Hopefully this week is better and I am really hoping Rob doesn't pass his newly acquired cold my way...

Reminder that the month is almost up and that board is due on Thursday! Check the board to see if you owe for Farrier work...most of you do.

Karen

I hope everyone survived the first real cold snap of the season! The horses seemed fine and I think they rather like the cold if it means getting more food and less work! Dexter and crew scared me on Friday night as they stayed hidden in the back, missing their afternoon hay. Finally Rob and I drove out back to find them; apparently they have found some delectable grass within the protection of the trees and saw no point coming up front for hay...but they did enjoy following the truck when they saw it coming!

This week in lessons we will be improving upon the leg yields, in particular leg yielding to the right (off the left leg). Last week we did some jumps where the second jump in a like was set at an odd angle. This week we are going to build on that, and use jumping fences at odd angles to improve upon inside turn options (in jumpers) or bending lines (in equitation classes).

There will also be an important poster up in the barn that I hope you all take the time to read.

Make sure to stock up on windshield wiper fluid and I hope to see you soon!

(oh, Amelia's horse has a name now...Riley!)

Karen

Snow!

So I am Assuming that most people won't want to drive out for a lesson today, but if you do, I will teach you, just let me know you are still coming.

This year I am not having a temperature cut off for lessons as I have stalls designated for the horses to cool/dry off in, but I do not expect anyone to drive if they feel it is unsafe or too cold!

The amount of snow that feel while the vet was out doing New Horse and Coregel's teeth was astounding. The farrier opted to not challenge the roads, so farrier work is postponed until next week.

Amelia still hasn't let me know her new horse's name, so Rob is calling him Noodle.

Karen

New horse alert

Is it possible that my horse shopping is over for 2011? Perhaps...time will tell.

Amelia's new horse arrived yesterday. Of course we waited until after her lesson and after she put Kokanee away to tell her! She hadn't met her horse yet, only seen videos as he came from the middle of nowhere and is in rough shape, but he is starting his Hillside Makeover tomorrow with hooves trimmed and teeth fixed!

The poor fellow is in need of a lot of TLC, and who better than a 13 year old girl? Of course she has to come up with a name for him or I will start calling him Noodle.

He is a VERY cute bay, with a giant star and white under his chin. Cows chewed his tail, and his mane was lost to the round bale feeder...but hair will grow back by the time he is ready to show.

We bought him based on video from 2 years ago when he was at a show barn and jumping. So sad that his life took a wrong turn and he ended up at auction to be run through with the meat horses. Fortunately someone took him home and fed him...but not much else. Lana (vet) doesn't think he has seen a farrier since spring and he has all sorts of dental issues.

If you want to visit him he is very friendly and is living in the wood pen behind our garage. Because of his sketchy past, he is in true isolation, so please don't pet him and then one of our horses...maybe save visiting him until you leave.

I am ridiculously excited to ride him, but it will be a little while before he is ready for that...poor guy! Of course I have to keep reminding myself he is for Amelia not me!

Karen

This week in lessons

Two weeks ago we worked on a perfect 20 meter circle, and that went very well. Last week we worked on a 15 meter circle and found some issues, in particular at the canter, with some horses/riders only able to do a good 17 meter shape, so we will return to that one day.

This week though, we are going to use the 20 meter circle to develop a good leg yield. On a 20 meter circle, the horse requires very little bend to maintain the shape, which is part of why it is so easy. For a leg yield the horse should have NO bend through its body, and only a slight tip of the jaw/nose away from the direction of travel.

So in this exercise, we will do 3/5 of a 20 meter circle, then start to turn a little sharper to go down a little past the quarter line, a rebalancing step to package the horse together and then bring the inside leg back to push the horse laterally to the wall. This uses the horse's natural desire to get back to the wall to help with the leg yield.

The most important thing when doing the leg in this manner is to keep your hands together close to the neck! You do not want to open your outside rein or you will be encouraging the horse to fall out with its shoulder to the wall. An opening inside rein may be helpful if the shoulder starts to lead, but in general, it is usually more helpful to balance the horse back, straighten it out by going forward, and then asking for the over again.

In jumping we are going to count down striding to a jump on an arc/turn, and do some work jumping verticals at interesting angles. It is helpful if you can see a distance when jumping out of a tight turn as the horse doesn't have as much time to set itself up, and if you are jumping at an angle, the horse won't have a clear view of the jump out of both eyes, so its depth perception is compromised.

To assist, the rider must keep the horse between their legs and to the center of the jump (or at least make sure that both horse and rider are aiming for the same part of the jump!). Even pace is very important, as is keeping the hands close together.

(Miranda was the clear winner at counting down strides last week...way to go Miranda!)

Karen

Pictures of Coregel

Rob came out to the barn on Friday and took some photos and video of my Coregel filly. She is coming along well and I need to remember not to push her too hard. With only one "personal" riding horse it is hard sometimes to have the patience to bring her along slowly and correctly, but now that I have the video I have lots of things I can see that I need to work on on my own position rather than worrying about Coregel!

I noticed I have a bad habit of dropping my hands below the line of elbow/wrist bit, but that Coregel looks best when my hands are a on the ideal line. I also need to stop dropping my eyes and staring at her cute little orange ears! You can see my looking down in the first photo, and my dropped hands in the last one.

Hopefully I can convince Rob to video me more often so I can better see and improve my own riding while Coregel gets the basics down. I really am very thrilled with her, and am glad that despite being on the short side, she has plenty of girth room for my leg!

Some excitement across the way...

Apparently some nidgit stole a truck and went driving cross country from the highway, ending up breaking through the neighbour's fence and joy riding in their carved out trails, finally getting stuck in some muck. The police helicopter was called out to trail the tracks and pinpoint the truck.

Fortunately it does not seem like any horse fencing was damaged, but a little concerned by the fact that these idiots then likely ended up on foot....not the kind of people I want loose in my neighbourhood!

Karen

Rob sent me this lovely link on why you should not let your dog sleep in/on your bed, or why you should not let it lick your face;

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/20/letting-sleeping-dogs-lie-in-your-bed-can-kill-you/

Of course he is the one that wants Ginger on the bed (and previously wanted both Mike AND Ginger on the bed...) and lets her lick his face from time to time....

(of course I skipped over the cat germ warning sections conveniently...and i am sure sharing ones food with horses has its own issues...).

Karen

This week in lessons

Well Clare won last week's challenge, with Kelsey a close second. That Zander can really adjust as long as you believe it is possible!

This week in lessons we will be working on perfecting 15 meter circles at trot and canter, as well as counting down strides to a single jump.

It is important to look UP and past the jump when trying to judge take off and just have the jump in your peripheral vision. If you look down at the jump you will tip forward and usually it will end in a chip! You should also make sure you count in rhythm with the canter. If you find yourself counting faster as you get closer you will likely push your horse past the distance.

Remember this is all in fun, and being able to count down your distance to a jump is not indicative of your ability to ride, it just helps me know how aware you are of how far you are from the jump. We will also work on identifying the distance you got once you get to the jump. Was it: Long and weak? Long and powerful, short and weak, a chip, perfect, good distance, but weak? Rushy and flat? To help learn this part of it, it is important to WATCH the other riders, and to learn what I am looking for when I judge the quality of a jump.

Karen

So Rob got himself a horse. It is a bay mare with a big white blaze and two matching hind socks. He named her Wench...would should be reason alone to call the SPCA.

