All Zipped up!
I am taking Zip to a friend's for some fun on Monday so I thought he should go for a hack to improve his fitness a bit. It was an INTERESTING experience! He is clearly going to be a very sharp cookie as he gets older and fitter. He was looking everywhere for things to jump at, and jogging a lot of the time.
At one point, I was trying to get him close so that I could open a gate and he set his back. I pushed him forward to release it and he bucked to free it instead. He was pretty darned good about the two gates we had to do though, I didn't need to get off and they didn't take more than three or four attempts. That's very good for a beginnner.
But in contrast to how he is at home, out on a hack I don't trust him further than I could throw him! He was wonderful though. SOOOOOO thoroughbred to ride. With the small amount of work he has been doing, he should be completely unfit. But I put him into canter on the 1/3 mile that I use for interval training and he went straight to the top without slowing up at all. No horse that I have trained from scratch has ever done that before.
When I got back I rode Jazz on the arena. I only had half an hour, so I focussed on exercise rather than training as the goal. But as it happens he did some quite good work. He's understanding lengthening the trot, he just can't physically offer too much yet but it's getting there. And he did a couple of flying changes but only changed in front, which is his foible with it. I sent him on more strongly into it and got two complete ones, which is fantastic. We finished on canter in long and low shape, which he worked very hard at.
George was again difficult to get to come in. I'm certainly not going to be able to sell him as good to catch. I had to follow him down the field and keep following him, and then he turned and led me back up and into the yard, where he stood and waited for the headcollar. It took less than ten minutes in all. It's a big improvement on the length of time he has taken before, but it's still very annoying behaviour!
C
posted by cptrayes @ 8:02 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Love that Thoroughbred fitness feel. All they need is air to get fit. Zip sounds to be a real potential eventer with all that energy. Silly out now, but you haven't been doing much at all with him, so what can we expect.
Good for Jazz! The changes are coming. A tap with the whip will usually quicken up the hind end for the full change.
Soon George's "catch time" will be down to 5 minutes. *G* Guess he had some strong opinions he needs to reconsider. Besides, it's another excuse NOT to sell him! *G*
Ooh! haven't heard much about Zip for a while - George has taken over the limelight! Will be interested to hear how you get on with him on Monday.
Have a good weekend (and remember if the horses don't help the soul then chicken soup/stew is almost as good)
Louise
I'd prefer George's ridden behaviour to be enough reason not to sell him :-)))
Thanks for the flying change tip Jean, I'll try it. What's the timing - before the change, with the change aid, or when he has already struck in front???
Louise are you Jewish by any chance :-) Quite right, though nothing quite like chicken soup.
C
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