Whirlwind few weeks

I am sorry for not blogging much over the past few weeks. It's been crazy busy here with my brother over and then Christmas. I will try to keep it fairly brief, so much has been happening that I think I may begin to waffle somewhat!

My brother Daniel coming over to visit was so fantastic. It was great getting to spend time with him and to go off and sightsee all over again. We made it to Red Rocks amphitheater, Buffalo Bills Grave and Museum and Lookout Mountain. We hiked in the Evergreen Snow and best of all we hit Winter Park Mountains on Snowmobiles along with Nics cousin Neil. The snowmobiling was incredible and the view up there like nothing I could have dreamed of. Shooting along up a mountain pass on a snowmobile really is indescribable. My vocabulary isn't big enough so you'll have to put up with these words: exciting, beautiful, scary and fun! My brother had a ball too and despite not being able to drive a car he kept up with us easily. At the top of Corona Pass is a natural bowl where we got to have a play with the snowmobiles. They are relatively easy to drive but turning is much harder but super fun as you have to lean into the turns, much like you would on a motorbike. The snow had come down heavily the night before and as the first group out that day we hit a fresh trail and a fresh bowl which was the icing on the cake. Heres a short Vid of Daniel (I am just in front of Dan with Ethan on the back). It was just a blast and I want to go again!

When Daniel left for the UK I shed more than a few tears. We all missed him and miss our folks over there. However I had Christmas to gear up for and had more work than usual to do! I am all for shortcuts at Christmas dinner time. I stock up on ready made cranberry sauce, Christmas Cake, Brandy Butter and Mince pies. The US don't do most of those items here so I had to get my lazy butt in gear and make it all from scratch. The cake was made back in October and had been being fed since then. All I needed to do is start decorating during Christmas week. I began with Marzipan a week before and that went just great. All that was left was to ice the cake. I went to about five different shops to find Glycerine for the icing, eventually the beauty isle in Sprouts Farmers Market came up trumps so I could finally ice my cake. Ok, so icing a cake proved harder than it looks and we had to plump for a slightly rough, snowy style finish- all planned of course! The turkey was sourced (Organic, Free Range) and was brined alla Nigella Spicy, Superjuicy recipe two days prior. Christmas day dawned and with snow still on the ground from a few days ago it was set to be a pretty, white one. Stockings ripped open and presents done, the clean up began and the cooking orgy began! Neil and Mel were due for Christmas lunch which was brilliant as Christmas isn't right without cooking for guests. I skyped my folks in the UK and just managed to not bulb, had my first Bucks Fizz and nibbled on a few mini mince pies in puff pastry with brandy butter (turned out yum)! The dinner was pretty fabulous (no problem with self esteem here)! Juicy turkey with stuffing and homemade mulled wine Cranberry Sauce, roast pots, roast beef and yorkshires, veg and gravy followed by Xmas pud and custard and homemade Christmas Cake. We ate and drank way too much. During the prep, the snow started falling heavily- A REAL white Christmas for us!

Since then Nic has been off work and we have been mostly doing sweet nothing so decided to head off for the day. We went to Alderfer in Evergreen to hike in the snow with the dogs followed by a scrummy lunch at Keys on the Green which is the golf clubs restaurant by the lake. Evergreen lake is a stunning view of greenery and water in the summer, the restaurant sits by the first tee and the veranda is open and warm, elk wander to cool off and drink at the waters edge. In the winter it turns into a real winter wonderland. The lake opens for ice skating and kids slide down the sledding hill screaming and squealing with laughter. The restaurant is like a cozy log cabin with a roaring fire and has views of the sledding hill and snow covered mountains. After scoffing our faces today we headed off to the sledding hill for Ethans first proper sledding experience. He was so brave and had a brilliant time, going farther and faster each time, going backwards (nutter) and just being a crazy boy. Of course myself and Nic got in on the action too and Nic, as always tried to go father and faster than anyone! We had so much fun and came home tired and happy, ready for a slice of Christmas Cake and a cup of PG Tips (we are still brits after all)!

Tomorrow we head off to Neil and Mels house for homemade fish and chips and a good natter as we always have with them!

Television

Television has been an issue for me here.

The TV scheduling and services in the UK are FAR superior to the US versions. We have direct TV here, which is similar to Virgin in the UK but rubbish. The guide view, usability and on demand are pretty terrible and to be honest just frustrate me.

On top of which, the series here are pretty terrible. There is very little worth watching and I find myself just watching news and weather mostly. That in itself isn't a problem but finding news that DOESNT just report US news is a challenge. You can hear all about a theft in Denver, shootings just about everywhere and the local weather again and again. But, finding news on the UK agreeing to bomb Syria or updates on the Pistorius case is more of a challenge. I have finally found the BBC news channel which at least has a more balanced viewpoint.

The BBC and ITV channels in the UK, constantly are filming new and pretty great, dramas and series, they put time and effort into intelligent and varied programming, none of which you get here.

The US could learn a huge amount from the UK broadcasters, thats if the US audience would appreciate it?

Moab

Wow, what an amazing place Moab is. We spent Thanksgiving weekend there and I simply didn't want to leave.


!
We began our road trip on the Tuesday before thanksgiving, bags loaded, child and husband plus all four dogs; all loaded. Luckily we have a big truck to fit it all in. Three and a half hours drive, saw our first stay over. We spent our first night at 'Hotel Colorado' in Glenwood Springs. The hotel itself was pretty nice, the formal areas were lovely and the room was fine but nothing special. The dogs were a total pain! All too excited to toilet on lead before bed, they had us up at 2am, down 4 floors to get to the gardens. Shattered the next day, it was lucky we didn't have much planned bar chilling and traveling. Glenwood Springs has a natural hot springs pool, so this was where we spent the morning (after a scrummy local breakfast of course). The pools were lovely, from a super hot one, down to a cooler pool (still hot though). Sitting there- in the hot water with the snowy mountains all around was just wonderful and all the family had a great time.

Glenwood (stock photo)

Back on the road, and about three hours later we arrived at the Utah Border. We stopped to get some photos in extremely windy conditions- it was super blowy out and we hoped that the wind would drop for the next few days. We started to get low on fuel at this point and begun to worry as there was NOTHING close by! Luckily we made it to do next fuel station where we topped up the beast. The next stretch of road was starting to look like we expected Moab to, red rocks and towering mountains. Soon we arrived at Dianes house. Diane is an agility person and a friend of a friend, she has never met us but loaned us her home for the few days which was amazing and dog friendly and made the world of difference to our stay. Not only that but she had gone out of her way to pick us up tickets for the Fiery Furnace hike that next day, plus baked us a homemade pumpkin bread and left treats for the dogs. We popped out to get Pizza and then settled down for a quiet evening in as were pretty tired. 

