Our training diary

updated Dec. 31, 2005

Click here for Corky's 2 year old year Training Diary!

Today's the day...weaning day! Yuck! This is a tough day for Corky. We started off the morning bright and early with a farrier appointment. I have been picking up her feet and holding them up for months in preparation for her first 'real' appointment (she had her feet rasped before, but this is her first balanced trim job). She was very good! She lost her balance once and it frightened her, but she calmed down rather quickly. One thing great about her is that she has always been super easy to pick her feet up. She lets you lift them with no resistance.

After her farrier appointment, Fruit went out in the pasture while Corky stayed in her stall (that opens up into the pasture). This is normal...Corky tends to be an 'indoor' kind of gal, while Fruit HAS to be outside, in all weather. This gave us our perfect opportunity. I put a lead rope on her, led her out of the big stall and down the aisle into her own regular stall. Let the weaning begin!

2 days of crying, whinnying, and pacing...will it never end? Poor Taylor is in the stall between them and she is getting NO sleep!

After only 5 minutes, Corky is walking a nice big circle on the longe line. I don't intend on actually longeing her yet, but she has been behaving so well I thought I'd see if I could get her to just walk a big circle on the line. She was very confused when we reversed, but figured it out and walked some nice big circles right at the end of the line, with no pressure. I can tell this is going to be a fun yearling year! Hunter longe line, here we come!

We have had 3 weeks of snow, ice, and frigid temperatures. Corky is enjoying her daily turnout. We had to separate Corky and Taylor since Taylor would torture her when they were out together! Corky now gets turned out with the old geldings. Mainly what I have been doing is just practicing working around her head - taking her halter on and off several times a day, working with her ears, etc. Occasionally I lead her around the arena, and walk her on the longe line.

What great progress we have made in just one short month! Corky was laid up for about 2 weeks with a broken hoof - broke right off at the laminae and she was very sore! Once she felt better, we resumed our weekly lessons. She learns SO fast I am constantly coming up with new 'games' to keep her occupied. To date she can walk, trot, halt, and reverse on the longe line (though we only trot about 3x per direction at a time). I have been working showmanship elements with her also. I can set her feet up by hand, and she will stand rock-solid. She will also trot with me, stop, and back. This is such fun...yearlings are like blank slates that you can 'create' your own future show horse from. I measured her today, and she stands at 14'3 3'4", just a quarter inch shy of 15 hands (and yes folks, this is ACTUAL measurements LOL!). She is at least an inch or two higher in the hip. She has a LOT of growing to do...she still has that long, leggy baby look to her. She is 9 months old this week. Now comes the decision time...what futurities to nominate her to! She is already nominated to the Ohio Futurity. I am considering Tom Powers and a few others. This is looking to be a fun summer.

Today we hit a milestone - Corky walked over the trail bridge! For three weeks she would put one foot on the bridge and go no further. I made our sessions pressure-free, and let her decide where her comfort level was. A little enticement of grain was all it took...she was comfortable enough with being around the bridge from the past few weeks, so she stepped right up on it to eat the grain. We walked over it 6 or 7 times, and she was not the least bit concerned with the hollow-sound when she walked on it. Next step will be introducing her to the trailer. This is the lesson I dread the most...so much can go wrong, and if it does, it can be disaster...especially for someone like myself who generally loads and hauls to shows alone. I need to have a horse that will load easily! Keep your fingers crossed....and stay tuned!

Another fast update. Corky walked on and off the trail bridge several times, so I decided to introduce her to the trailer. She had no problem stepping up onto the ramp, especially when she saw the bucket of grain. She got as far as putting her front feet in the trailer and back feet on the ramp. I let her stand there and eat for a while, then backed her out. No sense pushing our good luck. Today she also consistently stopped and reversed on cue on the longe line. I am dying to canter her, but set myself a strict deadline of May before doing any canter work. As it is, we only trot about 3 times around max. Gotta protect those looooong legs!

Corky went all the way in the trailer today...twice! She willingly walked right in, ate some grain, then I backed her out and re-loaded her and she ate some more. She was never worried, was completely relaxed in the trailer!

