I have given up trying to think of anything to tell you about Mondays except that we do as little as possible. Selena rode Woody since that doesn’t count as work, one horse had to gallop and another had to be ridden because it wasn’t ridden on Sunday. We work pretty much everything in the barn six days a week, if they are in training at one star or above they we work on a four day program for out gallops and give them every eighth day off which can be inconvenient to run your life around.
Tuesday was a fun day, Selena had a meeting with Kingston Athletic Therapy Centre who are sponsoring her with a treatment a week and a weekly fitness session with other top athletes in different sports, all of whom live in the Kingston area. Selena is really looking forward to meeting other Kingston athletes, and is thankful for the input and help with her training program. It’s hard to remember that we have to look after the rider’s muscles and fitness just as carefully as we do the horse.
Selena sporting one of her lovely Charles Owen hats
From another wonderful and long time sponsor, Charles Owen, she received three new hats by courier. Terribly exciting to get a great big parcel full of Charles Owen hats. She has the ‘Four Star’, the ‘V8’ and the ‘H2000’. They are all gorgeous. I don’t know which one I like best but I plan on getting myself one to match. I think it might be the ‘Four Star’ as it is SO light and comfortable and it’s vented. The ‘V8’ is new this year and has a removable insert that can go into the washing machine! What a great idea.
Today, Wednesday was a jump day. Jump days are the best but exhausting. Benny and Rummy carried on with their program. Rummy was getting quick and anxious about single poles on the ground so that is as far as we went with him today. No point going on when he is not relaxed over his poles. Benny took it all in stride and did some lovely quiet jumps on the grid.
Several of the older horses did a grid including Woody. It was a 9’ bounce, then 18’ to another 9’ bounce, 18’ to an oxer, then 18 feet to one more 9’ bounce. The ‘in’ on the bounces was an X and the out was set at 2’6” but the oxer in the middle went up to 3’6” for the more experienced horses. I must say that everyone was really good, it’s getting harder and harder to come up with a grid that they can’t ace.
