Hobart Road

I found out at 1am Wednesday that there was work for me in Menlo Park that night if I could make it, so I'm away braiding again now. BUT, I refused to let that stop my planned ride with S Wednesday morning. It meant we'd have to keep it to less than 3 hours, but I figured that'd be perfect for our first shot at Hobart Road.

Open to hikers, bikers, horses, and dogs, Hobart Road also serves as an access road to Hobart Reservoir and the irrigation systems for properties below, including the ranch where I board Finn. From the trail head, it is 4.9 miles to Hobart Reservoir with an elevation gain of nearly 2,500 ft. In short, it's quite a climb! I'd like to ride to the Reservoir this year, but I think it might be best if we build up to that over the course of a few rides.

This time, we rode out about an hour and then back. Unfortunately, we don't know how far we went... it was definitely slow going, but boy was it worth it! The views from the trail were positively glorious!

Looking down over Miss Me Not Farm, where I board Finn.

Breathtaking!

Taking in the view of Carson City before turning around.

Finn was absolutely stupendous for the whole ride. He felt super grounded and relaxed from the moment he got off the trailer. In fact, he unloaded REALLY well. Although he has been loading and riding really well all summer, he had still been sucking his front feet off the trailer quickly instead of calmly stepping off. Not so on this ride; he stepped off like a true old pro.

I don't know what else to say about him, other than he felt about as much like a seasoned trail horse as any horse I've ever ridden. It was really nice to be able to just get on and go... we didn't do much by way of grounding or connecting exercises, we didn't have to. I was so thrilled and thankful for how wonderful he was, and I'm happy to say I passed those feelings to him freely with lots of praise, loving, and the occasional grass snack.

I was definitely aware throughout the ride of my ignorance of exactly HOW much I was asking of him in terms of physical exertion. He barely broke a sweat and his breathing never seemed too labored, but I'm sure each step was an effort! When I turned him back out after the ride, he exuded tired. Which is not at all a bad thing, I just wish I was more knowledgeable about how to avoid over-doing it.

Anyway, S and I plan to return to this trail frequently. Besides the fact that it's a lovely ride, we are both stoked about the fitness benefits for our ponies. Ultimately, I look forward to a nice ride up to the reservoir, including a picnic lunch and maybe even a swim!

Intrepid horse and rider in the foreground; Washoe Lake in the background.

Rainy Day Riding

It has been raining for most of the last 48 hours, which is both VERY unusual in our high-desert climate and really excellent for everything... except riding. Nevertheless, I took a chance and drove down to the barn this morning, and I was rewarded with a solid three-hour stretch without rain.

It was actually quite lovely for riding... foggy and overcast and cool enough to wear a jacket! You can see how it was in this quick clip I caught of Finn coming up to meet me at the gate, which ALWAYS makes my day. Seriously, there is very little better than a horse who responds eagerly when you call his name:



Since it seemed apt to start raining at any time, I tacked up and rode out of my car by the pasture gate. In an effort to make the most of whatever time we had, I didn't even brush the mud off Finn's rump and head, just cleaned up the saddle area and got to it. We had a very productive session, working on our goals for the month. We also worked on reversing Finn's 'druthers. Initially, he was reluctant to head up the driveway towards the barn, so I gave him more work to do near the pasture and more rest time closer to the barn. By the third trip back towards the pasture, he was no longer so sure that's where he wanted to go... which is exactly what I was hoping for.

It's actually really late, and I'm getting up early to go for a ride with S in the morning, so I think I'll leave it at that. We ended our ride today with a nice graze (away from the pasture, of course) and then a good grooming since the rain was still holding off. Finn was looking so handsome, I decided to see if I could snap a decent conformation shot of him, and ended up with this:

 

Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. He is really looking mature these days, at least to my eye. As you can see, his mane has "officially" gone back to the left side now that I've stopped practicing my braiding on it. I briefly considered making an effort to keep it on the right, but ultimately decided it wasn't worth wasting time on.

We're exploring a new trail head tomorrow and it'll be the first time I've been out with S in a while. Stay tuned for the story!

August Goals

Somewhat to my dismay, I did NOT follow through on posting my August goals on Thursday, but I had my reasons. To be honest, I had a temporary emotional crisis of sorts. Thursday morning I had a ride which was really not at all bad, but I was feeling so discouraged and over-whelmed I ended up on the verge of tears and just called it quits.

