Buzz and Blaze

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Buzz and Blaze A page for everyone who has asked for updates from Blaze and Buzz. Also a place to keep Spot's memory alive, who we miss very much.

Happy gotcha day to beautiful Blaze. 16 years old and 6 years with us xx ❤️ She was dosing in the sun this morning while...
02/05/2024

Happy gotcha day to beautiful Blaze. 16 years old and 6 years with us xx ❤️ She was dosing in the sun this morning while Rachel polished her dapples.

Rachel caught Buzz and Blaze having a Sunday morning lie-in today . I’m sure they also had the Sunday papers and croiss...
14/04/2024

Rachel caught Buzz and Blaze having a Sunday morning lie-in today . I’m sure they also had the Sunday papers and croissant crumbs in the bed! It’s the first time we’ve ever seen them lying down in the field shelter together 😍

Haven’t posted for such a long time, but wanted to share photos of our lovely weekend on the Norfolk coast. Highly recom...
02/04/2024

Haven’t posted for such a long time, but wanted to share photos of our lovely weekend on the Norfolk coast. Highly recommend Home Farm Stables in Holme next the Sea. Buzz and Blaze so well behaved, and had a brilliant time.

We think this might be Buzz’s first time round a full course of jumps. He looooved it, such a lovely partnership with Cl...
25/06/2023

We think this might be Buzz’s first time round a full course of jumps. He looooved it, such a lovely partnership with Cleo. At College of West Anglia. With big thanks to Annelise Milton-Barnes for shouting at us and Rachel for being ground crew. This trip wasn’t about Blaze but she was chilled despite jump wings blowing over in the wind.

Cherry picking with Keeley 🍒❤️
19/06/2023

Cherry picking with Keeley 🍒❤️

04/05/2023

Buzz, Blaze and I are doing the Top Barn Treasure Hunt in May and June… need to see how many of these things we can photograph ourselves with.

Here are Buzz and Cleo practicing for the Hickstead water 😅
23/04/2023

Here are Buzz and Cleo practicing for the Hickstead water 😅

After last weekend’s hack which ended up with both of us losing control, one fallen rider (thankfully unhurt) and one lo...
27/03/2023

After last weekend’s hack which ended up with both of us losing control, one fallen rider (thankfully unhurt) and one loose horse (thankfully she didn’t go far and allowed herself to be re-caught),Cleo and I had a nice calm confidence-restoring hack yesterday and nobody put a foot wrong. After last weekend I discovered that someone had been throwing carrots to the horses from the footpath, so that might explain Blaze’s out of character behaviour. Buzz is just an opportunist and will take any excuse to have a fun time. No malice, he just threw the sort of shapes he makes when I turn them out onto new grass… the sort of shapes that make me think « Im glad they don’t do that under saddle » except last week they did. 😅 Anyway, thanks to a stroppy poster on the fence, correct diet and behaviour have been restored.

Nearly at the end of the Top Barn Online 12-week challenge which has kept us busy and motivated through the hardest thre...
20/03/2023

Nearly at the end of the Top Barn Online 12-week challenge which has kept us busy and motivated through the hardest three months of the year, through snow, mud and rain. Lots of ridden and groundwork challenges which have helped strengthen our bond. Just a few photos from the latest weeks:

Took Blaze for a little walk in hand today because I’ve hurt my back and didn’t think I could ride. We went to look at t...
04/03/2023

Took Blaze for a little walk in hand today because I’ve hurt my back and didn’t think I could ride. We went to look at the boats which she finds very scary, so then we calmed down with a little walk through the Barnwell estate, where she was very good and sensible. Meanwhile Cleo and Buzz had a lesson and Buzz was too busy to worry about where his friend had gone. Thank you to Mia for the lovely photos xx

24/01/2023

So much fun today, did the putting a bridle on while sitting down mini challenge with both Blaze and Buzz. Blaze even stood where I parked her while I went to swap the head collar for a bridle. Buzz provided some good outtakes including nearly pushing me backwards off the tub I was sitting on, and then getting his foot up onto the tub and pawing it over xx

On our way back from a lovely calm hack today, a woman on a bike appeared at the summit of the bridge, she was cycling t...
09/01/2023

On our way back from a lovely calm hack today, a woman on a bike appeared at the summit of the bridge, she was cycling towards us and making excited squealing noises at the horses… took me a few paces to realise it was Cleo! She was home early after her mock geography exam, and cycled out to meet us. Unfortunately she didn’t bring her helmet, otherwise we could have swapped modes of transport. ❤️🐴🚴‍♀️

07/01/2023

Spent some time getting Buzz and Blaze used to a flag today (not sure how it got upside down). We’ll wait for a less windy day before I try to ride with it.

