Selena Ride 14; Wizard Session 87: You Ain’t Nothin’ But a Hound Dog

Tuesday, 8/25/09

Wizard had a busy day. I’m preparing him for under saddle work by hand-walking and doing a little free-longeing. Today, I turned him loose in the big outdoor arena- he moved out beautifully, just like he did on Monday. We took a hand walk on the trails with my friend and Mary the Morgan. We were out for about 45 minutes and explored trails we’ve never seen before- it was a blast! If Wizard is anything under saddle like he is in hand on the trails, he will be a mighty fine ride. He is bold, curious, and confident, and he is not barn-sour. He sniffs the new trails like a hound dog, taking in all the new scents. He was a little sweaty by the end of the walk and we arrived back at the barn just as it was getting dark. I cooled him out and put him to bed. This was more activity than he has had in a while and he seemed pleased with it.

I rode Selena in the outdoor arena under the lights (after giving her a little private time in her stall to eat and relax). We worked on calm transitions. I warmed her up at a walk and then we did walk-trot-walk transitions in both directions. By the end of the ride, she was starting to get the idea and I felt her soften. I rode her in my jumping saddle, a Stubben Portos, but I did not like the way the sweat marks looked after the ride. I saw some ruffled hair and dry spots. I’ll keep riding in my Moritz dressage saddle in the future until I see more changes in her back’s muscling.