Monday Night Riding

Last night found me at the stable once again but I was really dragging. Mondays are always a drag for me- I'm usually tired and run-down and don't feel like doing much. So Max and I didn't do a whole lot. We did a little trotting and cantering but mostly we wandered in the usual loop down the wash and around the Equestrian Center.

However, contrary to past practice, I forced Max into the canter after we'd passed under the 210 freeeway bridge. Normally, the fastest I go is in a trot from the bridge to the river crossing but I'm looking to add something new and I feel a bit more confident about my riding. When I first got Max, I used to try cantering everywhere but after getting dumped a few times, I stopped doing it it- loss of confidence or whatever.

Naturally, three years ago, I didn't know what the hell I was doing and I've gotten a little better since then and my seat had improved so now I'm beginning to try new stuff with Max.

The cantering went well and I then dropped into the walk while riding down and up to cross the lower wash. This was followed by looping around the Equestrian Center and down the back between the Equestrian Center and the Nursery.

Overall, not bad and I think we've reached some new milestone in our riding (both Max and I!).

This Last Weekend...The Helicopter Test

Summer is definately upon us- the flies are out in force and no matter how much flyspray you use, it just doesn't seem to cut it. Max is defiantely miseable and his tail seems to be working overtime to swat at the annoying little pests.

This weekend was a relative "light" riding weekend. I decided to try and get up early to beat the heat and was partly successful (I made it out the stables by 9:30). After tacking up, I decided to take Max on an extended loop through the Hansen Dam Basin. As I was getting ready to pass by a set of soccer fields, I noticed quite a bit of helicopter air traffic- interesting. As I got closer, I noticed that there was some sort of airshow involving helicopters and many of them were landing, taking off, and hovering.

My first reaction was "Great! something more for Max to deal with!" However, my fears were unfounded and Max pretty much ignored it all. We even had to wait about 10 minutes when the main trail was closed off so as to allow a number of helicopters to land (not that they really needed to do it- I think it was more of a CYA thing). Max was pretty calm all through it and he just stood there (if things had gotten out of hand, I could have simply turned around, so it wasn't a big deal).

When they finally let us proceed down the trail, Max was a bit curious and at one point shied away but it was easily controlled and Max then relaxed. We proceeded with our ride and it seemed that Maz was more concerned about some other horses that were ahead of us on the trail- I think he wanted to catch up but I wasn't going to let him. Overall, a good training experience for Max.

Sunday found Max and I in a group lesson and this too provided some good training. Naturally Max got a little hot as the lesson progressed but nothing too obnoxious (it's to be expected when your with seven other horses/riders). Max really performed when we went into the canter and he had no problem keeping up and I didn't have to work much on keeping him from advancing on the horse immediately ahead of him.

I like providing him with new training opportunities to things are not always "same 'ole same 'ol".

RE: Max The Trail Horse

Last night I did something different with Max and instead of the usual walk/trot/cantering and various dressage exercises, I decided to hit the trail and head north to the Oaks.

Basically, Pam, the lady who owns the stables where I board Max has been recovering from knee injuries and she's slowly getting back into trail riding. Also, she's been trying to train/work an Arabian horse named "Dumbles" (short for Dumbledore). Dumbles is a sweet horse with a nice disposition although he occassionally gets a bit wacko (find me an Arab that doesn't!). He's been trained for both the saddle and driving although riding seems to be his better suit.

So we hit the trail together, Dumbles and Max and it went very well- it was a pleasant surprise for all of us. I took the lead on the way out and we did a mix of walking and trotting. When we got to the Oaks, we switched positions and walked home. Max needs to learn to be in the rear and he was a perfect gentlemen- no attempt to push or go faster and he was relaxed the whole time. And no jigging!!!

Although Dumbles got a bit tense and excited when we started back, he settled down and yielded to the bit. While he kept up a forward walk (he's an Arab after all), he seemed to be under control and gave no cause for concern. This was totally against expectations and Dumbles' mom was a bit unsure on how he'd act, especially since the day before he'd been acting like an idiot.

It seems that Max had a calming influence on Dumbles so it looks like we'll be doing this some, gradually extending our distance to eventually go out as far as the cowpens and maybe the Bathtub/Doc Larsen. It's both a good training experience for Dumbles and Pam- Dumbles needs more trail time and Pam needs to get back into riding.

