tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post733151751079987751..comments2024-03-23T20:03:57.192-04:00Comments on The Horseback Artist: The Spice of Life Grace Chttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14940229993479813381noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-62587368089408912762017-05-31T21:26:44.635-04:002017-05-31T21:26:44.635-04:00I agree... with those trails in your backyard, you...I agree... with those trails in your backyard, you should be able to handle OD's terrain without much hassle (now you just have to deal with the heat!)Domhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00139769676714813261noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-91474243933153584692017-05-24T16:21:47.807-04:002017-05-24T16:21:47.807-04:00Thanks for the suggestions Saiph! I worried about ...Thanks for the suggestions Saiph! I worried about finding a balance with workouts on the flat vs. rocky hills but if they work fine for cardio, I'll take it gladly if it saves me the haul out and also improves her/our confidence over technical terrain (:Grace Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940229993479813381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-49893108561678811352017-05-23T12:12:23.541-04:002017-05-23T12:12:23.541-04:00Neither Liz nor I have HR monitors. :) You can tel...Neither Liz nor I have HR monitors. :) You can tell if it's helping with her cardio conditioning by how fast she recovers from your rocky rides. Learn to find her pulse (under the jaw is a good spot but you can also use digital pulses), then when you are done working immediately dismount (before cooling off) and check her heart rate. Note what it is, then take it 5 minutes later. See how long it takes before she gets under 60 bpm. I suspect it's not going to take her long at all! :) <br /><br />I envy your rocky trails! That's primo OD-type conditioning right there! We have to haul out to find terrain like that to condition in, which is why we worked so hard on hill sprints and speed. If your rocky terrain is also hilly, you're set! No need to stress about flat trainig. :D<br /><br />Since she is feeling confident about picking her way over rocks, you can start asking her to trot more and more and just let her choose her way. One day you'll be able to canter those nicer sections! Horses are amazing at getting the hang of technical terrain when you can expose them to it consistently. It's awesome that you have this right off property! :)Nicole Ahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09817619834026667737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-42453237287115315562017-05-23T10:30:33.479-04:002017-05-23T10:30:33.479-04:00Interesting point! I've noticed that Quest see...Interesting point! I've noticed that Quest seems to mentally hunker down and gets to business when the footing becomes technical. For our first endurance ride though, it's all flat with very little elevation change which is why I wanted/went looking for flat plus months of non-stop gnarly rocks made me crave a mental break from them haha <br /><br />Though since you obviously can't really get sustained speed on technical stuff, have you noticed that it helps overall cardio conditioning? I don't have a HR monitor and I can't really tell either or definitively.Grace Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940229993479813381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-9084102320634518592017-05-23T09:59:18.310-04:002017-05-23T09:59:18.310-04:00Damn you've found some AMAZING trails! IMHO, b...Damn you've found some AMAZING trails! IMHO, being able to practice on the more technical stuff is more important in the long run. It's easy to find mediocre trails that will help you work on "easy" things. With Q, I rarely worked on "easy" terrain because I figured if she could tackle the hard stuff then the easy stuff would come to us naturally. Granted, she's kind of a loon on "easy" terrain so I wasn't as motivated to want to work on it! If she doesn't have technical terrain to keep her mind *and* body busy, then she creates monsters and spooks a ton. Point in case - her dumping me around mile 50 of our 100 lolLiz Stouthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18267806576736655184noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-20201134013205088412017-05-23T08:51:13.194-04:002017-05-23T08:51:13.194-04:00Both have their benefits! Not gonna lie though, it...Both have their benefits! Not gonna lie though, it was such a relief to not deal with mountains of rocks or gravel for onceGrace Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940229993479813381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-61193313558534512872017-05-23T08:46:38.866-04:002017-05-23T08:46:38.866-04:00They are! Though the BO is a stickler about keepin...They are! Though the BO is a stickler about keeping nice grazing pastures so we have to find another place to have our fun lolGrace Chttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940229993479813381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-46025429771720355022017-05-23T07:01:36.763-04:002017-05-23T07:01:36.763-04:00Ooooh nice find!! I like the wild technical stuff ...Ooooh nice find!! I like the wild technical stuff too but sometimes ya just gotta let it rip!emmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05686949099663199382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9015542471965618966.post-3446673348777397922017-05-22T13:51:53.709-04:002017-05-22T13:51:53.709-04:00ooo yeah open fields are fun!ooo yeah open fields are fun!L.Williamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05052638724440787772noreply@blogger.com