I'm counting today as my first day of autumn...

For the past two days I've tried to get out to the barn early so I could ride in the cooler morning air, feed, get chores done, and get back in by mid-day. It took two days of revving my engine before I actually managed to shift my gears into this new routine, but it was SO worth it.

We're all waking up this week. The long hot summer is moving on, and everyone at November Hill is feeling the effects of that.

Keil Bay is a "morning person." He likes to do his work in the a.m. so the rest of his day is free and clear. He's always preferred that, but depending on schedules and the weather I've not always been able to accommodate his preference.

We've had a slow summer riding-wise. The rides I did were mostly bareback and not very much work for either of us. Two days ago I hauled my saddle from bedroom to barn, got things organized in the tack room, and finally, today, we got back in the groove.

Keil loves to be groomed in his stall where he can look out the window while I'm brushing. Today I wanted our return to work to be extremely pleasant, so I took the brushes in, along with a small handful of alfalfa pellets. I've been grooming daily again, and doing some ground and in-hand work, for about two weeks, and with the heat in decline and no need for hosing, added to us having no rain, getting him clean is a snap.

I put his Thinline sheepskin pad on, then saddled him up. I like to do the girth a notch at a time, so I got it just snug enough to stay put if he turned around in the stall, and then got more pellets and the stirrups. Girth up a notch on each side. More pellets and my helmet and whip. Girth up a notch. More pellets and bridle. And we were ready to go.

I decided today that instead of trying to force my leg higher than it wants to go (and given the fact that my left pelvis has been rotating out again) I would put the mounting block by the barrel in the arena, use the block to get on the barrel, and then simply lift my leg over Keil's back and sit straight down. Keil never had issues with mounting until I forgot to tighten the girth one ride about a year ago and the saddle slipped completely underneath him when I went to get on. Needless to say, I got even more finicky about mounting after that happened, and I have made him finicky as well. If I go ahead and mount without fretting, he's fine. But the moment I hesitate he steps away. So today daughter rewarded him with (yes, more!) alfalfa pellets as I stepped up onto the barrel and got on. Hopefully we can turn this into our regular routine and as he realizes I'm no longer hesitating, he can stand quietly the way he always has.

I had decided we were going to do lots of walking today, watching for trouble spots and fixing those quietly. Immediately it felt like there were steering issues. I had the bitless on him and probably didn't have it snug enough, but that didn't really seem "it." I felt like I was using too much leg, too frequently, and then realized that every time I used a leg aid I was taking the weight out of the stirrup, so that the other leg was by default being weighted - and that this was throwing everything out of whack.

Sometimes the solution is so simple we almost don't find it. Today I was thankfully aware of the domino effect I was creating and stopped it by focusing on just one thing - keeping my weight even in the stirrups. Suddenly everything got much sharper. And as we got more in sync and I was quieter in the saddle, Keil clearly wanted to trot. So we trotted on. He immediately went into his big, swinging trot that is so smooth it makes absolutely no sense to post - I just kept focusing on keeping my feet evenly weighted and keeping my hands soft and still. And he woke up - all the way. By taking care of my issues, I took the brakes off him.

Keil Bay is big and powerful and when he wakes up all the way it's both exhilarating and a bit intimidating to me if I've not been riding regularly. But after last week's big buck, the groaning sound he was making as he turned to the left, my heel pain, and the feeling that both of us were suddenly seeming as old as our combined ages, I was so happy today to feel his energy, and mine, that I let go of the idea that I might not be ready for it.

We did more trotting, and some pas de deux with daughter and pony. Keil was so in front of my leg that even the thought of asking for trot was enough. He was big and bold and very interested in forward motion.

Cody had already been ridden but he was so intrigued with the energy in the arena he opened the gate and came in - he couldn't quite figure out how to join the pas de deux so he stood at X and watched as we continued.

I was happy to have Cody visiting, but hoping things didn't get out of hand. A few days ago daughter captured these photos of the pony during one particularly intense "play" session:

To wind things down, we went for a turn through the back field - and Keil Bay was so up and ready to go he did a little jig and tossed his head in the bridle! He would have loved a long hack through the woods, and if we had such a trail available to us, I'd have taken him there and tried my best to keep up with him!

He was looking a bit like this:

Instead, we headed back through the paddock to the arena and finished the ride. Keil knew breakfast was coming, so life was good anyway, even without a hack!

My favorite photo from the play session though, I've saved for last. Apache Moon loves this movement and would probably be incredibly easy to teach if we wanted him to do it on command:

Leaping forward to fall!!

mountains, horses, Proust

On Friday my writing group partner came by and we headed west to the mountains for the weekend. It's been a couple of years since I've been, so I was completely thrilled with the opportunity to visit a new little mountain town. We took the parkway for a good portion of the drive and as usual, the winding road, the sound of rushing water, and the exposed rock faces immediately put me into a creative space. (I once wrote an entire section of novel while driving in the mountains with all the windows down, pulling over at every turn-around to write in longhand in my notebook, fast, as I tried to keep up with the story that came pouring out)

We stayed in a nice lodge/inn:

and while D. went to her book festival I was able to edit and read and listen to the rain on Saturday while alternating between room and porch. It was truly lovely to have that uninterrupted span of time. Sunday we took a longer but much more scenic route home and saw several beautiful waterfalls:

It was wonderful having a break and wonderful to come back home to horses and the entire family. And now that I've got a handle on this heel pain, and temps are generally good in the mornings (we're still getting into the 90s some days) I think it's time to step back into the stirrups and enjoy some forward motion on the Big Bay.

