Truthfully, I’ve been a bit boring this week. I’m sorry. The weather has actually been great, and I have been attempting to ride a bit on my quickly-getting-out-of-shape pony. What happened to all those goals about getting fit this winter? Oh yeah, it’s winter, which here in North Carolina means it may be nice, but it’s more likely to be gray, cold, and rainy. And when the arenas are closed, and it’s dark outside, that means no riding. Because while I have heard of people putting on a head lamp and riding in the dark, I prefer to value my life and not do so. If you have seen the size of some of the deer around here, you’d understand (I have a weird fear of being speared in the dark by one of the eight-pointers I’ve seen on the farm).
Oh hello deer from HELL!
So anyways, the last time I rode I set up trot poles. One set of 4 poles flat on the ground, and another that were raised at one end. We’ve done exercises like this before, but apparently it’s been too long- what a joke it was! First I took him through the normal poles, and he was not completely relaxed over them, but confident enough. So I took him through the raised set. Yikes. We cantered them, we jumped them, we stumbled through them. He got through them once with success, before I gave up on that idea and went back to the regular set so he would gain confidence. By the end of our ride he was lovely and relaxed going through these, completely soft over the top line, but picking up those feet beautifully. So, apparently footwork exercises are in our future!
Why you confuse me, mom?
Tonight I think we will go back to regular trot poles, and maybe set up one proper cavaletti (8″ vertical) to trot over. Or, if any one reading this has a fun gymnastic exercise to suggest, maybe we’ll do that and I’ll tell you how it goes- suggestions, anyone?
Red on the Right 
Putting on a head lamp and riding, ummm no thanks haha!
I know right!?
No arena lights? Yeah that’d be the end of my winter riding!
Thankfully we have arena lights, but if the arena is closed that’s it!
Set them up along the track of a circle in a corner of a 20 meter circle. So that you can either ride through the middle at a normal stride or make a smaller circle and shorten the stride or make a bigger circle and legthen. Really good exercise 🙂
So the poles are still one stride apart, on a circle? Would they still be raised or on the flat? Sounds like a great exercise!
when I did cavaletti, I’d do all flat and one raised at the end a few times. then build up to do flat raised flat raised. then we’d do flat, raised half way, raised highest, raised half way, flat. does that make sense? (if you have the x cavaletti they have three heights). it seemed to help building up to the most extreme in that fashion. just having the one raised at the end let me figure it out first! but it’s SO good for them.. I wish I had them at my new farm, I need to build some. and I have the same issue here with no arena lights and cold crappy weather!!!
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