Two seats
As I ride Champagne in my two saddles, I find I need two types of sitting postures.My dressage saddle calls for quite an upright posture, and I am still learning the fine points. I understand the concept of being able to draw a straight line from ankle through hips through ear, but that’s harder to achieve that it would seem. For one thing, I continually have to remind myself to “open my hip angle” which appears to mean move my thighs back more, to hug the saddle with my thighs kind of rolled in, keeping my feet back behind the girth, and remembering to tilt my pelvis just slightly forward, while reaching up with the top of my head and bringing my shoulder blades back, a

G'Day, Mates!
Yesterday I received my new Australian drover’s saddle and tried it on Champagne. He has a tough back to fit, but I put a white pad under the saddle to try to see after I rode (from the soil pattern) whether the saddle was bearing down unduly on particular spots on his back.As I led him to the cross ties he spotted the new saddle and was all eyes and ears, and was very dubious when I put it on his back. It is a lot heavier than my dressage saddle, and I had thought that one was heavy. The barn manager showed me how to fasten the girth (cinch?). “Latigo” is a new term for me.The saddle is very handsome, black, and made of synthetics and newbuck so it should

Irisado "Two Spooks" Champagne
The woods are lovely this time of year. By now most of the oranges and reds have gone, but the yellows remain, and everywhere the leaves are drifting down in a pale silent rain. The vistas under the trees have opened up, and you can see much deeper into the forest.Champagne and I enjoyed being out Sunday. Well, I enjoyed it. He’s willing to go along, and even responds to some of my daft ideas, like trotting up the pipeline hill (though he’s pretty puffed by the time we reach the top). I ask him to trot for two reasons: one, to build up his wind, and two, because if we walk up, he keeps stopping and insisting he can’t possibly make it.At one point there is

The apple of my eye
The WBH, being slightly insulin resistant, isn’t supposed to have grain or things with sugar, but I do love to give him treats. I have taught him to stand quietly while I hold out a piece of carrot just at nose level, and not to take it until I say “okay”. (Formerly he was quite rude about treats, lunging at them in an alarming way.)I also have taught him to stand still while I mount and dismount by rewarding him with a carrot piece. But as a rule, he doesn’t get a lot of food rewards.Lately though, as we go on our traditional cool-down circuit of the property perimeter, I have noticed that some trees have small ripe crab apples in easy reach. I have also

My fine fellow (again)
Once in a while riding is a pleasure, not just another chance to work on this or that technique, which is boring and often does not succeed.Saturday I took Champagne out on the trails all by myself (which I admit can be hazardous, but I took my cell phone) and it was really fun.I only met one other person, a mountain biker who came up behind us, shouted ahead to me, and asked if he should walk his bike as he passed us. I accepted and moved Champagne off the trail. After the guy passed, Champagne was like, “Can we go with him? Can we catch up?” He was calm and steady, and not at all afraid.The day was coolish with bright sunshine. A nice little br