Wench is not a bad looking horse; a little high withered perhaps. Seems well trained; he just has to point to a spot in her paddock and she will canter or trot over to were he pointed, even throwing in some tempi changes along the way.

Rob is training her to jump, and she jumps pretty cute, and has a very steady canter and perfectly balanced flying changes. For some odd reason he keeps jumping in a western saddle....

I will say he has been taking good care of her; feeding her regular batches of oats and barley, exercising her, brushing her and training her. Apparently when he feeds his horse she poops gold coins...so maybe we should all start feeding our horses oats and barley...

So without further ado, here is a picture of "Wench"

Canadian Show jumping superstar "Hickstead" died while competing in a World Cup event. Went down during the course with no apparent injury, and no immediate cause of death.

I cannot imagine the feeling of having a horse go down out from under you like that; my heart goes out to Eric Lamaze and to his owners. So very sad for all involved and for show jumping in Canada.

Karen

Instructions to jump Gody...

I jumped Gody for the first time today. It has been interested to buy a horse that I had never ridden before, and had only seen under saddle on video. Basically trusting the integrity of the seller.

Today I decided he was fit enough to pop over a few jumps. He is simple;
Step 1: Make sure he is awake
Step 1a: No, really, you have to make sure he is awake
Step 2: Pick up suitable canter stride
Step 3: Aim him more or less at the jump
Step 4: Grab mane three strides out and leave him alone to do his job (but don't drop your body at him or you will get popped!).
Step 5: Find the saddle again, and get the outside leg ready to ask for the change if needed (yes, he has fairly simple flying changes!).

The only downside I could feel, was that he likes to use that long neck of his over the jumps (which is a good thing), so he will likely do best with long armed riders who can consistently give a release, but I think he will be a nice addition for rider's ready to move up a bit. His jump has a little too much pop for a complete beginner, but then he hasn't jumped for a while either and was perhaps putting in more effort than needed...not sure. Will be interesting when Emma jumps him next week!

I have also made some good progress with Coregel; I started her back under saddle mid October and she has been progressing nicely. We are now able to do some lateral work at walk, some nice working trot, and can canter each way. She even walked and pooped today! She seems to think cantering is never more than one lap though, and takes it for granted that she should trot when we get back to the starting point, but I am ok with that for now as it may be all she is able to balance for.

For those of you who weren't around last year, Coregel's journey has been a little different than I wanted it to be. Last August something happened in her pasture, and the gate ended up broken. The other fillies were just over the hill eating grass near the neighbour's horses, but Coregel took off to rejoin her mom, and was found about as far south as she could go before hitting a fence. Sadly, along the way she twisted her ankle enough to rip a ligament right off the bone, taking a chip with it. So Coregel spent last winter on stall rest (and she was NOT pleased), and then hand walking and trotting and so on.

Her injury is healed pretty well, although the ligament won't reattach, so she will always be missing it, instead we used ultrasound and controlled exercise to help scar tissue hold the joint together more securely. As she has this weakness, I have not done the typical lunging I would normally do to start a horse and develop its fitness for training, so my usual routine of training had to change to just be ground work and riding. Interestingly it does not seem like she really missed any steps by missing lunging, and as lunging (or any repetitive work) is hard on joints in general, it has made me question the usual training routine of doing lunging with a young horse.

I plan to post an x-ray of her leg in the barn this week for those that are curious, and hope to get an under saddle video of her soon!

Karen

Apparently the cold is on its way, so winter/mid weight blankets on all horses tonight! Still not seeing snow in the forecast though. It is so dark in the morning. I think this weekend is daylight savings time though. I wonder if I can convince the horses to let me sleep in an extra hour?

Slight shift in the lesson plan this week; instead working on 20 meter circles at trot and canter, and adding/leaving out strides in a diagonal. We will do the countdown challenge next week.

I have some new students starting out, and am trying to match existing riders with more suitable horses before assigning the new students a lease horse, so if you are looking to change to a new mount, let me know! Roxy is ready to go and needs a rider. I really like jumping her, but she needs experience and miles. Kokanee also needs a lease rider.

Karen

This week in lessons

As promised, November is going to be "Challenge Month" and I will be keeping score...still not sure the prizes...I figure we can try the challenges again in March and see if their is any improvement.

The challenges will be divided into four categories: Strides/Pace, Turns, Equitation and Transitions, with each week focusing on one of the categories. Some challenges will be available to all riders, some only to jumpers, and some only to those who can canter.

This week's category will be Strides/Pace, with rider's needing to be proficient at canter to participate, although all riders can benefit from the lesson plan.

There will be two challenges:
1) There will be two jumps/poles set across the diagonal, one at either end. Riders will be challenged to add strides or leave strides out, trying to get a specified number of strides. Points will be awarded to the rider who can get the most strides, the least strides, and who is able to match the desired number of strides consistently (or most consistently).
2) For the Count Down Challenge, riders will have to count down the number of canter strides before take off, starting at "two, one", then "three, two, one". It is important when doing this that you look UP, as if you look down you will misjudge where the jump is, and almost always chip. Remember when trying to add strides, look up and balance the horse up into your hands, don't clutch at the horse and pull it onto its forehand. We will try this on a straight line...and may try it on a curve too.

Both these exercises are just to get rider's thinking about their horse's stride, and how the horse gets to the jump. It also lets me know how aware rider's are of their horses stride and approach to the jump.

Important to note though, that seeing how far away you can count down strides to a jump is just for fun and is not an indication of how good a rider you may be; keeping an even rhythm and good pace is far more important when jumping than "seeing" a distance.

Being able to select and ride a certain number of strides in a line on the other hand is very important, as when showing hunters, 12-13" strides are expected, and when showing jumpers, being able to add strides in a line can help you make a hard turn, or leaving out strides can help you save some time on the clock!

Karen

Happy Halloween!

I will admit that the "in barn" Halloween candies were bought more with the horses in mind...horses love corn syrup!

Last day of October and still no snow...YIPPY! Although I do admit I like the brightness the snow brings to the nights and mornings when I feed. Next weekend is Daylight savings so that will help a bit in the mornings...for a little while anyway.

Also last day of October means board is due!

Back to snow...if anyone has recommendations on good snow blowers, or ones to avoid, let Rob or I know. We are in the market for one I can use to keep the parking lot and barn entrances cleared of snow, so it needs to be easy to use and friendly.

Karen

Looking ahead to November..

I think November is going to be "Challenge Month". I am going to have a new lesson challenge each week. Sometime all the lessons can try (or at least the jumping ones for some of them) and we will see who comes out on top. November is such a dull month otherwise, so this is my attempt to soften the blow that snow is on its way and we have many dark and cold months to look forward too...

Karen

This wind is something else. Getting me ready for winter I guess.

I rode Spencer for the first time last night; I liked him better than I expected. He is much softer in the bridle and off the leg than he looked. I also really liked the Wintec 500 Close Contact saddle that ended up fitting him best. Really a nice saddle if any of you are considering getting a saddle of your own! Very well priced too.

I am headed to Tudor tomorrow to help Wyneke buy the rest of the gear for her fellow, so if anybody needs something, just let me know!

How do those arms feel today Debbie?

MANY thanks to Debbie who gave up her entire afternoon yesterday to help Rob and I make some upgrades at the barn. See if you notice the changes! Rob wanted to do more, but I was pretty much beat by 4:30, so we had to leave it at that, and the scissor lift leaves today.

