Worked online before riding. Pleased with porcupine, driving, driving at a distance (he's got that really well now! , circling although his departs and changes of directon aren't as snappy as they could be. Tried sideways with his nose toward the fence. Huh? He was clearly confused either because it was new or because of the ineptness of my signals. Still, we got a couple of clumsy steps in both directions so was happy to leave it at that. Believe in the *soaking* method of learning. Saddled up at the arena as an experiment to see whether it would make any difference to his peevish expression. It did not. Still pinned his ears when the saddle pad was hovering above his back. At least he didn't bite at his chest. Which reminds me, I groomed him before we went to the arena and he was very good. Or I was very good; gentle enough not to attract the ear pinning and chest biting that he exhibited before.

Rode him off the property. Mr. Reluctance! Must I leave the others? I'll walk slow and weave from side to side or amble off the road toward the fence, anything to show my profound lack of impulsion. But he was wearing his easy boot booties so I asked him to trot, then canter. That straightened him out, figuratively and specifically. Took the rough cattle track up the mountain. We came to a shelf of stone and he stopped. I thought it was too much for him and was just contemplating getting off to try and find an alternate way when he gathered himself and leapt, from a standing start, up the rock. I was so proud! He really is an extraordinary horse. And! The neck reining that is not stellar in the arena was magnificent on the trail. He didn't spook at a wallaby and trotted really slow when I asked him without stopping. That's quite an accomplishment for him because I think it takes more self carriage to trot slowly (with his thoroughbred physique) than to barrel along with a ground covering stride.

Balthazar is very unfit so our little 40 minute bush ride was enough. Grazed him on lots of green grass on the way home. As it's too cold to hose him brushed him while he ate hay from a net. Was a really nice interlude. There is a bond between us where none existed before. It's not just a result of Parelli, although that is helping, but really started with the Water hole rituals of Carolyn Resnick - the most important element just sharing territory with no expectations. And stopping with the clicker training which was quite obviously sending him around the twist.