I'm running out of ways to introduce these blogs, so I've gone back to the old standard. We had our first lesson with Christan today. He's really getting good about loading into the trailer - pretty soon, he'll be walking in without a thought like Sam. He hauls beautifully, no scrambling or pawing, so that's a relief. You'd never guess that he's only been in a trailer three times (two of which are with me).
Today was HOT. In the upper 90s, I think. Luckily, there was a good breeze blowing occasionally, which kept us from overheating. Oliver unloaded from the trailer and had his worried face on, but was very good, considering this was his second trip away from home and he'd never been to Denny's before. For a horse that's never been tied before, he was standing like a champ. He even let me saddle him without doing our little two-step dance we go through at the barn - maybe he's getting used to it? I can't tell if he doesn't like the saddle and is anticipating pain/discomfort, or he's spooky about the saddle pad flapping around. Who knows. Anyway, I hand walked him down to the arena because he has never been on the "trail" before, and other than some wide-eyed looks around and a couple of reminders not to get ahead of me, he was golden. We got down to the arena and walked around a bit. Last time at Holly's, he snorted and looked cross eyed at some jumps - today, he hardly glanced at them. He did spook once at something rustling around in the bushes beside the arena, but I can't blame him for that. We walked around in the field by the bank complex and then over the pile of poles that served as an entrance to the arena - he looked, but went very carefully, and on the way out of the arena, LAUNCHED himself over it, which took me by surprise. Since he had never been "trail riding" before, this was a huge accomplishment for him.
Christan was a bit late getting to the arena, so I walked him up to the barn. I was stupid and started to wipe out his eyes, letting go of the reins (which were over his head, as he had his running martingale on), and he spooked big-time at something and got away from me, cantering down into the field by the dressage arena. Stupid me. He got distracted by a horse in the nearly field and they played piggy-squealy games, which gave me ample time to walk up and catch him - piece of cake. I was a bit red-faced when one of Christan's working students came up to see if I needed help. He's a good boy, though.
Once Christan got down to the arena, we trotted around and concentrated on slowing down the tempo and getting him to stretch down and go to the end of the reins. Christan commented on how uphill he was, and how Oliver was tracking up even though he was still a bit tight behind, and that once he gave through his back and stopped being "hesitant" behind (which will come with balance), he's going to be a lovely mover. She thought he was very cute and told me that if I wanted to leave him there, I could :^). It was good to hear nice things about him, as I'm falling more and more in love with the little red-head each day.
She set up a simple gymnastic, starting off with trot poles all on the ground. We walked through them and really encouraged him to stretch his head down for a look. I then picked up the trot, and the first time through, he trotted the first three great, and then got a little quick and cantered over the last few (which were set up for a canter stride anyway). Christan told me to give him a little half halt after the three trotting poles and then get out of his way. A couple of more times through it, and Oliver was a champ. Christan told me that he was very catty, and looked to have a nice jump.
She then set up a cross rail after the first three trot poles, and told me to come and just stay out of his way. I was anticipating a stop, as he tends to be looky over the first jump.Of course, he proved me a liar. He just trotted up to it, and then popped over it like a pro, and then quietly cantered over the remaining poles. Wow. Good boy. She put up a little vertical after the crossrail, which he fumbled over, because he had no idea where his body or legs were. I've never jumped him over a combination that was anything less than four strides away, so this wasn't a surprise. I was also getting a little too far ahead with my upper body in an effort to grab mane, and Christan said that Oliver didn't know how to lift his shoulders when I was putting my weight onto him, so she said to stay back and press him ahead of my leg - to "send him ahead of me". Easier said than done - it still felt like there were legs going every which way. Christan said it was important not to chase him or drive him to the fence, as we don't want to start causing him to rush - she said she would rather have them stop and look than rush blindly on. Interesting, but it makes sense. Oliver steadily got more and more relaxed over the exercise, until we were doing the crossrail, one stride to a vertical, and then another stride over another crossrail, and then cantering over the two remaining poles. He is really starting to learn where to put his feet, and he was getting very relaxed over it, which is a huge bonus. She then had me end with trotting little individual jumps with placing poles in front (to help him with his take-off stride and keep me out of his mouth), and he even jumped a purple plank without a peek. I was thrilled.
Christan said he was very fancy, and was going to be a super mover once he learned to let go of his back, and said that he was very brave - just a little clueless over where his body needs to be. she said there was nothing to worry about bravery-wise, which is a bit of a relief to have my gut confirmed - I have always thought he was very obedient and tried hard to please, but it's nice to have someone confirm that for me.
All in all, it was a very successful day.
I think he's grown! Maybe standing next to him when his eyes are out on stalks makes him look bigger, but he's definitely taller than I remembered, and he's more filled out. He's such a good-looking boy.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
In which Oliver gets to jump his first oxer....