Also something new to notice today, is that Wyneke's new horse, "Spencer" is due to arrive this afternoon! He is very cute, but I have a feeling is going to be a bit of a prankster too...it will be interesting. He is going to be in the wood pen while in Isolation and then I will put him in with Gody. They both could stand to loose some weight, with Spencer looking a tad like the round bale that was in his paddock...

Gody was all pacey on Saturday after the close encounter with the Moose (apparently to horses, 500 feet is a close encounter with a moose...), so I put Rocky in to keep him company. Poor Rocky! Gody is keeping him on his toes...which I suppose will keep him fit enough for Christine to ride for a few more weeks until he gets too hairy.

I got my flu shot today. Free with no real wait time at my Drs office. The key to not getting a stiff arm (in my opinion) is to get the shot in your dominant arm; you use it more, so better circulation, so less chance of stiffness.

I decided to get the shot this year after talking to me mom. For 18 MONTHS, after my dad was diagnosed, neither of them got sick. Not so much as a cold. Getting the flu shot was one of the things they did, as was being careful about washing their hands. They still went out to dinner, went on the airplane to conferences and so on...and managed 18 months without so much as a sniffle.

I doubt I can be quite that careful, so I have already stocked the house and barn with lotion Kleenex. It really is hard to go back to using "plain" tissues now that I know there is something better out there.

I noticed the flu shots were available while at the Drs to get me medication adjusted...anyone who has been out in the last week may have noticed I am a little out of it; I just cannot stay awake and have been downing caffeine to make up for it, which then leads to Migraines...and as Janine said, a drunk on caffeine is still a drunk; just a really alert one.

Hopefully I can find a better balance between being awake and gibbled, and being half asleep but more or less physically functional.

Until then, try to make sense of my gibberish, and feel free to bring out coffee and chocolates to share....but no cold or flu germs!

Karen

Canada wins Silver

The Canadian Dressage team won SILVER at the Pan-Am games in Mexico this weekend. This gives them a spot at the 2012 London Olympics, which is pretty exciting.

Of course the US won, with scores in the 80's...Canada's scores were in the low 70's at best, but did have pretty consistent tests which is important.

If anyone wants to support Dressage Canada by advertising in the 2012 calendar, let me know. Ads are $150-200 and I have until Friday to secure advertisers (I signed up for the task on Friday...nothing like pressure). They didn't have advertisers last year, so I don't have previous supporters to ask.

Not sure why I signed up for the committee other than to push myself to try new things and expand my horizons...or something like that.

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I actually got the evening off teaching...which made it hard for me to understand that today was Tuesday and not Monday.

Rob and I spent much of the weekend at the race track horse shopping, and with winterizing the barn, as it seems cold weather is on the way. No horses were bought, but a few leads that I will be following up this week. Race horses have such small heads when I compare with Coregel!

Lessons this week are on turning and using the eyes. It is a fun exercise I am going to call Spirograph. Hopefully a few of you are old enough to remember Spirograph. If today was any indication, we may be doing this exercise next week too...

We also had a visitor to the arena today...I thought it was someone's dropped plastic toy...until it moved! Apparently a wandering Tiger Salamander thought the arena looked fun. I took him out a few times, but he kept coming back, so I finally took him out back a bit...hopefully he finds a more suitable winter home. It felt pretty cool on my hand. Very light and quick on his (her?) little legs.

Karen

This week in lessons

This week in lessons we are doing a little work on getting a better/more forward trot by using trot poles spaced far enough apart you have to push a bit to get the right number of steps. Some of you will canter the poles as well.

For jumping I have a little grid set up, that I am altering a bit depending on riding level and the horses in the lesson. The grid is set a little forward, so working on the idea of releasing and using leg to encourage the horse to go forward and across the jumps.

Oh, and if anyone wants a very sweet but small Thoroughbred filly, I met the most charismatic little 3 year old today at the track...only 15.1 hands or so, but I bet she would make a nice little hunter down the road!

And if you want to shorten your commute to the barn, our neighbour's house is again for sale. Nice 3 bedroom house that has been completely updated (husband is a carpenter), with 3 acres. I don't recall the asking price, but it seemed reasonible when they told it to me.

Karen

Jackets are here!

The Hillside Logo jackets are here! I picked them up today and they look lovely! Price per jacked is $94.50 including tax. Bring out a cheque (or cash) made out to Hillside to get your jacket. Shirts will be coming later, as will your jacket Christine.

Amberlea Update

We had a great time at the Amberlea Harvest show this past weekend. The weather held, the horses were good, and it was a nice show. This year they split the warm up ring into two sides; one for jumping, and one for flat work/dressage. Perhaps one day they will also have a lunging ring as apparently some people can't get up early to lunge, and wait until the ring is busy to take over one corner with their close to out of control horse...

We had to go early on Friday so I had time to clean up and make it to my Dad's memorial (which went very well; heard lots of stories about him I had never heard before, and saw relatives I hadn't seen in decades!). Our schooling rounds were set for 11:30 and booked to be shared with someone, but we ended up having the entire ring to ourselves, and it was lovely! The horses weren't bothered by any of the jumps and we didn't even need the full 30 minutes.

The next day Lindsey and Nicole both placed in the 2'3" jumpers, and on Sunday they both placed in the 2'6" jumpers and Lindsey also placed in the 2'9". The classes were very competitive, so Nicole's double clear in the 2'9"s on Sunday wasn't quite fast enough to get in the top 6, but we were still quite happy with the horses and riders...we just need to work on inside turns and jumping jumps and angles. (We skipped 2'3" on Sunday)

Shawn and Magnus also did very well in Dressage, with some scores in the low 60's and so very good placings! Shawn took a little while to relax, so was tired by Sunday, but did he ever look fancy on Saturday; definitely strutting his stuff!

The show ran fairly smoothly, but as always there were some rude people who block the entrance and the barn, or who hog jumps in the warm up...or who are just plain rude. After watching some of the attitudes/reactions of some riders and seeing what other trainers have to deal with, I am very thankful I have such a great group of riders at my barn so I don't have to deal with the drama and pissyness!

Hopefully we can go to a few 2-3 day shows next year; they do have the advantage of giving you more time to settle your nerves, and learn from your mistakes so you can do better the next day. I definitely saw improvement in both Percy and Java by Sunday.

Brassy (and owner Kelsey) moved to Hillside after the show, so she is the big bay mare in Bre's old stall. The "new" black horse on the mare's side is just Tango...

So now show season is over, the weather is turning and the horses are starting to grow their winter coats, but it was a good year I think!

Karen

Horse Swap

Not so Little Piper went to her new home yesterday. Her new owner has considerable experience training horses and working with cocky mares, so I am sure the two of them will do great together! Piper seemed destined for the jumper ring or even eventing, so keeping her as a dressage horse didn't make sense...and it was time for Coregel to say good bye to her sister.

The offer on her came at a good time; I was finding it harder and harder to think of parting with her as she IS a lovely mare...just hard to justify having the two three year olds when we really need a horse to replace Tango.

Coregel on the other hand thinks that Piper must have been eaten or swept up by a Tornado and is completely beside herself. Good thing today was not only windy, but also her farrier day....fortunately both horse and farrier survived unscathed, and Coregel seemed to settle a bit when I put her out on grass beside Tango.

