Go-Faster Booties For Bugsy!

Hello everybodies, how are you? I am extra fabulous today! Wanna know why? Cos for me now having a full set of go-faster booties called Vipers made by the nice Renegade people. They are super bright orange to help them channel something called KTM, it makes Aunty V's person go super fast on the trails, so now I can go super fast too, right? Look how bright they are:

The smaller dirty ones used to go on my front feets, but then my feets got too big that they don't fit in there any more. Luckily, my back feets are smaller than my front ones, and the little boots fit on the back, and the new big ones go on the front. It took a minute to try and get them all situated on my feeties, but look how snazzy:

I only wore my new front booties today, and Cyd didn't quite get them right, but our ordering lady (who can be found here) looked at the pictures and told Cyd how we make it fit me better, and will check our fixings tomorrow. Thank you!! Even though Cyd didn't get it quite right, they still didn't fall off my feeties. We went through the Swamp of Sadness two times, and both booties stayed on my feeties and didn't need any adjustings. Also, I am an exaggerator, but I look at this pit like it might be the Swamp of Sadness. Cyd tells me to think happy thoughts when we go through, just in cases.

Not a swamp, but a booting concern

It doesn't look much in the picture, but it's quite deep and sucky and splashy and neither of us like it. Cyd is going to try to reroute the trail, cos it isn't going to get better if I keep charging through like I do. There were some other puddly and muddy spots, but once they stuck through here Cyd was pretty confident that the other crossings we had today wouldn't be a problem.

Next test, doing trottings practice. No issues here, nopey dope. Just trotted right along. Until the next test - big spooks! I'm not usually too spooky-lukey, but we were trottings along minding our own business when WHOOOSH went the turkey that we didn't see in front of us. Lucky I didn't give Cyd whiplash with my 'trottings forward-speed reversing-launch for cover' maneuver (patent pending). Since it was a day for new things she would have been safe even if she did falling down with her shiny new helmet.

The old one didn't do falling, but it had some dings, and Cyd needs to do what she can to hang on to the brain cells she has, or the two of us together will be a lost cause! With the spook test safely out the way, we got to the rocky road that I hate. Often Cyd will get off and lead me down, but she wanted to feel my different walking. My feeties felt good enough to give her some troubles. Well, if the rocks don't hurt me now WHY can't we do trottings? Spoiling all my funzies! Once we got on the flat we did trottings though, and I did big strides even though the ground was still a bit gravelly. There was a nice long hill to do some canter practice, but I didn't really want to. Then I didn't want to trot, or to walk. Cyd looked and checked my booties were intact cos maybe that was bothering me but it wasn't. We got me moving pretty quickly, but I was hesitant and super snorty that whole trail, so maybe something had been there before me to make me nervous. Once we got past I was happy to do more trottings, but now we were going down hill again, so walkwalkwalk booooring.

We finally got to the bit where I can do trottings and canter practice, but I just wanted to trot, and got a bit stroppy when Cyd told me to do canter. I did some short canters, and had no booties issues, then stopped at one of the big puddles to get a drink cos for me being hot and sweaty. My booties got all wet and some muds on them, but right away we were off again. Now I had a drink I was ready for canter, and we went flying along the trail, so fast we nearly missed our turn. I had fun cantering up the hill and dodging the big piles of pampass grass, and even trying to grab a bite on the fly. I did mostly trotting and some canter until we got to the squiggly bit through the trees. We did some trotting, and even a little jump, but it's quite skinny and Cyd's attached to her knees and goes "Owiieee Bugseee watch my knees" when I crash into things. I'm learning to do something called 'move off her leg' to bend around stuff, but I still forget how sometimes unless we're walking. Then Cyd dropped her crop and had to hop off to fetch it, so I took advantage of her not balancing on me for a good itch and she did a boot check.

Resting in the shade

Once we were out of there and across the tricky ground bit, I was off again, sailing up the hill. I had to pause sometimes, for breathing, or for Cyd to fit under low branches, but I got up the fastest ever, even though it's another gravelly trail. And once we got to the road at the top? I zoomed some more! I love my booties! I had to do more walking on the boring downhill, and I had a couple of strops when we didn't do what I wanted, but no biggie, I barely did anything bad. I did super good all the way home, and still no bootie adjusting. It's super lucky they fit me, cos for them getting pretty muddy on my adventure hehe.

We have some adjusting to do tomorrow, but I think I love them. I was ready for a nap in the sunshine when I got home, cos for warmness and trotting and cantering and hills.

Cyd failed at my snacks and didn't bring me stuff to make me a tasty post ride mash. There was some grain hay that I don't usually eat in the barn, so I got that for my snack. I scoffed it pretty quick cos I only got one real snack break on my pony ride, so after my shower I got some more. Nomnom!