I look forward to this since I don't really like to ride too far out by myself and I'd like to get somemore long-distance trail experience.

The Getty Villa - J. Paul Getty Museum

If you're into Classical antiquities and Rome like I am, you might be interested in the The Getty Villa. The Getty Villa is part of the J. Paul Getty Museum and is located in Pacific Pakisades right next to the Pacific Ocean. The museum structure is based on a recreation of the Roman Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum, as well as incorporating details from several other ancient sites.

The Getty Villa was originally opened in 1974 and was closed in 1997 for renovation. After a long wait, it was reopened on January 28, 2006 (took long enough!!). I've been here on many occassions, both pre- and post-renovation and it's an excellent cultural resource. If I had to choose a house, the Getty Villa is pretty close to what I would want (but it would have to have a stable for Max!).

Here are a few pictures:

The central courtyard looking towards the museum itself:

The new entrance:

My idea of the perfect hourse- I especially love this view (I wish I had a pool like it!):

For more information, click HERE and for the official website, click HERE.

P.S. The restaurant serves an excellent lunch and the dining area has a view of the ocean. Average cost was $12 a head with a priceless view. I don't know of any other restaurant that can offer anything as good for the money! I highly recommended just for this alone (although the exhibitions are excellent, of course! :-)). Beware though, it's a real pain getting tickets (there's limited parking available).

More About Max...

Because of Max's recent issues with his artritis, I decided to have the vet come out and give him another shot of Adequan (his last was in December) and get some more Bute powder. The vet was coming out the stable anyway to check on Abby, the new foal, so I figured that this would be the perfect opportunity.

Apparently, the vet came and did everything on Monday- she's bad about returning phone calls. And when I went to ride Max tonight, he was definately more energenic and gave me no problems with cantering or trotting.

I guess this is going to be a semi-yearly ritual (semi-ritual for the moment, anyway) but that's part of horse ownership. I hope things remain stable for awhile.

Click HERE for some more information on Adequan.

And This Week...

This last weekend was pretty low-key at the stables. I did the usual trail ride on Saturday followed up by a lesson on Sunday. On Saturday, I decided to change things up a bit so I rode down the wash and then looped around until I wound up at the Orcas Arena.

However, I then decided to head further down the trail until I hit the Tujunga Wash. Crossing the wash, I then picked up the trail that leads around Hansen Dam. If you go north, it will take you towards the ponds. If you go south, it will loop around past Gibson Ranch and then loop around towards Hansen Dam iteself. I basically followed this path until I reached the beginning of the dam. I then turned to head north towards the river and then follow the wash back to the stables.

Everything wend fine and I even stopped at some sand pits to run Max out a bit. Overall, the boy got a good workout with plenty of chances to rest in between.

Sunday found me at my lesson with Max and for some reason, we had a real problem trying to hit the left lead canter- it was a real pain. I think my body was too stiff and I wasn't giving a clear enough signal to Max with my posture (the left lead is not Max's strong lead, to be sure). After stretching exercises and the like, it finally began to jell but this is something that I'm going to have to work on during the week.

A New Foal At The Stable!

Last week on the night of June 1, one the mares, names "Brownie", at the stable gave birth. It's a healthy female whose been named "Abby" and even though she's only a week old, she's moving around pretty well and mom has taken to the maternal thing in a big way- thousands of years of survival mechanisms have kicked in! Actually, Mom's been pretty good about the whole thing and she'll let people approach Abby (although she's understandably a bit more defensive with other horses).

Abby is getting used to people and hopefully this will make for a well-adjusted horse. She's even been turned out into the big arena where she's been running around with Mom. Mom is just glad to have gotten rid of the extra baggage so she's definately in a happy mood. It's pretty neat to watch them run around, especially as the foal is starting to learn how to use her legs (she's occassionally wobbly but hey, give the kid a chance, it's only been a week!).

Here's some pictures of the little one:

Hylasport - Good Stuff

This is the joint supplement I use for Max:

I've had excellent results with it and no, I'm not associated with the company nor do I get a kick-back from referrals! A friend of mine put me onto it and I bought my first batch at Equine Affair that was held at the Pomona Fairplex last February. I can definately tell the difference.