With Piper gone I will have more time to spend with Corgel and plan to start her back under saddle as soon as she seems over her anxiety attack.

In trade for Piper came Gode. I pronounce it Godey, but his former owner called him Gawdy, so take your pick.

Don't worry Joan, he IS a chestnut, so the balance has not been disrupted.

Gode is here to replace Tango who is off indefinitely with her suspected Impar ligament issue. She will get the winter off to recover and we will see how she is come spring. Hopefully Gode isn't as opinionated, spooky, or as likely to pee while trotting as Tango is....

It will be a while until he will be available for lessons as he is coming back from some time off and needs to be reconditioned. He currently resembles one of the big puffy leather coaches that you can buy at Abercrombie and Fitch. I haven't ridden him yet, but plan to get on him tomorrow for the first time.

Gode is 6 years old, likely a bit over 16 hands, liver chestnut, and a Selle Francais, Hanovarian cross. He has competed (lightly due to his age) in hunters, jumpers and dressage. I/we are very lucky to have the opportunity to get such a nice horse to add to our programs, so thank you to Linsdey at LRM Equine Services for making it possible!

Hopefully Coregel forgives me soon for letting her sister go.

Karen

WELCA

I am sure a few of you have seen the "WELCA" billboard, or even the TV ads being run, with no apparent agenda. Their programs are full with a waiting list (according to their information, there is a 2 year waiting list for regular lessons, and I am sure the disabled riding is also in high demand), so why advertise?

Then Rob sent me this link:

They are running a TV and billboard advertising campaign to create public awareness about the facility...so that they can then ask for money to rebuild it.

I learned to ride at Whitemud, and it wouldn't be far fetched to say I grew up there. Our house was a 7 minute drive, 15 minute bus ride, 20 minute bike ride, and 1 hour walk away from the barn, so it was easy to find my way there when I had spare time.

I don't know how it is now, but back then there were a bunch of kids that would hang out, helping with lessons, or creating jumping courses for us to jump (without the horses), or just plain being annoying to the office staff. Rich kids and not so rich kids bonded by their love of horses all hanging out and having a good, healthy time. I am sure my childhood would have been very different had there not been a Whitemud Equine Center.

Even back then the facility was falling apart. I can remember getting off the horse to have frozen toes hit the hard dirt...rushing to get the bridle off so I could stand in the warmth of the tackroom. Or trying to hear the instructor while rain pounded on the tin roof. Or waiting for the snow to slide off the tin and the horses to all bolt from the sound. Or sweeping the flood waters out of the barn alley.

Good times.

So I fully support Whitemud being rebuilt. I agree that their plans to have two indoor arenas, classrooms, stalls, an office, and handicapped friendly washrooms. I agree that it should be heated and all wheel chair accessible.

What I DON'T get, is their proposed budget.

Yes, they will need to do some landscaping, and eventually tear down the old facility (I am assuming they are smart enough not to build at the bottom of the hill like the old one was built...hard to not be flooded in the spring!), and I am sure they will want to build it to last, so with steel. But, they don't have to pay for the land (it is city owned, and leased to the facility), so a big savings there.

So, what do you think is a reasonable number to build up a functional facility? 2 million, maybe 3? Maybe 4 million if they are also going to rebuild the show grounds.

But what are they after? 15 MILLION dollars. Most of that government money...according to the news article, the organization only needs to raise 4 million dollars, and the rest will come in the way of grants.

$15,000,000.00

Are the stalls going to be made of gold?

Or is it that they are paying out big wages to the committees? Or did they not properly tender out the project?

If they want me to support their fund raising, I want to see their numbers; where the money is going and how it is going to be used.

After all, the only service that they offer that I can see should be subsidized IS the disabled riding. The other services; lessons and board, should be ran for profit just like the other boarding stables...and their rates certainly are comparable to other area barns.

So, if anyone gets information on what exactly is going on with "WELCA" and their plans to rebuild, let me know...I would like to get behind them, but not if they are just throwing tax payer money away...or syphoning it for their own benefit.

Karen

Back!

Rob and I made it back safely from our trip to Jasper, and everything appears to still be in one peice despite our absense! Many thanks to Christine, Kaitlin and Laureen for looking after the cats and horses in our absence! Rob's parents looked after Ginger, and I think they spoiled her as she didn't seem to keen to go home with us...

We had a great trip in Jasper and it was nice to get away. This was our first trip since 2004 when we built the arena and took in boarders!

Our stay at the Jasper Park Lodge was fabulous; their attention to detail and high level of service has spoiled me. Not sure about some of the food though...squid ink? Really? Just kidding it was all great, with some fantastic weather to go along with the lovely scenery.

Don't tell Ginger and the cats, but it was nice sleeping on a bed without pet hair....

We took lots of pictures and I will have to post them later in the week.

Now of course it is back to work to get ready for the Harvest show this weekend! Can the weather possibly hold until then?

Karen

S'Argent's new adventure

(above photos is S'Argent as a baby)

S'Argent left for his new home last night. He was sold on Wednesday and supposed to leave on Sunday, but the buyers had a change of plans and came to get him last night while I was teaching, and before Rob could come home.

Fortunately S'Argent loaded like a super star and seemed quite happy in the trailer...I was a little worried about how he would load into a strange trailer as he doesn't have much trailer experience.

I did get a little teary eyed as I said good bye to him. As much as I am confident he is going to a suitable home where he will get the attention he so desperately wants, it is still hard to see a horse Rob and I brought into this world go to a new home. Part of the reason we stopped breeding is that feeling of accountability and responsibility to the lives of the horses we bred for. I felt badly that Rob could not be there to see him off, but then I think I would have really cried.

None of the horses seemed to really notice his absence last night, but this morning Zander was looking around a bit and calling and poor Dexter is beside himself; whinnying and galloping. S'Argent and Dexter have had each other for friends for such a long time and had so many unique games they would play, including the one where S'Argent would entice Dexter into grabbing his tongue. (my horses are weird).

Good luck S'Argent. I miss you more than I thought I would.

Karen

I like that my students all seem to ride because they genuinely like horses. I like that my students have compassion for their mounts, and want to make sure they are treated with consideration.

On the flip-side though, this sometimes leads to riders being overly passive, wishy-washy, or ineffective.

Being effective doesn't mean being cruel, but it does mean setting a reasonable expectation for the horse, and being consistent and clear about that expectation.

Effective = clarity

It is important when riding at any level, to consider how horses learn: they don't learn by reading books, listening to me yammer in the middle of the arena, or watching youtube, they learn through trial and error. So if the horse gets a push to get going, and the rider does nothing when the horse doesn't go, then the horse is learning that the push to get going is meaningless. If the rider uses the same intensity of aids repeatedly in hopes the horse will for some reason decide to respond differently to the same command, then the rider is just reinforcing the lack of response. Riders also have a tendency of allowing their positions and aids to get ugly before using a crop. Do you think the horse likes being kicked or having the rider fall back on their kidneys?

It makes far more sense for this process to take place:
1- Rider squeezes legs to ask horse to trot. Horse stares off into space and doesn't so much as flick an ear.
2- Rider realizes they don't have the horse's attention, so takes a bit more contact, and bumps the horse with their leg to ask them to trot. Horse now flicks an ear, and speeds up the walk.
3- Rider notices the horse is now listening, but still not responding correctly, so asks again quietly with the legs, but adds the additional cue of a cluck/tap with the crop or such. Horse sighs, then trots.
4- Rider reinforces the aids for the transition by trying the transition again after half a lap. Again the rider asks nicely with the legs, and this time the horse listens. Subsequent transitions go equally well.

