another show! (proving why we're not hunters)

Naturally, because we had show plans mother nature decided to dump one or two more inches of snow on us, despite it being officially spring. Nbd tho - show day dawned beautiful with the expectation of sun and highs in the upper 50s. We'll take it! 

In typical schooling show fashion we spent a lot of time waiting around. Isabel was a total pro tho (shocking exactly nobody) and hung out with me in the arena (dozing, actually) while I spectated and encouraged B through her two divisions: baby green and green horse. For a schooling show these divisions were surprisingly competitive - 12 horses each!! I was sure they would split the classes, but nope. B and Wick held their own tho - three 6th place ribbons and one 5th, all for over fences classes. 

'what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine too' - isabel

(she has her own hay net in the trailer!)

Then came a quick schooling break where I warmed up amid approx. 15 other horses (who all could only track left, apparently? except, of course, when they were jumping this way and that with no warning...) and hopped a couple fences. Isabel was very relaxed and paid zero attention to the traffic and didn't look at anything. I jumped everything, called it a win, and headed back to the trailer to wait out the next two divisions before ours. 

she is her own bridle rack lol

I entered the equitation division because it was the only one where every fence was set at 2'3"... the other options were intro hunter (2'-2'3") and low hunter (2'3"-2'6"). Right now I need to hammer into my brain that 2'3" is nbd. So really we should't be jumping anything less. And 2'6"? Soon. But not yet. Plus I thought that going the equitation route might mitigate any bias against Isabel's decidedly non-hunter way of going.

'mmmm hay.... wait, are you taking pictures?' -isabel

And actually for a couple hot minutes I thought we might be the only ones in the division. I was chatting with other riders warming up in the outdoor while we waited, and none seemed to be doing equitation, except for one ADORABLE girl (in a super chic pale jacket with matching brown CO helmet - snazzy!) and her pony, but she was just going to flat. Can we say champion of a class of one??? Haha... it was a fun thought while it lasted... :)

our two courses

Sadly we ended up having actual competition... tho oddly it was a slightly different set of riders in each class. 

I thought our first course went pretty well. The first few fences came up very nicely in stride, tho Isabel was not playing the lead game very well so we had to do our little simple change song and dance after almost every fence. At least I avoided any cross cantering tho - a common struggle for us.

The lines were measured as either a balanced 5 or a going 4, and I opted to balance. The second line coming home tho I was a little late in my efforts and we had the rail. Then I rode her to a terrible distance at the barrels and we kinda ate it... which bummed me out bc SO MANY horses were spooking and refusing the barrels, and Isabel really gave zero fucks about it and I kinda wanted to show that off... Oops. Instead she just had to bail me out with a fugly jump. Oh well. We took third in that class (of 3).

Next course started at the barrels... and, well, we pretty much ate it again, and fence 2 too for good measure. Ughhhhhh sorry mare!! At least she kinda just tuned me out and took the longer distance when things got hairy (she says, 'hang on emma i got this!'). 

We were at least much better about leads tho. I pretty much figured we were not placing in this class after those first two jumps (esp since our class size had ballooned to 7-8) and commenced chatting w Izzy through the rest of the course, which actually went ok - including the 5 stride line home. 

Then it was time for our flat class. Isabel thought we were jumping again and started a bit braced, and Judge caught us trotting at a moment when she was quite against my hand... but she settled soon and even stretched a bit on a relatively loopy-ish rein. Judge caught us again at the first canter when we misfired after getting run into the wall. Judge did not look at us again throughout the whole class... (trust me I was checking haha). 

yep this about sums it up lol

So I knew we wouldn't pin. For the record tho, Isabel was LOVELY. She has discovered how to stretch at the canter (how long have I been bemoaning our canter woes??) and it just brings the biggest grin to my face. 

we don't need ribbons to know she's a champ :)

I left the ring a little bummed, but reminded myself that this experience was all about mileage - and that my goal of boosting confidence at 2'3" was successful. I checked w B about the placings for course 2 (announced while I was flatting) just in case we maybe pulled out a ribbon. She handed me some 2nd place satin. WHAT?!? 

video of both courses here. 

feel free to chime in if you agree (or disagree) with the judge, and why!