Utah Border

The next morning was Thanksgiving. We woke early and got ready for our morning hike. We were headed to Arches National Park for the well known Fiery Furnace guided hike. The dogs stayed at the house for this one as dogs aren't allowed on the trails at the park. As we arrived at the park we were hit by the sheer size of it all. The park alone is over 76,359 acres and contains over 2000 natural 
arches. We stopped quickly at the visitors centre before taking the 30 minute drive to the meeting point for the hike. Guided tours are strongly recommended here due to the high level of people who get lost here plus the very tricky terrain. We were all warned first of all that it wasn't a strolling hike and there were some tough bits but it should be fun and would last just over three hours. The guide was really knowledgeable and we had lots of stops to chat about the landscape and how it was formed etc along the way. The hike itself was stunning and really fun, we had ledges to clim onto, cracks to jump and crevices that we had to shimmy along and through with cracks beneath us. We all had an absolute blast and got a ton of amazing photos.

That evening we had booked a traditional thanksgiving dinner at The Sunset Grill in Moab. It was a stunning restaurant overlooking Moab and we were all very excited to have our first thanksgiving dinner! The food was wonderful and plentiful, Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, Squash and green beans. They restocked your plate with all you could want and we were way to full to eat our pumpkin pie afterwards so we took this to go! We had a wonderful evening and loved our first Thanksgiving.

Arches National Park

We woke early the next day again and headed off to Corona Arch. We chose this hike as we wanted to take the dogs with us. When we arrived it was freezing cold but very quiet there. We set off in ski jackets and gloves, Nic had charge of Linx and Detour and I got to hold Boo and Miss Hoaxey. The hike was just stunning, the trails were easy to follow as previous hikers had put rock markers all along the route. There were a few tricky bits where you had to rock scramble and even one spot where a ladder had been installed to get up the face of the rock, as we had the dogs, we skirted around the edge of the rock instead which worked just fine. After a while we reached the arch, it was simply huge and we spent some time here just chilling, eating snacks and getting some photos. By this time it was starting to get busier so we started back along the trail back to the car. We met a LOT more people heading out on the hike by now and were really pleased we had got out so early. Back at the car and we had very tired woofs after our 2 hour hike.On the way back to Moab we stopped to see the Indian Writing along the Potash road, the road runs along next to the Colorado River and in itself is quite something special, we got some good photos of the Petroglyphs and Pictographs and then headed back to Moab. By this time we were starving so stopped for lunch at Moab Brewery. I treated myself to a few of their own ales, it was absolutely delicious and went perfectly with a scrum my burger and fries! After we needed an afternoon rest so headed back to the house to chill with the woofs.

Corona Arch

The next day was homeday and we woke in the morning to SNOW! I didn't expect snow in Moab but it was very pretty. As we now knew that Nic had to fly to London for work the next day, we decided to head off early. We stopped for breakfast in Moab before we left and Ethan started saying he felt unwell. Just before we left the restaurant he popped to the loo and came back having been sick. Poor lad then spent the whole 7 hour journey throwing up in bags in the back of the car. When we left Moab we took Highway 128 through to Cisco Ghost town, passing snow covered red mountains, cows strolling along the highway, then two cowboys riding out with their four herding dogs, the journey itself was quite an experience. We reached Cisco just before we hit the I70. Cisco was a On the way back to Moab we stopped to see the Indian Writing along the Potash road, the road runs along next to the Colorado River and in itself is quite something special, we got some good photos of the Petroglyphs and Pictographs and then headed back to Moab. By this time we were starving so stopped for lunch at Moab Brewery. I treated myself to a few of their own ales, it was absolutely delicious and went perfectly with a scrum my burger and fries! After we needed an afternoon rest so headed back to the house to chill with the woofs.
 saloon and water refiling station for the railroad in the 1880s, then in the 1920s it served as a fuel stop and drinking town and was doing pretty great. Then the I70 was built which just bypassed the town, by the 80s and 90s the town became deserted. The town was used in films such as 'Thelma and Louise' and 'Don't Come Knocking'. The houses and huts are empty of life and are falling down, trucks and cars sit rusting outside the deserted homes. Its a spooky place with a lot of rumors surrounding it but was pretty cool to see!
The drive back into Colorado is always incredible, the mountains and snow covered Rockies are inspiring and its cool to drive through the ski villages of places like Vail. Ethan coped really well and snoozed a lot and didn't complain at all. We got home in pretty good time and were pleased to be back, eve if we had inches of snow waiting to be dug on our driveway.
All in all, our Moab trip was just amazing and we can't wait to go back

Cisco House

New Camera

I have had a yearning now for a decent camera to use in Colorado. The mobiles simply can't begin to convey the views here and I am so fed up of washed out, poor quality shots all the time.

I contacted a local camera shop who have a consignment and secondhand section. I didn't want to buy one from the internet as there is no come back or support afterwards, we knew we would pay a little more from the shop, but that was ok as long as we could get a good deal.

We popped into Englewood Camera shop and it was meant to be a pretty quick in and out. Of course, it didn't work that way. The assistant was super helpful and showed us three different cameras. He talked through the ups and downs of each and which one would be best suited to my needs. I am a total beginner so wanted something simple to use, but something I wouldn't be frustrated with in six months or so either. Eventually we chose a Canon EOS 60D, plus a great zoom lens, camera backpack, memory card etc. Fully kitted out, I couldn't wait to get out and have a play!

My Gorgeous Boy x

The next day we hiked Lair O' the Bear park in Kitteridge and took my new camera. I had a wonderful time snapping away and although I have huge amounts to learn, I got off a few lucky shots. Its a wonderful camera and such a beautiful area that I am excited to see what I can start to get shots of!

Our next trip is a longer road trip to Moab, Utah. We are stopping over in Glenwood Springs for a night then onto Moab for a few days after that. I should be able to get some great photos during the trip and it will be our first time out of state since we arrived! Super excited- Red Rocks here we come!