As opposed to this:

1- Rider asks the horse to trot by squeezing with the legs. Horse stares into space and doesn't so much as flick an ear.
2- Rider asks again for the horse to trot . Horse yawns. Repeat 3 times.
3- Rider is tired of asking for the trot, so lets horse walk a bit hoping I don't notice. Horse's eyes droop and horse has labeled rider as a push over.
4- Rider sees me watching so gives horse a big cowboy kick, which does get the horse trotting, but the big cowboy kick has thrown them off balance, so they fall back in the saddle roughly, and the horse (sensibly) goes back to walk with ears pinned and glaring at me in the middle.
5- Finally the rider uses the crop to get the horse trotting by lightly tapping the horse or even the saddle (as horses respond to threats well) and horse trots off. Each subsequent transition takes the same 5 steps, and the horse gets grouchier and grouchier about step 4.

So in the first example the horse gets one tap of the crop, learns to respond to the correct aids and that it needs to pay attention to its attentive rider. With the second example the horse is actually punished for trotting (by the rider loosing their balance by kicking) and so needs to be threatened into trotting for each transition and so the whip is used multiple times.

Which do you think is the kinder method of riding?

Karen

IKEA harbouring serial killer...

Does anyone else have the latest IKEA catalogue? Check out page 40-41. Yes, the page with the grey haired old lady whose hair style matches the lamp shades. Now look at her towels. "THE HEART IS HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS HOME IS" and "HOME HOME" written in lettering obviously done by a deranged psychotic. The only saving grace is that the letters are black and not a dried blood red...

I have been lazy about blogging lately, and about coming up with lesson plans. I plan to smarten up for October when the fall lesson program starts. Make sure you are on the schedule; I have openings for jumping and advanced beginners on Saturdays, and also openings on Wednesdays. Apparently Tuesday and Thursdays are in hot demand!

Planning on doing some theory classes on Saturdays this fall/winter as well. Things like boots and bandaging, tack & tack cleaning and so on. Maybe once a month or something, so keep that in mind.

Our next horse show is Heads Up! on the 17th, so let me know if you would like to attend for either hunters or jumpers. After that it is Amberlea on October 1-2, and then maybe Gorslines in October (for jumpers).

Karen

Ride for Red Clear Round classic managed to raise $1000 for Canadian Blood Services! Rob and I dropped the cheque off yesterday.

Thanks again to all who volunteered and made it the success it was! Looking forward to next year already!

Ride for Red 2011

Another Ride for Red horse show was successfully held yesterday, in large part due to our many volunteers (Jessie, Joan, Janine, Stephanie, Miranda, Clare2, Cam, Laureen and Nicole), as well as the cooperation of the weather, and of course the competitors who helped things to run smoothly

We had a few falls, but no serious injuries, and I didn't see any lost tempers or tears, which makes a horse show that much more enjoyable.

I hope to do the bookkeeping later today so Rob and I can take a donation to Canadian Blood Services on Wednesday. Update soon!

Thanks again to all who helped out, and if you have ideas to make next year better, please let me know!

Our next show is going to the Lara's show that I think is going to be on the 17th. Her barn is very close, and her shows tend to be low key, so a good show to go to in order to get experience!

Karen

Interesting....

Apparently there is a Mule coming to the show on Saturday. Nevermind that it is a HORSE show. I wonder what our horses will think of a mule?

Time to start crossing fingers that the weather will hold. Today sure is a nice day out.

Karen

Riding Attire Requirments

I realize I have been too lax in what I allow students to wear in lessons. If you want to perform optimally, you must dress for the job. As such we now have a dress code. The following video will show the allowed outfits:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaO8wexUjuQ&feature=player_embedded

Karen

Ride For Red coming up!

The Ride for Red horse show is only a week away...do you think it is possible that this weather can hold for that long?

I already have a few entries: http://rideforred.webs.com/entrylist.htm

Also looking for volunteers to do things such as:
1- concession
2- Jump Crew
3- in gate (must be able to yell)
4- Timer
5- Ribbon presenter
6- Clean/pack up and go home crew.

Volunteering is a good way to learn about horse shows, to make showing less boring for parents/siblings, and a way to get a reference on a resume for eventual job searches so you don't have to make up stuff. Part day or all day is fine.

This year I am planning to mail the prize money out, unless people want to donate it back to the show. I think this will make it less hectic for me, so the show office can more or less manage itself.

Let me know asap if you want to enter or volunteer!

Karen

This week in lessons

This week in lessons if we ride outdoors I am hoping to set up a bit of a jumper course so we can practice doing full courses, complete with a small combination. I see there is a chance of rain for Wednesday and Thursday, so then we will be inside were we will work on a shorter jumper course, but again doing a combination.

Two shows on the horizon for any who are interested: Heads Up! is this Saturday, and Ride for Red is next Saturday.

Karen

Life and Times

The Edmonton Journal featured dad in its Life and Times section today. They also ran his obituary as he wrote it last week. It was very long so we thought they would edit it, but can't find anything missing. He wrote his obit the day before he died. Can you imagine writing your own obituary? He also specified he wanted to be cremated with no funeral, just a memorial, which is being held on September 30 at the Uof A faculty club.

Mom is doing well. Kept busy returning her house to a semblance of order after my sister and her young kids left, reading cards and emails, and just trying to find her balance. Rob and I went over yesterday so Rob could do some minor house repairs and we had supper. It was odd being in the house without dad.

Prior to that Rob and I went to Seba Beach so I could learn the basics of sailing. I was surprised to realize I actually really like it, although figuring out how the sails should be set is far from intuitive for me, so my neck is sore for looking at the sails and strings! The instructor showed us the basic positions of the sails, how to tack and jibe, and we practiced some "man overboard" stuff where we dropped and come around to retrieve a life jacket. I was not so good at the retrieval part. I think if anyone was counting on my to hook them they would be at grave risk of being stabbed with the hook.

Karen

Joseph S. Nelson. April 12, 1937 - August 9, 2011.

Father, Grandfather, husband, professor, researcher, and third degree black belt karate instructor.

He taught me to think, to question, and to look out at the world with never-ending curiosity. He is gone in flesh, but not in spirit. Every time I look at something with curiosity, or impart some obscure bit of trivia, that is my dad.

I am grateful to my mom who had the strength to look after him in his final months and days, so he could live and die at home as he wanted. She was the last face he saw, and the last voice he heard, just as he wanted.

I am also thankful to all the doctors, nurses and support staff at the UofA and home care who gave him almost a year and a half of living after his initial three month prognosis, and did it with compassion and dignity. As well as to Dynalife and Canadian Blood Services whose support was also integral in maintaining his well being. And of course to all those who donated blood and plasma.

I will be teaching jumping lessons at 5:30 and 6:30 tonight.

Karen

Lessons cancelled tonight

Lessons are cancelled for tonight (tuesday). Sorry for the short notice Will explain later. Lessons will resume tomorrow.

Karen

This week in lessons it is once again forcast to rain, rain and more rain! I feel like a mushroom. Most of this week will just be dedicated to bringing horses and riders back from what turned out to be a bit of a break week last week...of course it was the one week we have been able to be back outside that you all decided to go away!

