Recent Happenings... Including a Trip to Cavalia!

It has been a couple weeks since I have last posted, and I wish there was good reason, but the truth is I have not been motivated to write much recently. However, I have decided, for your sake as the reader and follower of this blog, to write a quick update with how horsey life is going. I have had two play sessions with the horses, and have in total ridden Woody twice, ridden Charlotte once, and played with Teddy once. My rides have been lovely on my black and white steed. When I am working with him or riding him I keep a task or purpose in my mind at all times. He must know that what he is doing is worthwhile and important, and this comes from my focus and intent. We have played with some bareback jumping, trotting a figure 8 around two trees with a jump between them while riding, mounting and dismounting many times and many ways, and just in general keeping HIM with ME. I have been very proud of the work we have been doing.

I have ridden Charlotte once in the past week, and we had a pretty good time. I took her to the hay field and she proceeded to have a spaz attack. I am still not sure what was going on with her or what she was so concerned about, but after failing to get her back with me while on her back, I dismounted and worked a bit to get her with me and letting go of her concerns. She finally did and snorted and released a lot, which I took as a good sign and mounted back up. We then had a pretty uneventful ride, just trail riding around the property.
My session with Teddy was good, too. I haltered him easily after removing at least a pound of hair from him (he is still shedding out his coat), and I focused on getting him more comfortable jumping. He got a bit confused when I asked him to circle and jump the jump, so I had to retreat back to getting his circles good and focused on my body language. he did very well and was able to trot, walk, and stop and face me with no help from me with the stick or rope. He is SUCH a quick learner, and he is such a bright little man. He has been doing very well.

Now, onto Cavalia. For those of you who don't know what "Cavalia" is, you can find out more here, or just keep reading this post as I attempt to explain. Simply put, it is close to a Cirque de Soleil show, only it involves, and is centered around,  horses. Friends of mine went to see it and raved about it, and when Mom and I heard they were coming to Charlotte (3.5 hours away from Roanoke), we bought tickets right away.

We arrived in Charlotte around 12:45, and upon entering the "horse lover" entrance (general entrance) we were offered an upgrade. The upgrade included food and drink before the show and at intermission, a special autograph session with two "artists" from the show, and a tour of the stables afterwards. We jumped at the chance, and upgraded. The food was amazing, and the atmosphere was beautiful. Of course, Mom and I shopped and bought T Shirts, a book, and a poster for my room. We then made our way to the show and took our seat which were 5 rows from the stage.

The actual show was nothing short of beautiful and astounding. The artists/performers were incredibly athletic, graceful, and gifted; both with horses and gymnastically. The show consisted of many different "acts." There was one segment with a man playing with his horse at liberty, a couple with big draft horses on which they did incredible vaults, one with a woman playing with 8 gray horses at Liberty (Mom's favorite part), and some very nice dressage riding performances.The stage was gorgeous and the horses were lean. fit, and athletic as well.
My favorite part was when the performers rode in on quarter horses and paint horse and performed all kinds of amazing stunts. Several would bounce on the ground to the other side of the horse, back and forth, while the horses were galloping, and they would hang upside down, backwards, standing up, ANY kind of position you could think of on these galloping horses. It was very entertaining.
Another amazing part was when four roman riders entered the arena. Each man had their two feet on two separate horses' backs, and they were galloping around, changing directions and even JUMPING their horses.

Following the show, Mom and I got autographs from two of the performers, and were escorted through the barns. The horses' manes were all braided so they wouldn't get soiled (their manes were to their legs), and they were all happily munching on hay. We had the opportunity to take a picture and talk briefly with another one of the performers, and got to see all the horses used in the show.

All in all, the show was simply brilliant. It was obvious the horses enjoyed their jobs, and the horsemanship and athleticism of the performers was inspiring. I would STRONGLY encourage anyone who has the chance to go to this show to GO. Even if you aren't particularly a horse lover, you will thoroughly enjoy the athleticism, grace, and beauty in the horses and people that this show was created to emphasize.

~Eden