Horse Disciplines USA

Horse Shopping here is pretty different from the UK. In the UK most horses marketed are either 'Happy Hackers' or English ridden (be it show, dressage etc). Then there are a few off the track. They all ride pretty much the same. They all have similar training- some more, some less and most are handled pretty kindly and trained using a mix of +R and -P.

I have seen a real difference here in the US. Here is a short list of the types we have had through the barn so far and the ones you see listed on Craigslist too. I am sure there are exceptions on both sides and I don't want to cause offense to anyone as the following is a huge generalization.

Please feel free to correct me about anything I have been incorrect about- I am sure there is plenty!

Barrel Racers
Not the easiest retrain, Usually have been ridden with huge long shank bits and yanked around by competitive riders. Think big spurs and hard kicks. They are often quite good on the ground but impatient and fast under saddle. There are a few at the barn that are now trail horses but they can still be joggy and unsettled in their mouths.

Roping Horses
Quite a few of these seem to have been badly treated, again many have been yanked around with long shank bits, usually quite un spooky but very nervous on the ground from rough handling. Some are well loved of course too! These are the horses you are most likely to come off the side of them- boy they can change direction damn fast!

Amish Horses
These are usually very safe under saddle/ being driven depending on what they were trained for, sometimes both. The methods that 'some' of the amish use are really harsh. The horses are usually very well mannered but totally shut down on both the ground and under saddle. These guys make me very sad.

OTTBs & OTQHs
The Off the Track TBs & QHs are my personal favorite. They have nearly always been ridden and handled by professionals so have the nicest ridden training, certainly as far as english goes. They do understand rein aids but tighten both reins at once and don't release quickly at your peril! They respond very well to weight shift for go and whoa and are usually nice and forward. Normally have to learn about mounting and slowing their paces.  They are usually some of the fizziest and trickiest on the ground as haven't needed to 'walk' in hand or been led on both sides.

Summary
Very few of these guys know how to lunge or how to 'ground drive'. Some of them will round pen ok. Most need a lot of desensitization, on different things depending on their history. Some have been beaten with whips or lines or pitch forks. Some (esp ottbs/ otqh) just haven't seen an indoor school or normal life away from the track.

Retraining is different with each horse, some of the horses are happier sticking with Western style and some English. Some happily do both (most would I am sure if the riders are good enough).

I would love to see some 'proper' trainers and riders working with these guys. There are some fantastic resources from the web which are invaluable for restraining, esp for ex racers. One of the best is http://www.retiredracehorseproject.org. There are some great training videos etc.

Wonderful Update!

Yesterday I received this wonderful message! It made my week. I am so, so happy :)

Hi Gemma, Just saw your post on the Colorado Sporthorses group. Wanted to say a quick hi! I was one that tried Ruff Cut when you were out riding him. Just thought I'd let you know he is loving his new home! He's already been used in a few walk trot lessons, and his canter departures are coming along nicely with our instructors on him. He's gaining weight and is such a sweet heart. He lives in a paddock with Red, and Macho from FOH and one other hard to keep TB. So they get fed hay 4 times a day. He loves his buddies, and his turn out time in the big arenas. I know it must be tough to see your favorite projects disappear, especially like we did where we took him out from under you! So thought it would be nice to give you an update.
If you're ever in Littleton area feel free to come visit.

RCs new home

A Rocky Road

No, not the cake kind although that would be nice too!

This is about my newest project at FOH. His name is Rocky and he is about five or six I think. He arrived at the rescue centre as a surrender from his previous owner. I don't know a lot about him except that he was being trained as a racehorse. He looks more quarter horse than tb to me as he is really very chunky so I suspect that he was training for QH races over here. However, before he could complete his training, whilst being shod, he apparently ended up with a nail straight through his frog. I think there must have been complications/ infection as he ended up in a field for four years until he arrived last week at the rescue.

He is being stalled (stabled) there and is very quiet and happy in his stall. I went in and spent some time in his stall getting to know him before I brought him out for the first time. In the round pen he was quite tense and jumpy so I just spent some time doing some quiet in hand work. We didn't do much as he wasn't in the right place mentally to do much more than react rather than learn so I just wanted him to get to know me a bit and see what he is like with ground stuff. He is very inquisitive and affectionate but he is a strong, big lad and will need nice, clear boundaries too. We finished the session with a groom which he really loves.

Butter wouldn't melt...

The next session I only had access to the indoor arena as the round pen and all outdoors was cover in a foot or so of snow. Again, he sparked up the moment he left his stable. The indoor arena had another horse being lunged so it was good for him to work around another horse. He was very alert again and on edge and we just walked round in hand for quite a long time. The window in the arena was a big draw for him to spook at but also to be fascinated by. Again there wasn't much point in trying to 'work' him yet as he is very unsettled but we did do some basic moving from pressure stuff, turning etc. He doesn't understand being led from his right hand side. I have seen this with a HUGE amount of the ex racehorses over here so we worked on this today too, sandwiching the tough side with the easy sides for him. A little desensitization too but this is more helpful in his stable where he is less reactive at the moment. After the other horse left we did a few more bits in hand and then I wanted him to be able to run for a bit and just have a chance to view the new surroundings in his own way. I allowed him a while of just being silly, running, bucking, farting- as they do. After a bit, when he started to try to hang around the gates in, I started asking him to pay some attention to me. Moving him forward when I wanted him to- asking for more speed and then less. This work is the bit I have found just fascinating with the horses here. That without any prior training you can have them responding to body language and you. He did great and basically popped himself on a circle around me, working in trot and canter and whoa too. He is a bright horse and really responds well to people but is probably by far the greenest horse I have handled here. I think he needs time seeing the farm first without too much pressure to work but also with an understanding that he needs to listen and respond to his handlers. Once back in his stable I wanted to see how he was with feet being picked up. He had no response to the usual cues so I moved him to be able to shift his weight onto the other side so he had no choice but to allow that foot to be lifted- timing is everything! Once I had his foot he didn't want me to keep it for more than a seconds and tried his best to tug it away and wave it around. I kept a hold on it until he relaxed which didn't take long at all and then let him have it back. We finished with a grooming session and he was super chilled by the time I had finished with him.

I am sure lots of the people at FOH think I am super slow and pretty weird at times. I think they would have been on him by now to see how he reacts but everything about him tells me he is far from ready for this. Even when he is ready I think he will need a total reback and someone to be able to get on him with me on the ground. From what I have seen so far - I won't be the first one getting on this boy!

