It's not me, it's you.

I miss summer.

Last week I fell victim to the Flu. I cannot even remember the last time I had it but holy cow it took me down. It lasted a good 6 days. Today I was able to clean stalls and not feel like I was going to collapse! Yay! Still have a gross cough but I can deal with that.

Meanwhile, I made J - my instuctor - ride Hampton while I sat on the mounting block and coughed on Saturday. I was just as impressed with her riding as I am with her teaching. Hampton was not that impressed, however. He threw all his tricks at her to try to get out of work. There was a lot of kicking out at the leg and pig-rooting. Bad pony! But there were some nice moments in there. I may have her ride him once a month. It's good for him.

... but unfortunately, having a beginner ride him once a month is NOT good for him. He is not dangerous, but I should have known better. He is not comfirmed enough in his training to throw a beginner on him twice a week. He has developed a few bad habits as a result and his training has suffered a setback. It will all come back, it's not like he is ruined, but I have had a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach for a while about this lease situation and I am so glad it's over. Yes I did "break up" with this person and there was no drama. But boy do I feel better. She had texted me once about how he was "running into the railroad ties around the arena." This did not sit well with me. Our arena has railroad tie things around the edges. He was running into them because SHE WAS NOT BOTHERING TO STEER HIM. I gritted my teeth at that but I should have stopped it there. Two weeks ago she casually mentioned that she has draw reins "just sitting in her car" and maybe she could use them with him? .... yeah I kept my cool, but barely.

(my stance on draw reins is that they are mostly not needed ... are downright dangerous in uneducated hands ... and create more problems than they solve. However, I do believe there are some circumstances where they may be appropriate. Hampton is NOT one of them.)

Just not a good match. I am not the perfect rider by any means but he needs someone with independent seat and hands until he is a wise old schoolmaster. I might sound snobby, selfish and bitchy but I feel so much better now that he is not being leased anymore.

This week's schedule: Work on collection. Collection. Collection. Straightness. Straightness. Use the outside aids until I am blue in the face.