Less is more

Devote yourself to your heart's desire with unflagging shrewdness. Make it your top priority. Let no lesser wishes distract you. 
But consider this, too. You may sabotage even your worthiest yearning if you're maniacal in your pursuit of it.
Bear in mind the attitude described by Clarissa Pinkola Estés in her book "Women Who Run with the Wolves:" "All that you are seeking is also seeking you. If you sit still, it will find you. It has been waiting for you a long time."
- http://bit.ly/Pronoia

"Less is More" is my mantra for 2013. This is the third year that I have had the goal of finishing a 100 mile ride with Luba. Three time's a charm?

First lesson was taught to me by M&M. Sue invited me for a mellow resolution ride on New Year's day. I rode M&M, her FEI horse. Seen it, done it, been there, got the T-shirt. Tied him to the trailer to tack up. He calmly starts emptying the hay net. Don't waste an opportunity to eat. We rode out last, behind Sue/Hummer and Angie/Stella. M&M knew this was a mellow ride and he wasted no energy. No spooking, no looky looky, no wanting to go faster than the walk. You could put a 5 year old on him and he would take good care of her. Fast forward to the following weekend at the Bumblebee Lead, Follow or Get out of my Way Endurance Ride. M&M and Sue win the 50 and BC.

Being in a sunny clime also meant no excuses to get my running program back on track. I ran with Steph, on my own and with Ross.  Started with pyramid running - run 1 minute, walk 1 minute, run 2 minutes walk 1 minute up to 5 or 6 minutes and then down the same controlled way. The next thing you know, running 5 kms with few or no walking breaks is totally do-able.  The magic of progressive conditioning. Make haste slowly.

Less is more with Masterson Method as well. At a weekend workshop in Tucson, I learned that sometimes the biggest releases come from the lightest touch - even just "air gap".  Breathe and soften. Wait for the release. Let the horse come to you.

Same message from Sokolowski clinic I audited last weekend, hosted by Seaway Valley Arabian Horse Association. Let the horse move you. Don't work so hard. Let your body be loose.  Keep springy legs and soft hands, soft eyes. Softly gaze in the direction you want to go (drishti).

In his new book, Endurance: A French Perspective, Leonard Liesens writes about Jack Begaud's uncanny ability to pick a good horse. "When people tell him he was there at the right time, Jack answers with an Arabian maxim borrowed from his sponsor [Sheikh Mohammed]: 'The one catching the bird was hidden in the bush with an open hand'".

So, I am keeping an open hand. I wonder what I will catch?

How to train your dragon

My friend, Dianne, posted this picture on her FB a couple weeks ago. It immediately made me think of how Luba feels to me sometimes - like riding a fire-breathing Arabian.

photo credit: Artur Baboev

A FB conversation ensued about this being why we keep ourselves in good shape (physically and even more important, I would argue, mentally), so we can "tame the beast", or train your dragon.

 My friend, Nancy wrote these wise words to me:

YOU chose to ride an Arabian and do a speed outdoor sport so you have a horse with more hemogloben than the ones around you.  You have a horse that was born to run , so you are not going to have quick stops and complete obedience that you would ask of a Quarter Horse a Morgan or cold blooded horse!    So The Arab needs to slow down slower turn less sharply.  You need to not MAKE your horse do something, rather  COMPROMISE and  with finesse convince your horse that this is what we are going to do. It may take three strides more than other breeds .  Try the gallop with a snaffle and let me know if it works.   I assume you will be standing two point when you canter (This is NOT show ring) .  

She also sent me an eventing article by Lisa Slade from The Chronicle of the Horse, Oct 29, 2012 edition, entitled, "In Search of the Most Balanced Gallop". Two types of rider positions for gallop have emerged among eventers in US: one with a closed hip angle, crouching over the horse and the other with an open hip, standing more upright. Nancy recommends the more upright position for endurance riding. 

Nancy Beacon riding Traverston Sadat at the 1994 World Equestrian Games 

One of the most common faults discussed in the article is galloping more or less in a two-point position, but your bum gently tapping the saddle with each stride."Every time the rider's weight tips back and taps that saddle, it is wearing and tiring on a horse."  I worked on this with Sandra Sokolowski at her clinic in October. Lots of the exercises she gave me were aimed at strengthening the muscles needed to maintain this kind of two-point position. Nancy, bless her,  pointed out that I could strengthen these muscles by riding in two-point. LOL

So practising canter/gallop in the two point and practising compromise is part of my plan for How to Train my Fire-Breathing Arabian. Notice that two-point is also the way to ride a dragon:

Last weekend, the snow finally arrived! So the footing is good again for faster work :) And Uwe just plowed the Paddock Track yesterday, so including the lane way, we have almost a mile for cantering! And lots of snowy trailbreaking in the woods to really work those glutes. Almost makes me sad to leave for Arizona on Monday. Almost.

lane way to the road

paddock track before

paddock track after

Show up and do what you can with what you have

So we are getting November weather in December. Wet and hovering just above or just below freezing. And it is December dark.