Why? Well, it’s complicated, but what it boils down to, I think, is simply my lack of clarity as to WHAT I want and HOW I want to go about getting it. Like I’ve said before, all the conflicting input gets to me sometimes… I get why people want gurus; it’s easier! What a relief it would be to assign rightness to the opinions of one other human being and follow without question.

When I started developing Finn, I had a desire to take a “more practical” approach, to spend more time in the saddle and less playing on the ground, and to ultimately make it back to eventing one day. I wanted to do enough on the ground to have a genuine partnership, not to do groundwork for it’s own sake. The course of our partnership has most certainly been shaped by that.

As you know, however, I have recently been exploring more Liberty. In some ways it feels like retrograde movement, because the development of Liberty doesn’t seem very practical. But, it speaks to the part of me which is still yearning for a connection that goes deeper. The idea (or ideal) that with conscious development we can communicate with horses with our thoughts alone taunts me. How much lighter can it get, I wonder.

It’s not like these things are necessarily mutually exclusive, but problems arise when I allow myself to be influenced so strongly by any random thing I hear, see or read without maintaining MY focus on the big picture and the end game. When this dynamic results in a incoherent series of rides that go so far as to contradict each other, of course I get frustrated! How could I not?

So I spent a couple of days asking myself, what do I want? Do I REALLY want Liberty? Do I really want to dive so deeply into a whole different paradigm of interacting with horses, perhaps at the price of delaying my progress towards my goals for Finn’s career? How do I really want to move forward? I spent a couple of days leaning towards the “practical” side… and then I bought a book.

The book is called “Building a Life Together; You and Your Horse” and it was written by Magali Delgado and Frederic Pignon, who are world-famous for an approach most people wouldn’t consider very “practical.” I questioned my logic, but intuition pushed me to make the purchase. The quotes I have already read from the book are so aligned with some things I’ve been thinking, and the title SO exactly synched with a critical underlying theme of my relationship with Finn, reading the rest seemed an absolute necessity.

So what does this mean for me? At first I took the easy way out and jokingly declared, “I want it all.” But I don’t want it all, I just want a true friendship with Finn, to enjoy our time together, and to gradually accomplish our goals. Before writing this post, I reviewed the post I wrote in June about my vision… that depiction of where we’re headed still rings true.

While I don’t necessarily feel like this blog post depicts any great shift towards clarity, I do actually feel somewhat clearer on where I’m headed. Perhaps simply for knowing that I’m pursuing the Liberty and some new thought processes as a means to an end (the end being to have a more genuine friendship and more refined communication with Finn), not so much as an end unto itself… if that makes sense.

In any case, expect some additional reflection when my book arrives. It should be here by Wednesday. And in the meantime, I HAVE spent some time thinking about where to direct my focus for the month of August and this is what I’ve come up with:

1. Prioritize a consistently positive, patient, and kind attitude, always. No matter what happens. Recognize lapses early and be committed to interrupting the pattern.
2. On the ground, "master" backing circles and a correct turn on the HQ, ala Buck... which means pivoting on the outside hind so Finn learns to bear weight on his HQ.
3. In the saddle, focus on feeling the feet through the HQ/FQ turn and improving the accuracy of the movement, and start teaching backing circles.
4. Improve Finn's walk by increasing the energy of his default walk while encouraging him to offer more while I do less. Chase the feeling of him being truly and consistently "in front of the leg" at the walk.
5. Experiment with clarity of transitions between and within the gaits so we can distinguish between faster walk vs trot, or faster trot vs canter.

Initially I was going to keep it even simpler and limit myself to three goals, but I think this is a reasonable amount to focus on for the next 29 days. I am really hoping that keeping this handful of things in the forefront of my mind will really help me feel progressive and productive! Of course there will be other things that come up, and hopefully opportunities to take some of this stuff out on the trail. I’ll still get the poles out a day or two a week, and continue to experiment with some Liberty. But the main focus will be on these five things throughout it all, and hopefully at the beginning of September I’ll have some nice improvements to report!

Scattered

One of the interesting things I’ve observed about having this blog is it’s making me more conscious of the somewhat erratic progression of my thoughts and feelings about my progress with Finn. As I’ve been reflecting on our last two rides and contemplating a blog post, I wondered to myself, “Didn’t I write about this just a few weeks ago?” The answer was yes.

I took a skim through some of my recent blog posts and it wasn’t really a process of realizing so much as a process of confirming that my overall focus could really use work. One day I’m all gung-ho about how getting Finn to move from his hind end more freely will improve everything, a few days later I’m all over intent and circles, I have several nice rides focusing on taking Finn out and about, and two weeks later I’m frustrated because my horse is still not moving forward freely.