More information can be had from the manufacturer by clicking here.

Ticonderoga Class Cruiser

And now for your pleasure...another cool shot, this time of the USS Lake Champlain, a Ticonderoga Class Cruiser (CG 47). These are designed to deliver quite a bit of firepower and later versions have a Vertical Launch System (VLS) that can accommodate up to 127 missles- either Standard Surface-to-Air Missle, Tomahawk, and ASROC in any combination- ready for instant launch. These ships are typically part of carrier battle groups.

At The Stables & On the Trail

Last night I went out the stables to ride Max- I love these long summer days because I can get off work and still have plenty of light to ride by. It was a pretty warm day although things were beginning to cool down a bit by the time I got there.

After saddling up Max, I decided to do a light trail ride so I headed out on my usual route down the wash, accross the river and loop back. Max had no issues except he was his usual lazy self in moving out- talk about the SLOW walk! Fortunately, that's what spurs are for...

The only problem was after crossing the river, Max didn't want to go into a canter. I gave him a sharp whack with the crop and then the spur- it was one of those horse BS things- "Let's see what sort of shit I can get away with!" Not.

I got him into a relatively slow canter (I didn't press the issue, I'm just focusing on keeping his attention and moving out in an orderly manner) and cantered him all the way over to where the jogging path begins to go onto the top of Hansen Dam.

When I then turned him to make our way in a homeward direction, Max naturally picked up his pace- what an SOB, he really makes it look like he's sooo tired and then...total energy.

On the way home, I stopped off at one of the public round pens by Orcas Park to work him at the canter/walk transitions. Also, throughout the ride, I also made Max do a number of yielding to the bit exercises, which for the most part he did well on.

Overall, everything went well. Perhaps this weekend I might ride him up to the bathtub on the Doc Larsen Trail. We shall see...

Picture- Alvaro de Bazán Class Destroyer

This was made available with no restriction on Wikipedia and it looked cool so I thought I'd post it here. This is the Spanish Destroyer Alvaro de Bazán (F-102) which is based on the Arleigh Burke Class and employes many of the same weapons and electronics systems. Enjoy!

Max Again...

After much study and having endured the trials of civil service testing, I managed to make it out to the stables late last Saturday and get a little riding in. Since I'd started Max back on his glucousimine supplement (I use Hylasport), he seems to have gotten better and he didn't give me any problems about trotting or cantering.

We didn't really do a lot and the ride went well. We practiced some release exercises which are intended as a means of getting and holding the horse's attention. I also practiced some walk/canter transitions. We still have a ways to go on those but it's a start.

Sunday saw us taking a group lesson instead of the usual one-on-one lesson and it was an interesting change due to a scheduling snafu. I was with four other horses in the arena and it was a good test of Max's ability to pay attention, in spite of all the other horses and potential distractions. Although Max was a but more keyed up (to be expected around other horses), he actually settled down and got down to business. He even cantered with the rest of the horses (there were a couple of Friesians and boy, does the earth MOVE when they canter! Talk about your thundering hooves!).

I had to check him periodically in order to keep a horse length interval betweeen myself and the horse in front of me but overall, it was a good experience for Max.

Max Again...(sigh)

After studying for a civil service exam for the past three days (and giving Max some time off), I finally had enough and decided to get out to the stables last night.

Everything seemed to go well until a went to get Max into a trot- he completely refused and then tried to turn around. I quickly whacked him on the hindquarters with a crop and turned him around. He then tried it a second time and I whacked him again and he then complied.

He also tried to pull the same stunt going into the canter. What is up?

I figure that perhaps it's the arthritis again. I just got the new joint supplement but I haven't been able to feed it to him yet so perhaps we need to build up the levels there. Also, if this doesn't work, I'll have to call the vet out again and have her give him an injection of Adequan.

In the meantime, I need to work with Max so he doesn't get in the habit of thinking he can refuse to work. There's no obvious signs of lameness at this point so it's a bit of a mystery.

Once I get the joint supplement (I'm giving him Hylasport), going, we'll see. That seemed to work the last time.

Once I got Max going, he was pretty good and did everything I wanted. I'll have to monitor the situation...