gymnasties with Sally!

Y’all might recall that we’ve kinda uncovered a few gaps in Doozy’s jumping technique in recent months, and especially as the jumps have gotten a little bigger. 

skeptical about the literally zillions of crows clamoring around us

Height alone does’t seem to pose an issue, but a couple times over fences with more spread — think, oxers or tables etc — Doozy has sometimes made her job a little harder through poor use of technique and form, particularly in her push off. 

 

who remembers when mare took an actual full HOUR to settle in her first time here?

Which, ya know. Yea. Not hard to see how an extremely athletic bold mare who has been jumping predominantly 2’3 fences for the better part of 2 years might have grown a bit lackadaisical about technique. We haven’t exactly, uh, challenged her. 

trottin around all civilized and stuff!

Plus, I also just don’t plain jump a whole heckuva lot. For a variety of reasons etc etc etc, a different topic for a different day. But ya know. It became plain to me that we should start working on technique basically immediately in the off season.

i thought she’d get fussy picking up for each turn, but she didn’t really!

And somehow, for once, fortune favored us with a serendipitous post from local legend Sally about doing gymnastics at Kealani! Perfect!!

look at that face omg <3

Y’all might remember that Doozy’s first* ever jumping lesson was here with Sally. And her second lesson was one of these grid days too, also with Sally, at a different local indoor. So I had a fairly clear idea of what to expect, and guys — it was perfect!

(*ok actually her FIRST first jump lesson was a random pop up clinic at home, but y’all know what I mean)

so much concentration haha

Doozy impressed me with her maturity on entering the ring — she really held her shit together and acted like a horse who is in and out of new locations on the regular. Which, obvi, she is. Tho it also helped that we had a barn mate ship in with us for the lesson. Doozy is always happier with a friend!

the whole reason we’re here: learning that fancy footwork!

All the same, I kept the warm up to a minimum bc realistically, gymnastic type work is intense and exhausting for the horse. And it was almost certain that Sally would have a complete progression she’d want to put us through, so no excuses for trying to squirm out early lol.

oooh, the first final oxer — a ‘spread’ question

Naturally, Sally DID have a full progression plan. The thing about riding with her is that she maybe isn’t doing a ton of tactical in-the-moment puppet-master style coaching, like Woodge or even Dan (long timers will remember). But she sets killer exercises.

reach for it, mare!

Especially with the grids, she’s constantly tinkering with them. Each trip is slightly different in important but easy-to-miss ways. From how she builds up each individual element, to how she slowly replaces the poles from solid white to start, to checkered contrast poles as you go.

easy peasy!!

As she makes one area harder — for example, adding length to the grid — she might make another element easier, like making an earlier vertical an X again. So every time is slightly different in a way that asks the horse to tune in, pay attention, and use their bodies well.

slowly progressing more elements into verticals

And Doozy ate it up, omg. She loved it, to the point where she was more or less perfectly civilized each time we picked up for our turn. Which, you may recall, is sometimes a tricky thing when we’re schooling xc, for instance. 

i wanted a more forward thinking horse when i bought doozy, and by gum, did i get one!

Obvi things like straightness can get harder in a grid as more elements shift to verticals instead of Xs. But none of that mattered for Doozy, she drew thru the grid straight as an arrow every single time. And not because I was like, riding her particularly straight either LOL.

bounces graduated to verticals too — this is hard work!

Turning in from the left was particularly tricky on occasion since Doozy has such a strong tendency to lean on her right shoulder… But it legit did not matter. Once she was into the grid, even if we had a slightly crooked line in, she flew straight. 

final oxer got a little taller, but a little less spread
but loooookie at that strong square even push from behind!!!!

I thought she’d get trickier to manage when the first element became bounces instead of a ground pole, but honestly she seemed to pick up the game so quickly that even tho she was super forward every time, I didn’t really need to ‘hold her back’ so strongly getting into the line. 

she’s a quick learner, too!

For my part, honestly mostly the only thing I thought about was “chin up” (per our recent clinic with Allison Springer) and stay straight. Even when the final oxer started going up, and I was like, omg that looks big tho… Just… Chin up, stay straight, and it was nbd!!

i think she likes this game!!

