Road Trip #3: Dino Discovers His Calling

With the DISASTER of Road Trip #2 a few months behind us, I got up enough courage to  embark on a new adventure. The last trip was so bad, I have no pix, no blog posts…there was nothing about it I wanted to remember. Let’s just say it included the dredging of the adjacent creek with a nifty little tractor that grabs the brush, snaps it out of the ground and pulverizes it all in one swift move….not something that goes over well with a green horse learning to travel.

Today went better. Dino discovered his true calling…Polo. Seriously, the horse was mesmerized by the polo ponies. Most horses would freak hearing the horses gallop up and down the arena, smacking the ball against the wall. Not this 17.1 hand giant. He wanted to play! I don’t know how to break the news to him, that a lumbering horse like Dino is not suited for the fast moving pace of arena polo….I guess I’ll just let him dream.

The rest of the trip just points out how far Dino needs to go before he becomes a show horse. He is still very nervous and tense. It didn’t stop him from dropping in the warm up arena for a good roll, however. How am I going to show this horse if he needs to roll every time he arrives at a new location???

I was able to get on and ride a bit, but to describe him as unfocused would be an understatement. Dino was so tense and ADHD, he could barely “hear” the aids.  I never got anything really nice out of him, but it will come. I just need patience, and he needs experience.

The good news is that Dino trailers like a champ. He stayed tied to the trailer with no issues while I helped Kelsey school pony over some Xcountry fences. (I remember a certain thoroughbred digging holes to China while tied to the trailer…. so happy I don’t have to deal with that again).  Dino really is a good boy, but he did throw a  little fit when I took him away from the polo ponies ;-). Silly dinosaur!