Post-Move 2

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Britt

Our move was not quite as un-eventful as I was hoping, since my horse who normally jogs onto the trailer with much enthusiasm decided he was not going to get on. At all. The only thing I can think of that might have started this is at that barn, the trees that line the driveway have not been trimmed in ages, and I’ve noticed him spooking when we drive on or off the property, since the limbs poke into the open sides of the trailer as we pass. I mentioned this to the barn manager, who said he would take care of it, and I suppose future boarders will now benefit from it- but poor Foster is going to have to revisit his self-loading skills so that we don’t spend 20 minutes arguing about getting into the grey box of death.

Sorry, rant over.

So far he seems to have really settled into his new home. He’s got a nice big stall with a fan, and a door he can stick his head out of, which I think makes him happy. He even gets to share a barred wall with a cute little Arab mare.

His pasture is small by some standards, but I think it works well for Foster who is used to going out by himself. Again, he’s sharing a fence line with some mares, and definitely gets to see plenty of other horses around him.

The facilities at this barn are the nicest we’ve had access to- a covered arena with mirrors, which I love/hate (only hate for the moment, in that I haven’t seen myself ride in so long, and ick! Lots of things to fix!!!), and the jumping arena, both with recycled tire footing.

Tomorrow we will have a little jump lesson with N, and it will be our first ride out in the jumping arena. Hopefully it goes well! If I have the time, I’m going to try out the new toy the husband got me for my birthday- my own GoPro camera! Looking forward to many future helmet cam videos!

I got a Spiderman balloon too 🙂

We’ll be taking a break from showing, or at least Horse Trials, for a while, mostly because 1) I turn into a tomato when I ride in the heat, and passing out is not cool, and 2) I’ll be too busy with weddings and bachelorette stuff to squeeze in a show! So for a while it’s going to be all about lessons and if I can possible get in to some jumping shows (even if it means trying Hunters!), I’ll be doing that. I need to get myself in a jump arena and remember how to ride!

Speaking of riding, I have a lot of cupcakes to work off… yum!

So I apologize in advance if there are not quite as many horsey posts, as life will be taking over this summer and horses will take ~~a little bit of~~ a backburner position. Should be lots of adventures coming up, nonetheless!

Deja Vu

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Britt

Poor pony finally gets some shoes back on today, because the farrier has dealing with some serious personal challenges that are definitely more important than shoes. Sending prayers his way.

Barefoot pony…

Otherwise, we brave continue to brave the heat and humidity (heat index of 100 yesterday- gross) this week and wait to move to our new barn on Friday.

Preview of the new barn’s jumping arena

And then the last piece of news, that answer to your burning questions about the post’s title… I got ~~another~~ a new job!

You’re probably thinking, didn’t you just start a new job? Didn’t you just move Foster to your barn? Well, yes. And here I am, mere months later, doing it again. I had a job offer from one of the best companies in the country, and there’s no way I would turn it down. If I’m lucky, this job will be my last. More details to come later, when I get started in July 🙂

So once again, life is changing it all up and there will be new routines to get into, new friends to make, and certainly new adventures to go on! Stay tuned!

Show Recap: Fork CT

Posted on June 9, 2014 by Britt

Saturday seems like a crazy blur in my mind, it all happened so quickly! Maybe the time went by so fast because my watch died en route to the show (I kid you not- talk about bad timing, har har), and so I had very little grasp on what was happening when.

Dressage
After getting to the show and letting Foster munch on some hay for a few minutes (he doesn’t eat in the trailer, but digs into the same hay net at the show- weird?), we got tacked up and boogied on down the road to the show arenas. The horse I had for the day was surprisingly fresh, and just a little tense. Still, I liked the energy I had, even though he was being a little fussy in the bridle. I decided to post the trot to allow his back to come up and release some of the tension in his topline, and I think this was the right decision.

