Aziim's New Bridle and a Bit, Too!

Aziim has a new custom bridle that has no brow band - which he LOVEs and so do I - putting it on is as easy as his halter! Today, I'm sure I heard him actually say that he loves it.
Marie and I went to play with him today. She watched me (this time!) put his bit in. We did a "session" of four "in, clip, wait, unclip and let-it-go-please". The first time, I learned to keep my fingers & thumb completely free of bridle. When one's fingers/thumb are attached to the bridle when he flings his head, digits can likely be removed unexpectedly. I still have all of mine. Whew! The next three times went much better and by the end, he was releasing the bit while keeping his handsome head down. Double whew!
We left the bit in and put his halter over the bridle for a lunge in the outdoor. So he had his bridle and bit on but we lunged with his halter. I started him, then Marie lunged him both sides for a short time - about 20 min.
He did give her a bit of trouble starting his circle clockwise - when he stamped his foot I came over to have the little argument. Then he went fine again. He showed how well he trots and walks on the line.
Then Marie took him to the center and brushed him and then let him eat some of the alders I was trimming.
Then we fly-wiped him and took him inside and did his feet on the cross ties and fed some treats.
Back in his stall we did another bit session and that went really well. "in, out, clip, wait, unclip, release", four times. Good boy, Aziim!
An apple and back out to play and graze with Paris.
Don't tell him - but we're working on a fly mask modification. Hope it'll work as well as the new bridle!

"And THIS is what I think of THAT!" says Aziim the first afternoon he tried it on.

"Well Ok, it's not so bad." says Aziim later. 

ROLLER COASTER

What an emotional roller coaster selling your horse is. I don’t know how people do this for a living – I would be bonkers in 5 months.

The ride starts out with a slow and steady climb upward (it took over a year to decide to sell Summer) and then, as you crest the hill (actually make the decision) you start to pick up speed (tell people, call all your friends, put ads up). As you are barreling ever faster downward (thinking that maybe you should have just stuck with your trusty steed) you realize that you are going too fast to get off and you are just going to have to stick it out until the end.

Just as you are starting to get comfortable, you are whipped around a tight turn, and then another tight turn, and then another (the inquires start to come in). Then it’s another long climb uphill (as you answer many, many questions – some good and some incredibly ridiculous).

Suddenly - Woohoo – your first roll (people booked an appointment to come see your horse). And another roll! Then you get 4 rolls in a row and you are so dizzy you are afraid you are going to lose your cookies. Now it’s a sharp turn and you plummet downward so fast and so far you think you are going to pass out (someone really likes your horse – is going to buy your horse - oh, they have changed their minds, no – they are not going to buy your horse) and you start to climb again.

After a few more tight turns and rolls, you crest the last hill and you see the end of the line (someone thinks that your horse is as fantastic as you do and they have bought her). You are happy ... and you are sad too, because you realize that it is the end of the ride.

I will miss Summer ... I do miss Summer, but she has found a fantastic new home with a wonderful family of 2 boys, a Mom and a Dad who all love her. She has lots to teach them, and they have lots to give her, and I know they will have many, many happy trails together – just as I did.



Summer's new family - Mom's shy



Carrilee & Marie on our way out of Tidal Treasures!



Aziim - Saucy Pants

I think horses can have a similar effect on women that men do. Their good looks, charm and energy can distract a woman from seeing their misbehavior sometimes. Today the gentleman, Aziim, was actually saucy and was I surprised! and caught off-guard! I must have been "letting him get away" with something sometimes lately but didn't notice.
Today the plan was to go with Shelly/Spirit, Kathleen/Caddy and Marie/Willow - likely up & down the driveway. Change of plans.
I was slow to get him ready and walked the driveway with Lynn while waiting for them to get back from a ride up Leland's road (as far as they could get before the flies got'em).
He was a bit "up" (a little high steppin' and a slight blowing) but listening as he usually does: slowed his pace when I asked and he moved over onto the grass when his friends came back so we could turn around and follow them down. None of this is new, sometimes a guy just feels a bit "up" and I've been getting used to it.
Then I started to get the feeling that he was feeling saucy. I was slightly confused. Full of energy, Ok. Shy at something strange, Ok. But saucy? Aziim?
The details are sketchy for me but there was some head snaking and one good toss (that one got a yell, kick and circle), one ugly trot and lots of walking and standing still. I felt like I was hanging in until the acting up of another horse ended my session. I saw a buck and I was out of that saddle before that horse's hind feet hit the ground. My nerves could take no more. Leading while he was dancing until the others finished.
Put him in a stall, had a bite to eat and marched back down to get him - caveson, lunge line, helmet, gloves & raincoat in hand. Lunged and backed and took advice from Lynn and lunged and walked and sweated and turned red and ran and walked and talked and led while barking commands. Whew!
Just before I turned him loose in his pasture, I said - "See ya tomorrow, buddy."

