Benney Gets Lunged

Benney had another week off due to the bad weather storming across southern England and the fading light of the afternoons as we approach the winter solstice.

Today, December 9, 2018, all was well climatically in our part of the world and so it was a good day for giving Benney some exercise. The initial plan was to ride him into the New Forest for a quiet hack. Then, realizing the bathroom scales were giving me some rather bad news it was time to put plan B into operation and lunge him until those few pounds come off.

This was going to be the first time I would be lunging him 'solo.' All my earlier attempts had been under the watchful eye and patient tutoring of our instructor Thea Heim.

Once we were in the school we started. I had a few nerves in case anything I did that went wrong would knock down all the work achieved in previous sessions. These slight nerves were not helped by my ineptitude at sorting out the tangle of lunge line, which seemed to have acquired the power of independent thought. The signal for him to go out is to point the lunge whip at his shoulder. Benney responded and once he had gone out as far as he could life became easier.

Focus, focus, focus. And we did while Thea's voice whispered through my head.

"Good boy," spoken softly was his verbal reward.

I made him walk around the circle twice just to allow him to settle. He started to mouth the bit and then drop his head so far down, his muzzle was almost digging a trench in the surface of the school.

It was time to step things up a bit and get him to trot. I was taught to give three gentle squeezes on the rein. This is a signal that says, "Hello Benney, I am here and will be asking you to do something."

Then vocally I asked him to trot. The first request was not answered. I asked a second time and combined the vocal request with a raising of the lunge whip giving it a slight flourish. I also made a kissing sound with my lips and away he went.

Everything that I was taught about lunging is based on 'three.' Ask once, ask twice and ask a third time. Each time escalating the strength of the request. 'Three' must be a magic number when dealing with horses.

Included in my equine experience are two training for race riding. As trainees we had to carry whips when riding work but not allowed to use them. When we were being trained on the mechanical horses we had to use the whip but not without pushing the whip past the horse's eyes 'three' times as a request to urge it on before actually using it on the fourth stroke on the quarters.

Benney gradually worked up to a nice working trot with occasional extensions of stride. He looked comfortable. I felt comfortable. The session was going well. Even when a horse being lead in past the school trying to become a kite at the end of its lead rope, Benney just gave it a passing glance as if to say, "Grow up, can't you see I'm busy here," before returning his focus to the task in hand.

To break up the monotony of trotting in circles I asked Benney to walk. Firstly, the three gentle squeezes on the rein followed by the verbal request to 'walk.' Making the word last about five seconds with a lowering tone as I reached the 'alk.' Once walking, I counted various numbers of steps before requesting a step up to trot.

Our confidences grew. So much so that I managed to get Benney to walk past his nemesis; the gate where previously he would lose concentration and either nap or wander in towards the handler. Even with my wife Heather, source of treats, at the gate to distract him he carried on.

Benney gave a blow through his nostrils and dropped his head down again to sniff the school surface. He looked like he was going to stop and roll but he didn't. He was ready to step up his paces again.

At this point I handed him over to our neighbor, Catherine, who took him through his walk, halt and trot transitions so they could both get used to one another. Her requests were the same as mine. Three gentle squeezes on the rein, a vocal request and then another backed up with a movement of the lunge whip. Both were in tune with one another. Then came the canter.

Last time Thea and I did this Benney exploded from his trot to what felt like full speed as he stretched the lunge line and nearly pulled me off my feet. His repertoire included some spectacular cow kicks. Which could have been an expression of temper or 'joie de vivre' (enjoyment of life). I like to think it was the latter as that is what his personality is like—completely devoid of malice.

His transition from trot to canter was seamless and the pace well-controlled. It looked really good. And he even threw in a couple cow kicks for good measure which were definitely an expression of 'joie de vivre.'

The whole session lasted about 40 minutes and at the end Benney got his favourite treat; three Trebor extra strong mints.

That number 'three' cropped up again.