Continuing on my theme of reflection, I’ve been thinking a lot about the changes I’ve seen in myself and Gem since beginning lessons. Eleven weeks isn’t a lot of time and six lessons with probably 4-5 at home rides on my own aren’t a whole lot of rides and yet I have already noticed some major big picture changes that make me excited for the future.
The biggest and most important change is in her level of relaxation. Pre-February she was always high as a kite. Even when I took the two or three lessons with the BO at the last barn, she was incredibly tense, no fun and not enjoying herself in the slightest. Every little thing would set her off which in turn would make me more nervous and tense.
I treated myself to these used but in good condition Dehners field boots. $100. Only they didn’t fit, even when I got measurements from the seller, and apparently nobody else has size 6 feet so they are looking nigh impossible to resell. I hate shopping
Now? Well, now she is nearly bored. No, she doesn’t have collection and isn’t anywhere close to being on the bit, but she also isn’t incredibly nervous and tense anymore either. She is still reactive to my leg and seesaws between pokey jog and shooting forward, but it is more her not understanding that there is an intermediate response rather than her being a powder keg under me.
What is the difference? Did six lessons really create this? I can’t think of anything else that could have: while she moved home at the same time, her actual lifestyle has remained the same. She still lives with her BFF Pete, still is out 24/7, still has plenty of grass, same grain. I’ve thought a lot about it and I think the biggest difference is all in how I am riding her. My posture is more solid and reliable so she doesn’t have to worry about me. I’m being more firm with my requests so she doesn’t have to wonder what I really mean. I’m riding with more focus and intent, so she is well aware of what I want and when I want it. As Trainer pointed out, Gem really likes fair warning about anything coming up and doesn’t appreciate a surprise so by riding with more intention I am giving her that heads up with my posture.
Einstein is a super sweet dog who has the misfortune in life to be following in the paw prints of the best dog I will likely ever have. I still miss Bones deeply every day.
Also, I’m much more relaxed. Instead of freaking out every time she speeds up or cuts a corner, I now have tools in my box to prevent it. I don’t grab for her face and curl into the fetal position any more. Instead, I sit taller and deeper and ask her firmly yet politely to rebalance, I use my leg to push her barrel where I want it to go, I half halt or ask for more to maintain an even pace.
Its all combined to create a much happier and more relaxed scene and I think we are both enjoying it a lot more than the tense fights we used to get into. In fact, I can’t recall that last time I actually got into a fight with Gem.
This has turned into the next big change I have noticed: more confidence in both of us. Gem is starting to really figure out that I am not going to abandon her and as such she is starting to rely on my guidance a little more versus her own self preservation. In turn, I am learning that I can control her and that there really isn’t much use to getting tense and curling into a ball. Who would have guessed that things would go better when you ride the horse instead of losing your own cool. Interesting.
I very nearly bought these socks when in San Diego. I’m a desperate cheapo though and couldn’t fork out $30 for a pair of socks.
I’ve mentioned that I’m not really getting into dressage as much as I would have thought and that’s only partly true. When we do something really cool like lengthen and shorten the trot through just my posting, my heart goes all a pitter patter and I get all sorts of little school girl giggly. It would be embarrassing if I actually gave a crap about how I looked to others. Those rides are amazing. The rides like Sunday where we just worked on the minutiae of maintaining pace, geometry and halting well I got a bit bored. And so did Gem. Gem getting bored during a ride is a whole new territory for me.
Are we excelling at this whole thing? No. We still go around with my elbows too darn straight, my legs tend to draw up when I go to use them instead of staying long and once I get off kilter with something my go to is still to be grabby with my hands. Gems nose sticks out a million feet, she goes from pokey to racing, her back is hollow and she has no idea what halt actually means or why she has to do it.
But….
Now that we are where we are, relaxed calm and happy, and now that I am learning how to use various tools to get what I want, I can start to work on those other aspects.
This would be a sign I would write. I spotted this one day walking around our downtown looking for Pokémon with Wyatt
And we are only six lessons in. I can’t even imagine where we could be a year from now. I get all butterfly in my stomach excited to even think about it. The possibilities seem endless right now and that’s an amazing feeling seven years in to owning this wonderfully frustrating mare.
Who knows what will happen in June. I may crash and burn quite literally or we could excel. I could be reduced to tears, although that is unlikely given the fact that I’m not often reduced to tears in general, or I could be filled with joy. Any way it plays out, I’m proud of what we have accomplished this far and I can’t wait to continue on.