UPDATE!!!

Day 3 of working with Rocky today and he did great. He was much more relaxed heading into the arena and wasn't holding his breath today. He allowed me to lead him on both sides. I changed directions turning him in front of me to keep putting him on different sides. After a short while, he settled nicely and we managed some small left rein lunge circles. He did very well in both walk and trot and didn't over react to anything. We finished on a good note and back in the stable I popped a saddlecloth and then saddle on him, he was quite happy with this too. He is still a spooky horse in the arena but he really did well today.

*after working Rocky I spoke to another girl who had worked once with Rocky before I did, she found him very difficult and apparently he kept reacting like he was going to get hit and she couldn't get him to do anything much. I think she went straight in with him tacked up in Western tack and tried to lunge him- all of which would have been sensory overload for him. I think he is my project now so hopefully I can continue to take it slowly with him and move onto the next thing when I think he is ready.

Snow Joke

On Monday evening we had a blizzard come through Denver. The ran fell thick and fast until around 7pm and then the snow started- and went on heavily through the night and until lunchtime tuesday.

We woke up super excited on tuesday morning and had a text from Ethan school to say the school was closed for the day.... SNOW DAY whooohooo!

We spent the morning while it was still snowing wrapped up warm indoor in Pjs and slippers and as the snow slowed we ran upstairs to get dressed. Ski gear on, dogs in tow and Ethan on his sled and we set off to the local park for some fun. Ethan giggled and smiled as I towed him along, it started so well, then Linx started tangling me up- Hoax tangled Linx and it all got a bit crazy! Anyway we made it to the park and I let the woofs run free whilst Ethan tried sledding. The first attempt was on freak snow so it didn't really work. We stomped him a downhill path and he finally got a good trck to sled down- it wasn't long or a big hill but he had a wonderful time anyway. The dogs were manic- jumping through the snow and eating big mouthfuls of the white stuff. We stayed for a while and when we got cold and tired we all headed home for hot chocolate and cookies.

Later that day we had snowball fights in the garden- of course the dogs had to join in too which was all great fun!

Nic spent half the day shoveling snow off the driveway and paths and working from home... not quite as much fun for him ;)

We had a lovely day and its stunningly pretty here in the snow, the roads get cleared very quickly and very professionally so we managed to get through to Ethans Taekwondo in the evening followed by the yummiest Pho dinner at a restaurant literally around the corner from us.

Today, the snow is still sitting quite thickly on spots but is starting to melt a bit and the roads are more or less clear completely.

We LOVE the snow- roll on more snow days please!!!

Weird Movie experience!

Last night Nic and myself headed off for a rare date night. We booked tickets to see James Bond at a dine in seat cinema; the Alamo Drafthouse.

We arrived early and found glasses of water on the tables (positioned between the cinema seating). The menus were in slots below the tables and there were lighting bars under the tables to allow you to read menus without disrupting the customers next to you. There are paper slips on which you write your order and slots to pop the order slip into. While the pre show clips were running we selected our drinks from the large menu, root beer for Nic and a glass of Pinot Grigio for me. Followed by our meal order of good old burgers then warm home baked cookies. The cinema has table/ at your seat service so just before the main film started the waitress took our slip/ order and scooted off. Soon my glass of wine appeared so I could sip and watch Bond at the same time. I thought I could get used to this!

However, it soon appeared that the downsides outweigh the upsides for me. The waiting staff running around during the movie is distracting, as hard as they try to not disrupt you can't help but be distracted. When your food arrives, you can't actually see it- so you kind of fumble around the bowl trying to find a chip or the burger and hope you aren't decorating your clothing with ketchup. Oh, and I hate hearing people eat- it makes me cringe. So, when the lady right next to me orders a salad and sits there crunching through her lettuce leaves like a freaking hyper rabbit for ten minutes- I am just about ready to leap out my seat and throw her salad across the room!

The movie was pretty good, the food passable and the staff were brilliant along with great company from my gorgeous man. A great date night but next time I will stick to popcorn and giant fizzy drink to accompany my movie.

The Alamo setup

Good Day, Bad Day...

Some days are good, some days are bad.

Thats true everywhere, but when you are in a strange country without your support system it feels even more raw.

I have been lucky to have a few fantastic weeks, happy family, happy dogs, happy horses. I have been on some amazing hikes with Julia & Claire and the dogs, plus a yummy lunch where I spoiled myself a bit ;) The hikes here are simply breathtaking, the views like nothing I have seen before and can't be compared to a walk in the British Countryside.

Ethans been doing superbly at school. Getting amazing grades and making lots of new buddies. He is also totally hooked on Tae Kwon Do. I have never seem him so keen on something and he can't wait to go to class. He gets three lessons a week and is earning his stripes towards allowance to take his yellow belt test. I love watching him there and am so proud of my little man.

Today sucked. Detour was in the vets this morning as he has been dropping weight more and more. He is down to 11.70kg again. He has been treated for EPI for over a year now but I think his B12 levels have dropped now and he has stopped absorbing nutrients properly. He is now on a course of B12 injections to see how he gets on. Hopefully he will start to put weight on again now.

I popped to FOH afterwards, I probably shouldn't have gone as wasn't feeling the love but went anyway. It is mud city after rain and snow and as the arena was busy I was limited with where I could use. The horses have all been moved around and mixed up so they are all unsettled. After trying to long rein briefly and slipping around with a horse that wasn't very settled today, I decided it wasn't safe for me or the horses and make did with a groom and scratch for them instead. I left feeling a little dejected as I can't see that changing much over the winter.

The list goes on a bit, but I won't go on about having a bad day, I am well aware of how lucky I am for this chance of being out here and how lucky I am to be able to have these days to go off and investigate and have my own time and therefore I have no rights whatsoever to feel blue. However, its just one of those days, feeling a bit blue and a bit alone. Ah well, onwards and upwards, stiff upper lip and all that! x

Training, Training. Don't judge!

So, I haven't seen a lot of work done with the horses at FOH. Most of the care time is put into feeding, mucking out etc. Alicia whom I have worked with before is the softly, softly cautious approach which is much more like me.

I met a nice girl who has just started working at FOH and yesterday she decided to start work with a mare called Rosie. I have been doing a little ground work with her. She is quite a sweet quarter horse type but has some issues. She is terrified of rakes and reacts very badly to you having one near her, she wants to spin if something spooks her and when she arrived at FOH it was with marks all over her face where it looked as if she had been whipped repeatedly. I have been working in hand getting her confidence up and de spooking her a bit but haven't had a chance to do any lunge or long line work or even round penning with her.