On another level, it’s not terribly helpful that I swerve from the high of a dreamy ride to the low of an iffy one so easily. An excellent leader would maintain much stronger emotional balance than that. A leader keeps their focus on the big picture and doesn’t get distracted by the natural fluctuations and bobbles along the way. To put it in more specific terms, when Finn and I struggle, as a leader it is my role to remain endlessly patient and kind with him, taking him wherever he is and moving him in the direction of our goals by always keeping my hold on the big picture. In reality, however, I let FAR too much emotion get tangled in our bad days. I get impatient, I lose faith, I feel overwhelmed, and I lose sight of what really matters.

On the one hand, I’ll acknowledge these things aren’t really the end of the world. Truth is, Finn is more forgiving of me than I am of myself… always ready for me to come back and give it another try. All in all, we continue to make progress, despite these lapses. On the other, this is definitely something I’d like to improve upon. As a horsewoman (not to mention as a person), this is not who I dream of being.

So how do I move forward? So far as I know, there really isn’t much I can do other than be conscious of what I want to change, and then be very disciplined about changing it. Emotional habits are hard to break. I’d like to think, however, that with genuine commitment, focus, and patience, it IS possible. Next time I feel myself getting sucked into being flustered with Finn, I just have to NOT be. Add that to the vast list of things that is so very, very simple, yet not at all easy.

Part of my problem is how over-whelming I’m finding it to try to bring so many things together into a unified plan for Finn and myself. There is SO much that I want to improve. From big things like my riding position, my feel for his feet, my emotional fitness, the strength of our connection, to smaller things like a better HQ/FQ yield, clearer transitions, softer feel in our lateral flexion, and more consistent bend on our circles. And then I have so much outside input of things I ought to be working on, or shouldn’t work on, or MUST do differently. I admit, I am struggling to keep this all orderly in my head, which is why our sessions feel so scattered! It makes it difficult for me to keep strong and focused, because my focus is so splintered.

Just a few posts ago, I wrote about making weekly plans to keep us on track, and nothing seemed to come of that. Right now, I’m adjusting that idea somewhat to try something I’ve seen other bloggers do… monthly goals. Conveniently, we’re about to begin a glorious new month. So, I think now is the time to think really hard about what would be most useful for Finn and I to focus on for the next 31 days (I suspect commitment to remaining patient and emotionally centered in all situations will be the top of my list), boil it down into a few clear goals that I can actually keep a handle on, and then follow through. So anticipate a post tomorrow detailing my decisions, and we’ll go forward from there.

Hunter/Jumper?

Prior to throwing myself headlong into braiding professionally earlier this year, I had limited experience with the hunter/jumper world. Back in “the day” I schooled my green event horse over a cross-rail course at a local hunter show once. We couldn’t stop chuckling over the “course” - outside line, outside line, outside line, outside line! It didn’t even change directions. That was quite comical to us eventers.

In college, the hunter/jumper orientation of the equine studies program was quite in-your-face. I competed on the dressage team, and there was no doubt we were the red-headed step-children of the program. To be elite meant to be a hunter princess, and to promptly discard any horse with the nerve to have an independent opinion or an off day. That made it quite difficult for me to admire this collection of supposed horsewoman who were the stars of the school.

In any case, I have proceeded through most of my life with little understanding and a mild disregard for the hunter/jumper discipline as a whole. Honestly, why waste your time when you could be eventing?

I once worked for a wise horseman who told 20-year-old me that age softens people and wears away the sharp edges. Eight years later (don’t laugh, I know I have plenty of aging left to do), I’ve already noticed that he might be onto something. Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of sharp edges, but I am less quick to categorically reject an entire aspect of the equestrian world, and more apt to seek the positive in anything I possibly can.

In any case, when I get a chance to watch the showing at these big shows where I’m braiding, I keep an open mind. I consider different perspectives. I try on different “lenses” and strive to understand the one which suits me best without having to attack or hate the others.

Last week, I caught the jump-off of a junior jumper class over fairly sizable fences. Aside from watching a big Grand Prix here or there (along the lines of the premier class of the Washington International), this was actually my first time watching a jumper class in person, and I found it fascinating. First of all, I understood the appeal for the first time. I was able to grasp why it is engaging and fun to test one’s skill and communication against the clock and all those fragile fences. I actually found myself thinking, “I could see Finn and I doing that one day!”

A little higher than what I have in mind, but you never know...

