We had a fantastic and hot weekend at Hoosier Horse Park June 3-5. We left Thursday afternoon and got there with time to sneak in a quick ride. Trouble was looking around a bit but he settled in well and did some nice flatwork. The next day I gave him a canter school in his jump tack in a big grass field by the SJ arena. He was a little worried for a while but then cantered like a champ. My original plan was to ride him twice on Friday since we didn't do dressage until Saturday, but it was hot and he was well behaved for our morning ride so we skipped the 2nd one. I have to say I'm glad I chose to skip the extra ride, because it was even hotter on Saturday and he was quite lazy in our warmup for the test. I felt like he was relaxed, forward and listening, but didn't have that extra spark. He went into the ring and did an obedient, forward test and I was happy with his canter transitions in the harder test since they are in a weird spot and it was our first time doing test B. His free walk was the best one he's done, and the trot work felt really steady. We ended up with a 29.5, in 9th out of 25 starters. I was disappointed with the score because he felt much worse in our test 2 weeks prior and it scored a 25.5! There was a 4 way tie for 5th on a 28.6, and the leader had a 22 and looked like a dressage horse, so that was a little consolation :) When I got the test back, the judge (Vicki Rauwolf) nailed us on most movements for "not enough bend", which I thought was strange because we've never had that comment on a test before...different strokes for different folks I suppose. He still got several 8's, including gaits, but I was really dismayed to see 3 or 4 6's....I think he's gotten two 6's EVER! Oh well, we know better for next time!
We walked the SJ course, which was substantial and a bit scary with lots of turns. I was concerned that it was the hardest course so far this year, but I pushed those thoughts aside and thought it would look better if I walked a few more times. Cathy emphasized "chasing him short", meaning keeping his canter coming forward to a connection in the rein instead of letting his stride get long and out of control. This made a lot of sense to me, especially since he jumps well from the base and I don't have to worry about him being clumsy with his legs.
There were quite a few panels, gates, planks, etc, as well as lots of bending lines, a rollback turn, and a 2-stride. He warmed up nicely and we only jumped a few fences since it was about 100 degrees at 3pm. He had to wait around a bit before going in the ring so he was antsy, but he perked up when we went in and jumped the first curiously but didn't offer to back off. He barely tapped the 2nd (an oxer on a bending line from the 1st) and it unfortunately came down. The third fence was a bright white gate/oxer off a tight left turn which I expected him to look at. He came through the turn and I kicked him up to the fence and he leaped over it in spectacular fashion. I had to get him back quickly because the 4th fence was on a right bending line and it was an airy vertical. He stepped over it well and I got organized afterward. Approaching the 5th off the rail on a turn, I didn't quite get him turned as quickly as I should have an I underestimated him drifting out to the right towards the barn so we didn't get lined up correctly and ran out of time to get straight :( We circled back around and jumped it fine, so I don't think it was the jump that caused the drift, just a green mistake and me not thinking ahead! The 6th fence was on another bending line, and it was a BIG triangular panel oxer that I was sure he'd suck back at. He came through the line in a good rhythm and jumped the fence with no problem, going into the rollback turn nicely to line up for 7. He jumped the oxer at 7 and American flag panels after a long canter to 8, then we came around to the 2 stride. I felt him perk up, but he let me keep him in a smaller canter and he jumped both verticals neatly. Finally we came around to the last fence, a purple and green oxer, which he jumped great! I was mad at myself for letting the turn get away from us at 5, but I was really proud of how mature he felt to the fences. Cathy was happy that I was able to hold him together and not let things fall apart when we started to have problems. The ring felt really small and I thought he did a great job handling the atmosphere, jumps, activity and a hard course! We picked up the 8 jump faults as well as 6 time for the circle, but I still think it was the best SJ round we've had so far!
The XC course walked pretty tough, with a lot to do for a BN course. I thought it would either go really well or I wouldn't be able to get him over the first fence :)
Thank goodness it was cooler on Sunday, and a storm was starting to roll in so they let us go a little ahead of our scheduled time. He warmed up pretty excited, and I was SO relieved to see XC fences in the warmup as practice fences. He jumped the 2'6ish table looking but forward the first time, and we jumped it 5 or 6 more times just to make him bored of it.