....and learns a little lesson about jumping the jump the first time. It was a hot, hot day, and Oliver seemed more composed than usual. I think that the Corrector pad, with the shims in the back, really helps level out the saddle and keeps my leg more underneath me, and stops me from tipping my pelvis out behind me, which seems to run him on his forehand. I never thought that there were drawbacks to being built uphill. I don't know if the Fhoenix is going to work for him as it tends to sit uphill as well, so maybe I've got to keep the Isabell and use it on Oliver exclusively, keeping the Fhoenix for Sam. Damn. Wish I could use the same saddle on both horses, but they're polar opposites in build from each other, so what can you do?
He was awesome on the flat, actually. We did lots of transitions within the trot - asking him to slow down the trot and collect a little bit, and then really asking him to power forward while maintaining his balance. When he wants to rush around like he does, sometimes, it's easier for me to ask him to move forward the way I want him to, not the way he wants to, and he finds his balance better that way. He's also getting more definite in his contact and consistent, and is even starting to stretch down in the trot and reach for the bit.
For jumping, I started to trot him over a little crossrail with a flower box in front, and predictably, he tried to stop and gawk. I growled at him, and then booted him over it from a standstill, grabbing mane as I did so, and he went - good boy. Trotted it a few times back and forth, making sure to grab mane each time, and he seemed to settle. Then, I trotted him over a few more of the little jumps out there, which he jumped on the first try. The bigger white gate was out there, and we had never jumped it before, so I trotted him up to it. He tried to stop, so I booted him over it from a pause, and he jumped it. More pats and praise. Then, we trotted over a little oxer that was set up with the brush boxes in front and the pole set on Bloks behind - he did it on the first try. Good boy. We finished by trotting over a few more jumps and then cantering down over the second. He felt like a squirrel on skates for a few, as he would jump big on the "in" and then sort of wobble down the line to the second, which made me laugh, but he was being very obedient and good.
Got my lesson with Christan tomorrow - I'm pretty excited about how he'll do!
He was awesome on the flat, actually. We did lots of transitions within the trot - asking him to slow down the trot and collect a little bit, and then really asking him to power forward while maintaining his balance. When he wants to rush around like he does, sometimes, it's easier for me to ask him to move forward the way I want him to, not the way he wants to, and he finds his balance better that way. He's also getting more definite in his contact and consistent, and is even starting to stretch down in the trot and reach for the bit.
For jumping, I started to trot him over a little crossrail with a flower box in front, and predictably, he tried to stop and gawk. I growled at him, and then booted him over it from a standstill, grabbing mane as I did so, and he went - good boy. Trotted it a few times back and forth, making sure to grab mane each time, and he seemed to settle. Then, I trotted him over a few more of the little jumps out there, which he jumped on the first try. The bigger white gate was out there, and we had never jumped it before, so I trotted him up to it. He tried to stop, so I booted him over it from a pause, and he jumped it. More pats and praise. Then, we trotted over a little oxer that was set up with the brush boxes in front and the pole set on Bloks behind - he did it on the first try. Good boy. We finished by trotting over a few more jumps and then cantering down over the second. He felt like a squirrel on skates for a few, as he would jump big on the "in" and then sort of wobble down the line to the second, which made me laugh, but he was being very obedient and good.
Got my lesson with Christan tomorrow - I'm pretty excited about how he'll do!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
In which Oliver learns to trailer load....
...and takes his first field trip down to Holly's in Southern Pines.
Oliver is doing quite well, with Sam on vacation. He’s starting to develop a work ethic. He’s a funny little thing – he loves to be caught and played with, and loves to have his ears and nose scratched like a big dog. He is getting funny about coming into the barn for work, though – I can’t tell if it’s because he’s anticipating being saddled for work, or if he just finds the barn a spooky place because he doesn’t spend a whole lot of time in it. He’s taken to being silly about being saddled. He was always a little spooky about things coming at him from behind, like a saddle pad or a pat on the butt, but I think I’ve gotten him over that. When I go to place the saddle pad on his back, he scoots away and tries to leave. Luckily, I’ve been working with him on cross tying and tying in general, so he doesn’t freak when he hits the end of the ties, but it’s annoying because he doesn’t DO that after I’m done riding. I can flap saddle pads and saddles all over him after the ride, and he just stands there with this expression on his face like I’m nuts, but he’s putting up with it. His back doesn’t seem sore, but I thought that maybe he was not liking my saddle, even with the Corrector pad. I found a used Heather Moffett SBS/Fhoenix on Ebay for $800, and thought I’d give it a try, as the Isabell on Sam slides around, even with the widest gullet in. And, with the widest gullet in, I can’t ride Oliver in it, even with the Corrector pad because the differences are too extreme. I’ve been riding Oliver these past few times in the Isabell with the medium gullet in because Sam’s been on vacation, and that seems to work really, really well. So, the Fhoenix was really for Sam, so he was the first horse to test it out. I was skeptical because I didn’t see how it could be different from the Ansur, which was comfy, but seemed to press on Miles’s withers. Plus, it wasn’t the most stable thing out there. I’ve been lurking on the various Enlightened Equitation boards and checking out reviews, and everybody says that the Fhoenix is so much more stable than the Ansur and more secure, so I thought I’d give it a go. He LOVES it. I had a heck of a time getting Sam’s head off the ground because he wanted to stretch the minute I asked him for it. The canter departs are perfect. No head flinging into it. The nicest thing about this saddle is that I didn’t realize just how much I tended to sit to one side when asking for bend – this saddle really lets you sit centered and really wrap your leg around them. All of a sudden, Sam’s “bad” right side isn’t so bad anymore. I’m thrilled.
