Mane, Tail and Ginger

For today's stable visit, we had the Mane 'n Tail Groom, in hand, as well as Darr's new 54" girth and Mane n' Tail Hoofmaker. Sarah used to always treat Sebastian's hoofs with this stuff to keep him hoofs healthy, so we thought Darr might benefit from the same treatment. Let us know your thoughts.

We were lucky enough to get out the barn earlier today, so had the arena to ourselves. That's a rare treat. The horse-riding hordes typically descend shortly after four o'clock. 

Here's a quick pic of Darr and his paddock buddies, Sydney and Reggie. As you can see in the photo, Darr managed to get his halter off his face and down his neck. Sarah adjusted it a notch (and cleaned it, again -- seems to be a mud magnet!)

Hi Mom!

I rode Darr briefly today after Sarah's work with him. I carefully walked one lap of the arena with him. I am quite sure that he immediately picked up on my novice rider status, but by half-way 'round I clued in to keep my leg on a little better and he actually picked up a working walk for me. Exciting! He was probably just indulging me because I gave him a thorough head scratch earlier. 

I will be riding another horse, though, as I have signed on to part-board Ginger, the veteran mare who I lesson on. That way, when Sarah comes out to ride Darr, I can walk and trot around on Ginger. It is a heck of a lot warmer than standing! And hopefully, I will develop a better riding seat.  We do expect to get out tomorrow, too, and then on Saturday. Looking forward to some trotting intervals next week.