I measured Corky again today because she sure looks like she grew. By golly she did - she is a bit over 15'1" now, maybe even 15'1 1/2"! Amazing, since she is only 10 1/2 months old. She has pretty much perfected her walk-trot-stop-reverse commands on the longe line. I am only longing her about once a week to once every couple weeks...she gets bored easily! It's tough holding myself back - I want to canter her! I am not letting her canter on the line until May, though she is very strong already. Better safe than sorry. She has decided to test the limits of her rope lately when she is tied up. I usually tie her with a regular lead rope plus a bungee tie. Today she decided to test it out and stretched the bungee to about 4 feet! I held the rope and kept pressure on her, and she pulled with all her might before she gave up. It wasn't a scared pull-back, she just decided to test it. She did it several times today...luckily everything held and nothing broke. I need to keep an eye on this habit and make sure she never figures out she can actually break the halter or rope if she really puts her mind to it!

Corky is sure testing her limits this week. We spent several days practicing loading and unloading in the trailer. She will walk in the first time, eat a snack, and then the second time she flat out refused! It wasn't fear - it was being a bullheaded teenager and saying 'No!'. I struggled this week to hold onto my patience...it sure is tough sometimes. The sun was out, the temperature is warm, and everyone feels spring fever. Finally today we had two uneventful loading/unloading moments. It helped to have a second person stand beside her and just urge her forward with his body language. This training process is kind of like being a parent (only you are not allowed to keep your kids locked in stalls while you run to the store LOL!). We are aiming for May 1st - Corky's first trailer ride to a small local open show to walk around and see the sights. Her biggest problem is the fear and total distraction whenever another horse is within eyesight. It will be interesting to see how she reacts to several hundred horses all over the showgrounds!.

Ok, I cheated! I set the deadline of May 1st before I started cantering Corky on the longe line, but I started a little this week. She is so natural at it, she flowed right into a nice canter. The trick is keeping her from switching to crossfiring when going to the right. She looks to be a natural lead changer, she swaps back and forth quite a bit. This could make longeing her a challenge. This weekend I also introduced her to the clippers. She HATES having anything touch her nose, including the softest brush, so it took quite a bit of persuading to have her stand for the clippers on her nose. I got her legs done with minimal problems. I skimmed her ears, and she was OK for a moment or two, but then backed away. I'll be approaching this area very slowly, as she tends to be touchy about her ears being handled from the side. I can do anything with them if I handle her ears from the front...but trying to clip while leaning over her face is tough. We measured her again this weekend, she looks to be a pretty solid 15'2" (or darn close to it). My plans (weather permitting) are to haul her to a local open show this Sunday for the first time and walk her around. Keep your fingers crossed...could be interesting!

I have been taking it easy with Corky, only longeing maybe once a week. On May 1st I hauled her to her first show just to walk around. For the first hour she was a bit agitated. Never really acted up on the longe line, but was very wide-eyed and giraffe-necked. I longed her in the arena during lunch break and she did surprisingly well. The best part is that she loaded and unloaded from the trailer without a bit of fuss. What a good girl!

She is very well-behaved at home on the line. If the weather holds out this weekend, I plan to haul her to an open show and try her in her very first longe line class. She doesn't always tale the canter right away, but I won't push the issue just yet. Stay tuned!

Today is the day for Corky's debut in Longe Line! Yesterday was a banner day, she received her first bath! She ran circles while I chased her with the hose, but eventually settled down and let me hose her, shampoo, and rinse her all over. I was extremely pleased with how well she took this. Yesterday she also got to wear her first sheet and hood. She didn't care at all about wearing them, but was a bit leery of having that hood go over her head.

We arrived at the showgrounds in Marysville only 10 minutes before the start of the show, longe line was class #6, and there were no entries in classes 1,2, and 5...so needless to say we were rushed! She was very agitated when we first arrived, and I came very close to not entering her at all, but I figured even if she went ballistic in the arena, it would be good practice for her. She went in the ring like a champ! I was SO proud. She gave a couple small bucks at the canter, but other than that she was right on the money. She had a bit of trouble standing still for the halter portion of the class, we will need to work on this at home. She placed 3rd out of 4, pretty darn good for her first time being shown, and without much warmup to boot! I have lots of photos HERE so check them out!