The girl tacked up Rosie and she was evidently quite worried about being tacked up. Western tack on and ready she took her out to the round pen. Now, I didn't watch the start but heard back on the first ten minutes. After the girl hopped on board Rosie took off, galloping at the fence, spinning and bucking. The round pen is deep at the moment as it is just a dirt base and after rain last week its just churned up mush. The girl hung onto the horn of the saddle and kept Rosie moving. I watched a bit after she'd started to settle and Rosie had begun to calm down although she did take off a few times and put the poor girls leg into the fence a fair bit. After about 45 minutes in the round pen she hacked Rosie around the farm taking some obstacles on the way and apart from the odd bit of shooting off and not wanting to stand really she did improve enormously in just an hour and a half.

I am interested to watch Rosies progression and see if she relaxes into it. I am not here to judge or criticize and have to be open minded. I can say one thing though; Theres no way that anyone would have stayed on that mare in an English saddle! However, I am definitely of the school of thought that I like to have the option to bail at all times. I'm happier starting off the first few minutes with no stirrups in my English saddle- I can just slide off then if need be!!!

I will try to watch Rosies progress and get some photos and video to keep you updated.

The conveyor belt

A lovely friend mentioned on my FB page that although RC has gone, he went to allow me space to work with another horse in need. I think that is so vey true.

Yesterday while RC was being tried, they also got out Miss Sarah Mae to work with. To say it wasn't pretty is a tad of an understatement. Firstly they used a Western Saddle, it had flaps, tassels and straps everywhere. When she moved they smacked under her belly which she isn't really used to yet. It was pretty bad, she hasn't been in work for a while now and has been cooped up. She exploded a bit, kicking out and bucking and wouldn't lunge at all (I don't think she has lunged ever). She kept rearing up and coming towards them, when she did they fought with her a bit to get her back out and she seemed to get worse. Eventually they decided to just get on and see how she goes, it was pretty much met with similar behavior and they decided she was too much of a project for them. I must agree, I am not sure if she will be suitable for a riding school at least for another good few years.

I thought a lot about her last night and whether I could cope with working with a mare like her. But I didn't feel that any of her behaviors were aggressive, I felt she was confused and very fresh. I decided that I would start work with Miss Sarah aka Jailbreak today.

I went up early before the indoor school got too busy. We started with a grooming session and she settled down well after some initial fidgeting. I then tacked her up in English tack and led her over to the arena. She was a little fresh on the way over, spooking and doing these little mini rears every now and again but very conscious of me next to her. When we got in the arena she was very reactive to the other horse being lunged so I just kept leading her around in walk, circling lots and lots. After a while I started to move her away from me on the line but she really wanted to stay as close to me as possible and I think was worried after yesterday about being let out. As soon as she was a few feet away she spooked massively and bucked and kicked out and slammed her breaks on then wanted to head back into me. Rather than shouting and flapping at her which created a bigger issue yesterday I just calmed her and then gently moved her back out again. We repeated the whole farce a fair few times with her reacting as if she was going to get beaten each time she started to move out. When she realized that nothing awful was going to happen when she was out there and that I wasn't going to start hollering at her on yanking the line she started to relax into the trot, she stretched out and gave me fantastic trot work. We changed direction for ten minutes or so, then changed back again. Once or twice something would spook her and she would want to resort back to the stalling and rearing but I kept her circle small for now and the lunge whip behind her (remembered my triangles Jules) to guide her forwards instead. She was hugely improved after a while and started to show off her trot and enjoy herself.

I had kept the option of riding her open as I wanted to see how relaxed she was today. Even though she wasn't great to start off to lunge I felt that she might settle when being ridden. After all, she has lots more experience of being ridden than any other ground work.

We started at the mounting block and she seemed pretty happy about being there. I popped up and hung over her side and she was again, totally unbothered so I decided to just swing my leg over an get on with it. She was great and waited to be asked before she moved off which was an improvement on last time had ridden her.

She is a forward mare and wants to get on with things. I think she gets upset at the moment if she is made to stand too much so I decided the best thing was to let her keep moving her feet forwards and to not block her. After she marched around the arena a few times she wanted to trot forwards, I allowed her to go, keeping my inside rein short and my fist jammed into her neck with a handful of mane so if she spooked or anything I didn't jab her in the mouth. A few years back Jules sent me a link from the Retired Racehorse project, they have some great videos of first rides with ex racers and these really helped with Miss Sarah. I stayed up over her shoulders a little more keeping my rise small and rhythmical and it helped her a quite a bit. She had a good spook once which gave her a great excuse to go for a little run, I didn't argue with her or flap just kept my arse slightly out the saddle,  my inside reign steady with my fist on her neck just for half a circuit of the school. Then when I then put my weight back a tad she came straight back to trot and walk for me. She is really very responsive to weight shift with both changing direction and changing speed. She is much happier with a contact at the moment and feels pretty heavy as I am guessing that what she was used to as a racehorse. I think thats partly why she doesn't like the western style of drooping reins as she's doesn't feel anyone is supporting her. Of course I realize she will need to cope with both but for now she wants the support. She also hasn't figured out what riders legs are totally for. Now apparently this mare was ridden a lot over the summer. English style,  including trails and some jumping. But she is still very green in retraining. She very much still reacts to the leg like a racehorse and dashes forward when you put a leg on rather than moving away from that leg. She doesn't know that the pressure on one side doesn't  mean go faster.

By no means am I an advanced type rider and am not anywhere near good enough to bring her on to much of a level but if I can just get her happy about being lunged and ridden again and give her a little confidence and understanding of some aids then I will be happy. In the meantime I get to learn too and have some fun with a pretty little filly!

Miss Sarah when she first arrived

For anyone thats interested she last raced on the 12th of July this year. She came 4th out of 5 horses which was pretty much standard results for her in all six of her races. She first raced as a two year old at Arapahoe and came 8th out of 8 horses. She hasn't had any injures and her legs are perfect, she just wasn't fast enough!

Also Watch out for my next post on English vs American training.

Finally I leave you with this quote...

The Elephant in the room

Bang bang, he shot me down
Bang bang, I hit the ground
Bang bang, that awful sound
Bang bang, my baby shot me down.