Into the box we went, and he took a few trot steps then cantered straight out. I felt him wiggle some going to the first like he wasn't sure what to do, but I just put my leg on firmly and straighened him and over he went. It was a really inviting log on a long straightaway from the start box, the 2nd was a rolltop with a gap underneath that Cathy thought they would look at. I steadied him up early before the 2nd and rode a great rhythm right down to the base. The 3rd was a ramped vertical with straw underneath and feed bags beside it. It turns out that the most stops happened here, it was riding quite spooky. Trouble didn't seem to mind it and jumped bravely. The 4th was a rolltop right after the 3rd which he took in stride, and the 5th was a bigger vertical log off a right handed turn. About 5 or 6 strides after 5 was a small up bank going into the woods, which was surrounded by Novice & Training fences. It was a lot to look at, and afterward you had to avoid a Prelim fence and find the path out of the woods. I slowed him down and set up in the turn, riding forward to the 5th, and he jumped it neatly but hesitated coming to the bank. I gave him a small tap on his shoulder and clucked and he trotted right up. He was a little cautious in the woods and spooked at the P jump and an opening in the trees, but I let him trot out onto the packed sand by the pavilion so he could check it out while going slowly. We trotted up strongly to the revetted ditch, and he popped over it no problem. Next was the log right before the water (about 3 strides!), and he was curious coming through the turn where you could see the whole complex but didn't back off-he jumped the log boldly and then kept a small canter stride down the lip into the water. He looked at the edge but his feet were already in and he wasn't worried. In the middle of the trot through, he had a sudden moment of not knowing what was next, but I kicked him on and we found the out. He locked on to the fence right after the water and jumped it great. I felt like he was really having fun now! Over the little hill we went and back into the woods to jump #12, the sunrise ramp that catches a lot of horses out. He added and jumped it neatly, cantering quietly away. A green house with shingles was next, and right before, it occurred to me that we were only a few fences from home. He jumped it well, and I let him come to a trot coming out of the woods so he would see the path. I glanced at my watch and saw that we had a little over a minute left, so we needed to step on it a little. He didn't feel tired, and he enjoyed being able to go a bit! He balanced up great to the 3 stride of rolltops, and there were jump judges/photographers in the trees next to it that I thought he might worry about. He was textbook through the combination, and I let him gallop on after to the bench. I should have set him up a little more to the bench because he got close and tapped it, but landed fine and we were on to the last. I glanced at my watch again and saw that we would be right on the optimum time, so I just steadied him a little and let him jump the rolltop out of stride. I cannot describe how happy and proud I was to cross the finish line and feel like he really understood what he was supposed to do out there and that he had fun doing it! There is nothing more rewarding. Even though we finished out of the ribbons, I left the event feeling like I have a real event horse now and things will only improve from here. I am so lucky to have Trouble and I can't wait for our next event at FRVPC on June 24-26!
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Ups and Downs
Well it's been a little while since I've posted an update, and quite a bit has happened in the meantime! Trouble had started to be more and more spooky and sensitive to external things, from the tractor starting, to people patting their horses' necks, to horses cantering in the arena at the same time as him! Needless to say, this was unnerving because his reaction included getting inverted and scooting/spooking away. It kept getting worse, to the point that I couldn't ride him in the indoor by himself, as he would constantly be looking for something to spook at. We had one of our worst lessons with Cathy ever, and we could barely canter 1 circle without him taking off with me. I finally said enough is enough and did some research. I kept thinking, what have we changed with him? He is obviously more fit now than when I got him, and I also remembered that we got new hay about a week after the Wayne Derby, which is when he started to go downhill with his behavior. The hay is very rich and green, and in my research I found that when horses' magnesium:calcium ratio gets out of balance, it can make them overly reactive and spooky. I picked up Quiessence (a magnesium/chromium supplement), as well as some earplugs to see if that would help him from getting so distracted. Within a few days of being on the supplement, I felt like he was getting back to his old self more and was much quieter. The earplugs seemed to help also. This hasn't been foolproof, as he still has days where everything is scary, but I think that's a lot about being a young horse. In that situation, I find it's best to longe him quietly and not be reactive when he spooks. He does best on a longer rein so he doesn't feel claustrophobic, since he just goes faster when I pull :)
Most recently we did the FRVPC mini event at BN...with mixed results. It was a one-day event, so we got there late on Saturday, and I was able to ride him earlier in the day with good results also. After I set up the stall and unloaded, I promptly lunged him and started riding. We had the earplugs in, and I worked him for a good hour until he was settled down and we actually did some really good work. The biggest thing I noticed is that he will stay round even if he's "up", but he has a hard time listening to my leg when I ask him to move away from it or bend. Overall I was proud of him for settling down and working. I got him braided and called it a night. The next morning, our ride time was 8:15, so I quickly cleaned him up and tucked up the braids. No time to lunge, so I hopped on at 7:30 and hoped for the best! He was looking around a bit more since there were a lot more horses warming up than the night before, but his walk and trot work was pretty good. The canter on the other hand, not so much. He felt like he wanted to lose his balance and run a bit, so I tried to keep him on a smaller circle. Then as we went closer to the woods he started spooking/scooting a bit, so I just played it cool and let him have the reins so he didn't feel boxed in. Finally it was our turn to do the test, and he actually settled down a lot once we were in the arena. I definitely don't feel like he was as rideable as he was in our last test, but we managed to get all the movements done in the right spots, and his free walk and halt were MUCH better than the prior test. I was thinking we'd score about a 35, but when I went to the scoreboard, I was pleasantly surprised to see that we got a 25.5, good for 1st! It's nice to know that he looked better than he felt :)
The SJ and XC courses were not ideal, with lots of hills and turn on the grass in the SJ and strange course design for XC...that's unrecognized events for you! He warmed up pretty wild for SJ, and in hindsight I should have put the snaffle rein on the elevator to help stabilize him. He kept drifting left and wanting to canter sideways towards the barn on the approach to the oxer. He jumped well but was just generally distracted. We did a strong trot, breaking into canter approacing the first fence, which was a biggish oxer with a plank and no groundline going towards the crowd. I felt like he was locked on and going to jump, however he decided to slam on the brakes at the last second and squarely stop. I circled back around in trot quietly and re-presented, and he jumped big but went. After that I felt like he was forward, yet really sticky and holding to every fence...not a very smooth round but we made it happen, minus a rail at the 3rd fence. I went straight back to my stall and put the other rein on the bit, went to XC warmup and gave him a few good smacks behind my leg on the way to the oxer. It surprised him and he jumped huge, so I cantered the oxer a few more times until he settled but felt keen to jump. The first XC fence was coming off of a turn out of the start box, and jumping into the woods/shadows with the jump judges sitting off to the side on the front side of the jump. Not the best first fence for a BN horse, but we gave it a shot...he trotted strongly up to it, but was staring hard and came to a stop. I smacked him hard behind my leg again, circled back quietly, and he jumped it well. He hesitated for a split second at the 2nd fence, but i just closed my leg and he went well. Same thing at the 3rd and 4th, which I thought were the scariest jumps on course. He really felt like he was locking onto the jumps after that and just looking for the next one. It was a great feeling! I was able to slow him down and trot in a few places, so I didn't feel like we were out of control.
