Oops!

Maxine's lovely tail. Yes, it's an appy
tail, but it's the best she's got! 

Today the weather was great and I was off early, so I headed out to the barn to ride Maxine. She has some cinch sores from earlier in the week, so I tightened up her britchen to keep the cinch from rubbing any furless spots.

It was a casual, lazy day for me, so I wasn't surprised that Maxine was a little lazy as well. As a result, I planned to keep the ride short and just work on one thing--keeping in the lope gate without using my heels to continually encourage her. The judge mentioned this to me at the last show, and I wasn't surprised. We've been working on our lope, and this is simply the next step in our progress. 

So, I put her in the lope and--big surprise--she stopped after a few strides with no heel. 

Back into the lope. 

Fall to trot.

Back in the lope.

Wait, did she buck a little?

Fall to trot. 

Hmm.. 

*grabbing whip from wall*

Back in the lope.

*tap*

Continue lope!

*SMILE*

We loped successfully without heel pressure for two laps each direction, so I decided to call it a day. Sometimes the best lessons are the short ones. 

And sometimes, we learn lessons when we least expect it. 

As I walked around Max to undo the britchen, I realized I forgot to pull her tail out when I put it on. As a result, the britchen had been rubbing up and down on my poor dear's tail, causing her hair to pull every which way. It wasn't tight enough to do damage or cause pain, but it looked like it was definitely annoying--hence the little buck at the lope. 

After many apologies (and a few treats), Maxine forgave me for my mistake. 

Lessons learned? 

1. Always pull tail out of britchen before riding.
2. Check tack if Maxine is acting off--even slightly.