Reality check

Although the morning started with rain, we managed to find an hour or so of dry weather after 11.00. With the rain we were glad we hadn't entered Prelim 17 at Solihull this morning. Like yesterday, we worked a lot in walk trying to gain and retain softness a little more regularly and efficiently. Dad lengthened his rein without losing contact which helped. We added some lateral work, shoulder-in, leg yield, halt-walk transitions and twenty metre circles with alternate ten metre circles inside and outside to promote flexibility.

Other Dad brought Dibby to work with me and we walked and trotted around together in rising and sitting and worked on exercises where one walked and the other walked, trotted or cantered away alone to go round the school and rejoin the other. That worked quite well - apart from when Dibby cantered away from me and I thought it was a good idea to canter after him to catch up. In a snaffle there wasn't a lot Dad could do to stop me. Dad said we had to work on that one.

We spent the afternoon out wearing our light rain sheets and came in after 5.00. Dad gave me a good groom and said he wasn't too disappointed about my getting excited in the canter today: better safely in the school than out at Solihull. Cobs don't mind an occasional reality check.