6/18

I counted up the days I have been working with these guys and this was day 28. They are not at too bad of a level. I mean I would like to have been further along, but I can only go as fast their confidence level and mine. As long as we are in sync in our confidence we make progress. When I got So Grand out I again played with the saddle pad trying to shim it in a way that will make it more comfortable for him when I ride. I am thinking that his unwillingness to go forward might be because the mechanics of saddle fit with him. So I want to eliminate as many possibilities as I can. Well, I saddled him and put him a liberty for a few minutes and had him follow me around. Then I did some of my gw exercises. Then I got on him. We made some progress in terms of his forward. I can get him to walk and trot pretty easy going to the right, but not so to the left. However, by the time we were done he was going into a trot when I asked and even offering it. In fact, when he offered me a trot and stayed consistent with that we stopped. I flexed him a few times and finished. Thought I would let him think about it that trotting wasn't so bad. Moon went pretty good. I saddled him and moved him around a bit. Then I introduced him to my snaffle bit. He didn't resist taking it at all. I put it on and off a couple times. Then hooked the line to it and flexed and did some YH on both sides. Then started to circle drive him. I put the other line on too so that both lines were being used. He got a little scared but soon he started to settle down and just walk. Then I started to ask for direction changes and at first it was somewhat like a wreck, but he started to catch on. After about 1/2 hour of this he started to move more fluidly into a direction change without going into a fast trot or canter. When he gave me a couple of relaxed changes at the walk in both directions I put him up. So in both cases it went pretty well.