Flat Training: Thinking inside the box.

In one way it was cross training in another it was good aerobic work.  I was time crunched today, the creek was flooded, and I wanted to work on one specific set of muscles on the flat, with no distractions, no drama, and not eating up all of my Sunday.  What to do?  Kind of muddy, a little bit cold, but not enough to want gloves.  I hustled Big Cree & Phebes out of the front lot, put up the electric gate and put Journey to work trotting a very large rectangle for five miles.  Not only was it a work out, it gave us opportunity to work on her steering, me to relax and balance in my seat (except for the BIG spook), to get her to bend around the corners, and to listen for a whoa.  A half mile in one direction, whoa, reverse for another half mile.  It turned out to be the best work out she's had since I brought her home.  Post ride it took her almost the ten minutes to pulse down.  In this case I see that as a positive because when she did drop it was a really good drop.  I learned a little about her baseline, where she is at as far as her ceiling and ability for sustained trotting.  So just because you can't trailer out (or as in our case can't cross the creek because of the current), doesn't mean you can't do some conditioning.  Think "inside" the box! ~ E.G.