WW: 2 Horses

So this is going to be another "kind of wordless" Wednesday post.

BQ owns a full-blooded QH gelding named Ramsey that I've always liked. He is notorious for having a nasty buck when asked to canter - he has bucked off every single person who has ever asked him to canter, including our resident barn trainer! BQ says that when he bucks, his back is perpendicular to the ground...

His leaser is away on vacation, and I was asked if I could ride him a couple of times a week while she is away, to keep him in regular work. I said yes.  But we're just walking and trotting, thanks. For now at least, while I get to know him.

I'd been warned he might test me, and he might buck too, in the process. So far, so good. His testing me has been not wanting to trot after a walk break. By the end of our ride today (our second ride ever), he was picking up a snappy trot when I asked him to.

His previous leaser was an advanced dressage rider, and installed some pretty cool buttons in this horse. He LOVES dressage, and will happily lighten in the front end and flip his feet up if you ask him nicely. I think he was taught to hyperflex, though. Either that, or he learned to curl behind the bit as an avoidance technique. Regardless, I've been working on getting him in a more correct frame.

Here are some pics, courtesy of my mom, who came out to watch today. :)

He was trying to hyperflex. I was gently lifting my hands to bring him back into a more upright frame. Note that he is on the forehand here: the left hind has left the ground before the right front.

Trying out a much more relaxed frame; I was sitting the trot. 

Still breaking at the 3rd vertebrae, but better! Check out what a powerhouse this horse is.

I was in that awkward "up" part of the post, but I really like how the colors and light came out in this one. And Ramsey looks fab!

A correct extended trot if I ever saw one! (I need to straighten my shoulders and lift them back, but whatevs; Ramsey is doing what he's supposed to. :) ) Note how he's working from back to front: the left hind is touching the ground before the right front.
Who says QHs can't do dressage??!!

I had aced Lily right before hopping on Ramsey, so by the time I untacked him and hosed him off, she was ready to go. The guys were working on repairs in both the outdoor and indoor arenas at this point, and the trails were uber-muddy after 3 days of rain, so I took Lily out into the big field for our walk/trot sets. 

Trotting uphill

Trotting downhill. She looks Arabian-ish again here.

My fave. The tan brick house in the background makes it look like we're riding in an Irish moor or something. :)

I trimmed her tootsies again yesterday. Her feet look NICE. I swear her right front, the flatter and more crooked foot, is starting to appear straighter, more balanced, especially when looked at from underneath. I'll try to post pics later this week.