Had some free time yesterday after the boss let us out of a meeting early. There was of course, no better thing to do then drive out to the farm and take Moon for a ride. I wasn't sure exactly what we'd do, but when I got there, I took full advantage of the new fence line T and M put up. It was a pleasure to work with Moon without any other horses bugging us.
I first tried on his new 'fly sheet' and his new Baker sheet in a slightly larger size. It's amazing what 2" will do, because I think these fit perfectly! I'm super excited for him to start wearing them, as I think the sun has faded his dark chestnut color, making him look more like a bay each summer. The "Kool Coat" will hopefully counteract a lot of that, while reducing the hot sun on his back and keeping the bugs at bay.
I tacked him up in the Aussie Saddle I got off a friend, and have to admit that a mile into the ride, I knew it wasn't a good fit. The leg flaps sat too far forward, the saddle pad slipped out from under the saddle, and the leather was rubbing his sides. Certainly not suited to his high wither.
Regardless, we went for a good canter up the ditch, and shied at just a clump of rocks...until some ducks 'charged' us from the bush, and from a trot Mr. Moon jumped sideways.
I have to admit, that I love him for never bolting. He shies, and somedays seems like a giant wuss, but he typically stays relatively still. Which is a dream.
We carried on, though I dismounted once to try and fix the saddle. He has some clear issues with standing still out on the trail, which I'm sure correlate to nerves. Regardless, it's another thing we need to work on. In the same fashion, when riding him on the trail, you can get him to stop and stand square, but only for a couple of seconds. Then he starts backing up and moving all over the place. I think this might also relate to nerves.
We hacked down a nice mud trail and back, and I just love riding him. He needs a lot more experience "in the wild", but he's a trust and understanding horse. He even started to get on the bit, and listen more. I felt like we were able to maintain contact for a pretty substantial time, which to me, is great for a western horse.
Coming back, we all out galloped down the ditch, which brought tears to my eyes. Not because it was magical (though it was), but because of how fast he was going. Some days I forget that his dad was a speed horse, and his mom a barrel racer. He's just FAST!
Sweaty, we came home, and I cleaned him up and let him have a roll. Man, that looked like it felt good for him. I checked his teeth and think he has some hooks that we'll have to have addressed this summer. Or sooner because...
We're going to be starting lessons!!!
I called Wendy this afternoon and we're set to meet next Wednesday. If the facility and her and her style suits us, I'm going to bring Moon out to get familiar with the farm. After that, we'll start the real lessons! She's game to help me work through my EC levels (T thinks I'd be an awesome teacher, but I'm really going to have to work on the self-conciousness). We're also going to work on making Moon a more all-round and trained horse. Lastly, maybe some low level shows, because that's an old dream of mine.
I'm super excited. T is going to have the trailer ready to go when I need it, and I'm trying to order a pattern to make my own shipping boots (though I can just polo wrap him for now). I feel like it's a whole new ballgame with my own horse!! So crazy excited, and nervous too!
Can't wait to start this next adventure with my buddy!
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