The horses are all waking up after the summer heat. And I haven't forgotten the promised photos, but since I wasn't the one who took them, I have to wait patiently until they get sent to me! They are worth it, I think!

Last night I went to the first meeting of my Proust group. I read Proust in my mid-twenties, by myself, and when I learned that one of my favorite local writer/editors was putting together a group to read the entire work of Proust over the course of a year, I couldn't wait to sign up. We have 8 members, will meet weekly to talk about the pages we've read, and are encouraged to turn in our own work for feedback (a real treat, since Judy is a gifted editor). One member is reading Proust in French (!) and the rest of us are reading the new Lydia Davis translation, which I'm loving already.

From this week's reading:

A sleeping man holds in a circle around him the sequence of the hours, the order of the years and worlds.

Reading Proust is like watching our butterfly bush this time of year. There are so many flowers, pockets of sunshine and shadow, and butterfly wings moving all over the bush, coming, going, lighting, as though the bush itself is blooming with life, and one thing leads you to another thing, and before long you've been pulled into a sort of enchantment that takes you outside time.

The world expands from the moment into every direction and back again.

When I first read Proust my life was very different than it is now, and I'm eager to experience reading him at 50, from the perspective of being a mother to teens and living in the company of all these incredible animals.

a beautiful early autumn day on the hill

Yesterday was just about perfect - a nice cool breeze blowing, blue sky, horses were happy. Daughter rode Cody and Apache Moon, and I did some in-hand work with Keil Bay after breakfast. He was so happy being in 'work' he refused to come out of the arena when we were done!

We had a bit of drama when the hay tent blew up in the air, flipped, and landed in the arena - Keil Bay went from A to X in about 1.2 seconds - but then things settled down again and everyone continued to enjoy the day. Two donkeys were racing around the barnyard, with Dickens supervising, and I came in feeling like we have actually made it through this long hot summer.

In the evening, my daughter went out and opened up the arena for interested equines to play while she took photos. It was quite the scene out there - and I will be adding photos here later to show some of the action. It's amazing how one day they all just seem to wake up and GO.

I love this time of year.

Fundraiser for Courtney King-Dye - raffling off a FOAL?

The following email has come through my inbox twice in the past couple of days, and I'm curious if anyone other than me feels this is grossly inappropriate.

I totally support the effort to assist a rider who has had an accident and huge medical bills as a result - especially since she was not wearing a helmet and has now become the impetus behind increased helmet awareness for all riders, regardless of the level of experience or the context of the ride. I have not followed this story closely but am assuming that she is endorsing the use of helmets and using her position and her accident to educate the many young riders (and older ones, too) about what can happen in a moment's time on the back of a horse - and how a family can be devastated by the expense of resulting medical treatment and rehab.

That said, I find myself shocked that anyone thinks that raffling off not even a fully grown trained horse (which I would still find shocking) but a FOAL is in any way appropriate.

I do not see living creatures as being "prizes" to be raffled like vacation weekends or inanimate objects. It greatly disturbs and saddens me to think that this is the way horses have come to be viewed. Whether as a vehicle to blue ribbons, trophies, or the prize for a winning raffle ticket, this view of these animals, in my opinion, demeans and dishonors them.

I sincerely hope that the folks responsible for this rethink the raffle and choose something different to offer for the winning ticket.


We have been fortunate to have been blessed with many friends that have helped us over the years. We are now trying to "pay it forward" To that end:

As many of you know, on March 3, 2010 dressage rider, Courtney King-Dye fell from a horse and suffered a traumatic head injury. The injury resulted in severe brain trauma and Courtney was in a coma for several weeks following the accident. Courtney has defied the odds and has not only regained consciousness, she is making miraculous progress and recently has even ridden a horse as part of her therapy. However, the costs associated with her medical care and rehabilitation are devastatingly high.

The Oklahoma Dressage Society and Avalon Equine have joined forces in an effort to raise funds to assist one of their own! To that end, Avalon Equine is donating the 2010 Oldenburg colt, Adieu d'Avalon (Aloha x Morticia/Mannhattan) to a fund raiser where tickets will be sold for the chance to win the colt. Adieu is a striking chestnut colt out of one of Avalon Equine's best mares. Avalon will cover all costs associated with Adieu's care, inspection and registration until the winning ticket holder is announced. The proceeds will be donated to the Courtney King-Dye Trust to assist in covering the extraordinary costs associated with her medical care and rehabilitation.

Raffle tickets are $5.00 each or 25 for $100.00. You can go here: http://www.avalon-equine.com/raffle.html to purchase raffle tickets.

If you do not wish to win the foal, but wish to help, go ahead and buy a raffle ticket. We will be drawing a "runner-up" in case the winner isn't able to take the foal. Additionally, we will offer continued support and assistance to whomever wins the foal and of course, to be able to offer updates on how the foal and his new owner are progressing!

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions!
__________________
Kathy St.Martin
Equine-Reproduciton.com, LLC
http://www.equine-reproduction.com

and

Avalon Equine
http://www.avalon-equine.com

Sjef Janssen illustrates everything I hate about competitive dressage