My opinion, tho? My first round felt smoother than the second, but neither felt particularly competitive. And the first course winner had a nearly identically lovely second course, but was 3rd behind me (in fact the winner of the second course was a new entrant). Huh? Well. Color me confused, I guess. Maybe the judge just missed our first two fences??

In any case we had a really great time. It was a long day and the horses were very happy to be home again after it was all said and done. But I feel like both did a great job for showing in a different discipline, and I always enjoy the occasional return to my roots :) 

short practice is still practice

Our weekly Tuesday afternoon outings are drawing to a close - as the arena at home is rapidly improving and my request for weekly half days only lasts through March. It's been really nice while it lasted! 

Especially bc I generally get to the barn about an hour before B. It only takes 15 minutes to pack the trailer (woo hoo routine!), and I don't want to torment poor Isabel by bringing her in any earlier than necessary, so I usually have 30-45min to amuse myself around the barn.

This is a welcome change of pace from the usual rushing, and I savor it. This week I used the time to nail twine to Wick's stall so B can start hanging her ribbons. Then I hiked into the woods below the arena to rescue the big green ball that somehow escaped into the wilderness down there. I also checked out the arena itself to gauge the drainage progress. Verdict? Doing good!! 

drying out!

We probably could have ridden at home, and may end up skipping out on going to FV for the last two Tuesdays of March... but this week we definitely wanted to go bc FV is hosting a schooling show this weekend and we entered! B & Wick are doing the baby greens, and Isabel and I will be doing 2'3" equitation (try not to laugh too hard haha).

There weren't a ton of jumps set up at FV - but more than enough to make sure we each had a few options at appropriate heights. Lots of bendy lines too, which are obviously nbd after riding in the super tiny indoor at OF all winter long haha. 

Our warm up was SUPER short and sweet so we could finish before lessons started. We trotted for about 10 minutes - asking for forward and not much else. After a quick canter in each direction we started warming up over fences. Isabel was on fire and ready to GO. I still really struggle to capitalize on this energy and package it into the 'right' canter. Instead, I kinda try to balance in the corners, then start building as we approach the fence, but then pull to the base. Not a happy recipe!

pictured: moderately painful oopsie moment

Isabel is used to it tho and can save my ass more often than not. Like when we started putting courses together and I totally botched the approach to the vertical above. She made it work -- but I paid the price of having half a finger nail ripped off on my left hand. OW. 

B was kind enough to lend me a glove to cover the still-barely-attached bloody nail so we could go back and fix the line... But I was pretty much done after that. Le sigh. 

notice black glove on left hand...

I had been working on little combinations with the plan to put it all together into a bigger course... but Isabel was jumping just fine and all the mistakes were my own. And the 2'3" verticals were a walk in the park - even when I rode them terribly. So quitting early, even tho unplanned, didn't seem like much of a sacrifice for our show preparation.

video here

It meant that, given the rapid-fire warm up, our ride time was just under 40min. Kinda weak considering the driving time and arena fees... but whatever. I feel like Isabel is in a good place and I mostly just need to hang on (and WEAR MY DAMN GLOVES). 

sad panda :(

dressage check-in

We beat the ice storm on Tuesday to get out for some schooling. The arena at FV was freshly watered and mostly cleared of jumps in preparation for the last winter schooling show. That was just dandy since I wanted to work on our dressage test (presuming the fix-a-test actually happens this weekend... ugh) and there was plenty of space. 

I am a bit reluctant to share the actual footage ... but whatevs I'm gonna do it anyway. This blog helps me document our progress - including all the ups and downs. We'll never be perfect but I hope to see improvements over time. And I've never claimed to be a DQ...

