It All Starts With The Toes

Second lesson in a week and I've already correct a couple of my bad habits, as well as worked through a lot of Rosie's power house tendencies.

Now the hardest thing to do in the world is to keep your heels down while you're concentrating on keeping forward movement at the trot, posting, pushing with the inside leg, shifting weight to the outside leg and weighting the outside stirrup, keeping your thumbs the highest point of your hand, lifting your inside hand, and holding steady with the outside hand.  All.In.The.Same.Step !

.. whew at least is it for me.  My heels and their "down-ness" has always been an issue for me ever since I was a kid competing.

Tonight before Jodi got there I had my friend S tell me every time I lifted my heel so I could think about WHY I was lifting it.

I was CURLING my toes in my boots when I was thinking hard about doing that whole huge paragraph above.  Curling forces you to tense everything up, and your heel lifts.   The trick is to always widen your toes in your boots to keep the heel down.

Rosie is much better about the pulling, almost cured.  She's bending and moving away from my leg nicely too.

I rode both tests tonight (Intro A & B) and worked on equitation.  Jodi said I rode them great and if I do the same Saturday I'll score really well.

Tomorrow a light ride to loosen both our muscles and another bath then show day.  The show is in the evening in hopes of cooler temps.  The farm has outside lights on the arenas so should be a blast!

I'm NERVOUS !!!