Finally a warm sun shines down and we see temperatures above 50. It’s been a long winter but we made it through. We lost a lot of riding days to the bitter cold but we still made progress. Now things really start kicking into gear.
Over the weekend I found a really cute barrel saddle on consignment at a local tack shop. It was really comfortable to sit in and seemed to let me sit in a good shoulder-hip-heel alignment and move my legs easily, so i took a gamble and bought it, hoping it’d fit Liam and make a good western dressage saddle.
Today I took it out for a test ride and took Liam out for the first trail ride of the year. He was awesome, and the saddle felt great. I need to get him a thicker pad to give him a little more wither clearance, but I love how the saddle rides. It has a very similar balance to my dressage saddle, and Liam seemed comfortable.
It felt so good to get out on the trail, and Liam was eager to get out and go exploring. He splashed through lots of water that remains from all the melted snow and led the way through the prairie conservation land near our barn.
It was great to get out, and there’s no view like between your horse’s ear. Definitly my favorite perspective, just can’t wait til there’s more green to look at.
Back at the barn, Liam settled in with his dinner, and I got Remy tacked up. I was all excited to try the new bits I got for his double bridle, but just a few minutes into the ride it became clear something wasn’t right. I got off and went over him, finding many of the muscle in his hindquarters very sore. He hasn’t worked the last 3 days, so I can only guess he did something in turnout. Hopefully he just played a little too much and will be back to normal in a few days. I know every time I show up he and Liam are into a game of halter tag, so maybe he just got a little carried away with his new friend…
TB at X 