I tried it on Oliver, and ehhhh…not so good. Oliver seems to like it, but I don’t like it on him. I have a tendency on him to sit with my hips slightly closed, because the horse is freakin’ uphill. That puts a lot of pressure on my lower back. The Isabell is the first saddle that doesn’t do that to me on him (the Antares does, but I can live with that as it’s a jumping saddle and I don’t spend a lot of time sitting in it), but this Fhoenix is pushing me to the back of the saddle and hollowing out my lower back. In the Isabell and the Antares, I can put the shims in the back of the Corrector and it levels it out for me, but I can’t use the Corrector with this treeless saddle, so I’m thinking maybe one of those Cashel riser pads for the back? Or just using the Isabell on him and keeping the treeless for Sam? I’m beginning to think that horses that are built uphill, with a TB-y build, just don’t work as well in the treeless saddles. What would you do? I’d love to find a solution as I’d love to sell the Wintec and just get down to one saddle, but if I have to keep both, I will.
Oliver had his first lesson with Holly last week. He hadn’t left our barn since I brought him to it from his home in SC in March, so I had pretty low expectations of his behavior. I had done some trailer training with him the week before and he’s happily getting into and out of othe trailer by himself, so loading him up wasn’t a problem. He actually hauled quite well, even with the back doors open (it was promising to be hot), and unloaded like a champ. No screaming, no pawing – I was thrilled. I led him over to the arena to get on with her wooden mounting block (all I had with me was my little plastic step stool) and he marched around the arena, looking cross eyed at a few jumps but in general, being quite good. Holly really likes him – says he’s very cute, and has a wonderful canter (which is why I bought him – his canter is incredible). We decided to jump him a little. Oliver put on the brakes and refused to listen to my leg as we approached the crossrail, so Holly said “Don’t let him turn away from the jump – he’ll never be any good if he gets away with it” and dropped the crossrail down to a pile of poles, which I stuffed him over from a walk, and then immediately turned him around and jumped him back and forth over it a few times. After that, we raised it back to a crossrail, which he jumped fine, and then jumped everything else she put up without stopping or running out – sure, there were some looky, wobbly jumps but he went over everything. I didn’t have my whip on me, which I will remember to bring next time.
I have a lesson with Christan Trainor this Friday. I’m really looking forward to it because I know how good Christan is with the babies. I’d like to get Christan’s opinion on how to deal with Oliver’s lookiness – my gut is telling me that I shouldn’t worry about it, because everything is still new and overwhelming to him. Holly’s place was new to him, and he’s never jumped anything other than the stuff at our barn and his barn in SC. He did jump everything after that initial stop, so Holly isn’t too worried, but she did say that I need to get him past that initial stop/look. That’s why I want Christan’s advice, as well as getting to play over Denny’s xc course.
Oliver is doing quite well, with Sam on vacation. He’s starting to develop a work ethic. He’s a funny little thing – he loves to be caught and played with, and loves to have his ears and nose scratched like a big dog. He is getting funny about coming into the barn for work, though – I can’t tell if it’s because he’s anticipating being saddled for work, or if he just finds the barn a spooky place because he doesn’t spend a whole lot of time in it. He’s taken to being silly about being saddled. He was always a little spooky about things coming at him from behind, like a saddle pad or a pat on the butt, but I think I’ve gotten him over that. When I go to place the saddle pad on his back, he scoots away and tries to leave. Luckily, I’ve been working with him on cross tying and tying in general, so he doesn’t freak when he hits the end of the ties, but it’s annoying because he doesn’t DO that after I’m done riding. I can flap saddle pads and saddles all over him after the ride, and he just stands there with this expression on his face like I’m nuts, but he’s putting up with it. His back doesn’t seem sore, but I thought that maybe he was not liking my saddle, even with the Corrector pad. I found a used Heather Moffett SBS/Fhoenix on Ebay for $800, and thought I’d give it a try, as the Isabell on Sam slides around, even with the widest gullet in. And, with the widest gullet in, I can’t ride Oliver in it, even with the Corrector pad because the differences are too extreme. I’ve been riding Oliver these past few times in the Isabell with the medium gullet in because Sam’s been on vacation, and that seems to work really, really well. So, the Fhoenix was really for Sam, so he was the first horse to test it out. I was skeptical because I didn’t see how it could be different from the Ansur, which was comfy, but seemed to press on Miles’s withers. Plus, it wasn’t the most stable thing out there. I’ve been lurking on the various Enlightened Equitation boards and checking out reviews, and everybody says that the Fhoenix is so much more stable than the Ansur and more secure, so I thought I’d give it a go. He LOVES it. I had a heck of a time getting Sam’s head off the ground because he wanted to stretch the minute I asked him for it. The canter departs are perfect. No head flinging into it. The nicest thing about this saddle is that I didn’t realize just how much I tended to sit to one side when asking for bend – this saddle really lets you sit centered and really wrap your leg around them. All of a sudden, Sam’s “bad” right side isn’t so bad anymore. I’m thrilled.