Corky showed in the Tom Powers Futurity Open Hunter Longe Line class today. What an incredible horse. She handled the show atmosphere like a true champion. This was her first long trip away from home (4+ hours), her first trip with another horse in the trailer (Taylor came along!), and her first time sleeping in a stall away from home. I am sure it was the first time she saw golf carts and scooters whizzing within inches of her, plus tents, flags, and hundreds of strange horses. I was SO proud of her, she kept such a great attitude and stayed focused on me the whole time. You gotta check out the pictures and see how she did...I devoted a special page just for it: Corky at the Tom Powers. Next on the agenda, to turn her out and let her be a horse for the next few months, and to prepare for the Ohio and Southern Ohio Futurities...and possibly Congress!

I have only longed Corky once since the Tom Powers Futurity (which, by the way, won me a whopping $49...what a waste of money!). I got her out today after being gone for 2 1/2 weeks (band camp and then Florida vacation), and she longed like an old pro. I thought I would have to be retraining her on everything, but we ran the whole routine with no problems!

I walked in the barn today with a bag of carrots. Corky heard the crinkling of the bag and went ballistic! Holy cow! She practically climbed the walls of her stall to get out of the way. I tied the plastic bag over the milk carton that hangs in her stall (she plays with it, bangs around on it...it helps desensitize her to things touching her back). She stood in the corner the whole time I was there just snorting and blowing. I think I need to hang a few more bag-covered milk jugs around her stall to get her used to them.

I hung a second bag over a 2-liter bottle in her stall, with the same snorting and blowing reaction. But while I was riding Taylor I noticed the was nosing the bag on the bottle and touching it. I'll just need to be patient and let her get used to it on her own. Taylor was the same way, she HATED the sound [plastic bags made. Now I can bang her back with the bag over the milk jug and she pays absolutely no attention.

I longed Corky again today, but she was a bit wound up from the bag incidents. She just doesn't trust me right now since I am the bringer of the evil bags! It was 90 degrees today, and she ended up needing a bath after working herself into a sweat and then rolling half a dozen times. I am thinking maybe I should hang a few more bags! Time to start thinking hard about Congress...entry deadline is in about 3 weeks.

Corky is still a bit wide-eyed at those scary bags hanging in her stall!

Well, this past weekend was the Southern Ohio Quarter Horse Futurity in Springfield, OH. Corky was entered in the open and non-pro longe line classes. Ugh, I hate showing a hunter against all western horses! Corky was a bit wired in the morning, but by afternoon had settled in very nicely. I didn't work her very much before her class because I wanted her fresh. swell by golly, I got what I wanted!!! She actually behaved very well for both her classes, but for some reason decided to strike out and play at every canter transition...I mean both canters both directions in both classes! After about 2-3 strides of striking and playing, she settled in to a very nice slow-legged canter. She wasn't nearly as broke as the other yearlings (which I had figured would be the case). We ended up placing 6th and 7th, right in the middle of the pack. Not too bad, considering what little work I've done with her and that she hasn't been hauled since the Tom Powers Futurity back in June. This coming weekend is the Ohio Futurity, and one of her longe line classes is hunter only, thank goodness! Looks like we have a lot of work ahead of us before Congress! Oh well, all I really want from her is a nice quiet pretty go in her classes...the placings don't matter much to me at this point. She's still my baby!!!

We worked hard this week on longeing and behaving! I had several really good days of work with Corky. Yesterday she got into another silly mood and was cross-cantering and pulling a bit, but we worked through it. I think finally this week it has clicked with her as to what she is supposed to do - that when she behaves and goes around quietly and obediently, she gets rewarded by me! Hopefully she remembers this lesson in her two classes on Saturday. We shall see!

Corky was such a great girl today. There was so much confusion, distraction, and potentially scary objects everywhere we went, and she handled the commotion with ease. A wrong lead in the first longe line class (Non-Pro LL) caused one judge to drop our first canter score very low, but other than that we had great scores on the other movements! we ended up 8th overall (58 entered, 23 showed). In the English longe line, she was much better, although very tired by this time (the very end of the day!). I had to really force her into her second canter, but she did everything beautifully. We placed 3rd, 5th, and 6th under the 3 judges, for an overall placing of 6th. Can't wait to see the paycheck! I discovered that Corky has very little patience for standing around for long periods of time. In the first class, we were last to go, and she had to stand still in the arena for an hour and a half. It was a challenge keeping her standing still and not moving around a lot! Overall I was very proud of her - what a big improvement over last week. 'Big' being the key word...I measured her last week and her hip stands at 16'2" already! I am amazed! Next on the agenda...CONGRESS...stay tuned.

