videos

Vlogging the Sonoran Preserve

/ Ashley Wingert / 1 Comment

I did something different this week and finally pulled out my GoPro and did something with it. I’ve taken video clips before, but never sat down and turned them into anything useful, but this time, I finally took my video footage and played around with editing it and turning it into a postable video.

I’m still very much in the learning process of editing/software/etc…but it wasn’t nearly as frustrating as I had expected it to be. Plus, the video format and pretty footage is a lot more interesting to watch…my training ride recaps can only be so interesting/entertaining, especially when there’s nothing dramatic to report (which is how I like it, so not complaining about that…). And I’m still behind on a couple ride stories (plus most of the summer), so this may be a way for me to keep my interest in blogging/vlogging and employ a bit of a chance of format.

So, let me know what you guys think! More videos? (And for anyone who does vlog…I am always game for any feedback and tips/tricks for whatever makes the process easier, or what you’ve learned along the way for what works well.)

Pony shenanigans, caught on video

/ Ashley Wingert / 2 Comments

I’ve been meaning to take some video for a while, and today I finally managed to get all the stars to align for this:

She put on her full fireworks display of romping, kicking, and in general having way too much fun.

Part of why I wanted a video of her moving at liberty is for work-related purposes…her shenanigans put any boot to the test.  I call her the crash-test dummy of the hoof boot world: if it can be broken, she will find a way.  The above is Exhibit A as to why.  She is flat-out hard on hoof wear.

(I guess that says something that she has only busted one Renegade in almost five years.)

I’ve also been curious to analyze her movement, frame-by-frame.  She has short, fairly upright little pasterns, but I’m amazed at how much flexion actually happens when she’s moving at speed.  And I’m very pleased to see she’s got a very decent landing, for her.  She’s naturally high-heeled (pony feet!) and a heel-first landing is something we struggled with for years.

She used to go through the toes of boots embarrassingly fast, but ever since I took over her trimming, I have made a conscious effort to work on her heels and keep them in check.  As a result, she’s wearing her boots much more evenly now, and she’s landing pretty evenly.

I know I’m biased, but I just love watching her move.  Today, I was having a hard time remembering she’s 19 and has fused hocks, because she was moving really well.  The warmer the weather gets, the happier (and less crunchy) she is.