The horses were, of course, gorgeous and talented jumpers one and all. The winning horse was exceptional in her ability to jump clear from seemingly any approach, tearing around the course looking horribly out of balance, yet still able to make tighter turns than anyone else and miraculously spring into the air at any moment. To be frank, I thought it was an ugly ride… I wish I had realized it would be the winning one before it started, because I would have watched with different and more attentive eyes. No one else was daring enough to even attempt the inside turns she took, so I never got to see if someone else could do it better.

At one point, a lens slid into place that momentarily made me consider the whole thing as somewhat barbaric that a horse should be expected to drag a human being around the course by his mouth like they do. At the same time I know these riders have very strong legs and balance, but truly the amount of pressure between hands and the horse’s mouth is truly quite astonishing when you haven’t become acclimated to it. To watch these riders at times lean back and HAUL on their horse’s mouths made me cringe, especially since in most cases the response from the horse was negligible. Since respecting and nurturing the natural sensitivity of the horse’s mouth is a crucial element of my approach to horsemanship, that was difficult to swallow.

I was surprised how heavy and loud the horses were… with POUNDING hoofbeats and labored breathing. (There was one notable exception; one horse who barely made a sound as she galloped by, and her round was beautiful.) It’s no wonder I didn’t see the tight inside turns made very often. On the whole, the horses were simply not adjustable or balanced enough to try it. Communication between horse and rider was a far cry from what would be needed to cut those corners successfully.

Now, who am I, some lowly little eventer who wasn’t even shown in ten years, some student of natural horsemanship on the trail of some level of possibility I catch glimpses of here and there, to judge? And I pose that question to myself honestly, to remind myself not to be too harsh. I can appreciate the skill of the riders I watched and the effort they invest into what they do. Frankly, though, while I’m interested in their sport, I am certainly not interested in doing it that way. If that means any competing I do becomes more a personal test between Finn and myself and we never win anything, all the better.

But I’m not here to declare I’m going to do it better. I am here to wonder: can it be done with lightness? The method of riding which keeps a rider off a horse’s back over the big jumps demands a different position and balance then that which I’ve learned to use in my pursuit of softness. I can see that it is challenging to ride a horse at those speeds over those jumps and keep everything truly relaxed and together, but I cannot yet concede that it’s impossible. I think of the lovely rides I’ve seen in the Working Equitation speed trials and wonder if it would be possible to bring that astounding level of agility and communication at speed to a jumper class…

In the end I have a lot of questions and a vision of the jumper course I’d like to ride one day. A course in which I can bring my horse from flat-out gallop to a bouncy canter in a stride -- with a shift of thought, a shift of weight, and maybe a whisper on the reins -- turn him over his hindquarters and gallop in a new direction without even stretching his lips. A course which is a string of transitions and graceful leaps, in which my horse breathes no harder than he would if he were frolicking in the pasture. A course which is ridden with no headgear but a simple snaffle and a loose noseband, never giving him a reason to throw his head or open his mouth. And in which, after charging through the finish line, he drops to a flat-footed walk on a loose rein and knows he has done superbly.

Of course, in the immediate future, my thoughts are less dreamy and ambitious. Eventing is scarce in northern Nevada, but there IS a local hunter/jumper circuit. While I’ll never NOT be an eventer, trying our hand at a new sport might be a fun diversion until I can afford mutli-day events that are long hauls away. I am inspired to declare that I think taking Finn to some of the local hunter/jumper shows would be fun and very doable next year! And who knows where that might lead…

Gratuitous braiding shot.

Camping at Washoe Lake, Part 2

On day two of our camping trip, the group decided to head for the arena first to help some of the horses who had struggled the day before. As soon as I got on, I knew I had quite a different horse to ride. A much more grounded horse with significantly less life in his feet. I was also aware that I was different. On Friday night, I was really geared up and dialed in for an intense ride, which manifested as the very strong focus and steady patience than resulted in a success. On Saturday, I could tell I was tired, more mentally than physically. So it was fortuitous that Finn’s state of mind was less demanding of me!

I kept our work in the arena to a minimum, but one notable success was Finn’s excellent handling of a couple loose-horse instances. In both cases, Finn observed the horse running around the arena with interest, but minimal concern. We even drove one of the horses away without a problem. It’s was good to feel like Finn understood that the antics of those horses was not his problem.

Surveying the action.

I took the first opportunity to head out on the trail, when two other riders headed for the beach. Finn perked up a bit on the trail, in a good way! I didn’t feel like he was concerned; I felt like he was eager. That’s a great feeling. He didn’t put a foot wrong all the way to the beach. Once there, I rode on the beach for a few minutes, then decided to ride back to the arena. I wanted to capitalize on the uncommon opportunity to practice being our own herd of two while riding with a group!

