Hi Ho, Hi Ho I'ts off to work we go.

Today after mum made me clean the bathroom.. I thought it would never end. I rode Rion.
I haven't ridden him since the weekend competing and since my jump saddle is gone dressage was on the agenda.

I lunged him for about 15 mins, getting him to stretch and doing transitions up and down and in the gait.Rion is so bad at dressage, there is no other way of saying it. He has improved since I got him but my dressage work this year has not been consistent enough. Starting today I have a new goal.

Consistently achieve 65% in any test and work towards 70% going into next year.

I think we can do it. I hope we can do it.

I worked just on the basics, transitions within the trot to warm up when I got on and just focusing on keeping him supple and not having a repeat performance with his back issues. Rion has always had contact issues, particularly in the form of bridle lameness. Today he was showing exactly that. Looking at the pictures he is just not coming up underneath himself and is behind the vertical.

I need a lesson..

That's it for now folks. Another update on how he goes tomorrow.

Ride time: 1 hour.

There are no problems.. just solutions

I have just gotten inside from the rain after Rion got his saddles refitted. The saddle fitter did the usual, saddle without riser, with riser, with me on etc for his jumping and dressage saddle.

The diagnosis: the riser I use on my jumping saddle was creating too much tension and where the rise stopped it was hollow. The dressage saddle is fine.

The treatment: He is going to fix the packing in the jump saddle, although it has retained its shape since we got it 18 months ago, and is going to fix my riser so that it isnt hollow around his waist area.

So it is good news, gives me time and a reason to do lots of dressage work now. We are both in a dire need for it.

Thanks for Reading.

Sorry.. uber busy.

Long time no blogging. I have been so busy with school and so much on my plate but now exams are over and I am on holidays posts everyday! With Pics!

Last weekend:
We went competing and boy was it cold. Freezing actually. And gale force winds, icy rain. Not pleasant. Rion was a star in the first class, we had just one rail down due to pilot error. He had a little looksy at a liver pool and silly pilot wasn't there with her legs early enough and he knocked it. But he was a star for me the rest of the way round. It was about 1.10m/3'4+.

When I got on before the second class he was being an absolute trouble. Backing up, spinning, sidestepping, rearing, backing into people ("very rude Rion"). He was still playing up in the warm up and in the ring we had three down. Took him back to the stables and found he had a sore back. Gave him some Bute (anti-inflammatory) and waited to see how he was in the morning. No better so we packed up and came home.

This morning he had a nice massage. And oh boy did he like it! Falling asleep, licking his lips.. He was very tight all over but is much better now after his massage. We are having the saddle fitter come out on Saturday to find out whether the saddle caused his back problems. I'm only allowed to lunge him for now just to let him stretch out and I'll play some games with him tomorrow as well. I hope mum will take some pics =]

Here is the video of Rion from the weekend in the first class.