Eleven weeks and six lessons ago I started on a new riding journey with the goal to learn, improve my relationship with Gem and perhaps find a new competitive outlet. As I prepare to enter my first ever horse show, I think it’s a good time to ruminate on what has been accomplished thus far and where I’d like to go.
In the beginning I would have bet quite a lot that I would have taken to dressage and been scared of jumping. Eleven weeks later and I find myself not enjoying dressage all that much and nearly chomping at the proverbial bit to jump.
Our one peony opened up.
Part of the equation is that dressage is very boring right now. 20 meter circles, halting, trotting a ton and some little canter bits thrown in. There isn’t a whole lot to be excited about, but it also has to do with my innate personality. I’m much more of a shoot from the hip, ask questions later, why not go for it, type of person. It’s difficult for me to get lost in all the minutia that is dressage. It’s just not what I geek out about, I suppose.
Still, I understand the utility of getting at least the basics down and plan to continue with it and see where we go. If all was perfect, I’d love to reach first level with Gem as I think that knowing those skills and that level of connection, rhythm and balance is really important for basically everything else. I don’t see myself going to a pure dressage show, but you ever know. A year ago I never thought I’d be doing any of this.
But in the larger picture of honing my skills and wants to better be prepared for when Gem is retired, I think I can cross a dressage specific horse off my list. Sometimes knowing what I don’t want helps more just as much as knowing what I do want.
Wyatt helping brush Pete and looking like a mini Dusty.
As for jumping, I love it. There is so much that goes into it that I never imagined. The balance required, the planning, the rhythm. To me it is just like doing dressage, but with the added bonus of jumps thrown in. I love it. Gem isn’t so keen on it, but that’s ok. At 18″ she can deal.
I also like the speed of jumping a lot. While I’m only doing 18″-2′ cross rails right now, the fact that the exercises can be changed all the time keeps it interesting and not repetitive. This helps both Gem and me not get bored with doing the same thing for the dozenth time. While we basically are doing the same thing, it’s over a different jump, coming from a different direction or at a different gait which makes it seem new.
As of right now, subject to completely change, I believe I would look for a horse with some basic jumping skills installed with both a knack for and a propensity towards enjoying the work.
I have neither had the opportunity or the lady sack big enough to attempt cross country yet. Maybe this fall although Gem just plain hates bare wood and that’s basically what 99% of the jumps at my level include so it just sounds like no fun at all. Perhaps once we are both better at this whole riding thing we can attempt it and see. There are a ton of courses close by to school on so it wouldn’t take much to go.
Ack. This post is already getting long winded and I haven’t even gotten to what I set out to write about: the changes already palpable in both of us. I guess I will save that for another day.
For today, let’s wrap this up by saying that I 100% believe I made the correct decision in putting endurance on hold and exploring other disciplines with Gem. I adore my trainer and feel like she is the perfect fit for me right now. Gem and I are already so different than that first lesson it is incredible. I’m so excited for the new path we are on and I can’t wait to see where it goes.
Towards the end of my lesson on Sunday Trainer had me run through the Intro B test a few times to see what issues popped up. There were plenty, but it was really interesting to run through it. More for my sake to look back on than anything, I’m going to run through the test here and add Trainer’s comments in bold after the moves.
Gem got all englished up this weekend with a new to us black bridle with white padding. I need to poke some more holes in the cheek and it was adjusted after this picture, but all in all it was a good fit. She looked really pretty in it too. It was only $40 so I can slowly change it out over time to upgrade if I want.Enter at A, working trot and turn down center line: we majorly failed at this the first time mostly because I didn’t get Gem deep enough into the corner and she couldn’t get all her legs sorted. She got all jumbled up and nearly fell on her face which granted us a start over. Use the corner to my advantage, make sure I start looking at my turn well before, turn a few strides too early and leg yield over after the turn if I have to. It’s better than shooting past and swerving in. Sit up super tall and tighten my core to prepare for the turn and help Gem balance herself.
Dusty came with me so there is media! He didn’t watch the practice tests as he was Pokémon hunting with Wyatt, but he still grabbed some decent shots. This is how we go right now: not super dressage like, but also not tense and giraffe like so I am happy with it. As for me my legs are under me and my body is bent to where I am going. My elbows are still too straight and my hands super wide but again it’s an improvement from where we were 2 months ago. I’m pleased over all.Halt through medium walk at X, salute: The start of Intro B is rough for us. Gem down transitioned to walk ok but would not halt. It is a known issue. Once she did she decided to swing her butt around so we were facing 90 degrees away from where the judges would be. Not good. Would we even get a 1 for that? This earned us a break from the test and 15 minutes of halt transitions randomly throughout the arena. We then started over from the beginning again. Only let her do 2-3 strides of walk prior to halt so that the walk is more of a prolonged down transition leading to halt versus a true walk. This gives me more time to get her halted. Keep both legs on evenly to keep her straight during the halt instead of throwing them off her like I tend to do. Do not salute until her feet are done moving no matter how long it takes. It is worse to salute while she is still moving than to take a few extra seconds to fully halt.