Well, our training and Congress preparation came to a grinding halt today when Corky's leg swelled with a big infection. She scraped her hind leg in the trailer, and what was just a minor flesh wound has become suddenly a swollen, oozing mess. I worry constantly about my 'kids', I pray she will heal quickly and completely, and with minimal scarring. Young horses are so accident-prone!

Bye bye Congress. The dream came crashing to a halt today as I learned the fate of Corky's leg. It has gotten progressively worse to the point that she cannot walk at all anymore. X-rays were taken last night, and she has a possible hairline fracture plus a major bone infection in her left hind cannon bone. She is scheduled for surgery on Tuesday (Sept. 20th) morning to go in and cut away the infected bone. We are looking at 8 weeks to 4 months recovery time, with the task of changing the bandages 2-3 times a day. The good thing is she has a possibility of a good recovery and might recover sound enough to ride, if everything goes OK. I was worried last night because the vet thought the infection might be in the tendon. If that was the case, her career would be over forever. I spent the night in a very upset, depressed state. Today I face this challenge with the determination to do absolutely everything in my power to help her heal correctly, no matter how inconvenient. This means getting up an hour earlier every single morning and driving 20 minutes to the barn at 7am to change bandages, then driving 20 minutes to work...back again right after work, and back again before bed. Some people may say it isn't worth the hassle. How could anyone think that? Corky may not be a child, but she is like a child to me. When I bred her, I committed to raising her with all the necessary care involved, regardless of the hassle. Please say a few prayers, and here's hoping Tuesday's surgery goes well!

Good news!!! Corky has been making steady improvements over the weekend. She has been on Genocin (antibiotic) for 4 days, and by Monday night she was walking very well. I hauled her to the vet clinic Tuesday morning for her surgery. The vet x-rayed her leg again and ultrasounded the tendon. The infection seems to be under control! There is a little pocket of infection to the side of the tendon that we need to keep an eye on. We opted to postpone the surgery in hopes that the antibiotics will clear up the infection in the bone completely. I am to reschedule the surgery at the first sign of swelling, lameness, or seepage from the original wound. I did not get out of my wrapping duties - I have to wrap the leg with icthammol 2 times a day to help draw the infection outward. But that is a small price to pay for having NO surgery and possible quicker healing!


These are photos of her leg taken Monday night (the night before her scheduled surgery). The wound looks pretty innocent, doesn't it? Just a scrape! Notice the large bump. This is where the infection has attacked the bone, and new bone is forming. There is a little swelling around the ankle and tendon, but it is far less than the 'balloon-leg' she had a week ago.

So I will wrap, wrap, and wrap some more, and keep a close eye on what is happening with the leg. Stay tuned for our medical updates, and keep your fingers crossed that surgery will not be necessary. So far...so good!

Poor Corky, if it isn't one thing, it's another! She is so sore in the neck from the daily shots, she cannot put her head down. We had to hang her food up high so she could eat. Time to move the shots to the hind end (which I always worry about doing - not a great place for injections!). She still has 2 more weeks of daily antibiotic shots to suffer though. But she seems very strong on her leg, shows no soreness and minimal swelling around the tendon. Every morning and night I re-wrap her leg in a new color of vet wrap (I ordered 16 rolls in different colors!). We have used black, hot pink, red, baby blue, and today's color is lime green.

Corky is feeling good on her leg! She is now sore in the chest from the shots, does not want to move her front legs. I hate the thought that it's the cure that's actually hurting her now! After 7 days of twice a day wrapping, tomorrow I get to reduce it to once a day! Today's vet wrap color is purple...yesterday was bright orange. Hey, you gotta have some entertainment in the endless wrapping sessions! As I watch her trot around the arena, I let the tiny thought slip into my head that maybe, just maybe she might make it to Congress after all. But then I remember that tiny hairline possible crack in the x-rays, and I remind myself that I want her future, not her present! *sigh* but she is SUCH a talented girl, and so strong and ready for the longe line. Oh well...I will let her fully heal the next few months and then begin ground driving.

The vet gave the OK to stop wrapping Corky's leg. The wound is dry and hard, and the icthammol is not drawing anything out, so there is no need to wrap. She looks perfectly sound to me! She has one more week of the antibiotic shots, then we are done (for now!). The vet said that if the infection is still there, within 3-4 weeks after we quit the antibiotics Corky will go lame and probably have some swelling. That will be a sign that we will need to do the surgery after all. Keep your fingers crossed!

