Even before our impromptu mini xc school last week, Brita and I had been planning a low key outing with barn mates this past weekend. Some of the friends would just be hacking, but some of us would also be getting in some solid schooling practice.
how could this face ever get in trouble tho??
After feeling like Velvet had done pretty well with the earlier school, I started thinking about how to build on that. And particularly, how to address her issue of needing to stop and look at everything first before jumping.
we had ourselves a little party!
But like. Idk. I think I'm hexed or something. Little black pony mares (even tho Velvet's more "tank" than "pony") do not seem to do me many favors on the xc field. And in fact, really any time I try to up the ante on anybody else's horse (like Gogo, Krimpet and Lion of last year's fame), I seem to maybe end up getting more than I bargained for.
pictured: behind leg. always and forever lol
It's cool tho. As L. Williams tactfully reminded me: If you are taking risks then yea, you'll fall off. Taking risks pushes you out of your comfort zone to help make you a better rider.
One day, L, one day I'm gonna be a real good rider for taking so many risks on backyard ponies over 2' fences!!! ;P
still #goodwithdogs tho!
I digress tho. Away we went schooling on what was really a gorgeous beautiful October day in Maryland. With a fun group of friends. Ain't no complaining about that! Velvet actually warmed up pretty well too - I showed her our first log and she jumped it pretty well fine.
Then we went right on over to the little roll top from last week, which I'm pretty sure I also showed her, tho I'm not positive. Naughty mare ran out of it tho in a somewhat nasty way. Last week she'd skitter to a shaky stop at the jump (which obvi I didn't like) but the running out thing is.... really not cool in my book. So we had words about that and reapproached it to clear it no problem, tho jumping it once more for good measure.
ooooooh gurl. it's one thing to stop and look at a fence, but running out is crossing a line.
I was still pretty fixated on the idea of building off the work she had done in our previous outing tho, and on the idea of getting Velvet over fences on the first try. After chatting with Brita about it, I opted to aim the pony back at that itsy box we had jumped well (after an initial stop) last time.
bc reasons. at least i was holding the neck strap?
And darn it if that pony didn't just like... teleport out from underneath me. One second she was evenly between all my aids (well, ok, she was behind my leg, but at least mostly laterally even if not longitudinally). And the next? I was staring at her from the ground as she tried (and failed) to beat a hasty retreat. Rotten thing!
pictured: still behind the leg. but now that leg is angry lol
Run outs, man. They're just not cool. Maybe other riders would have stuck that bob-n-weave type move... But idk.... it felt pretty dirty and it looks pretty dirty in the helmet cam footage too.
remedial logs
This is how horses like Velvet kinda operate. They get all zippy and hot to the aids to the point where riders want to take their legs off - but at the same time she had zero problems running through both my spur and crop pushed against that bulgy right hand side. Sorry Velvet but you can't have it both ways.
thing we did *not* stop at tho
In any case we went back to our little warm up log that I made her school from both leads (princess no likey jumping from the left lead) and both toward and away from the other horses. Not every jump was perfect, but she did it every time.
We then moved right on along back on track to jumping other stuff. Tho I admit to kinda giving up on making her jump everything sight-unseen. So I showed her the fences first, then approached to jump them. This proved effective and we had no more stops (or run outs) for the day.
and another thing we did not stop at!
The purist in me was very dissatisfied with this method, but the realist in me was very disinclined to have another unplanned dismount.
The optimist in me (a small but hopeful voice!) tho appreciated that, ya know, the horse is just plain green and any mileage without a refusal can only be a positive thing. Maybe she's done this stuff before, but she has had no consistency in her life and it's maybe unfair to expect her to build at the same pace as a horse who is accustomed to a training program.
So if showing her the fences before jumping them helps her understand and ensures that she does, in fact, jump each and every time she is asked to jump.... well. That's gotta count for something right? (tho my inner cynic {a cranky screechy voice} might think it amounts to enabling and coddling the horse...)
thing we didn't even have to look at before jumping! #growingup
Anyway tho we just kept on moving right on along with the plans. Tackling new fences we hadn't seen last time, and actually doing some stuff in the water. I was particularly proud of Velvet through the water bc she jumped the log very well and without question despite not actually being specifically shown it in advance (tho we did do a drive by of trotting through the water first).
more logs tho. lol @ my right side spur aimed directly at her heart
I wondered if making her trot that fence had something to do with it - more processing time? Idk. Her trot is not great tho and she somehow gets even more behind my leg in that gait so I'm not sure our answer lies in trotting fences forever. Food for thought tho!
and another log plus one distrustful rider
We kept moving about the fields tho esp as our other riding buddies schooled their more advanced horses over more interesting things. Most of what was left for me and Velvet were more of the same logs. Going into the outing I had anticipated maybe trying some of the BN variations of these logs... but by the end of the ride I was more interested in just preventing any more mistakes.
finishing over yet another jump we didn't look at first. like she's almost an adult. almost.
She was good tho. We practiced a little cantering through the fields (during which she cruised smooth as silk right up until she spooked sideways, inverted and went behind the leg again.... #workinprogress) and then we finished by putting a couple logs together in a row - including the candy cane (not in the video) and the white jump above, both of which she did not get to look at before we jumped them.
Sure, they were both very small fences. But like. I'm determined to see the positive of her just jumping them without question. Small wins, ya know?
On one hand it's tough bc this type of ride doesn't do very much for me in my constant struggle to be more trusting in my riding style - to let go more and ride more forward. If anything, it makes it easier for me to rationalize holding and shutting the horse down. Which is arguably counter productive.
On the other hand tho, it was useful experience in pushing on when things went a little sideways (omg literally) and working on problem solving. Because, in fact, the fall was our final refusal of the day even tho we kept on jumping for a while after that.
To me, that counts as a win. It wasn't the type of win I hoped for from the day. And it may have taken some determined processing and introspection to arrive at this conclusion (rather than just like, going on an expletive-laden rant about black pony mares everywhere lol).
Let's talk more about Velvet, shall we? I've basically plucked this pony from an idle pasture puff lifestyle (with the occasional ride by roving barn rats, and maybe a weekly trail ride with her owner) and plopped her directly into my own preferred riding schedule.
sassy poneh + riley dog!
Meaning: Velvet now does all the things within the structure that I've built around myself in producing my eventing partnership with Charlie. This includes a heavy focus on flat work mixed with frequent hacks and jump schools.
Now Velvet's owner doesn't necessarily need (or want) an event horse. Or a dressage horse, for that matter. Rather, she's more interested in a safe and reliable partner for putzing around. She's still learning the finer points of like.... the canter, and probably isn't likely to be touching on things like leg yields or spirals or transitions within gaits for a while yet, if ever. And that's totally fine.
i hope you aren't bored by between the ears shots bc that's most of what i got. at least the farm is pretty tho! fall has arrived!
In my opinion tho, developing a safe and easy going horse who's happy to toodle starts with first teaching it what "work" really means. And not in like, a punishing, aggressive or burdensome way. Just the same style of building a horse up, showing it how to carry itself, teaching it a whole new set of expectations about how we "go" under saddle. So that when her owner gets on and just wants a relaxing hack, Velvet is more than happy to acquiesce, thankyouverymuch.
Velvet is deep in the throes of realizing that I don't just want her to trot a circle -- no, no. I want her to carry her shoulders up with her hind end brought up underneath herself. I want her to be supple and hold a correct bend in balance, and to do so even through transitions or changes of direction. And she's basically like, "What the actual fuck I do not remember signing up for this!"
velvet was very reluctant her first time with me down this path behind the barns. now she just goes. good girl.
She's figuring it out tho and is actually a neat little mare. She likes being told she's a "good girl" and is willing to work for pets and neck scritches (and maybe the occasional peppermint haha).
The horse's biggest struggle is in carrying her own self. She wants to get heavy up front and just start running as a means of avoiding actually falling on her face, all the while with her hind end literally dragging out behind her. It feels just as sketchy as it sounds, and I totally understand why this way of going might make a novice rider nervous.
turns out we both enjoy goat watching!
So we work on rhythm. Slowing everything wayyyyy down. Bringing the hind end more underneath her by trying to create more engagement with circles, spirals, and baby leg yields. Of course, each and every one of those movements also makes Velvet want to run faster so we often need to step back and break things down to their component pieces.