I tried it on Oliver, and ehhhh…not so good. Oliver seems to like it, but I don’t like it on him. I have a tendency on him to sit with my hips slightly closed, because the horse is freakin’ uphill. That puts a lot of pressure on my lower back. The Isabell is the first saddle that doesn’t do that to me on him (the Antares does, but I can live with that as it’s a jumping saddle and I don’t spend a lot of time sitting in it), but this Fhoenix is pushing me to the back of the saddle and hollowing out my lower back. In the Isabell and the Antares, I can put the shims in the back of the Corrector and it levels it out for me, but I can’t use the Corrector with this treeless saddle, so I’m thinking maybe one of those Cashel riser pads for the back? Or just using the Isabell on him and keeping the treeless for Sam? I’m beginning to think that horses that are built uphill, with a TB-y build, just don’t work as well in the treeless saddles. What would you do? I’d love to find a solution as I’d love to sell the Wintec and just get down to one saddle, but if I have to keep both, I will.
Oliver had his first lesson with Holly last week. He hadn’t left our barn since I brought him to it from his home in SC in March, so I had pretty low expectations of his behavior. I had done some trailer training with him the week before and he’s happily getting into and out of othe trailer by himself, so loading him up wasn’t a problem. He actually hauled quite well, even with the back doors open (it was promising to be hot), and unloaded like a champ. No screaming, no pawing – I was thrilled. I led him over to the arena to get on with her wooden mounting block (all I had with me was my little plastic step stool) and he marched around the arena, looking cross eyed at a few jumps but in general, being quite good. Holly really likes him – says he’s very cute, and has a wonderful canter (which is why I bought him – his canter is incredible). We decided to jump him a little. Oliver put on the brakes and refused to listen to my leg as we approached the crossrail, so Holly said “Don’t let him turn away from the jump – he’ll never be any good if he gets away with it” and dropped the crossrail down to a pile of poles, which I stuffed him over from a walk, and then immediately turned him around and jumped him back and forth over it a few times. After that, we raised it back to a crossrail, which he jumped fine, and then jumped everything else she put up without stopping or running out – sure, there were some looky, wobbly jumps but he went over everything. I didn’t have my whip on me, which I will remember to bring next time.
I have a lesson with Christan Trainor this Friday. I’m really looking forward to it because I know how good Christan is with the babies. I’d like to get Christan’s opinion on how to deal with Oliver’s lookiness – my gut is telling me that I shouldn’t worry about it, because everything is still new and overwhelming to him. Holly’s place was new to him, and he’s never jumped anything other than the stuff at our barn and his barn in SC. He did jump everything after that initial stop, so Holly isn’t too worried, but she did say that I need to get him past that initial stop/look. That’s why I want Christan’s advice, as well as getting to play over Denny’s xc course.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
In which Oliver does his first jumping school after three weeks...
...and redeems himself. I should know this by now, considering how many greenies I've broken under saddle, but Oliver really needs to be ridden very consistenly, at least three times a week, preferably 4-5. I guess I've been so wrapped up with school that I've neglected his training. Now that Sam is on holiday, I can focus on Oliver, or "Ollie", as he's growing on me more and more every day.
The last two rides I've longed him, once in the Pessoa and once in the chambon/de Gogue, in an effort to get him stretching more through the back and into the bit. It seems to have paid off, as he's more willing to take an honest contact with the bit. I also have found a bit that he likes - a french link full cheek. He doesn't fight the bit nearly as much as he did the other ones, and I have brakes, and he's willing to push into the bit more. I've found that if I keep my hands very low and wide, and do a walk transition the minute he charges off in trot and throws himself off balance, he's steadier in his paces and in the bridle. I didn't canter today, but we did canter in between jumps, and his canter is getting much rounder and better. I've really got to keep a hold of that outside rein and concentrate on keeping him straight, and half-halting on it when he starts to lose his balance and rush.
We trotted up to a little crossrail and he stopped, surprised. I think it's because he hasn't jumped anything in three weeks, so I turned him the other way, booted him in the ribs (I had dropped my whip; more on that later) and turned him back around over it. He jumped it willingly the second time, albeit a bit large and boundy, and we trotted over it a few times until he stopped jumping like a deer, with me really concentrating on keeping my hands low and pushing them forward to release him over the jump. We trotted over some of the other jumps in the arena - planks, white gates, etc. and he didn't stop at a thing. I was so proud. Then, I trotted him over the two trot poles to a crossrail - there were legs flying everywhere, but he didn't stop! - and cantered on down over the little NSE plank, which he jumped beautifully. I remembered to sit up and half-halt on the stride after landing, and then allow him to float to the jump, which he took out of stride. Oliver is much calmer about jumping when I don't hold him to the fence (duh). I had dropped my whip because I had this idea that maybe he was starting to rush his fences because he was getting nervous, and there is no point in hitting a horse when he's scared, so I dropped my whip. If he stopped, oh well. Lots of success builds confidence, and I think my tactic today paid off. When he stops, which is rare now, it's not a dirty stop. He did start getting a little excited as we cantered on down over some more jumps, so I called it a day and hosed him down.
