Hacking

Enjoying the Sunshine

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Today has been absolutely gorgeous.

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Galahad and I had a wonderful ride in the sunshine.  We met the postman (and had to backtrack out of his way) twice and stopped for a chat with my neighbour.  Galahad was very relaxed and stood beautifully still for a good twenty minutes.   He is so good at talking to people now.  Not so long ago he would have hated anyone patting him, especially with me in the saddle.

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It wasn’t only sunny  – it was lovely and warm too.  So much so that I rode out in a t-shirt and Galahad got to spend a few hours in the field without a rug which I’m sure he appreciated.

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Sunny Spring Evenings

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The last few days have been absolutely beautiful here.  We have had the odd light shower but most of the time it has been sunny and fairly warm.

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 My sister and I had a lovely hack this evening.  The sun was just beginning to set but it was still shining and the sky was blue.  It certainly makes everything seem cheerful!

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There are lambs in the fields and daffodils everywhere.  The primroses are putting on a pretty good show too.  Spring is definitely here!

Morning Mists

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This week I seem to have spent a lot of time riding out in thick fog.

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Don’t worry  – the visibility on the roads was much better than might be expected.

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It was a bit disconcerting driving to the stables knowing that I was about to go out in the fog though!

Whilst the ponies have been away I have had some lovely rides.  It is good to have some different hacking once in a while and it is definitely nice to have some company sometimes.  The ponies have behaved very well and I think they enjoyed themselves too – they have a lot more energy when we hack out in company!

Going Exploring

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The ponies are spending the weekend at my instructor’s yard – sometimes it is nice to have some different hacking routes and some company is always good.

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Yesterday there was a big group going out for a long ride and I was invited to join them.  I didn’t think Galahad was fit enough for the whole ride but we went part way with them.  I’m not sure Galahad has ever been out with such a big group before (thirteen of us altogether) and he was very excited by it.  I had a bit of a job holding him back to start with but he soon settled and we had a lovely ride.

He was still full of energy though and very much looking like he was capable of doing the whole ride until we had a second canter and he ran out of steam.  That was where I had been planning to turn for home anyway so we hacked back by ourselves.  It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed ourselves very much.  Galahad can’t have been all that tired – once he was back on lanes he recognised he was full of beans again and wanting to hurry home!

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When I got back I hacked Cookster out and arrived back again just after the others had got home.  That meant I was in time for tea and cake!  It was a lovely way to spend the day.

Chilly Riding

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It is pretty cold here at the moment but there are signs that spring is on the way.

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The snowdrops have been out for a couple of weeks but now we are starting to see some primroses and even some brave daffodils.

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Galahad and I had a lovely hack today.   It was very cold but a beautiful day and I took Galahad into my neighbour’s field for the first time this year.  Partly I wanted to see what sort of state the ground was in – some of it was fine, other bits were still very squelchy.  I  also wanted to show Galahad that we don’t always have to canter in the field.  When we started riding in there he learned very quickly that it is a place where we canter and he can be inclined to take off sometimes.

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We kept strictly to walk and went round the whole field.  Galahad behaved much better than I expected – he did walk a lot faster once we had turned the corner back towards home but he didn’t try to take off once.  I was incredibly pleased with him and I think it was definitely worth doing.  I really need to remember not to canter every time we go through the field!

Practising our Ditches

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We have still been working on ‘ditches’ or water trays this week.  I needed to be able to ride over them but as I am still only able to ride a couple of times a week at the moment our practise opportunities have been few!

I took full advantage of them though – every time I rode I got out the ditches too.  We have had so much rain in the past week that the fields are now rather slippery so I resorted to schooling ditches in the lane.

First I led him over the ditch again.  Of course, this time he caught the edge of the tray with his foot so the other side lifted and spooked him.  I was worried it would send us right back where we started but luckily he got over it.

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Once I was mounted I started off as I did in hand by riding between the two trays.  That gave us no problem at all so I pushed them together and tried again.  He walked straight over them.

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We repeated the exercise successfully next time I rode and hopefully we have cracked it.  Of course, it is one thing to do it at home and something entirely different when we are out at a competition!

Happy Hacking

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This week I had the most wonderful hack on Cookster.  He was completely calm and relaxed and it was a fantastic feeling to be riding him.