Better elbows. Hands still a little weird. But I’m having fun and Gem is calm and relaxed. Two big picture items that were hard to come by a few months ago. I also love how she is tuned into me with one ear at all times. Working trot to C, track left: this we could do! Gem transitioned up to the trot from halt sharply although she sorta western pleasure trotted to start. I gave her enough warning to make the turn at C and carried on our way. Get her into her good trot quickly not the crappy western jog she tries to get away with when bored. Use the corners to my advantage and get her all the way to the rail before turning. Make the corners round and purposeful.
I appear to be on a circle. Gem appears to be on a straight line. Who needs bend when you can surf board your way through?20 meter circle tracking left at C then go straight ahead: Gem finally got into her good trot and we circled ok. I managed to remember to bend my entire body and we did create a mostly circle shape but it was too small to be 20 meters. Remember to keep Gem looking to the inside of the circle, in a small dressage court I should only be 10 meters away from the end of the arena on either side of my circle and on the rail on the other two. Bend my entire body around the circle, not just my head and neck. Do not start the circle until my body hits E.
Talking to Trainer about something. Notice how bored Gem looks? This is such a major win for us! In the past she was always high as a kite and so tense. I’ll take bored any day!Between K and A medium walk: we kind of trotted right through this and walked after A. Not so great. Since Gem tends towards fast, plan to walk at the first letter to give me more time.
I’m proud of how tall I am sitting. No more fetal position for me! It is feeling really natural too. Very exciting. Some day Gem will go along without her nose sticking out like we are in the middle of the easiest endurance ride ever, but that day isn’t today.Free walk across F to E then track right: yeah so Gem has no free walk. She doesn’t zoom off once I lengthen my reins which is nice, but there is absolutely zero stretching down or ground covering stride. In no circumstance should I decide to follow her head and topple forward. This does nothing for either of us.
Obligatory shadow shotMedium walk E-H: I picked my contact back up but outside of that I’m not sure there was any noticeable change. Don’t ask Gem for more walk. We should get a 6 for what we are doing now. Going for more walk may get us an 8 if all lines up, but it is more likely that she will break into trot and earn a 2.
I’m out of media from the ride so here is a pic of Einstein missing me while I mowed. Dusty and I are no fun when it comes to mowers. He has stitched up too many lost dog toes, so Einstein is locked in the house and I have stitched up too many human feet so Wyatt doesn’t get to sit on or be anywhere near a running mower.Working trot tracking right between H-C: we had a really lovely up transition here without any jogging steps. In up transitions, don’t ask too early since Gem is typically sensitive and ready to go. Do not ask before my body reaches H.
Gem and Pete made for some nice road blocks. I finally had to clap and shoo them away.20 meter circle at B: my circle was still mostly a circle but way too small. Bigger!
Dusty ran a hot and hilly marathon Saturday. I signed him up as a surprise two weeks prior. He was excited even though he had no time to prepare, but his training runs are in the upper teens to low 20s anyway. It ended up being 87F and 1900′ of elevation. He still finished 3rd in his age group and 16th of 48 overall. Wyatt raced him to the finish and bragged all weekend about beating him.Turn down center line at A, halt at x and salute: I got Gem into the corner better but still failed to let her know we were making a sharp turn. She didn’t trip so that was a plus. The halt was much better but then I thought she was done moving and saluted and she moved. Use that corner, sit up tall and prepare her sooner. Wait until she is 100% still before saluting.
We ran through it three times before calling it quits. One big glaring issue came up that needs fixing, but I’m not really sure how to go about it.
During the first part of the lesson, I worked hard to do the things Trainer asked and even began anticipating Gem better: I would half halt before Trainer had to tell me, added some leg here, pushed her out to the rail with my inside leg there. I wasn’t perfect, but I was actively riding the horse I had under me. It was amazing.
As soon as we began the test though, for some reason my brain leaked right out of my ears and I focused so hard on the moves I was doing that I stopped riding my horse. Oh we went through each move, but that was all I did. No more well timed half halts, no more inside leg pushing her out, no more balance and rhythm.
Turn here, trot now, walk now. That’s it. It was like all the lessons were gone and I couldn’t ride. It was frustrating and I am sure Gem was wondering why I abandoned her, got tense and stopped riding.
