Getting Out

It isn’t news to those here in the Northeast that it has been a rough winter and it is still going. With a foot and a half of snow on the ground and highs in the twenties it feels more like January than the second day of Spring.

Needless to say, it has been tough getting out of the arena. Really it has been hard enough riding at all, but the footing outside has been especially challenging. Either it has been too hard and icy or too soft. It wasn’t until the last week or so that we have gotten enough snow that hasn’t iced over to be conducive to riding outside, and I finally did! Of course she was a bit squirrelly with snow falling from the buildings and a brisk wind, but we managed to trot around the field and walk up and down the hill a couple times. At that point I decided to quit while I was ahead and cut the ride short. At least I did it!

It is so good for them and us to get out of the ring. It is good for their brains and their bodies. Let’s face it, there are only so many times we can try to perfect a fifteen meter circle or trot half pass. The horses don’t want to be drilled any more than we want to drill it. Everybody gets board. They want to see something other than four steel walls and need different footing to help work different muscles and keep them on their toes (sometimes literally).

Getting out of the “safety” of the arena can be scary, even if the barrier is only a foot tall plastic fence, but it is always worth it.