Month: September 2011

This morning Magic and I rode through the Divide pasture, up the deer hunters’ road and up the old wagon road that goes to the high bench on Pinnacle Mountain. We usually stop at the little bench at the switchback but Magic wanted to keep on going. I turned him around before we got to the part that usually stops ATVs. Nice cool morning, lots of energy. When we went in the gate to the Divide pasture there was a deer about 30 yards away. It got scared and started running fast. It thought the most desirable escape route was to run down the fence to a gap that was easier to jump than the fence. I’ve seen this doe before and I think she has diminished capacity of some kind. She lets you get too close, chooses an escape route that is closer to you than she was originally, and ends up in a frantic run. Generally not a good close encounter for a energetic horse on a cool morning. Magic saw everything that was happening. It bothered him not at all! He has the confidence of a Christian with four aces on a new age church casino outing. We had a very enjoyable ride.

I rode Magic this morning. It’s been a long time. I have been on a bird hunting trip to Montana. Magic is a good horse. Even though he has not been ridden in a long time, I noticed improvement. Maybe he had a good time on the last trail ride. A specific improvement I noticed was that he left the barn willingly at a good walk and going directly where I directed him. Green horses often check with each stride to see if you might want to go back to the barn. They veer to the left, then the right and then back to the left again requiring to be checked and urged forward constantly for the first few hundred yards. We rode up to the little bench just below the Pitkin Limestone outcrop on Pinnacle Mountain, maybe a mile out and a mile back. Magic rode forward the whole way. It was a joy. We cantered through the Ash pasture on the way back.

I have been thinking about the trail ride Magic and I took with Peggy and April and Tommy and Wanda. Magic did good on his first trail ride. There were two things that I keep thinking about. Sometimes Magic followed too close and he pushed Peggy with his nose when she held him when I moved the trailer. I overlook these little rude misbehaviors when I am alone but it bothers me when it happens around other people. After thinking about it I realize that I have a problem. I allow him to push me and I just accept it but when he pushed Peggy, I found that unacceptable. He would not have pushed Peggy if I did not allow him to push me. (He was nervous but that is no excuse.) One of the reasons gentle training appeals to me is because I have undesirable results when I am strict and utilize negative discipline. A heavy hand does not work for me. I am not saying it is never effective but it is not effective for me. My relationship with the animal is diminished if I use a heavy hand. So I pick my battles carefully. I have overlooked nose pushing after a ride, moving around when I tighten the girth and moving around when I mount. Some horses stand quietly while I groom and tack up. Magic is not one of them. I have talked with Paul Roten about teaching me some of the methods he uses training horses. Paul might help me overcome this problem. A solution to this problem might give me some insight to limitations I have as a rider.

Magic and I took our first Buffalo River trail ride today. At daylight the weather was iffy, high chance of rain. But it was not raining, so we got ready. No problems loading and we actually left on time. I met Peggy and April on the way to Pruitt. We parked, unloaded and I tacked up. Magic was nervous. Probably the last time Magic went for a ride with other horses was at a race track, probably not a calming experience. The nice thing about Magic is that even if he gets nervous, he does not go to pieces. I mounted and we walked down the road a little way. Tommy and Wanda showed up about this time and we started down the trail. Tommy was on Levi, Wanda rode Rio, April was on Savannah and, of course, Peggy was on Red. About 10 minutes down the trail, we jumped a big bull elk. He was big with huge antlers about 100 yards from us. None of the horses were bothered. The elk stood in the open a look at us until Peggy got her camera out. Then he was gone. We rode about 5 miles upriver crossing the river three times. Magic was not sure what was going to happen and how he should act. He was completely controllable and did what was asked of him. He was much more inclined to jog trot than usual but he would transition to a walk and calm down when asked. We ate lunch on a gravel bar across from the bluff near Brown Cemetery. Magic was nervous when I tied him up but soon calmed down and rested. He could see all the other horses were resting and it obviously was a good idea. The return trip was uneventful, exactly what I wanted. Magic has an energetic walk with a good stride and it is a lot of fun to ride him on the return leg of a trail ride. Our first trail ride was a good experience. Now he knows what to expect and how he is expected to act. I hope he learns to enjoy trail rides. At one time I would have considered that statement unreasonable. (Why or how could a horse enjoy being ridden?) It is good to learn from your horse. I think Tut did enjoy the outings, seeing the other horses and the whole experience.

I rode Magic to the arena, around the Oak pasture and up on Shirey Mountain. When we do the oval exercise, Magic has a tendency to bend in the wrong direction. It is most notable on the first leg of the exercise. I do not have a specific plan or technique to correct this but we will keep on riding. Very nice weather and a very nice ride.

Magic and I rode up towards Pinnacle Mountain again today. The trails, actually deer hunter roads, go a long way back in there. There are some steep climbs on the trails that, I think, are a good way to condition a horse. We went further than yesterday. We climbed up to the switchback on the trail up to the bench above the Pitkin Limestone on Pinnacle. Magic does very good. A nice fast walk. He just puts one foot in front of the other. I like to stop a look around but Magic fidgets and wants to move on even after a climb. I think the best way to get him to stop and relax is by going with other horses and have a rest stop. Most people I ride with keep moving and go a long way and only stop for lunch. They tie their horses and walk off to the view or whatever to eat lunch. I was amazed that none of the horses ever cause problems while tied up. Then I figured it out. They are very tired and willing to stand still and rest. I think some of the horses, like Tut, really enjoy the trail rides, seeing other horses, and having an adventure. I just do not want to over-do it and make it a pain for the horses. It is not unusual to start at 9 and end at 4 with an hour off for lunch. It is usually around 14 miles. The time is not a problem but I would like to rest the horses more often perhaps staying out just as long but only traveling 7 miles. Anyway, today was Magic’s steepest, rockiest and longest climb. No noticeable movement of the saddle going up or down but it was not much of a test. He did good. It was an enjoyable ride. It would be a good idea to take a GPS and measure the distance, time, and rise/fall of some of these rides that I can use for conditioning.

Nice weather. I just got back from a road trip to a family wedding in Jacksonville FL. I rode Magic this morning. It has been some time since we rode much due to the hot weather. The cows are back. They were not invited but they came anyway. The owner wanted them to go down the road past my place but they remembered the road to my place and just swarmed up it and he could not get them to leave. They really like the grass up here. So we did not ride in the arena. We went up towards Pinnacle Mountain. The deer hunters planted some oats in the springfield and I wanted to see it. We went up the lower road a little ways past the spring and came back on the upper road. The deer hunters have corn feeders to attract the deer. (That was once called baiting and considered very unsportsmanlike. The hunters buy lots of corn and the merchants like that. They are going to kill them anyway so I see the feeding as an advantage to the does and little bucks that don’t get killed.) The hunters also have motion activated cameras that get a picture when something comes to the feeder. This year they have lots of pictures of a bear that steals the corn. (The hunters really don’t mind. They want to kill the bear too.) So Magic and I kept a keen eye for a little black bear. Magic is so calm about wildlife that I am curious about what he will do if we do see a bear. We did jump a deer. A faun hidden in a down cedar jumped up about 75 feet ahead of us in a field. Magic’s only reaction was to perk up his ears. He never even broke his stride. I enjoyed the ride. Magic is a very nice horse. He has a nice fast, eager walk. We are ready to go ride the Buffalo River trails. I will arrange a small group and a short ride for his first trip.