Karen

phobias

Apparently I have a phobia I didn't really know I had. I am not sure if it is a confinement phobia, or what exactly it is, but phobias aren't fun, and I never really understood them as well before.

I discovered my phobia while trying to get an MRI of my brain. Something that I need done, as as the health care system is so tiresome with waiting lists, we decided to go ahead and pay for it to get done. Not cheap, but hopefully worth it.

I was prepared for the "tunnel" and I don't think of myself as being overly claustrophobic (and they have a mirror positioned above you so can see behind you), and I didn't think the noises would get to me, so I wasn't overly worried.

The technician was great, and after about 5 minutes of questions, I was given a wrap around gown that could have covered 3 of me, and then led to the machine. It was more comfortable and less of a tunnel than I though, so I figured it would be a breeze. 22 minutes of getting to lay down and do nothing? No problem!

Once ear plugged and laying down, and suitably covered with a blanket, she lowered a helmet like thing over my head and wedged in some padding to help hold my head still. Still comfortable, and not as bad as I expected, so I was still feeling fine.

And of course you can't move once they start, so of course that is when you realize your nose/chin/forehead is itchy.

The first "scan" was short. 60-120 seconds, I don't remember exactly...and was just a solid jackhammering for the entire time. I am not sure why they bother with music head phones as the sounds are too loud to hear the music. After this was over I was still fine.

So on to phase two. This was to be a 5 minute scan. Started out with the jack hammering, but them progressed to "chunka chunka chunka, CLANK CLANK CLANK, chunka chunka, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK". And I started to get anxious. Then I wanted to swallow. I couldn't swallow. Then I felt nauseous...and still couldn't swallow. I could feel my heart rate climb, and even though I KNEW i was safe, I could not stop the over whelming feeling I WAS GOING TO DIE. I was shaking, sweaty and my skin was on fire. I could not convince my body to calm down.

Rational/shamtional, it didn't matter that people have this procedure regularly and survive, I could not talk my body down from this out of control panic and I am ashamed to admit I had to hit the panic button.

Did you know they can't just pick up where they left off? Fortunately they don't charge you for failing attempts either...because there is no way I could try again right away. I could hardly drive home I was such a nervous wreck!

But it opened my eyes to understanding panic attacks and phobia. it doesn't matter that you KNOW you will be ok, and can still think somewhat rationally, your body has other ideas and that is that.

Since that day, I have done some research, and I guess phobias are made worse/created by being allowed to flee a bad experience rather than resolve it...so it will just be worse next time. Great. But I think I narrowed down the root cause; I think it stems from when I was hurt in December and strapped to the back board/neck brace for so long my back began to spasm out of control and they wouldn't let me up nor give me much for pain medication (liquid children's tylenol) and I began to panic a bit then too.

So having my head locked in place for the MRI was likely a reminder, so even though I was in NO pain for the MRI, my body reacted like it was, and I couldn't convince it otherwise. Fascinating in a way....but not in a good way.

I figure I will help prepare for next time by eating chocolate while listenning to MRI sounds on Youtube and laying under the bed. Will it help? Maybe, maybe not, but sounds like a good excuse to stock up on chocolate!

Karen

It was nice teaching outside again this week. Hopefully the rain holds off long enough that I can do lessons outside tonight too, as I have no intention of building a course inside...so if we have to ride inside tonight I think we will just to lots of no stirrup work...and to make it fair to Joan, she can also ride backwards.

I see the forecast is for rain all weekend. I hope that changes otherwise I may actually have to clean house...and only a silly person cleans their house in the summer!

Starting to think about the fall riding schedule; I realize that with some of you growing up, and doing things like getting jobs or going to university, that you may not be able to make it out as early in the day, so you will have to let me know your fall riding time preferences.

I am likely going to take a week off teaching at some point this fall; either the week you all go back to school, or the week after the last horse show (Harvest). The horses will likely get that week off too, as I think they deserve time off that isn't weather or soundness related.

Karen

Having fun this long weekend?

The weather is trying to be somewhat good for this long weekend. It still can't seem to resist raining, but at least the days are mostly sunny and a nice temperature.

Rob hauled Clare over to Amberlea for the dressage show on Thursday; it looked pretty nice when we picked her up again on Sunday, but I guess the it was quite flooded Thursday and Friday.

On Saturday, Rob, Ginger and I took the canoe out on the North Saskatchewan for an all day boat ride. We hired Edmonton Canoe to pick us up at Emily Murphy Park and haul the three of us, the canoe, and our provisions down to Devon. It was a nice day to be on the water, but silly Rob got a bit of a sun burn.


I was surprised by the lack of plant life in the water. I guess the fish in the river are all carnivores, so they don't need plant life to do well, but we didn't see much for life on the water other than one beaver and a bunch of birds.

Ginger did well on the boat once she found her balance...and the copious dog treats we bought. She enjoyed getting out on some sand bars, although I think she was disappointed by the lack of smells on the little islands.

We were surprised that she didn't try swimming at first, but finally at our last stop near Fort Edmonton she got excited by some wake created by a jet boat, and she tried attacking the waves as they reached the shore, and then finally went for a swim.

I think the last time I was on the river would be about 30 years ago; it has changed! More big houses and more activity along the river. It was a little freaky to see the houses poised to fall in the river by Riverbend. The two new foot bridges across the water looked impressive and well used.

The other thing that surprised me was the 17+ dogs playing in the water at Twilliger park. Ok, the dogs didn't surprise me, what surprised me was the 4+ toddlers also in the water with the dogs. Who brings a toddler to an off leash dog park and lets them play admist the dogs? Particularly in water that isn't safe to drink.

We spent about 7 hours on the water in total. My bum was a tad sore, but I would go again. It was nice being on the water with no bugs, crowds or horses : )

On Sunday I taught, then we went to pick up Magnus from the show. Clare was happy as she was able to break 60% at training level! Last night we went to visit my parents and brother for dinner. Dinner was nice. Dad isn't doing so well and is back on regular blood and platelet transfusions. Summer time is not a good time to need blood as less people make donations (hint hint), so their time spend in the hospital trying to located a suitable match means it is an all day process. Dad's mind is still 100% though, so he was able to explain to me how fish can still live in water that appears dead to me.

Today will be a day to relax and then lessons tonight. Lots of people are away this week, so the lesson plan will just be something simple...maybe we will even get outside this week? Now that there are less mosquitoes being outside is much nicer! I can't get over how much standing water there is.

Karen

Cats are smart

I am typing this while dodging drool. Yes, Charlie the resident barn cat is in the house, on my lap, getting pet while I type this. Why is Charlie, the resident barn cat, in the house? Because he was afraid to come into the house, so of course I had to win his trust so he would feel safe in the comforts of our living space.

And I am not the only sucker. How many of you have spent time trying to convince Charlie or Rolo that it was safe to let you come near so you could pet them?

Yes, cats are smart...they make you feel special when the let YOU pet THEM. After all there really isn't much in it for you to pet the cat...other than drool, cat hair, and potentially cat claws. But yet they still manage to get us to spend the time convincing them to let us pet them.

I need to crack the secret to the cat manipulation so I can have people begging to give me money and cupcakes....unfortunately I am guessing drooling and shedding won't work.

Karen

More rain. Very wet. So wet in fact that some little frogs made their way into the barn when I opened it up this morning; even the amphibians are tired of the rain and wet.

