Friends and Music... Ahh The Life. - CLOSED

[dari]

Yeah, she's fine, it's just a small cut. But it's enough to make her lame for a few days for sure.

She watched Duke's wild leap and prayed that Ella would stay on. When she did, Lies sighed with relief. That's what Bex looked like first time I tried to jump her, she said with a laugh. Scared me out of my skin... but she's better at it now.

She turned back to Hope. Actually, I was thinking that Rush could use some work. I've seen him out in the fields and he's got some great movement... I'd love to try him out.

[femalefred]

Ella laughed at the comments from the other girls, drawing Duke into a more collected canter as she circled round again. "You would think it was his first time, wouldn't you?" she called over to Lyris.
Keeping a light seat and a slightly firmer rein, she turned the grey back towards the log. He quickened his pace again, but not nearly so frantically this time and there wasn't going to be a need for him to throw himself over the fence so early. In fact, her tactics seemed to be working and he was steadying his pace and collecting his canter back up. The jump this time was a much neater one, and Ella grinned, giving the gelding an encouraging pat on the neck before bringing him down to a trot and heading over towards Lyris and Hope.
"There. Just have to concentrate that hard over every single fence ever and we'll be fine!"

[DJ]

Sure! He's a very pretty mover. And he'll need to be worked today anyway. Hope brought her attention back to Ella and Duke as she cleared the fence a bit cleaner this time. Well that was pretty!! She smiled at Ella. But yes. Rush'll need work. And I'll need to work some of the ponies. Hope pouted and rolled her eyes. They're such a pain. Ugh. Little brats. Hope giggled a bit. I'll think I'll enjoy my time on Music and try to take him over the log and into the water. He's certainly athletic enough. She turned him around and shortened her reins before moving the roan into a collected canter before getting into half seat and allowing the horse to move out and eat up the ground under her. She turned him toward the water.

[dari]

Lyris nodded and smiled, looking forward to her ride on the spirited Lipizzan. Thanks, Hope.

She smiled when Duke cleared the fence well. He's got a touch of ADD, doesn't he? Sounds a lot like Bex. I swear if I don't keep her attention, she goes nutso, she laughed.

She waved to Hope and Ella and went to get Rush.

[femalefred]

"Maybe not pretty, but a whole lot better," Ella grinned, giving Duke another light pat on the neck. "He has major problems concentrating. And he spooks at everything if he's not been somewhere before or if it looks unusual. I'm just glad that he's settled in here and isn't freaked out by most of the stuff now. Have fun with Rush, he looks a lot prettier on the flat than this one does!" she said to Lyris, giving her a little wave as she headed off to fetch the lipizzan.
Turning Duke back to the course, she was just in time to see Hope collecting Music's canter and turning him towards the water. That was one of the main reasons Ella had brought her gelding out today, and so nudged him into a trot and made her way towards the jump, keeping well back and halting about 10 metres away, watching Hope take her very well behaved warmblood towards the log.

[DJ]

Hope continued her way to the log and half-halted the warmblood to correct his striding. With this jump, he needed to be correct and not take off too soon over the large log. Hope threw her body forward and put her hands up the warmblood's neck to loosen the reins and not tug on his face as he picked his knees up over the fence and sat back into safety position and allowed the reins to slip through her fingers as he decended into the water, creating a large splash as his fetlocks dove deep into the water, sinking to the bottom. Hope recollected her reins as the gelding bounded through the water and she steered him toward the second log on the other side of the water. It was always difficult to jump up and out of water and this was a fairly high fence, but the Warmblood used one large surge of power, pushing himself and Hope out of the water and over the log flecked with colored lichen and mosses. Hope dropped her reins on his neck and reached down to clap him on the underside of his neck, having her arms around each side of him as he continued to canter slowly.
What a good boy!! You're so good! Hope picked up the reins and pulled the gelding to a walk. That was brilliant! She told the gelding how good he was and allowed him to keep walking, as she was finished with him for the day.

[femalefred]

"Now that was impressive! You sure he hasn't seen this course before?" Ella asked in mock disbelief, gathering her own reins up and nudging Duke to a walk. "Now, I don't think we're going to try that for ourselves, but let's see how he goes this time."
Duke's ears were perked and interested as Ella asked him to trot and took him in a broad circle. Taking him down the slope into the water would certainly be a lot easier than taking him over the ditch, but Duke had crossed water several times now and wasn't alarmed by trotting or even cantering into water that went to knee-height, so it would be a fairly pointless exercise. As they circled for the second time, she asked the gelding to canter and headed towards the ditch. He was concentrating more now, and so his pace only quickened a touch but his head lifted and Ella was thankful again for the invention of martingales. The canter wasn't collected, but it was controlled and Duke leapt neatly over the ditch and into the water.
There, things went rather worse for the pair. Duke was alarmed by the water, and spooked to the right. That, of course, didn't help, as there was more water, and it was only a firm seat from his rider that kept him from bugging out completely. Urging him forwards, Ella was prepared to use her crop if her leg wasn't enough, but the gelding wasn't so upset that he stopped listening altogether. Unfortunately, he bolted right for the log out of the water and took it with a huge leap, continuing to gallop once he'd landed.
Alarmed, Ella sat back and instinctively half-halted, which had little effect until she repeated the command two or three times, at which point he calmed down to a canter, and then a high-stepping, extremely bouncy trot. They were well away from Hope now and almost at the other side of the course.
"Ok. We'll try that again in a second then, beast. Best get back to the other side."