Right away Isabel felt ready to work and stretch. A big struggle right now is getting a feel for Isabel stretching through her neck and over her back, vs. 'faking it' (whether through a tense, fixed headset or by curling under). But throughout the ride, I felt like we were really working together and achieving a greater degree of softness and consistency.  

trotting up center line

We schooled some spirals and circles and attempted some leg yields - but I primarily worked on transitions (walk-trot-walk, and within each gait), trying to stay soft and long and low through them. And Isabel felt great. 

preparing for 20m circle to left

After maybe 40ish minutes of this, I opted to run through the BN-A test and asked B to take video. The arena width is somewhere between 40-60m - serving nicely for the length of a dressage court. And there were jumps set up to mimic the other long side of the faux court - tho I suspect the contrived practice area was a bit narrower than 20m. Whatever, we made do (or not - the circles were all fairly abysmal lol).

free walk

This was our first time running through the whole test since the MCTA Jenny Camp Starter Trials in October, when we scored a 39.0. We did the same test at our first event in September (video of that attempt here), and scored a 41.6.

after second 20m circle to right

I'm not sure how this particular run would score in comparison - tho I want to believe it's objectively better than the last test caught on video. But really, the struggles are all the same. Every single movement needs work. But particularly our transitions into and out of both canters are sloppy and hollow, and the circles are all kinds of disorganized. And everything falls apart after the free walk change of rein. 

halt (crooked, natch)

I need to organize coming out of the free walk (including shortening my reins and adding approximately 800 half halts...). The whole second half of the test feels completely rushed, and by the time we finished our right lead canter circle (breaking early, obvi) I was so over it and just wanted it to end. So our final trot and turn up the center line and halt were all sloppy. 

Not quite sure why I get so worked up about tracking right - but a huge part of resolving our issues in this direction will be for me to just slow the F down, sit up and relax. 

That said tho - after finishing the test, I schooled that transition into right lead canter and circle at C a few more times without much improvement, then let Isabel canter up the long side of the full arena and got what might be our nicest right lead canter EVAR - relaxed and balanced and forward (but not fast). So that canter is in there somewhere - but finding it on a circle is just gonna take some more work.

video of the whole thing...

Looking at the video and subsequent stills left me a bit more discouraged than I really ought to feel. There's just so much work to do. Like my position, for example - I really believed I was doing better about sitting up tall and not perching forward... but there's clearly still much to be desired. 

And also - there were certain moments where I thought 'ooh I'll have to check back to this specific spot on the video bc this feels right.' And then on the video? Not so much... 

But I'm gonna stick with my first impression of being quite happy with the ride. Isabel felt loose and relaxed and ready to work. That's exactly the attitude and work ethic I love in her - now I just need to fix myself in order to properly channel that willingness and energy. 

Hopefully next week's clinic will provide me with more tools to this end!

we found love (in a hopelessly dusty arena)

We got to ride!!!! Finally!!! The stars aligned and B and I managed to haul our ponies over to FV for a little fun. Which meant, of course, that Isabel got to wear her new Ambitious Equestrian bridle charm for the first time:

Isabel's Charm

(see what I did there?)

This was my first time seeing it actually on her face and I couldn't be happier! Don't forget to enter FCE's first contest to win one of the charms below for yourself!! Entering couldn't be easier - just comment on that post saying which charm you prefer (or list multiples to be entered in multiple drawings). 

contest charms, from left to right:

green gem & swarovski, blue bead & flower, golden angel wings

Anyways, it was so nice to get out. My truck looked so sad all snowed in - it wanted to be liberated! Fortunately even with highs back to the low 20s, Sunday's glorious 45* melted off quite a bit of snow and cleared the roads - so no concerns about getting stuck. I kinda laughed at myself about how similar the weather was to that time I whined about it being too cold to haul out... Funny how 2 months can change things.

The only bummer about the melt followed by below-freezing temps is that all the walkways are iced over now... But hey, that's what used stall shavings and manure is for right?? Our BM covered all the paths with this dirty concoction and it works perfectly to make everything nice and safe. Just not very nice to look at... 

not that I'd ever spare you from a picture tho lol

Back to the ride tho - I think the horses were happy to get out. Isabel was on FIRE! I really focused on trying to be tactful and not fight with her - while also coaxing her into some real work. This meant trying not to get her 'stuck' or feeling boxed in - I really wanted her to stretch and loosen up (esp after over a week off). 

