Gymnastics on Horseback

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Raenn finished grooming Ellie before the barn filled up, knowing the equestrian classes would soon end, filling the barn with students and other horses. Now, however, it was quiet, and she finished readying the patient black horse in peace. After she finished, she walked towards her tack locker and picked up the other gear that she would need, including a tarp, which she tucked under her arm as she returned to her horse.

When the time came for classes to end, Raenn made her way towards the indoor arena, finding the space empty. She dropped her gear at the gate, then walked Ellie towards the centre of the arena. She looped the mare's lead rope around and fastened it, forming makeshift reins, then vaulted up, moving the mare around the arena to warm her up. When students started arriving, she welcomed them, slipping off of the mare's back and switching the lead for the longe-line.

She gestured to the tarp, "Go ahead and spread that out, it'll give you guys a clean space to stretch on." When the class was mostly gathered, she started, "Today we're going to be working on mills, so make sure to stretch your legs." She looked at the students she didn't recognize, "I'm Ray, this is Ellie. The other horse we use here, also my horse, is Choo, but you will meet him another time." When she finished, she watched them, waiting for a return introduction, if they chose to give it.

Danielle Green
@kate
@adalina2
@samanthal
@sergei

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Sam walked back from the cross country course with Popeye in hand. It had been such a good class that she decided to pamper him in between vaulting and gymnastics. For now she untacked in and returned him to his stall with a fresh leaf of hay and a few peppermint treats to snack on. Sam lingered over the edge of the stall door, watching the gelding before she decided to go up to her room and change out.

Last time Sam went home she took all but two leotards back since the only one she really had been using was her competition one. One that made the cut was a multicolored animal print leo which was the one that she was using for vaulting for the day. Over top of those she put on her hot pink spandex shorts and a pair of sweats to get across campus. She tossed a pair of black leather shoes in her bag that she would wear on the horse and pulled on a pair of black bear paws.

She jogged across campus until she reached the outside of the arena and switched into her vaulting shoes and pulled off her sweats. Sam dropped her bag off next to the door and walked up towards the instructor. She offered a quick greeting to the woman and went over to the tarp and flopped down. Laying on her back, she just stared at the ceiling for a minute before she gathered her legs and actually stretched herself out.

As the class got in motion, Sam stood up and gathered around Ms. Merced. A small smile formed on her face when she found out they would be doing mills. She wasn't necessarily sure what to do when the woman introduced herself since she had been in vaulting before but decided she would introduce herself to the new people as well. "I'm Sam for those who don't know." She smiled softly at the new vaulter.

Leotard

[Danielle Green]

Yay, the sixteen year old though to herself, finally vaulting! Danielle wasn't completely new to the action of vaulting. Riding with Becky for five years she had gotten to try a lot of new things, vaulting was one of them. She had about four lessons but never really learned more than emergency dismount and a few other basis movements. Making her way to the indoor arena she entered to see the instructor and one other student. Danielle was almost fascinated with the giant of a horse that was being worked as she walked in. Doing as she was told she picked spot on the tarp.

She sat and reached out to touch her toes. With the very tips of her fingers she pulled back on the tips of her toes, Danny felt the stretch in her calf. Doing a few more stretches she was ready. The instructor introduced herself as Ray and the sixteen year old smiled as she liked that the instructor was informal, it made her more comfortable. The girl who had been here before her introduced herself as Sam. Giving a small wave to the rest of the students and her instructor Danielle introduced herself, ”Hi I’m Danny” Short and simple was her way of doing things. After the group was done introducing themselves, Danny’s attention turned back to Ray.


outfit

[Deleted]

    Kate loved her vaulting class, as it was something new that she was trying to pick up. She didn't see herself ever getting too into it, since she had so many other things on her plate, but she had a great deal of fun in the class. Before her class, she put on the clothes she had designated for vaulting last year, and grabbed the shoes she had bought for the class. She brought them with her, bringing sneakers for the time being so that she could walk down to the indoor ring. 

    Once she arrived, she greeted her instructor with a smile and proceeded to change her shoes and stretch out on the tarp. Wearing her soft vaulting shoes was always odd, since she was used to wearing hard-toed field boots or wellies around the horses, not these slipper-like shoes. It demanded a lot of trust in the horses and her own coordination, which luckily, Kate possessed. 

    When instructed, Kate gathered with the two other girls around Ray, and introduced herself to Danny, who was the only new girl. The class was smaller than it had been the past year, and Kate was hoping that they would be able to learn more.

