Aqua training, and baaaad poneh!

Catherine Haddad is probably the rider I look up to most. I study her videos better than I ever studied in school, and I try to use many of her training methods. I also adore her sense of humor. Anyway, on a recent blog on COTH - she posted this video of two of her horses during an aqua-training session. I've never actually seen this take place in real life (just pictures, videos), because as far as I know there aren't any facilities around my area that offer this. Not even Purdue (I don't think?). Closest facility is probably Kentucky, if I had to guess. But anyway, I found this video really quite interesting - especially watching the horses' back muscles work. I would be more than willing to shell out some money for Hampton to do this even just once a month. Also, I was very jealous of the heating area the horses got to stand in. I wish I had one just like it in my bathroom!



And now ...

Today's ride was ... uh ... difficult. I could tell right away that Hampton was in a "mood" because he was dancing all around while I was tacking him up, and he was fresh and rushy on the lunge. Both not like him really. But it was a cool morning, and the lawn mowers were buzzing around so I thought I'd just work through it. Well, things started out ok. Then I started working on canter transitions. I thought if he was going to be fresh and forward, hell I'd use that energy and canter a little more than I normally would. Got several nice transitions, then out of no where (it seemed to me), Hampton tripped a little, then SLAMMED me against the wall, banging my knee and nearly scraping me off of him. I'm like WTF horse. I got after him a bit, and he proceded to act like a naughty 3 year old the rest of the time. He would not halt. He bulged through my aids. I tried to leg yield left and he came to a dead stop and balked. He got spanked. At this point, one of the girls who helps at the barn, but isn't too experienced with horses walks in. And here I am, tearing around the arena on Hampton ... cussing at him sort of under my breath.

Then he tries to scrape me off on the wall AGAIN! Now I was mad, and he was going to leg yield and move his friggin back legs until they fell off. Well, he didn't like that idea and threw in a HUGE BUCK. I mean, I felt air between my ass and the saddle and for a second thought I may fall off. Amazingly, I did not lose my stirrups, but I did lose my right rein. Ooops. Luckly, he did not carry on or else I would have been screwed. The boy can jump in the air and he gets that from his father - who I saw dump the trainer a couple of times doing the exact same thing. More cussing, and walk, trot, halt transitions later and there was finally some peace. Good grief. The girl in the barn just walked around - I am sure horrified. Everyone else there has older schoolmasters, so I am sure she is not used to seeing the likes of my riding a naughty young horse around. I mean somedays, it is just ugly. That is training. I apologized to her for cussing up a storm (I always sound more mad than I really am). I really need to curb my mouth when I ride, because it's not professional. Anyway, I do feel that Hampton has earned himself a few days of hard lunging and perhaps when I ride this weekend he will be more obedient. Little brat.