He's really starting to develop quite a sweet personality. He luuuuurves to be scratched on the sides of his nose, and will stand there all day long if you oblige. He also is the first to nicker and then come up to me in the pasture, which I have always missed after Miss Ellie had been sold. I have high hopes for the little red monster, and I think he might be "The One" for me after Sam has retired and gone to his place as Joe's pasture puff/trail horse.
The last two rides I've longed him, once in the Pessoa and once in the chambon/de Gogue, in an effort to get him stretching more through the back and into the bit. It seems to have paid off, as he's more willing to take an honest contact with the bit. I also have found a bit that he likes - a french link full cheek. He doesn't fight the bit nearly as much as he did the other ones, and I have brakes, and he's willing to push into the bit more. I've found that if I keep my hands very low and wide, and do a walk transition the minute he charges off in trot and throws himself off balance, he's steadier in his paces and in the bridle. I didn't canter today, but we did canter in between jumps, and his canter is getting much rounder and better. I've really got to keep a hold of that outside rein and concentrate on keeping him straight, and half-halting on it when he starts to lose his balance and rush.
We trotted up to a little crossrail and he stopped, surprised. I think it's because he hasn't jumped anything in three weeks, so I turned him the other way, booted him in the ribs (I had dropped my whip; more on that later) and turned him back around over it. He jumped it willingly the second time, albeit a bit large and boundy, and we trotted over it a few times until he stopped jumping like a deer, with me really concentrating on keeping my hands low and pushing them forward to release him over the jump. We trotted over some of the other jumps in the arena - planks, white gates, etc. and he didn't stop at a thing. I was so proud. Then, I trotted him over the two trot poles to a crossrail - there were legs flying everywhere, but he didn't stop! - and cantered on down over the little NSE plank, which he jumped beautifully. I remembered to sit up and half-halt on the stride after landing, and then allow him to float to the jump, which he took out of stride. Oliver is much calmer about jumping when I don't hold him to the fence (duh). I had dropped my whip because I had this idea that maybe he was starting to rush his fences because he was getting nervous, and there is no point in hitting a horse when he's scared, so I dropped my whip. If he stopped, oh well. Lots of success builds confidence, and I think my tactic today paid off. When he stops, which is rare now, it's not a dirty stop. He did start getting a little excited as we cantered on down over some more jumps, so I called it a day and hosed him down.
He's really starting to develop quite a sweet personality. He luuuuurves to be scratched on the sides of his nose, and will stand there all day long if you oblige. He also is the first to nicker and then come up to me in the pasture, which I have always missed after Miss Ellie had been sold. I have high hopes for the little red monster, and I think he might be "The One" for me after Sam has retired and gone to his place as Joe's pasture puff/trail horse.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
In which I get a case of the stupids....
....and decide to run Sam in the 100 degree heat/humidity after all, and learn a lot of valuable lessons. Today was Lumber River, habitually not a good event for me (duh - maybe not run next year?) and I was waffling about running Sam when they were predicting extreme heat and humidity. Not abnormal for NC, just abnormal in that it hit us so quickly. Just a few days ago, the temps were in the high 80s. Now, they're in the 100s, and tomorrow it's supposed to be worse still. Today, at least, we had a breeze, which made things bearable in the shade. We had lots of water, ice for after xc, lots to drink, our shade canopy (thank you Mom and Dad!), and we parked way the heck out there by where they keep the trailers full of the show jumps, in order to get the best shade. Nobody else was out there, which was amusing, and we got the best of the breeze, as well as being right next to a loudspeaker (so I could hear everything) and the wash racks, and close to the Port-a-Potties, the event office, and the xc warmup/course. I will definitely part there next time, until someone stops me.
