So good!

My daughter has just started school, and today I get a morning to myself. Riding time! Yay! This just feels so good.

I bring Gally in for some dressage. I do my normal warm up with a loose rein walk and trot. Then I progress onto some more walk and trot with contact. Then onto canter. It appears to me that something is starting to happen. Something good.

For starters, it feels like Gally is getting the idea of going forwards. I no longer have to kick him on every two strides to get action.

For seconds, he is starting to go into the bit out of his own choice. This is a bit of a hit and miss affair still, but it's definitely starting to happen. This is totally different to driving the horse into the bit. Sure, I can do that. But on this horse, it just doesn't feel quite right. Instead, it is more about suggesting that he could take up the bit, and then he does. (I "suggest" by doing the standard inside leg to outside rein, followed by asking the horse to flex with the inside rein. But I use very little force.)