(no subject)
Aug. 14th, 2011 11:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
which_chickTrys's company came and went. They seemed to have a good time.
Alyse rode Whimsy (Project Horse) on Saturday and Kat rode Nick (not-a-project-horse, my real horse) on Sunday. Alyse thinks Whimsy is fun -- and she is. She's a nice ride and a pleasant mare to boot. She's just... green, and thus does not set her head or have insta-response lateral skillz or any of that stuff. Don't get me wrong -- I like Whimsy and everything, but she's just not that interesting to me. *sigh* She's a Project Horse and I'll be done with her when we're done competitive-riding this year.
Nick, on the other hand, is not a Project Horse but rather a pearl of great price who does not yet bore me. She's been over at the other field since the middle of June (if she's in the field at the house, I will not work with Whimsy...) but I hadn't been on her since before that due to the 30K at Rothrock taking up all of my available time. I brought Nick back from the other field this morning (she was an ass in-hand for most of the way) and hopped on her this afternoon to go bombing over fences. She hasn't jumped anything since late last fall and neither have I. However, it went fine anyway. (There was some small bucking but I really think that was rider error (mine) and not her being more of an ass than usual.)
Convinced at that point that Nick would probably not kill anyone else, I hopped off and put Kat on to take my critter out for a spin. Nick didn't kill her, which was good. Kat seemed to think Nick was pretty OK as a horse, which was also good. Kat (more of a rider than I am -- better hands, seat, timing, rhythm) got all sorts of interesting and effective lateral movements out of Nick, the which I cannot exactly manage because my cues and timing and stuff aren't there yet. *sigh* Trysta helpfully said, "Yeah, she doesn't look nearly that cool when you ride her." All heart, that Trysta. :P
The most interesting thing I got from having other people our critters was that our critters, who are not huge, apparently ride like bigger critters. Whimsy, who is 14.3 hh, apparently rides like a "real" horse-sized horse. Alyse says "All her gaits feel extended." (They're not. Whims moves out nicely, not rushed, but not lollygagging. I like a brisk walk on my competitive trail mounts, dontchaknow. Also, she will extend the trot if asked, but the out-of-the-box trot is not real extended. I have not asked Whims to extend the canter but she apparently does do that now, having been asked by Alyse.) Thyme allegedly feels "kind of warmblood-ish" but she's 14 and a little bit.
Similarly, on a good day, with shoes, very upright and "terrified" by the evil measuring stick, Nick stands 13.3 3/4 tall. She's a pony. A lot of the horse world thinks I (at 5'7") should be riding a bigger horse. My pony lady in Altoona certainly thought so -- I never heard the end of it at lesson. The thing is that Nick does not feel like a pony when you sit on her. She doesn't have crappy little pony gaits, either. Kat, upon riding Nick, said she felt like a larger critter and allowed as how she totally got the "plenty under the hood" feeling. Kat also allowed as how Nick made a convincing argument for her re-evaluating the utility and athleticism of those back legs, but that was pretty backhanded as compliments go. See, Nick has cow hocks, rather evident ones. The cow hocks, allegedly "less useful" than straight hocks, are a conformation fault. They do not seem to hinder her everyday movement, though, and the everyday movement is pretty OK.)
As flattering as all of this "ride bigger than they look" business is, I suspect that a big part of the reason our critters feel like they're surprisingly big movers is that they don't see much ring time. They're ridden around the real world, for the purpose of GOING somewhere, typically over uneven ground and frequently with things of interest going on (like deer jumping out in front of them or some people four-wheeling past or whatever). This sort of outdoors activity contributes to a "working walk" that actually covers territory efficiently instead of the shut-down and deadened walk that many ring-work-only horses have. It's a lot easier to have a big, animated walk out there in the real world where there is plenty to see and do. Having an awesome walk going round-n-round in a ring is challenging in a different way -- lots more motivation has to come from the rider in that world. Just something to bear in mind when the comparisons are made, is all.