We walked for a loonnng time and focused on rhythm rhythm rhythm, while trying for almost-shoulder-in down the long sides, serpentines, a few steps of leg yielding here and there, circles and changes of direction. Isabel understands all this - but tends to 'run' through it. So I really wanted her to keep exactly the same rhythm and stay relaxed. 

I also tried to focus on my own seat and upper body position, and think of 'pushing' my hands forward asking her to reach forward into the contact. Not entirely sure we were successful there - but we WERE successful at keeping a lid on it and not getting into any fights. And Isabel agreed to use all her energy and fire and power for good rather than evil. I'll take it! 

it was soooooo dusty

Our transitions (both up and down) still need a lot of work - but are maybe satisfactory about 50% of the time, a definite improvement. Right lead canter is still our same crappy right lead canter, but I really didn't push it in this ride - just asked seriously for a couple nice steps with correct bend and left it at that. Since that's where we're most likely to fight, I don't want to push it when our riding is so infrequent...

Then we hopped around the jumps for a little while - with everything set between about 18"-2'3" again. Isabel was CHARGING the warm up crossrails that we trotted, and I had to grab mane a few times to avoid getting super left behind...  But she cantered in really nicely to everything else, maintaining a steady rhythm and finding pretty good spots. We got deep to a few (as usual), but nothing super chippy and no real 'splat' moments. 

you can see where i brushed the dust off - i swear i groomed her!! 

I spent some time schooling single fences on the center line, turning different ways each time and trying for the lead. Isabel figured out how to land on her left lead when we started riding indoors consistently (I think the tighter space and turns helped there), and she's pretty handy now. Hopefully we can keep it up outdoors too! 

And she didn't look at anything today either - no 'impressed' leaps over the fences, and no stops. We did the same bending line from red gate to white gate that we did last time (when the red gate was 3' and then she stopped at the white gate twice in a row). The fences were both about 2'3" this time and she didn't look at either once. 

But we kinda botched the bend a few times in a row - getting 7.75 strides over and over again. If I had better instinct for the jumpers I would have sliced the red gate and rode it straighter in 7. But... instead I added more curve to fit the 8. Whatever, it worked and I was happy. And VERY happy with Isabel - she's pretty much my favorite :)

dusty smiley face lol

show prep + riding a different horse

B and I headed off to FV again earlier this week to get in our last solid school before this weekend. We'll have a lesson on Saturday, per usual, and then Sunday is show time!

We reviewed the dressage test in the car ride over and talked a bit about how we could practice the individual pieces. Unfortunately, the jumps at FV are currently configured so that there isn't really space for a true 20m circle -- shocking given how big the arena is! But we made do. 

an accurate representation of each horse's personality

I mostly worked on steadiness - esp through transitions - and trying to get some actual right bend without instigating a hissy fit that disrupts our rhythm. It was more or less successful. And if our tests on Sunday go anything like today's ride, it will be a true and accurate demonstration of our current level of training - which is the whole point, right?

love her dramatic windswept mane lol

We will have about 30 minutes with the judge - time to do the test once, then spend 20ish minutes talking about it, with the judge likely schooling us on different elements or movements, and then another run through of the test. And I'm pretty sure both tests are fully scored and placed, which is kind of cool. But it really is a glorified lesson.

three stride line - love the brick walls!

B is riding BN-A too (despite Wick's incredibly elusive left lead) with the hope that the judge will be able to help them out with it. In the meantime, I hopped on Wick to see if I'd have any luck or ideas (spoiler alert - I didn't haha). 

