Hello hello! Well, tomorrow is Turkey Day, probably my favorite holiday (St. Patricks Day and Halloween are close seconds). This is because I love food. Its totally yummy, but it also unfortunately makes me chunky in ways that do not look good in breeches. This is something I've struggled with, as I'm sure the majority of people have. I've got to get back on the wagon, if I'm going to accomplish my riding goals, I have got to be more physically fit.
But that's not what I want to blog about today, thats just sadness. No I wanna talk about happyness and frustration. With riding they sometimes go hand in hand. Since the horse show Bastian has been wonderful, we've put in some very nice flat work and his canter has gotten sooooooo much better. He is engaging his hind end better and is just overall feeling good. So this equals happyness.
So I had the bright idea of tyring to learn how to properly do flying changes and teaching Bastian. So I had a lesson this morning and needless to say we did not accomplish our goal. Which while I did not expect to master flying changes, I guess I did have hopes of getting half of a change or getting pretty damn close. Instead I got a super rushed canter and some great counter canter.
Bastian's got a pretty nice counter canter, we've been working on it for a while now and he can do very balanced serpintines without even trying to change, in a year from now, if we've finally mastered some other 2nd level stuff, the counter canter movements should be cake. So anywho, Kristin had me doing a lot of stuff. I mean a lot. This whole flying lead change is probably the most complicated thing I have ever learned how to do. My pony did them automatically, she was awesome, but she also got crazy while doing them because we were mostly doing them while polebending. So I kinda know how to ask, but I don't know how to do it properly (like dressage scoring 7 properly, I might be able to pull off a 1 or a 2 on a horse that already knew how to do them...lol). Anyway, Bastian was just kinda saying WTF to me. Not in a mean way, just in a you don't know what your asking me to do, I don't understand it so I'm just going to counter canter and go faster because you are kicking me and touching me with the whip and kicking and whip mean MOVE!
Kristin hopped on him at the end and was able to get a change in each direction out of him and we ended on that. It was very frustrating. I knew it would be tough going in, but I also very much believed that by the end I would have made measurable forward progress on my journey to learn flying changes. Instead I made progress in the context of taking lots of steps backwards and understanding how complicated this process is really going to be. Which is good, I've been thinking about it all night and trying to break it down into steps that will allow me to figure this out, I wouldn't be surprised if in my dreams tonight I try to get B to do a change (provided I don't have a nightmare about our Turkey busting out of the oven and trying to kill me...)
But this frustration is kinda new. I have good rides and bad rides, but I have always finished better than I started or progressed. This time I didn't. I finished off worse than I started because now Bastian is rushing in the canter, and we can't even get a half change for all that. I'm anxious to get back out to the barn and ride, I want to figure this out. I'm trying to plot when I could sneak out of the house before dinner tomorrow (no way could I ride after dinner!) but don't see it happening. Black Friday involves work and then the Black Friday Sale at Big Dees, Saturday involves more work. So right now its looking like I won't make it back to the barn until Sunday. :(
Maybe a few days off will give Bastian the time he needs to figure out just what the heck it is I'm asking him and give me the time to mentally handle all the new info and instructions I got. I've got a few exercises that we need to work on and I've got to learn how to count again (which if you watch my lessons where counting something is involved (canter strides, strides btw jumps, etc) you see immediately why I did not become a Math Teacher.
I am thankful for my horses and that I have horses in my life. They are wonderful and have made me a stronger, better person. So thank you ponies!
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Decisions
There comes a time in every equestrian's life where you have to make that crucial decision. That decision on what horse you will ride or own and what disciplines you want to pursue and whether or not riding is a sport that you should continue to participate in. This decision is built on a myriad of factors, your skill level, your background, how much life do you want to have outside of your horse, your comfort level, your economic situation, your family, etc. etc. etc. I feel like I've made this decision more than most.
And each time my decision has remained the same: Continue. The first time I had to face this decision was about 4 years ago when I came off a horse and broke my back. At the time it happened, I was paralyzed from the waist down, no movement, no feeling. Thanks to fantastical medical advances and lots of physcial therapy, I was able to regain a good portion of both feeling and movement, but I have been left disabled. I limp, I have a lot of difficulty controlling my lower leg when riding and I have minimal feeling in my lower leg. I was banned (by the doctor) from riding for 9 months.
Obviously, I was at a point where I didn't even know how well I was going to be able to walk, much less sit on a horse and feel comfortable and actually ride. I don't remember ever questioning my decision to ride again. I cheated and started "riding" at 7 months and by riding I mean I tacked up my 27 year old pony, hauled myself up on her back and sat on her, sometimes we went for a walk. I saved the trotting for the actual 9 month mark....
My biggest decision here was what to do with Bastian. I had only owned him for 2 weeks when I broke my back. He was an untouched 3 year old. He was my event prospect. He was basically the last thing that I needed in my current state, a baby thoroughbred. I wrestled with it, but decided I had a strong enough support system to get him trained. What could I say, I really loved his personality on the ground. And that decision has turned out well, he isn't exactly the dressage horse I would have hoped for, he is made to be an eventer, he loves to jump. He lacks some experience but he love love loves his job.
Anywho, I've been pretty gung-ho about pursuing this whole eventing thing. Bastian has been jumping like a champ and I've been holding my own. The last two weeks have been jumping intensive, leading up a Hunter Schooling Show on Saturday the 12th. Last week got out of hand schedule wise and I ended up only riding on Sunday and the Friday before the show. This frazzled me. I had planned on entering the 2'-2'3" division.
My lesson on Friday started out mostly good. I was still pulling back too much, trying to go too slow up to the fences, but we were working through it. We changed a x-rail up to a vertical and were cantering up to it, Bastian gave it the wonky eye. I committed to it and got a bit aggressive with him and he responded by jumping it HUGE, which wasn't so bad, but then he sorta twisted to the left and when he landed, he took off left while I continued to the right. You don't need a science degree to figure out that I hit the dirt. I had the moment of panic, which ended once I actually hit the ground and all I had was muscle/bruise pain, nothing broken. So I have to say that I was happy, even if I didn't actually look like I was happy. LOL
My fall wasn't anything more than lack of experience and bad luck. Bastian wasn't really being naughty, I actually rode correctly by getting aggressive and saying "yes we are jumping this." It was bad luck. Kristin got on him and schooled him over the fence a few times, then I got back on and I tried to get her to lower it back to a x-rail for my first time back over it, but she refused (and that folks is quality instruction!) and I had to take it as the vertical. We did so and he took it beautifully. So the lesson ended well. I did what I had to do to get through the lesson, I blocked as much of my fall of my could from my mind and tried to ride without fear. Didn't work out super well, but we managed, so therefore it was successful.
But later that night, as I was shopping at Giant Eagle for some yummy alcoholic beverages (because that is always the answer after a fall from a horse provided you are old enough!) I felt like I was at one of those crucial decision making points in my life. Am I making the right decision in continuing to pursue jumping? Yes or no?