Alyse rode Whimsy (Project Horse) on Saturday and Kat rode Nick (not-a-project-horse, my real horse) on Sunday. Alyse thinks Whimsy is fun -- and she is. She's a nice ride and a pleasant mare to boot. She's just... green, and thus does not set her head or have insta-response lateral skillz or any of that stuff. Don't get me wrong -- I like Whimsy and everything, but she's just not that interesting to me. *sigh* She's a Project Horse and I'll be done with her when we're done competitive-riding this year.
Nick, on the other hand, is not a Project Horse but rather a pearl of great price who does not yet bore me. She's been over at the other field since the middle of June (if she's in the field at the house, I will not work with Whimsy...) but I hadn't been on her since before that due to the 30K at Rothrock taking up all of my available time. I brought Nick back from the other field this morning (she was an ass in-hand for most of the way) and hopped on her this afternoon to go bombing over fences. She hasn't jumped anything since late last fall and neither have I. However, it went fine anyway. (There was some small bucking but I really think that was rider error (mine) and not her being more of an ass than usual.)
Convinced at that point that Nick would probably not kill anyone else, I hopped off and put Kat on to take my critter out for a spin. Nick didn't kill her, which was good. Kat seemed to think Nick was pretty OK as a horse, which was also good. Kat (more of a rider than I am -- better hands, seat, timing, rhythm) got all sorts of interesting and effective lateral movements out of Nick, the which I cannot exactly manage because my cues and timing and stuff aren't there yet. *sigh* Trysta helpfully said, "Yeah, she doesn't look nearly that cool when you ride her." All heart, that Trysta. :P
The most interesting thing I got from having other people our critters was that our critters, who are not huge, apparently ride like bigger critters. Whimsy, who is 14.3 hh, apparently rides like a "real" horse-sized horse. Alyse says "All her gaits feel extended." (They're not. Whims moves out nicely, not rushed, but not lollygagging. I like a brisk walk on my competitive trail mounts, dontchaknow. Also, she will extend the trot if asked, but the out-of-the-box trot is not real extended. I have not asked Whims to extend the canter but she apparently does do that now, having been asked by Alyse.) Thyme allegedly feels "kind of warmblood-ish" but she's 14 and a little bit.
Similarly, on a good day, with shoes, very upright and "terrified" by the evil measuring stick, Nick stands 13.3 3/4 tall. She's a pony. A lot of the horse world thinks I (at 5'7") should be riding a bigger horse. My pony lady in Altoona certainly thought so -- I never heard the end of it at lesson. The thing is that Nick does not feel like a pony when you sit on her. She doesn't have crappy little pony gaits, either. Kat, upon riding Nick, said she felt like a larger critter and allowed as how she totally got the "plenty under the hood" feeling. Kat also allowed as how Nick made a convincing argument for her re-evaluating the utility and athleticism of those back legs, but that was pretty backhanded as compliments go. See, Nick has cow hocks, rather evident ones. The cow hocks, allegedly "less useful" than straight hocks, are a conformation fault. They do not seem to hinder her everyday movement, though, and the everyday movement is pretty OK.)
As flattering as all of this "ride bigger than they look" business is, I suspect that a big part of the reason our critters feel like they're surprisingly big movers is that they don't see much ring time. They're ridden around the real world, for the purpose of GOING somewhere, typically over uneven ground and frequently with things of interest going on (like deer jumping out in front of them or some people four-wheeling past or whatever). This sort of outdoors activity contributes to a "working walk" that actually covers territory efficiently instead of the shut-down and deadened walk that many ring-work-only horses have. It's a lot easier to have a big, animated walk out there in the real world where there is plenty to see and do. Having an awesome walk going round-n-round in a ring is challenging in a different way -- lots more motivation has to come from the rider in that world. Just something to bear in mind when the comparisons are made, is all.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-08-17 05:08 pm (UTC)I'm more concerned with her length of upper leg (something Phantom had, and Tin does at the moment) than her cow hocks. I (and I know the looks I get for this) like a little bit of cow hocked. Not that much, but a little.
The 12 rides and we can canter in an open field is really was speaks well of these horses to me.
Except Charlie.
(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From: