With the competition season winding down and holidays looming large on the horizon, it feels like a good time to pause and reflect on Doozy's first year as my event horse!
It's been a long journey with this mare... Lots of ups and downs... From flunking her 30 day performance review to absolutely winning me over in her first jumping lesson, and everything in between - and that was just her first 3 months with me, last year's news!
So today, I wanna keep it high level -- focusing mainly on the big training milestones and competition landmarks, with a representative photo and brief memory of each ride. And obvi links to the original post should you be inclined.
sweet doozy, it's been quite a year!
Starting back in January 2024, with a decidedly ill-advised Dressage Clinic with Lauren Sprieser. I say "ill-advised" bc we were in no way, shape, or form ready to truly benefit from this caliber clinician (recall, we could barely trot a normal circle) and it was very expensive.
Buuuuuut... It was at a lovely facility close to home, with a friend (who **really** wanted the clinic to fill so she could ride in it) stepping up to help ensure we had a successful first trip off property. Verdict? #WorthIt
i tried to choose a single representative photo from each big ride this year. apparently pickins were slim from this clinic LOL
Living through that first experience shipping out to lessons with Doozy gave me confidence to sign up for our next adventure, a Jumping Clinic with Sally Cousins (slightly farther from home). Again, we needed a lot of help from very capable friends, plus a full hour of hand-walking before my lesson... But again, it was so worth it -- this lesson was a huge boost in believing Doozy might really be the horse I hoped/thought she was.
legitimately one of my favorite pics of this mare like.... ever -- pc Niamh O'Connell!
It was still slow going, tho. The flatwork in particular with this horse was (is?)... challenging to me. And we had a somewhat frustrating go at an at-home Dressage Schooling Show in February.
trying hard to do the thing, stupid white gloves and all <3
We persevere, tho, amirite?? And anyway, I serendipitously got home a day early from a trip to California (Ram Tap - loved ya!) and managed to snag a seat on the bus to XC Derby Schooling @ Loch Moy!!! Holy cow, guys, this was a great day! Sure, it took something like an hour of wandering around all the rings familiarizing before we could actually attempt to do anything "real." But once Doozy was like, "Oh, we're jumping?" We were JOMPING, MA'AM!
wherein doozy blew us all away by being an absolute rockstar
What a horse, guys. Next on the agenda was a perfect playdate with friends that, for me? Really encapsulates the types of formative experiences that are so beneficial for green horses (and nervous riders). We went to the Blue Goose Schooling Dressage Show at the Stables at Fox Crossing, wherein we completed two dressage tests (completed them quite badly, but did in fact complete them) and then headed out for a lowkey play in the adjoining xc field.
None of it was perfect, but all of it was fun.
this day really encapsulates my approach to bringing doozy along
So I tried to remember that feeling bc the very next week was, OMG, Doozy's first real "show" - Hunt Club Farm's Starter Trial!! We just did the combined test of dressage and show jumping... But still. I was pretty nervous. And probably didn't ride very well. But it was fine -- better than fine. Doozy was so so so good. Like. Ok. Hard to ride in the warm up rings, an enormous handful when she first came off the trailer... But she soaked it up, sucked it in, and was a solid citizen when it counted.
holy crap we did it!
So obviously, the next key milestone was figuring out that third phase, with an XC Clinic with Sally @ Windurra! Not gonna lie, I was mostly just hangin out on the periphery while my two friends had more advanced lessons on their N/T horses... But we jumped some stuff, played with banks, got in and out of the water, and generally learned the rhythms of an xc lesson with horses coming and going, often at speed.
Similar to the Sprieser clinic, we probably could have accomplished this at a lower cost than Windurra... But, eh, it was a great day so #yolo
we didn't jump much or particularly well, but it was a lot of fun <3
Anyway, it was around this time we started semi regular dressage lessons with my longtime trainer C. I'm not going to link to all these posts, esp bc I didn't even write about them all, but do want to emphasize the impact these lessons have had on us, esp when framed by our overall journey and timeline.
lessons <3
Tho. Lol. It's still me and Doozy we're talking about, here, so the impact in terms of performance at actual competitions will take a while to see!
But we proceed with the competitions anyway, bc we wanna!! And by late April, Doozy attended her first 3-phase Starter Trial at Fair Hill! What a day, guys. Soooooo much hand walking. Doozy was a huge handful. I thought more than once about scratching. But I didn't scratch, and am so glad for that. Doozy just went out and jumped her jumps -- esp the xc phase. It was literally the easiest part of our whole day!
holy crap we did it AGAIN -- this time ALL of it!
Sooooo. Ya know. It was starting to become apparent that, maybe this horse might actually really like this whole jumping thing. Not to mention that she was growing up and maturing considerably with each big trip off farm. We finished April with another low key reaffirmation -- a CT at Thornridge that had some bloopers but was overall another solid experience.
chaos normalized
It was around this time that I sensed we were getting into a phase I remembered from Charlie's early days. That phase where the green horse thinks they know everything. When. Cough cough, they absolutely do not. This phase, in my experience, usually involves going very fast over jumps that suddenly feel very small. Case in point: another lesson at Kealani with Sally, where we kinda had to break it down again for the mare.
doozy started getting pretty big for her britches lol
Sally encouraged me to still keep getting out and about, tho, that it was just a phase and exposure would be the cure. So we kept it up, including more lessons with Trainer C.
starting to figure out the game along the way
Because the biggie was still ahead of us. By May it was clear we'd be moving farms after having Charlie at the last place for 7 years. So all my focus shifted to orchestrating the barn moves and planning big "Last Hurrah" adventures with my longtime friends and barn mates. Including a lovely evening spent schooling the xc courses at Shawan with Amy!
had a last hurrah schooling adventure with our longtime friend Amy
In a way, I'm grateful that our next show - the MCTA Jenny Camp @ Shawan Downs - had this sorta larger external framing, bc on its own it was a pretty hard show - esp given we moved up to the 2'3 level. Doozy was almost unrideable in dressage warmup (and we had a decidedly not sympathetic judge), and extremely strong bordering on frantic in show jumping. We also had a little trouble getting out the start box on xc.
Knowing that it was an important day in terms of closing a very important and deeply meaningful chapter in my horsey life helped me keep my perspective and not get too bogged down in the difficulties of the rides themselves. It helped that the xc was downright wonderful tho, yet again. Are you sensing a theme here from Doozy?
omg we did it again AGAIN! was a little wild tho
So anyway. A few days later, we unloaded at the new barn. In retrospect, this was fortuitous timing. The move gave us space to slow down, reestablish our basics and partnership, and untangle everything Doozy had learned about jumping from the somewhat frantic feeling that begun creeping in to our jumping.
and then everything changed. for the better.
Moving barns also helped/forced me to take a fresh look at our coaching landscape. And as luck would have it, a summer clinic series with Dom Schramm popped up close to home. These lessons were hugely influential for us -- Dom had a heavy focus on reaffirming flatwork fundamentals within the jumping that made a huge difference for helping Doozy slow down, take a breath, and regain her confidence. Lessons onetwo and three linked here.
embarked on a summer series of clinics with Dom, and really figured a LOT out
Those lessons also served as an effective launch pad for getting back to my own privateer roots. As much as I'd love to completely immerse ourselves in a program, it's not realistic and I can't just wait around for someone to have time for guiding me through every activity I wanna do.
So. Armed with fresh skills, we embarked on operation "Put Together a Fall Season!" Starting with, naturally, a self-guided XC Schooling @ Tranquillity in early September. Our first time out xc since Jenny Camp. And it was a good ride. Not perfect. But good.
got serious about creating our own xc schooling destiny, #PrivateerStyle
Tho we did enjoy some propercoaching at our next outing - a Schooling Jumper Show @ Swan Lake with trainer Kelly, where we did a round at .70m in the pouring rain. Doozy was again LIT UP in all the atmosphere at the show, it was a big ask for her. But I had a plan to help her settle and feel prepared for when she entered the ring. And Kelly gave us a really solid warm up, so that by the time it was our turn? Doozy was honestly very good. Very green, but very good.
dipped a toe in HJ land in the pouring rain
If Swan Lake felt like a LOT of work for a little ride, our day at Loch Moy in late September for the Pick Your Test / Jumper Rounds was kinda the opposite. I knew we needed more exposure, and wanted to get Doozy back to this facility before the next starter trial, so we came back for a quiet day to run through our test and an easy (and tiny!) show jumping round. It still wasn't easy, but it maybe wasn't as hard?
this day was more about preparing my own head space than anything else
Anyway. I made some adjustments to Doozy's mgmt in late September, including introducing more gastric support esp re: trailering and training, and a body work session that quite possibly helped Doozy release an entire year's worth of tension from her muscles. Bc her next dressage lesson was legit lovely, and she's kinda been a new horse ever since.
doozy saw her body worker again and magically melted off months worth of ingrained tension
We went back to Tranquillity with a friend for another quick xc schooling trip before kicking off our Fall Season in earnest, and Doozy was just.... perfect. Like I still made mistakes and stuff, but she's just really starting to get it.
casual xc, nbd
And at our next big show? The Starter Trial & MDHT Loch Moy Farm?? Well. Doozy was just spectacular. This was clearly a horse who knew what to expect from each phase, and knew how to do it nicely. Well. Ok, not "nicely" for the dressage, but that's more a reflection of her trainer (me!) vs the horse herself! This day was better than it had any right to be, and I'm still so over the moon with how it went!
Queen of Jompies, Knower of Everything (the mare, not the human!)
So obviously no rest for the weary, right? It felt like a lot of what went right at Loch Moy was related to the routinized schedule and preparation. Doing the things makes the things easier to do, and all that. We therefore hit up the Combined Test @ Thornridge Manor, but this time at BN, to keep the momentum going and also give the mare a bit more of a challenge. This was without a doubt our best dressage test yet, and the jumping was honestly quite good even tho they were bigger fences and I made a couple mistakes.
jumping slightly bigger sticks <3
We snuck in a final trip for more xc at Tranquillity again at the beginning of November. Not necessarily bc the mare needed it, but bc it was clear that this routine has been benefiting my own headspace and anxiety too. Honestly, we should probably be doing this every few weeks or every month for as long as the ground can take it, bc it's just been SUCH a good routine for us!
Virtual cookies if you actually read this far LOL!
For real, tho, I'm so proud of this little mare. She's come so far, has become so consistent, settled so nicely, that it's easy to forget how tricky the early days were. But this actual eventing 'job' seems to come quite naturally to her -- and the more she learns about it, the easier everything else seems to get!
There's always more to come -- and plenty of fun off season adventures hopefully on the horizon. But for now? It's nice to sorta step back and feel appreciation and gratitude for it all.
My sweet chestnut mare, daughter of Big Brown, is flourishing as leading lady, despite originally expecting to spend her first year or two growing into the job as an understudy.
he's not missing many meals, guys LOL
Because, ya know. The bigger browner one, Charles himself, had other plans -- and stubbornly refused to stay sound or reprise his role as the main star.
this goofy gelding
C'est la vie, right? We can accommodate. So he stepped back, and instead has been living his best life over at Club Med since June.
he's so needy <3
He stays busy with wrapping barn staff around his little finger hoof, bossing around his docile lamblike paddock mate, indulging in his near-daily grooming and spa sessions, and gorging on the plentiful grass and free choice hay that abounds at this meticulously managed facility...
"cookie????" -- charles, ever the optimist
He basks in repose as we feed him grapes and fan him with palm fronds... Ya know. Normal retired horse things.
does this count as liberty work?? LOL
Somewhat unbelievably, tho, it isn't enough for Charlie. Lately he's been... Well. He's been an absolute pest.
lol, the picture of raw svelte panther athleticism haha...hahahaha
I wrote a few times about how he seemed a bit unsettled lately. So he got a month of sucralfate treatment to see if maybe ulcers were to blame. And at the same time, I decided to increase his handling by adding ground work into his routine to reaffirm manners and obedience. He is, after all, a 1,400lb thoroughbred. Too big to be bored, apparently.
we had a really pretty sunset the other night
He also lost naked-face privileges in turnout, and instead wears his halter full time. Not bc he was hard to catch -- but the opposite, actually.
Getting his halter put on was the MOST FUN GAME OMG, and he developed this whole ritualized song and dance that includes "helping" his handler by chomping onto the halter himself (and, according to him, it's not his fault if your hand happened to get in the way!).
what can i say except that i like sweet horses <3
Like, Charlie is NOT a mean horse, but he will absolutely put his teeth on you. He's a space invader, a boundary pusher, a close talker. With a strong oral fixation that I'd love to channel into something more fun like teaching him to paint pictures or something...
"reading the news"
Charlie is so sweet and lovable, it kinda catches people off guard when he needs discipline. But he definitely needs something, and... honestly? I think it's a job.
surveying his kingdom
Not like, a BIG job, or a hard job. Or the type of job that could theoretically help pay some of his bills (like a lease, for example). Bc, ya know, he still isn't exactly super sound. And I don't really like sharing my toys anyway LOL!
believe it or not these are pictures from three different rides lol
But... mayyybe the type of job that involves me toodling around with him a few times a week. Especially bc (**knocking on wood**), his feet don't seem to be bothering him at the moment. In fact -- I'm starting to suspect that he might actually be feeling quite good, and that this might be the true root source of his boisterous behavior.
took advantage of the warm weather for a late season scrub-a-dub
So yet again, for the eight thousandth time in my years with Charlie, we are embarking on a new rehabilitation plan. No goals or expectations, just a desire to engage with him, and give him more activity to channel his energies and attentions in more productive ways.
his life does not suck, that's for sure
Plus, ya know. Maybe I'll finally get to take advantage of using saddle time with my well-behaved schoolmaster to focus on my own positional habits. A girl can dream, right?
Area II eventing is just about wrapped up for the year, and Doozy finished her first season as an event horse at the Waredaca Starter Trial! And it was a really fun, really great day!!
all dressed up and ready to go!
Lucky / unlucky for you, there is exactly zero media from our dressage test. Which is just as well, it really isn't anything to look at anyway haha. I will say: Doozy was very good in warm up. Very chill even tho it was a somewhat chaotic ring -- on grass, an odd shape, uneven (and very hard dry) ground, and LOTS of ponies and horses.
literally the sweetest critter <3 no photos from dressage, you're welcome LOL
But Doozy just went about her warm up, was obedient. Did the things, and I'm more or less happy with my riding. The test itself (in the arena on footing) was... not good. But not bc Doozy was bad -- she was actually totally fine! No accidental canters or anything!
plenty of jompies media tho!
Just... Not good yet lol. Doozy was pretty strong, we were late for all of our down transitions (including the final halt -- almost ended up in the judge's lap!), our ring craft was pretty bad in terms of line of travel -- falling in off the rail, not getting into our corners, etc etc.
takeaway from the day: #Jomps2Small
I'm happy with how the horse felt tho -- not frantic or stressed. Just, really green with a decidedly middling pilot LOL. She just did literally what she thought the test should be. Our homework this winter will be to get into as many dressage courts as possible to really sorta normalize that it's just another regular ride in there.
literally cantering largely lol
Anyway, the judge gave us a very generous 35.0% - knocked back to 36.3% bc I got an error for use of voice WHOOPS lol. That penalty put us in 7th of 7, which, ya know. Yep that tracks LOL.
Nbd, tho, it's not news that I kinda suck at riding dressage, and my sweet little mare reflects that. But what we lack on the flat, we make up for over fences!! Sorta!!
occasionally i rode to a more impressive distance lol
For real, tho, the jumping phases are definitely stronger for us haha. Tho ya know, we can't *always* be perfect like Doozy was at Loch Moy last month! She warmed up a bit stronger than she's been lately -- stronger than she was at Thornridge and Loch Moy, and definitely more amped than she's been at home.
but eh, i don't mind the casual easy feeling tbh even tho the rails are expensive
So I rode her a bit more connected and held together than maybe we've been trending, but it worked out for us. She had more of a draw in one direction across the ring vs the other, and we had two basically identical rails when she kinda just blew past the distance and just cantered over the jumps.
such a good girl!
We've been jumping BN at home for the last few weeks and suddenly these fences are feeling very small. Which, ya know, fine by me! The casual rails are annoying but ya know. I am who I am as a rider and I think I prefer the ultra casual vibe to the ultra careful. YMMV.
she did all auto-changes around the course, except for one sorta longish loop where she comfortably held a balanced counter canter
For her part, Doozy is getting really good at landing in a better balance and making quick turns after fences. She also took full responsibility for all our lead changes in this round. I literally don't even think I checked once -- a testament to how balanced she feels.
So, with show jumping completed, nothing was left but to stroll over to the cross country field, pop over the warm up fence, and then wait our turn at the box!
chillin in the box
It's interesting bc I walked Waredaca's starter course after volunteering at their recognized event in May, and thought the jumps looked huge. But on this day? Everything looked basically perfect for us. It was a short-ish course, only 9 efforts over about 1100m, so I guess it's possible they didn't use their biggest jumps for the level... But honestly I think Doozy has just grown up so quickly!
then it's Go Time! guys, Waredaca is stunningly beautiful -- even when everything is dry crispy brown
Our course was one big loop around the gorgeous centerpiece lake, with lots of terrain up and down. The first two sets of jumps were basically the same as Charlie's last time at this event, in 2019 and I distinctly recalled being very annoyed at myself for letting him cannonball down the hill to jump 2 and subsequently make an icky feeling mess of it lol.
