Tap tap legs and away we go!

Right, time for some positive posts. These ones will be from my alter ego, Bendy Rider.

The last two sessions I have had at the RDA have been brilliant (three weeks ago I was awful and lost the ability to steer, but we won't dwell on that). On both occasions I've ridden a lovely little cob called Rolo. He's completely different from Victor, and although I love Victor dearly it has been quite nice to ride such a responsive steed!

Rolo

The first time I rode him, I was lucky enough to have effectively a double session, since there was no-one else waiting to ride him. This meant that I rode for about an hour, which gave me a good opportunity to get used to him. I discovered that he is always very keen to get moving, and often slightly less keen to stop. I felt quite sorry for him, because as well as me getting used to him I was also attempting to get used to a different set of reins. Initially I tried some which had a loop across them, that I could hold with just one hand, then I tried ladder reins with a series of bars across them. The bar was definitely the best solution, because the tension created by something solid meant that I didn't have tension build up in my right arm (the one controlling the reins). However, it definitely took me a while to get used to them, so poor old Rolo had some confusing instructions coming his way at times!

At the end of my first session, I had the chance to go for a canter, which was brilliant. This was my first canter at the RDA, but I was more excited than nervous, and I was glad it was with Rolo (who is quite short!). What he lacks in height he makes up for in speed; he was like a little rocket hurtling around the ring. It felt so good to be in control and I just had this huge grin on my face as we slowed back down to a trot (well, it wasn't really that much slower because his trot is also unbelievably fast, but that didn't stop the grin). Although I hadn't actually done much to get him into canter and to keep him there, it still felt like an achievement and it was really exhilarating.

One day!

The second session I had with Rolo didn't involve any cantering, but it did involve another skill that I haven't used in a very, very long time - jumping! Before we got to that, I tried another set of reins which were different again - they were more like normal reins than the ladder ones, but they had a loop on each side that you could put your hand through to help you to keep control of the reins. I hope that sometimes I will be able to use these reins (they make controlling the horse easier than bar reins), but when I tried them the other day I still didn't quite have the function in my left arm/hand to make it work. On the plus side, my arm does seem to be improving (touch wood, hoping I haven't just jinxed it) so with any luck I will be able to use the loop reins from time to time.

Loop reins

The jump I did was quite small but it was exciting nonetheless to take off for a moment. It was also quite fun to try jumping one-handed! Hopefully in future I'll be able to do even more. For now, I'm just really enjoying riding, and hoping that the grading ('classifying', in rowing) process goes smoothly and gives me enough time to enter an event in February.

p.s. if you were wondering about 'Tap tap legs and away we go', this is what the instructor I had when I was about 7 used to say. My older brothers had the same lady teaching them and it became a bit of a family catchphrase. I still like it!