Update on Ellen and Dante

 

Update on Ellen and Dante

As well as Ellen and Dante are doing in the arena, she really wants to ride on the trail.  It is hard for her to get back down there because she gets nervous when she hasn't done it in a while.  It has been so cold and snowy, she hasn't even ridden outside for quite a while.

I was out there in the evening when she was working, and I turned Dante out to play.  It was the first day that he was out when there wasn't any snow or ice.  All there was was mud, and I think he liked it.  He ran and ran and ran--around and around and around. The only time he wasn't running was when he was bucking.  

The next morning, I told Ellen she should ride him outside because I knew he would be really tired.  She agreed.  She started her ride in the indoor arena, and he was a slug.  Yes, it was the perfect day for it.

He was excited to be out, and Ellen was nervous, but they both did so well.  His neck was like a giraffe, so she told him "head down."  He remembered his training and lowered his head.  After a while, she even relaxed enough to trot.  Since Dante was tired from the day before, he barely did one of his leaps on his transition.  It was such a perfect day for her first ride out in so long.  Dante couldn't have been better.

Ellen knows how to tame her anxieties, but that doesn't mean it is easy.  She takes small steps and just keeps building on them.  It helps when you have a really great horse like Dante.  He always does his best to take care of her.