Our test felt pretty good. The couple places I know we could improve are in one corner that I didn’t prepare enough for, and those dern canter transitions. The stretchy walk didn’t have its usual stretch either, partially because Foster got distracted by the jumping going on right in front of him. Looking at the test, the judge nailed us on this- just think of what our final score would have been otherwise! Also, you’ll notice that he decided to step out in our final halt- bummer! On the bright side though, I thought the test was more forward than CHP and that in general, he was straighter and more obedient to my leg. The test earned us a 31, good for 3rd after being trumped by a stunning 20 and 24 in 1st and 2nd place.

Showjumping
Showjumping is the most blurry part of the day. After being distracted by the comings and goings of the day, I didn’t find time to walk the course before jumping. Go figure that it was probably the most intense showjumping course we have done to date. Serious bending lines, intense roll backs, and no less than 2 one-stride combinations. What the what?! I thought we were doing Novice! Walking the course was pretty much vital here, but I did without. Where I regretted it most was in the rollback from 5 to 6AB (a one-stride)- you can actually hear my “Geez!” trying to make that turn and get straight into the one-stride. Because of our disorganization, he didn’t find his spot to the first fence and then brought down the second element rail with his hind end. Add to that, a sprinkling of cross-canter, because that’s what Foster does at shows, and that was our course.

Leg needs to be more forward, but otherwise getting better! Also.. does this look big for a Novice fence to anyone?

Cross Country Schooling
After all of the memory-taxing activities were over, we went out to the cross country course! I wasn’t sure how many jumps would be available, since the Fork seems to employ mostly portable XC fences in their course. There definitely was not an endless supply of fences, but there was enough to play over, given that Foster was already somewhat tired from dressage and showjumping. So we played around the water complex for a while, and Foster was an absolute champ over everything. I felt like I was actually riding, instead of coasting around to the next fence like I had done in showjumping. With a smile on our faces, we called it a day and headed for home.

Upbank combination:

Water-upbank-fence:

More water complex fun:

Impression on the parents
I think it’s safe to say that Foster redeemed himself this weekend. He put on his game face for sure, and showed off his chill demeanor and sweet disposition. While you can hear my mother’s gasping and um, other exclamations on the videos, she was impressed by his rideability and quietness. Bonus, that Foster did right by my sister as well, even ponying her back to the barn. I wish my dad was able to meet Foster, but it was not meant to be. Also, unfortunately, Foster managed pulled off both front shoes in the water complex, so he will be having the next few days off anyway- he earned it!

All of us with Foster at the end of the day

Pre-Show Prep Part III: Getting Prettyfied

Posted on June 6, 2014 by Britt

When you have a grey horse, or a horse that is 50% white, like, I dunno, Foster, getting ready for a show takes a little more effort than just knocking the dust off.

When you have a horse that loves to turn himself green, brown, and other sordid colors, like, I dunno, Foster (!), getting white white becomes a whole ‘nother story!

Ick, just.. ick.

Luckily, friend A was a professional groom in another life, and has spent much of our shows together teaching me the fine art of not-looking-like-a-redneck-hoodlum. A.k.a, how to groom your white horse 101.

Step 1: Shave the legs
This is a step that has to happen long before the show, maybe even before the entry goes in. About 1-2 weeks out, so the hair has a bit of time to grow back and avoid lines, I clip all 4 legs, blending the hair at the knobby parts so it’s not as obvious. Foster [used to] love laying down in his stall, and so stained knees were a trademark of his. Clipped legs make these stains easier to get out, leaves less hair for dirt to cling to, and overall provides a nice, sleek silhouette that helps the overall picture.

Step 2: Pull the mane
This is kind of a ‘duh’ for anyone showing in the English disciplines. While admittedly I am super lazy in the winter and let the mane grow to John Wayne pony lengths, for shows I like the mane to be about 5-6″ long.

Step 3: Trim the face
I know it’s becoming increasingly popular for chin whiskers in the dressage ring, but I personally prefer the well-manicured look of a trimmed up profile. Nose, jawline, bridal path, and if I feel like it, ears, all get the buzz cut treatment.

Foster got his cute little nose buzzed last night

Step 4: Wash the pony
Kind of a no-brainer here, but again, definitely required for a mostly white pony like Foster. Scrub-a-dub-dub!

