2017: the new 2015?

If the internet is to be believed, 2016 was a pretty disproportionately shitty year for many, many folks. Probably for lots of difference reasons... and maybe at different intensity levels.... But all the same I count myself among those who were very happy to close the book on 2016.

Last year my horsey world unraveled slowly and subtly at first, and then kinda all at once. And despite my feelings of persistence and determination, spring ticked into summer with every day taking me a little further away from my goals and hopes. Almost uncontrollably so. It was.... disheartening, to say the least.

maybe the only good thing to come of summer '16

The year ended on a very high note tho: with our star ottb Charlie Murray coming home. And ever since, I've been slowly trying to wipe away the bad memories and anxieties associated with last year's experiences.

Our recent outing at Fair Hill was Charlie's first sort of official "revisionist history" opportunity. When Isabel and I went to Fair Hill last year, I still very much had my eyes on all things novice and believed that we'd be able to squash our stadium demons to get back to that level reasonably quickly. Of course.... the technical elimination at that event (in stadium, no less) dampened those hopes a bit.

Charlie, bless his soul, cruised through his own stadium at Fair Hill like a breeze (albeit one that doesn't turn right haha) despite me musing aloud about having been eliminated on the same course a year prior. Score 1, Charlie. History: 0.

1st xc course? nbd,  according to charlie

Next up on the docket will be Charlie's biggest test yet: MCTA's Jenny Camp. This event and I have a .... checkered history haha, having only completed all three phases once of my three attempts.

In 2014, it was my second ever event - and first ever at a brand new venue where I had never seen any of the jumps before. Isabel blew me away at that event with how good she was - but also dumped me at a mud puddle two jumps from the finish line on xc. That.. sucked haha, but at the end of the day it felt like a win knowing that actually, Isabel and I maybe could make good work of this eventing thing after all.

Then the following spring we came back out with our eyes firmly fixed on redemption: cruising to an easy 3rd place finish at Jenny Camp as our last outing at Intro before moving up to BN.

But last year? Alas, last year Jenny Camp proved to be the straw that broke the camel's back. We had the most spectacularly shitty stadium round. Like. Stupidly depressingly shitty. I withdrew from cross country and retreated to the trailer to cry into a beer can for the rest of the afternoon. And.... that was basically the end of my 2016 season right there.

isabel only sneered into her beer can

So.... with Jenny Camp now looming as our imminently approaching next event, I'm feeling a bit apprehensive.

It will be Charlie's most technically challenging outing to date. The dressage courts on grass will probably be fine. And he jumped stadium on grass at Fair Hill (albeit, at a lower height) so hopefully that will be fine too. Cross country will be his longest track with the most jumping efforts to date, complete with ditches banks and water.

Again, I'm hoping that all will be fine. Actually I'm starting to get kinda excited about it. It's weird - this is maybe one of my favorite events bc of how firmly interwoven it is with the landmarks in my horsey history.

no pressure bro, but... i'm kinda relying on you

So while it may be a smidgen unfair to ask Charlie to whitewash away all my bad memories from the past... perhaps it's not unreasonable to expect that he might be ready and eager to break out of Isabel's shadow and start working on his own chapter in earnest.

We shall see! Do you ever feel like you have history with an event or venue? Or like some of what you work on with your horse today has something (or everything?) to do with a horse of your past? Or maybe you have an easier time wiping the slate clean each day and taking the horses or events as they come?