"barrel racing" with a Fjord

Well, it was actually cone racing because we don't have any barrels and our arena is too small for them anyway... but it was fun! Partly to get my mind off of Indy being gone and partly just to have fun, had a group lesson working on getting our turning aids fine tuned through the cloverleaf barrel pattern.

I think Radar has done this in his prior life - Mia thinks he did play days and games at the barn he came from - he definitely perked up. And for him, that's a good thing!  We ended up cantering the outside of the pattern to get him warmed up, trotting the first two cones of the cloverleaf and cantering the last cone to the end.  I was actually really impressed with how responsive he was to cantering not on a circle and at odd places!  I tend to forget that he's in a much better place physically and mentally than he was last year and I can expect more from him.  Fun overall, but I still miss Indy's personality.  Radar's sweet and cute, but I don't think he really cares about us as much as Indy did.  I know, total anthropomorphizing... but I don't care.

On the new horse front, potential barn horse #1 didn't pass the vet, #2 is temporarily lame but hopefully will still work out for a lease, and there's a #3 Appaloosa that will be tried soon.  I'm not even the one doing the looking and it's stressful!