The bad news is that the only good footing at the farm is the driveway. The good news is that there is a lot of driveway!

I have signed up for the Ottawa Half Marathon in May as a way of motivating myself to run and get stronger for riding. I started a walk/run program at the beginning of November. Alas, after one week, I had strained a tendon in my ankle. Walking was okay, and we got in a few good Sunday morning family hikes in the Gatineau. But no running.

This week, I saw a picture on FB that made me decide that it was time to try running again. What's your excuse?

It is much easier to run with a partner, so I picked Luba.  We walked/ran up and down the driveway on Monday and Wednesday evenings. Then we did a light ride in the rain on Friday. This morning, we walked/ran on the driveway leading to Forced Road which is a quarter of a mile long. Then I tacked up and we trotted and cantered up and down the driveway for about 15 minutes and then walked in the woods for 45 minutes to cool/dry out.

It's not a lot, but it is better than nothing.

Doing the best we can with what we have.

Half the battle is just showing up!

Letting go

November is typically a hard month for me. Shorter days, often cloudy, cold and wet. Luckily, this November was not too bad. We had lots of sun, no freezing rain and the ground did not really freeze until last weekend.  I went sunrise riding a few times before work too. You don't have to get up that early in November to see the sunrise!

Luba and I also spent November finding our fit with the new farm. It is great to have a group to ride with when we want some company. Friday night riding from 6-8pm is magical. Last Friday, everyone else was sick or thought it was too cold. But it was a marvellous night for a moondance. The forest became brighter as the full moon rose, making moon shadows. No need for a headlamp. There was no wind, so the only sounds were Luba's hooves crunching on the snowy trail and the coyotes singing.

Night riding is great for learning to feel your horse. Last Friday night, I realized that sometimes it is better not to pay attention to every little thing that catches Luba's attention. I can't see what she is looking at, so I don't bother with it. This seemed to help her settle more quickly and bring her focus back to the trail.

I have worked very hard to have a "rateable" horse. We go the speed I want pretty much all the time in all the gaits - which usually translates into slower than Luba's preferred speed. Since our goal is to go faster, the plan is to let her set her own faster pace (after a suitable warm up, of course). Learn how to let her go as fast as she wants and then slow her down. Even teach her a cue for going as fast as she wants, like "Let's go!".  My friend, Nancy Beacon, says the trick is to "feel the horse back", slowing her down just a bit with each stride. 

This reminds me of Uwe's advice to me after Luba bolted (see Run, Bolt, Bail, Walk), to just stay with her and ride it out, guiding her in the direction of my choice until both of us slowed down.

It is going to take some time for me to get used to letting Luba go. We have a 0.4 mile track around her paddock aka the Paddock Track. The first time I experimented with letting her go on this track, my first instinct was to rate her canter. I had to really focus on letting her go as fast as she wants. So going faster is more my problem than Luba's problem :)

Now the ground is frozen and there is just a skiff of snow cover. Today it is raining and it will freeze tonight. So the footing will not be good for canters until the real snow arrives. However, that doesn't stop me from letting Luba pick the pace more often. 

It's Luba's ride too :)

She's just, you know... Luba

The endurance community lost an icon this week: Kathy Brunjes (1953 to 2012). I met Kathy this summer in Maine at the Pine Tree Ride, put on by her and her husband, Tom Hutchinson.  Despite recently being diagnosed with cancer, Kathy was everywhere, making sure all the ducks were in a row for the ride. She put Luba's number on after we vetted in for the 100.

We were the only ones to stay over an extra night after the ride. She and Tom checked on us often to make sure we were all doing okay.

Of all the tributes I have seen to Kathy in the past few days, this one resonated with me today:

Steph Teeter said, "Kathy was very special, I have some great memories of her. Especially of her and her horse Theatric at the World Championship in Malaysia. At the start, he was acting up, beautifully as always, rearing slightly. She sat him calmly and I asked if she was ok, she said "oh yes, he's fine. He's just, you know.... theatric". "

Between cold, rainy weather and an unfortunate sneeze that put my back out, Luba was left to her own devices to settle in at Horses of the Sun this week. I popped out a couple times to see her and give her a scratch, but did not ride.

Charlotte and I went out on Saturday for her riding lesson, so I decided to just walk Luba around and give us both a chance to settle at the farm. I also wanted to make sure that my back was feeling strong enough for riding.  We had a lovely time wandering through the woods at the back of the property. Luba wanted to trot, but we kept it under wraps.

Today, we joined in a group lesson in the sand ring. Luba was quite well-behaved all things considered. All 7 of us rode precision figures. As usual, the far end of the ring was scary.  We also had some interesting canter moments - Luba was like a coiled spring and just wanted to go fast! Sonja put us behind Cadance, a large horse who does everything slowly.  A couple of times, Luba felt like she was going to buck in the canter, so I shouted, "Hey! Stop that!". I did have the presence of mind to sit and push her forward.  And to sit and take both reins in one hand and we rode through.

