It was another warm day in Maine. I am beginning to think the brochure lied about the mild summers. It was 78 with 27% humidity today, so actually quite pleasant unless you were working. And unfortunately I had a cord of wood to stack, which I think officially makes me a New Englander.
Anyway, I opted to wait a couple of weeks for Brego's next body clip because he seems to be slicking out and it still gets into the 30s at night sometimes. So he got to work in the indoor in some heat and he definitely was feeling lazy. After stacking wood, I was feeling pretty lazy myself.
I decided to start back into small lateral schoolings after focusing on training level stuff for the show. Brego will collect fine, but he lacks the strength and elasticity to really show off laterally. For now, of course. So I would ask for a shoulder in at the walk which is easier for him and if we got two or three good steps, he got rewarded.
At the trot, probably because of my bouncy hands, he tends to brace so it is a lot harder to get him supple and balanced enough for the lateral stuff. Plus, I am still a neophyte at dressage, so I am sure I am not riding him perfectly either. A little like the blind leading the blind here.
Regardless, I think he was more supple with his jaw since the show and although he was not over-full of energy or brilliance, he tried everything I asked and I can't hope for more. We will both improve with schooling. I put together a video showing some of the stuff I worked on. You will need a microscope to see some of the movements, but I thought it might be useful to see how little things turn into great things (in a couple of years). As I like to say, measure progress not perfection.
I am still trying to track down a place to cross-country school, so if anyone knows of any place near the New Hampshire/Maine border, please send me a note.
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