Dressage had been moved up to 9:38, which was wonderful. They had waived coats so I wore my new Kerrits long-sleeved top, which got a lot of funny looks due to the heat, but it was actually quite cool. Holly warmed me up a little in the arena - we kept it short due to the heat - and did lots of long and low, stretchy stuff. I even got a stretch in the canter! I haven't gotten a stretch like that before. Holly was after me about my leg and keeping it still, and keeping my shoulders back, and maybe the combination of that helped. I watched another competitor, one of Holly's students, canter around in a long and low frame, and NOW I understand what to look for and what it should look like. So, that was a big breakthrough for me. Once I brought him up, Holly approved of his neck - the first time she's seen him since we really started hammering away at it - and again, I was thrilled as I was wondering if she'd like the results. Our judge was Cindy DePorter, who is notorious for her judging of the YEH at The Ark and placing that Freisian first place, so I wasn't too hopeful about our score. In fact, I was hoping for something like we normally get, and not too much higher. We trotted in, and I had a big smile on my face as it actually felt very good, and we did our first S and then wow - he picked up the canter as soft as could be and we had a wonderful canter circle. Decent transition down (gotta work on keeping him soft through those) and then the next S, and I was getting a bit cocky and didn't bend him through the last portion before the canter depart and we had a wrong lead. Yuck. Quickly brought him back, picked up the new lead, and cantered a pretty good circle to the right. Free walk was a bit sticky, since I'm always concerned that he'll break to the jog, and then we did a lovely diagonal and a fantastic turn onto the center line, up to G for the halt, which I thought we were going to nail, but Sam had a bug up his nose and flung his head down to scratch it. Again, yuck. Later on, when I checked the scores, we actually had a 3-way tie for 3rd, and a 3-way tie for 7th, which I was a part of, with a score of 36.5! My sheet (checking it later on) gave me a bunch of 7s, and an 8 on the final turn onto the centerline. If it hadn't been for that wrong lead, and the last halt-salute, I would have probably been either in 3rd (involved in that tie!) or 2nd place. So, even though she's notoriously a tough judge, I was pleased.
The start of xc was promising, as Sam was full of go, but I was a bit wobbly. I am out of shape. I need to lose weight. More on that later. Holly was pretty firm with me about my lower leg and I think she lost a bit of patience with me for God only knows what reason (I'm fat? I'm wobbly? NO idea) and it was hard to breath due to the heavy, sticky air. She also nailed me for picking my way to the jump, which I wasn't aware I was doing (hey, maybe she was upset with me for cancelling the last lesson?). It wasn't a fun warmup, but we went over to the start box and started early, to conserve his strength. We galloped out of the box and he perked up and charged over 1, the Pine Top log, and landed and grabbed the bit and went straight. I said, "Hey! We need to go left!" and had to pull him to the left, where he immediately charged down the hill and up and over Fence 2, the Settler's Run (the ginormous brush fence). Landing from that, he faltered a tad up the hill, but I got off his back and just let him coast up the hill, and then we turned left between the tree and the split rail fence and set him up for the Feeder, and it was the first time I felt him bulge slightly left. I kept a good left leg on him, opened up the right rein a tad, and pushed him over it, and he was fine. He grabbed the bit again and tried to take off down the hill, when I knew I had to set up for the Hobbit's Hut - he actually listened to me and sat back and popped over it nicely, then grabbed the bit and ran down the hill and under a low hanging branch, which unbalanced me to the right and I wobbled. Grrrrr. We had a nice gallop up, hugged the treeline and set him up beautifully for the Tavern (5), and then we had the most foot-perfect run through the Sunken Road (6a and b) - it rode just like I imagined it would. I got a lighter seat, kept my leg on down into the road, and then he just popped up the bank and got the two strides easily over the brush. Beautiful. I was thrilled. We galloped down to the Ditch, making a slight correction as I habitually go left for BN, and he sailed over the trakehner without so much as a glance. He started up the hill, and faltered a bit, so I took my leg off and decided if he wanted to trot, he could trot, but he didn't, so we cantered up the hill and then set up for the Bank (8a and b) - it rode just like the Sunken Road did - perfect. He took a big jump over the log and off the drop, and we galloped on to the grey feeder on the bump (9). My leg was swinging a bit as I tried to use it to push him over, and as the jump came into view, Sam pulled to the left and we had a very uncharacteristic run-out. Wow. I was shocked. I turned him right, spanked him once, and re-presented, and he popped over it nicely. Down to the water, he started backing off again, which was also a little weird, and he trotted through the water but popped out wonderfully over the little jump out, and then made a very right-hand turn, collected himself, and popped over the grey bench. We headed for the in-field, and as we came up to the big brown table, I felt him falter again, but he jumped it and hung a leg (or something - I couldn't see) and and he pitched forward on landing and I nearly came off - oomph. I sat up, shoved my heel down and thought about retiring, but I wanted to see how the Mushroom Log rode as it had a funky approach to it (almost no approach), so we galloped on and he seemed to kick it into another gear. We hugged the treeline, and then popped the log nicely, cantered down the hill and trotted into the water (he was looky, but that is a looky water as the water levels are low) and then picked up a canter and cantered out of the water over the Turtle's Refuge, and then up the hill (at this point, there was no reason to turn back as we were two fences from home) and up the bank, nicely bending line to the right over the brown rolltop, gallop about 6 strides and over the last fence, and then through the finish flags.
We hustled over to the cooling station and stripped off his tack and started immediately hosing him down and scraping. Poor Sam was panting like a retriever - very shallowly and quickly - and his body temp was quite hot. We hosed and scraped and hosed and scraped, and he drank LOTS of water, more than he usually does, and finally we dumped the ice into the bucket and started sponging him down with that. It took us about 15 minutes to get his body temp down where the water wasn't running hot off him, and his breathing finally started to settle, and we headed back to the trailers. Since it took so long to cool him down, I decided to scratch from stadium, since it was supposed to be even hotter the next day and I wasn't in the running for ribbons anyway.
