Charmed living

Charm made a triumphant return to my dressage lessons today. Well, triumphant enough. She walked today pretty well, which was awesome. And when she didn't, I was able to use my feet and legs to encourage her.

We used a new saddle for her too, a dressage saddle.

The one problem was when I slid a little far to the right. There is nothing to stop me on this saddle, so I slid. Not off. I didn't fall. But when I slid Charm tried to get under me and she wound up stopping. Other than that it went pretty well.

It hotter than heck but that was OK.

There are days like today when I really wish I could ride twice a week. I just feel I'm making strides and want to continue.

It must be the shoes

I had my first lesson today with my new boots, which are very nice even if they are women's. I also rode with a new saddle, a dressage saddle. It felt pretty good. I was a lot closer to Bella. Or I felt that way at least. Dada and Kate said I looked good and rode well. I felt unbalanced only once or twice, so that's good. It was mostly on free walks that I felt out of sorts. In free walks, you lean forward on the horse's neck and let her pick the gait, I think. I think we will stick with this saddle. Apparently, it is a lot more comfortable for Bella. I think the Australian saddle weighs a lot.

I have been having issues keeping my horse - Bella or Charm - close to the wall when riding. In dressage, you want to ride right on the rail. I think with Bella some of it is she knows the barn so well, she turns early. She was more than willing to go to the rail so I guess I need to keep her there. Also, Kate was always on my left so I needed to not crush her. I think she appreciated it.

We rode a bunch of circles and half-circles. Sometimes I did really well. Other times, not so much. Dada told me to never ride a straight line when trying to ride a circle. Of course, that's true. I asked her what to do if I made a mistake in the circle, and she basically said, you don't make a mistake. I may be screwed.

Dada mentioned a clinic in Pennsylvania in November. She said the vice president of the U.S. Para-equestrian team or something wanted to see her and me again. I don't remember seeing her once. But cool.

Where there's a whip, there's a way

This entry would be a whole lot funnier if my grandmother hadn’t broken her hip last night.

My lesson this week had great comedic potential, and I learned from it, too. I got on Bella and rode her into the ring. Then I stopped her while Kate, one of the volunteers, got something for Dada. It was a riding crop!

"Uh-ho, Bella," I said, although I wasn't sure how exactly I would hold one, let alone use it.

Dada started to slide the crop under my left arm, and I thought she wanted me to hold it in my armpit. But she didn't stop sliding, and before I knew it she stuck it behind my back and in front of my right arm. The reason, she said, was to make me sit straight, although she and Kate were laughing at the time.

It felt pretty good actually. It was crazy hard, but Bella really responded well to me. I hope I can teach my body to balance better. Dada thinks I can, but sometimes I think we are doing something that will never get a lot better because of my disability. We'll see.

Back to Bella

So I started riding Bella again today. She was more sprightly than I remember. I even trotted on her. It was pretty crazy. But fun. Dada said she worked some magic to get Bella moving better. It sure worked. One thing I miss about Charm is that she was not as drawn to Dada. Bella is totally Dada's girl, and if you don't watch her every second she turns to go to Dada. As a result the circles I was making often had weird little cuts in them because Bella would turn to Dada who was in the middle. We were riding to music today. I recognized something from Barry and Lynn's Turnstile album and Maury's Wedding or whatever that Irish tune is. All instrumentals. A good ride.

So long, lucky Charm

It looks as if my dalliance with Charm won't even be a summer love. Today, Dada said I would rotate on Charm and on Bella for the rest of the summer and concentrate on my riding skills. I was OK with that, although I really liked riding Charm with her sprightly step. But then I rode her. Or tried to. She wouldn't walk hardly at all. Dada was leading her and she was still not walking rhythmically. Finally Dada got out a little whip, or I guess a riding crop. To me, it looked like those back-scratchers with the hand on one end of a 15-inch stick. Even with the back-scratcher we could not keep her going. Dada said part of the problem is that she is old-ish and is popular in the stable. So she gets used a lot. I felt guilty sitting on her. Then Dada said say your goodbyes to her and I got off. Back to Bella.