Common misconception says yes. Why? Because people believe that jumping is more dangerous than other equine sports. This is not true. Ignorant people make ANY discipline dangerous, not the discipline itself. The three times I have been majorly injured (broken ankle, then my back, then my hip) I was jumping a x-rail, dismounting, and jogging on a trail ride respectively. All three were accidents that really did not have a reason for turning out as badly as they did, it was luck (bad luck at that). The majority of horrible riding accidents happen when equestrians are doing mundane things, not the "supposed" dangerous things. Why? When we are doing the things percieved as dangerous we're being more careful, so we are usually quicker to make corrections and adjustments so we don't get hurt.
Secondly, as equestrians we have to realize that we are dealing with 1200 lb animals that have their own agenda and no matter how much we love them, they are stupid (except Bastian of course, he's super smart...lol!) Falling off, getting some bruises and scrapes is unfortunately part of the business. If you can't accept that, play Tennis, or stick to your super safe Wii. Riding is dangerous, accept it or don't ride.
So after a lot of thinking I decided that I was making the right decision. I'm most likely going to come off over a few more fences as Bastian and I work this out and get to the level I want to show at. Its not gonna be easy, but anything in life worth doing is difficult. I still want to continue to pursue my dressage goals, but I cannot imagine my life without jumping. I love it!
So I put my big girl panties on we went to the Hunter Schooling Show on Saturday. Bastian was a dream. Kristin schooled him over everything first, we didn't want a repeat of me hitting the dirt because he was a little squirrely. We had three great rounds, taking home a 3rd and a 6th place in two of the OF classes out of about 15 entries. Here is a video of my last round, the only one we caught on tape. Not sure what happened with my camera, it came out super grainy/blurry, but oh well, I have evidence of his awesomeness! (Not to mention that I was wearing my lucky Banff Socks)
I rode dressage on Monday, which was awesome, I hadn't sat in my dressage saddle in about 3 weeks :) So lots of happiness there! And I jumped the B-man today, there was a lesson going on so I got in on their jumps and we did a x-rail bounce to a one stride vertical (like 2')and he was AWESOME! He hit his striding perfectly and I really focused on keeping my hands soft and keeping my leg on through the grid. It was wonderful. I felt nervous the first time the vertical was up, but Bastian never questioned it, we were able to stay soft and it was soooooo cool, he was really jumping over the last fence, snapping his knees up and everything :)
Thats been my last couple of weeks. Next show is another Hunter Schooling Show at Chagrin the first weekend in Januaryl, we're aiming for the 2' division....keep your fingers crossed for us!
And each time my decision has remained the same: Continue. The first time I had to face this decision was about 4 years ago when I came off a horse and broke my back. At the time it happened, I was paralyzed from the waist down, no movement, no feeling. Thanks to fantastical medical advances and lots of physcial therapy, I was able to regain a good portion of both feeling and movement, but I have been left disabled. I limp, I have a lot of difficulty controlling my lower leg when riding and I have minimal feeling in my lower leg. I was banned (by the doctor) from riding for 9 months.
Obviously, I was at a point where I didn't even know how well I was going to be able to walk, much less sit on a horse and feel comfortable and actually ride. I don't remember ever questioning my decision to ride again. I cheated and started "riding" at 7 months and by riding I mean I tacked up my 27 year old pony, hauled myself up on her back and sat on her, sometimes we went for a walk. I saved the trotting for the actual 9 month mark....
My biggest decision here was what to do with Bastian. I had only owned him for 2 weeks when I broke my back. He was an untouched 3 year old. He was my event prospect. He was basically the last thing that I needed in my current state, a baby thoroughbred. I wrestled with it, but decided I had a strong enough support system to get him trained. What could I say, I really loved his personality on the ground. And that decision has turned out well, he isn't exactly the dressage horse I would have hoped for, he is made to be an eventer, he loves to jump. He lacks some experience but he love love loves his job.
Anywho, I've been pretty gung-ho about pursuing this whole eventing thing. Bastian has been jumping like a champ and I've been holding my own. The last two weeks have been jumping intensive, leading up a Hunter Schooling Show on Saturday the 12th. Last week got out of hand schedule wise and I ended up only riding on Sunday and the Friday before the show. This frazzled me. I had planned on entering the 2'-2'3" division.
My lesson on Friday started out mostly good. I was still pulling back too much, trying to go too slow up to the fences, but we were working through it. We changed a x-rail up to a vertical and were cantering up to it, Bastian gave it the wonky eye. I committed to it and got a bit aggressive with him and he responded by jumping it HUGE, which wasn't so bad, but then he sorta twisted to the left and when he landed, he took off left while I continued to the right. You don't need a science degree to figure out that I hit the dirt. I had the moment of panic, which ended once I actually hit the ground and all I had was muscle/bruise pain, nothing broken. So I have to say that I was happy, even if I didn't actually look like I was happy. LOL
My fall wasn't anything more than lack of experience and bad luck. Bastian wasn't really being naughty, I actually rode correctly by getting aggressive and saying "yes we are jumping this." It was bad luck. Kristin got on him and schooled him over the fence a few times, then I got back on and I tried to get her to lower it back to a x-rail for my first time back over it, but she refused (and that folks is quality instruction!) and I had to take it as the vertical. We did so and he took it beautifully. So the lesson ended well. I did what I had to do to get through the lesson, I blocked as much of my fall of my could from my mind and tried to ride without fear. Didn't work out super well, but we managed, so therefore it was successful.
But later that night, as I was shopping at Giant Eagle for some yummy alcoholic beverages (because that is always the answer after a fall from a horse provided you are old enough!) I felt like I was at one of those crucial decision making points in my life. Am I making the right decision in continuing to pursue jumping? Yes or no?
Common misconception says yes. Why? Because people believe that jumping is more dangerous than other equine sports. This is not true. Ignorant people make ANY discipline dangerous, not the discipline itself. The three times I have been majorly injured (broken ankle, then my back, then my hip) I was jumping a x-rail, dismounting, and jogging on a trail ride respectively. All three were accidents that really did not have a reason for turning out as badly as they did, it was luck (bad luck at that). The majority of horrible riding accidents happen when equestrians are doing mundane things, not the "supposed" dangerous things. Why? When we are doing the things percieved as dangerous we're being more careful, so we are usually quicker to make corrections and adjustments so we don't get hurt.
Secondly, as equestrians we have to realize that we are dealing with 1200 lb animals that have their own agenda and no matter how much we love them, they are stupid (except Bastian of course, he's super smart...lol!) Falling off, getting some bruises and scrapes is unfortunately part of the business. If you can't accept that, play Tennis, or stick to your super safe Wii. Riding is dangerous, accept it or don't ride.