Guns

They are an unavoidable part of life is the US, an unavoidable discussion point and an unavoidable major, devastating issue.

This week, I read an article on the legalization of concealed weapons on the UT campus (University of Texas). Honestly, who on earth with a sane, sound and compassionate mind would think this is a good idea. Teenagers; away from home, some for the first time, hormones, lively debates, alcohol, poor grades and pressure to succeed. All the aforementioned can make Uni a stressful time, most students go through highs and lows and can react irrationally and out of character.  Professors are now either sitting in a high risk career or handing in their notice. They say, that as it is they deal with confrontations, grade issues or just high emotions during student led debates. The thought of the students having a semi automatic tucked into their rucksacks alongside pens and text books is simply terrifying. To all of us, a recipe for disaster... The Pros for the law argue that students will be safer from Serial Killers and campus Rape...

I feel that the attitude to guns here is just too Nonchalant. The access too easy and the cost too cheap.

Of course none of those things are the REASON that guns crime is such an issue here, but they are worrying nonetheless. 

Bittersweet...

So, today was a bittersweet day for me.

RoughCutt has continued to get better and better with mounting and ridden work. I have continued with him with groundwork too. I also discovered that its his girth area that is super sensitive so as long as I use a mounting block and don't jab him with my toe when I get on he has been superb.

I went to FOH with the plan of riding RoughCutt out of the arena for the first time. Today would be a big test for him. Today there was to be no lunging, no groundwork, I just wanted to see him cope with me just getting on and off we go. I had decided to ride him around the farm on his own to see how he copes. He needs to be trail ridden/ hacking to find a home so the first port of call was a farm ride.

Just when I was leading him from the barn, a couple of ladies arrived. They were at FOH to find some winter projects for their riding school and one of the horses they had come to view was RC. They asked me to ride him for now and they would watch him round the farm and then they would take him in the school. He was great being mounted out of he arena for the first time and he went for his hack around the farm really well. He stopped to look at a few things but he isn't a spooky horse and took it all in his stride. After our little hack I handed him over. I told the ladies about his girth area, his bucking history and that I suspect it may be ulcers. RCs next big test, someone different getting on and riding him...

The Chilled boy being ridden today

I was so proud of him, he did superbly. Not only did he behave being mounted, but he was completely relaxed about it, he moved off the mounting block like he had been doing it for years. He then spent the next half hour or so pottering beautifully around the arena with the Riding Instructor (also an eventer). Ignoring the two young mares bucking and hooning around on lunge lines next to him he walked and trotted round the arena like a pro. They then put yet another rider on him, whom he behaved brilliantly for too.

He was perfect and you would never have guessed that he had been so scared a few months ago about being mounted. The women are experienced riders. One Western and one English, they both rode english today as thats how I had already been riding him and thats how he was tacked up. Of course, they loved him and have decided to take him. He will spend the winter training with them, ready for next summers riding school pupils.

I think it will be a wonderful home, and his sweet and willing disposition will make him a very well loved horse there. I am proud today and a little sad, a few tears were shed when I said goodbye and good luck to the lovely RoughCutt. x

Happy Boy- be good in your new career RC x

Nothing but the 'Tooth'

The last week has seen my first trip to a US dentist. I was interested to see how it differed from the UK dentist experience. Generally, the dentist is somewhere to be avoided and to go only when I really need to. I was super nervous going to a US dentist as was worried after so many NHS years what they would say.

Reception

I booked in for a check up and expected a quick once over in a 20 minute appointment. When I arrived I was impressed by the super friendly reception staff and pretty decor. I was given a bottle of water and a magazine while I waited, although I didn't sit for long!

I was met in reception by a young guy called Eric, he was very sweet and professional and worked on my teeth for me. So, heres how it went... They took XRays of every tooth at multiple angles, photos of each tooth, checked by eye and carried out a basic cleaning. The whole process took around 2 hours! In some ways it was a bit crazy but I felt, for the first time that I finally understood what was going on in my mouth! They were polite, efficient and a totally different experience from England. I have since followed up with two deep cleaning appointments and feel that we can actually work towards improving things now instead of just waiting for teeth to degenerate over time!

Oh and besides all that- the by far best thing, is that they have TVs with Netflix- on the ceilings above the treatment chairs so you can watch a movie the whole time! So Cool!

All in all- I LOVE the new dentist out here- definitely one up on the UK.

TV on the Ceiling!

Berkshire vs Colorado

Lately a few things have made me realize the differences between our cultures, and some of the comparisons between the two places we have been living just made me want to write them down...

--------------

In fall in Colorado; it's not unlikely to see two men dressed in full camo gear, in a pickup with a big array of guns and ammo- all ready for huntin' Elk.

In Autumn in Berkshire, it's not unlikely to see two gentlemen, dressed in tweed and flat caps, in a Landrover with two polished rifles and a Spaniel bouncing around- all ready for the 'Shoot'.

---------------

In Colorado you can walk into your local supermarket and buy a automatic shotgun.

In Berkshire you can walk into your local supermarket and get I.Dd for Superglue.

----------------

When you go Fall Hiking in Colorado you take 'bear spray' climb over boulders, up mountains and through Creeks.

When you walk the Berkshire Countryside in Autumn you take wellies and a coat, you climb through mud.

----------------

When you go out for a meal in Colorado it's a half an hour brief stop over.

When you go out for a meal in Berkshire it's a whole evenings event.

----------------

In Colorado everything is 'Ahhsome'

In Berkshire everything is 'Jolly/ Very Good'

----------------

In Colorado driving can be tricky, multiple lane highways with huge cars, terrible drivers, multiple intersections and the mountains drawing your eye off the road can make for some real challenges.

In Berkshire we have tractors bombing down country roads - directly towards you, which are barely wide enough for one car let alone two. The art is knowing which grass verges have ditches hidden in them and which don't.

-----------------

In Colorado, you worry that your furniture won't be big enough to fill the room

In Berkshire you spend hours measuring furniture to make sure you can squeeze it into the room

----------------

In all, both places have soothing special to offer. England will always hold the most social place in my heart but Colorado is certainly super fun!

Crazy Denver junction

Teeny tiny british road

New Experiences

So Colorado is all about new experiences for all of us. This past week has been some good and some bad.