Step 5: Purple the pony
This is the fun part. I fill up a small bucket with water, and pull out the handy-dandy Blue Lotion. Dab the dabber into the water until the water turns a deep purple (it doesn’t take much). Then, sponge the purple water all over the pony, until pony is as purple as a My Little Pony. Scrape off excess water, and let dry. If the tail is white as well, dunk that into the purple water as well. Ideally, we do this process the night before, and wake up to find a beautiful, sparkling white steed in the morning!

Best friend to white horses everywhere.

Post-purpling Foster- look at that white!

Step 6: Braid the pony
Another big ‘duh’, depending on what type of show you are going to. The fun part about braiding a paint is mixing the colors together! It does mean you need bands (or yarn, if you’re skilled- I’m not) in multiple colors though.

Step 7: Powder puff
Right before stepping out into the dusty show ground, Foster’s legs get a big puff of baby powder. Again, this helps them stay white and keeps the dust at bay. I’m not a big fan of show sheen because I hate the slippery feeling of it, but I think at a really nice show I would show sheen too at that point.

Powder puffed legs in action

And there you have it!

Pre-Show Prep Part II and other news

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Britt

Tonight I have A coming to watch me jump and hopefully not flub all my distances, so I really don’t have anything exciting to report as far as our rides. I left off dressaging on Monday since I was too lazy to put the stirrups back on my dressage saddle and hopped over some 2′ fences, which we mostly did get our distances to, but being 2′, didn’t really make me feel wonderful going into the show.

Saddle has no leathers on it because I finally listed this puppy for sale!

But nonetheless, I’ve been thinking about my typical pre-show week and I’m once again wondering what everyone else does the week before the show. I heard your post-show routines, and loved hearing everyone’s approach!

Here’s my ideal pre-show week…

Monday: Dressage, riding through the test
Tuesday: Dressage it up again (after all, the dressage test can make you or break you at this level!)
Wednesday: Jump! Schooling (preferably) higher than we would at the show (in order to make show jumps look itty-bitty)
Thursday: Foster gets the day off while I spend my day writing uber long lists about what to bring
Friday: Light dressage, focusing on transitions and relaxation. Pack everything humanly possible into truck and trailer

Now, obviously I’m already not sticking to the above plan, having not done dressage since last Friday, and I’ll be riding tomorrow instead of Tuesday, but the above schedule is our ideal. Something I have learned to live by is to not ride through my complete tests the couple days before the show. I find that whenever I try it, I put too much pressure on getting it perfect and get frustrated when things don’t go as planned. Instead, I find my time better spent mentally riding the test, revisiting the pattern in my head and making mental notes about establishing bend in a corner, or allowing him to move forward on a diagonal- that sort of thing.

Foster gets his window opened occasionally, since he has proved to us that the door makes a good foot rest

Foster gets his window opened only occasionally ever since he has proved to us that the door makes a good foot rest

In other news, I’m moving Foster to a new barn next week. Suffice it to say that the current situation just isn’t working out, and I would prefer Foster to be in an environment that supports our competitive ambitions with performance horse feed and footing, and offers a stable (no pun intended) turnout/stall routine. At the current barn, the horses come in only in super hot/cold weather or rain, and Foster and I both miss the routine of knowing when he will be in/out and getting some time to veg out in his stall. I’ll be moving him next Friday, and I sincerely hope we are done moving for some time after that.

For now…

Fork CT Show Prep

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Britt

Somehow, it’s June already, and the Combined Training show that seemed so far away is now just days off.

Right now, I’m feeling a lot of pressure, and I know it’s because I will have an unusual audience this weekend- my family. While my mum has come to a couple of my horse shows over the past several years, it’s basically been since high school that my parents really came to watch me compete. It should be noted that my mother taught me almost everything I know about horses, and spent many, many years successfully reselling OTT TB’s, and then running a just as successful warmblood breeding program. Her good opinion means a lot to me.

Mum meets Foster for the first time, about 30 days into my owning him

Add to that, that the last time my mother saw Foster a couple years ago (she’s only met him twice), he decided to be an uncharacteristic brat and actually ran away (kind of) with my sister. So we’ve got to prove that I did not buy myself a crazy, pig headed animal and that he is in fact the awesome-tastic beast that we all know and love.

