For Jack, showjumping (hell, jumping in general) is a work in progress.
OK, let’s be serious, I am a showjumping (riding) work in progress.
But it’s occasionally helpful to see how far we’ve come. It gives me hope for the future, at the very least. Here’s one of our latest courses, at Virginia 2 months ago. We’ll start here and go back in time…
Just going through the exercise of checking out our videos is illuminating. Like, I didn’t realize that it was 7 months ago that we were just trying to jump in a non-bolting fashion…
And though just 18 months ago we were, well, not scary, we weren’t exactly put together either. My leg was swinging like a monkey in a tree. I did not have the strength to keep my upper body back, and rode in a crouch with my leg stuck out front for balance. And ‘put him together’ essentially meant ‘try not to throw chance to the wind that you’ll get your spot’. PS- skipping to 18 months since we were out of action June through October last year due to bone bruising up front.
Oh, and while we’re reminiscing, let’s not forget our ditch issues… like at the Boyd Martin 20 months ago where I almost ran over said Olympian attempting to go across the ditch at Quail Roost…
And speaking of XC schooling… holy bejeezus what about this gem, almost 2 years to the day from now, where maiden fences were a win and I was so darn proud of that BN fence at the end.
… and to end, the same week, 2 years ago, when we were jumping baby baby fences and just getting the mere basics down.
All I can say is wow. I’m so glad to have done this exercise. It makes me so excited to see where we are going to go in the future, and I’m beyond proud of how far we’ve come.
I’ve owned the #BarbieDreamHorse for just a couple weeks more than 2 years now. Being in a program has done more for us than I ever imagined, and these videos don’t lie.
Red on the Right 
You two look amazing. Thank you for being so honest on your blog. I’m currently where you were 2 years ago – doing the baby fences, getting the basics etc…. and sometimes reading all these blogs with people so far beyond that gets a bit overwhelming for how far I have to go. But maybe I can get there too?
It’s tempting to only show the best side of ourselves on social media, but the candy-coated version of life is rarely true for people, and it definitely isn’t for horsepeople. Jack and I have had so many ups and downs but as long as we put one foot in front of the other, it’s progress. You will DEFINITELY get there!
You both look so good and have come a long way in 2 years!
Thank you- it’s so satisfying seeing the progress!
Yes! It’s so easy to fall into that rabbit hole of how we’re not “there” yet, and that makes it even easier to forget how far we have come. You and Jack really are a team now.
So, so true. It’s amazing how we’re always chasing after the next goal- it’s probably a fault that we don’t appreciate where we are more often.
The media is one of the (many) things I love about blogging — it makes comparison SO much easier and really shows you how far you’ve come. When you’re working hard every. single. day. it’s so easy to lose sight of the progress!
Honestly, it is one of the reasons that blogging is worthwhile- to gain perspective and be able to appreciate the journey in earnest!
Wow, so fun to look back and see so much progress. You should feel proud about how far you have come and how great you guys are doing now!
Thanks! I think everyone should do this- it’s so gratifying!