Not sure how to fix that. I think a big part of it was that I really wasn’t sure of the test itself. I wasn’t prepared to run through it and hadn’t memorized it yet, so I was working hard at just not going off course. Going into it knowing the test 100% will allow me to focus on riding more but I’m not naive enough to think it will fix it completely. I need to remember to ride. Any tips on that from those who have done this before?
For some reason I thought shopping for horse clothes would be an entirely different and way more exciting endeavor than for street or work clothes.
Turns out I was wrong.
Having made my eyes bleed looking through online used tack ads without really having any idea what I needed, I decided the better course of action was to head to a tack store and try on all the things.
First stop was the Farm House. It’s about an hour from me, but boasts a massive sale room that looked promising. My first mistake was letting the hubby and kid come along. It was a race to see which one got bored the quickest.
Barely stopped myself from buying these beautiful bad boys. I didn’t dare look at the price tag. Everything in the store was way over priced.
I wandered around the regular floor then headed to the sale room. Wow. So much stuff. So cheap. I found a gorgeous show coat originally $300 for only $20! I hoped it would fit but it was both too wide and too long. I debated getting it and having it tailored but I have no real clue how a show coat should fit and I doubt a tailor would either.
They also had tall boots for only $40, but again not in my size. The lady helped size me in boots and it turns out I’m a pretty easy fit. I do have very small ankles but the Ariat Heritage Contour fit me really well in a 6 regular. I’m now scouring the internet hoping to find a pair used.
Everything I touched was well over $100 and I was not in the position to drop that much right now. Maybe later if I decide to stick with this I can upgrade things.
I was there about 90 minutes when I started getting texts about both men being bored, so I didn’t get to try on any shirts or breeches to see what may fit.
We went home and ate lunch and I put both boys to bed and headed to the closer tack store: The Tack Shop. I figured the prices would be lower since it isn’t so close to TIEC and is in town versus the middle of expensive horse country. I was right.
The ladies were so helpful. They shoved breeches at me until I had tried on every type in the store. Turns out I’m an odd fit. When the waist fit right, the legs were super baggy. When the legs fit right, I could barely snap the buttons. Just like blue jeans. I hate shopping.
I never actually found a good fitting pair. I started with a size 28 since my thread bare, more holes than material, Tuff Riders are a 24 and while they still fit it is a bit obscene. Half the time they were too tight. The other half too big. 30s were almost always too big in both waist and legs except in one pair where I couldn’t even buckle them. 26s were almost always too tight in the waist but great in the legs. Ugh.
She finally shoved some tights at me and started with a medium but those were too big. I tried on a pair of Kerrits full seat micro cord breeches with belt loops in black and they actually fit really well everywhere. I was hoping to get a pair in white just because, by they only came in tan or black. I had her go ahead and order the tans ones so I knew I had at least one pair I could show in for both phases of a CT. Buying used is going to be really tricky since nothing apparently fits me. I wear a size 6 jeans and medium skirts. This shouldn’t be that hard.
Riding had been going really well. I’ve been keeping an inner monologue: quit hanging on the inside rein, slow the post instead of grabbing her mouth, sit taller, turn the entire body with the turn, seriously stop hanging on the inside rein etc… we even cantered both directions without it being a complete shit show.
The Tack Shop also has a consignment section and had several pairs of tall field boots, but none in my size. She wrote down what I needed though in case someone comes in with a pair later.
I never got around to trying on show shirts because that is my last concern and I still need to verify if I need a coat or not. Hopefully Trainer can help me out here when I ride with her next.
I did buy something! I wasn’t going to, but the ladies (one was the store owner) spent over 2 hours with me going over tack requirements and clothing plus shoving pants at me to try. I felt bad leaving empty handed. I grabbed a Jump girth and a set of brown stirrup leathers. I needed them both as they weren’t super expensive. I’m hoping the girth works. Nearly everything causes chafing except mohair. Mohair is pricey though and so trying this one first. She had a one very similar back when I rode her English and never chafed with it. So here is hoping it will work
I came home, found both boys still asleep 3 hours later, and put out an ISO ad on some Facebook sites for the remainder of what I need so hopefully someone will have something useful and not expensive because….
He is getting nearly big enough to use the stirrups. Kiddo might get his own pony sooner than I thought
I went ahead and signed up for my first ever CT on June 4th!!!!
I’m super excited. It will be Intro B and 18″ cross rails in stadium. I think we can at least safely do both without looking like complete fools.