Trainer Dan once told me, "If what you're doing isn't working, slow down." That's essentially been running on repeat through my head during all of my rides with Velvet. And it really helps!
her only remaining spooky spot is that little gap between buildings dead ahead. that's where the pig gets fed and velvet reportedly has "pig trauma" despite being neighbors with the critter for a year now. sorry princess but you live in that barn. you're not allowed to be spooky to the point of refusing entry to an entire end of your own house!
The horse has been surprisingly tolerant of being drilled a little on her flat work. To the point where my original idea of focusing exclusively on relaxation was almost immediately tossed out the window. The horse can relax -- she can actually do a fair bit more than that and willingly accepts more pressure than Charlie, it turns out.
So I'm having fun with that. Using the horse as a way to keep my own self in line and accountable while still pushing for more, still working to advance my own skills along with the horse's.
she was positively strutting after our first purposeful jump school together. so proud of herself!
Tho naturally most of us have limits for how many 20m circles we can ride in a row before we absolutely must change the subject lol. To that end, I've wanted to keep a little variety in the schedule. With lots of hacking out around the property and through the cross country fields, as well as the occasional opportunity to jump.
We finally made it up to the jump ring for a real true honest to god jump school this week too. Dusk was falling fast and of course Velvet requires that I show her the full ring first before we get to work (ideally in both directions with pauses to look at things and touch her nose on anything particularly spooky). But once we completed that task, she was more or less ready to set off.
easy peasy over the log despite the puppy on landing
Trotting all around, changing directions, remembering that we do flat work in this ring too even tho there are jumps and other horses around. And then.... we just started popping over things. First some single trot poles, then a couple poles in a row. Then an itsy cross rail here, a bitsy vertical there. Slicing and dicing and taking weird approaches by threading the needle between other jumps.
And the little pony really impressed me! I expected her to be really squirrely with maybe a couple refusals or at least sticky moments. But she honestly really quickly started truly taking me to the fences - first in trot, but then in canter too!
we had to stop and look at this jump first, but then she jumped it quite nicely
She initially wasn't very confident in canter, especially if we came up on a longer spot she'd feel her most uncertain. Lucky for her tho I like the close distance too so we quickly found ourselves getting more in sync. So we just kept going - eventually putting together whole lines from a pretty good canter. Exciting stuff!
It may not sound like much (and it wasn't, really), but I had a lot of fun and think the pony did too. That was my first time jumping in almost a month and I was relieved to find that I hadn't somehow forgotten how to do it. Sure, I also didn't somehow magically fix all my typical issues in the time off either, but that's ok too.
actually, aside from the log we had to stop and look at every jump #kindaannoying
All the same, I can't help but keep on making plans. And coming up with ideas for what to do next, how to keep building. For both me and Velvet. Might as well take full advantage of this fun little pocket rocket while I can, right?
but then she jumps. and she really jumps lol
And naturally those plans include lots of fun with eventing partner in crime, Brita and her mare Bella. Who, if you'll remember, I also fondly refer to as my life coach lol. Because she's the kind of friend with whom an innocent hack among the fields can turn into an impromptu xc school.
During which she's quick to remind me that, actually, I *can* do more than just logs and should man up and point the pony at more interesting stuff.
sometimes we caught the jumps a little awkward, but then she was game to come back and clean it up (again with the puppy on landing lol)
So Velvet has also now had both a slightly casual xc school with me (where we jumped exclusively the itsiest of bitsies) and now a slightly more formal school where we actually tackled a small chunk of the intro course.
And again, the mare really impressed me! Sure, we actually did have the squirrely moments I had anticipated from our earlier arena school. And we had to stop and look at each fence first before we could actually jump it....
#goodwithdogs
But then she'd jump everything just fine. I had to remind myself to keep riding the way I know how - as in, shorten my reins and keep my leg on. My initial inclination with her was to keep these long loose reins and just grab mane... but the lack of connection really kinda threw both of us off. Things were much improved when I stayed more forward and kept my reins short with hands up her neck.