I have to say that I'm happy with the outcome, although I'm not happy that we had a couple refusals. I have always been very paranoid about horses learning that they can stop at shows, so this weekend was trying, but I feel like he learned a lot about XC and he understood that I wasn't kidding around about him going.
I think we will have to figure out a balance of having him in front of my leg without running, and maybe bigger spurs are in order as well. I feel like using my whip behind my leg was effective, but I need to learn when to use it and when not to as I get to know him better.
On to Indiana in 2 weeks, our first recognized BN together :)
Most recently we did the FRVPC mini event at BN...with mixed results. It was a one-day event, so we got there late on Saturday, and I was able to ride him earlier in the day with good results also. After I set up the stall and unloaded, I promptly lunged him and started riding. We had the earplugs in, and I worked him for a good hour until he was settled down and we actually did some really good work. The biggest thing I noticed is that he will stay round even if he's "up", but he has a hard time listening to my leg when I ask him to move away from it or bend. Overall I was proud of him for settling down and working. I got him braided and called it a night. The next morning, our ride time was 8:15, so I quickly cleaned him up and tucked up the braids. No time to lunge, so I hopped on at 7:30 and hoped for the best! He was looking around a bit more since there were a lot more horses warming up than the night before, but his walk and trot work was pretty good. The canter on the other hand, not so much. He felt like he wanted to lose his balance and run a bit, so I tried to keep him on a smaller circle. Then as we went closer to the woods he started spooking/scooting a bit, so I just played it cool and let him have the reins so he didn't feel boxed in. Finally it was our turn to do the test, and he actually settled down a lot once we were in the arena. I definitely don't feel like he was as rideable as he was in our last test, but we managed to get all the movements done in the right spots, and his free walk and halt were MUCH better than the prior test. I was thinking we'd score about a 35, but when I went to the scoreboard, I was pleasantly surprised to see that we got a 25.5, good for 1st! It's nice to know that he looked better than he felt :)
The SJ and XC courses were not ideal, with lots of hills and turn on the grass in the SJ and strange course design for XC...that's unrecognized events for you! He warmed up pretty wild for SJ, and in hindsight I should have put the snaffle rein on the elevator to help stabilize him. He kept drifting left and wanting to canter sideways towards the barn on the approach to the oxer. He jumped well but was just generally distracted. We did a strong trot, breaking into canter approacing the first fence, which was a biggish oxer with a plank and no groundline going towards the crowd. I felt like he was locked on and going to jump, however he decided to slam on the brakes at the last second and squarely stop. I circled back around in trot quietly and re-presented, and he jumped big but went. After that I felt like he was forward, yet really sticky and holding to every fence...not a very smooth round but we made it happen, minus a rail at the 3rd fence. I went straight back to my stall and put the other rein on the bit, went to XC warmup and gave him a few good smacks behind my leg on the way to the oxer. It surprised him and he jumped huge, so I cantered the oxer a few more times until he settled but felt keen to jump. The first XC fence was coming off of a turn out of the start box, and jumping into the woods/shadows with the jump judges sitting off to the side on the front side of the jump. Not the best first fence for a BN horse, but we gave it a shot...he trotted strongly up to it, but was staring hard and came to a stop. I smacked him hard behind my leg again, circled back quietly, and he jumped it well. He hesitated for a split second at the 2nd fence, but i just closed my leg and he went well. Same thing at the 3rd and 4th, which I thought were the scariest jumps on course. He really felt like he was locking onto the jumps after that and just looking for the next one. It was a great feeling! I was able to slow him down and trot in a few places, so I didn't feel like we were out of control.
I have to say that I'm happy with the outcome, although I'm not happy that we had a couple refusals. I have always been very paranoid about horses learning that they can stop at shows, so this weekend was trying, but I feel like he learned a lot about XC and he understood that I wasn't kidding around about him going.
I think we will have to figure out a balance of having him in front of my leg without running, and maybe bigger spurs are in order as well. I feel like using my whip behind my leg was effective, but I need to learn when to use it and when not to as I get to know him better.
On to Indiana in 2 weeks, our first recognized BN together :)
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
An update
Just a quick update on Trouble's progress...we have had and keep having quite a bit of rain here so turnout has been sporadic at best. We had a few days where I felt like he wanted to lose it, so I got off and lunged and he proceeded to buck and canter as fast as he could! I think he is feeling more like a TB now that he's gained some fitness :)
We rode with Robin Walker last weekend and he was different from anyone I've ever ridden with! He is very no nonsense and emphasizes the rider making the correct decisions for the horse. He had some good bending lines and exercises set up, and he told me to be a bit firmer about making Trouble stop/slow down after the fences if I don't like the canter he's in. He stressed that it is "my canter" and the horse is not allowed to take it away. This helped us a ton and I felt a lot more confident and in control through the exercises after I got my point across to Trouble a few times. We jumped through some lines, including a liverpool, and he was great. I should mention that I've been jumping him in a 2-ring Duo with 2 reins and I really like it. He respects the bit without hiding from it, and the only thing I may add is a running martingale for the times he resists.