Can you believe it? My vet cleared Corky to go to Congress!!! She is 100% sound, and if the infection was a factor she would have pain and swelling after exercise, and there hasn't been a hint of either. I pulled her out yesterday and just for fun did a quick 90 second longe line class, and she acted as if she had been in training all month! Same thing today....I am shocked. What testament to her great disposition - to be turned out or kept on stall rest for over a month, and come out and remember everything in her longe line training! Wow, do we have a LOT to do to get ready for Congress. She will definitely be the most unbroke horse in the class, and possibly the hairiest...but I don't care! I am just SO happy she is sound and happy again...I am thrilled! Stay tuned for our great Congress saga!!! We show on Oct. 19...

Well, I went on Sunday and got my stall ready at Congress. Corky is living in 2 sheets and a hood to try and keep her warm and keep her haircoat down in this sudden cold snap we are experiencing. She has been longeing very good...a little more energetic now that the shots are done and she feels good again! It looks like I am the ONLY non-professional in my entire class at Congress. Hopefully Corky doesn't make me look like I don't belong! I have confidence in her, she always pulls through when I need her to.

Tonight I decided to progress with Corky's training, to prepare her for the saddle. I put a surcingle on her for the very first time (a piece of training equipment that wraps around their barrel). I swear, I have never heard such weird sounds coming from a horse before! Corky took off bucking - and I mean the hard, double-barrel, slam your feet bucking that they do at rodeos! All the while she was making this loud, harsh noise that sounded like a bull bellowing! I stood there in awe! After about 10 minutes, she gave up, settled down, and longed somewhat normally (though she was still a bit fast and tense). Looks like we have a lot of desensitizing to do before we attempt putting on a saddle.

I longed Corky with the surcingle again. This time I was a little stricter with her and would not let her do her uncontrolled bronc. After 6-7 reminders, she finally settled down and longed fairly well. Once she got the annoyance out of her system, she really didn't care when I pulled or tugged on the surcingle, or tightened the girth. Tomorrow, if all goes well, I may try to attach the lines and do a little initial ground driving...fun fun fun!

Today Corky longed with the surcingle with minimal bucking. I decided to try out a little ground driving. She picked up on it REALLY fast! Within 10 minutes we were walking circles, cutting across the arena, stopping, and backing. This horse is smart!

we trotted today while ground driving. She's tough to keep up with - she has slow legs but a huge stride. Maybe she will force me to get back into shape this winter! It is so strange to be ground driving a yearling whose hip is so tall I can't see over. Things are progressing so well with her...I can't wait to get into the saddle this winter!
Here are some pics of Corky's ground driving lesson

Well, never a dull moment with this girl. I have renamed her my 'problem child'. The vet removed a possible blockage in her throat yesterday (she's been having trouble swallowing). This morning she ate her grain, drank a little water, but refuses to touch her hay. Either her throat is just sore and needs time to heal, or there is still some sort of blockage. If she isn't eating by this afternoon, looks like I will have to have her throat scoped and see what exactly is going on. Having horses, especially young horses, is a lot like having kids. You enjoy the good times in between the major incidents, tragedies, and bouts of intense worry and stress!

Well, Corky is finally well again. After suffering a mild choke episode, she aspirated hay into her lungs and developed pneumonia. Back to the daily Genocin shots, plus banamine for pain and an expectorant to make her cough up the fluid in her lungs. But now she seems to be back to 100% health...for the moment! Needless to say, her training has come to a screeching halt. That's OK, she deserves a break. After Thanksgiving, I will return to longing and ground driving her, and start preparing her to wear a saddle.

Back to work! After nearly a month off, I put Corky back on the training schedule. She was NOT happy about the surcingle, acted like she had never worn it before. I stayed very firm with her and led her around with the surcingle on, and would not let her jump or buck. After about 15 minutes of longeing, she settled down and got over it! I ground drove her for about 10 minutes, and she seemed to remember everything we learned last month. Gotta love those smart horses. I decided to go ahead and try a saddle on her tonight (since there were people around to assist me). You know, it really didn't seem to bother her, not nearly as much as the surcingle! Granted, she was a bit tired, but she longed very will with the saddle on her back. This gives me hope that maybe the breaking process won't be a complete life-threatening disaster!