She was also much happier to canter the fences - and from a longer approach where it was easier to really establish a rhythm. Plus a longer time spent cantering allowed me to really focus on my position and connection. Obviously, again, my known issues have not magically disappeared by changing the horse haha, but still. It felt good.
also just mostly good (and still so much like izzy, aside from the spookiness)
Not sure I'll end up taking any lessons on her tho. The last couple times I lessoned on other people's horses (like Shen and Krimpet) it ended up feeling like it was more for the horse than for me, in such a way as maybe I shouldn't have been the one paying for the lesson.
It's possible that Velvet's owner would be down for paying for a lesson with trainers P or C, but idk. I'll probably just keep wingin' it on my own until Charlie is better.
there's my star <3
Wingin it is pretty fun, anyway. Somehow in bringing Charlie along (and esp moving to the h/j barn), I lost a little bit of my 'independent rider' identity, particularly in the jumping. Idk, maybe bc he's my first personal horse and started from such a raw place. Maybe I was scared of messing him up, or getting into a situation I didn't know how to fix, or... something. Idk.
But now, with the advantage of being back on someone else's horse, I'm liberated from the shackles of feeling so... responsible. And am remembering in the process that actually I *do* know what I'm doing. Feels good, man!
(admittedly, it also feels *super* good to get texts from her owner {who is riding the horse again!} saying that the horse is becoming fun again and that she's starting to enjoy riding now instead of being made nervous or scared! #winning)
Life continues to chug right on along lately, bringing us to the official one week mark since Charlie's surgery. I'm not sure whether that's a meaningful benchmark or whatever, but it's reassuring that he's just continued to get on with getting on throughout the past couple days.
pictured: charlie enjoying some sun + grass filled bliss
It's hard not to feel like the horse is somewhat neglected while on stall rest, ya know? Like I can take him out to groom and graze him. But no purposeful walking allowed.
didn't bother him that the ground was so dry and dusty either
And I can throw all the hay in the world at him, and keep adding extra water buckets just in case he gets extra thirsty.
we're not technically hand walking... but there's a little exploration going on
Plus naturally there are always the occasional extra meals when I need to slip some medication or another into him.
this little pony stallion was SUPER interested in meeting charlie lol
But it still makes me feel so guilty knowing he's all cooped up. Especially on days when I'm not able to get him out at all, or can only get him out for a few minutes.
this one too
Worst are the days when I can't get to the barn at all. Idk why it makes me feel so guilty -- in some ways I know the horse tends to be a little quieter when I'm not around. As opposed to when I'm there and he gets a little frantic and unsettled, trying to tell me all about his current plight and convince me to somehow fix it.
these studly little dudes have the BEST hair
But.... Only time will do that. So hopefully time will just keep chugging along until we can get him back into at least a little bit of hand walking and then turnout. And in the meantime I'm trying to not let myself feel too guilty by keeping my schedule full of fun distractions.
scribing at a dressage show!
Like volunteering as a scribe for a dressage fix-a-test clinic at our barn. We saw almost exclusively Intro level tests during my afternoon shift, and it was a little monotonous. Except it was pretty clear that for most pairs this was either the rider's first show or the horse's, and everyone tackled the experience with their own combination of nerves and excitement. That alone made it a cool atmosphere.
I like scribing too, tho it might be more of a challenge at higher levels. At least at this event, bc of the fix-a-test structure, it was pretty slow going work. We'd score the test as it was ridden, then the judge spent ~20min working one on one with the rider in a lesson type format, then they'd ride the test a second time. It was cool to see the riders improve so quickly too!
stewarding cross country warm up!
I kept the volunteer train rolling by signing up to be the cross country warm up steward at Loch Moy's recent recognized event. Usually I just go straight for the easy job of jump judging - esp if I'm doing it with Brita since we just sit around and chat all day. But trying out a new volunteer job was actually pretty fun!
I actually REALLY enjoyed being able to see everyone get into the zone for their rounds - from the nervous just-moved-up riders to the pros on their 4th or 5th rides of the day.
i liked the look and feel of these boots a lot. but then i impulse purchased a different set on ebay so.... yea lol
Luckily there wasn't really any drama either. A couple trainers who were a little bit entitled and rude when it came to getting their clients into the starting box. And a couple horses who struggled a little with the hard ground and greasy top layer of grass from a morning of steady drizzle.
sugar loaf mountain + loch moy's stadium ring. pretty sad i won't be riding in that arena at all this year. sigh.