Final height I estimated to be somewhere in Novice territory — maybe not quite 3’, but maybe quite close. Certainly the largest thing I’ve jumped since Charlie, no doubt about that!

video of our last 5 trips down the line

And it’s so funny bc my barn mate and other lesson mates kept remarking how laser focused Doozy was for each and every trip. How she seemed to relish the challenge, and got better as the exercise became more demanding.

and a gif of the final trip too, for those of you non video watchers lol

Which, not gonna lie, is so exciting to me. I’ve long suspected that the actual “action” of this sport was never going to be the hard part for Doozy. It’s… all the everything else. Like how she had to hand walk around this same ring for an HOUR her first time here, but once she actually started jumping in that lesson, all the bullshit kinda just melted away.

#ProudBiscuit

Still, tho, I had kinda worried that maybe we lingered a little too long at Starter level, worried that maybe Doozy would get frantic and annoyed if things suddenly got harder. 

I don’t want to rush this horse tho. I want her to be my event horse for a long time, and have zero illusions about ‘moving up the levels.’ Realistically speaking, Charlie’s and my barriers to moving up had everything to do with *me,* almost nothing to do with the horse, and there’s very little reason to think things have somehow magically changed in the years since. 

But I *do* want to keep learning and growing, and this mare is certainly proving again and again that, actually, she likes this game too!!  

So. We’ll keep giving her the tools to succeed, keep chipping away at it. And hopefully, in the meantime, continue putting together a super fun little off season!

wakey wakey!!

It’s been a little rainy around here, but still sorta mild and balmy — jussssst warm enough to let the mare out nekkid, even tho naturally she would wallow around in the mud like a little piggie right before our big lesson….

pictured: wallowing

But oh my goodness, how cute tho!

“sorry, busy.”

Not gonna lie, I’m such a ridiculous bleeding heart… I’ve literally been known to just… sit down and wait for Charlie to finish napping rather than disturb him….

“you can’t be serious tho.”

But ya know. Sometimes we’re on the clock, right? Can only hit that ‘snooze’ button so many times before, siiiigh, it really is time to get up…

“okayyyy, i guess if there are carrots involved….”

Because we had important stuff to do!!! Places to go, people to see!! 

“NOBODY SAID THERE WOULD BE CROWS”

Another fun exciting clinic ride as we dig into “Continuing Education Season” lol!!

#MajesticAF

And we finally got a ton of media too!! Yay!!!

lol this is her ‘tired’ face

Doozy, naturally, was an absolute super star. This horse, she is prettttty cool, it’s gotta be said. Like. Chaotic, ridiculous, often honestly quite silly… but cool. And I get the distinct impression that she’ll only get better as things get more ‘interesting.’ 

So. Anyway. More to come on that, hope y’all have a great Sunday in the meantime!

spinning ‘round again

Maybe this is only just further proof of my inevitable descent into… madness adulthood, but each year I find myself indulging more and more in weirdly satisfying mundane little tasks throughout my birthday month.

still grass left in some places!

Like, sure sure, I still do all the ‘regular’ normal birthday things like nice dinners with friends and family, time off from work, and special extravagances — like our recent Allison Springer clinic!! Or, slightly more extravagantly years ago when I upgraded to a Charlie-sized chariot.

hay loft denizens being #nosy about our fall shots appt

But ya know. In an ideal world we aren’t buying new horse trailers every year, amirite? Plus, as is well documented here on ye olde blogge, I have grown increasingly suspicious of putting all my hopes dreams and expectations of happiness into any one particular riding activity. 

Like, the clinic was awesome, would 100% do it again — but what if it had sucked?? No no, that wouldn’t do!

inspecting the vet mobile lol

Something that’s almost guaranteed to bring me at least some modicum of fulfillment  and satisfaction tho is a nice orderly row of ducks. Or, said more plainly: knocking stuff off the list, getting my shit together, imposing order on any little chaotic details in my life. 

Why yes, I *am* very fun at parties, can’t you tell?? lol….

my own denizens, looking more preoccupied by that sweet sweet radiant heat

For real, tho, maybe it’s part of the shifting seasons. Some people are into “Spring cleaning” but I’m more of a “Fall into action” sort. So all manner of little outstanding tasks have been getting done lately — like Doozy’s fall shots!! Perhaps slightly later than normal bc it’s been so unseasonably mild lately, but hey, we got ’r done, and that’s what matters!

hard to tell but this one got a fat lip, probably from getting smacked right in the face by the other one lol…
i love you, jojo, but you probably deserved it <3

Oooh I also tacked on a full set of spinal rads too. My vet (whom I love) is immensely practical and generally counsels against neck or spine imaging without matching compelling physical presentations — especially in TBs where it is enormously common to find spots of questionable proximity that may or MAY NOT actually be pathologically significant. 

anyway, had a great hack out for my bday!!!

But eh, she knows me well enough at this point to trust that I probably wouldn’t go nuts if we saw anything sketchy. Which… Whew, we did not. Turns out Doozy doesn’t even have anything that even looks like it could be KS. 

Given our issues with crookedness and saddle fit shenanigans, it definitely felt nice to cross that off the list of possible problems! Definitely a nice little bday present haha.

explored some new-to-us sections of trail too!

Anyway, let’s see: other little items recently crossed off the list…. Ooh, that headlight that’s been out for damn near a year? Finally replaced that! Got the nail that’s been riding around in one of my (nearly new, sob!) tires for a few weeks fixed while we were at it. AND, all that proved so satisfying that I sent the trailer in for service too. 

Woooo hoooo — who knew vehicle maintenance could be so exciting!

am i the only one who sees getting my car washed and detailed as a special little treat??

Nor was my apartment spared from this flurry of organization and fixing up either. Not all at once, obviously, bc that’s the other cool thing about adulthood: I can celebrate the whole damn month if I want, not just a single day. 

ok ok but we have actually been riding!! pictured: trotting this way

Bc guys, the satisfaction is so real lol. 

also pictured: trotting that way

If only it lasted forever! Alas, tho, somehow there are still more dishes every day, the laundry doesn’t actually stay done, and now the truck wants its turn next, with a blinker bulb replacement plus new wipers still on the list, natch.

round ’n round we go! easy peasy nice ’n easy!

And so it goes LOL. And so it’s been going with the riding too. Indoor season is so blah, so repetitive, so monochromatic. It’s hard to get excited about yet another night of dusty brown circles. 

“ARHGAIGHHKKRRRR!!!” — ahem, Doozy accidentally letting her inner wraith slip out a shriek

Not that Doozy doesn’t occasionally find opportunities to, er, spice it up haha. But generally, our weeknight indoor rides lately have lacked the contour and definition of a more typical outdoor daylight schooling session. Tho, again, thanks to birthday PTO + normal weekends with nice weather, we fit in some of that this weekend too <3

“da ba deeeee, da ba dooooo, just trottin around!!!! TOTALLY NORMAL, GUYS!!” — the most pleasantest princess

But still. It’s kinda getting into the time of year where some of our rides feel a bit more like going through the motions, ‘checking it off the list,’ so to speak. Ideally, tho, the object in motion stays in motion — so that when a more exciting opportunity or adventure arises — we’ll be ready!

“this biscuit is serving drama for dinner ;)”

Which, ya know. November ain’t over yet!! Perhaps there will still be more to come !

xc clinic @ waredaca!

We’re kicking off the ‘winter bootcamp’ season in style, starting with a super fun destination xc clinic at Waredaca, for one of their ‘expert days’ with Allison Springer!

just a little lakeside cantering! trying to remember to bend my elbows lol

Actually, tbh, the entry page on Strider didn’t really specify whether it was intended to be an xc day, or show jumping. Given the time of year, I mostly presumed it’d be sj… but didn’t really care either way. 

I was just excited to ride with Allison, somebody I’ve admired for years as a spectator and ring steward (where I’ve witnessed her many times, and her good riding students too!).

trust me, there’s a little log back there <3

Naturally, as is always the way with these things, our forecast for the day was the nastiest most wintry day yet this year by far — sharply cold with a blustery wind that would not quit.** But the ground was good and the jumps were still decorated from the past weekend’s starter even. And so we carried on.

And actually, in some ways, the tricky conditions (ie, wind blowing **directly** up the horses’ butts) proved to be the perfect platform for Allison to really zero in on our warm up flatwork.

(**The same cannot be said for my helmet cam battery, which found the cold unbearable!) 

snapshot selected bc of those epic moody wintry trees

Which, go figure, wasn’t about petting the pretty pony and whispering soothingly into her ear that “everything was going to be ok!”, even as literally an entire giant herd of horses galloped around like lunatics for actual minutes on end right next door. 