The next day we went for Trouble's first XC school at the Barrington Riding Center with Jenna & Grace. I rode him around the facility and had him hop over the ditch in the main jumping field, which he did quietly. It was very windy, so that was a bit distracting, but overall I was very happy with how he behaved. I think he wasn't quite sure what the XC jumps were at first, and he had a few rookie stops to start with until he gained confidence. After that, he was unstoppable and jumped everything on the small course in the front, including the house, rolltop, stone wall, red barn, and bench. I felt like he started to get the hang of things but still has a little bit of suspicion about scary fences so I need to work on getting him in front of my leg without rushing. He did the best at the down banks, softly stepping off and landing quietly. He went through the water, trotting and cantering in and out, and he jumped several bank combinations well. I think his confidence will only continue to grow with the more types of fences he sees but it was a great start for a horse who's never done XC before! I am hoping we can get out to school at least once more before the mini event on May 22.
Jenn Fritz massaged him this week because I thought he could use some bodywork with all the hard work he's been doing since I got him. Her comments were that his muscling is very even, and he was a bit tight in his neck but worked out of it well. She said that his back was tight on the right side along his spine at the thoracic lumbar junction but it also worked out well. She found a large "crunchy" knot behind his right scapula/shoulder and said it has probably been there for a while from ill fitting saddles. She tried my saddle on him and said it fit well but to be careful about right side/point of tree since he's a little asymmetrical right now. She said I can work on massaging the knot and that the Back on Track blanket should help. I feel a lot better knowing that his back isn't too bad and I will be very careful in the future about his scapulas! I'm sure this wasn't addressed in the past since he is hard to fit a saddle on, but I'm relieved that both of mine fit him well now and we can move forward. I will probably have her work on him again before the mini or Indiana just to see where he's at physically.
We rode with Robin Walker last weekend and he was different from anyone I've ever ridden with! He is very no nonsense and emphasizes the rider making the correct decisions for the horse. He had some good bending lines and exercises set up, and he told me to be a bit firmer about making Trouble stop/slow down after the fences if I don't like the canter he's in. He stressed that it is "my canter" and the horse is not allowed to take it away. This helped us a ton and I felt a lot more confident and in control through the exercises after I got my point across to Trouble a few times. We jumped through some lines, including a liverpool, and he was great. I should mention that I've been jumping him in a 2-ring Duo with 2 reins and I really like it. He respects the bit without hiding from it, and the only thing I may add is a running martingale for the times he resists.
The next day we went for Trouble's first XC school at the Barrington Riding Center with Jenna & Grace. I rode him around the facility and had him hop over the ditch in the main jumping field, which he did quietly. It was very windy, so that was a bit distracting, but overall I was very happy with how he behaved. I think he wasn't quite sure what the XC jumps were at first, and he had a few rookie stops to start with until he gained confidence. After that, he was unstoppable and jumped everything on the small course in the front, including the house, rolltop, stone wall, red barn, and bench. I felt like he started to get the hang of things but still has a little bit of suspicion about scary fences so I need to work on getting him in front of my leg without rushing. He did the best at the down banks, softly stepping off and landing quietly. He went through the water, trotting and cantering in and out, and he jumped several bank combinations well. I think his confidence will only continue to grow with the more types of fences he sees but it was a great start for a horse who's never done XC before! I am hoping we can get out to school at least once more before the mini event on May 22.
Jenn Fritz massaged him this week because I thought he could use some bodywork with all the hard work he's been doing since I got him. Her comments were that his muscling is very even, and he was a bit tight in his neck but worked out of it well. She said that his back was tight on the right side along his spine at the thoracic lumbar junction but it also worked out well. She found a large "crunchy" knot behind his right scapula/shoulder and said it has probably been there for a while from ill fitting saddles. She tried my saddle on him and said it fit well but to be careful about right side/point of tree since he's a little asymmetrical right now. She said I can work on massaging the knot and that the Back on Track blanket should help. I feel a lot better knowing that his back isn't too bad and I will be very careful in the future about his scapulas! I'm sure this wasn't addressed in the past since he is hard to fit a saddle on, but I'm relieved that both of mine fit him well now and we can move forward. I will probably have her work on him again before the mini or Indiana just to see where he's at physically.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Trouble wins at Wayne Eventing Derby!
We had a fantastic weekend at the Wayne Eventing Derby April 15-17 (minus the freezing temps, wind/sleet/snow of course). Cathy, Erin and I brought the horses over to Lamplight on Thursday afternoon and they all settled in well. We took a short ride around, and the wind was really blowing so there were lots of scary things happening. Trouble felt a little "up" at first, but he settled quickly and got to hack around in the dressage arenas without issue.
On Friday we got to school in the jumping arena, and he was very well behaved, jumping all the scary fences with many other horses whizzing by. He was a little strong on the backside again, so I need to keep working on keeping my upper body tall and stretching away from him to slow down. We had our dressage ride a test later in the day in front of Cindy DePorter, and he warmed up really nice and relaxed. In hindsight I probably did a bit too much canter as he felt a little tired in the actual test. We had a scary moment when the judge blew the whistle as we started our first trot circle, but we were the first ride a test of the new division, so she hadn't switched tests yet! I was relieved that I did in fact learn the right test, and we proceeded without incident. I should also mention that it was freezing and raining at this point, so less than ideal conditions for Trouble's very first dressage test! At the end of the test, Cindy said that she really liked him and to continue working in the direction we are going. She said to be careful in the 2nd half of the test since he got heavier as we went, and I said that I thought it was a strength issue but would definitely work on it. I didn't get a chance to go get the test before we left for the night, but when I went back the next morning I was pleased to see that we got a 28.5!! There were several 8's and the comments were very positive.