There is a fun schooling show in May that I would love to attend. They have an amoeba level class that is intro dressage followed by 18″ stadium course. I really, really, really want to go. Trainer is an enabler and told me to sign up with Gem (I think the hubby sorta hates her 🙂 It is also super close so I could go the day of and return that same evening = less money and more family time.
The problem?
Spending the last four years fine tuning my endurance gear leaves me with absolutely nothing horse show appropriate. At all. Even my riding attire is all sorts of wrong.
I sat down to figure out what all I would need before being able to even attend a local schooling show. Turns out the list is pretty long and even buying most things used is still outside my current budget.
Gem needs:
Jump girth. This needs bought ASAP anyway so I can actually use the saddle outside the barn where I can borrow one from Trainer
Leathers for jump saddle. I borrowed my black ones off the dressage saddle for the lesson but that won’t work at a show. Something about needing to match and all.
Stirrup irons for jump saddle. Showing stirrupless is not an option. Or at least not one I would be stupid enough to try. I know myself and I know I will be too nervous and type A about timing to want to deal with taking irons off the dressage leathers and putting them on the jump saddle.
Leather bridles x 2. The whole matching thing again. With a black dressage saddle and a brown jump one I need a bridle in each color. I used to have a lovely brown one that fit Gem well, but I can’t find it. I’m pretty sure I know where it was hidden when we moved, but that still leaves me needing a black one.
Appropriate saddle pads. My red square pad is fine for lessons, but is not appropriate for either phase. It has big pockets for use on trail. Can you stop and eat a sandwich mid course if you get hungry? Something tells me no.
Nothing about this is legal.I need:
Tall boots vs paddock boots with half chaps. Apparently tennis shoes and fleece leather covers or mesh chaps aren’t allowed. In lessons I use ancient Ariat tennis shoe type riding shoes that are brown and my black mesh endurance half chaps. Trainer’s eyes bleed a little when she sees me. I’m leaning towards tall boots since I’d have to buy both paddock boots and chaps and the cost for boots (non custom) wouldn’t be a whole lot more.
A shirt with a collar. Comfortable cotton endurance ride t-shirts are prohibited. I don’t think I’ve worn a collared shirt in like 20 years. I don’t even own one. Or maybe I’d need an actual show shirt? I don’t know.
Real breeches. You know the type with belt loops and not made of stretchy lycra? Yeah those type. I don’t have a single pair. All tights all the way. And my tights are black, so I can’t even hope to use them and not be noticed.
A…gasp…belt. Um…I think its been even longer since I’ve worn a belt. With anything.
Hair net. I think I’d need this. I’ve got long hair now. Maybe easier to chop it off, but its been such a patient process to grow it out. Seems a bit hasty for a single show.
Jacket?? I’m pretty sure I can avoid buying one of these for schooling in the SC heat. I think all local schooling shows would prefer if you have one, but will waive it in the heat anyway. I think. I need to do a little more research on this one because jackets are pricey. Even used ones.
All sorts of show ring wrongAll said and done, that is a lot to purchase with only a few weeks to do it, so its looking about 99% reality that I’ll miss this one. Perhaps I can get the stuff together in enough time to make a late summer or early fall schooling show. At least my helmet is appropriate and since I have no intentions of taking Gem in open fields to fall jump over solid obstacles, I won’t be needing a vest any time soon.
I supported my endurance collection by selling off a bunch of stuff I had that didn’t work well for Gem, like a Wintec AP that fit us both horribly, bits she hated and the like. I have absolutely nothing to sell at the moment and $60 in my horse PayPal account. My endurance gear will have to be ripped from my cold, lifeless hands before I part with any of it.
Part of the problem is that I don’t even know what I want or would like. I don’t have a good tack store near me to go try on a bunch of stuff and I can’t really afford to waste money on shipping. I honestly don’t even know where to begin. Ugh.
What I really need is someone who is familiar with all this stuff to pity me and become my personal shopper. I’m scanning online used tack sites and facebook pages and plan to read as many tack review posts as I can on the blogs I follow, but I could really use a real live person helping me shop. Any takers??
Gem earned a walk break after all the canter work. I let her meander around a bit as Trainer set up an exercise for us.
4 trot poles leading up to a jump standard without any jump.
First up was the above: 4 ground poles through jump standards with no jump. She was nice and picked ones with a center stripe to help me be centered.
The first pass through we just walked and um…well I didn’t steer at all and we weaved through them like a drunk sailor and it was embarrassing. I’m not even sure what happened. Gem didn’t hesitate. I wasn’t nervous. I just didn’t ride. Ooops.
Second time through I actually rode and did my best to keep her between my legs. I really am not particularly good with the whole straight thing. I think I’m going straight, but then I see my tracks in the footing and it is really bad.
