Monday Morning Longeing

After a short hack out on Sunday -

hold please, I need to complain.

AFTER A SHORT HACK IN THE SNOW ON SUNDAY. YES, SNOW. NO, IT DIDN'T STICK AND IT WAS ONLY SPORADIC AND FOR 10 MINUTES. IT STILL COUNTS.

Anyway. After a short hack out on Sunday, Monday was for longeing, for a couple of reasons: I didn't have all day to tack up and go through a lengthy warmup for a dressage school, I didn't really want the kind of work that a dressage school promised, and I wanted to get back in to using the chambon and the resistance band.

(Side note, someone on COTH linked to my original post about my homemade resistance band and it has taken off in the last few days. Kind of cool!)

I was very glad I had chosen longeing, because I got a nice, clear progression. He started off a bit stiff when loose, and chose to canter for a while instead of trotting. I let him, because it was a nice, soft, semi-balanced canter, not careening around, and if that's how he wanted to warm up, I was ok with it.

After 15 minutes of warming up, I put the chambon and resistance band on. Initially, he fussed about them both, but within a minute or two he actually settled in to the work nicely. He had some lovely, LOVELY soft, stretchy work, especially to the right. Huge difference in length of stride and the way he used his body. I worked him for another 10-15 minutes, and then put him away in his wool dress sheet - he was the teensiest bit warm, and I wanted him to cool out but not get cold quickly, especially since the temperature has plummeted 40 degrees in the last 2 days.

I'm still learning and feeling my way through how to handle and manage him with blankets and the winter coat. When I got to the barn he was wearing his quilted stable blanket with turnout sheet over it, though it was about 35. I felt under the blanket and he felt cozy - not too warm at all. Good!

After a little while of putting away tack, I put his blanket and sheet back on and out he went. I scattered two flakes of hay all over his dry lot so he'd move around a bit, and he was happy as a clam when I left.

PS - Don't forget to vote in the Marguerite Henry Readalong poll! So far, King of the Wind is handily in the lead; add your vote for that to ensure its victory or pick another book.

PPS - Giveaway alert! Check out Equestrian at Hart for a Spreadshirt custom t-shirt giveaway.