On Saturday it was even colder than the prior 2 days, and we were scheduled to jump our first round at 2:18 and do dressage at 4:30. It promptly started to "precipitate" around noon, and by the time I had to get on it was full out snowing/sleeting!! Trouble handled it well, we did a quick warmup and trotted right straight into the big arena to jump the course. At this point there was no one around but the officials and jump crew, but Trouble stayed in a great canter rhythm and jumped around like a star. I could barely see through the snow, but we managed to find our way and I was very proud of him for handling it so well! I think the weather actually held him from the fences so he wasn't as eager to scoot away as he has been lately. Dressage was up next, and we did a quick warmup again as he felt a little lazy. He was really light in my hand and willing to bend, so I was excited to ride a steady, balanced test and improve on our score from the day before. We did just that, he was quite rideable and I was really conscious of watching his balance in the 2nd half of the test. If I could change anything, it would have been the free walk - I didn't ask for enough stretch and I know he's capable of more. The attention to detail paid off....when I looked at the scoreboard the next day, I saw the amazing score of 22.0 next to our names!!! We had gotten the lowest score out of all the divisions! I am still a little shocked that this actually happened, but I am just thrilled to continue with Trouble's training and see how far we can go. The test had four 7's, and the rest were 8's and even one 9 on the left lead canter depart! It's definitely one to keep on the fridge for a while :)
On Sunday they ran the divisions lowest to highest, so we were lucky to go early. I think we did a bit too much warmup and ended up having to wait at the in-gate which he was not a fan of. I was probably the least happy with our final ride...I felt like I had to really ride up to the first fence, and after we jumped it, he took off and I never quite regained control. He was running through my hands, but I felt like I was doing my best to settle back and use both reins to stop him. We managed to make it around after having one silly rail, but the control was just not there. I am disappointed that everyone had to see us that way, but now we have a definite goal to work towards. I also think that he was quick because he had been in the ring previously and thought he knew what he was doing without my help. Cathy was disappointed in my position and that I had to be in his face, so we will definitely be working on that in our future lessons. The rail was not enough to knock us out of the top spot, so Trouble got to lead his very first victory gallop after taking a picture by the fish jump. All in all it was a great weekend and I am very proud of him, just have a few things to work out with the jumping before our next show in a month. I would love to try him in a Duo with some leverage for jumping since he likes the plain Duo for dressage so much....
On Friday we got to school in the jumping arena, and he was very well behaved, jumping all the scary fences with many other horses whizzing by. He was a little strong on the backside again, so I need to keep working on keeping my upper body tall and stretching away from him to slow down. We had our dressage ride a test later in the day in front of Cindy DePorter, and he warmed up really nice and relaxed. In hindsight I probably did a bit too much canter as he felt a little tired in the actual test. We had a scary moment when the judge blew the whistle as we started our first trot circle, but we were the first ride a test of the new division, so she hadn't switched tests yet! I was relieved that I did in fact learn the right test, and we proceeded without incident. I should also mention that it was freezing and raining at this point, so less than ideal conditions for Trouble's very first dressage test! At the end of the test, Cindy said that she really liked him and to continue working in the direction we are going. She said to be careful in the 2nd half of the test since he got heavier as we went, and I said that I thought it was a strength issue but would definitely work on it. I didn't get a chance to go get the test before we left for the night, but when I went back the next morning I was pleased to see that we got a 28.5!! There were several 8's and the comments were very positive.
On Saturday it was even colder than the prior 2 days, and we were scheduled to jump our first round at 2:18 and do dressage at 4:30. It promptly started to "precipitate" around noon, and by the time I had to get on it was full out snowing/sleeting!! Trouble handled it well, we did a quick warmup and trotted right straight into the big arena to jump the course. At this point there was no one around but the officials and jump crew, but Trouble stayed in a great canter rhythm and jumped around like a star. I could barely see through the snow, but we managed to find our way and I was very proud of him for handling it so well! I think the weather actually held him from the fences so he wasn't as eager to scoot away as he has been lately. Dressage was up next, and we did a quick warmup again as he felt a little lazy. He was really light in my hand and willing to bend, so I was excited to ride a steady, balanced test and improve on our score from the day before. We did just that, he was quite rideable and I was really conscious of watching his balance in the 2nd half of the test. If I could change anything, it would have been the free walk - I didn't ask for enough stretch and I know he's capable of more. The attention to detail paid off....when I looked at the scoreboard the next day, I saw the amazing score of 22.0 next to our names!!! We had gotten the lowest score out of all the divisions! I am still a little shocked that this actually happened, but I am just thrilled to continue with Trouble's training and see how far we can go. The test had four 7's, and the rest were 8's and even one 9 on the left lead canter depart! It's definitely one to keep on the fridge for a while :)
On Sunday they ran the divisions lowest to highest, so we were lucky to go early. I think we did a bit too much warmup and ended up having to wait at the in-gate which he was not a fan of. I was probably the least happy with our final ride...I felt like I had to really ride up to the first fence, and after we jumped it, he took off and I never quite regained control. He was running through my hands, but I felt like I was doing my best to settle back and use both reins to stop him. We managed to make it around after having one silly rail, but the control was just not there. I am disappointed that everyone had to see us that way, but now we have a definite goal to work towards. I also think that he was quick because he had been in the ring previously and thought he knew what he was doing without my help. Cathy was disappointed in my position and that I had to be in his face, so we will definitely be working on that in our future lessons. The rail was not enough to knock us out of the top spot, so Trouble got to lead his very first victory gallop after taking a picture by the fish jump. All in all it was a great weekend and I am very proud of him, just have a few things to work out with the jumping before our next show in a month. I would love to try him in a Duo with some leverage for jumping since he likes the plain Duo for dressage so much....