Anyway…once we went over it in each direction at the walk we picked up a nice, even trot and got busy trotting over them. Steering was much better and Gem can handle trot poles like a pro. Trainer liked what she saw enough to add a small cross rail (no clue the size but I think it was set to 18″ or maybe 2′) at the end.
This kinda blew Gem’s mind. She was so focused on the ground poles, that the jump just snuck up on her and she freaked. She went over and Trainer was really pleased that she responded with a yes answer, but she wasn’t liking it and it was too much. Trainer then removed the ground poles and left a placing pole and we did it again.
This time Gem focused on the jump and we went over it without much issue. But then the wheels fell off because….da da da…I stopped riding …again.
It was like I was so focused on keeping Gem straight to the jump, sinking my heel down and keeping my leg on to get her over the jump that I just didn’t really know what to do with myself after and we just kinda skidded around and did whatever on the other side.
Gem really isn’t much into jumping and she counts any hesitation on my part as a good excuse to just not do it. She is the queen of dirty stops and run outs. I’ve learned to really sink my heels down, look up and away from the jump and push her on. All that takes all my concentration and then I apparently like to celebrate the fact that I didn’t die and actually went over the jump with my horse instead of on my own.
This made Trainer not so happy, so we worked hard on me continuing to ride after the jump and keeping Gem straight afterward.
She did this by creating a shoot with ground poles after the jump
We came at it again, but this time I had to go straight after the jump and finish riding it. It went much better and Gem was a really good girl through out. While the mare HATES leg during flat work, it takes a crap ton of it to get her over a jump and I had to remind myself to use more leg, more leg, more leg.
Trainer dropped the first cross rail and added a second one to the middle jump standards allowing Gem time to get used to a new placement. She kept the original placing pole and dropped the two rails from the cross rail on the ground between that standard, so we had to go over one pole, two poles next to each other and then the jump. Gem was not happy with this. The first placing pole was no issue, but she really did not like how wide the two together were and was staring at that so hard that she never saw the jump. Once we were over the poles she was smack up against the jump and had to go from nearly a stand still. More leg, more leg!!
The final configuration.
Once we didn’t completely mess that up, she raised the first cross rail back again and we were told that once we did that right we were done. I went into the exercise with as much leg as I could, sank my heels down and told Gem she was a really good girl. By this time she had gotten used to the first cross rail and went over no problem, but the did hesitate at the second. She went over though and cantered away. Somehow we managed it the first time and that was it.
Lesson of the century, over.
I was so happy with Gem. As soon as we went a few canter strides straight way from the jump I leaned forward and gave her a massive hug. I’m sure the little pony clubber having her 3’3″ lesson after me thought I was crazy for acting like I just won the Olympics having completed two cross rails, but it felt huge to me.
Trainer laughed saying that Gem gave the horse equivalent of an eye roll and looked like a teenager just embarrassed by her mom. I don’t care. I know she secretly loves it.
I was a little anxious untacking her to see what the saddle had done. I wasn’t 100% sure of the fit and with all the canter and jump work, if it was going to slide around it would have. I was happy to see that it was exactly where I had placed it to girth up. All previous jump saddles have ended up on her neck after that much canter work. When it was all off, she had perfectly smooth hair all around and no sore spots. After an hour of hard work, something would have been tender had it not fit well. I think it is a keeper!
What Went Well:
We jumped a jump, I stayed on and nobody died.
I wasn’t nervous. First time ever jumping without a knot in my stomach
Trainer complemented Gem on her brain here. She said one time she thought Gem was going to add an extra stride in to make the jump , but instead she just lengthened her stride to make it happen. Really smart horse. If she didn’t hate jumping so much, she might actually be really, really good at it.
I kept my position, didn’t get jumped out of the tack even when she superman launched or chipped in really bad and didn’t catch her in the mouth (if it hasn’t been apparent this is one of my biggest jumping fears – nailing my poor horse hard in the mouth)
What We Need to Work On:
Riding. Like…really riding. I already know with Gem that she will not go over anything without a superhuman amount of leg, so I don’t stop riding before a jump, but I tend to completely quit right after. No more of that.
Ride straight away from the jump. We aren’t advanced and working on angled jumps or big courses, so I need to ride straight away from it.
My approach kinda sucked. I either turned her way too early or too late. I eventually got it right, but it needn’t have taken me so long.