Ooooh boy it's been 5 months since I've ridden anything other than Isabel... and that may or may not have been obvious lol. Wick is green green green and kind of dead to the leg, plus he leans super heavily on the right rein. So uh, I got quite the work out just trying to walk and trot him around, while B giddily zipped around on Isabel. 

purple panel that was very impressive last time, but boooooring this time

Then we switched back to hop over a couple things. This was the second time we came to FV and found everything set up BIG. Everything used to usually be set around 12"-2' (with maybe a couple 2'3" options), but that has not been the case lately. There was an X tho, and we adjusted the brick line, but otherwise left things the same.

according to my *very* rough measurements, this gate is 3'

(meaning i noted where it hit my hip, then measured to that point later haha)

And Isabel was fine. She was actually kinda hauling me to the fences - leaving the ground pretty awkwardly once when we trotted the white X below haha. Like, c'mon mare - just chill out and wait until you're actually *at* the fence! She jumped the brick line well a couple times, as well as the single purple and blue below, and the earlier purple panel that we jumped last week. 

jumped these 3 individually (purple, X, white gate) but didn't put the bending line together... maybe next time haha

So I got brave and tried the big red gate bending to a smaller white gate (3rd element in bending line above). Isabel jumped the red gate ok but then swapped just her front lead on the turn to the white gate and stopped when we didn't hit a very nice distance. Nbd, circled to represent and the mare stopped again! 

She got in trouble that time and we jumped it twice without issue (with me counting strides out loud to force myself to breathe and help establish a better rhythm)... Silly girl. Part of me wishes I hadn't pushed it when she was going well... but simultaneously, we're gonna have to do more than 5-6 jumps at a show, so... it's maybe better to face these issues in schooling?  

Not really sure where these stops are coming from - but it seems like there's been a stop in almost every jump school recently. Maybe it's just a natural part of trying to jump bigger things? Like maybe it's harder for Isabel to scramble over a bigger fence when I screw up? Idk... 

I'm not super worried about it, but I also don't want to see a trend develop! Have you had to deal with something like this?

building a bigger flea jar

Recognize the quote?

B and I took the horses over to FV earlier this week to school. Hauling out so often is exhausting and it sucks paying an arena fee every ride... but there are benefits too. For instance, we got to the barn around 3:00, and were pulling out of the driveway with a packed trailer and two groomed horses at 3:35. And all done without feeling hurried (it helped that the trailer was already hooked up). 

Me thinks this bodes well for show season! 

And naturally the newest trial saddle had to come along for the ride too :)

There were lessons going on at FV when we got there - which kind of surprised us, but the trainer was cool with us riding around. She had also moved all the jumps to set up new and twisty courses. This was not the standard side-diagonal-side we have come to expect, no no. There were all sorts of crazy things going on. And with the exception of an X and two 2'-ish fences, everything was set between 2'3"-2'9".

The above four fences kind of zig-zagged through the center - with the red brick wall fence serving as the in jump to a three-stride line. The purple fence in the foreground was 2' and served as a warm up fence.

In any case, my attention was focused on the saddle and our flat work. Isabel did not disappoint (and neither did the saddle, for that matter). It kind of amazes me the improvement in our contact just in the last two-ish weeks. Like something has 'clicked.' 

Isabel was soft and responsive and not particularly fussy. I like it!!! And when we moved on to jumping, she stayed in this really lovely gear. It was almost like you could just put her onto a certain pace or rhythm, and she'd stay there until you asked for something different. 

I was feeling pretty unsure about the height of most of the jumps set up, so we just started over an X before moving on to the small brick wall below, and the purple jump a few pics back. Isabel felt fantastic tho - taking all the jumps in stride and on a light contact. 

Plus I figured out pretty quickly that this trial saddle is AWESOME - and much to my own surprise, I started going for the bigger jumps too. And it felt GREAT! I felt super secure in the saddle, even when Isabel got serious air over some of the 'lookier' fences.

There was one bobble at the yellow oxer below - we approached on the right lead from a 90-degree turn off the rail with either a forward 3 or balancing 4 strides to the fence (you can see the approach in the zig-zag pic above). The first time I didn't see a spot and Izzy stopped. Can't really blame her - tough approach to a big fence with zero piloting... But it was nbd, we just circled and jumped it twice before moving on. 

All in all, I was THRILLED with the ride. I'm not exactly sure what's different, but lately our rides have all been super positive. Feels good man, feels good :)