Khol's Two Firsts

This is the first time Khol experienced water spraying on him from the hose:

And this was the first time he experienced being fly-sprayed!

You can see he stood very well for it all. Watching carefully sometimes but standing very nicely. When he was turned loose into the pasture afterwards he nearly burst with all that pent-up energy! Good boy, Khol!

Paris' Perspective (7?)

Lynn is working on putting together a video of Mcdonalds CTR but it is going to take her a few more days to post it, so I thought I'd send out a message. You see tonight I'm inside the barn looking out (how cool is that!) so I thought I'd lounge around my stall and blog.

Considering how hard it is raining right now, I'm really glad I'm inside. Lynn spent an hour just brushing and grooming me and giving me the spa treatment. It was awesome.

McDonalds Run - Friday August 3, 2012

We packed up 3 horses on Friday Caddy, Spirit and Wind.  Caddy goes on first.

Here they are. Caddy, Spirit in the middle, and then Wind. 

We took 3 different vehicles.  Todd drove the truck. With him was Shelley (no picture because she's taking the pictures!, Kathleen and Marie.

Todd, driving the new truck!

Kathleen:

Marie:

Lynn, Pam and Carrilee followed in the car and we had walkie talkies going between the car and the truck.
Troy had to work late, so he and Tammy came later in their car.    We had lots of fun with the walkie talkies.  It started with something like "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Horse hair airlines. Today we will be flying at an altitude of 80 km an hour...." then it just continued....bump roads were turbulance....on and on!    The car crew knew that Todd's favorite song is NOT puff the magic dragon, so we decided to sing a line or two into the microphone.  Todd groaned.  Then, the truck decided to treat the car to some kind of a camp song involving a chicken, hot water on the chicken's legs and a boiled egg !?  Have to do something to keep busy and have fun during a 5 hour, 45 minute drive.

When we got there it was coming on dark, with a thunder and lightening storm happening all around us.  Troy and Tammy showed up soon afterwards and everyone got straight to work. The boys put up the fencing and the girls set up the tents.  With a bit of hard work, everything was up, including the canopy.                                                      

Then, we gathered into the canopy for some chatter and fun.  We decided (I decided?)  to challenge the other team to a "sing off"  Boy did we have fun with that!  Neither Pam nor I can sing for beans and we know it.  Shelley captured some of the carrying on, on camera...before I caught her taping and made her turn it off.  What you hear/see is me and Carrilee trying to convince Pam to come and sit by us so we can sing. Pam is not convinced easily.  At one point I tell her to "come over here and be your rotten self"  I am trying to explain to her that I know we are lousy but let's just have fun with it.  I swear I was on my first beer......just having a good time!  Here is the bit of footage Shelley managed to sneak into before getting caught!  From there, we went to our tents.  Pam, me and Carrilee were sharing a tent...we laughed well into the night.  Was tired the next day but it was worth it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEIK5lCa2i8&feature=player_detailpage

McDonald's Run - Synopsis

Well, we are back from our weekend in NB...with more pictures and videos than we know what to do with!  It's going to take a while to sort through it all so I thought I'd provide a quick little synopsis.  - We went.  We had fun.  We had great experiences.  We came home.  The end.

OK, well maybe a little better than that!

We got there late on Friday, but managed to to get set up in semi-darkness.  We had so much fun laughing on the trip up and Friday night that my sides were sore.

On Saturday, Troy and I rode the 30 mile LD.  Trails were beautiful (as usual) and DRY (not as usual but awesome!)  We had to manage the horses "panting" in competition which is new for us, but we figured it out.  It was hot.  We both completed and Spirit received 3rd place!