After his bout of naughtiness, I give my sister a mini-lesson and we ended on a good note!

After being a naughty pony, Foster calms down and teaches sister about stretching.

So, I’m trying to tell myself to keep it simple, stupid, and stick with the plan of having just a couple goals for the show. The first is to again ride every corner, every turn, every fence. While my parents know I can be a ditz, let’s not go showing it off for them! I’m going to change up my warm up a little by doing a little less stretching (like, 10 minutes instead of 20) and incorporate some bright transitions instead.

And then for jumping- maintain a forward but uphill rhythm to each fence. This in addition to last show’s goal of soft elbows. I had an absolutely craptastic jump school this weekend (not his fault, but mine), which has made me lose confidence a bit, so this week I am going to get A to come check me out jumping and make sure I don’t eff up my horse before the show. Ugh.

I is good pony, I swear.

Tonight, we ride dressage!

Lesson Recap

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Britt

Didn’t I say this weekend was supposed to be relaxing? Haven’t I been whining about burnout and wanting a day off? Welp, that didn’t happen! This weekend was filled with much manual labor and design delirium, sprinkled with a *tiny* bit of horses and drinking (no, not together) instead. Anything but relaxing!

Though sometimes horses and drinking do go together, in the form of fancy-pants wine charms, and sipping while braiding…

The little bit of saddle time I got this weekend was in a showjumping lesson with Holly. My main complaint that I brought to her was about the show- I noticed in all of our showjumping pictures (see #6 in particular) that he was jumping over his shoulder terribly. His knees were still tight, but there was no lift in his elbow, and we got around the course mostly by his over-jumping things. The only fence he jumped in good form was the oxer I buried him to going into the 2 stride (picture 13).. so, I wanted her thoughts on what was going on.

To start with, we went over a small exercise of pole-vertical-pole. It was set up on the tight side, to make him rock back on take-off instead of lobbing himself over the fence like a lazy pole vaulter. I definitely struggled with the exercise, which quickly unveiled a habit I didn’t realize I had- squeezing him and throwing him at the fence in the last two strides. So, we worked on my establishing the canter I wanted early and then maintaining it all the way to the jump. Big difference there!

Foster’s best pretend grumpy face

After that, we worked through a one-stride with a pole in the middle with the same canter in mind- forward and uphill at the same time. He was jumping beautifully, so we deduced the over-the-shoulder jumping at the show was likely because he was strung out. Since one of my main goals for the show was to go for time with the forward pace, this makes sense to me- next time, I need to be forward but more packaged in my approach.

The rest of the lesson was spent on a short course that included the combinations, a tight turn, and a long approach, all focusing on the quality of the canter I needed to each element. Foster was extremely rideable, and for once I actually felt confident in my jumping abilities! I remembered the good advice my friend N gave me earlier in the week and didn’t get a single comment on my elbows (score!). Double bonus that my bum didn’t feel like it weight 10,000 lbs and I was able to stay out of the saddle the whole lesson! Woot! Now if I can just keep riding like that, all will be well.

Happy and ready to go back home!

I wish I had photos to share with you guys, but unfortunately I was there by myself! But that’s ok, our next show is only a week and a half away! Can you believe it’s almost June? Crazy!

Moving Mountains

Posted on May 23, 2014 by Britt

After putting in some serious overtime this week, I think I am finally making progress on my giant to-do list. And, husband and I had a lovely date night/night off to boot.

I had an excellent mini-lesson with best friend N, who has coached me in the past and has wonderful ways of explaining things that just stick with me. We revisited ‘belly button to pommel’, added ‘underarm to bra’ (to help my arm/elbow position), and worked on getting Foster sharp to my aids with some rather bright simple changes and crazy angled fence exercises. Lots of wisdom to remember moving forward! We also jumped 3’3″ for the first time in a while, and it’s making me wonder if I could do a Training CT in the near future.. probably not, but I’m thinking about it! I have another showjumping lesson tomorrow with Holly tomorrow, and we’ll see how it goes.

Ignoring my crap position, I think Foster could do Training here.. maybe...