One poor horse didn't land straight from a jump and slammed the rider down hard as they both lost balance and toppled over. Luckily both were ok and were able to continue through to run their course. But it was scary to see!
also disappointed to miss out on leaving this start box too. womp. volunteering at the warm up was AWESOME tho!
Mostly tho it was a great way to spend the day, and I actually really liked the warm up volunteer position. Plus the folks at Loch Moy know how to treat their volunteers - we got a lot of swag (including a very nice long sleeved shirt and an xc schooling pass!) and TONS of good food and snacks. If you're local-ish to Loch Moy, I highly recommend volunteering at their events!
oh look, another leedle pony!
Tho obviously it must be stated that seeing so much fun action had me feeling a little blue about my own horse's current status. Luckily Velvet has been more than happy to fill the void!
i make her go scary places, poor thing
I've been getting in pretty regular rides on the pony over the past week and feel like we've reached a pretty good understanding. Yes, she's probably going to spook at some invisible monster on the walk up the driveway.... but No, she's not going to nap about leaving the barn any more (thanks spurs!).
including riding past strange critters
Her work under saddle hasn't necessarily gotten meaningfully better yet. There's still a fair bit of jigging and trantering. Tho the better I get to know her, the quicker I can be to keep her in trot even if it becomes a very fast trot.
and she has to wait patiently while friends finish getting ready
For her part tho, she's learning to trust the process and relax a little bit. The trees lining one edge of the arena aren't always as spooky any more, and she's not always totally distracted by what other horses in the vicinity are doing. She's also had to cope with taking long breaks to chat with folks, and then go back to work again (the horror!).
she's great with dogs tho!
But I like her. She's a good girl. The parallels with Isabel are so strong, too. Like someone clearly started this horse - taught her some stuff. Laid a foundation. Then.... through circumstances that all too often befall horses, she ended up passing from place to place, either being left entirely alone or only ever getting irregular work. So she's just.... rusty at a very fundamental level.
and itsy bitsy jumps!!
And this has led to the erosion of her own confidence at the same time it taught her how to scare people into not making her work. A nasty combination. Luckily tho, she's not actually naughty. She's no Krimpet.
wheee go velvet!
And actually she seems to like and enjoy the work when we can get a few breakthrough good moments. And the more good moments she has, the easier it seems to be to find them again and again, and make them last longer and longer. Long story short, Velvet is figuring it out.
nice and relaxing, just as it ought to be
So I'm starting to push the envelope with her a little bit. Making her hack around unusual areas of the farm. Walk alone down different paths. Daring her to feel curious about exploring instead of worried and nervous about the unknown.
This approach seems to be working too - for our latest ride we just hacked out through the fields with Brita and Bella. And Velvet was immediately the absolute most relaxed she's ever been for me. So relaxed that we actually played around a little bit with some of the elementary jumps in the field - our first time jumping together! And she was pretty darn good!
if only we could all be as happy and carefree as this pup!
So we'll see where that goes. She's a neat mare and I'm glad to have the ride on her while Charlie recovers. But.... she's no Charlie. And the jumps definitely do not look the same from the back of a skittery spooky pocket rocket as they do from the back of my giant solid steady behemoth.
Still tho, it's fun to play :) We gotta keep ourselves busy somehow, right? How do you handle time away from your #1? Do you try to find other rides? Or stay involved in the action one way or another, whether by volunteering or just hanging out? Or do you go in the other direction - taking the opportunity to get in a little bit of a breather from the whole routine?
Alternative title for this post could be Krimpet 2.0 haha. The resemblance is uncanny tho, don't you think? Minus obvi Krimpet's flashy blaze. And Velvet is actually quite a bit bigger than Krimpet, maybe about Izzy height if not slightly taller. Definitely broader lol. (she's QH / Paint for those curious)
she's cute tho for sure
Y'all don't really need me to tell you that I wanted to keep riding while Charlie recovers. You already knew that haha. You're all the same way yourselves too. What else can we say? We love horses. We love riding. As Churchill said, "No hour is wasted that is spent in the saddle."
definitely a mare tho
Charlie, by the way, is doing well. I brought him home yesterday after staying a couple days at New Bolton for surgery. He was.... emotional upon his return. Basically a real hot fucking mess. But physically he's doing ok and the surgery was successful and the prognosis is good. So now we focus on healing. More soon.
d'aww look at that face! also charlie's empty stall behind her since i had just dropped him off for surgery :'(
In the meantime, we persevere. Persist. Find a way. Since lancing Charlie's abscess I've been on daily bandage duty anyway. The surgical wound blessedly doesn't require daily changes since drainage isn't really an issue in the same way it was from the abscess, but I'll still be out quite often caring for him.
trees can't eat horses if the trees are also where we get all our breaks from work!
