Post-Denna practice.

I usually limit jumping to twice a week, so I took today to practice while everything from yesterday was fresh in my mind. I set up a low course and cantered through it a few times- it's amazing the difference a new, milder bit can make. Then we put up the fun stuff: the traffic cones a few of the girls pinched from the construction site, the roadblocks, a stopsign, a tarp, a few diamond shaped wood things, and all sorts of stuff to make for spooks and refusals. One of the other girls had dragged it out to the arena, apparently, so we seized the opportunity.

When Berky is good, he's very good, but when he's bad, he's horrid. Today he was amazing. We did our full course, jumped over the three foot wide "open water," jumped the stopsign, made an oxer with the cones, and got every single lead. No refusals today!! AND FIVE BEAUTIFUL CHANGES! Holy crap, my little jumper must be remembering his training. We had a two other not-so-hot ones, but he got them so reliably when I didn't get in his way. I was a proud parent. Too bad Denna missed it.

Anyways, it makes me feel a lot better knowing we'll be able to jump a nice course for our shows. He is such a doll when he wants to be. I'll be spending a week at Denna's place for Christmas (you know you love your trainer when your present every year is a trip to her barn)with him, so we'll have plenty of things to work on.