friday coming

i have operation to take plate out of left wrist.

so there seems little point in trying to start Monf back into work again, when after Friday I'm not allowed to ride for 6 weeks whilst the bone recovers...

back in february plan had been to send him up to friend's yard for schooling etc, but yard now full

Gaynor will be out of action for a while with her wrist as well....

poo

the good news is we don't have to get up at crack of dawn again until October, barring incidents... they're now out overnight...have to say, we couldn't wait as we were seriously struggling physically!  they couldn't wait either, both horses well hacked off still being in overnight (although I've a feeling they might change their minds if the weather is as poor as the met office says it will be, LOL).

absence

caused by having nothing to say save "my shoulder hurts and it's raining"... but good news is that my shoulder has stopped hurting (DV, and touching wood, and all that....)

the rain seems to be at it's worst around teatime, which is usually when i might otherwise be thinking of riding or whatever... and forecast to continue in that vein for a week. scattered showers could be anything from the occasional drizzle for not long, to a massive downpour "bouncing off pavement" for 1/2 hour, to hailstones....

rope circles?

thought it worth seeing whether we could get anywhere with that - haven't tried that exercise since last spring - i did think we were going to get somewhere, but then distraction set in when someone else came into the arena......
ah well ...

hopefully it'll not rain again tomorrow and if it doesn't, and it isn't a gale, i shall ride, haven't for over a week...

in the meantime, i managed to twinge my neck in the last 10 minutes of my working day, so hoping it un-seizes itself overnight!

longlines

Jean's suggestion - thought to myself, haven't done that for a looooong time ... last time he was on long lines was when max came out and prior to that I'd been very unsuccessful with him on them.

so tacked him up for that......more successful than lunging has been, in any event, in that i did get quite a bit of movement (and several tangles round my own feet, lol!) some walk circles, and he was offering to walk his bad (right rein) direction a few times, which offers I took....

so something to work on.  think my lines are too lightweight, though - I got those as the clips fit through the rings on the roller, but there's not enough weight in them against his sides....

this was all after I'd done a days work - had to prepare a trial bundle and brief for counsel, and the free time at the office was not there  (for American readers, over here trial counsel is a barrister, different branch to mine, I'm a solicitor I do everything except present a case in court)

Gaynor is doing better - if she uses her left hand where she'd normally use her right, she can do a lot!  but not, of course, mucking out and such.

fingers crossed

i keep well for a few weeks. gaynor has broken her wrist. not that we know hoe she hasn't had Snyder memorable accidents. but my turn to help her out!

as i said - if i asked

he wouldn't do it.

that lad is a b..... when it comes to lunging for me....

really funny though - we swopped horses after Charlie had been worked, and Monfils saw Gaynor heading for him and started taking himself left rein...

sadly, he wouldn't go right, and we ran out of time

ridden lunged...

ridden by gaynor bareback with me in the middle... worked, too

but what a day..

woke at 5.30!  so much for lying in on holiday weekend.  my day for turning out, so they went out at 06.30....

trouble was, i was knackered by mid afternoon....

so decided not to ride, i was too tired - partner doesn't understand this, but IMHO, being awake whilst riding ones horse is a good plan!  especially when they are full of spring grass...

Transpires, not riding out was probably a good plan, Gaynor said - Charlie was full of it, and they would have only wound each other up, which would not have been good...

So i got M in whilst G was out on Charlie - and very nearly had my right shoulder pulled out of its socket.  someone drove up drive next to field in pick up, with, in the back, 2 kids and something large and made of wood, i could see that much from the field as I was leading M down the hill.  Said someone then drove over the sleeping policeman in the drive FAR too fast, the large something made of wood made a hell of a noise, and M spooked at what felt like high speed (i was in front of him) back and round......aaarrrghhhh..... he stopped, thank goodness, i would have had to let go had he not, but by god it hurt... took ages before it stopped feeling sore...

Anyway, when G got back, into the arena for M to be lunged - he set off really good on left rein, and was trotting a pole as well, but WOULD NOT go right... G said, go get your reins. i couldn't think why, when i returned with them - she clipped the reins to the headcollar, and go on him (he was without saddle, of course) - so me in the middle with the lungeline, him going round me with her riding ...

by the finish, he was going off my voice not her aids, her seat had much improved and we were both happy (he was relaxed, LOL).  We think we might do that again.....good for all of us!  Transpires gaynor has never had a lunge lesson, either.....i'd suggested, afterwards, we could also do this, and had to explain the benefit....

Was well pleased that M didn't protest at all about this, some horses are not happy to be ridden and lunged.

so far, not so good an easter

on the horse front.

yesterday was wet - and gaynor's car broke down

today - the plan was for a hack out, but gaynor's child care fell through - she had kindly mucked out for me this morning!  so i was well pleased about that....

got monf in, good grooming, tacked up, on

he was distracted, when in the arena, by the fishermen (the local angling club has the rights on the River Wear as it runs through the land, and the car park is just outside the arena - fishing rods and nets wafting about) so i got off to do some in hand work (regretted later, when shoulder started hurting! but that's another matter)

going ok, when phone rang - police!  I had to drive up to mothers. so monf got chucked into his stable (happily all done!) and go off.... She was ok, if very upset - people had thought she was wandering from the local care home, rather than trying to get the bus into Newcastle, and called the police! so the end result was she missed what she was going to Newcastle for, and i had to go over and calm the situation

she's fine.

Rain and snow

Rain yesterday snow today. Not that cold until this afternoon but then very cold. Gaynor got horses in early and they are not that happy even though they are now warm.monfils still unsettled when i got there - partly cos of all the activity- and still damp under his fleece so will have to groom in morning. Sitting inside now watching snow blowing by

wimpy me...

that was yesterday - i think it was Gaynor using the word "gallop" combined with the horses growing 3 hands each as we tried to set off, due to spotting two horses jumping etc at the bottom of the hill we were about to go down....

so didn't' go the way we planned, went to the ford (again) instead...

not that the plan had BEEN for a gallop, but she said the route was the gallop track and Charlie knows it....

so today, was on my own, and eventually got on (must be something i do on the mounting front?!) but today he didn't want to go down the hill and didn't want to go to the ford and so i said, right, in the arena and walk round the new jump stands someone had left out (complete with poles!) and ended up sitting a walk/right spook - lord  knows what that was bout!  i lost my right stirrup and almost thought i might go off but managed to put my weight right again and stayed on...

and then i think i was trying too hard as he wouldn't do a lot at all, so i got off to do a bit in hand - can't do too much of that due to wrist/shoulder, but a little is better than nothing!