Had my second lesson of the week last night, first lesson after my involuntary dismount. The back of my right hip was a bit sore, in addition to my neck. In fact, I was getting pretty concerned about my neck because at one point in time yesterday it was starting to hurt to swallow. Fortunately, that resolved itself by today. I think it was just really sore from holding up my noggin getting knocked around.
Oh, and speaking of noggins, when I get back from vacay I think its time to buy a new helmet. The helmet I have now has been with me for about 3 years, which is about halfway through the recommended useful life with NO falls. That helmet has seen a few bumps. None of my falls have been me crashing onto my head (since I tend to either land on my feet, or my butt) but last night, I know I did knock my head a bit. So...new helmet time. I'm looking at the new One K helmets, they look nice and light and hopefully, slightly shallow since my small forehead always makes helmets look like mushrooms on me.
So...onto the riding. I put Arwen in the two ring with the flash again, mainly because she actually wasn't horrible in it the night before. Before we started, Trainer went and grabbed a bungee (also called a chambon). It clips to the girth, then is run through the bit rings and over the top of the poll. Basically, it helps the horse keep their head down. If it goes up, pressure is put on the poll. Trainer wanted to try it, since oftentimes Arwen will make a bid for the fence the last two strides, head in the air and all inverted. Its hard to get control/see a distance when she's going like that. We w/t/c'd around for a bit, and I immediately felt a difference at all gaits. She was definitely using her back better, was going slower, and not as wiggly/fussy with me. Also, I think it helps stabilize the bit a little, so she was much more willing to be on the bit. Which is good, but also tells me that my hands are not as good/consistent as they should be. So I need to work on that.
Because the bungee is so flexible, you can jump in it. It really does have quite a bit of give, you just have to make sure the horse doesn't get tangled in it. So we started out doing a little crossrail, Arwen felt great. Nice even pace to the fence, and after. Then proceeded to do a little course. Again, nice even pace. I was able to keep a longer rein since she wasn't throwing her head in the air. And then, when Arwen is soft, I can actually be soft too and focus on things other than her being silly.
Of course, we had to do the 4-1 again to make sure she would go through it. She did, no problem.
I think the bungee actually helped her jump better, even though some people say it restricts their movement. I felt like she was slower over the jumps, and actually using herself. Wasn't as flat/quick over the fences, and then on landing didn't scoot away.
So, overall very interesting tool in the tool box. I won't be using it all the time, but I think its a good thing to use once in awhile to remind her how she needs to be going. Lesson tomorrow morning, we'll see how that goes!
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