[tidal]

Jake slowly lead Insanity onto the green. The equine perked his ears forward, and whinnied. Oh you silly boy! Jake cooed while stroking his slender neck. Come on now. Let's get you around. He grabbed the lead shank and walked forward. Insanity kept on tossing his head and looking around. He was enchanted by the world around him. Whoah, easy boy. Jake smiled as he stroked his horse's face. The mustand cross stumbled once more as he walked around the jumps.

[DJ]

Hope watched Ella and Duke complete the water hazard and her jaw dropped when the gelding leaped over the log. He certainly is athletic! That's a difficult jump! He seemed pretty happy to bounce right over it! The smirked with astonishment at the horse's talent. You have a nice little eventer on you hands when he learns to bring his head down.
Hope turned around to see Jake and Insanity walking onto the course. The horse screamed to Duke and Music. Duke seemed to want to say hi back, but was currently busy, and Music was too lazy to really care who was and wasn't talking to him. The gelding now had his head down and his lip was quivering a bit in the warm sunlight of the morning. Hope had dropped her reins and they sat on his withers, slacking to his mouth. Hello, there! She called to the unmounted rider.

[femalefred]

When the new horse called, Duke's ears perked and his head shot up again. "Oi, stop it," Ella muttered, bringing her reins in and squeezing firmly with her calves. For once Duke got the hint first time round and carried on walking, lowering his head a little, though still nowhere near a decent outline.
"He's always been a scopey beast, I just hope he doesn't freak about landing in water again," the girl replied to Hope's comment. "And that's what martingales are for, right? I'm hoping doing a bit more dressage work'll sort his outline out a bit on the flat and that might translate to jumping. We'll see though," she added as they came to a halt by Music.
"Hi!"

[tidal]

Jake looked up from his horse and called out to the rider further ahead of him. Why, hello there! He slowed his horse, and tossed the reins over the head. Clutching onto them, he slowly put his foot in the iron. With a jump, he was on. Insanity shot forward beneath Jake's legs, and galloped in a straight line. Whoa! Easy does it. Hooee. Take it easy big boy. The rider hushed. The equine, ever so slowly, came to a canter, and then a fast moving trot. Jake gave him a light pat on the side of the neck, and rubbed underneath the mane. Insanity delicately picked his way around the jumps, head hanging low, snorting, over to the other horses.

[DJ]

Hope gazed over at Ella and Duke, taking a breather next to her. She sighed and removed her feet from the stirrups, reaching forward to Music's poll and then back to his dock, stretching her back from the earlier riding. Music still stood happily in the sun, back hoof cocked on the soft grassy ground.

Hope smiled at the rider who'd just mounted. She decided to keep an eye on the two. The horse was very very excited, but the rider seemed to be handling it fine.

Hope turned back around forward and gazed off into the distance. Meh. I need to get off my high horse and work the other equines. She frowned and gave Music a stroke across his neck. I'll have to find time to bring you to an event sometime. You're an amazing horse.

[femalefred]

At the new horse bolting, Duke suddenly got uneasy again and began fidgetting and side stepping, head moving up and his eyes widening in surprise or fear or both. Ella quickly shortened up her reins again and placed a placating gloved hand on the gelding's neck, murmuring softly and trying to calm him down. He obviously wasn't worn out yet, even after his own bolt across the course and he was so very susceptible to the moods of other horses that she began to worry that this horse was going to be the very opposite of Music, who was something of a calming influence.
"Easy, D," she said softly, bringing him back to a fidgety standstill as the newcomer brought his mount back around.
"Aw, well that's a shame. You should ride him at the one day you've got coming up, if you're allowed to," she commented as Hope showed her reluctance to take Music back in. "Me and Duke'll be your competition. Riding Music, you'll win, but we'll be you're competition anyhow!" she added with a grin before turning and nodding to the new rider.
Ella often found it difficult to keep her temper in check when people didn't pay that much attention to Duke's nervousness, but at the moment she was on top of it. It wasn't the boy's fault that his horse had bolted, and he was keeping in control of it well enough.
"Hey, I'm Ella and this is Duke. You taking your beast around the course as well?"

[tidal]

Haha. Why yes, I am. Little monster decided to charge across, as you saw. Jake kidded as he gave his horse a firm pat on the neck. This is Insanity. I guess his name matches his personality.He urged his horse onward, into a nice slow trot. Insanity dropped his neck, and snorted. He wasn't quite liking the whole being ridden aspect. After circling the jumps, and getting used to the perimeter, Jake slowly asked for the canter. Reluctantly, the equine lumbered on.

[femalefred]

"Everyone I've seen seems full of energy today! Just to let you know, Duke can be a bit of a spazz and might bolt or spook at something small, especially seeing as this is the first time he's been ridden for a few days."
Duke was now eyeballing Insanity for no apparent reason other than that the horse appeared to be as hyperactive as he was, if less eager to be ridden. His head rose as the other pair moved away, trying to keep as good an eye on them as possible and continuing to shift about, ignoring Ella's gentle, but increasingly insisent, requests for him to remain still.
One they'd moved away and had set off at a canter, Ella finally gave Duke a nudge to move forward, asking first for a walk and then to trot. She'd take him over the ditch again, this time only at a trot, and hopefully he wouldn't spook this time.