Ignoring my crap position, Foster thinks he could do training here.. maybe…

Outside the realm of horses, I have multiple freelance projects I’m working on and hope to dedicate this weekend to wrapping some of them up. Should have some fun designs to share with you next week!

Remember to thank our soldiers, past and present, and have a great Memorial weekend y’all!

Our Post-show Routine

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Britt

As the glow surrounding the show starts to wear off, I’m starting to look forward again to getting back to the grind and working on the weaknesses illustrated during competition.

Foster always gets the day off after any serious taxing day, such as a private dressage or jumping lesson, and any show. Then on day 2 post-show I like to get him moving and stretch, stretch, stretch. I find it’s a nice way to ease back into work and release any soreness-related tension he might be harboring still.

Day 3, I generally do some kind of dressage work, but not at a typical intensity. Then day 4 we’re back to our normal routine of either a 45 minute dressage session or light jump school.

So that’s my routine. What do you guys like to do after a show? Do you give lots of time off, or get back to business right away?

Show Recap: Novice at Carolina Horse Park

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Britt

Spoiler alert- I’m about to brag on my horse.

But before that, let’s recap on the goal(s) for this show. Primarily, don’t do anything stupid. Ride every fence/movement. And then secondly, allow for the forward pace (i.e, go pony go!) and have soft elbows.

Dressage
We arrived on Saturday and first thing I hopped on and schooled dressage, which turned out to be OK, but exhibiting some tension in his neck and back. So Sunday before our test I spent the first 15-20 minutes solely on stretching work. This definitely helped with the relaxation, but got him a little flat with his movement. I made the decision to sit the trot and use my seat to get him moving a little more up. So with that, we went in to do our test.

Overall, I felt like the test was pretty good. Sure, we had a bobble in our canter depart, and he ran into the fence in our walk/trot transition (at least he didn’t take it out this time!), but I was really proud of myself for riding every corner, and preparing at every diagonal and centerline. I think the judge was a little rewarding, but here’s what she thought:

5 8’s! Booyah!

And here’s the video of the test.. Other than my chair seat, I know we could improve a bit with the impulsion and forward energy, but otherwise a respectable test in my book. Also- I have to call out the ‘beautiful turnout’ comment by the judge. My friend A was my eyes on the ground, coach, and groom, and every time she helps me get ready for a show we get this comment! Kudos to her!

Showjumping
There were a ton of professionals in my large division of 18, so my 31.3 test landed me tied for 7th headed into showjumping. Watching the showjumping go, we noticed a lot of people getting either poles or time penalties. I have faith in Foster’s handiness to get around the course, so our warm up focused on getting a good pace and keeping my elbows soft and following. I think the pace held up through the course (with again unfortunate counter cantering from 6 to 7), though we got seriously stuck heading into the 2 stride combination, and the last 3 fences are as a result… fugly. But clean and clear and onto XC!

Cross Country
After walking the course twice (I was not going to get lost this time), I felt like this was a nice, inviting course to build confidence in horse and rider, and the technical and terrain questions were really appropriate to the Novice level. Here’s a look at the jumps:

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Goofing off while looking at the jumps.. we’re not in Beginner Novice anymore!

The fences I was worried about, and planned to ride aggressively to, were 3 (the skinny), element 9A of the sunken road, and the second bank. But as I rode through the course, I don’t remembering using my bat at all! Foster locked on to every fence and I didn’t feel an ounce of hesitation- he ate it up! All the photos show his ears perked and a confident expression on his face, which makes me swell inside with happiness. We came through the finish flags with 1 second to spare!

Wrapping up

Ending on our dressage score of 31.3 earned us a fourth place ribbon. Considering the seriously stiff competition, I never imagined placing, and feel really good about future Novices this year. I am heartened by the thought that we can definitely improve on our score, and… we checked off our major goal for 2014!

~~Get a 65% or better on dressage and go double clear in show jumping and cross country.~~

Check!

I also need to give credit where credit is due… This weekend would not have been nearly as successful or fun without A by my side! And if you are reading this, A, thank you again!

Next horse trials, maybe this summer!