Wizard Session 221: I Can Learn
Monday, 4/4/11
Our lessons from Saturday carried over to Monday. I hand grazed Wizard with his new friend Philadelphia and then turned him loose in the outdoor arena under the lights. He ran several laps around the arena without stopping, and it seemed like he appreciated burning off the energy. I tacked him up and we did a longeing session under the lights. He warmed up at a walk to the left, and then trotting without side reins to the left and… to the right! Yes, he has once again decided that trotting to the right is an okay thing to do.
Once he was warmed up, I fastened the side reins and asked for a few laps at the trot in each direction. To the right, he was responsive, but broke into a canter a few times. When we had an appropriate trot, I took off the saddle and cooled him out. It’s nice to know that Wizard is back to being able to trot clockwise and counter-clockwise!
Rock and Racehorses: The Blog 
Being grounded – especially in the spring! – stinks, but like you, I was able to use the opportunity last year to work on groundwork. My issue was my lack of acuity in reading (and influencing) the horse’s body language, and recognizing all the little evasions. However, learning to effectively longe the mare I used to ride ended up being one of the most valuable tools for me – I was able to deal with her on nights she was being looney, and I developed amazing control – I could free longe her, and move her all over the arena (we even did cantering serpentines) simply by reading her body language and learning to influence her. It was pretty interesting and gratifying. Not as fun as riding, though. Hope you get the back taken care of soon!