Chair Seat Woes

Posted on June 29, 2016 by Britt

I’ve been fairly honest on this blog about my lack of [any] formal education when it comes to equitation. My training to this point basically revolves around not hitting the horse in the mouth over fences, and staying on. Not so formal training includes friends in the arena yelling at me (which I invite). So it comes as no surprise that after years of riding dirty stoppers, run-aways, and the occasional naughty ~~train~~ Irish Draught, I’ve developed a very defensive jumping position- namely, the chair seat.

Starting young with the chair seat

Part of my issue in the past has been that my stirrups have been too long, and going back to some images of me riding it’s fairly obvious that’s lending itself to my poor eq.

Hello, ultra long stirrups. Hello, chair seat.

I’ve been ~~cajoled~~ convinced to shorten my stirrups up in the extreme, and this week bumped up into stirrup leather territory that has never been punctured.

Blurry ass screen grab complete with youtube line. Now that's quality media.

This week’s attempt. (Blurry ass screen grab from complete with youtube line. Now that’s quality media right there.)

Yesterday was a bit better than this even, as with every stride I reminded myself to attempt to “point my knees down” and post back into my heel. All went well at the walk and the trot, but my attempts at two-pointing without chair leg at the canter sent my ankle into fiery spasms that took minutes to recover after every session.

Chair seat, my oldest friend.

Some of my struggle is obviously built into my muscle memory at this point, but all of the photos here have another thing in common (other than my two year old self, because duh): the saddle.

The Marcel Toulouse Marielle Monoflap

I remember when I was shopping for a new saddle (probably 8 years ago), I was specifically looking for a saddle that had a more forward stirrup bar. Now I wonder if the forward flap and stirrup position are adding to my frustrations to find a more solid lower leg. When I have my leg completely under me, it hits the rear block. But, I certainly don’t want to blame my poor position on the tack if that’s not the culprit either.

Blurry screengrabs- we’re full of them here. And the one of very few images where my eq doesn’t entirely disgust me over fences.

At this point the tack issue is probably all moot, since it’s not really worth saddle shopping until I know what equine prince charming I’ll end up with. However, next weekend I’m on the horse hunting trail again and trying anywhere from 4-7 jumping horses, and I’d rather not feel like more of a numpty than I normally do.

[Edit: scroll down to comments to see various video progressions of the chair seat, with this video as being what I consider my “best” position in this saddle]

Saddle experts and eq princesses, chime in- what can I do to find my balance and not be disgraced by my chair seat woes? Is there anything I can do with my current saddle to fix the issue? Is it the saddle at all?

Let’s Discuss: Neck straps

Posted on June 28, 2016 by Britt

Not too long ago, amidst some random equestrian googling (side conversation: am I the only one who does this?), I came across an interesting little ditty featuring the prodigious William Fox Pitt touting neck straps.

As one of the many (I assume) that falls prey to jumping anxiety ~~from time to time~~, I’ll gladly add something to my mount’s attire to make the experience safer. It wouldn’t hurt of course if the addition of a bit of leather around my horse’s neck also increased the size of my jumping balls. (Which are scientifically proven to be a smaller, much less impressive size than my dressaging balls, but yet still prove to be massive compared to my trail riding balls. There’s a difference.)

A time when I had bigger balls. Kind of. Actually I remember being terrified walking that course.

My original assumption regarding neck straps was that they came in two forms- a leftover stirrup leather, or a belt. The C4 belts seem to be growing in popularity recently in the eventing world, and little wonder- we eventers go ballistic over anything that can be customized to our cross country colors.

It turns out though that there are a variety of neck straps on the market though- ranging from colorful nylon versions akin to the C4 belts, to thick stirrup-leather styles, and more. The type that appeals to me most is the Nunn Finer version, but I may just be falling prey to the clever product description. Because who doesn’t need an Oh Shit strap?

So, blogosphere- I want to know- how many of you follow WFP’s lead and don your horse’s neck with some extra hardware? Have any of you found the neck strap to be useful, or otherwise? Is this just a cross country thing, or does it translate to showjumping or even flatting as well? Comment with your thoughts!

A show! There’s a show on our calendar!

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Britt

Well, sort of. A schooling day, really. But if it’s including a judged dressage test that’s kind of like a show, right?

It occurs to me that Riley has never been to a competition before, and his off-property experience is limited to random/minimal stints in training and trail riding. And judging by how bug eyed he was when he first came to me and experienced a busy boarding barn (not that he acted out of sorts in any way, shape or form), I imagine a show environment may knock his socks off.

So when I noticed a schooling day before a horse trials at the Carolina Horse Park that includes $15 jumping rounds, and a $25 ride-a-test for dressage, I got excited. This is the perfect low-key event to dip Riley’s hooves in the world of showing.