Finn did excellent. He was a little hesitant about leaving the beach, but he was willing and was soon won over to my idea. Conveniently, another part of our group was headed for the beach by then, so I was able to practice passing another group of horses on the trail. Finn certainly felt the draw of the other horses, but he stuck with me and soon got his mind back on our agenda.

We trotted part of the way back to the arena, and Finn felt wonderful, maintaining a lovely, relaxed tempo. Two of our group were still in the arena, so we rode around there for a few minutes before turning around and heading back for the beach. Fortuitously, two other riders were headed back towards their trailer, so we got to practice passing horses on the trail AGAIN! So good for Finn!

When we returned to the beach, the rest of our group was still there, so I settled into something I’d been wanting to work on, which was long, straight trots down the beach. We chose a trail where the sand is pretty deep and practiced going away from the group and back. Surprisingly, going back towards the group he felt wonderful -- perfect rhythm and very relaxed. Going away was definitely more of a struggle, as he was much more impulsive and tense. Repetition and quality one-rein stops served us well, and I eventually quit on exactly what I wanted. Finn trotting a straight line away from the group, maintaining an even and energetic tempo, and beginning to stretch across his top line and really relax into the idea. Utter bliss!

After that, I meandered down the beach with three others from our group, practicing changing positions in the group… passing a horse who had stopped, not being drawn ahead by a horse who passed us, etc. Finn was really feeling good by that point, so I was able to really relax and just enjoy the ride.

One last big moment of our ride was when we paused in a meadow on our way back towards the campground. Everyone wanted to ride around a bit, so we worked a little more on our straight-line trotting, maintaining an even rhythm both towards and away from the other horses. That went super, and I got the feeling it was a perfect moment to gallop Finn out a bit. The other riders we were with were kind enough to wait a few minutes while I got good gallops in on both leads. I asked more of Finn than I ever have before, and I think just enough to stretch both of our comfort zones. To be honest, I had a tiny moment of tiny panic, but of course Finn came right back when I picked up on my inside rein and turned him in a large loop. Came right back right to the halt and stood happily on a loose rein, then turned and headed back to the group without an ounce of concern. We tested a flat-footed walk, a relaxed jog, and a rocking horse canter, all on a loose rein headed right towards the other horses. And when I asked, he stopped from the canter without me even picking up my reins. Again, utter bliss!

After that, we walked back to the trailers and were done for the day. I was so pleased with the ride on many levels, but especially for Finn to have the experience of other horses coming and going, riding all around, taking different trails, and ultimately knowing he could just stay with me. That is such a challenge for horses, considering their instinctive desire to be with the herd, and it’s not that often one gets to practice getting a horse more flexible in that regard.

One last highlight for me was Finn’s trailer loading on the way home. As I mentioned yesterday, Finn was a little unsure of the unfamiliar trailer and horse that came to pick us up. When I loaded him to Saturday afternoon though, I got the strong feeling that he 100% understood that that trailer was his ride home. He loaded perfectly, and stood patiently with no thought of backing out while I tied him and closed the partition. It may seem like I making too much of this, but I just LOVE that feeling I get when my horse really gets it… when I feel like he understands and is totally ok with his life, even though it involves things that don’t come naturally to him, like climbing in a metal cave on wheels for a ride.

And with a short ride home, our trip was over. I had such a great time. I absolutely could not ask for more productive, enjoyable rides, and in between rides I had a wonderful time chatting it up and eating good food with my fellow horse ladies! What a blessing!

Last note: I haven’t talked on this blog yet about the goal I set to put in 500 hours with Finn in 2014, but on Friday we broke 300 hours! We’re definitely on pace to achieve our goal, despite that I’ll lose some weeks to braiding over the next handful of months. Not only that, we were more than on our way to achieving what I hoped to achieve during those 500 hours. I said I wanted to get Finn’s foundation solid, get our partnership solid, and feel like Finn understands his job. While those things are certainly subject to never-ending self-improvement, I feel like what I have with Finn now is already what I hoped to have by the end of the year. I can’t believe how far we’ve come. Just goes to show that the wisdom of one of my favorite Buck Brannaman quotes:

“Time is the gift. Give it freely to your horse and you’ll both be the better for it.”

Finn's accommodations for our stay.

