Day Twenty Seven: I took Happy to the round pen and bit him up, running the reins underneath his front legs and over his back. I push him up to the lop and try to keep him lopping for a good five minutes one way before changing direction and then let him trot a few minutes and then back to the lope. We are going to push in up to the lope today with a rider so I want him to get used to me pushing him up to a lope and stay relaxed.
I have a meeting at Chico State about developing a Chico State Reining Drill Team Club so I tie Happy in a stall and go to my meeting. When I return I take Happy back out to the round pen and lunge him until he changes direction relaxed. Kristen mounts Happy while I still have him on the lunge line. I send him out and he is relaxed, carrying her at a trot. I ask Kristen if she is ready for me to push him up to the lope and she got nervous and started to tense her body and as she did this Happy started to go faster and look back at her getting nervous. She relaxed her body and Happy came back to trotting relaxed again. Kristen started to laugh when Happy came back to relaxed and asked me to step in front of him and change direction, She wanted to feel him sweep a crossed himself. I turn him a few times as she laugh and we both know he is ready to push to the lope. I push him up to a lope and Kristen stays a passenger, letting Happy get used to carrying her weight without the added pressure of trying to guide. Happy pushes up to a lope and stays relaxed both directions. He was really good today, only getting nervous when Kristen got nervous and came back when she did. He is really sensitive and smart:0)