A Thank You

I would like to thank Brother Twitchell, Sylvia, and Randy for taking the time to teach and to answer all my endless questions. I am very grateful for the chance I had to take this unique class and pursue one of my passions.

I am also grateful for the two horses I worked with. Although it proved to be a difficult challenge for me to gain Iceman's trust in so short a time, I know I was beginning to gain his trust. We have so much more we could work on and improve, but I feel successful knowing what we did accomplish.
Gwenevere taught me how to teach and she built my confidence in my own abilities and capabilities. I am grateful to her forgiving nature. If it were not for that, we would not have progressed as we did. She is a very bright horse, and I hope I did some good for her. I will never be able to give back to her all she gave me.
Iceman kept me humble. But he also taught me how to be taught and how to learn. Giving up is not an option. He did not trust me at all for a long time, but he never gave up on me. In the end I feel I have been able to connect with him and he has made me a better rider and I believe I helped him over come some of his paradigms.

Last I want to thank my Heavenly Father and the many blessings I have been given over this course. When I felt I was a failure, He helped me become better. I know it is because of Him that I was finally able to begin to understand Iceman. He gave me the strength to overcome my weaknesses and to understand those things that were unclear.

THE END??????

I cannot believe the semester is over. I did endure my own share of heart ache and frustration, but I know I have gained new understanding. I am now better aware of the "holes" in my knowledge and although I do not always know exactly what to do with a difficulty, I know at least now know where to begin.

I am very grateful for the chance I have had to take this class. Everyday I was humbled, but I was also given another chance to try again. It is a good thing horses are forgiving animals. I have decided the best kind of friend is one who will let you believe you are teaching them, when in reality they are teaching you.

growing

Monday Iceman and I worked on circles some more. Now he is even better. He was very willing to trot and even wanted to walk after loping just a few circles. It has boosted my own confidence in my abilities that I can make a difference and I can accomplish impossible feats. Now I am just worried about the riding final and what to do for free style. I would like to jump, but I am not the best jumper.

Better

Saturday I  came out to ride. This time I had Iceman stand still for 10 seconds before we went anywhere. From there it was our best ride to that point. We worked on circles. CIRCLES ARE WONDERFUL!! After going around for a while at a lope, he was more willing to slow down and he trotted a circle!!!!!!!! I was so excited. While we were loping, he was happy to stay at a nice slow lope. I felt like he did not need to run, but that he just likes to move. I noticed that I have to keep my focus on where we are going or else we go off course. Most of the time he follows my body movements and where my focus is. He is better at matching me when we are going in circles in comparison to riding in straight lines.


Movie Raquel and Iceman
Some things I noticed about myself after watching this video is I do not think I always give him time to ask a question or figure things out for himself. I noticed this particularly while we were weaving through the ground poles. I don't think I gave him a chance to follow my focus.

Loping
In this video, I noticed my stirrups were too short and I was bouncing around at the beginning. But what I like about this video is how nicely Iceman was loping. He was not trying to run off with me, it was a nice slow lope. He even responds positively to my request to slow down to a trot.

Improvement

Last Friday, I decided not to give up on Iceman or on myself. I took Iceman into the arena and then let him go. I wanted to watch him and see how he reacts with other horses and by himself. I also brought treats with me and I occasionally approached him, to play the friendly game with him and to give him a treat. He was more willing to let me come up to him in the arena compared to his pen. I observed that he is NOT a dominate horse, he is curious, and he is often a loner. At the end I did put him on line and played with him for a few minutes.

Frustration!

Last week was really difficult for me. I felt like I was failing and that I could not get through to Iceman. I was tired of feeling like I was fighting with him. I felt like I was more of an annoyance to him then anything else. I knew he did not trust me or care to be with me. I really just felt like a failure and that the two of us would not be able to accomplish anything. More then anything I was frustrated with myself for not knowing what else to to and because I knew that I was the one who needed to change and I could not figure out what Iceman needed from me.

Saturday Ride

Saturday's ride was the best yet! We worked a lot on speed control, and we are finally beginning to get it!  I was able to get him to trot a figure-eight pattern. Later I was able to have him trot for a little ways going straight before he went into a lope. It has taken lots of effort and consistency, but I can see small improvements. We are getting better! My faith in myself and my abilities has been strengthened.  I was really worried that Iceman might prove to be too big of a challenge for me, I can do this!