Summary of John's Comments

John had Willig pegged after 10 days and the short version is I'm not crazy and I haven't been imagining the problems and they're not coming from me.
- John said that when I called Willig a "challenge", it was a total understatement.
- He and his students didn't enjoy riding Willig. They also pointed out that he was a much nicer horse than many they have who are there for training because of issues (i.e. he isn't BAD bad).
- They didn't enjoy him because he's inconsistent. He would ride like a dream one day, then the next day spook every time he went past a sign, or a spot, or the sun, or whatever.
- John cured him of the bucking the first time he rode. He made him halt after the fences. Willig tried once, John didn't put up with it, end of bucking story.
- The spooky nervousness on the other hand - John doesn't know that it's curable because it's something inside Willig's head.
- John said that Willig is not an amateur horse and he wasn't the best choice for me. (Finally! Someone who knows something about horses said it! I'm so relieved.) He has odd, complicated training aids, and doesn't respond to very basic, simple aids (like opening your inside rein).
- John and his students preferred jumping him to dressage - the opposite of what I would have expected. They rode him in a much lower frame which I enjoyed quite a bit when I rode him.
- But he is a lazy, lackadaisical jumper. Even when they were jumping him over a 3' oxer with a few strides to a twisty vertical (another oxer, I think), he only lifted his feet just enough to get over the jump. Obviously he could jump much higher than I need him to, but he approaches the fences like he's bored.
- John thinks some horses are born great; some can be taught to be good; and some are just plain bad. He thinks Willig is in the middle category, though he doesn't think he has a ton of potential (as in, Willig is never going Intermediate, which is not news to me, but was still nice to hear someone with a lot of experience say). But the teaching takes time, money, and experience.
- If I want a horse that I can putter around on whenever I have 30 free minutes, Willig is not the horse for me. If I want a horse that will give me such a great work out that I don't need any other form of exercise, then yes, Willig is worth a shot.
- It was such a relief to watch John's student ride, then John, and to see Willig try the same bullshit on them (after 10 days) that he does to me. This alone was worth the 10 days, to know that it's not me doing something wrong.
So ....
There was nothing black and white. I really appreciated that John just NAILED Willig's personality and quirks so quickly, and he obviously has a lot of experience and a lot of knowledge about what to do, what the limitations are, and the ability to do it. But that didn't give me the answer about what to do next. I had actually barely mentioned, if at all, the spooky, when I dropped him off, because I was so focused on the bucking, but that was their predominant comment.
John's tips and my plan for the time being are coming up next.
Oh yeah - and I can load him in and out of the trailer no sweat now. We did like 7 times in a row just walking in and out and in and out when I got him home.