I’m thinking right now that I may sign up for Beginner Novice A for our dressage test, but that may even be ambitious given that it includes canter departs. Riley canters, and he’s coming along, but it’s where his lack of fitness and strength are weakest, and so getting it in the small sized dressage court may be tricky. I assume that Riley will give zero craps about the dressage arena himself, as long as I’m clear that it is not a jumping obstacle. But hey, for $25, it will be a learning experience.

As for jumping, since we have yet to put a whole course together, I may just stick to 18″. I have no idea how the atmosphere of lots of ponies/flags/people etc will affect him, and that with the heat of mid-July, it could be the safest way to go.

On the whole, I expect for a greenie learning experience, perhaps nothing as glorious as a full blown horse trial or recognized dressage show. But given that I haven’t ridden into a dressage ring since February of 2015, it’s hella exciting to me.

Riley’s Sister

Posted on June 22, 2016 by Britt

When we purchased Ivan as a two year old stallion, part of our purchase agreement included breeding rights to two of the former owner’s mares. So in addition to Margo the haflinger (which we all know how that turned out), Ivan also covered two thoroughbred mares.

Sadly, one of the mares passed away (colic I think?) while still pregnant. The other had a sweet little grey filly called Lola.

Through circumstances I can’t quite recall, Lola also ended up with us for a time.

With brother in the background

Lola eventually moved on to another home, since at that point in time we were pretty much at capacity with 4 young horses at home in addition to the usual crew.

It’s amazing how time flies, and Lola will also be ten this year. But memories persist!

Adventures in Horse Shopping: Where do the horses come from?

Posted on June 21, 2016 by Britt

After seeing yet another horse this weekend, I’m starting to feel a little mentally exhausted by the sheer volume of horses I’ve considered. Not that I don’t recognize how privileged I am to be able to even consider buying a horse, because I know there are plenty of pony-princesses like myself out there who cannot yet realize that dream. But even acknowledging how fortunate I am, it still gets a little overwhelming from time to time.

Horses come from everywhere it seems. I have one auction that I absolutely love, and considered going to, but it didn’t work out this year. The majority of the horses I have seen I found (or someone pointed/tagged me to) on facebook. I also search warmblood-sales.com like a fiend, as well as dreamhorse.com – my two personal favorite databases for horse sales. And two horses so far have come about through friends/acquaintances in the local horse world.

I’ve so far looked at 11 horses. That’s if I remember them all correctly. [Note: After publishing this I did remember at least one more, but I’m too lazy to update the infographics, so there]

Breakdown by gender

It’s no surprise that since I’m a gelding kind of gal that the majority of the horses I’ve looked at fit that category, But I have branched out a few times otherwise.

Age, I’m less picky about, though I’m fairly determined to stick within my 3-10 age range. The mode for this set of horses would be 3 year olds, likely because a nice 3 yr old is more apt to be in budget than a nice 6 or 7 year old.

Breed also tends to vary a little bit. I’ve now seen two Thoroughbreds, 3 Warmblood crosses (mostly part TB), and 3 “pure” Warmbloods, which I’m considering as either a registered warmblood, such as a branded Oldenburg, or a cross of two registered warmbloods, such as a Holsteiner X Trakehner, with little or no TB/other breed influence. The “other” category gets pretty interesting- this including the Teke, a Connemara cross, and a Dutch Harness horse cross gelding.

Obviously I haven’t yet found my match, but the quality of horses I’m seeing is on the up and up. Maybe because new horses are hitting the market? Maybe because I’m so sick of driving that only the really strong candidates will make me strap myself into my car for more than a 45 min drive? Who knows.

They keep coming, and I’ll keep looking until I find the one. He’s (or she’s) out there though, I’m sure.

It’s a Baby Kind of Day

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Britt

Later this afternoon, I will officially become “Auntie Britt”, so in celebration of all things baby, I give you….

*drum roll please*

baby Riley photos!

1927687_525026076489_6688_n Seriously though, Riley was such a sweet little baby. He really threw us for a loop when he first came out- I mean, the palomino Haflinger gene is strong, and then of course Ivan being grey… We all wondered if he was going to be some kind of dun or something. Those with extensive knowledge of color heredity- feel free to chime in! 1927687_525026086469_8356_n

1927687_525026106429_549_n

Because artistic framing around a muddy photo makes it better

Oh so very bum high here

Regarding those parents, for you color theorists out there, this is mum:

1928778_525028701229_7021_n

And this is dad:

1923337_541191500849_8101_n

Happy Monday!

Jumping Riley

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Britt

Is it just me, or is a case of jumping jitters going around the interwebs these days? Well it turns out I’m not immune to them.