(This post and the following were written and scheduled to go up prior to saying goodbye to my Scrabs. It seems an odd juxtaposition to have such a happy and loving life type post the day after the other published, but in real life this lesson took place on my birthday, the 13th, and we said our sad goodbye on the 14th. I wanted the Scrabble tribute to post first though)
Not one to be overly gushy and mushy, but wow….Gem restored all my faith in her times 1000 and it is wonderful. This horse. She gives me everything she can, sometimes in ways I don’t know what to do with, but she is honest as the day is long and I am loving getting the chance to ride her.
Maybe my little come to Jesus talk with her during our last ride really did the trick, maybe all my lessons have given me more confidence and tools in my toolbox to work with her, maybe the new saddle (did I mention I got a new saddle for my birthday?!? squee!!) worked magic, maybe the new venue changed her attitude, maybe Trainer is just that amazing…or maybe, and more likely, all those things clicked into place to give me the best ride I have ever had on my Gemmie in seven years.
I started off a little worried, then began to smile, then grin form ear to ear, then full on little school girl giggling. I think Trainer thought I lost my mind. Maybe I did. I don’t want it back.
Thorowgood T8 Jump. Adjustable out the butt, fits the hard to fit mare and my butt loves it.Delicious dark brown leather pared with synthetics so I don’t have to be anal about cleaning it or riding in the rain. I adore it.
The lesson was broken up into a flat work session the first half and a jump session the second. This post would be way too long to write both up, so I am splitting it in two. I learned SO MUCH that keyboard diarrhea is imminent.
I was a little concerned with the fit on Gem. It seemed too narrow at the gullet, but it didn’t rock and the balance was spot on. The panels fit her like they were custom made which was not surprising as the dressage T8 I have does the same. The flocking was a bit much in the rear, but it is brand new and it should settle with use. I’m going to give it a few months of rides and then have a saddle fitter come in and adjust as needed.
Trainer hadn’t worked with Gem since the very first time at my house where Gem was her typical spazzy, tense and not listening oh-my-God-any-leg-means-gallop self. I think she was a bit nervous. We began with walking with a purpose and created a smaller rectangle in the large jump arena. Right way she could see the difference in Gem and I: I asked Gem to do something and expected it to be done and Gem was respondeing by doing it although sometimes begrudgingly.
The angle is helping any but she really has become a little portly. Ignoring that though: look how shiny she is. And dapples!!!!
We began with walk-halt-walk which is Gem’s worst thing ever. She really sees no point in stopping just to go again and Trainer even laughed about it remarking how she could tell that Gem thought halting was something other horses had to do. She could tell Gem was annoyed because she knew we would just be walking on again and what was the entire reason for doing this? For my part, she had me ask in a small series of quick bursts starting small then escalating to let Gem know I meant business but not create a tugging war with the reins. Eventually Gem acquiesced to the request to halt more promptly and we moved on.
The flat work half focused on one thing: adjustability. Gem and I worked hard at home on rhythm and it paid off as she picked up the nicest working trot that was fluid and forward but not braced or rushed. In fact trainer exclaimed that she was very cute when she behaved and had really nice movement. Maybe we wont completely fail at this English stuff after all.
Wondering what new form of torture I have in store for her
We kept on the smaller rectangle in the center of the arena and began to work on that adjustability thing. It was SO MUCH FUN!
Trainer had me think walk and really, really slow my posting down, sit up tall and tighten my core all while not touching the reins at all and I could feel Gem slow down nearing the walk. Right before she actually walked, I was to amp up my energy and send her on in the trot.
My timing was not quick enough in the beginning and we ended up walking a good bit or I would add too much leg too soon and we never really sowed down. It took a few circuits around before we got the hang of it. When we did though: magic. Gem began to really tune in and all I had to do was change my body posture and my energy level and she would slow then speed back up. Trainer then had me work on going from a working trot to an extended trot the same way.
Pretty soon she had us alternate between working, extended and slow trot at each side of the rectangle. It was a blast. Gem was relaxed and thankful that I wasn’t touching her mouth and really listened, coming back immediately and going forward with gusto but remaining relaxed. Holy crap! I didn’t know she had it in her and it was SO MUCH FUN. Have I mentioned how fun it was??? I could have just done that for an hour.
Right before tacking up. The angle makes her look way less rotund.
After we played with that in both directions, we moved on. Drilling Gem is never a good idea. She is wicked smart and once she learns something it is time to move on or she will get bored and find something else to amuse herself with. Typically, I don’t find humor in the same things she does.
Next was canter work though and I immediately lost all my zen and relaxation. Trainer saw the response in Gem and asked me what happened. I told her I got tense. She told me to relax.