Monday, April 11, 2011
An update
A little update on Trouble...he did the TopLine Spring Schooling show yesterday and was just great! We did some Eq. classes with harder turns, as well as some Hunter classes with plain lines, and he handled everything really well. There were a lot of people around, and the jumps were brick walls, boxes, panels, gates, etc which he looked at but still felt relaxed and listening. He also jumped the barrels in our lesson and he has been getting better and better about his canter balance. I have been riding him on the flat in a Sprenger Duo D-ring bit, which is a flexible rubber mullen mouth with a space for his tongue to fit underneath. The roof of his mouth is quite low so there isn't a lot of room for a bit in there. For jumping we've been using a Myler dee with hooks, and just attaching the cheekpieces and not the reins to the hooks. He fussed a little at first but now seems to like it. It gives a little leverage but not very much and the mouthpiece is a thinner curved snaffle so it's comfortable for him. We still need some work on slowing down after jumps, but he is very adjustable before the fence now. I'd love to work on his flying changes this week because the simple changes are pretty ugly at times between trying to slow down enough to trot and get the new lead in time to go to the next fence. Granted we've only jumped in the indoor so far, but it's a goal I'd like to accomplish nonetheless. His flatwork has been very steady and he is comfortable staying in a nice frame now. Even when he loses his balance and gets on the forehand in the canter, he stays round and doesn't flip his head! I would like to work on getting a little more bend and getting his balance better in the downward transitions. We have the Wayne Eventing Derby this weekend, so it will be a great schooling experience to get him out and let him see his first dressage arena and XC jumps!! More soon!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Progression....
Well Mr. Trouble continues to impress me....he has become a lot more settled and every ride seems better than the last. I have played around with bits and found that he goes well in a french link boucher for now. He still chomps it more than I'd like but he also listens and doesn't brace against it so we will keep it for the time being. I must say that he has been really good about retaining what I've been asking him for from ride to ride. He has become a lot more supple and accepting of the bit, and his transitions are getting smoother and less hurried. He does root the rein a little if I'm not paying attention and keeping the outside rein steady enough, so this has made me be really conscious of keeping my reins tidy!
I got to audit/volunteer at the Leslie Law clinic over the weekend and I was super impressed with him. He was very systematic with each pair and emphasized staying "with" the horse instead of against it. He also sat on just about every horse and was able to demonstrate what he was talking about. The man can certainly ride anything and make it fantastic! I loved how he sat around the horse yet kept the angle in his elbow to soft effective hands. He stressed that the quality of the canter is the most important thing and that the horses must take responsibility for the jump if you set up the correct canter. He also said that we should strive to keep the same speed that we plan to jump the fence at through the corner as well as the approach to the fence (i.e. don't change the canter after the turn). I loved the exercise that had 3 canter rails 9 feet apart to a vertical with a rolled out groundline. It made all the horses find the correct canter without the rider fussing at them before the fence. The repitition of this exercise helped most of the horses jump better.
So back to Trouble...I felt like the 32cm Prestige of Cathy's was a little too narrow for him as it was sliding a bit in our lesson last week, so I tried Nora's Kieffer again with a fleeceworks pad and it fit well. I rode him in it and he was a lot looser and happy to go forward. I really liked the feeling of riding him in dressage tack because I could get more of my leg on him and he listened a lot better to my half halts. Once he is supple and forward he just floats and is so easy to ride! Hopefully I am not jinxing us by writing this, but I think he's going to be pretty competitive on the flat if we keep progressing in this fashion. I had a lightbulb moment in the canter when I thought of "sitting on his back feet" to help him sit and lighten his front end - it worked wonders for his balance! He could only hold it for a few strides, but the understanding was definitely there!
We had our 2nd jumping lesson on Tuesday, and it was MUCH better than the first one. I rode him in Kari's Pessoa that she is loaning me, and it seemed to fit him well with the fleeceworks and I was comfortable riding in it. We started out with flatwork again, and Cathy commented that he looked a lot better and was smart about listening to my aids. We worked on a few spiral circles at the trot and he did them well. Then we came across the diagonal and I asked him to move his hind feet towards the wall. This helped him understand that he can move his hind feet independently from his front feet. His canter transitions were a lot better and we worked on collecting him for a few strides and then letting him lengthen and drop his neck a bit. Cathy emphasized that we don't want him to think that we will always make him collect, but that he is allowed to go forward in a balance when I say so. Next we worked through a little grid, starting with a placing pole to an X with a pole on the backside. I kept his trot balanced and slow on the approach and he jumped it really well. We would circle afterwards and he picked up the wrong lead the first 2 times, but the 3rd time through I was able to open my left rein and he landed correctly. Next we added a vertical one stride away, keeping the placing pole in the middle of the 2 fences. He looked a little but I softly closed my leg and he jumped quietly but with his knees to his eyeballs! We did this a few times, and the balance of his circles on the backside improved. Then Cathy made it an oxer and he jumped it well. I felt like I was in a good balance with him and kept my shoulder slow and my lower leg supportive. I need to remember to sit in the back of the saddle after we land to bring his canter back to a good balance, he sometimes pulls me forward and then gets on the forehand. Lastly we came off a right lead canter to an X with flowers on both sides, he jumped it big the first time but not stupidly, the next time around he jumped it right out of stride. He felt a little tired at this point so the canter balance was a little bit of a struggle, but I think once he is stronger it will be a piece of cake.
