I can't believe it has taken me this long to write about our ride on Monday night! Haley did chores last night though, so I enjoyed a lazy night - the first in quite some time! Needless to say, I didn't accomplish much of anything last night, so here I am, reliving my glory moment!
Okay, it wasn't supremely glorious, because I felt like a flopping fish in the saddle, but regardless...we were determined to get in one last ride Monday night before the next few days of rain were supposed to roll in. I tacked up in jumping gear, because I knew the soggy footing would be arriving shortly, and it tends to take a few days to clear back out, so I wanted to get a jump school in. We were both fresh off of a lesson Friday night, so everything was really recent in our little brains. I have been having amazing rides ever since that lesson. I have gotten on every day, determined to perfect our walk before I do anything else. Every ride since, we have nailed it within minutes. We have come a LONG ways, just from constantly reminding myself to not hang on the inside rein, and focusing on using the inside leg to outside rein connection.
So back to Monday. We warmed up on the flat, and April was outstanding. By far, the best walk we have gotten since she came to the farm. I started schooling over a little vertical, then graduated to the line, and really focused on consistency between the fences. Robyn had worked on really using her leg in her lesson, and thankfully our horses have a lot of similarities, so watching her lesson tends to equal a bonus lesson for me as well! I was working on applying a lot of the same techniques, and so was Robyn, and we were having stellar rides! Linkin has come along in leaps and bounds since coming back from his injury-mandated time off. He has been more relaxed between fences than I have ever seen him.
We kept riding by Kelsey's crazy jump that they had set up for Laddy. It was still set around 3'3'' or 3'6''. Both of us kept staring, longingly....then we started putting voice to the thoughts...."MAN, I want to jump that SO BAD!!!" Pretty soon, the devious looks started flying back and forth. Before I knew it, Robyn had hopped off to take it down a couple holes. I mean, let's not get CRAZY here....
So I picked up a nice little canter and came around to the first fence, hopped the vertical, then took the bending line to the big fence. As stated previously, I looked like a big flopping fish, but what the heck - we sailed right on over! I let out the biggest whoop imagineable. By far, the biggest fence I have been over in a LONG time. It also signified to me that I have GOT to work on my nasty position over fences. I guess that will come another day....
Next I saw Robyn heading for the first fence. I started to holler out not to take the bending line, because it was a pretty hairy line to get to the second fence, but before I could finish I saw her setting her sights on the next fence. Oh my....I think I shouted something about how of COURSE she would take the bending line, because she is uber-competetive, just like me....and if I did it, she'll do it. Man, that girl and I have a lot in common! Well, it was a bit much for Linkin the first time around, and they had a bit of an undignified ending. I knew it had the potential to shake her up, so I hollered at her to get her butt over another fence, pronto. They sailed over a little vertical. Then I asked her if she wanted to try the big one again, and she said yes. So they took a straight approach to the fence. At the last minute, I saw her eyes drop and I yelled "look at the trees!" What do you know...eyes went up, horse came up beneath her, and they SAILED right over. Didn't overjump, didn't get excited...it might as well have been a crossrail.
That concluded the night. I think we whooped and hollered, hung on our ponies' necks and rubbed them with furious excitement...all kinds of treats were given, and that was that. Then of COURSE we had to measure, and the fence was every bit of 3 feet, if not a hair over. I know, it really isn't much, but when I sat down to think about it, I realized it has been NINE YEARS since I have jumped that height!!!!! Quite the victory in my eyes.
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