On Sunday, it was a 15 mile Judge Pleasure.  I rode Spirit for miles only.  Tammy competed on Wind and Kathleen competed on Caddy.  Great experiences all the way around.  Kathleen - just 14 years old - received 3rd for Horsemanship and her horse received 4th for Trail Horse!  Tammy received 2nd in the adult division for Horsemanship!

And just so you don't think that all the competitions are about horses.....Kora McDonald, the hosts 8 year old daughter wanted to compete but she doesn't ride a lot yet, so she has  her own type of competition...the "stare down" and she is darn good at it.  Here is a little video clip where she challenges Troy and then me to a "stare down"   I didn't even know this was being taped, but it's pretty cute.  (Will provide lots more detail once I've had time to sort through pictures/video and write up stories).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV-aid5VDZw&feature=plcp

Pit Crew Fun

The ACTRA McDonald's Run in Wickham, NB August 4th & 5th was the place to be for me and Marie! Neither of us were riding (this year!) but man! didn't we have fun! Some highlights:
Laughing until tears on Friday night waaaay too late for poor Lynn who had 45 miles to ride over the next two days. Sorry about that Lynn, I'll try to behave more responsibly next time - but it was Pam's fault.
A quiet call from Troy each morning that coffee was ready. Nice!
Lunch and supper provided by the ride host's crew each day, delicious and much appreciated.
Filling all the empty buckets we could find on the halfway truck for the CTR ride on Saturday. Watching all the riders and horses looking fit and having fun. Even in all that heat. They rode 30/35 miles, I think.
Noting how Lynn and Troy were monitoring their mounts' condition during their ride and hoping to remember all that when it's our turn.
Blowing my "great navigator" rep by waving at a couple of riders just as they were at the Northrup Road sign  and missing the turn. This caused some tense "how can we be lost" moments on our way to the halfway.
Returning to camp to await the JP riders' return and finding a relaxed and beautiful Pam sitting in the shade after having done all the camp clean-up and prep. She even thought to have a basin of cool water with facecloths for the tired, hot riders.
A Selenium discussion with Chester.
More fun in the tent Saturday night, although maybe not as late/loud this time due to everyone's hard work.
Seeing Kathleen and her friends cleaning her tack on Saturday night for her JP the next day.
Chatting with Betty about Florida. And Sherry about her Standardbred, Zack. and many other great people.
Admiring Jody's determination to ride her first ACTRA ride by herself and listening to her horse, Mischief, calling throughout the night - sounding much like my Willow.
Seeing Nicole riding her 20-something year old Canadian, Benjamin.
Asking everyone where they got their horse. And their horse's name, I remember quite a few!
Meeting Molly Malone, who has an lovely owner that didn't mind me rubbing her "ass"! and seeing her Fjord friend.
Watching Tammy get all her special JP supplies ready.
Seeing Kathleen lead the way through the gate at the finish of the ride.
Seeing Tammy's proud smile at the finish, looking for all the world as if she could do it again RIGHT NOW!
I had Hersey's Drops in my pack for Tammy when she looked a little nervous, just to distract her with something delicious but I'd forgotten all about them 'cause she never looked at all worried. She was a woman on a mission. Mission completed. Next!

Training Update

Haven't chimed in lately, so here is an update. Since Wind and I completed our first 30 mile competition together back in May, we've been continuing to train. Wind and Troy finished 42 miles in the heat in PEI and we decided he needed a break the following day, so I did not end up riding that weekend, but I was okay with that. His well being has always been and will continue to be the top priority. With July came the usual infestation of flies and so we have been sticking to doing hills..in the driveway..which is as good a hill to train as any normal hill and laps in the outdoor arena, with the occasional pleasure walks down to the beach. We are off again to Wickham, NB this afternoon for another competition, where Troy will ride in the 30 mile CTR and I in the 15 mile JP. I will look at tackling CTRs next season. For now, if I do 30 miles it will be an LD, the next of which is scheduled in October. I'm feeling more and more connected to Wind and confident in the saddle and I'm loving getting more comfortable with his canter, but as the saying goes "Only a fool would ever claim to have graduated from the School of Horses." So, I'm going to keep trying to pursue my goal of making each and every moment spent with Wind a comfortable, happy learning experience for both us and that is a goal that will never end. There are trying days and days when I know I could have done better, but I won't stop striving for the goal of always being kind, considerate and respectful of that beautiful boy. For all he does, that is the least he deserves.