So after a lot of thinking I decided that I was making the right decision. I'm most likely going to come off over a few more fences as Bastian and I work this out and get to the level I want to show at. Its not gonna be easy, but anything in life worth doing is difficult. I still want to continue to pursue my dressage goals, but I cannot imagine my life without jumping. I love it!
So I put my big girl panties on we went to the Hunter Schooling Show on Saturday. Bastian was a dream. Kristin schooled him over everything first, we didn't want a repeat of me hitting the dirt because he was a little squirrely. We had three great rounds, taking home a 3rd and a 6th place in two of the OF classes out of about 15 entries. Here is a video of my last round, the only one we caught on tape. Not sure what happened with my camera, it came out super grainy/blurry, but oh well, I have evidence of his awesomeness! (Not to mention that I was wearing my lucky Banff Socks)
I rode dressage on Monday, which was awesome, I hadn't sat in my dressage saddle in about 3 weeks :) So lots of happiness there! And I jumped the B-man today, there was a lesson going on so I got in on their jumps and we did a x-rail bounce to a one stride vertical (like 2')and he was AWESOME! He hit his striding perfectly and I really focused on keeping my hands soft and keeping my leg on through the grid. It was wonderful. I felt nervous the first time the vertical was up, but Bastian never questioned it, we were able to stay soft and it was soooooo cool, he was really jumping over the last fence, snapping his knees up and everything :)
Thats been my last couple of weeks. Next show is another Hunter Schooling Show at Chagrin the first weekend in Januaryl, we're aiming for the 2' division....keep your fingers crossed for us!
Monday, October 24, 2011
I jumped a BN log :)
Well, lots has been happening and not all of it good. But the majority of it is spectacular, so we're just gonna keep our chins up (Bastian's and mine respectively) and keep trucking along, as we usually do.
I'll try to avoid lingering on anything too dismal and keep my focus on the happy stuff! :)
So I found some super cute pictures of B and I on Casual Creation Photography's website from our Dressage Schooling Show Debaucle in May. There is this nice halt picture and then this cute trotting picture. The rest of the pictures clearly show why I got a score of 56-something on my test :(
But these two pictures show that we can get this right...le sigh.
So I have now had the B-man back for a full month, which has been FABULOUS! I really missed him. This month has been spent making up for lost time. One of our big high-lights you ask? Going XC schooling on Columbus Day.
We packed up Bastian and one of Kristin's training horses and headed over to Stone Gate Farm in Ohio. We met Samantha and her awesome OTTB Mater there and proceeded to not die. Yes, those are the terms I put my first XC outing in nearly 5 years in, lol. Schooling went perfect, really, it could not have been any better. The weather was just right and it was sunny and the footing was good :) We warmed up over a few x-rails they had set up in one of their sand arenas and then we headed out into the abyss....
Kristin and Samantha went right too it, jumping logs and banks and all sorts of things, Bastian and I headed over to the water to play around a bit. I wasn't overly concerned about the water, he LOVES it and thinks that every puddle in his paddock during TO should be turned into a swimming hole just for him. He will stand and splash and splash and splash. So then we started trotting through the water. Our biggest problem was me. I was on my horse in a large open field where I was expected to trot, canter and god forbid, actually tackle an obstacle and jump something. I was tense, but Bastian being the wonderful soul that he is never batted an eye. He was too excited that we were actually trotting through the water and it was splashing everywhere...weee!
There was a small (like 12") log on an uphill to a Novice Down bank (or an up-bank to a small down hill log, whatever!) So we trot that little log going up a hill and he jumped it wonderfully and I had one of those deja-vo moments of pure happiness because I remembered how much I used to love XC and how fun it was to fly over the fences and how you had to do everything different than in the hunter ring and adjust to the terrain you were on and whatnot. So we did the up-log a few times then we walked the down bank. Yes, walked. I refused to do the down-bank into the water and I refused to do the bank as an up. The conversation went something like this:
Kristin: Go ahead and trot the down bank, sit back and keep your leg on.
Me: I think I'll walk it. (proceeds to walk down-bank)
Kristin: Ok... do the up bank, you can do it.
Me: Not right now, maybe later. I'm pretty happy with the down bank.
Kristin: Then lets do the down bank into the water.
Me: No. Very happy not-dying. Maybe next time we school....
Yes, I'm a chicken. But I'm a chicken that had an awesome XC school...and my words were later twisted (LOL).....
Here is us tackling one of those teensy logs I'm talking about. Not the prettiest picture, but not bad for our first time either!
We went on and did the rest of the course, by the rest of the course I mean that I galloped up a hill (a really quick canter, maybe not so much of a gallop), jumped a cute little log with some stones under it, jumped three other tiny 12" logs and then we headed back to the trailer and therefore right back to the water complex we had started at.... we get back and I'm feeling MUCH better about this whole out in the middle of a field thing so Kristin says...
Kristin: You said you would do the up bank when we got back here.
Me: No, I said maybe I would.
Kristin: No, you said you would. Do it.
Me: No, I think....
Kristin: Do it.
So I did and he was wonderful. Then we did the up bank to the little downhill log and he was good. Kristin says I cantered it, but I'm pretty sure that I brought him back to a trot before I hit the log, but if we did canter it then awesome! Woo-hoo! The best part however was that I finally had the nerve to actually jump a real log, not just one of the teensy little 12" ones I had been doing all day. A real honest to goodness BN log. It was HUGE!!! I knew I couldn't mess around with it, so we cantered in, he didn't even look at it and he soared over it like he's been jumping XC his entire life. He loved it. So with a bit more experience Bastian is going to be a little XC machine :)
And I have hand it to Kristin, she puts up with my whining about having to jump stuff, but then she doesn't actually let me get away with it. I need that in my riding life. I mean now, when I jump on my own (outside of a lesson) I'm cantering little 2' verticals and doing lines and will actually do productive work whereas before I would trot a x-rail a few times and call it a success. So hooray for confidence building!!
No more XC for the year, its just too sloppy up here in the North, lol. But the plan is get out as soon as the spring weather will let me and hopefully I'm jumping 2'6"-2'9" by then so I'm not as intimidated by the BN stuff. I'm hoping to do a local hunter schooling series and show in the 2'6" division starting in January.
Now to switch over the land of Dressage, someplace I'd like to inhabit rather than just have a time-share in. Alas, I love my Bastian too much and refuse to sell him. I can't afford a second horse so I am therefore sabotaging my own efforts to be successful. Don't get me wrong, B is AWESOME and as a dressage-nugget, he can handle his fair share, but he's not going to beat the nice AA warmbloods out there, he just doesn't have the movement. Training level, we'll be okay, First level, we'll be okay, but Second, I'm not so sure :( He'll be able to do the movements, but I don't know if he'll have enough gusto to pull out a good score. Maybe he will, but I'm trying to stay realistic about this rather than start to think that hey, we actually have a chance and then get our asses handed to us.
