28th August 2009

So he is on his way and I have just had a phone call from the transporters to say he will be arriving at about midnight tonight.

He is still very immature in his body and he is quite gangly still and so the plan is to do loads of ground work with him whilst my arm is mending and to allow him to grow into himself. He is expected to make 17 - 17.2hh so he has a way to go still. When I first saw him led out of the box I couldn't believe he was 4 as he is so foal like. They usually back them at 3 but left him until he was 4 to allow him to grow.

I am excited but apprehensive. Hopefully it will be third horse lucky.

I asked all the lads at the yard where he is what the worst thing about him was and none of them could think of anything and they all said with total conviction that they had never, ever seen him with his ears back.


29th August 2009

He's here!!! They arrived at 5am and he is now in his stable tucking into a big haynet. He is very wobbly after his trip and every time he puts his head down to drink he sort of overshoots the bucket! There will be pics in the morning as we took loads. He is so lovely and very sweet and cuddly. I am sooooo excited!

The lorry has gone on now to Portugal with the rest of it's cargo. Two very nice ladies brought him and we are both very impressed with the service.

Will update it all in a couple of hours when I get up to do a double gite changeover!

Night night

Gail xx

I've just been out to check him and he is fine and is eating and drinking well.

He has quite a few bumps and rubs. I think the head collar has rubbed him quite badly. The rest of him is fine though and there are not hot spots or swellings.

I am just off out to see him again and sit and have my tea and toast with him... I can't believe how friendly he is. He just wants to be stroked and be with you.


Jed and Lancelot are twins!
Their heads are very similar but their bodies are very different. Lancelot is much lighter built and lacks the muscle that Jed has. When you see them together you can see the ID in Jed.
Lancelot is a definite finer built TB. He has a lot of work to do to build his neck, top-line, shoulder and quarters up. He was only backed in May and then turned out for about 6 weeks I think and then came back in only a couple of weeks ago. There is no doubt he is a real slow grower, but I have time to let him grow.

Lancelot is sound asleep out there now. He must be absolutely knackered... bless him.


Mike has decided he is going to change Jed's name......... He wants a knight too ... so he's going to call him ....................Jedi.......


30th August 2009

I have spent today going in and out of the stable with Lancelot and I am pleased with him. He really is such a sweet boy. He is very kind and gentle and just likes to 'be' with you.

I was trying to figure out what was different about him from Jed because they are both big horses but it is not easy to be in Jed's space.

I realised that Jed likes to move you around by crowding you. He makes you move by swinging his head to look around you or over you or at something behind you. It is not comfortable to be in Jed's stable as he is definitely in charge of his space.

Lancelot just stays where he is and lets you rub him or massage him and then he moves over if he is asked but he never once made me move out of his space. His energy is totally different to Jeds.

It peculiar how safe I feel in his stable but I still dont feel safe in Jeds.

I am so reluctant to enthuse about him as I have made the mistakes before and got so excited about other horses. I felt so foolish when it all went wrong.

So ... I like this horse, I feel comfortable in his company and I want to spend time with him.
Early days but it feels good


31at August 2009

We were out all day yesterday at a horse weekend organised by our horse group. Mike took Jed and rode him in the parade and so Lancelot was left at home alone.

When we got back although it was late I wanted to get him out and let him stretch his legs so I took him up into the sand school so that he could have a roll and a buck and fart if he wanted.

When we got in there and I just led him around at first he was lovely. He followed me with no barging or pushing. I then took the headcollar off so that he could go off but he just stayed close and followed me around.

Eventually he went of and rolled and then trotted and cantered around and I started to play with him, sending him away and turning him by using my body and he was sooo responsive.

He had great fun and displayed his breathtaking trot which just floats over the ground.

When I had enough and wanted to catch him again I was a bit worried because he had stayed well away from me but I changed my body language and looked at the ground and turned slightly away from him and he stopped and turned in towards me. He took a couple of steps towards me and then stopped but he was still about 20 metres away. I walked towards him then and when I was about 5 metres from him I stopped and looked at the ground and he then walked straight up to me and waited for me to put the rope back on him. It was all text book stuff and felt fantastic.

He is a lovely boy and when leading him if I stop he stops. The only thing I need to sort is that when he is stop he does this thing of sharply nudging me with his nose. He did it on my bad arm yesterday and lifted my arm with his nose and I can't tell you how painful it was. I thought I was going to cry.

11 september

I lunged Lancelot this morning because I really want to crack on now with his training. He is so easy to work with and if he doesn't understand what you are asking for you can see him thinking it over.

This was just a simple exercise just to see how he moves and how he responds. I was so pleased with him.

11th September 2009

Mike had his one to one lesson today with Damien and so we took L-lot too.

Mike had his lesson first and was riding without stirrups and fell off... not a good omen. He was fine by the way.

I had to take L-lot up to the main yard because he kept calling to Jed and I tied him up in the entrance where he promptly went to sleep.. I thought this was a good sign because here he was in a new yard with loads of different people and different horses and he was very calm.

I tacked him up with his brand new Wintec 2000 saddle (a bloomin bargain at £299) and his new bridle both colour co-ordinated in brown and he was ready!

Damien lunged Lancelot first and he was very flighty and fast. I think he didn't understand what Damien was asking him to do but they sorted it in the end.

Damien then rode him walking, trotting and cantering and then came back to report to me.

He has no mouth to speak of and doesn't understand the rein aids at all. He said he was nice though and then said to me to get on.

I was absolutely quaking in my boots (that's putting it very politely) when I got on and to be honest I had a job to get on as he is so blooming tall. He isn't as big as Jed but still tall and I am still one armed.

I was very frightened and walked gently first and Damien kept telling me to trot and I kept saying 'In a minute'

Eventually I trotted him with one hand on the neck strap and Damien talked me through every move and made me lengthen and lengthen the reins and once my seat got stronger and I relaxed and then Lancelot relaxed things started to flow.

We have a long, long way to go but I am happy about that. I knew that by buying a young horse I would have all the work to do but I have superb teachers and Damien has given me lots of advice. He says that L-lot is literally just backed and has no understanding and that I must be so careful of his mouth. He goes well off the leg which is great because Jed is the opposite and ao now I have what I wanted.

This is the beginning of a long road but this is a path I want to follow. L-lot seems so calm in his head and when we got home I was able to shower him off with no fuss or drama and then take him for a pick of grass on the lawn.

I will post some pics later which are mostly of Damien riding him but there is one or two of me. When I looked at them I realised that I must lose some more weight!!

Gail xx

12 september

Today I have ticked another box. We went for a hack! We went out with Jed and Mike and it was a bit breezy but because he had the lesson yesterday I knew he was a bit tired today. I thought it was the ideal time to hack for the first time.

We went off up the lane and Jed is very lazy and it takes him a while to get going and so L-lot was in front. Jed just never really went in front after that. L-lot was more than happy to lead the way, I couldn't believe it! Once he spooked at a log... I think it was a horse eating log.... All he did was stop and look... no leaping... no jumping..... no swinging round... just staring at it.

We only walked and weren't out for long because I didn't want to tire him too much but he really enjoyed himself.

We met some men working in the woods with dogs and chain saws and that never bothered him either.

He is being a very good boy!


Yes Endy is home and he and L-lot are in lurve... Mike says they are a couple! L-lot just follows Endy around the field worshipping him.

Jed is a bully and I think tomorrow we are going to separate them and put Jed in a field by himself because L-lot is covered in bites, some of them are quite nasty too. Jed will be next to them so he wont be lonely but they will be separated by electric fencing.