Like, ok sure — whisper soothingly etc. It does help. But also, ride the horse. Bend her. More. Put your leg on, push her off that leg. Bend and push and disengage the hind quarters. If her ears are pricked like a statue fixated off into the distance, she is ignoring you. Change that. Now. More round, more bend, more leg.

also, jompies!! landing pic snapped here bc my phone was being annoying about pausing on exactly the right frame.
plus. not gonna lie guys. our winter boot camp this year will be all about helping doozy’s technique

And it will actually shock you to learn that this technique worked for Doozy. In fact, it worked for the full duration of the ride!

Remember how I wrote about our recent Windurra schooling that Doozy could “get a little stuck and behind the leg and snarled up in a pretzel every time we pick up for our turn”?? And remember how the xc warmup at the Area Champs was probably our hardest moment from that show? And remember how I literally just wrote about the uncertainty of knowing which phases etc would be on grass contributing to my decision to scratch Plantation?

more lakeside cantering, bc i love it

Yeeeeahhhh. Bc it turns out. This has been a big hole in our training for… ever, basically. And I’m not going to act like we fixed it in one random clinic. But somehow, some way, Allison imposed a new directive that made a difference. 

Tho I also suspect that the “new directive” is also only really made possible by Doozy’s maturation and improvements in overall schooling from the past year.

i always struggle a little with the downhill approach to this line of jumps
this is also a nice example of where Allison would prefer to see more “chin up”

Anyway. Having achieved a warm up, we started in on the jumping. First by trotting a nice friendly log a couple times, with each iteration still requiring the same flatwork to start. 

Then we just sorta moved through the whole field, jumping each jump on its own before stringing together a little mini course.

being brave about this kinda spooky “brewery” log. note the uneven push from behind + less-than-classic front end technique lol

Right away Allison zeroed in on a few positional habits of mine:

- I need more bend in my elbows and shorter reins, vs my tendency to kinda lock my arms straight

- BUT!! I still need to be able to soften the contact, especially at the fence

- Chin up. But seriously. This was a biggie for Allison, and in my mind is reminiscent of my “chest up” directive, having found that “shoulders back” isn’t really enough to truly unfold my torso.

- Stay back and own our distance, no matter what

snapshot selected bc of that epic moody wintry sky <3

That last directive was a bit of a new one for us. Mostly because… Obviously this height is new(ish) to Doozy. But so is jumping from a more steady canter stride. Doozy and I have gotten pretty far in life with letting her raw momentum and athleticism and bravery carry us from one side of the jump to the other. 

But ya know. It might be nice to have a few more ‘tools’ at our disposal, especially when it comes to Doozy’s technique in the jumping. She has a tendency to get a little jittery in her take-off — launching the front end before the hind end quite knows what to do with itself. 

no problems whatsoever flinging herself into the air LOL

None of that mattered much for smaller jumps, but especially as we start introducing spread, it’ll be important that Doozy can organize her hind end up under her for an even and strong push off. My sense is that getting her stronger behind will also resolve some of her less-than-picturesque front end moments too.

Allison also advised, on a related note, that if we landed from a fence super disorganized — she’d prefer we throw in a trot transition, vs spooling out on a circle. She felt like the trot transition would do more to get the horse back on the aids, back on her hocks etc, than just whipping around a small turn.  

one lesson at a time, tho, and she was a super good girl for this one <3 <3

Anyway, Doozy never ended up needing that particular advice bc it turns out you land in better balance when you jump from better balance. And you jump from better balance when you establish the flat work first. Groundbreaking stuff here, guys! lol…

The horse also certainly feels plenty athletic — and made pretty easy work of the various BN fences we tackled throughout the ride — including a fairly tall step up out of the water!! Sadly not recorded bc of cold helmet camera problems, le sigh. 

But all the same, her bravery has always been among her most redeeming qualities. Helping her feel stronger in her form and technique is basically an insurance policy, as far as I can tell. 

even tho it was cold + windy AF dear lord. good girl, little biscuit!

So ya know. Hurray for clinic + bootcamp season! Every week there are new educational activities springing up on the calendar, including a couple future opportunities that might be exactly tailored toward refining technique!

Winter is *not* my favorite, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun and make the most of it anyway, amirite?