My ride the following day his canter already felt more balanced, like he remembered our lesson! I let him canter through some poles and he did it well. I am thinking that I'll alternate dressage days with jumping tack/pole exercises so he can continue to think about his balance in relation to poles even if we aren't jumping.
More soon!!
I got to audit/volunteer at the Leslie Law clinic over the weekend and I was super impressed with him. He was very systematic with each pair and emphasized staying "with" the horse instead of against it. He also sat on just about every horse and was able to demonstrate what he was talking about. The man can certainly ride anything and make it fantastic! I loved how he sat around the horse yet kept the angle in his elbow to soft effective hands. He stressed that the quality of the canter is the most important thing and that the horses must take responsibility for the jump if you set up the correct canter. He also said that we should strive to keep the same speed that we plan to jump the fence at through the corner as well as the approach to the fence (i.e. don't change the canter after the turn). I loved the exercise that had 3 canter rails 9 feet apart to a vertical with a rolled out groundline. It made all the horses find the correct canter without the rider fussing at them before the fence. The repitition of this exercise helped most of the horses jump better.
So back to Trouble...I felt like the 32cm Prestige of Cathy's was a little too narrow for him as it was sliding a bit in our lesson last week, so I tried Nora's Kieffer again with a fleeceworks pad and it fit well. I rode him in it and he was a lot looser and happy to go forward. I really liked the feeling of riding him in dressage tack because I could get more of my leg on him and he listened a lot better to my half halts. Once he is supple and forward he just floats and is so easy to ride! Hopefully I am not jinxing us by writing this, but I think he's going to be pretty competitive on the flat if we keep progressing in this fashion. I had a lightbulb moment in the canter when I thought of "sitting on his back feet" to help him sit and lighten his front end - it worked wonders for his balance! He could only hold it for a few strides, but the understanding was definitely there!
We had our 2nd jumping lesson on Tuesday, and it was MUCH better than the first one. I rode him in Kari's Pessoa that she is loaning me, and it seemed to fit him well with the fleeceworks and I was comfortable riding in it. We started out with flatwork again, and Cathy commented that he looked a lot better and was smart about listening to my aids. We worked on a few spiral circles at the trot and he did them well. Then we came across the diagonal and I asked him to move his hind feet towards the wall. This helped him understand that he can move his hind feet independently from his front feet. His canter transitions were a lot better and we worked on collecting him for a few strides and then letting him lengthen and drop his neck a bit. Cathy emphasized that we don't want him to think that we will always make him collect, but that he is allowed to go forward in a balance when I say so. Next we worked through a little grid, starting with a placing pole to an X with a pole on the backside. I kept his trot balanced and slow on the approach and he jumped it really well. We would circle afterwards and he picked up the wrong lead the first 2 times, but the 3rd time through I was able to open my left rein and he landed correctly. Next we added a vertical one stride away, keeping the placing pole in the middle of the 2 fences. He looked a little but I softly closed my leg and he jumped quietly but with his knees to his eyeballs! We did this a few times, and the balance of his circles on the backside improved. Then Cathy made it an oxer and he jumped it well. I felt like I was in a good balance with him and kept my shoulder slow and my lower leg supportive. I need to remember to sit in the back of the saddle after we land to bring his canter back to a good balance, he sometimes pulls me forward and then gets on the forehand. Lastly we came off a right lead canter to an X with flowers on both sides, he jumped it big the first time but not stupidly, the next time around he jumped it right out of stride. He felt a little tired at this point so the canter balance was a little bit of a struggle, but I think once he is stronger it will be a piece of cake.
My ride the following day his canter already felt more balanced, like he remembered our lesson! I let him canter through some poles and he did it well. I am thinking that I'll alternate dressage days with jumping tack/pole exercises so he can continue to think about his balance in relation to poles even if we aren't jumping.
More soon!!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
1st lesson
Last night Trouble and I had our first lesson with Cathy. I was excited and nervous at the same time since I have still been getting to know him and haven't really pushed him outside his comfort zone yet. Wellll, we did a little bit of pushing last night and I think he is going to be a *really* cool horse. He has been here for a week and I just feel like each ride gets better and better and he understands what I want from him. He is accepting the contact better and not being as rude about sticking his nose out "hunter style". He bends around my leg and is softer in the transitions than he was at first.