Poor Sam. I think the combination of Dex and Tri-hist was too much for him, and his body temperature soared out of control. I learned a lot from this ride, so I don't regret doing it. First and foremost - my horse is a rock star, and the times he really kicked it into gear (most of the course), he was incredible. The times he faltered were probably times he overloaded and grayed out - it was just unlike him. I also need to run him in a bigger bit - that plastic Happy Mouth with the roller isn't enough, which is why he was able to pull me to the left. I kept the flash off him so he could breathe easier, and I'm going to keep it off, but maybe switch to a slow-twist D or something to help with the steering issues.
Dressage had been moved up to 9:38, which was wonderful. They had waived coats so I wore my new Kerrits long-sleeved top, which got a lot of funny looks due to the heat, but it was actually quite cool. Holly warmed me up a little in the arena - we kept it short due to the heat - and did lots of long and low, stretchy stuff. I even got a stretch in the canter! I haven't gotten a stretch like that before. Holly was after me about my leg and keeping it still, and keeping my shoulders back, and maybe the combination of that helped. I watched another competitor, one of Holly's students, canter around in a long and low frame, and NOW I understand what to look for and what it should look like. So, that was a big breakthrough for me. Once I brought him up, Holly approved of his neck - the first time she's seen him since we really started hammering away at it - and again, I was thrilled as I was wondering if she'd like the results. Our judge was Cindy DePorter, who is notorious for her judging of the YEH at The Ark and placing that Freisian first place, so I wasn't too hopeful about our score. In fact, I was hoping for something like we normally get, and not too much higher. We trotted in, and I had a big smile on my face as it actually felt very good, and we did our first S and then wow - he picked up the canter as soft as could be and we had a wonderful canter circle. Decent transition down (gotta work on keeping him soft through those) and then the next S, and I was getting a bit cocky and didn't bend him through the last portion before the canter depart and we had a wrong lead. Yuck. Quickly brought him back, picked up the new lead, and cantered a pretty good circle to the right. Free walk was a bit sticky, since I'm always concerned that he'll break to the jog, and then we did a lovely diagonal and a fantastic turn onto the center line, up to G for the halt, which I thought we were going to nail, but Sam had a bug up his nose and flung his head down to scratch it. Again, yuck. Later on, when I checked the scores, we actually had a 3-way tie for 3rd, and a 3-way tie for 7th, which I was a part of, with a score of 36.5! My sheet (checking it later on) gave me a bunch of 7s, and an 8 on the final turn onto the centerline. If it hadn't been for that wrong lead, and the last halt-salute, I would have probably been either in 3rd (involved in that tie!) or 2nd place. So, even though she's notoriously a tough judge, I was pleased.
The start of xc was promising, as Sam was full of go, but I was a bit wobbly. I am out of shape. I need to lose weight. More on that later. Holly was pretty firm with me about my lower leg and I think she lost a bit of patience with me for God only knows what reason (I'm fat? I'm wobbly? NO idea) and it was hard to breath due to the heavy, sticky air. She also nailed me for picking my way to the jump, which I wasn't aware I was doing (hey, maybe she was upset with me for cancelling the last lesson?). It wasn't a fun warmup, but we went over to the start box and started early, to conserve his strength. We galloped out of the box and he perked up and charged over 1, the Pine Top log, and landed and grabbed the bit and went straight. I said, "Hey! We need to go left!" and had to pull him to the left, where he immediately charged down the hill and up and over Fence 2, the Settler's Run (the ginormous brush fence). Landing from that, he faltered a tad up the hill, but I got off his back and just let him coast up the hill, and then we turned left between the tree and the split rail fence and set him up for the Feeder, and it was the first time I felt him bulge slightly left. I kept a good left leg on him, opened up the right rein a tad, and pushed him over it, and he was fine. He grabbed the bit again and tried to take off down the hill, when I knew I had to set up for the Hobbit's Hut - he actually listened to me and sat back and popped over it nicely, then grabbed the bit and ran down the hill and under a low hanging branch, which unbalanced me to the right and I wobbled. Grrrrr. We had a nice gallop up, hugged the treeline and set him up beautifully for the Tavern (5), and then we had the most foot-perfect run through the Sunken Road (6a and b) - it rode just like I imagined it would. I got a lighter seat, kept my leg on down into the road, and then he just popped up the bank and got the two strides easily over the brush. Beautiful. I was thrilled. We galloped down to the Ditch, making a slight correction as I habitually go left for BN, and he sailed over the trakehner without so much as a glance. He started up the hill, and faltered a bit, so I took my leg off and decided if he wanted to trot, he could trot, but he didn't, so we cantered up the hill and then set up for the Bank (8a and b) - it rode just like the Sunken Road did - perfect. He took a big jump over the log and off the drop, and we galloped on to the grey feeder on the bump (9). My leg was swinging a bit as I tried to use it to push him over, and as the jump came into view, Sam pulled to the left and we had a very uncharacteristic run-out. Wow. I was shocked. I turned him right, spanked him once, and re-presented, and he popped over it nicely. Down to the water, he started backing off again, which was also a little weird, and he trotted through the water but popped out wonderfully over the little jump out, and then made a very right-hand turn, collected himself, and popped over the grey bench. We headed for the in-field, and as we came up to the big brown table, I felt him falter again, but he jumped it and hung a leg (or something - I couldn't see) and and he pitched forward on landing and I nearly came off - oomph. I sat up, shoved my heel down and thought about retiring, but I wanted to see how the Mushroom Log rode as it had a funky approach to it (almost no approach), so we galloped on and he seemed to kick it into another gear. We hugged the treeline, and then popped the log nicely, cantered down the hill and trotted into the water (he was looky, but that is a looky water as the water levels are low) and then picked up a canter and cantered out of the water over the Turtle's Refuge, and then up the hill (at this point, there was no reason to turn back as we were two fences from home) and up the bank, nicely bending line to the right over the brown rolltop, gallop about 6 strides and over the last fence, and then through the finish flags.
