Breeze Day

RR still grousing today and generally seething--if that's a word "the bell but tinkles and I seeeeethe"--over the Eighty Dollar, ten pound tub of Platinum Performance fat and iron sitting on my desk masquerading as a horse multi-vitamin. One whole side of the big plastic tub prints out "ingredients per dose", and, to give one more ludicrous e.g., this contains 75% of the Vitamin A contained in my personal daily multi-vitamin.

But, I digress. This is breeze day at the RR Farm. Four horses going fast tonight after a nearly perfect "Burch Day 2" yesterday wherein all horses galloped fairly easily in the day preceding the breeze, and all went nearly perfectly despite the heat. I say nearly perfectly as Aylward's mouth problem that he's had since a race in 2003 flares up again making him a harder horse to ride and control. But, generally all has been well, and I must say that this has been the most gentle sort of hot weather. Very pleasant really for the evening work time.

We'll be doing "catch up" breezes tonight after the layoff. Last breezing for the oldsters was 7/30 though all three horses have incorporated fast spurts into their gallops since. The decision had been made after strenuous 7/30 breezing to "back off" a bit, and thus in the next two breezes, tonight and Saturday, we'll be trying to get back were we were. For tonight this means slower, longer work, and then Saturday we'll increase the speed so that by Tuesday we can repeat the 7/30 work and it's on from there.

The "break" obviously has put us behind where we otherwise would have been. However, it was well timed, for had we continued right on after 7/30, right about now I'd be thinking the same thing--that these horses need a rest--and we'd be into that in mid-August. Instead, we're back to gaining momentum and hopefully stronger horses.

Forecast now is 102 degrees for Eureka Sat. I'm mulling this over. Drama of the week--will rider Mr.Nob make it down to 155 lbs. by Sat.? He weight 158 lbs. last night. Would be able to work harder at the lighter weight!

Training:
Last night each oldster galloped slowly with emphasis on technique (crisp lead changes, stride efficiency, covering ground for the speed--instead of just a lazy gallop) for about 1.5 miles.
Art:
8/5/07 Sunday Burch Day 3: 5x2f at 90% speed riderless with some full speed licks thrown in + 10 min tack walk.
8/6/07 Mon. Day 1 Burch: Walk under tack only, 10 min. Took a first few steps of trot.
8/7/07 Tues. Day 2 Burch: 1/2 mile WU + 1.5 miles riderless at about :17/f + 5 min tack work. WE'RE TROTTING. Trotted three times about 100 feet each trot when Nob said that's it, let's avoid pressing our luck.