Proud Moment

Stuff like this makes me soar for hours. I am so proud and feel such a level of accomplishment when good things are said about my horses. The chiropractor came on Sunday and worked on Jimmy. She said this was the best he has ever been, and she has been working on him for years. His back was in excellent shape, his "normal" bad spot on his hip was hardly reactive, and he was good all over. She was really impressed. I felt validation for my training and reassurance that I am riding correctly and training him correctly. It feels so good! I was noticing on Saturday how well muscled he looked. His topline is strong and fleshy. His neck muscle is well-defined the full length of his neck, and his withers have a nice, sloping shape to them. A few months ago the dressage trainer commented on how well his hind end is muscled now. Jimmy keeps getting stronger and stronger. But, really, having a good chiropractic exam was the pinnacle of compliments. We've been through very ouchy times, mostly caused from my old saddle that just paid for Zoe's vet bill. But the ouchiness kept us from progressing. Now we are flying! I do owe it quite a bit to my new saddle. That was well worth the time and money to get a well fitting saddle. In fact, Jimmy has now muscled out so much in the withers that the saddle should be adjusted to fit it better. I'll have to look at doing this in September.

Anyhow, the compliments yesterday made me so happy and feel as though the time I put in to being consistent is well worth it. I never thought I would be a "good" dressage rider, but I see now that I can be damn good. It does take work and time, which my husband is not so happy with, but putting the work into it is my dream. Jimmy is such a great partner, and I don't know if I'll have a horse like him ever again. Zoe is going to be much different to train and ride, so I want to enjoy Jimmy has much as I can now. I want to succeed with Jimmy to our ultimate ability. Yes, I think now I am a driven rider with goals and a training plan. That's the difference from 2 years ago.