Too wet to ride today, but I’ve been saving this pallet for a rainy day. Buzz walked straight up to it and started pawin...
03/01/2023

Too wet to ride today, but I’ve been saving this pallet for a rainy day. Buzz walked straight up to it and started pawing it, so not much work needed there. Blaze needed encouragement to approach it and sniff it. I then lifted one foot onto it, and from there it was easy to get her to step up by asking her to stretch for a carrot.

02/01/2023

So I’ve signed up to do the Top Barn Horsemanship Centre online challenge… pledging to do 3 hours of training per week with both Buzz and Blaze from Jan to March, i.e. the time of year when it’s most difficult to ride. Today Buzz and I started to learn this week’s ridden challenge… the ‘cha cha slide’: steps to the right, steps to the left, forward then back. Here we’re using the fence line to learn the steps to the side.

Festive photo fun
14/12/2022

Festive photo fun

01/12/2022

Here’s Buzz getting a wiggle on, back to ‘safety’ after an adrenaline-inducing encounter with some deer in the Fen. Why can we never get this quality of walk when we’re schooling?!

This is how unimpressed Blaze was with Keeley making her pretty today. “If I close my eyes I can’t see what you’ve done ...
16/11/2022

This is how unimpressed Blaze was with Keeley making her pretty today. “If I close my eyes I can’t see what you’ve done to me. And you can forget about getting a photo with my ears forward. Just give me my grass!”. But K won her over in the end. ❤️

Our instructor has just shared this lovely picture of Blaze from Saturday - it's a still from a video, so not very clear...
24/10/2022

Our instructor has just shared this lovely picture of Blaze from Saturday - it's a still from a video, so not very clear, but look how beautifully she's working through from behind. And she is very shiny, when we scrape the mud off. We were working on lengthening and shortening the canter by thinking of opening and closing my hips - worked beautifully. Both ponies feeling very well atm. In Blaze that translates to beautiful work like this. With Buzz it's another story... his latest 'I'm feeling good' party trick is a series of fly-bucks in canter. So on Saturday A and I stood in the middle watching Cleo working him hard in trot after doing a great job of sitting his latest shenanigans and asked ourselves whether it could be pain related... but his trot is so forward and expressive at the moment, he really doesn't look like a horse in pain. I believe there's a technical equestrian term for it... he's just being a patchyt**t!

Beautiful autumnal hack this morning, and a little section of fence has been taken down at the end of the new bridleway ...
17/10/2022

Beautiful autumnal hack this morning, and a little section of fence has been taken down at the end of the new bridleway which means we were able to get out onto High Ditch Road then Honey Hill, with deer skipping alongside us. I think it was Buzz’s first time crossing the A14 bridge, and he was very sensible. Just a little frustration bronc later on when Blaze’s trot was too fast for him and he thought he was getting left behind. Super considerate drivers on the roads, just one man whose labradors ran barking at us and said he didn’t have to get them under control before the path became a bridleway, and I suppose he has a point. Only the lopsided hi-vis spoiling the picture. Thank you Keeley, it was a lot of fun!

And Blaze, also from today xx
01/10/2022

And Blaze, also from today xx

At last, the ground was good for jumping!
01/10/2022

At last, the ground was good for jumping!

02/09/2022

Who knocked over the mounting block?!!

17/08/2022

Rubus eating his namesake berry!

Back from our hack today. Buzz rocking his new bluebell saddle pad.
14/07/2022

Back from our hack today. Buzz rocking his new bluebell saddle pad.

This was fun on the lunge for Blaze yesterday… kept reducing the gap until it became a jump.
14/07/2022

This was fun on the lunge for Blaze yesterday… kept reducing the gap until it became a jump.

With no thanks to Buzz for his ‘help’, this afternoon’s job was to replace and reinforce a broken rail. I’m sure it’s no...
11/06/2022

With no thanks to Buzz for his ‘help’, this afternoon’s job was to replace and reinforce a broken rail. I’m sure it’s not normal for a horse to be so nosey. Even when I was using the very noisy GOP to cut out the old rail he was right by my elbow trying to chew it. Risk-adverse Blaze kept a safe distance as soon as she saw the long piece of wood appear.