Since I can remember I have alway felt slightly aversive towards the Circus. Ethan however has been keen to go for a while now and when we saw signs for the 'Ringling Bros. Circus Extreme' in town we agreed to book tickets to take Ethan. Before the day arrived I found out that they have animals in their performances, this in itself isn't a major issue but there was some bad press associated with this as they apparently used Elephants in it. Reading their website it is all very positive on how they train the animals but I wanted to go with an open mind and non judgmental view.

On the day we headed in and the show opened with lots of excitement and some amazing acts. Then
the elephants came out. I found this part of the show pretty hard, this just isn't where we should see these stunning creatures. Having seen them in South Africa in a natural habitat, this peformance for our pleasure just felt horribly uncomfortable, their eyes were sad and they seemed to have lost a part of themselves to me. Sadly it didn't get much better. The tigers were yet to come. These powerful, strong and fierce creatures were all extremely upset, they crept towards the master when called with a flick of his whip, on their bellies with teeth bared, crawling along, passive, terrified and completely unnatural. I couldn't bring myself to watch it and tears poured down my face. I am usually quite tough but this just tore me apart.

There were were gobsmackingly, awesome human acts plus some poodles that were totally positively trained and had a ball! Tails wagging, barking their heads off and racing around. You could see the relationship between dogs and trainers. There was a woman shot out of a cannon and a group of fab Parkour guys.

When we left the circus we all agreed that the show was amazing without the animals, those acts tainted our experience which was such a shame. Apparently animals will be phased out by 2018 from the Ringling Bros circus, it's a good thing but it really could come much sooner.

Emotions and Sh*t!

Well, mostly this blog is written from a physical rather than emotional POV. I realised the other day, that I haven't really written about how we have all coped with the big move emotionally.

Now, of course, being a Brit we don't really do the whole 'feelings' sh*t but it's part of our journey and I should really note it all down.

As a family unit we are probably happier here than we ever have been. We spend huge amounts of time together which we missed out on the the UK and we do fun stuff, family stuff and it truly has made us all so much closer together and happier. We hiked last weekend for hours and it was tough, hilarious (I fell over on my arse in the creek) and tiring but we really loved it. A walk in the UK countryside just was never quite the same.

However, we miss our family and friends in the UK tremendously. From my part it still feels like a gaping hole where those people should be.

Small things make me miss England and our support system there. Seeing all the Christmas decorations beginning to appear and realising that this year it's going to be a whole lot different, from sourcing Gammon (not possible) to the shops NOT selling Christmas cake (better make my own). But more than that, to not spending it with my family. Not planning the whole crazy few days with Nana Lulu & Andy and Grandad & Nana Karen with Uncle Dan thrown in too. Even just writing it makes me all tearful.

We also miss our friends so much, For me- casual takeaway evenings with the girls, to those weekday dog walks and natters and our long Braai afternoons. I miss being able to call my buddy and get together for a good moan over a bottle of prosecco. I miss my Pilates giggles and I miss hanging out and drinking tea.

As much as he wouldn't like to admit it, Nics missing friends and family too. He definitely misses his golf buddies, his squash evenings and putting the world to rights over a cuppa with Matt.

Ethans definitely missed his friends too. He has started to make new school friends here but it doesn't make up for his UK friends, he was so close to them and its tough making new ones. He has really struggled at times but is starting to have some play dates and is making new friends at swim club too.

As time goes on we meet more and more people here, I have met some great dog buddies, horsey girls and some girls through Ethans school. We also had a great weekend with Nics friend Dave & his wife Lisa plus we spend lots of time with Nics cousin Neil and his wife Mel whom we just love! All is not lost, but my friends and family back home- we miss you all so so much and absence really does make the heart grow fonder xxx

Back in the saddle... x 3!

So, I was asked to ride Miss Sarah aka Jailbreak this week. She is being used in a lesson and hasn't been ridden for a while. Her nickname is Jailbreak as she jumps out of everywhere bar the round pen (when loose schooled).

Last week the guy who was meant to be leasing her turned up. This guy had told them he was a seasoned rider.and brought his own (Western Saddle) along. Apparently it looked brand new, an 'internet' saddle. After not being able to get her bridle on, then doing the cinch (girth) up to the stirrup leather he was told very (NOT) kindly that maybe he wasn't ready to lease... the quote was 'Not all money is good money". He didn't even get on her. Lucky escape for all parties I think.

First of all I needed to pull apart the English tack room to find some stuff. I tried all the saddles on her and found one that fit her pretty well. I started with some in hand work then lunged her, she was super sweet with both, apart from the fact that she had freaked a tad when I shut the gate to the school but she settled fast. Once I was happy that she wasn't a total nutter we did some mounting desensitization stuff then off we went.

Generally she did great green. We did LOTS of circles and changes of direction and speed in walk alone. She is a nice forward mare and will be a fun ride, she needs work but the basics are there.

I then got the chance to have a little spin on an older horse at the barn which was great practice for me and got my riding muscles awake.

Next we got to play with the gorgeous RoughCutt. Alicia teaches lessons and has her own two horses boarded there. She asked if I wanted to see RC ridden so I can understand him more. I tacked him up- Western style- felt like a beginner again- where do all the straps go!?! Generally it went fine except for the girth which threaded through weird rings multiple times! The western bridle she uses is a simple O ring snaffle so that was fine. I also put his blinders on as requested. I was warned that last time he was lunged in a western saddle he freaked so took it carefully, but he didn't blink an eye at it. Alicia also then said he also had got scared being saddled last time. I have been doing lots of work with him with ropes etc and it seems that helped a lot as he was fine with me saddling him too.

Now a short bit of background, we have no idea what happened to him, if he was punished or just rushed hugely but he is scared of his rider. The last girl who rode him at the Barn (who made some silly mistakes) first got bucked off as soon as she was on, then the next time he took off and galloped around the property until he managed to get her off, next he freaked when they chucked a stock saddle on him and broke away from them before mounting, the saddle slipped to his belly and he took off freaking out. The poor lad hasn't had a good time.

Racing blinders

After lunging for a bit Alicia got ready to get on. I stayed by his head as hoped after all the work I have done with him he might find it reassuring, we took it slowly with him as he holds his breath and freezes when he realizes someones about to mount. She just sat on him and stroked/ patted him until he relaxed while I chatted to him and her. After a bit she then started off with small circles until he felt really good and then used the whole school and worked him in walk, trot and a little canter! After that she asked if I felt ok to hop on, so Western tack and all. Again he tightened up as I hopped on but I made sure he knew I was there and scratched his neck and sat still until he relaxed, I copied Alicia and we started with circles, he chilled super fast and we had a little trot too. Once he relaxes he is super chilled. After halting I asked Alicia to take off his blinders so he could see me up there, as they came off he tensed a little but I made sure he looked round at me and sniffed me etc and off we went again, he did just great! We finished the session with Alicia getting on him and then riding him bareback and making sure he watched it all, he worries each time someone gets on or off but did great. I am hoping that all the work I have done around the mounting block with him helped just a little as he really did so well.

