Red Sky Farm Hunter/Jumpers

Lauren and Indy have "history." She seems to be the first one to ride him for some of his "milestones." Among other special moments, she was his first lead change and his first butt foam (both from today.) You two are precious!

Congratulations to Claire on the lease of Dunkin! He really needs one little girl to love on him consistently, even though he pretends he doesn't like it. This is not Dunkin, but this is Claire jumping Picasso bareback. Yes, at Red Sky Farm we work you hard and have high expectations. But our riders and horses win. If you want to be part of an exclusive, WINNING team, give us a call or text.

My amazing daughter, Lanie, is here in Las Cruces working at the hospital for her requirements for medical school (UNM) so I got to see her a couple of times this last month! She took a lesson and rode the baby, Indy. He's actually jumping through the grids now (he went through an awkward phase where he jumped like an uncoordinated human...) and he seems to really like it. Thanks, Lanie, for giving him such a great ride.

So proud of two of the Red Sky Farm youngsters! Indy (who just turned 4) had a lovely lesson, including a little jump, with our awesome Jordyn (who is almost 11) and they clicked! He's big and sweet and quiet and she's little and and adorable and feisty! What a cute couple.

Welcome to the fold Debbie and Ticket. They showed up with the help and support of Charlie from Chicago and we had a blast at the lesson. Deb rode her own TB gelding and he was so good! Here he's doing a little gymnastic warm up to get his mind back into the jumps. Lanie and AnneE rode, too, but they'll get their own post soon enough.

Sammy and KK wanted a "hard equitation" lesson last night with Lauren, and she obliged. Sammy worked on her upper body and leg position with an oldie-but-goodie exercise from the Peggy Lenz files: jumping a little gymnastic with both hands out in front. This position does not allow a rider to use his/her hands on the horse's neck or body for support and makes it very clear how supportive the rider's legs really are in the air over the jump. I also allows a rider to really feel what's happening with his/her body over a jump. This vid is of Sammy on Pippin. KK did the exercise, too, but didn't get to pick up her hands because Picasso is still green enough to need a rider's educated support in the air and between the bounces (one-strides). Good job, ladies!

I know I post frequently about our Irish Sporthorse, Indy, but he's been so much fun this summer I can't resist. Here's KK riding him over a little jump. He's so quiet! He will be a kick/spur ride I'm pretty sure.

Do you allow your horses to rub on a person standing on the ground? I go back and forth: the horses really appreciate the opportunity to rub off the scratches and sweat after a ride, but they can be rough and can cause someone to lose their balance. I wish all of my horses would rub like Teddy does: we just hold a towel up and he rubs against it. Pretty safe solution if we could get him to teach the other horses how to do it!

Good things come in small packages. Dunkin is the very best to learn how to mount from the ground. Claire's got it!

We're loving our covered arena! It is truly 15 degrees cooler in the shade, and our not-sweaty horses and riders can attest to that! Deb and Pico trot through a simple exercise with poles and take advantage of a nice breeze.

Very cool lesson tonight! Lots of family watching and supporting our riders KK, Sammy, Claire, and Sophie. Looks like a simple exercise: four horses in single file trotting over some poles. It's harder than it looks because the riders had to keep their horses the same distance apart and get the correct number of steps between the poles. The Red Sky riders ROCKED this drill! Thanks to Lauren for putting together this really fun lesson.

So proud of Sophie, who comes to Red Sky with a lot of great basics. Today she did several things she didn't feel confident about. And she rocked it! Good job, Soph! We're proud of you!

I came to the barn after lunch and was surprised to find Indy walking around like he owned the place. He did some damage, made a mess and was NOT sorry. Horses are adorable!

We love our Janene. She's been so faithful to her lessons, even in the New Mexico summer heat. She rode Teddy for a lesson and worked on loosening up her heels, her knees and her hip angle. Without those shock absorbers moving while we ride, we can't sink in and "go with" the horse. I think she got it!

Being a "good horseman" means more than just riding well. Good horsemen show their devotion to the horse and their dedication to the sport by being totally "in the moment" when they are at the barn. Our superstar, Jordyn, is always willing to go the extra mile and try new things. Here she's learning to stand up on the horse's back, which doesn't really have a lot of practical use, but shows a horse's quiet temperament and a rider's belief in their physical skills and understanding that we all fall off, so let's try to do it in style! She gets extra points for the flourish at the end! And a HUGE thanks to Picasso for being such a saint! He was well worth the rescue money, time and stress! We love you both, Jordy and Pico!

We all know it's important to ride a lot of different horses to expand our knowledge base. Tonight Jordyn rode Teddy for the first time. They were great together and had a lot of fun working canter on a circle. Teddy is teaching Jordyn to sit down and lean back, and Jordyn is teaching Teddy to stay soft on the bit and make tight turns without clenching his jaw. Win-win!