Yes- I'm Alive

I've just been slacking on the blog front. Mental exhaustion will do that to ya.

But I am alive, both mentally, and physically, because... I rode fire breathing mare in a SNAFFLE. A RUBBER snaffle.

We've been "training" for the Hunter Derby at the year end show (which I don't get to go to thanks to my on call schedule- you rock, vet school, thanks for making my life *fantastic*). We needed a "hunter appropriate" bit for Lexie; my trainer recommended a pelham since Lexie will "go in it" and she "doesn't like anything anyway". Being the weenie adult amateur I am, two reins on a rogue freight train who kicks is just not what I want to deal with on 3-4 hours of sleep and in a ring with 3-4 other riders who don't understand my mare kicks, so I suggested, why not try the rubber snaffle. H snorted, and asked me if I was feeling brave, but we gave it a whirl.

A while back, I was reading on COTH forums about bit options, when I stumbled across a user who watched a clinic with a reputable BNT (I want to say Bernie Traurig). There was a girl who was riding a hot horse in an elevator, but the horse was blasting through her hands- he swapped her into a rubber Dee and the horse went much better. I went out and purchased a rubber dee off eBay... and let it sit in my trunk for 7 months until this Wednesday.

Well, mare loved it. It's a different feel with a much thicker mouthpiece, but I surprisingly had brakes despite a mild bit, and, when I half halted, mare wasn't angry. She's still not seeking contact 100%, but seemed like a much happier horse.

I guess it's a weird case of bitting down on a hot horse. She's a ball of fire 24/7, but she can get unresponsive/worse when she's uncomfortable. It's also a testament to my hard work as a rider (trying to focus on my positives)- I struggled to ride her over small fences in a loose ring snaffle in the Doug Payne clinic, but could *relatively* comfortable pilot her over 2'6" fences on straight lines. We're finally figuring each other out, I'm trusting her when she gets quick, and she's listening.

So if my eq could come back.... that would be fantastic.

- K & C & L