We had a great dressage lesson the other day, we worked a lot on our canter, which we needed and I got him straight and voila! our canter was soooooooo much better. B is quite the wriggle-worm and I'm not so good with the lower leg on the horse thing so it was a huge struggle for me, but when I got it he was like, "Oh, I can't escape that way anymore, fine, I'll do it the right way *pout*" It was a cool lesson though, because the next day when I rode I could ask him to be straight and he we would go there and keep it for a stride or to, then lose it, so I'd ask again, he'd keep it, then lose it and so on and so on. Whereas just the day before in the lesson it had been constantly asking him to straighten. He's a smart little dragon he is, he goes back to his stall and whilst he munches hay he ponders what he did....or he complains to Gria, his neighbor about all the crazy things I ask him to do. But whatever it is he does, he always comes back the next day having re-inforced whatever we did in the lesson, which is good when I do the right things, when I get crazy and to the wrong things this is not so much of a good trait.
Okay, so this has turned into a ginormous blog post. I have no idea how many readers I have, I'm assuming not very many since I only have 3subscribers and one of those is my mom, I subscribed her but she doesn't actually read my blog. So I'm thinking no one really reads all this rambling anyway and it helps me to remember everything that is going on with my horse and those important A-ha! moments (like jumping a BN log!)that I had. It keeps things in perspective. So if you're reading, thanks and hopefully you find this at least somewhat entertaining, even if you are someone who hates me and is making fun of me and my chicken-ness. LOL :)
My last bit of business is this: I want to be involved with the USPEA (United States Para-Equeastrian Association). But I'm too poor (aren't we all!) and my B most likely does not have what it takes to be international quality competition wise. I don't like asking for things, I believe in earning them. However the costs of actually being a competive para-equestrian is rather ridiculous. So here's what I'm looking for: A horse to ride in dressage competitions that is schooled through at least 3rd level that can put up with "excessive kicking" (to quote many judges)and can come live with me a BEC so I can continue to ride and train with Kristin and the owner of said horse still pays board, shoes, and vet. I know, its a far-fetched idea, but stranger things have happened. I figure I can swing lessons, competition costs and all those lovely things (ie: a passport (because I'm showing FEI levels) is like $500), but I need a horse to ride and someone to pick up the tab on board and shoeing and vet.
Just as an FYI, I work 3.5 jobs. I am a full time High School Teacher, I work part time (around 20-25 hours a week) at a retail department store cashiering, I feed at BEC every Sunday morning, and I organize the PA District IX 4-H Horse Show. So believe you me, I'm working my butt off to cover expenses and pay for things, I'm not sitting on the couch watching Soap Operas with my hand out hoping that money will magically appear in it (or a dressage horse in this case, but how cool would that be??!! I mean I would just be sitting there and suddenly a big ol' dressage horse would appear in my living room, I wouldn't be able to get it out of my house, it would never fit through my door, so maybe it wouldn't be so cool if it suddenly appeared....) Anyway, pass the word along, you might now the friend of a friend of a friend who has this horse that is in need of a rider and they are so busy making money in Caribbean Islands that they just don't have time to ride it but have no problems continuing to pay its expenses. Like I said, stranger things have happened.
If you're still with me at this point, thanks for reading my ramblings!
I'll try to avoid lingering on anything too dismal and keep my focus on the happy stuff! :)
So I found some super cute pictures of B and I on Casual Creation Photography's website from our Dressage Schooling Show Debaucle in May. There is this nice halt picture and then this cute trotting picture. The rest of the pictures clearly show why I got a score of 56-something on my test :(
But these two pictures show that we can get this right...le sigh.
So I have now had the B-man back for a full month, which has been FABULOUS! I really missed him. This month has been spent making up for lost time. One of our big high-lights you ask? Going XC schooling on Columbus Day.
We packed up Bastian and one of Kristin's training horses and headed over to Stone Gate Farm in Ohio. We met Samantha and her awesome OTTB Mater there and proceeded to not die. Yes, those are the terms I put my first XC outing in nearly 5 years in, lol. Schooling went perfect, really, it could not have been any better. The weather was just right and it was sunny and the footing was good :) We warmed up over a few x-rails they had set up in one of their sand arenas and then we headed out into the abyss....
Kristin and Samantha went right too it, jumping logs and banks and all sorts of things, Bastian and I headed over to the water to play around a bit. I wasn't overly concerned about the water, he LOVES it and thinks that every puddle in his paddock during TO should be turned into a swimming hole just for him. He will stand and splash and splash and splash. So then we started trotting through the water. Our biggest problem was me. I was on my horse in a large open field where I was expected to trot, canter and god forbid, actually tackle an obstacle and jump something. I was tense, but Bastian being the wonderful soul that he is never batted an eye. He was too excited that we were actually trotting through the water and it was splashing everywhere...weee!
There was a small (like 12") log on an uphill to a Novice Down bank (or an up-bank to a small down hill log, whatever!) So we trot that little log going up a hill and he jumped it wonderfully and I had one of those deja-vo moments of pure happiness because I remembered how much I used to love XC and how fun it was to fly over the fences and how you had to do everything different than in the hunter ring and adjust to the terrain you were on and whatnot. So we did the up-log a few times then we walked the down bank. Yes, walked. I refused to do the down-bank into the water and I refused to do the bank as an up. The conversation went something like this:
Kristin: Go ahead and trot the down bank, sit back and keep your leg on.
Me: I think I'll walk it. (proceeds to walk down-bank)
Kristin: Ok... do the up bank, you can do it.
Me: Not right now, maybe later. I'm pretty happy with the down bank.
Kristin: Then lets do the down bank into the water.
Me: No. Very happy not-dying. Maybe next time we school....
Yes, I'm a chicken. But I'm a chicken that had an awesome XC school...and my words were later twisted (LOL).....
Here is us tackling one of those teensy logs I'm talking about. Not the prettiest picture, but not bad for our first time either!
We went on and did the rest of the course, by the rest of the course I mean that I galloped up a hill (a really quick canter, maybe not so much of a gallop), jumped a cute little log with some stones under it, jumped three other tiny 12" logs and then we headed back to the trailer and therefore right back to the water complex we had started at.... we get back and I'm feeling MUCH better about this whole out in the middle of a field thing so Kristin says...
Kristin: You said you would do the up bank when we got back here.
Me: No, I said maybe I would.
Kristin: No, you said you would. Do it.
Me: No, I think....
Kristin: Do it.
