It has become clear that Nicole maintains her throughness better when she is continually encouraged into her left rein by the right leg. I guess it's just one of her peculiarities. She needs the left rein held more than the right rein, especially in the right lead canter. Lately an issue has been that she wants to become stuck in the right lead canter, and she loses forward, which means she loses throughness. I have to remember to make sure she's through and carrying herself as I ask her for more forward, because one of her favorite tricks is to brace against the bit, causing her to lose the canter - really annoying. When she's carrying herself, pushing her forward so she maintains the canter is easier and more productive. Releasing the reins to make sure she's carrying herself also causes her to become more through because she's more accepting of the bit (i.e., she starts to chew the bit).
The lead changes are currently nothing spectacular - she's generally doing clean ones, but most of them are short. :-/ That will get better with time, I just thought Nicole would be able to do them cleanly immediately, since she is able to do anything I've asked of her, if her strength permitted it. I haven't done any in a week or so, because Nicole started to anticipate them, meaning that she would try to change at a particular place in the arena, whether I asked or not. This caused me to almost fall off of her a couple weeks ago, because she suddenly switched her weight under me.
I have acquired a new best friend in the past couple weeks - a stallion, who, I guess, for the purposes of this blog, I'll call The Stallion. I don't own him, a friend has given him to me to ride, so who knows how long my relationship with The Stallion will last, but I'll keep writing about him until it's over, mostly because there's not much to update about Nicole daily, unless you want to watch the same half pass everyday. He's green, and yes, I'm aware of how cliché this sounds, and I know as well as you do, dear reader, that this is another green/green combo. Since it's my life's work to avoid the cliché and the obvious, I have made efforts to ensure über-professional help, so hopefully everything won't go to hell in a handbasket anytime soon. And, considering my success with Nicole (another green/green combo, mind you) under über-professional guidance, I'm feeling somewhat confident I can pull it off again, mostly because I find no shame in admitting that I need someone with more experience to advise. It's been my experience that a lot of horse people will not admit their short-comings, and feign confidence in the face of confusion; I simply don't operate under that sort of hubris. I'd rather do things right than be right, although few people recognize that quality in me.
Considering my last session with The Stallion, during which he thought about striking out at the lunge whip (i.e., turning his head, pinning his ears, and raising his hind leg, before I was able to push him forward), I'm guessing I will have some interesting stuff to write about. And yes, I called the Über Professional to consult. Even Michael Jordan needs a coach.
As an aside, I've started to develop the callouses that come with using the double bridle. The photo kind of sucks, so they're hard to see, but I think you can get the gist from the photo. They make me feel like an old lady, since my fingers now look like they're ridden with arthritis. Rhumatism went out with the 19th century as a glamor-disease, so I'm not feeling real thrilled with the callouses, but them's the breaks.
