Friday May 29th 2009

I burned my DVD. I ran into problems, but they were resolved. 

Wednesday May 27th 2009

I rode Classic for the last time for my senior project. He was great. We jumped a triple that was pretty big and did a bending 7. We even got lead changes. 

Tuesday May 26th 2009

I worked on the video today. I uploaded all the remaining footage and started to organize it. It took much longer than I thought it would. Making a movie is difficult. 

Monday May 25th 2009

Today I worked at the barn. I did Classic's stall and brushed him. He was very well behaved even though he didn't go out all night. He cut his neck in the field the other day, so I took care of that. I love working with Classic. I thought I would have a really hard time because of my nerves, but I learned how to control them. This project was just as good for him as it was for me. 

Friday May 22nd 2009

Classic was so well behaved today. We worked on collecting and extending. He listened very well. He was a little sticky picking up the right lead. He circled well and even cantered from the walk with ease. Classic was very calm on the ground as well. At the end of our ride, I walked and trotted him on the buckle. He stayed relatively calm. He didn't seem to mind the camera in the indoor ring either. This was probably our best ride :) 

Wednesday May 20th 2009

Today I rode Classic. He was so much fun. We lessoned, and it was very tough. Riding a thoroughbred is completely different from riding any other type of horse. I have to be so much more relaxed, and I have to make sure to keep my calf on him. We worked on w/t/c and lots of circles. We need to work on keeping is butt and head straight. 

Tuesday May 19th 2009

Today Classic's owner came and rode him. We talked about his future goals, and what she would like to see done with him. They lessoned, so I observed what he should be doing. 

Monday May 18th 2009

I brushed Classic today and clipped his legs and ears. He was great. I also did his stall and cleaned up around the barn. 

Friday May 15th 2009

We had a clinic at Walnut Hill Farm today. Kellie rode Classic for Mark to see. I taped it and watched what Mark wanted Classic to work on. Hopefully, this will help me in the next few weeks to figure out what I should be doing with Classic. He is a really cool horse. 

Wednesday May 13th 2009

I ended up having to change the horse I was working with. I am not working with Classic. Cash needs Kellie to work with him a lot more. Classic is a 16hh thoroughbred gelding. He came to the farm fairly skinny, out of shape, and spooky. I've been working with him for a couple of weeks. It works very well for the senior project. I've been riding him since the project started, so it is really just a switch in focus :) 

Classic and I worked on communication at the beginning of the lesson. I needed to be much stronger with him. Once that happen, he listened well. We then did a couple single jumps. He hasn't been jumped very often. He likes to rush the jumps, but the calmer I stayed the calmer he stayed. By the end of jumping the singles, he didn't rush them! I was so happy about this. After the single jumps, we worked on gymnastics. He needed work on striding and keeping straight, so it was a great exercise. He jumped through the first time oddly. The second time he was perfect. After that, we added another jump so we were jumping 3 in a row. He tried to run out the left side. After that, he jumped well. The next time we added a 4th jump. He jumped through like a pro! He jumped the oxer so well. Kellie says he is going to make a great child/adult jumper. Who knows! 

Tuesday May 12th 2009

For my senior project today I worked on my video. I uploaded more footage and almost finished my outline for the video. I stopped over at the barn to check on Cash and the other horses. He is so relaxed at the farm. Here is a picture I took of him today: 

Monday May 11th 2009

    Today, I worked on my relationship with Cash. I brought him out to graze. Then, I brushed him. After doing that, I cleaned his stall and a couple other stalls. I watered the horses and swept the aisles. I checked on the other horses at the farm and made sure all was in order. 

    Cash seems to be liking Walnut Hill Farm. He is a very kind and friendly horse. He goes out with a 17.2 hh warmblood with a hind leg problem and a 12.2 hh pony. He stays out all night and loves it. 

Friday May 8th 2009

I worked on my own riding today in Saratoga. I worked on lead changes and my confidence to the jumps. If I want to make Cash confident, I have to be confident as well. I put in three solid rounds. I was very happy with how I rode. 

Wednesday May 6th 2009

    I went to the barn around 1:00. Kellie, my instructor, rode Cash. She showed me what I should be doing to work on his lead changes. It shouldn't be that complicated, but I need to make sure I don't get frustrated with it. He needs patience and understanding. After that, I untacked and brushed him. He definitely likes Walnut Hill Farm. 

    I rode Marcus and Spy to work on my position as well as my half of the training. The person trainer the horse needs work as well. If I were only working with Cash, my riding would suffer and in turn his training would. I worked on tight roll backs with Marcus. Spy and I worked on patience and hunter riding. 

Tuesday May 5th 2009

I worked on uploading my footage thus far. There isn't that much of it. Cash seems to be settling in well. He lays down very often in his stall, but he is incredibly hyper otherwise. I set up a project folder for my clip. I think my next step will be making an outline of the video. 

Monday May 4th 2009

I went to the store and got a tripod and tapes for my camera. After doing that, I went to the barn and brushed my horse and did night feed and stalls. Since the horse is still relatively new to the farm, I wanted to give it a day more to get used to its surroundings before riding it.  He was very calm. He seems to be adjusting well to his new life at the farm.