So I did and he was wonderful. Then we did the up bank to the little downhill log and he was good. Kristin says I cantered it, but I'm pretty sure that I brought him back to a trot before I hit the log, but if we did canter it then awesome! Woo-hoo! The best part however was that I finally had the nerve to actually jump a real log, not just one of the teensy little 12" ones I had been doing all day. A real honest to goodness BN log. It was HUGE!!! I knew I couldn't mess around with it, so we cantered in, he didn't even look at it and he soared over it like he's been jumping XC his entire life. He loved it. So with a bit more experience Bastian is going to be a little XC machine :)
And I have hand it to Kristin, she puts up with my whining about having to jump stuff, but then she doesn't actually let me get away with it. I need that in my riding life. I mean now, when I jump on my own (outside of a lesson) I'm cantering little 2' verticals and doing lines and will actually do productive work whereas before I would trot a x-rail a few times and call it a success. So hooray for confidence building!!
No more XC for the year, its just too sloppy up here in the North, lol. But the plan is get out as soon as the spring weather will let me and hopefully I'm jumping 2'6"-2'9" by then so I'm not as intimidated by the BN stuff. I'm hoping to do a local hunter schooling series and show in the 2'6" division starting in January.
Now to switch over the land of Dressage, someplace I'd like to inhabit rather than just have a time-share in. Alas, I love my Bastian too much and refuse to sell him. I can't afford a second horse so I am therefore sabotaging my own efforts to be successful. Don't get me wrong, B is AWESOME and as a dressage-nugget, he can handle his fair share, but he's not going to beat the nice AA warmbloods out there, he just doesn't have the movement. Training level, we'll be okay, First level, we'll be okay, but Second, I'm not so sure :( He'll be able to do the movements, but I don't know if he'll have enough gusto to pull out a good score. Maybe he will, but I'm trying to stay realistic about this rather than start to think that hey, we actually have a chance and then get our asses handed to us.
We had a great dressage lesson the other day, we worked a lot on our canter, which we needed and I got him straight and voila! our canter was soooooooo much better. B is quite the wriggle-worm and I'm not so good with the lower leg on the horse thing so it was a huge struggle for me, but when I got it he was like, "Oh, I can't escape that way anymore, fine, I'll do it the right way *pout*" It was a cool lesson though, because the next day when I rode I could ask him to be straight and he we would go there and keep it for a stride or to, then lose it, so I'd ask again, he'd keep it, then lose it and so on and so on. Whereas just the day before in the lesson it had been constantly asking him to straighten. He's a smart little dragon he is, he goes back to his stall and whilst he munches hay he ponders what he did....or he complains to Gria, his neighbor about all the crazy things I ask him to do. But whatever it is he does, he always comes back the next day having re-inforced whatever we did in the lesson, which is good when I do the right things, when I get crazy and to the wrong things this is not so much of a good trait.
Okay, so this has turned into a ginormous blog post. I have no idea how many readers I have, I'm assuming not very many since I only have 3subscribers and one of those is my mom, I subscribed her but she doesn't actually read my blog. So I'm thinking no one really reads all this rambling anyway and it helps me to remember everything that is going on with my horse and those important A-ha! moments (like jumping a BN log!)that I had. It keeps things in perspective. So if you're reading, thanks and hopefully you find this at least somewhat entertaining, even if you are someone who hates me and is making fun of me and my chicken-ness. LOL :)
My last bit of business is this: I want to be involved with the USPEA (United States Para-Equeastrian Association). But I'm too poor (aren't we all!) and my B most likely does not have what it takes to be international quality competition wise. I don't like asking for things, I believe in earning them. However the costs of actually being a competive para-equestrian is rather ridiculous. So here's what I'm looking for: A horse to ride in dressage competitions that is schooled through at least 3rd level that can put up with "excessive kicking" (to quote many judges)and can come live with me a BEC so I can continue to ride and train with Kristin and the owner of said horse still pays board, shoes, and vet. I know, its a far-fetched idea, but stranger things have happened. I figure I can swing lessons, competition costs and all those lovely things (ie: a passport (because I'm showing FEI levels) is like $500), but I need a horse to ride and someone to pick up the tab on board and shoeing and vet.
Just as an FYI, I work 3.5 jobs. I am a full time High School Teacher, I work part time (around 20-25 hours a week) at a retail department store cashiering, I feed at BEC every Sunday morning, and I organize the PA District IX 4-H Horse Show. So believe you me, I'm working my butt off to cover expenses and pay for things, I'm not sitting on the couch watching Soap Operas with my hand out hoping that money will magically appear in it (or a dressage horse in this case, but how cool would that be??!! I mean I would just be sitting there and suddenly a big ol' dressage horse would appear in my living room, I wouldn't be able to get it out of my house, it would never fit through my door, so maybe it wouldn't be so cool if it suddenly appeared....) Anyway, pass the word along, you might now the friend of a friend of a friend who has this horse that is in need of a rider and they are so busy making money in Caribbean Islands that they just don't have time to ride it but have no problems continuing to pay its expenses. Like I said, stranger things have happened.
If you're still with me at this point, thanks for reading my ramblings!
Thursday, October 6, 2011
O-M-G!
I would have updated sooner, but my internet was broken :( and I am waiting for pictures....so once I have those pictures I'll post them, they show a very cute, very perky-eared Bastian :)
Anywho, Bastian came home last Monday to BEC. It is so good to have him home. Wolf Creek took excellent care of my handsome man, but now he's all mine again :) We crammed in some major training and lessons last week.
Our lesson on Tuesday had its ups and downs. I was jittery and nervous and Bastian was looky and quite fresh. Somehow we managed to not die. Kristin had us doing a line and my brain just kept freezing and I wasn't riding, I started to be a passenger and then I became a passenger that was saying "whoa" a little bit too much. But then we finally got it over our last few jumps and I managed to relax enough that it was manageable.
I had to work the next two days so I left him in Kristin's capable hands and she rode him and jumped him and he was wonderful! Which is great, but also proves to me that I'm the problem. Bastian will be wonderful and good to me and take care of me if I give him confidence and keep myself confident.
I had another lesson on Friday, just a quick 1/2 hour to make sure I wasn't going to die at the Combined Test on Saturday. He was superb. We did a line and an oxer. He felt perfect and my confidence was much much better. We ended by soaring over a 2' square oxer. I know, I know, tiny stuff, but a HUGE accomplishment for me and my Bastian. So the B-man got a bath (it hadn't turned horribly cold yet!) and I got all of my stuff packed and ready for the show.
Let me just say that Saturday was FREEZING. It was rainy, windy, and about 42 degrees. My dressage time was 3:42 and then stadium was between 4 and 5. Which was nice because I got to sleep in before a show, not something that usually happens. We got the show and I had a plan to be on 20 minutes before my dressage time so I could be warmed up and ready and somehow I totally botched that up. I ended up hitting the warm-up ring at 3:40 and riding my test at 3:42. I managed to do two 20 meter circle in trot and one canter transition before we went in. Poor planning on my part!
For lack of a warm-up, my test went pretty darn smooth. Granted I was riding Beg. Novice Test A, but still Bastian and I are out of steady practice. We scored mostly 7's with a few 6's here and there. I even managed to finagle a 7 on rider, which is pretty good for me, usually the judges knock me pretty hard for my legs being all over the place. We ended up with a dressage score of 34.
