Gia - session 280 - Finally, back out in the field!

 For those of you that don't live near me, we have been getting a ridiculous amount of rain this winter, so I haven't been able to get out to ride in my fields for quite a while.  Things are finally starting to dry out a bit, so Gia and I ventured out into the fields for our dressage ride today.

She did very well remembering how to stand while I opened the gate.  Once out in the field, however, she was quite tense, and it took her quite a while to relax.  I did a lot of circles whenever I felt her get distracted or quick.  I did manage to get her to stretch fairly well at the walk.

At the trot, it was much of the same - lots of circles when she would get quick or distracted.  It took her a while to relax, but she eventually did get to the point where she was much calmer and more focused.

She was doing pretty good, so I decided to attempt some canter work.  The last time we tried to canter in the field, she was very dramatic, and kept wanting to bolt and buck.  I was hoping that she had a bit more education under her belt, and that today would go better.  I started out just asking for haunches-in at the trot.  Once she seemed more relaxed about it, I went a step further and asked for the canter to the left.  She was a bit surprised, but was  not naughty, just a little quick.  I repeated everything to get a canter to the right, and that one was much better - relaxed and organized and balanced.  I went back to see if I could get a better canter to the left one more time.  I don't know if it's the place in the field that I am asking for it (I always ask for it up a hill, but to the right she is facing away from the barn, and to the left she is facing towards the barn), but either way she was a bit more naughty when I asked for the canter left again.  Each time she decided to buck or bolt, I would immediately circle and then we would try again.  I finally did get one at the end that was better behaved.  

We finished with a rewarding stretch on our way back to the barn.

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