Yay new media! Riley showing off his newly acquired dressaging skillz

With the help of Ali I took Riley over his first (for me) jumps. He’s jumped before in his random spurts of training, but I’ve not yet been in the irons over fences. The only time I had seen him jump was years ago, being wiggly to some tiny cross rails.

Not (yesterday) today though! Riley was all game and go when it came to fences, and it was me who was looking like the numpty. My classic move, throwing my heels in front of me, came out in full force, since I was a bit nervous about how it would go.

Steering, or rather bulging, is still a bit of an issue. Because of his bendy, short neck, it’s easy for him to throw his shoulders around a turn with my opening rein aids doing nill. It’s like having a short rudder and a strong, wide boat to steer. So we’re working on those outside rein aids and blocking the shoulders.

Even considering some of our less-than-straight approaches, and though it only included a couple crossrails and an oxer, I would say the first attempt jumping was a rousing success. I’m hoping that I can learn to let go of some of my confidence issues and continue to have fun jumping, even though he’s a greenie.

Because over-fences bonus: There’s a sh*t ton of mane to grab!

Let’s Discuss: Weathering the summer weather

Posted on June 13, 2016 by Britt

Summer in the Carolinas is defined by mugginess and heat. Unless your chosen sport is air conditioned (or swimming), exercising outside in heat-stroke inducing temps, in humidity that could drown you, isn’t for the faint of heart.

As being one of the tomato-faced clan when it comes to exercise, I don’t paint a pretty picture in the summer. But pushing looks aside, continuing to ride is important to me and so I soldier on, armed with tank tops and extra water bottles in hand.

I try to ride when it’s below 90°, but that can be tricky on the most scorching days of the season. Anything above 95 is an absolute no. I also like to hide in the covered arena unless it’s ultra early or late in the day and the sun is hidden. And of course I try to watch the horse’s breathing and make sure he’s not getting overheated as well.

As the mercury continues to rise, how do you guys prepare for higher temps? Do you have any pre or post ride tips to help cope with the heat? What do you do for your horse to help him adjust?

Adventures in Horse Shopping: About that break…

Posted on June 10, 2016 by Britt

Yeah, I meant to put a pause on things, but it hasn’t really worked out that way.

Yesterday I saw a quiet hunter jumper with a great canter. Today I see another unstarted three year old (and a mare, no less! *gasp*). Sunday I’ll see another one, this time a well schooled dressage horse.

Those spots though!

For all you Teke fans, I’ve decided to hold off on him unless I learn a bit more about him. Though my greedy trigger fingers are dying to make him my next photography model, I’ve got to be smart and not get in over my head.

Gorgeous shiny creature is gorgeous.

It’s of course hard for me to share more details at the time, but suffice to say that it appears the horse hunt continues!

First Rides on Riley

Posted on June 9, 2016 by Britt

After giving Riley a few days to get over his culture shock, I’ve started getting in the saddle. Day 1 was just about walking around and letting him process the covered arena and mirrors. He thought he was very handsome at first glance, but after an initial sniff didn’t even notice that the mirrors existed.

Day 2 we started trotting and trying to maintain rhythm and direction. I know, thrilling stuff here. Besides some baby bulging through the shoulders, he’s got this one down. I got greedy and asked for a few steps of canter, which of course he ran into, but keeping balance and speed in the small covered arena was tricky so I didn’t push the matter.

Day 3 was rinse and repeat, with more emphasis on not bulging through the shoulder, at which we were somewhat successful. I added in the concept of contact and coming onto the bit, which was much more of a success. Riley is not blessed with a long swan neck, so keeping his neck soft and straight is probably going to be our biggest challenge.

Then last night, or Day 4 if you’re following along, I took him out to the outdoor ring. It’s a bit scarier in my opinion than the covered, in that there’s no view of any horses and it’s surrounded on 2 sides by a trailer park. But Riley handled it with bravado, marching around the arena, whinnying once, then becoming bored.

I warmed up by focusing on bending/not bulging and seeking contact with the bit. At the trot our main focus is regulating the rhythm, since that arena goes slightly downhill towards the gate he tends to speed up in that direction. Then we worked on the canter a little. My goal was just to get the canter, then maintain it for a couple laps in the arena. So I was pleasantly surprised when I got the canter depart within two-ish strides of my asking and we were able to repeat that a few times in each direction. Since Riley is still building up his fitness I wrapped up with that and cooled out on a long rein.

As I was driving home, feeling elated at what is seemingly such a simple ride, I was reminded of just how much working with horses means to me. I’m definitely grateful for the opportunity to work with this guy and I hope the next horse will benefit from our time together too.