And let me just rant for a moment on how much the small arena bites. Everytime I had to do something I was like okay, we're going to transition from canter to trot before B, I would check my position with the letters and I was already at B! There is just not enough time to do anything, I'm so used to the roomy large arena where you get a bit more time to showcase your horse's gaits and show how steady and wonderful you are. Oh well. Its something I have to live with if I'm going to event, I'll do my best not to harp on it, but seriously...My large striding Thoroughbred and I need more space. LOL I'll just have to think of it as being like one of those freaky hunter eq. pattern I used to have to do at 4-H shows where you had like 10 feet to pick up a canter from a walk then at the next cone simple change, 10 feet to the next cone then stop and back up five steps. Those things were funky.
Anyway, right after my dressage we scurried back to the trailer to change tack. (Thank you grooms!!) Then back to the warm-up. Thankfully the stadium was a "when you were ready" kind of thing. We did not start out our warm-up very well, he slammed on the brakes in front of a 12" crossrail. I felt pretty stupid and it did not set a good tone for me. So we came at it again and then he over jumped it because I was being a fraidy-cat. After about 6 more jumps, we mastered the cross-rail, so it was onto the vertical. Mind you, its a 2 foot vertical. We trot in, I'm nervous again we get to the fence and Bastian decides that 2' is too tiny and leaps over the jump, I am pretty sure he cleared the standards, I was too busy thinking OMG that was huge. So at least he didn't refuse.... Finally we mastered the vertical and then we moved onto the oxer in the warm-up.
I'm super keyed up by now and questioning how good of an idea this was. Bastian is fresh and eyeballing everything because he is of course playing off of me. I really have to hand it to Kristin, she managed to talk me through everything. I cried at one point and seriously considered getting off and letting her do our schooling round, I have no desire to get hurt because I'm being a schmuck and not riding.
But I stayed on and went into my warm-up class. There was only one oxer on course, everything else was wee-tiny little 2' verticals (I'm still convincing myself they are tiny) that we can trot over, we would need to canter the oxer. He didn't hardly look at anything and the course was so nicely set up that I had plently of time to slow him down after we landed and get ourselves collected and prepared for the next fence. They weren't always pretty, but we made it over. He only overjumped one fence (and not the oxer!). We stayed in the ring for our actual stadium round and it rode wonderfully.
I had one round under my belt, nothing bad had happened, I was feeling pretty good. Our actual round went awesome until the last fence. I saw it coming up and realized we had made it, I knew he would jump it, so I just sorta let him go and we pulled a rail :( Sad face. We finished in third because of the rail. But I honestly cannot be happier with how things turned out. Bastian and I totally survived and most of the jumps were good, the ones that weren't so good we handled and worked through. I need the not so good jumps to get used to handling them and not dying. I'm getting much better at keeping my seat when he overjumps.
I'm also glad I didn't get off and hand him off to Kristin. I know that she can make him do anything, its more important that I learn how to get him to do those things, I have to learn how to deal with him. So overall it was a fabulous experience and my eventing plans will continue to move forward. More lessons, schooling, and training and we are going to be awesome!
Looks like XC schooling on Monday is go! Hooray for government holidays and wonderful instructor/trainers :)
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Confidence
B-5 days and counting until Bastian officially comes home!!! I can't wait. I am so stinking excited. :)
I got to go out and ride him tonight and he was pretty darn good. I put my big girl panties on and shortened my jump stirrups a hole. They need to go up, at least to where I have them now if not even one more hole shorter. I felt a little tipped forward, but by the end of the ride it was much more comfortable. We even managed some nice counter canter and some nice lengthenings in our jumpy saddle :)
I've got to start riding my first fence more confidently. I've tried to decide between more confidently and more aggrresively and I am pretty sure that its more confidently. My first fence of a school session is always kinda iffy. I'm about 80% sure that he's going to jump it and be good, but there is this horrible 20% of me that says, "well maybe he's gonna refuse/spook/trip/overjump." So over that first jump I always seem to just let him make the decision about how the fence is going to ride. Today it was almost disasterous. We trotted into this 18" fence only to have him say "oh my god what is that thing!" (and we've jumped this fence like a ga-zillion times). Then he kinda jumped from a standstill and overall it was pretty fugly, not one of my proudest jumps but we did make it to the other side intact.
I needed more confidence, I needed to keep my leg on and say yes, this is baby stuff and we can trot this like its nothing. I need to give Bastian the confidence he hasn't had the years to develop that I forget he doesn't always have. Once I set the tone for the ride he really just goes with it, but if I don't set that tone then its popping over jumps and running at fences and not so much fun. After that fence the rest were pretty good. There were a few where I was left behind and the first few I went over I felt a little too forward, but that was just me getting used to my stirrups.
I am soooooo excited for him to come home on Tuesday. I've got a lesson lined up for Tuesday and Friday, then the show on Saturday! I am so stinkin' excited, and he is gonna be so stinking cute :)
Everyone else is away at Regionals and I am insanely jealous. I wish them good luck as their Championship classes start tomorrow! Go BEC :)
I got to go out and ride him tonight and he was pretty darn good. I put my big girl panties on and shortened my jump stirrups a hole. They need to go up, at least to where I have them now if not even one more hole shorter. I felt a little tipped forward, but by the end of the ride it was much more comfortable. We even managed some nice counter canter and some nice lengthenings in our jumpy saddle :)
I've got to start riding my first fence more confidently. I've tried to decide between more confidently and more aggrresively and I am pretty sure that its more confidently. My first fence of a school session is always kinda iffy. I'm about 80% sure that he's going to jump it and be good, but there is this horrible 20% of me that says, "well maybe he's gonna refuse/spook/trip/overjump." So over that first jump I always seem to just let him make the decision about how the fence is going to ride. Today it was almost disasterous. We trotted into this 18" fence only to have him say "oh my god what is that thing!" (and we've jumped this fence like a ga-zillion times). Then he kinda jumped from a standstill and overall it was pretty fugly, not one of my proudest jumps but we did make it to the other side intact.
I needed more confidence, I needed to keep my leg on and say yes, this is baby stuff and we can trot this like its nothing. I need to give Bastian the confidence he hasn't had the years to develop that I forget he doesn't always have. Once I set the tone for the ride he really just goes with it, but if I don't set that tone then its popping over jumps and running at fences and not so much fun. After that fence the rest were pretty good. There were a few where I was left behind and the first few I went over I felt a little too forward, but that was just me getting used to my stirrups.