We started out walking for a few minutes and trying to shorten his steps a bit for a few strides and then softly pushing him out and making his neck longer. We did the same thing at the trot, really concentrating on keeping the outside rein steady and bending him with my inside leg, but also slowing the steps a bit and then pushing him out again. This will help create the "gears" in his gaits, which is the key to adjustability and rideability. I felt like he wanted to get a little quick since I have been letting him go pretty forward trying to stretch his neck down. I need to work on making him sit a little in the trot so he learns to come off his forehand and trot in a better balance. He was also trying to root a bit, so I need to be a little stronger on the outside rein when he does that. We did a little bit of spiraling in and out onto a 10 meter circle and his balance seemed to get better-he felt like he understood where his hind legs were and how to use them independently. Then we did a 4-5 loop serpentine through the whole arena. I felt like the quality of his trot was better and he was really through, but he actually bent better when we were going right than to the left, so that's something else to work on during our daily rides. Next, we cantered on a circle, working on keeping a steady rhythm and using a diamond shape with 4 points to focus on in the circle. I felt like I was losing him to the outside a little and he didn't want to bend and step under, so we spiraled in a little and he was better. He is less comfortable when I'm sitting than when I'm out of the tack, again probably a remnant of being a hunter. Cathy said that my leg is getting a little too far back at times (which is the opposite problem I was having with Roxy...ironic!), so I need to think about letting it hang by the girth and keeping my toe out a little more.
We moved on to jumping a little X with a placing pole, he was forward and happy to jump but landed a bit quick and didn't want to come back right away. We worked on approaching in a slower trot, keeping my shoulder slow at the base and letting him jump up to me. We incorporated a rail on a circle after the X, and he struggled with coming through the turn to the rail, he wanted to drift out off the circle. I think this had a lot to do with his balance and not wanting to sit in the canter and turn correctly. We did this several times, trying to change the turn a little and come off the rail to make a sharper turn and he got better eventually. This is definitely an exercise to practice on my own-he needs to be MUCH sharper off my outside aids so he turns better. Next we cantered to a little vertical, sitting in the tack to keep the canter short. He got quite bold and quick to this...I'm not sure if it was just the fact that he hadn't jumped in a few weeks or since I was sitting and not letting him be on the forehand at the canter. I felt like we were fighting each other a bit on the way to the fence, and then he didn't want to turn quickly afterward. Cathy pointed out that I need to be a lot stronger with my position so he doesn't pull me forward and canter on the forehand. I need to practice sitting the canter and making him wait and collect and turn politely off the outside aids. I was happy that he was forward and wanting to jump, but we also need to come to an understanding about how to approach the jump politely and go away from it quietly :) Cathy and I talked about different bits to try, she is going to find me a jointed happy mouth and I will look through Randi's bits today as well. She was happy with his progress on the flat and said she thinks he is really smart and will figure it all out quickly. I was proud of him for working so hard after having a light week of work!
We started out walking for a few minutes and trying to shorten his steps a bit for a few strides and then softly pushing him out and making his neck longer. We did the same thing at the trot, really concentrating on keeping the outside rein steady and bending him with my inside leg, but also slowing the steps a bit and then pushing him out again. This will help create the "gears" in his gaits, which is the key to adjustability and rideability. I felt like he wanted to get a little quick since I have been letting him go pretty forward trying to stretch his neck down. I need to work on making him sit a little in the trot so he learns to come off his forehand and trot in a better balance. He was also trying to root a bit, so I need to be a little stronger on the outside rein when he does that. We did a little bit of spiraling in and out onto a 10 meter circle and his balance seemed to get better-he felt like he understood where his hind legs were and how to use them independently. Then we did a 4-5 loop serpentine through the whole arena. I felt like the quality of his trot was better and he was really through, but he actually bent better when we were going right than to the left, so that's something else to work on during our daily rides. Next, we cantered on a circle, working on keeping a steady rhythm and using a diamond shape with 4 points to focus on in the circle. I felt like I was losing him to the outside a little and he didn't want to bend and step under, so we spiraled in a little and he was better. He is less comfortable when I'm sitting than when I'm out of the tack, again probably a remnant of being a hunter. Cathy said that my leg is getting a little too far back at times (which is the opposite problem I was having with Roxy...ironic!), so I need to think about letting it hang by the girth and keeping my toe out a little more.
We moved on to jumping a little X with a placing pole, he was forward and happy to jump but landed a bit quick and didn't want to come back right away. We worked on approaching in a slower trot, keeping my shoulder slow at the base and letting him jump up to me. We incorporated a rail on a circle after the X, and he struggled with coming through the turn to the rail, he wanted to drift out off the circle. I think this had a lot to do with his balance and not wanting to sit in the canter and turn correctly. We did this several times, trying to change the turn a little and come off the rail to make a sharper turn and he got better eventually. This is definitely an exercise to practice on my own-he needs to be MUCH sharper off my outside aids so he turns better. Next we cantered to a little vertical, sitting in the tack to keep the canter short. He got quite bold and quick to this...I'm not sure if it was just the fact that he hadn't jumped in a few weeks or since I was sitting and not letting him be on the forehand at the canter. I felt like we were fighting each other a bit on the way to the fence, and then he didn't want to turn quickly afterward. Cathy pointed out that I need to be a lot stronger with my position so he doesn't pull me forward and canter on the forehand. I need to practice sitting the canter and making him wait and collect and turn politely off the outside aids. I was happy that he was forward and wanting to jump, but we also need to come to an understanding about how to approach the jump politely and go away from it quietly :) Cathy and I talked about different bits to try, she is going to find me a jointed happy mouth and I will look through Randi's bits today as well. She was happy with his progress on the flat and said she thinks he is really smart and will figure it all out quickly. I was proud of him for working so hard after having a light week of work!
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