I did the same ride that I did with my bestie the other day, but so much faster. We took three hours that day, and only two and a half hours today. I'm so zoomy now!

So Much Pony Riding

Hello everybodies, how are you? I am fabulous, and getting really fit and strong. Cyd has been home from her trip for eight days, and we've done pony riding on five of those days! Mostly just short rides, not even five miles, sometimes just walking, sometimes with trotting practice and sometimes some canter practice. I was being so good the other day that I got to do trotting practice with one handed rein holding while Cyd's other hand did videoing. I had some sorta silly moments, but look how good I did:

Today, I got to have some company on my pony ride. Aunt-T and her favouritist pony who is also my bestie came to play. I was a bit rude going up the road, so Cyd ended up getting off and leading me cos I got a bit stuck. She got back on at our usual spot, and I was mostly good through the squirrelly trail. I was feeling quite full of myself, and the first half of our pony ride I did bad things, like bouncing and mini rears if my bestie got in front, or just cos I felt like it. Eventually I settled down, and even got good enough that my bestie crashed into my butt and I made faces but didn't get mad, and one time he even did trotting to catch up to me and I didn't care and get excited. When I was a baby pony he was super helpful in teaching me to be a good trail pony, and was very patient at waiting for me when I got tired on the hills, or not knowing how to do trottings. Today, I had to do patiently waiting for him. He's had some time off you see, and got a bit squidgy in the middle and not super fit anymore, and also needed some tack adjusting that we didn't know about until we got home. He's coming to play with me again tomorrow, cos apparently I need to practice not showing off to my friends, especially if I go to an endurance pony ride, I will have to do my best behavings. I might maybe go to one soon just to see what everything's all about, and do something called ribbon pulling, but we're still figuring out how to make that happen. I need to get a pony trailer to easier facilitate my travelings for adventures! 

Butter wouldn't melt

Must. Run. Everywhere.

Hello everybodies! How are you? I am fabulous, and also really fast now (Cyd says I'm not actually that fast, but much faster than I was at least). It's been pretty quiet in my world lately. I had to take some time off cos for me getting hurted, then some time off cos Cyd was about to go away and we wouldn't be able to monitor if I was re-hurted, then some time off cos Cyd went away. That made for three whole weeks of no pony riding for me. Don't worry about my owie, we think it was just a sore bruise, cos for it being swelled, but not hot, and I didn't like it being poked at, but it didn't make me lame. I had to wear something called ice boot, which is really boring. The boot goes on your leg, then you just stand there and don't do stuff. I tried taking off my boot, but that got me in troubles. So then I figured out how to take the icicles out of the boot without taking it off, but that got me in troubles too. So boring.

I got my owie by crashing into a tree. Cyd says I'm not always so smart, since there was a perfectly appropriate tree free area but I didn't want to listen to her. Then when she was parking me next to a fallen down tree to get back on (I'm getting pretty big and it's better for my back), I waited until she was safely in my saddle, turned to face the tree, and put my front feet up on it like I was doing tricks. Cyd laughed and said she needs to pay better attentions to me. I hopped my front legs down on the other side, then hopped my back legs up on the tree. D'oh! Of course I do these silly things when nobody is there to see me and take my picture. We're lucky it was a sturdy tree so I didn't fall in! Even though my owie got better before Cyd went on her trip, I didn't get to do pony riding just in case something happened to make my owie worse. I got my pictures taken and sent to Cyd regularly to prove I was okay, and I was even grown up enough to get my hoovies trimmed without anybody being there!

Cyd got back on Tuesday night and came to see me Wednesday. I was so excited to see her I ran all over my field. We brushed me up all good, and put my things on to go pony riding. I had some few difficulties in my usual spots, but we got me through it super fast. Then it was time to GO! So you know what? Cyd let me. We went so fast (except not really). I'm getting good at my canter, and I love doing trottings everywhere. I was super bouncy, and we didn't get any pictures of me cos for Cyd needing to hang onto my reins to steer and stop me. Not really appropriate behaving, but we had fun, and since it was a short ride, I didn't get annoying. Zooooooom!

My "knock it off"d face

Yesterday, it was sunny when Cyd got all done with her people job, so we went for another quick pony ride. And you know what? I had to walk the WHOLE way. Sometimes I did bouncing, and we had to stop and be good again. Apparently while we sometimes have speedy fun rides, we have to remind me to be something called responsible citizen. It's not as much fun, but very entertaining for Cyd dealing with all my shenanigans. I do bouncing, and sproinging, and spooking at nothing at all, and I don't do any of it very convincingly, and to make me stop she just goes "Hmph, knock it off pony", and I put my sad face on and walk for a bit. I was able to have pictures taken at least. We have lots of pony riding planned this week!