After the lesson, Sonja told me that it must have felt worse that it looked, because when I shouted, she wasn't sure who it was at first. Neither of us was out of control. Just ride.

Next time this happens, I am going to think of Kathy Brunjes. I can't imagine a classy lady like her shouting at her horse. I will sit Luba calmly and say to myself, "Oh yes, she's fine. She's just you know...Luba".

You bring a different body to the mat every day and horses are not furry bicycles

One of the things I have learned about practising yoga is that you bring a different body to the mat every day. The trick is to accept the body you bring today and find your fit. Breathe.

With all the short day trips we have been doing lately, Luba has been loading like a pro. She loads for Charlotte, she loads for strangers, she loads for me and she even loaded herself one day for the return trip. I pointed her at the trailer and she walked on.

On Saturday, we moved Luba to her new home at Horses of the Sun in Vars.  Here is how she looked this morning:

spontaneous left canter enjoyment at HOTS

On Saturday morning, Charlotte loaded Luba on the trailer and we headed to Roadapple Ranch for the First Annual Haunted Horse Haul.

All 9 of us had a great 3 hours on the trail. On the way home, Ryan noticed that Luba had lost one of her hoof boots. So we let the others go ahead and turned around to go look for it. These were the same trails Luba and I last rode for the Stormont 75.  But Luba and I were bringing different bodies to the trail this day.

She happily left the group at at strong trot and we flew back to the "ravine" part of trail where we found the lost boot. Luba stood quietly while I put it back on and and we turned around again to catch up with everyone.  We were on fire (well, a controlled burn).  Big trot and lovely canters. When we joined back up with the main trail, we went left, cantering all the way to the trailhead parking lot on the Berwick Road. By then, I realized that the others must have turned right. We were having so much fun, we just kept on going, trotting and cantering our way back to Roadapple Ranch. Fun, fun fun.

When it was time to leave the farm, Luba had a different idea.  I was mad at Luba. I forgot that we bring a different body to the mat every day.  And that horses are not furry bicycles (as Gayle Ecker once said).

Thanks to Mike for pointing out being angry was not going to get Luba to load on the trailer.  Horses are bigger than we are. The trick is to accept the body (horse) you bring today and find your fit. Breathe.

So with calm, firm convincing, especially from Denise, we found our fit, loaded up and drove to our new home, ready to experience life with horses at Horses of the Sun.

coffee machine stretch

Luba and I took it down a notch after the Stormont 75.  I gave her a couple of weeks off, she got adjusted, I got adusted. Our first ride was 30 minutes of walking and grazing in the back field. Bringing ourselves back slowly off of the R&R.

Another piece of the puzzle is to become more relaxed about trailering. So we have been trying to get out for day trips. So every time we get on the trailer, it is not a 4-6 hour drive, two or three nights of camping and a 50 mile ride thrown in for good measure.

So far, this strategy seems to be working! Luba is loading like a pro and has even started eating on the trailer! Here is some photographic evidence.

Our most recent day trip was to Venturing Hills in Luskville, Quebec for a clinic with physiotherapist, Sandra Sokolowski. Her mantra is "The posture you live in is the posture you ride in!"

We did a videotaped mounted semi-private session followed by a private physio-therapy assessment and a group exercise session.  She tries to focus on a few targeted exercises and give you tips so that you can incorporate into your existing daily routine. Here is my list:

1. Toilet stretch - when you go to the bathroom, bring one leg across the knee of your opposite leg and fold forward. Repeat on the other side.

2. Springy legs on bike - when you ride your bike to work, keep "springy legs" - loose and flexible heels, knees, hips - with no side-to-side movements.

3. Oblique sit ups. More oblique sit ups. And then more oblique sit ups.

4. Stand as if you were on a horse - feet hips width apart, springy legs, engage pelvic floor (otherwise known as mula bandha). Fold forward slightly at the hips as if you were in two point and keep upper back soft. This will keep your lower back round and strong. Hold 3-10 pound weights in each hand and move them out and back as if they were following the reins.

5. Lunge forward until your calf is perpendicular to the floor (your can still see your toe). Face forward and let your hip fold, push straight up from your heel and feel your glutes engage to push you to standing position over your front leg. Repeat repeat repeat. Repeat on other side.

Oh yeah. And breathe.

The most important stretch for all riders is one that I practice every day at the office. It is called the coffee machine stretch or the microwave stretch or the photocopier stretch.  When you are waiting by one of these machines, take that minute to practise this stretch.

Stand with feet about hips width apart. Fold forward and grasp your elbows so you are hanging like a rag doll. Breathe. When the coffee is almost ready, pull your belly button in towards your spine as if you had a porcupine on your belly. Keep breathing. When the coffee is ready, release the position and slowly roll up. Put your hands in your back pockets and open your heart, arching gently back for a few breaths.

Add a bit of cream and a teaspoonful of honey. Stir and enjoy.