our new adventure!

[studiowvw]

Ok, I said I'd never haul a horse trailer through Toronto, but guess what, I did it and everything went fine.

Freeways are actually easier for pulling a horse trailer as there is so much less stopping and starting.

We made it home and the five-hour trip didn't seem to bother LAcey much.

I put together the new cart and have been repeating to myself, "Ok, I liked Lori's cart, I liked Lori's cart...."

I just totally hate assembling anything.

Also, how can a manufacturer put three wrenches in the box and not have one wrench fit one nut or bolt in the whole box ????????

Other than that, it is now together and hopefully I have adjusted it to fit the horse.

I was all set to do our first drive at home today, but there is gale force wind here and I think I'll stack the odds in my favour a little more than that. Chairs are flipping over, tarps are flying and the trees are lashing back and forth.

Instead of driving today, I put Lacey out in the fenced paddock and she RAN and RAN and RAN for fun. So glad I didn't do our first drive with that much energy under the hood

Thanks to Lori at MiLo minis for the great start - I know we're a green team, but Lacey learned a lot and I learned a lot, and we are now set to put in some miles together. So exciting!

Driving at Lori's is like driving at a circus, which is great because Lacey sure learned to stay on track no matter what was happening around her. Great start for future showing!

I've also experienced some varieties of gait and attitude (haha!) and have a lot more confidence than I did three months ago about this.

So glad I didn't try to start this horse myself with my limited experience from several decades ago.

To start it'll be big ovals and circles - down the line it'll be cones and hazards. Let the adventure begin!

 

[Sandee]

Kudos to you.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Woohoo!! Now you see the benefit of getting experienced help. I wish everyone had that opportunity!

Leia

 

[studiowvw]

Yes, getting the right kind of help at the right time is a great opportunity.

However, in this case opportunity is actually spelled d-o-w-h-a-t-e-v-e-r-y-o-u-h-a-v-e-t-o-d-o-t-o-g-e-t-i-t-r-i-g-h-t-t-h-i-s-t-i-m-e and fits the description of "good judgment comes from experience, which comes from poor judgment."

I finally found the miniature horse that suited me after 6 or so that I bought and sold - we like each other, and the more I do with her the more we like each other - I don't have to convince her

She's not "difficult", she's pretty, and she's bred to drive. The size I like too.

Then Lori's process sounded like what I wanted, and her rates are VERY reasonable so I could afford 3 months for a solid foundation.

Now I've got Lacey back and she is still the same pony that left. Lori has taught her to work in harness without changing her spirit (very important to me!)

I can hitch her alone, as that is how Lori works and I knew I'd be doing that too.

Lori has given me lots of good information (plus all the great info on this forum) and I think we're in great shape to see some success this time around.

 

[dreaminmini]

Congrats you two!!! You guys looked great on Sunday. It was nice to meet you. Happy that you are off on your adventures but we are going to miss Lacey. We really liked Lacey A LOT! What a sweet mare, beautiful girl. Love them JEM driving horses. Hope you keep us posted on your adventures.

 

[studiowvw]

Thank you - it was nice meeting you too. Wish I lived closer - we could all have gone out driving down the roads in hordes!

Happy to report the success of our first drive at home alone. Woohoo!

I harnessed her up first thing this morning (remembering almost everything Lori told me, haha) My plan was to keep it short and sweet, and I stuck to that.

I think the cart put too much weight on her back when I first got in, because when I asked her to walk on, she reared up. I gave a her a whap with the stick and she went forward and we did great after that. We did big ovals, a couple of big circles, some changes of rein and transitions between gaits.

I was working on myself more than her. (Again, remembering almost everything Lori told me!)

I asked Lori to hold the camera while we did our lesson the other day, so there's about half an hour to watch, with Lori's instructions and advice throughout.

Sure glad I got that, because there are so many things to remember.

I had to simplify and only work on the basics like holding the reins, keeping the right contact, half halts, and pulsing on the reins.

Lacey was very patient and calm after we got going and did everything I asked. We only missed one turn and had to pull around to miss the fence. I think my reinsmanship was way off, haha.

Other than that our turns were pretty good.

Does anyone do two workouts on the same day? Short workouts, I mean. I could get out there this evening for another short session. It's supposed to rain tomorrow.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

If you and your girl are up for it, there's no reason why not.

You'll do that often at breed shows where you may have a class in the morning and another one in the afternoon or evening sessions.

Leia

 

[Mominis]

I sure wish that I had the luxury of time to do two short workouts per day. Halter is kind of my specialty and I school my halter kiddos twice per day: once after their first grooming and once after they are done working and get their second grooming (but witha full-time 'real life' job, I don't have the time to do that for Shake in performance). They sure seem to 'get' things faster that way. I'm sure that in both conditioning and education that two workouts per day, as long as you keep them positive, will do a huge amount of good for you. Best of luck!

 

[studiowvw]

I sure wish that I had the luxury of time to do two short workouts per day. Halter is kind of my specialty and I school my halter kiddos twice per day: once after their first grooming and once after they are done working and get their second grooming (but witha full-time 'real life' job, I don't have the time to do that for Shake in performance). They sure seem to 'get' things faster that way. I'm sure that in both conditioning and education that two workouts per day, as long as you keep them positive, will do a huge amount of good for you. Best of luck!

I work at home (partly due to being a caregiver here) and sometimes I am too busy with jobs to do anything but run out and feed. Nice to have the luxury of working at home, but freelance often means I'm working late into the night (like tonight

Then there are down times, where I could probably fit in two short workouts some days. Maybe we would improve quicker (as long as I keep it short and sweet.)

 

[studiowvw]

Drive # 2 is under our belts (I mean girths) with good success.

The big horses are fascinated by the new action, so they spooked big time at one point and Lacey spooked too with them. Fortunately she realized in time that she couldn't run through the fence, as Lori said she is a sensible horse. Then we just had to back away a couple of feet from the fence and went back to our ovals and circles.

We drove a little longer than the other day and she was going quite well. I am working on myself more than her, and she is very patient and obedient.

I felt that the cart wasn't balanced right the other day, so I moved the seat back as far as it would go, and moved the tugs up one hole. She seemed a lot happier with it and we had a nice session!

I love her personality - she is so sweet natured.