Camping at Washoe Lake, Part 1

As I was driving home from the barn this afternoon, thinking of all the ways Finn exceeded my expectations in the last two days, I wondered to myself: how am I going to fit this all into one blog post? Believe it or not, it didn’t occur to me that I could just write TWO blog posts for at least another hour. I blame it on being tired, I guess.

Things started off on a decent note when Finn loaded into an unfamiliar trailer without too much hesitation. It was definitely not the rock-solid load I have come to expect when Sy comes to get us, but Finn was willing. Upon our arrival at Washoe Lake, Finn surprised me by being significantly more unsettled than usual, but some patient and quiet groundwork got him calmed down in no time. Since we had time, we also practiced loading and unloading from the horse trailer a few more times.

There was a storm threatening soon after our arrival, so the group opted to cook dinner while we let the storm system evolve and ride afterwards, assuming it cleared up. Fortunately for us, it DID clear up and we were presented with a glorious evening for a ride.

From the moment I got Finn out of his pen, I worked very hard to maintain a “we” focus for him to connect with, and it really seemed to help. I wanted to ride quite a bit to get him grounded before we headed out, which fortunately meshed perfectly with the plans of the rest of the group. The beginning of our ride was intense, but more mentally than physically. I tried to have a plan for every moment… “Walk to there, circle this sagebrush, circle that sagebrush, walk to that tree, back up, etc…” There were many opportunities for me to practice maintaining my intent while Finn got distracted by the other horses. We rode around where the other riders were warming up with lots of small circles, short serpentines, HQ/FQ turns, transitions to back-up, etc. and by the time everyone else was ready to head out I felt ready, too.

My greatest stroke of genius for the whole weekend was what I did next. As the group started moving in the direction of the trail to the beach, I cut through the sagebrush and hit the trail about 50 feet ahead. Not only did this prevent Finn from getting too strongly pulled into the herd, it also put us in a perfect position for Finn to acclimate to the large group. At first, even though he was walking ahead willingly, I could feel his focus pulled backwards at the mass of horses following us, but he was soon matching my intent and focusing ahead. I wanted to establish from the outset that we were our own herd of two… perhaps within the larger herd, but still able to have our own agenda and independence from the group. I feel like this strategy of going out ahead really helped accomplish that.

In short-order, two other riders broke away from the group and passed us, which presented another challenge for Finn, but a manageable one. The HQ/FQ turn served us very well in this moment, as Finn suddenly had much more forward energy than I’d been asking for. Passive persistence won out in the end though, and we both improved our turns and got together and grounded again.

When we made it to the beach, the group scattered a bit as everyone enacted their own plans while also being respectful and supportive of everyone else’s challenges. This was perfect for Finn, as we simply practiced being together around and through all this “commotion.” More HQ/FQ, more short serpentines, and then more open serpentines. I worked up to trotting shallow serpentines up and down the beach, waiting for him to get connected enough to respond without having to pick up my reins. We trotted for a good while. Finn stayed calm throughout and maintained a lovely little jog, but his connection and attentiveness weren’t at their peak. I think the length of time we trotted was really valuable, though, as he started blowing and stretching more consistently the longer we continued.

After this extended time playing around everyone on the beach, four of us broke off to linger a while on the beach while the rest of the group headed for home. At this point, feeling like Finn and I had established a rather solid connection, I rode more in the midst of the small group and Finn was excellent. We stopped for a few photo ops, and Finn and I even took a few photos for others. He felt really grounded by then; there was no doubt in my mind that he’d be fine to take the photos.

One of the photos I took. Sunset on the beach.

From there on out, the ride was easy. We ambled back to the campground with the smaller group and Finn didn’t put a foot wrong. I never lost the feeling that he was available if I needed something.

In conclusion, I declare this ride a HUGE victory! I was really unsure what to expect from Finn riding out with so many horses. Considering how much effort and constant attention it took to get and keep him grounded for the first half of the ride, I don’t think that uncertainty was unfounded. But the great victory here was my strategy worked! It’s not that Finn didn’t have concerns; he did! And the tools I chose and the attitude I carried HELPED him! And thus, he let go of his worries. That, my friends, is a big deal for Finn and I… a VERY big deal.

I am so proud of Finn, but I would be remiss to not acknowledge that I am also proud of myself. It’s just so uncomfortable to say that! Uncomfortable or not, though, I acknowledge that I met my goals, made a plan, listened to the horse that showed up and chose strategies that helped him. I am really pleased I was able to offer Finn what he needed to exceed my wildest expectations.

Stay tuned for Part 2, in which the successes continue!