I made my way over to the single pole, facing it and the entrance to the chute. Releasing another deep breath, I very carefully signaled the mare to walk over the pole and into the chute. I stood up in my stirrups and looked at the dirt before, and then after the pole. I calculated just where the horse's feet needed to land to clear the pole, and guided her there. The mare stepped carefully over the pole, lifting her feet high to make sure she didn't even tap her hoof on it. I guided the horse through the chute, looking out between the opening of the poles, into the vast open space of the arena.
I sat up straight, going through my mental checklist.
Eyes up.
Chin up.
Shoulders back.
Elbows in.
Push up through the sternum.
Tighten core muscles.
Tuck the hips.
Legs back.
Use the inner thighs.
Bend the knees slightly.
Heels down.
As I listed off each thing in my head, I performed the action and held it all together.
Pushing with my right calf and opening my inside leg slightly, I cued her to pick up the left lead lope. Her hind legs surged beneath me, almost pushing me out of the saddle with the amount of impulsion that she displayed. But, I simply deepened my seat connection and controlled my own movements so that they could match hers. We curved slightly to the right before making our way over to the set of three poles. I aimed her right for the middle and encouraged some more impulsion to be used to get over the poles cleanly. To do it, I sat deeper into the horse's back and pushed her forward with my legs. I pressed slightly harder with my right leg to keep her drive leg underneath her. Then I lifted my hand slightly, putting pressure on her shoulders with the reins and gentle contact with the bit in the mare's mouth. The mare pushed her back up, lifting me up slightly while activating her core. I looked up at the fence that was straight in front of me and in line with the poles. I let the poles come to us as we grew closer. We glided over the three ground poles. I collected the mare again, receiving the increase in impulsion that was lost from going over the poles.
We loped across the end of the arena, approaching the line of cones. Starting the serpentine with the first cone on our left, I anticipated the series of lead changes that the pattern called for. I signaled for another half-halt and quickly received the desired response. She surged forward with renewed impulsion, but she wasn't going faster. It almost felt like she was going to lift her front legs up into the air, but she was simply taking a larger step.
As we approached the spot between the two cones where the lead change was supposed to occur, I prepared the mare for the maneuver. Right before getting to the middle between the two cones, I shifted the positioning of my seat. Originally, my hips and pelvis were slightly tipped to where the right side was more forward than the left. When I shifted the position, I switched which side was further forward. In conjunction with this, I slid my left leg back and let my right leg slip forward. I applied pressure with my left calf and provided an opening with the right one. The mare seemed to almost leap forward before going back to her smooth gait.
As we serpentined through the cones, I could feel how the mare moved in each lead change. She would land with her inside front leg, with the rest of her legs still suspended, mid-stride. Then she would shift her weight to bring her inside hind leg further underneath her. The rest of the legs followed after it in an almost hopping motion. This change of the drive leg led to the change of the lead of the lope.
When we came around the last cone on the left lead, we looped around, and I signaled the mare to break down into the extended trot. I sat deeper and imagined the desired speed and movement of the trot, and softly gave her the verbal command.
"Trot."
The transition into the slower gait was smooth, fluid. We made our way across the center of the arena towards the opposite corner. While going across the arena, I made sure to move my seat in a way that promoted the desired movement. At the points where the mare started to lose her impulsion and momentum, I urged her forward with a nudge from my legs. It was the lightest of bumps and nudges, but it got the desired result. As we moved into the curving loop along the end of the arena, there was a moment where we were going straight towards the letter F, before continuing into another curve. Completing the turn into the new line before getting to the first cone, I sat deeper into the saddle.
Remembering what came next, I sat even deeper, and let the mare slow down into a smooth, slow jog. It had some spring to it but was also a swinging motion. I kept a straight and serious facial expression, trying to stay focused on the horse and the pattern. We traveled diagonally across the arena again, aiming for the letter E.
Upon arrival, I half-halted, activating more impulsion as a response. I looked to the right, towards the second to last cone. We were going to be making several circles. When approaching the cone, I requested that the mare move into the right lead lope. She surged forward, like before. However, this time, I asked for something a little different. I asked for the mare to extend her lope.
I knew that it wasn't technically part of the original pattern, but I felt like we needed to do it.