We tried longeing with the saddle on again today, and she was great! She always surprises me. I never quite know what to expect with her. I am giving her the next few weeks off...my schedule means a lot of hurried nights cleaning stalls and rushing back home to work on artwork orders for Christmas, so she will go on vacation.

Corky has been on vacation for almost a month now, getting daily turnout with Taylor (who is also on vacation!). She is fat and very hairy. I think starting tomorrow I will start putting her back to work, some minimal longeing and some saddle-wearing. It's hard to believe that in just a week and a half she will technically be a 2 year old (although she really won't be 2 until May).

Today I finally had a chance to longe Corky again. I didn't mess with the saddle or surcingle, I just wanted to make sure she remembered her commands on the longe line. She did great. I still have to correct her a LOT at the canter going to the right - she keeps wanting to switch her back lead and crossfire. After about 15 minutes of longeing, I tried a little showmanship with her. My main goal was to get her to move a foot that I asked. She caught on fairly quickly, but of course was really dull to the halter cues (I prefer training showmanship without the chain at first). I even did two pivots with her - a 180 and a 360 and she nailed them both with only a little poking of my thumb on her shoulder to keep her moving. I am glad she is catching on, it will be a hard road for her to ever compare to Taylor, who is a showmanship machine!

Merry Christmas! Only one more week left in this year. What a year it has been. I was reading over this training diary tonight and am amazed at our ups and downs we experienced this year. We had the depths of despair, and the highest of highs! That's horses for ya! I have this upcoming week off, and my plans are to get Corky back into work. But until then, she has been having fun outside in the snow (although she'd rather just be hanging out inside with me!)

I went through a regular work schedule with Corky today. She had some turnout time by herself while I cleaned her pigsty of a stall. Then I longed her for about 15 minutes, concentrating on her transitions and keeping her from switching her lead of her hind legs at the canter (she loves to switch leads - hind end only!). Then I brought out the saddle. She longed with the saddle with ZERO problems! Other than a slightly raised head, she really didn't look all that much different than when I longed her without the saddle. After I was done, I stood on the stool next to her and leaned on the saddle, pulled the stirrup, and jumped up and down on the stool by her side to get her used to me hoppnig upwards into the saddle. I am aiming for Sunday...January 1st for my first time sitting in the saddle...just sitting! I will sit in the saddle for about 2 weeks before going on from there, and then we will walk under saddle this winter...only walk! No trotting until at least May 1st. Of course, horses often have their own schedule, so this may change.

I watched her longe and I actually got a bit frightened...but not what you think! This horse is so freaky-talented, I am afraid to mess her up. She is something that could really be world-class, if trained right. I start second-guessing and over-analyzing every move I make with her to make sure I am doing things right. It is such a big responsibility, but I love it!

I have been longeing Corky with the saddle every day this week, and she really could care less! She hates the initial tightening of the girth, but once she gets walking she doesn't mind it a bit. I have been leaning over the saddle getting her used to my weight. Sunday is the day! January 1st and the start of our new training diary, I plan on sitting in the saddle for the first time. Sure hope I survive!

Today I re-introduced Corky to Pasta (my dog). She met Pasta when she was a baby, but I wanted to see how she would work with a dog running around the arena. I figured it would really mess her up, but as usual she surprised me by not paying much attention to Pasta. Pasta even ran in and out of the longe circle as we worked, and Corky never missed a beat.

Pasta is the same age as Taylor (I got her as a puppy the day Taylor was born!). She still never learned to stay out from underneath the horses!

Happy last day of the year! Today Corky pulled back and broke her first lead rope...NOT a lesson I particularly wanted her to learn! For some strange reason she decided to pull back when I put the saddle on her back. She's had the saddle on every day this week with no issues, but today was a different story. She ran around the arena for 10 minutes before I caught her, tied her back up, and successfully saddled her with no further problems. She longed well, at least! Today is the last day of our official yearling year. Tomorrow she becomes a two year old, even though technically she won't be two until May. So starting tomorrow, our training diary will continue at Corky's 2 yr old Training Diary. You won't want to miss tomorrow's edition...tomorrow I plan on sitting in the saddle for the first time. So if you see no updates from this point on, that means I am probably laying in a hospital LOL!
Happy New Year!