He needs lots more desensitization still and is a work in progress but, there is hope! I just wonder what happened to such a non spooky horse to scare him so much. He just is like an unbacked horse with mounting so I suspect they just skipped that bit totally.

He spent a lot of time when I was on the ground blowing into my neck, nibbling my shirt buttons and looked to me often. He needs reassurance and affection bless him x

Dress for success

One of the things I like about living here is the casual attitude towards clothing, you can pretty much wear whatever you want, wherever you want and you won't be under or over dressed.

Featuring at school pick up time from the Mummies is everything and anything. From flats and shorts, Dasiy Dukes and Sky high wedges, mini skirts and stilettos, workout gear, riding clothes and cowboy boots to hippy skirts and kaftans. No one cares! It's pretty cool to not be judged although I have pretty much lived in shorts, girly sandals and tank tops since I have arrived.

Its still roasting here, 88f today (31c) and too hot for anything but shorts and skirts really so thats what I live in.. oh and my cowboy boots sometimes too of course!

Sessions at FOH

I headed back up to Friends Of Horses (FOH) again last and then this week. On Monday I worked with four of the horses.

WEEK 2

Timeless Dancer

First up again was the big mare Molly Z. I had use of the round pen this time which was just fantastic so I got to do some work with her. We started off with leading manners again and she did great, she is quite a polite mare so tries really hard. In the round pen I worked her in both directions, she didn't want to stay on the right rein and kept trying to flip around, I managed to keep her going but I feel like my reactions aren't quite good enough to grab her before she starts to flip, I need to watch her much better and work on this for next time. I made sure she kept moving when I had asked her too. Again, to start with she galloped at the gateway but I wouldn't let her stop there so after five or six attempts at this she kept moving round much more freely.

Next I worked with a new horse 'Timeless Dancer'. She is about 15hh and very pretty. They didn't know much about her but she looked part Arab. She was sweet to work with albeit a bit sensitive but tried hard. I didn't work her loose as she has just recovered from a tendon injury so worked in hand instead, she did great and we did lots of de sensitization with her body/ ropes and whip etc. When I got back I googled her at it seems she was an Arab racehorse. I think she was pretty successful but guessing once she did her tendon she became useless. There are even some photos online at http://www.toskhara.com/racing/tatimelessdancer.html.

Then I got to work with my favorite so far, the gorgeous Rough Cutt. I think he is pure TB but he is stocky and around 15.2hh. He was a little star and I think he needs to play some new games. So this week I think we might have a play with some new challenges with mounting blocks etc. I have a real affection for this horse and he is so good looking. Its tough to stay detached.

Distant Land

Finally was a newbie. A 16.1hh (ish) TB mare Distant Land. She is very bright and inquisitive and wants to nibble/ sniff everything. I started in hand with her and she was good but lacked a few manners/ she tried grass snatching etc and called a fair bit but started to focus as the session began. She was great in hand and wasn't bothered by the rope etc. Loose schooling she did pretty well, she settled fast and there was no hooning. She has a strong personality and kicked out at the rope each time I pushed her on. She really is a nibbly mare though and I think she could quite easily turn it into a bite. I made sure she didn't put her mouth on me while I was working around her and she quickly got the idea.

All the horses had a good groom afterwards which they just loved and it amazed me how fast they all trust people and relaxed by the end of each session. They are teaching me so much and I can't help but be a little in awe of these clever animals.


WEEK 3

So before the next session I had a good think about what I wanted to do next. The round pen is fine for a bit but I wanted a little more focus on me and movement towards ridden work. I still don't have any long lines but there is one at FOH that I can borrow when I work as no one else really seems to use it!

So this session it was about focus and relaxation and we worked in the larger pens.

Molly Z came out nicely and we did a little work in hand, I then started to move away from her and let her move out quietly onto the long line, we got a lovely few circles on the lunge in a nice relaxed walk which was brilliant. Something then made her jump and she show forwards into canter and bucked, i let the rope out a little and kept the pressure off and she settled straight back down. We did another few circles and left it on a good note. I don't really want to lunge any of them as such but want to start long lining soon and so I stuck more to this, following her movement around the large pen and keeping her relaxed but paying attention.

Next up- work with Timeless. We did some work on body language and even more desensitization, she is quite quirky and can panic about things. One of the things I have now found that really worries her is trotting under hand, she throws her head up and goes straight up. Im not sure whats happened in her past but we quickly took it back a step and I am trying to keep her relaxed about this. She then just had some free time in the pen with one of her buddies.

Finally I played with RC, he did well and we have started challenging him with height. He is now coming up to the mounting block and I am standing on the top step and leaning over him/ scratching his sides and just getting him used to seeing someone higher than him and him being able to see me from both sides. He is clearly uncomfortable about it as he steps backwards when any weight is applied but I am hoping the more I can do the less it will upset him.

I am well aware that I am making little difference to the horses. Before I went up today I kind of wondered if it was worthwhile. I just am not experienced enough to really change much. Jules (The Queen of all groundwork) taught me huge amounts that I remember every single time I am around the horses; from body language to handling and approaching youngsters, loose schooling, desensitizing and some of the stages of backing (even though these guys are in theory backed). I also realize that they are being handled and worked by lots of different people; RC for example is still having people ride him at times in blinkers so it possibly counteracts anything I do or don't do. I decided to still go up as I had some items to drop off. I have asked around locally and managed to collect quite a few old head collars, lead ropes, buckets and numnahs etc so I wanted to give those to the rescue. When I went today I decided to just enjoy being with the horses and do what I can, some days they won't get out their stalls so even if I just went up and walked them around the property for a bit its better than nothing and they enjoy working in the pens with me. As long as they are happy and we are both safe then I am doing more good than harm. Today I truly enjoyed being there, I got to know quite a few more people which helps too. It is a huge place and they have so many horses there that its a little overwhelming at times, but if they can get the odd leg stretch; then all is good.