Our neighbours probably think we’ve joined a cult. Fortunately no riders were sacrificed in the pentangle
02/06/2022

Our neighbours probably think we’ve joined a cult. Fortunately no riders were sacrificed in the pentangle

Today is exactly 5 years since Spot arrived with us... so 5 years of keeping horses at home. Lots of heartbreak, saying ...
01/06/2022

Today is exactly 5 years since Spot arrived with us... so 5 years of keeping horses at home. Lots of heartbreak, saying goodbye to Spot in particular, plus all the inevitable low points with mud, falls, injuries, but also all the wonderful aspects - the regular rhythm of feeding and field maintenance, the late night checks on crisp frosty nights or balmy Summer ones, the warm solidity of Buzz and Blaze any time I need a hug - and the deepening bond with them both. With thanks to the wonderful team of people who support us, even though we are just a family of amateur riders with two ponies in a muddy field... in particular to our instructor Annelise Milton-Barnes, and our farrier Jon Currell, our hay supplier Paul Clark (who helped me out so much this week with another matter) and also the extended team of professionals from our dentist, physio, saddle fitter, ad hoc transport providers and paddock sprayers, along with the lovely team from Newmarket Equine Hospital who we try not to see too often! And with gratitude to our very select band of sharers across the years. Hoping for many more years of this lifestyle to come, provided we all stay fit and healthy.

Mia walked with us today, escorting us across the main road, and took this lovely photo.
28/05/2022

Mia walked with us today, escorting us across the main road, and took this lovely photo.

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So much fun today, did the putting a bridle on while sitting down mini challenge with both Blaze and Buzz. Blaze even stood where I parked her while I went to swap the head collar for a bridle. Buzz provided some good outtakes including nearly pushing me backwards off the tub I was sitting on, and then getting his foot up onto the tub and pawing it over xx

Spent some time getting Buzz and Blaze used to a flag today (not sure how it got upside down). We’ll wait for a less windy day before I try to ride with it.

So I’ve signed up to do the Top Barn Horsemanship Centre online challenge… pledging to do 3 hours of training per week with both Buzz and Blaze from Jan to March, i.e. the time of year when it’s most difficult to ride. Today Buzz and I started to learn this week’s ridden challenge… the ‘cha cha slide’: steps to the right, steps to the left, forward then back. Here we’re using the fence line to learn the steps to the side.

Here’s Buzz getting a wiggle on, back to ‘safety’ after an adrenaline-inducing encounter with some deer in the Fen. Why can we never get this quality of walk when we’re schooling?!

Who knocked over the mounting block?!!

Rubus eating his namesake berry!

Cleo was away at the weekend so Buzz and I got 1:1 focus in our lesson. Really pleased with how his canter is coming on, this felt amazing. We can do better trot work than this clip, though.

After our HOYS visit the other weekend, Cleo has a list of new things she wants to try. Standing in the saddle is inspired by the Household Cavalry’s display. Buzz entirely happy for her to mess around on his back!

Blaze in 6'0" Derby House rug
Blaze in 6'0" Derby House rug

Asking Derby House for advice on the fit of their rug - I've sized up by 3" already to a 6'0"and still find it too snug on the point of Blaze's shoulder. If I size up again to a 6'3" will I have a rug that's too long? I love the fabric, which I hope is going to be Buzz-proof (he has a matching one, which I've also sized up.

Cleo and Buzz are really growing in confidence with their jumping (with thanks to our lovely instructor!)

Cleo and Buzz - no rope ;-)

We've just realised it's Buzz's 10th birthday today! Born 14 June 2011. Not sure when he's going to start acting his age...

Buzz and Cleo working on their medium trot yesterday

Last week Buzz and Blaze broke onto the long grass overnight. This is Cleo trying to get one very stuffed pony to get out of bed. Fortunately no harm done.

Meanwhile, we had the very lovely Claire Martin Veterinary Physiotherapist out to Buzz and Blaze last week. Apparently Blaze has the best shoulders she's seen for months ;-) - maybe due to all the shoulder-in work we've been doing to try to gain some control of her shoulders. But she had some guarding and a pain-point in her back, which Claire was able to sort, along with some tightness in her hamstrings. Love this slo-mo video that shows how her muscles respond during the treatment.

Full of the joys of Spring. And I love the way that Blaze acts the adult and ignores them both!

Buzzy stubble
Buzzy stubble

This was our second canter. I've learned two things about the Go Pro 1) I need to angle it downwards more so that we can see more of the horse and 2) I need to talk less! In this clip I held him back too long, (although the GoPro seems to fish-eye a bit, so Blaze is not actually as far away as she looks) so he raced to catch up with her. He then found the pace quite sedate (Tate was doing a good job at keeping Blaze steady), so I needed more leg to keep the more collected canter.

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