The extension of the lope was surging forward. I leaned forward to encourage the forward motion even more. As we rounded around the first very large circle, the feelings coming from the mare beneath me seemed to show through her movement and posture. With a relaxed neck and perked ears, she moved forward willingly, almost eagerly, even.
I couldn't prevent the smile that was being born on my previously blank and focused faced. As we finished our second circle, I asked for a halt when we reached X. I sat down, tucking my tailbone under me, and pushed my lower leg slightly forward and down. Then I lifted my hand slightly and gave the verbal command.
"Whoa."
All of these commands happened in rapid succession to each other. The result? A mini slide that ended in a stop, with the horse's haunches tucked beneath her.
Once she was stopped and settled, I smiled slightly and signaled for a haunch turn. I turned my toes and twisted my waist to the right. She started to lean slightly to the right, so I moved my reins to the right about 3 cm and pressed with my left calf. The mare spun around her right hind foot in a fast, but controlled, pivot.
90 degrees, 180 degrees, 270 degrees, 360 degrees, 450 degrees, 540 degrees, 640 degrees, 720 degrees.
I released all the cues and verbally told her to stop.
"Whoa."
She stopped, balanced on all four feet. I signaled her to, once again, pick up the left lead lope. However, I kept her at a slow and steady pace, this time. We looped around to the left, performing a long series of half-halts and releases. Each time I would lose the impulsion from the hind end, I would half-halt, and the mare beneath would deliver it powerfully. We got back to the center of the arena, and I halted her again.
"Whoa."
Another set of two turns, this time to the left.
"Whoa."
I took a deep breath before continuing on with the pattern at hand. The last element was a right lead lope loop onto a straight line, stopping before the last cone in front of F, and then backing up 8 steps.
I signaled for the right lead and got the instant, perfect response that I have come to expect from today's riding with this magnificent mare. We looped around, and as we came onto the straight line, I asked for a half-halt and guided her straight between my reins. I was half expecting her to lean either way, but she didn't, to my surprise. We loped straight up to the cone and stopped.
"Whoa."
I rounded her up, before asking for the backup. I lifted myself up from the saddle slightly by tightening my glutes and pressed my legs forward and down into the stirrups. Lifting my reins about 2 inches, I clucked, and the mare came straight back, giving me a fast-paced, beautiful back-up.
"Whoa."
I stopped to reflect back on what we had just done. I reached down and gave the mare's sweaty neck a huge hug.
We stood there for a while, both panting hard from the pattern we just almost flawlessly executed. The sound of loud clapping broke us out of our trance.
"That was amazing! I don't think that even that Hawks guy you keep fantasizing about could have performed that pattern so well!"
I chuckled lightly. "Thank you, Lynn. But I really have this amazing horse to thank for it! She is so well trained, which is probably your doing, I would assume?"
My friend shook her head. A mischievous gleam sparkled in her blue eyes.
"No. That was all you. Don't you recognize that horse that you are sitting on?"
I cocked an eyebrow before taking a closer look at the mare I was sitting on. My gaze was met by a silvery mane, reddish-cream body, and deep hazel eyes that I had only seen on one horse before.
I looked up at Lynn in shock. My voice came out as a whisper. "How is she here? How is it that the horse that I trained from birth, the daughter of the horse that I unintentionally destroyed in that jumping competition, still on this ranch? I sold her!" As each word was uttered, my voice gradually rose in pitch until I was practically screaming at the woman who was like a sister to me.
Lynn smiled. "Simple. I was the one that bought her." I was speechless as she continued. "I kept her in shape through lunging, groundwork, and showmanship, but I never once got on her back. All of the training that is in her right now, and was just displayed, is the result of your training that was instilled in her before you left, and before you rode that breathtaking pattern."
I remained speechless.
During the silent stand-off between Lynn and I, I suddenly spotted a matching set of light brunettes. I turned my head toward them.
"Oh, I see that you've finally spotted my children. Meet my twins, Brandon and Faith." I smiled and nodded to the two doppelgangers, before turning back to my friend.
"I need to walk her out. But before I do, does this mare have a name?"
Lynn smiled. "I had originally named her after the remarkable woman who trained her." She paused, seemingly for dramatic effect. "Her name was Love. But I think a different name suits her a little better now. A name that better represents what she will be for you."
"And what's that?" My voice was hard.
"Karma."