Walking back down the hill I became very conscious of how relaxed I was feeling myself.  I was also weirdly aware of my own breathing and how much it had slowed down.  It felt like a form of meditation and it was pretty amazing.

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Galahad was not quite so relaxing but still very good.  We actually made use of the saddlebags to deliver a parcel which was fun.  It was heavier than the newspaper we carried up before and the bag did flap a little bit but Galahad didn’t react at all.  Hurrah!  Galahad was paid in apples and I had a cup of tea – Galahad got to visit a strange stable whilst I drank it.

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Our ride home was a bit more eventful.  There was something  (goodness knows what) scary in the field so naturally we had to have a bit of a spook and a canter.  He slowed down when I asked though which is a good sign.

It was a lovely morning and I definitely felt the benefit of riding that day.

Bearing the Burden

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This week Galahad has been learning to wear his saddlebags.  I bought them in the summer before we went on our trec expedition but decided not to use them as we didn’t really have much time for him to get used to them.  He was facing a lot of new things at once and I didn’t want to push him too far and make him panic.  I have now finally got around to using them when I am riding and Galahad behaved very well – he didn’t really react at all.

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I picked a great day for it though.  We started out for our hack and were almost immediately faced with our neighbour’s recycling bin.  We ride past it every week but we had to stop and stare at it before we could walk past.  Next I noticed that the paper had been delivered for another neighbour so I picked it up to take up the hill.  I decided not to put it in the saddlebags because I wanted Galahad to get used to the idea of them before I started putting things in them.  We set off up the hill with only one and a half hands on the reins.

Just as we got up the first slope a squirrel ran across the road and up a tree.  It was very scary and we had to shy at it (of course).  Luckily Galahad didn’t actually spin all the way round and charge off.  I’m not sure I was in a state to stop him!

Next we met my neighbour driving down to collect the recycling box.  He stopped the engine but for some reason Galahad wasn’t at all keen to go past.  He didn’t spook but he did have to walk very slowly towards the car!  Almost as soon as we were past I heard the beep of a lorry reversing.  I waited in a spot where it would have room to turn and discovered that it was a man delivering coal.  Not something we meet every day!  I was convinced Galahad would be terrified but he didn’t turn a hair – just stood there calmly watching.  I was so proud!

By this point I had decided that Galahad was fine with the saddlebags so I stuck the newspaper in and we trotted off up the rest of the hill.

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We delivered the paper with no trouble and set off for home.  Most of the excitement was over by then but we did have to stop for a good look where the squirrel had been.  It could easily have been lurking ready to pounce!  As we got closer to the main road it seemed as if almost every lorry in existence was driving past.  They don’t come up the lane but it looked pretty hectic in the valley.

Despite all the excitement we had a lovely ride.  Now I can look forward to longer hacks and picnics in the summer!

Beautiful Bank Holiday

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As we had a bank holiday on Monday I was working slightly shorter hours and just about had time to ride before work.  I almost didn’t make it – I am not really a morning person – but I am so glad I did.  Galahad and I had a lovely hack and we got to watch the sunrise which was beautiful.

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Galahad’s antlers and tinsel are all packed away for the year now but there is still rather a lot of glitter around.  Not so much on him any more  (although there are a few traces in his mane and tail) but it seems to be all over the floor.  The yard looks quite magical!

A Very Merry Christmas

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We have had a lovely Christmas.  We had some great rides over the past week and even got in a spot of carol singing which was fun.

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We had chocolate coins and the ponies got apples and pony treats which were much appreciated.  We also finished most rides with some hot chocolate – it has been pretty chilly!

We also finally managed to paint the ponies’ toes gold. It wasn’t entirely successful as we had to wash their hooves and the glitter didn’t want to stick to wet feet.  We still had fun though!

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My parents came for a walk on our New Year’s Day ride and Galahad was not at all keen on my Mother’s wrap.  He was desperate to dash past her  and even wound Cookster up a bit. Once I had let him stop to have a proper look though he was fine.  He just doesn’t like not knowing what things are!

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I hope you all had very happy Christmases (or are having – Epiphany is not until Friday and we are keeping out the antlers as long as possible!).

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