Yesterday was one of those perfectly magical rides that I never wanted to end. Even with thunder rumbling in the distance when we started jumping, Chance was quiet and we were completely in sync. My eye is improving at the bigger jumps, and he is not building quite so much throughout our courses. We only …
Tag: thoroughbred
Flat Work for the Hunter Ring
Chance has never taken his flat work very seriously. Flat work is very important for jumping disciplines, but he just doesn't buy it. He simply likes to plop around like a plow horse, until I point him toward a jump. Then he takes life seriously and goes to work. After only flatting for over a month at …
Show Horse Life
Yesterday, Chance and I finally made it to a show! He has managed to injure himself before every show so far this year. Not yesterday though, so maybe that streak is over! We went to simply school and hang out. If you have been following this blog for a while, you know that we have had some serious …
Healing Trust Issues
Trust is absolutely key to a horse and rider relationship. When it is lost or broken - whether by horse or by rider - it is very difficult to repair. However, I am learning that healing trust issues is possible. Many of you know of the major struggles I have had with Chance; many bad …
Field Trip
Yesterday, my trainer and I took Chance to a neighboring farm to school. We are trying to get him off the farm in low stress situations to see if that helps his horse show anxiety. He was wild-eyed when he got off the trailer, but instead of throwing him on the lunge line I took …
A Little Height
Chance has been back to full work for a while now. We have even been jumping 3' again over the past few days, and he has rocked it! It has been a while since we have jumped any sort of height. With working on his behavior all fall and winter, him having time off with …
Having Fun
I find that I often get so caught up in my goals and ambitions that I forget to actually enjoy riding. Horse riding is, in fact, pretty fun. Yet, getting so caught up in perfection can really suck the life out of the sport. A bad ride becomes the end of the world. A head toss is absolutely devastating. Sounds pretty dramatic …
Riding Through It
Chance is not an easy horse, by any means; he is one of the most difficult horses I have ever ridden. There have been times that he has truly scared me. For so long, I would have constant flashbacks of those frightful experiences. Fear has no place on horseback. It makes things worse because horses can …
Blessed
I woke up this morning to the sound of some much needed rain. Even though I may not be able to ride today, I am very thankful for the rain. We have had fire warnings the past few weeks, so a couple of rainy days is a very good thing. As I drank my coffee …
Looking Brighter
In Wintertime Blues, I told you all that Chance had been a little injured. Well, he is still a little injured, though ride-able. The vet came out on Monday since he still wasn't quite right. When Chance was at the clinic for his colic, they had done a lameness exam and worked him on the lunge …
Laurel Ashton Equestrian 