For this week I thought I would write a little bit about whats been going on at Natural Bridges. I have loads of projects in the works, and am very excited to share them with everyone.

I’ve begun writing natural horsemanship articles for horseplay.ie. Im very excited about this partnership, and hope to give lots of information about training methods, detailed exercises, and advice. We are also in discussion about a possible “agony aunt” column. Of course this means I am now writing for 2 blogs, but as most people who know me know, I can talk about natural horsemanship all day long! My first article isn’t out yet, but I will definitely update everyone when it is.

On to Finn, the problem horse. Some of you may be following Finn and his progress. He has been an exceptional horse to work with, and I have really built a connection with him. His ground work has come along leaps and bounds, and his tendency to bolt and run has pretty much disappeared. Last weekend I decided to ride him.

Read that sentence again. _I_ decided to ride him. I could go into the details of what went wrong, but that is not where the lesson lies. To make a not so long story short, I decided to ride him. On the day, _he_ was not ready to be ridden. All the signs were there. He was fidgety, he was resisting bends to the right and left. On many days, he was ready. On this day, he was not. I ignored my own best judgment and put my agenda over my horsemanship. It did not help that I had students watching. I was determined. I got on, had major resistance, pushed to hard, and bad things followed. There was some bolting, a rope that got caught under my leg, and inevitably I fell off. I have debated sharing this for 3 days, but the lesson is so important.

*Don’t put your agenda over your horsemanship.*

On to the round pens! I am so excited about this, I can’t keep it a secret any longer. As some of you may or may not know, I am manufacturing american style round pens. I have worked hard to keep these as true to the round pens I grew up using as possible. I tell ya, it’s hard getting things manufactured! So much sitting around and waiting! 2 weeks ago I got to see several samples of pipe and am currently waiting for the first sample panel to be made. I have great faith in the people making these for me and can hardly wait to have one for myself. For more information about these you can go to: www.roundpens-ireland.com

My next project is pedestals. I am also so excited about these. I have been wanting a decent pedestal for years, so, like the round pens, I am having exactly what I want made! Stay tuned for pictures of Mr Kippling playing with it. He loves getting up on anything, and I look forward to letting him have a go! I have several more ideas for other horse play items, and I will share them soon..

Keep an eye on this space!