The Heavy Horse and Painful Ring-Finger (A Cautionary Tale)

Well sadly, one of our team is on the injured list. For once, though, it is not the horse. Nope, it's this guy ...

Yep. That sad little ring finger ...
(Man. I do have the ugliest couch in the world.)

Remember how I was talking about trying to eradicate pulling from my list of riding faults? Well, that's become even more necessary as I've developed a painful case of bursitis in my right ring finger. You see, Crooked Horse has become very dependent on my right rein to hold him up when he becomes unbalanced, and I've been allowing him.

Silly me. That ends now.

We're in a difficult training phase right now. It's filled with spectacular horse tantrums, fraying rider patience, crookedness, fishtailing, and the occasional "pee-your-pants-it's-so-damn-good" moment. We ride for the moments.

Tantrum ho! Note the jammed neck, kicking hind leg, stuck shoulder, and my confused and sad left hand? Classic us.

So? Why all the dramatics?

We're at the point where Guinness needs to learn to sit with his hind end when I ask him to. When I sit on him right now, he tends to fishtail his hind end, pop a shoulder, lock his neck, or one of a thousand other evasions. Eventually, he'll throw me off balance and we'll get into a pulling match. I have to stay calm and sit this period out. He'll figure it out, and stop being so dramatic. And then, boom! We'll have great collection.

As Nancy said on Saturday, "Austen, someone has to be the adult in this relationship."

Dammit. I hate being an adult.