Gia - session 641 - dressage lesson with Suzin ... then broken finger ...

 So, today's dressage lesson started like most of the others usually do.  I had Gia stretching down at the walk, then bending and leg yielding, before I did a few free walk to medium walk to free walk transitions.  Then I worked on softening her at the walk, in preparation for trot transitions.  Those were going better than usual today.  I added bending, leg yielding, shoulder-in and shoulder-fore at the trot.  Gia also felt like she wanted to do a few turns-on-the-haunches, so we played with that at the walk.  Then we did a lot more transitions - trot to halt, halt to trot, trot to halt to rein back to trot.  

She started thinking about the canter before I really asked for it, so I allowed it.  She was actually quite nice at the canter today!  We did a lot of transitions - trot to canter to trot, walk to canter, halt to rein back to canter.  I was using very soft cues, mostly with my seat bones, and she was responding very well!  She was even staying soft and starting to stretch into my hands, and carrying herself longer at the canter.  

There were a few times when she would come up against my hands, so I would bend her one way, and push her shoulders the other way.  She wasn't a big fan of that, and did put in a few bucks ... er ... catapults (her new trick, since I have been able to sit the bucks).  Well, right after telling Suzin that I hadn't been bucked off her yet *knocks on wood*, Gia says "hold my beer", and launches into one of her catapults.  I didn't manage to come down in the middle of the saddle, but I wasn't off ... yet.  I hung on for a few minutes, on the side of her neck, but she darted sideways, so I knew I couldn't climb back up.  I decided to bail, but I got my foot slightly stuck in the stirrup.  By the time I got it out, it was too late to land on my feet.  My butt hit the ground first, then my head, then a mangle of the rest of my body.  

All in all, it wasn't too bad, and definitely could have been worse.  I will definitely be sore and bruised tomorrow.  I already feel it setting in in my right butt cheek, my left neck, and my lower back.  My head should be fine.  I only had a very mild headache, but no other symptoms of concussion.  My hands were a bit beat up - scratched and bruised.  But my left middle finger did get a tiny break, technically, the doctor thinks it was a sprain of the last knuckle joint, and the tendon pulled off a tiny bone chip.  I'll have to wear a splint on that finger for a while, but it should heal just fine in 4-6 weeks.  

All that being said, I did get back on her so she didn't get away with her naughty behavior.  She didn't try it again, but I'm sure she will in the future.  She did give me one more nice canter though, and then I got off and went to the urgent care ...

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