I am soooooo excited for him to come home on Tuesday. I've got a lesson lined up for Tuesday and Friday, then the show on Saturday! I am so stinkin' excited, and he is gonna be so stinking cute :)
Everyone else is away at Regionals and I am insanely jealous. I wish them good luck as their Championship classes start tomorrow! Go BEC :)
Monday, September 5, 2011
Keeping my head in the game :)
Bastian has continued to be A-W-E-S-O-M-E. Seriously, I personally love him and think he is great, but I am obvioulsy biased. Very biased. However I have had so many people compliment me on my boy during his hiatus to "Hunter-Land," that I know its not just my own motherly-love.
Sooo, lots of good horse back riding going over the past few weeks. Bugsy has been great. This past weekend I worked on our trot/canter transitions. I feel pretty solid with my up transitions into canter, I keep it together and keep it controlled, but I very often loose it in my downwards. It takes me close to ten strides before I feel like I've got it back. So we were doing 5 strides of trot-5 strides of canter-5 strides of trot and I really focused on just getting it all together in those five strides so that we would be good to go if that was actually the gait I was aiming for. Aside from testing my not always so super counting skills, we managed pretty good. Its all part of trying to be there every stride as the rider. I felt like I made good progress :)
About a week ago, I had the chance for a lesson on Irrestible Isaac. His mom had to sit out this year due to an injury, so he's been at BEC and Kristin has been showing him 3rd level. It was very cool to get to ride him and had me adjusting and having to think differently. The best part of the lesson was getting to actually experience and ride an extended trot. It was so different. I know that as a rider I was all over the place, I couldn't quite get a good handle on the difference and power in the trot. There were a few strides where we got it together and it felt AMAZING! But it was a great experience to ride a different horse, it really helps to show the flaws in your training as a rider and the ruts that you have fallen into.
I've now also had two lessons on Bastian. Both of which have gone great. I also kidnapped my friend Gwen and had her come out with me once to see/ride him. He was being a bit heavy in front that night, but worked out of it beautifully and we ended up doing two "big" jumps at a whopping 2'4". And neither one felt big, he jumped it just like he's been doing it all his life. I was so proud of him.
My second lesson on him was this morning (hooray for Labor Day! No school!) And overall it went well. I actually rode 90% of the jumps. I know I need to ride 100%, but this is coming from a girl who about two years ago rode 0% of her jumps (I just kinda aimed for the fence, closed my eyes and hoped we made it to the other side) and just this last spring was riding about 50% of her jumps, so I'm making progress. :)
We had a few hairy jumps, because I forget that Bastian has less experience than me in this whole jumping thing and so when I panic or get nervous I expect him to see me through and really he's saying, "ah mom, are we doing this? are you sure? ARE YOU SURE!?" and if I don't say "I'm sure." it gets hairy or if it doesn't feel perfect and I tense and let myself get afraid he responds to that. I read a quote on Stone Gate Farm's Facebook page about something that Greg Best (Gemtwist!!!) said during a clinic: "Riding is mistake management." I really like this, because although we as riders are always striving to be perfect, its a constant game of fixing your mistakes. That mistake could be as simple as too much left leg and not enough right rein, or it could be more drastic. So riding is constantly fixing those mistakes. And that includes not getting upset or afraid when those mistakes happen.
We came into a bending line and I didn't have him straight enough to the fence, he backed off, I put my leg on (fixed the mistake! lol) and he popped over that fence like it was 3'. I lost my left stirrup, and I think I goosed him on the landing because he shot forward and I was pretty sure I was coming off. But I kept my seat, didn't panic and Bastian said "Oh, we're not upset? We're stopping? OK" (if anyone remembers by Epic fall off of Matthew at Wilson that resulted in a concussion, it was very similar to that....) We then continued to work on that specific fence a few times and it got better, but I really had to keep him straight to it. We probably jumped it like 10 times total and he took it nicely three of those ten times. The rest were all him popping over it and on the landing he got quick and wanted to take off or buck a little, but I managed our mistakes and rode through it. So, although we had a rough patch in our lesson, I feel like it was overall a success. I can't say that I wasn't nervous after those not so great jumps, but it never crippled me into not riding. I dealt with it and kept my head. This is what I need practice on, having those mistakes occur and keeping it together.
It was also nice to have that reaction to a potentially bad situation from Bastian. He could have taken off, bucked, or been otherwise naughty. But he wasn't, his response was level headed and he came right back. I LOVE my horse. :) He's a keeper!
Well, 20 days until Bastian comes home!! Not that I'm counting...lol, and 25 days until our first ever Combined Test.
This weekend is the PA District IX Horse Show. I'm in charge this year..wish me luck as I wander into the world of Horse Show Management... :)
And I know, whats a blog without good pictures? I promise to try and get some next time I go out....
Sooo, lots of good horse back riding going over the past few weeks. Bugsy has been great. This past weekend I worked on our trot/canter transitions. I feel pretty solid with my up transitions into canter, I keep it together and keep it controlled, but I very often loose it in my downwards. It takes me close to ten strides before I feel like I've got it back. So we were doing 5 strides of trot-5 strides of canter-5 strides of trot and I really focused on just getting it all together in those five strides so that we would be good to go if that was actually the gait I was aiming for. Aside from testing my not always so super counting skills, we managed pretty good. Its all part of trying to be there every stride as the rider. I felt like I made good progress :)
About a week ago, I had the chance for a lesson on Irrestible Isaac. His mom had to sit out this year due to an injury, so he's been at BEC and Kristin has been showing him 3rd level. It was very cool to get to ride him and had me adjusting and having to think differently. The best part of the lesson was getting to actually experience and ride an extended trot. It was so different. I know that as a rider I was all over the place, I couldn't quite get a good handle on the difference and power in the trot. There were a few strides where we got it together and it felt AMAZING! But it was a great experience to ride a different horse, it really helps to show the flaws in your training as a rider and the ruts that you have fallen into.
I've now also had two lessons on Bastian. Both of which have gone great. I also kidnapped my friend Gwen and had her come out with me once to see/ride him. He was being a bit heavy in front that night, but worked out of it beautifully and we ended up doing two "big" jumps at a whopping 2'4". And neither one felt big, he jumped it just like he's been doing it all his life. I was so proud of him.
My second lesson on him was this morning (hooray for Labor Day! No school!) And overall it went well. I actually rode 90% of the jumps. I know I need to ride 100%, but this is coming from a girl who about two years ago rode 0% of her jumps (I just kinda aimed for the fence, closed my eyes and hoped we made it to the other side) and just this last spring was riding about 50% of her jumps, so I'm making progress. :)
We had a few hairy jumps, because I forget that Bastian has less experience than me in this whole jumping thing and so when I panic or get nervous I expect him to see me through and really he's saying, "ah mom, are we doing this? are you sure? ARE YOU SURE!?" and if I don't say "I'm sure." it gets hairy or if it doesn't feel perfect and I tense and let myself get afraid he responds to that. I read a quote on Stone Gate Farm's Facebook page about something that Greg Best (Gemtwist!!!) said during a clinic: "Riding is mistake management." I really like this, because although we as riders are always striving to be perfect, its a constant game of fixing your mistakes. That mistake could be as simple as too much left leg and not enough right rein, or it could be more drastic. So riding is constantly fixing those mistakes. And that includes not getting upset or afraid when those mistakes happen.
