So, I have taken it very slow on the barrels with my sweet girl. When I bought her, I didn't think she knew enough of the basics of just being a broke horse, so I decided to take some time off away from the barrels. We focused on lateral and vertical flexion, collection, and asking her to use all of her different body parts.
In the past month or two, I have decided she is right where she needs to be to start hauling to neighborhood jackpots to get used to the sights and sounds. Maybe even run some barrels.
Last night was her second outing this year. I wanted to get her really comfortable in the arena, but they had a lot of girls wanting to do the same thing, so we all got put in a bit of a time crunch. I dealt with what I had been given, and Jade definitely surprised me with her easy going personality. She wasn't quite so sure of the shadows on the ground right before the timing light, but besides that, she had a pretty first two barrels. The third barrel was rider error - I had moved her too far over to create a "pocket", and misjudged how far over we went. Jade humored me though and started turning when I asked her, and we both kind of worked it out around the last one.
I'm looking forward to next week when she's more comfortable in the arena. Hopefully, I will have more time to work her in the arena. At the end of the day, I will love my girl. She tries her best to please me, and that's all I can ask for. :)
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