So naturally I also immediately started hunting for available rides while I'd be out anyway caring for my doofy hero. There are a surprising number of options. A few children's ponies who always benefit from the occasional school. A horse who needs to get up to w-t-c speed so it can be planted in the lesson program. The odd ride here and there, ya know?
she's hoping i'll slip her a peppermint. hint: i totally will
Velvet was the first horse that came to mind tho. She's a beautiful little mare - and 1000% a product of the modern day horse owner affliction fondly referred to as "The Black Stallion Syndrome."
She's wild and beautiful and full of spirit. So her owner chose her from a rescue lot. And..... well. Her owner is now pretty fucking terrified of her. Lost all confidence. Basically doesn't ride except on group trail rides where Velvet can be nestled right in among the pack.
exhausted but self satisfied little pony
Her owner is SUPER nice tho - and actually so is this pony. I expect that they'll become more of a team maybe sooner than the owner currently imagines. But the pony needs serious mileage. I've seen her go with her owner, and also with a few of the resident brave kiddos - and she honestly looks cool.
i might be the first person that ever really tightened a noseband on her. she apparently wasn't sure she could chew her lifesaver and dropped it! the horror!! luckily she found it again -- all was not lost!
Velvet's basic flaw is that she's got no accountability for herself, which has led to no confidence. She hasn't been made to do the thing.... and now maybe isn't so sure that she can even do the thing. Just getting her out of the barn in hand, or away from it under saddle, can be a real challenge. (lol until i put a spur on and she was like SWEET BABY JESUS WHERE DID THAT COME FROM.... nobody expects the spanish inquisition little girl!!!)
She's spooky and scooty and feels unreliable and unbalanced. Likes to get to where her neck is about 2" long with ears up your nose and just trantering off to the horizon.
don't let her diminutive looks fool you -- this lady is a TANK
But then she trips behind (so weak omg) and is like "oh fuck we gone die" all while I'm sitting there like, "uh but ok maybe try slowing down a little?"
In a way tho, she's kinda been an easy ride to get to know since she just expects to be pulled on, to have riders hang all over her face. Bc she feels so bolty spooky scooty all the time, and with all the trantering.... it's pretty easy to understand why a rider would want to pull. But.... instead I've taken the approach of putting my leg on so strong I might break her ribs (a gentle hug, if you will lol), while not actually letting her canter but also just pushing the reins at her, daring her to stretch out to them. And ..... go figure, she's coming around.
also a little piggy haha
I've only ridden her twice now but it was a pretty major difference already between rides 1 and 2. Which is cool bc she feels for allllll the world like Isabel from the EARLY days. Like, way pre-blogging. The first year or so of Isabel. Where if she went a week without riding I might not actually even be able to get on (true story).
This mare is different in her ways - she's quite good on the ground (ahem, Isabel) but she's also spooky where Isabel was just flighty. So there's some adjustments I have to make. But the brain and the way of going feels very similar. Very familiar.
#glamourshot
So stay tuned for more. I'm kinda excited about this little sabbatical with Velvet. Excited to see what changes can be effected in her, but also just excited to test myself a little bit. She's a very different ride from Charlie, but she's a ride I used to be pretty ok at handling. So it's a nice change of pace.
I'm hoping to basically do all the things with her -- mostly to get her more broke and exposed so she can be successful with her owner. But also let's be real - I'm gonna try to have a little fun here for my own sake too lol.
Wish us luck, and prepare yourselves for getting to know Velvet better along with me! Have you ever had a designated "stand in" horse while your own recovers? Or have you mostly just catch ridden where you could? Do you gravitate towards these extra rides on the nicer, made horses? Or the needier, green beans? And do you prefer to switch it up or are you like me in that you need to focus on a sort of "project"?