So I promised myself that I'd ride Doozy down every hillside intentionally and in balance. And go figure! It worked haha -- she was perfect to every jump at the bottom of a hill!
i did my job riding downhill to jump 2, and doozy rewarded me with a very pleasant effort!
I also recalled from past visits to Waredaca -- both as a volunteer and rider -- that a LOT of horses, especially at the lower levels, have surprise stops at jump 3. My guess is that riders get complacent when the horses carry them easily down hill (and back toward the trailers) over jumps 1 and 2, without realizing that turning UPhill, back away from the trailers, and toward the unseen for jump 3 might produce a VERY different feeling in the horse.
And Doozy kinda had that feeling too! Jump 3 kinda emerges after a long uphill pull and she definitely was sorta like, ''oooh where did that come from?" But we were on a good line and in good balance well enough in advance that her brain had enough time to process the jump's appearance, and she was fine.
the course was kinda arranged in 'twos' - which was really fun! these two lakeside jumps caught out about half the division, across all splits -- a tricky downhill approach with a lot of environmental distractions (ie, the lake itself)
Jump 4 was close by, sorta a long bending line from 3 -- a palisade style fence right at the top of the hill before running down again. The whole course was kinda like this too -- sets of jumps in pairs that kinda gave us a lot to think about, but then long runs in between.
Jumps 5 and 6 produced the most issues on course. I suspect riders kinda tore down the hill along the road -- which took you pretty far to the right -- then had to careen over to the left toward the lake to get to this line. If the horse was looking more at the lake then the jumps... Yea, that might be a problem lol. Doozy was great, tho, and was able to stay in balance and get on the right line for the jumps plenty early enough to stay very straight and centered.
holy mother of dog, we had a down bank on course...!!
She then took it upon herself to trot across the dam, which I totally get bc it's a lot to look at -- basically a raised path right up against the lake. Plus, I was glad she wanted to trot bc our next jump... Well, it wasn't a jump at all. It was a friggin down back oh my god.
True story, guys. Somehow in all my years doing lower level eventing, I've NEVER encountered a down bank on course. Like, sure, Charlie was plenty schooled to them. But we just... Never saw it. Doozy schooled the banks at Windurra that one time.... But again, never in my mind did I think we'd see that question at this level lol, so I didn't even bother practicing at Tranquillity last week (even tho we practiced banks up!).
So. Yea. I was unsure how it would go LOL. But Doozy being Doozy, she just stepped on down and proceeded to the next jump <3
water wasn't flagged but we seized the opportunity for a little practice anyway
What a mare, guys, omg. With that question behind us, we continued on with a little detour through the water. Just to practice, ya know? I'd opted to take the option instead at Loch Moy, since we really haven't had much chance to school water (and it's SO DRY everywhere lately).
But, eh, this was a perfect opportunity, so we took it! Doozy took a little persuading but then just stepped in and walked through. Good enough for now, and we'll practice more later!
lololol the goodest most casual girl over the last!! these little jumps are too easy for her!
Then just a little canter over to the finish line -- a small barn jump that Doozy basically just loped over LOL. And that was it!
I'm so stinkin proud of this mare. She really seems to get it now. Seems to understand the game, and wants to play. She wasn't even that strong out on the xc course -- was more thoughtful and intentional to the jumps despite occasionally wanting to get strung out on all the hills. But even then, it felt like she was learning as she went along.
through the finish flags <3 <3 so pleased with this critter!
And I'm happy with my own self for getting out there and doing it. Looking back on my years with Charlie, there's a pretty clear trend of being a little too hard on myself for rider mistakes and imperfections. More than a few times, I was disappointed with how an event went bc I thought I should have done better as a rider.
In retrospect, that all feels pretty self-defeating, like I robbed myself of the pleasure of just... enjoying my horse. Like, let's be real.... Who is really going to care more than I do about our performance? None of this matters for literally anything, except for what it means to me.
strutting like the champion she is <3
So with Doozy, I'm trying to keep it really simple. I want to keep learning, keep pushing myself and developing myself as a rider. I want to get better. But most fundamentally, I want to enjoy it and feel fulfilled by the experience.
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