Yes, indeed. All three. Tuesday's lesson was good. Really good. I felt like I was right on the money from the moment I settled my butt in the saddle. Rory was so responsive and we were in lovely synch. Tracey had us doing really tight figure 8s in the last half of the lesson, and the key for me was not to lose my solid trot pace, not to lose my frame and keep him solidly on the bit, and to keep my shapes nicely. It was crazy-hard, but apparently, it worked! I got the thumbs-up, and T wished she'd had a video to show me how good we looked! I was excited and very satisfied. We had also done a bunch of close circles earlier with no stirrups and I was very glad that my yoga legs showed up for the lesson! These are the moments when I want to deck anybody right in the face who wonders how riding can be exercise...A good, solid lesson, and I am sweaty, puffed, shaky and aware of all the muscles in my body. Rory had had his trace clip on the weekend, so he sweated up some, but not quite as badly as when he did not have a tidy stripe of fur shaved out of his sides and neck. He earned his oats that day!
Then came Thursday. Blah....I had been fighting a headache for days, it seemed, and Wednesday night and Thursday morning were rough. I wanted to do my lesson, but felt "wrong", just as I'd felt "right" on Tuesday. Rory was distracted and very, very slow. The figure 8s that had gone so well Tuesday were not nearly the same Thursday. Grrrr. It was all an effort. I was bouncy in the saddle and struggling. There were some smooth moments, but by and large, I was frustrated and a little disappointed. These days happen, just like the good ones.
The 'maybe' was part of Thursday too.... I have been drooling over this Verhan dressage saddle marked down to 75% off in the Equi-Products floor/demo model sale. This saddle is beyond gorgeous. I kept visiting it in the shop, sitting in it, and sighing. When I offered to sell one of my valuable books to fund the saddle (and such a deal I will be waiting long into the future for again), Lee got on board, and I bought it Thursday morning with a three day return window. Tracey and I fitted it on Rory to the best of our ability, and were largely very pleased with it. I did my lesson in it, and it felt great to me. We just were not sure of the clearance at the pommel, and a really properly fitted saddle is all-important for the continued comfort of my boy. We asked Barbara's opinion, and she very sensibly thought we ought to call in a professional saddle fitter. So, said saddle fitter is coming to the barn tomorrow, and the fate of my beautiful Verhan lies in the balance. Maybe, or maybe not.... But not for anything will I risk Rory's back. Now HE is a treasure beyond price, and there is no maybe about him! : )
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