Your Drive Day

[Cayuse]

Hope that you feel better soon Willow. Next month will be here soon.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Oh, pooh, Willow!

 

[Willow Flats]

Thanks! After the play day portion they are having a clinic to learn a new ADS Preliminary B dressage test for events held in April. I won't be competing and if I did would be at training level, but you can learn a lot by auditing the clinics. All the advice and corrections given the driver's are really helpful.

I'm hoping the weather cooperates for them because the trainer is from England, so it will be business as usual.

 

[Cayuse]

My new harness arrived yesterday, the one I had to exchange for a smaller size. It fits! Well, it fits Peanut. I think it will JUST fit Cappy with a longer girth . I will try it tommorrow. Cappy is one hole larger than Peanut everywhere and I have room to let the harness out one hole so we should be good.
It is supposed to be 50 or 60 tommorrow so I hope to be able to work them.
I clipped their chin whiskers and bridle paths. Soon I will do the rest of them.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

No driving lately, but we've been on long walks. Two little children came out yesterday to pet and brush. Midnight isn't so bad, but I can hardly wait to tidy up Dapper Dan. That wild mane is driving me crazy! I scissored the hair around his hooves so the farrier could at least find them.

 

[MajorClementine]

@MindySchroder I would love to try that bitless with Perry as we progress with our training. I've never done bitless before but Perry is a smart little thing and if anyone would excel at it, it would be him I think. I'll have to look into it a little more... You've got me curious for sure.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Long walk yesterday. My neighbor will sometimes go with me so I can take both horses. We both marveled at Midnight's progress. My neighbor is not "horsey", but she noticed it also. Midnight walks with me so confidently now. She used to crowd up against us while walking, but now she is showing her confidence and striding along in her own space. I need to hitch her; don't know why I am so lazy. Spring fever??

 

[Marsha Cassada]

An hour driving Midnight today. 20 of that was chatting with a neighbor. I wanted her to check the saddle while I was in the sulky to make sure I was balanced. We drove around the poles a few times. Then went on the road. She is so fast, we did our 2.56 miles in 34 minutes. I did ask her to walk part of it. Her trots clocked 9.6 mph. We need to work on turning left. When we are working on side passing, she goes pretty well to the left, but can't seem to figure out her feet going to the right. I think if keep doing the poles, she will get better.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

As soon as this wet weather passes, we will be ready for some more work. Midnight is prepared.

 

[Cayuse]

Where did you get the mask? Can't even get toilet paper around here!

Ground drove Peanut today and cleaned his bridle. His harness can wait until next time. Still working around the mess in the field, one more inspection and the leach field will get finished. It breaks my heart as it has ruined my pasture. This giant lump right in the middle of it looks like someone buried a dinosaur. Or two.

My first show is in 6 weeks, but with this corona virus, I doubt if they run it. Lots of clinics and stuff are being canceled. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

It was an old mask I had in my work area for when I do sanding. There was even a mud dauber nest on it.
I feel for you with the mess. Hopefully by the time the show season begins, things will have settled down. Not much reaction in my rural corner of the world. Stores are stocked. No one is closed. The only closures are the nursing homes restricting visitors. Hard to know what to think about it all.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

It's been so wet and soggy here. My horses are solid mud balls. Neighbor came over today and we walked my horses on the paved road, just to get them on some dry, solid ground for a bit. I can't walk them both myself--just doesn't work out. And walking one 2 miles, then the other 2 miles isn't in the cards any more for me. Very breezy! We all got a work out. Maybe tomorrow I can scrape enough mud off Midnight to put on the harness.

 

[Willow Flats]

We had a week of rain too and it was a mess, but we have had a few dry days so I'm going to drive today and tomorrow or Sunday too hopefully. We are on govenment orders to stay home here because of the virus. Everything on my regular schedule has been cancelled except I haven't heard from my tax accountant yet, and I also have a dental appointment which I'm sure I will be hearing from them. Crazy times!

 

[Willow Flats]

It was a beautiful day today! Me and Annie. My dog Shorty there on the right likes to follow us along or ride on the cart when I let him.

 

[Cayuse]

We had a sky that blue yesterday too! I commented to hubby about it. Annie has a blaze just like my welsh pony. Love a blaze!
Good that you can get out of the house. It has been slightly nuts here, too. We are not on governent orders to stay home, though.
My husband is working from home now which is a big change (not a bad change, just different)and stores are limiting their hours. Agway only lets 4 customers at a time into the store and alot of places are not taking cash, just credit cards.
I ground drove Peanut yesterday. He rolled. Spring shedding got the better of him
SNOW tommorrow!

 

[Willow Flats]

And we are getting more rain starting tomorrow! Really taking advantage of the nice days. The only things we are allowed to leave our homes for are essentials such as food, medicine, or exercise. We cleaned up our bikes today so that will be something else to do.

I love Annie's coloring because she never looks dirty. We have a ditch that fills with water when we get a lot of rain and then I put on my rubber boots and I take Kriss for a walk in it and when we emerge his socks are nice and white.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Annie is beautiful.

 

[Willow Flats]

Annie is beautiful.

Thank you Marsha

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I see you have cut Zorro's mane. I really need to do Dapper Dan's, but I was afraid to do it yet in case he needed it to stay warm. But if Zorro can stand it in Montana, I think DD can stand it in OK!
Midnight did well today. She is going out without Dapper Dan very well now. We did road work and also the poles. She is getting better with that. She is allowing me to cue her with the whip now without startling too much. She loves to trot and it's a challenge to keep her in a walk. And her trot is so much fun that I enjoy it too. She's been with me a year this month.

 

[Willow Flats]

A year with Midnight is a great milestone Marsha. It will be a year on June 29th since I brought Annie home. I'm really looking forward to sharing our adventures in driving this summer on the forum.

My husband has promised to build us a bridge. He told me he is going to build it in 3 sections bolted together so if we ever want to move it, we can. It is very flat here. I have a wide ditch that runs the full length of our property on one side that we created paths that slope down into it on either end and we drive that but other than that it is (Willow Flats!) I put a piece of plywood down so Annie could get used to the sound a bridge would make and she drove over it just fine.