[Deleted]

Kennedy entered the vaulting area with a content look in her eyes. She was excited about learning this particular form of equestrianism, but contained it... mostly. Her eagerness sparked in her eyes. She nodded to the teacher and gazed around the area, focusing more on the horse than anything, and finally decided to sit on the tarp. It was a rather new experience for Kenna, as she had never used a tarp as a place to sit before. She'd seen them used over rooftops and to cover vehicles with, but never as a sitting place. The tarp crinkled as she sat on it.

"I'm Kennedy, but everyone calls me Kenna. You're welcome to call me by either name, I will answer to both... or you can call me 'Red'. It's my nickname." She said to the instructor, noting the informal way the teacher spoke and what she was to be called by. Kenna felt comfortable around the woman, which was a bit odd considering she didn't even know her. She shivered slightly, still cold from her walk to the vaulting area, and wrapped her arms around her knees, drawing them up to rest her chin on. She closed her eyes and focused on savoring what body heat she had.

[Deleted]

He'd been looking forwards to vaulting, as it sounded like something fun to learn. Tori had been looking forwards to this particular class all week and now it was time for it. With a grin, he bounded his way down to where it was to take place, not even thinking that he just might be the only male in the entire class.

Getting to the area, Tori paused for a half a second before collecting himself and flicking his hair back behind an ear, entering the area with a wide smile and nod for each of the other students. He listened to the teacher as she spoke and listened to the other students as they introduced themselves.

When it came his turn, he gave everyone a warm grin and once again pushed his hair behind his ear, flicking his bangs out of his heavily make-upped eyes. "I'm Tori." He said in his usual soft, girlish tone. With an ever-widening grin, he added cheekily, "Oh yeah, I am male, by the way."

Sitting back down on the tarp, which made a bit of noise as he did so, Tori twisted around to gaze around the area, taking in the looks of the place and wondering just what they were going to get up to in the vaulting class.

[Deleted]

Raenn smiled as she heard her students following her lead, for the new students. She knew that it would get tiring for the older students, but for the new kids, who were also a part of the team, like it or not, she had to try and welcome them somehow. Ah well, it would work somehow. The older students could wear nametags, if they would rather, she supposed.

As the students introduced, she found some way to connect their names to them, then smiled. Tori would be slightly harder to remember, as it was a feminine name, for a feminine face, but a male. Well, she would try her best, "Welcome, all three of you." She smiled at Kate, "And you, of course, but you knew that." She watched them stretch, then started folding the lunge-line back in, "Since so many of you are new, we're not going to be working on a circle today. Instead, we're going to just focus on getting the move right for now, and then we'll go over getting on and off next time." She walked back and switched the lead for the lunge line for the lead again, since she would be holding the mare the whole time anyway.

Walking Ellie towards the mounting block, she started explaining the movement, "In a mill, you keep your legs straight. From astride, you bring the right leg over, regrip, then bring your left leg over so that you're facing backwards. After that, right leg back around, then left." She smiled, "I'm not going to be counting strides, you're actually going to be practising on Ellie while she's standing, but eventually, you want to complete the motion in sixteen strides."

Smiling, she looked at the class, "It's not as scary as you may think. I'll walk you through it while you go, Danny first, then Kate, followed by Kenna and Tori." Walking Ellie over to the mounting block, she gestured to the first girl she had named, "Step right up!"

OOC;: So, she'll move Ellie a few steps away from the mounting block, then have her stand. When the student is working, she'll give them small hints (Right leg, left leg) as they're going.

[Danielle Green]

Danny took notice to faces that came into the arena soon after she did. When they were introducing themselves she took note to names and faces. She was rather good at remembering faces, but names not so much. Hopefully with it only being three other people it wouldn’t be that hard. The sixteen year old had her attention fully on the instructor and her gigantic horse.

Once Ray began to speak about what they would be doing today, Danielle didn’t know whether to be disappointed that they wouldn’t be working on the circle today or happy that she would be able to get back into things before going all in.

Danielle listened to Ray give the instructions on what they would be doing. She tried to think back and remember if she had really worked on this exercise before, but she really couldn’t recall it if she had. The girl knew what to do and luckily she did because she was the first one that Ray had called to go.

Danny mounted up and for a few seconds just sat there. Ray moved the equine a few steps away from the mounting block and then let Danielle begin. She pointed her toes and kept her leg as straight as she could. She swung her leg gently off to the side so she was sitting side saddle to the right and she readjusted her grip.

Again she made sure her toes were pointed and leg was as straight as she could keep it and sat backwards on the large draft horse. Adjusting her grip again she felt comfortable on the horse’s back. Swinging her legs around to the left now she was sitting side saddle again. The last round she moved her leg over Ellie’s neck and she sat back forward facing. Dismounting Danny felt she did pretty well with the exercise.