We hustled over to the cooling station and stripped off his tack and started immediately hosing him down and scraping. Poor Sam was panting like a retriever - very shallowly and quickly - and his body temp was quite hot. We hosed and scraped and hosed and scraped, and he drank LOTS of water, more than he usually does, and finally we dumped the ice into the bucket and started sponging him down with that. It took us about 15 minutes to get his body temp down where the water wasn't running hot off him, and his breathing finally started to settle, and we headed back to the trailers. Since it took so long to cool him down, I decided to scratch from stadium, since it was supposed to be even hotter the next day and I wasn't in the running for ribbons anyway.
Poor Sam. I think the combination of Dex and Tri-hist was too much for him, and his body temperature soared out of control. I learned a lot from this ride, so I don't regret doing it. First and foremost - my horse is a rock star, and the times he really kicked it into gear (most of the course), he was incredible. The times he faltered were probably times he overloaded and grayed out - it was just unlike him. I also need to run him in a bigger bit - that plastic Happy Mouth with the roller isn't enough, which is why he was able to pull me to the left. I kept the flash off him so he could breathe easier, and I'm going to keep it off, but maybe switch to a slow-twist D or something to help with the steering issues.
Monday, June 2, 2008
In which Oliver still needs to develop a work ethic...
...and Kim seriously wonders why she does greenies anymore. Boo. Time for a mini-rant - I'm so sick and tired of doing the greenie thing.
Oliver so badly needs to develop a work ethic. Sitting around on his little farm in SC for six years of his life has taught him to be a first-class Pasture Puff. When he first got to the farm, work was interesting because it was "new". It's no longer "new" anymore - Ollie thinks it's work with a Capital W. For some reason, he's started to trot Full Speed Ahead when we're starting out, which for some other reason really annoyed me tonight. It may have been because it was incredibly hot and sticky - note to self: when it's hot, I'm irritable. Probably not the best mood to ride in, but I think we ended on a fairly good note and it was productive, because I wasn't about to take any more sh*t from him and excuse his behaviour due to green-ness. Oliver also thought that bracing against the bit and running around like a demented giraffe was tons of fun and a way to get out of work - we did lots of circles and moving off the inside leg into the outside rein until he quit dorking around and started to settle.
The good thing about tonight's icky, sticky ride was that I discovered that if I actually sit quietly and keep myself together in the canter transition, he picks up the correct lead. Granted, he does his best camel impressing with his head scrambling into it, with haunches first swinging one way and then swinging the other, but keeping him straight into the transition is the key to getting the correct lead. Well, keeping him straight is the answer for everything, but it really hit home today as I contorted my body like a Chinese Circus acrobat trying to get the correct lead, when just sitting there and not giving up on the straightness did the trick.
Horses can be so humbling.
Oliver so badly needs to develop a work ethic. Sitting around on his little farm in SC for six years of his life has taught him to be a first-class Pasture Puff. When he first got to the farm, work was interesting because it was "new". It's no longer "new" anymore - Ollie thinks it's work with a Capital W. For some reason, he's started to trot Full Speed Ahead when we're starting out, which for some other reason really annoyed me tonight. It may have been because it was incredibly hot and sticky - note to self: when it's hot, I'm irritable. Probably not the best mood to ride in, but I think we ended on a fairly good note and it was productive, because I wasn't about to take any more sh*t from him and excuse his behaviour due to green-ness. Oliver also thought that bracing against the bit and running around like a demented giraffe was tons of fun and a way to get out of work - we did lots of circles and moving off the inside leg into the outside rein until he quit dorking around and started to settle.
The good thing about tonight's icky, sticky ride was that I discovered that if I actually sit quietly and keep myself together in the canter transition, he picks up the correct lead. Granted, he does his best camel impressing with his head scrambling into it, with haunches first swinging one way and then swinging the other, but keeping him straight into the transition is the key to getting the correct lead. Well, keeping him straight is the answer for everything, but it really hit home today as I contorted my body like a Chinese Circus acrobat trying to get the correct lead, when just sitting there and not giving up on the straightness did the trick.
Horses can be so humbling.
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