Proud

It was a beautiful morning, sunny but not too warm, hardly any wind, and the horses were perky in the stable instead of the sleepy heads we've had of late.

Instead of hacking out I took Anky into the school and from start to finish she was relaxed. We worked at walk, concentrating on changing the bend, keeping the neck relaxed, asking for a flexion and softness in the hand. She was pretty good on the right rein with a genuine bend, softness in the outside rein and good flexion to the inside. I have to be prepared for her falling out through her shoulder, but today she was fairly straight.
She's more resistant to the left and I have to concentrate on keeping her neck fairly straight, a little feel on the outside rein to soften and keep her nose from tipping to the inside and then ask for the flexion with the inside rein. She was getting it today and it felt good when it came.

I then took Remy into the school and had a lovely in-hand session. We had walk, trot and canter on the lunge, although the canter was in response to something he'd heard down the field, but he was a good boy and we continued with some lovely walk work, soft and stretching over his neck with a lovely, easy stride.

I couldn't leave Bonbon out so took her for a walk up the field. She was so good I took her across the track and into the school. There was a lot of heavy breathing and eyes on stalks as she investigated first the sand (which she's never seen before), then the poles and jump wings stacked in opposite corners of the school. She tentatively stretched her neck as far as she could to look at them before touching them and discovering they were perfectly safe. We investigated all of the school and she was brilliant. I couldn't be more proud. Jim says she's a bit spesh - and she is!!