Lensman - Late Summer 2008

Lensman has been here for nearly six months and he's built up his conditioning, his mental and emotional abilities and he's improved his responsiveness. While working on improving lead changes, spins and collection, he's also added being a strong trail horse to his accomplishments - now he's good at opening gates, leading water crossings, climbing and descending steep hills, and confronting spooky objects.

	Lensman's developed some new muscles over the months - in fact, now he's a rippling example of strength and speed. He's also completely changed color from largely black to a light bay. By the time he's ready to shift to winter coat in early September, he's almost buckskin. His hips have bulked up too, providing a powerful reining "motor" for circles, rundowns and rollbacks.
	He's also built up nice shoulder muscles...
	A bit of walking in the late afternoon shows Lensman's glossy coat and lean musculature.
	But being a highly conditioned reining horse doesn't prevent one from having humorous or even goofy moments. Lensman is having a close sniff at my camera while I spend some time with him in his pen. His left nostril has a notch from an accident when he was a foal, according to his original owners.
	One of his favorite things to do is roll over. If he gets a chance, he prefers the soft floor of the indoor arena, but the stone dust floor of the pen is good enough if he's itchy, sweaty, wet, or bugged by bugs.
	Time on the trail is far from a break, it just works other skills. But it's a refreshing change for horse owners and horses alike.