Good Times.

So we've hit the trail twice. Not monumentous, but pretty fantastic!

The first ride was pretty tame, just exploring some freshly cleared fields. Hubby rode with me and it was neat to catalogue everything about what made Max tick. He was very tuned into Bill's status the entire time and constantly gravitated toward him. We practiced some tame trotting which can be a challenge in an open area. He came back to me instantly and remained extremely light the entire time. Some dairy cows in the distance wearing bells caught his attention but it was the vehicles near and far that retained it. We didn't bother trying to share the road this time around.

The second ride was phenomenal. A friend borrowed the hubby's gelding and we hit a local sand quarry via a friendly neighbor's bush trails. The trails themselves were beautifully groomed and we passed two bee colonies calmly, without incident. I had Petra take the lead with Bill and Max marched right into the sand, water and whatever we put in front of him. We crossed depths that got my knees wet, even once I pulled them up as high as I could. The other side was a do or die situation of scaling daunting inclines and he never hesitated. This sucker is a veritable mountain goat! We exited the quarry via a gorgeous little road at another controlled trot. Traversed some deep ditches and battled the vehicle phobia. He was doing very well sharing the road, especially if I kept his feet moving and gently asked him to control his reaction. He got to the point of a simple head-bob when some idiot ruined our progress. How can people NOT understand that a horse does not like a vehicle zipping up their ass at 60kms?! We had a quick scoot forward up into own Bill's tolerant hind end.

Tomorrow afternoon we load up for a two hour trailer ride to the lake! We'll be renting a corral at the ranch out there, a place I worked at for a handful of years. I know the stunning trails out there and can't wait to show hubby, not to mention explore just who Max is!