No idea what we are doing in lessons this week. Nothing ground breaking as there are a fair number of people away...likely in search of blue skies and dry ground.

We worked a bit on counter canter yesterday, so maybe we will do some more counter canter, or at least work on picking up the correct lead without having a wall to help position the horse.

Maybe a grid?

After today the weather forecast looks promising...fingers crossed we can start jumping outside again soon!

Karen

It rained all night. It is still raining now. There as a raging white water torrent of water draining across the parking lot this morning; poor Ginger was unsure if it was safe to cross. The dug out has completely jumped the banks and there is now a creek of water draining from it; hopefully the grass and weeds keep the gold fish and water plants from getting out.

The mares in the front feild didn't even bother to come out of their shelter when they heard me feeding; I even fed them under the trees so they could stay semi dry.

Dexter and posse are likely the only ones appreciating the weather; it means they can go out back and graze without being eaten by mosquitos.

With all the technology out there, why can't they sent some of this rain to some of the many places suffering from drought? Although i suppose a God like power like that would be scary too.

If you come to the barn tonight or tomorrow and can't find it...just look downstream.

Karen

The week in jumping lessons...

This week in jumping lessons we will be working on better corners. Not only getting the horse further into the ends, but also using the corners to re balance and refocus.

To this end I have built a course that goes like this:

Left lead canter to the yellow vertical, then about 6 strides to a bounce set at an angle in the corner. Across the diagonal over a three stride, then into the far corner, and down the other side in four strides, with the second jump being a new scary lattice jump. Then into the corner, over the bounce again, and across the diagonal over a fan jump.

The bounce will be tiny, but will still require riders to sit UP and re balance with the inside leg and outside rein, followed by outside leg to sent them forward again and keep their hind end engaged as they approach the corner. It will be a bit of an optical illusion to the horse, and they will want to drop onto their inside shoulder and miss the bounce all together if given the option.

It is important to use leg as well as hand/shoulders when re balancing as we don't want to inadvertently pull the horse onto its forehand, or take away its push from behind, which it needs to get the lead change nicely, and to get over the next jump in an athletic manner.

Karen

This week in lessons

With rain forecast for every day this week, I think it is safe to say lessons will be indoors again this week. I miss teaching and riding outside...but I think the horses enjoy the fans and the break from the bugs!

Dressage lessons will work a bit on sitting trot and going from a leg yeild to a baby half pass.

I will figure out what jumping lessons will do tomorrow!

Karen

I went for a hearing test today. Not because I think my hearing is off, but I needed to pay for the test to get a referral to an ENT specialist. First they pressurize the ear drums and then play beeps of different tones into the ears to measure the ear drum's reflexes. Next I had to repeat words back that were played quieter and quieter...fun words like Milkshake and Iceberg.

For step three I had to hit a button every time I heard a chime. The chimes got quieter and quieter until my own breathing annoyed me. Lastly I had to repeat words again; this time the volume stayed normal and it was more to test how I picked up different sounds.

All in all it didn't take very long, and I found out I had good ear health with above average hearing. My right ear is consistently good at hearing, with my left ear better at hearing lower pitches. If you doubt your own hearing, I recommend having it checked...maybe then I won't have to yell as loud when teaching!

Karen

Finally!

finally Rob and I got out in the Canoe. Ok, so not to Elk Island or a river...but our dugout. We figured it was a good way to test Ginger out in the canoe and it let us put out a little solar powered mini-fountain.

I saw a few flashes of gold fish, so that was a relief, but then Rob and I saw something else in the water; too big and brown looking to be our Gold Fish. We finally managed to catch one, and Rob identified it as a Salamander! Apparently our dug out has plenty of the creatures. Not sure where they came from, but kind of neat to see. I am thinking all the things we saw before and thought they were tadpoles were really Salamanders.

Ginger was pretty good in the boat, and nobody ended up in the water!

Karen

@$&!*@($

What would you do, if you heard someone screaming? Screaming loudly at you to please stop what you were doing? If you were our neighbours to the west, you would turn off your movie, and go outside to investigate. If you are our neighbours to the south you continue to flaunt the law and endanger others in the pursuit of having fun....

The evening started with Rob and I getting home from dinner just before 9pm. I was exhausted and would have just done night feed and gone to bed, but Lindsey was in the barn bathing Java to get ready for her 4H show. I missed hearing her truck leave, and for once I am glad she was out late, and that I procrastinated.


I headed out just before 10pm and noticed fireworks going off to the south. The horses were alert, but not overly bothered by the sputtering initial attempts to light up the sky. The geldings came galloping up from the back, and the rest kept their eyes on the south sky between bites of hay.


But then they set off some crazy ass sounding whistling sparkler things...and that was it. The fillies completely LOST it. I called Rob to come out and started SCREAMING for our neighbours to knock off the fireworks. Piper in particular wanted OUT of there and was ramming the gate and I think would have considered jumping if I (and soon Rob) had not been on the other side. Once Rob was there to keep them from jumping out and rushing the fence I ran to the top of the hill to once again scream at them to stop. But apparently they HAD heard me...as I heard back "Deal with it Karen, it is a Birthday Party" .





WTF?





Deal with it?





Four young horses are blindly panicking and in imminent danger, and she wants me to "deal with it"?

Not that she knew what the issue was; they can't see up and over our hill. For all they knew a horse was trapped in the fence/gate, running while injured, or a person had been hurt while handling their horse when the fireworks started.

But that didn't matter. All that mattered was that they and their guests got to watch and listen to those fireworks.

Stuff like that pisses me off and frightens me. I am SO glad Lindsey's late night at the barn meant that I was out when the loud fireworks went off; who knows what would have happened if Rob and I had not been out there to keep them from rushing through or over the gate and fence. Can you imagine if they HAD gotten out? Four young horses, one with a previous injury, running in blind panic?

The ignorance and disregard for our safety and well being still shocks me.

But at least I know the neighbours to the west can be counted on to come check on things if they hear screaming.

Karen

Is summer back?

Quick! It is sunny out!

And...when I was feeding I was not swarmed by mosquitos! Maybe the little black bugs don't like the sun? Is it possible we may have a nice weekend ahead of us? fingers crossed!

Irony....

From a Kijiji Ad:

"Tired of barn politics and barn gossip. Board with us where every horse is beautiful and well cared for. Indoor facility outdoor arena padics and very knowledgable people. We but the fun back in boarding."

If you are going to put that you are knowledgeable, at least spell the word right! And maybe spell check if you don't know how to spell paddocks? The "but" instead of put is just a funny typo, so I can forgive that one...

What sucky weather. I want to be outside! But at least inside there are no bugs...what a waste of a summer!

So lessons will definately be inside this week. Not sure what we will be working on, but starting off on a good course pace will again be a focus. Maybe some sitting trot work too...

Karen

Stupid weather...

First the weather scuttled plans to go to Still Meadows for jumping, and today it caused me to cancel the first of the two Ride for Red horse shows. We had all the jumps loaded on the trailer, and the prizes organized, but with the forecast being rain and thunder, we made a last minute decision to cancel.

It didn't even look that bad by 8am, so I was wondering if I made a wrong decision...but then we heard thunder at 9:15, and the rain came soon after...and wow we are flooded here! So the decision was the right one, but I really want to get out to a jumping show soon!

Hopefully it dries up enough so we can go to the Heads Up show, but we will have to see.