We came into a bending line and I didn't have him straight enough to the fence, he backed off, I put my leg on (fixed the mistake! lol) and he popped over that fence like it was 3'. I lost my left stirrup, and I think I goosed him on the landing because he shot forward and I was pretty sure I was coming off. But I kept my seat, didn't panic and Bastian said "Oh, we're not upset? We're stopping? OK" (if anyone remembers by Epic fall off of Matthew at Wilson that resulted in a concussion, it was very similar to that....) We then continued to work on that specific fence a few times and it got better, but I really had to keep him straight to it. We probably jumped it like 10 times total and he took it nicely three of those ten times. The rest were all him popping over it and on the landing he got quick and wanted to take off or buck a little, but I managed our mistakes and rode through it. So, although we had a rough patch in our lesson, I feel like it was overall a success. I can't say that I wasn't nervous after those not so great jumps, but it never crippled me into not riding. I dealt with it and kept my head. This is what I need practice on, having those mistakes occur and keeping it together.
It was also nice to have that reaction to a potentially bad situation from Bastian. He could have taken off, bucked, or been otherwise naughty. But he wasn't, his response was level headed and he came right back. I LOVE my horse. :) He's a keeper!
Well, 20 days until Bastian comes home!! Not that I'm counting...lol, and 25 days until our first ever Combined Test.
This weekend is the PA District IX Horse Show. I'm in charge this year..wish me luck as I wander into the world of Horse Show Management... :)
And I know, whats a blog without good pictures? I promise to try and get some next time I go out....
Monday, August 15, 2011
BASTIAN!!!!
I finally made it out to Wolf Creek Stables to see my awesome, wonderful, chestnutty, perfect boy. My friend Samantha was visiting for a few days so it worked out perfectly, I had someone to drag along with me :)
His Summer Job Housing is quite nice. Nice roomy box stall, wonderful ventilation, water buckets that are scrubbed cleaner than most of my dinner dishes, and nightly turnout. He is one fat, sleek, happy boy.
So after much treat-feeding and a somewhat excessive amount of brushing by both myself and Samantha, we made our way to the outdoor. The outdoor at Wolf Creek is huge and filled with lovely lovely hunter jumps, which Bastian has been trucking over with wee little children. And by lovely I mean scary, lots of flowers, brush, rolltops, pine boughs and such. I'm intimidated by jumps that aren't A) under 2' and B)just a rail. But Bastian honestly doesn't care, he only cares when I care. If he looks at a fence out of inexperience all I have to do is say, "yes we are jumping this" and he says "okay!" If I sense his hesitency and answer with my own, then he says, "ah mom, if you don't think we should do this then lets not...." So jumping is more of a mental ride for me, I have to keep my head in the game 100%.
Anyway, after simply enjoying the wonderful walk/trot/canter on MY BASTIAN, we started trotting over a few cross rails, then we started trotting the scary stuff. He was so perfect! He didn't look at anything and just kinda hopped over everything. Then we started to get fancy and we cantered all those scary fences :) I was so pleased with him and he was going so well, that I decided to jumpt two more fences that he had not yet done with any of Tawny's students. One was a tiny rolltop, but pretty wide. I would say wider than it was tall and a 2'3" vertical that was set up on one side of the arena.
He was PERFECT!! He barely looked at the rolltop and jumped the 2'3" vertical like he'd been doing it all his life, I was so pleased with him. He's actually being a bit lazy and I need to engage him more with my leg, but I'll take the slower lazy Bastian for now until I get my jumping legs back. I'm anxious to get back out and ride him again :) Samantha was fabulous and snapped several great pics with her phone camera, a real feat considering that jumping photos are hard to time anyway!
Aint he cute!!! It was so wonderful and I am so dying to show again that I decided to try and take him to the schooling Combined Test at South Farm on October 1, we're going to do the Baby-Beginner Novice division so we have to do Beg. Novice Test A and then a 2' jumping course. South Farm puts on a nice show, so I'm super excited to go!
Also coming up on my schedule is the District Horse Show, this is my first year as the new manager...wish me luck! I'm thinking I have most of it under control, just a few things that might be iffy.....Once its over (September 11) I can really focus on me and my Bastian and our first ever Combined Test :)
His Summer Job Housing is quite nice. Nice roomy box stall, wonderful ventilation, water buckets that are scrubbed cleaner than most of my dinner dishes, and nightly turnout. He is one fat, sleek, happy boy.
So after much treat-feeding and a somewhat excessive amount of brushing by both myself and Samantha, we made our way to the outdoor. The outdoor at Wolf Creek is huge and filled with lovely lovely hunter jumps, which Bastian has been trucking over with wee little children. And by lovely I mean scary, lots of flowers, brush, rolltops, pine boughs and such. I'm intimidated by jumps that aren't A) under 2' and B)just a rail. But Bastian honestly doesn't care, he only cares when I care. If he looks at a fence out of inexperience all I have to do is say, "yes we are jumping this" and he says "okay!" If I sense his hesitency and answer with my own, then he says, "ah mom, if you don't think we should do this then lets not...." So jumping is more of a mental ride for me, I have to keep my head in the game 100%.
Anyway, after simply enjoying the wonderful walk/trot/canter on MY BASTIAN, we started trotting over a few cross rails, then we started trotting the scary stuff. He was so perfect! He didn't look at anything and just kinda hopped over everything. Then we started to get fancy and we cantered all those scary fences :) I was so pleased with him and he was going so well, that I decided to jumpt two more fences that he had not yet done with any of Tawny's students. One was a tiny rolltop, but pretty wide. I would say wider than it was tall and a 2'3" vertical that was set up on one side of the arena.
He was PERFECT!! He barely looked at the rolltop and jumped the 2'3" vertical like he'd been doing it all his life, I was so pleased with him. He's actually being a bit lazy and I need to engage him more with my leg, but I'll take the slower lazy Bastian for now until I get my jumping legs back. I'm anxious to get back out and ride him again :) Samantha was fabulous and snapped several great pics with her phone camera, a real feat considering that jumping photos are hard to time anyway!
Aint he cute!!! It was so wonderful and I am so dying to show again that I decided to try and take him to the schooling Combined Test at South Farm on October 1, we're going to do the Baby-Beginner Novice division so we have to do Beg. Novice Test A and then a 2' jumping course. South Farm puts on a nice show, so I'm super excited to go!
Also coming up on my schedule is the District Horse Show, this is my first year as the new manager...wish me luck! I'm thinking I have most of it under control, just a few things that might be iffy.....Once its over (September 11) I can really focus on me and my Bastian and our first ever Combined Test :)
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