And now for our next trick….!

Ok, so putting the dressage on hold for a bit, we’re going to have a bit of fun with jumping and gymkhana games for a few weeks.  Yesterday, I lunged Mrs, initially over some trotting poles, then progressing to raising the poles at one end to really make her use herself in a springy trot.  (My investigations into her stifle/hock problem seemed to suggest this was a good exercise for improving the condition.)  This morning, I rode early as it was unseasonably hot – even at 9am, she was a bit grumpy and head-shakey.  Still, we worked over some more trotting poles, and then a small cross pole jump.  Despite being a bit lazy and having the occasional trip and stumble, she was very good – no rushing or being silly.

It’s forecast to continue to be hot for a couple of days, so not sure what will be feasible to ask her to do – but we’ll see.  I’m hoping that with the little and often approach, I’ll be able to build her fitness without boring her.

As an incentive to get better at this jumping lark, I’ve almost finished painting all the show jumps – they really look great:

     

 

Of course, we can’t jump anywhere near this height yet, but hey – one can but dream.  Let’s face it, at the beginning of the year, entering (let alone getting placed) in a prelim test was a mere dream too!  😉