Thanks to everyone who planned to come out to help, and to Christine & Rob who braved the cold and rain to help me get the jumps organized to be loaded on the trailer.

So after calling, emailing, and texted everyone that the show was cancelled and doing chores, Rob and I went to brunch, and then went to Greenlands for some plants for our dug out. If you are brave enough to wade through the mosquitoes, check them out; they look really cool.

Karen

This week in lessons...

This week in lessons we are going to work at creating useful energy in our horses, and keeping it.

For both dressage and jumping, we want the horse to be energetic and responsive. We want to feel that the horse could and would go faster/more forward if we asked, and we want the horse to be powered from behind.

All too often when jumping, rider's let the horse lope up to the first jump, leaving the horse to have to increase its energy to perform, and then the horse continues to increase its energy as it goes, resulting in a round that starts with a pokey short stride and a chip, and ending with a rushed horse and an overmade line. Instead we want a course that starts with the needed tempo, and finishes the same. This means the rider must create energy to start with (rather than let the initial jumping effort create the energy), and must rebalance during the course to regularly "reset" the horse to the ideal pace.

In dressage, things that require effort and precision sometimes make the rider forget the forward part of the equation, and the horse ends up behind the leg and on its forehand. This leads to sloppy transitions and a dull horse.

By being less boring as a rider, and by setting higher expectations of the horse, we create an energetic, focused, and willing mount, that will feel (and be) more athletic. Transitions, paying attention to details, and being sure to be in control of the horse at all times (by doing things such as riding off the track) all help to create a more focused horse. Energy can be created and kept by paying close attention to the horse, and correcting it as needed when the energy level falls. It is also very important to remember to use leg when steering and balancing. Riders that rely too much on hand will also find the horse getting dull, unresponsive, and tipped on the forehand.

Carrying a crop may be a good idea for this weeks lessons unless you are confident in your forward!

Oh, and if you are wondering, yes, my face is swollen, and no, I have no idea why. I am sure the cure is chocolate....or cookies....or cupcakes....

Karen

Logo Jackets and Polo Shirts?

I brought out a sample of jackets as possible Hillside Logo wear. These are a little better quality and fancier than the previous ones. They are more weather proof, better fitted, and don't have the velcro and toggles that horses so like to destroy! They are a little higher end though, at about $90.00 with the logo and your name embroidered, but I think the quality makes it worth it. I will put them in the stall across from the stairs if you want to take a look or try one on. Just please keep them clean! The samples are fuchsia and pale blue, but they come in many colours. I know most logo gear is the club colour...but it is too hard to find nice green stuff, and I would rather people buy something they look good in and will want to wear, then buy something so we all look alike.

I am also planning to order more polo shirts. I really like the ones we bought previously...again they come in a variety of colours and are high quality.

Take a look, and let me know if you, or anyone in your family would like one and I can put together an order! If you have something else you want with the Hillside Logo, such as a saddle pad, just let me know, I am open to ideas.

Karen

In or Out?

It looks nice outside. I want to teach outside, but they keep hovering over me with a risk of thunder storms Today, tomorrow and Thursday! I don't really want to build two courses, but I may have to...stupid weather that keeps changing.

This week in lessons I am working to help rider's find a connection with their horse, both on the flat, and to an extent over jumps. Advanced riders will work on an "In Hand" release, which keeps a connection to the mouth in the air, but does not pull back or overly restrict the horse. This requires the rider to make sure their balance is independent from their hands. The easiest way to learn to do this is to jump an obstacle that requires the rider to turn in the air, so that is what advanced riders will do.

The beginner/intermediate jumpers will work on selecting the most appropriate length of crest release for the jump in front of them and switching between short and long releases as needed.

I am also optimistic we can have a fun show Saturday afternoon. I am thinking 1ish. Class list and info will be posted in the barn. Classes are $1 each. let me know if you can come or can help out!

I am also looking for entries and for volunteers for Ride for Red which is coming up! Info in the barn or check out: http://www.rideforred.webs.com/

Entry forms can be downloaded right from the website!

Karen

Fish rescue

Now that our dug out has become a viable ecosystem Rob and I took on a rescue project. We have rescued not one, not two, but thirty feeder goldfish. Gold fish that without our intervention would have become food for a bigger fish, or would have been squished into a tiny bowl to have its growth stunted and its poor little fishy life shortened.

Instead these lucky fish have now been set loose in a giant pond, with mosquito larva, duck weed, and other scrumptious edibles.

Of course we likely won't see them again for while...not the most sociable creatures, but apparently they can grow up to a foot long, so hopefully we will one day see them again...and hopefully the birds don't find them and eat them before they get to grow up.

I was amazed at how quickly they seemed to adapt to the "wild", particularly considering that they were raised in empty tanks and would never even have seen so much as a fake plant....yet as soon as their baggy went into the pond they swarmed towards the green.

So if you are ever bored, go hang out by the pond and look for little orange fishies...just don't fall in!

Karen

A little more effort please!

Each week I put effort in to read books and websites to improve my teaching skills and to come up with lesson plans. All I ask in return is for my students to put in a little effort in return. So imagine my disappointment this week when my Thursday lessons did not know if Peru was north or south of the equator. Come on people! A little effort please! Is it too much to ask that you come prepared for your lessons? Sheesh, next I will find out you don't know the life cycle of arthropods. I don't know why I bother to try to teach a group of underachievers. We will never get to the Olympics this way.

Karen

back on grass

I decided to let the horses go back on grass today. Ideally the grass would have been left for a day or two to dry and grow before putting the horses back out, but I thought they needed a break from the mud, and the paddocks will dry better without hooves digging them up.

First to go out was Shawn and Magnus. I led them both together, but decided to let Shawn loose first, figuring he was just going to put his head down to eat right away...nope! Off he went with a buck and a fart up the hill! This of course got Magnus excited, so I waited for him to calm down before letting him loose, but off he went doing laps around Shawn, doing his best Black Stallion impersonation!

Percy and Kokanee weren't much better...both tore off at a mad gallop. You would think they had been stuck in a tiny cell for the last week rather than a decent sized pen!

The fillies on the other hand were well behaved and set straight to eating as soon as they got into their pen.

I will have to coat myself in bug spray to go get them though...

oh, and be prepared for MUDDY horses.

Karen

This week in lessons

I am thinking lessons will be inside all week; it will take a while to dry up and more rain is in the forecast. So this week we are going to work on different releases. The three we will work on are short, long and (for advanced riders) in hand releases.

The short crest release puts the riders hands up on the horse's crest, just enough that their hands are about 1/4-1/3 up the neck. This gives the horse the freedom to jump the jump, but still leaves the rider some control. With the short crest release, the rider uses the neck for balance.

The long crest release requires the rider to reach further up the neck; 1/2 way or more. This release gives the horse complete freedom over the jump, and is mostly used to show off fancy hunters, or to give a horse complete freedom over a wide oxer or drop fence. It is important that the rider moves their hands forward, and not their entire body!

The in-hand release requires to the rider to have complete control over their body and hands in the air as they cannot use their hands for balance with this release; instead their hands reach down and forward towards the horse's mouth, following the horse's stretch over the jump. The goal is to maintain a light, following contact, without restricting the horse mid air. This type of release is for advanced riders, but is also useful for less experienced riders when learning to guide the horse into a turn mid-air.

To this end, I will have some sort of grid, as well as an inside turn option, so we can practice how to do the various release types.

Karen