Part of my canter issues comes from my own misunderstanding that canter = faster. Since I can go a million miles an hour at the trot, I don’t really want to go any faster in the canter. Trainer is working hard to break this thought process and for me to think of the canter as shifting to a new gear, but maintaining the same speed. It is helping…a bit.
All my prior work at getting Gem desensitized to my leg cue for canter has paid off though. She can be cued with the outside leg without completely losing her head now. We picked up the left lead and while we did canter and I didn’t pull her face off, we also completely lost any steering we had.
When Gem canters, she just goes wherever she darn well pleases, bulging out a shoulder here and her hindquarters there. Trainer told me to put my outside leg on her and prevent the bulging out, but when I did Gem went wildly careening at a million miles an hour. Or so it felt. Trainer understood my dilemma. Gem is hypersensitive to the leg and believes it means go faster at all times. We have come to terms with this at the walk and are beginning to understand it at the trot, but the canter is currently in the crapper. It did improve a bit and we went both right and left, but it is going to take a long time before it is pretty. Or rideable. We will get there.
The mare likes selfies as much as I do
And that was the first half of our lesson. I was so proud of Gem. She came ready to work and while she was still highly opinionated and her typical self, she was honest and tried hard for me when I did my part and rode correctly.
Trainer had a lot to say about Gem as well. This was only her second time seeing her in action. Her thoughts:
Gem is a super cute mover when she wants to be
She is really sensitive to my leg and we need to work on getting her to understand that I can touch her and it not mean forward
She has a massive canter stride. She was really impressed with how much ground the mare covers in her canter and mentioned it a dozen times during our canter work. Maybe that also plays into my canter issues.
Gem doesn’t like to be surprised by anything. It is up to me to give fair warning about a change like in a transition or direction to let her know what is coming up soon.
Gem is very in tune with me. If I’m tense, so is she. When I relax she will too. I have to be better at controlling my own self before I can expect her to do the same.
Gem likes being in charge. When I get firm about one aspect, say pace, she will try to take charge of another, say direction. This was most prevalent at the canter when she picked up the gait and lead I requested, but then decided she had all the say in where we went. And I let her because I get all flailing and forget how to ride when I canter.
Things I did well:
She didn’t correct my position at all. I did ride with less leg than in my prior lessons, but she soon learned why and we are compromising at the moment. She stated that my leg position was perfect for where Gem is at right now and will take time to be allowed to bring it back and around her without causing tension and anxiety.
My elbows were the best yet, still need work but I’m counting this as a win because she only had to tell me to bring them back half as much as before and the alterations I made were minimal versus massive.
I rode my mare off my seat. BIG HUGE IMPROVEMENT FOR US!!
I used circles correctly like I learned last time out. Gem actually bent around the circle and it helped to rebalance her.
Things to improve:
I need to begin to work on getting my seat completely independent from the rest of me. Currently its not so much.
Continue to improve in my transitions. Don’t throw her away going down and don’t run her into it going up.
Canter work. Lots and lots of canter work. Transition, speed, steering. All of it. One big thing she told me is to never let Gem canter from a bad trot. This sets up a bad canter and then I’m immediately having to correct it.
Keep Gem focused. She tended to get bored and look around for something to do. I have to keep her mind busy, but not overwhelmed. This is hard for me as I tend to either drill or let it slide.
Teeth floating is a bit of a sensitive topic in my household. The hubby has very strong opinions on the subject which is odd since he does his best to have no opinions when it comes to the horses having long ago decided equine medicine was not his thing.
I have very strong opinions based on…nothing really but I can still have them.
We tend to go round and round on the subject and have come to the compromise of every other year to avoid my anxiety about being a bad horse mom yet taking his experience and education, which has taught him that the vast majority of horses are over floated thus resulting in senior horses with no teeth and no way to eat, into consideration. He has shown me numerous articles and has had his educated opinion substantiated by every single vet we have had out for the horses the last 7 years.
This just looks wrong. Poor Petey.
What this means in real life is that we don’t float our horse’s teeth very often. In fact, it has been three years since they were last attended to. I’m comfortable at every other year and felt three was pushing it.
In any event, we finally came to an agreement and the vet came out to do them. I was very worried that we would be yelled at and that their mouths would be full of waves, hooks and bad ulcerations.
Why hello there Gemmie. Feeling the good drugs, are you?
The reality? The vet said they looked fantastic and that they were happy to see us not floating any more often than every two years. Gem had some very minor hooks and Pete had two superficial ulcers just starting to form.
I was a happy owner until they added that they were both very fat and needed a diet. I knew Pete was fat. We have safely gotten about 100 lbs off him since we moved him from two barns ago. But Gem? I didn’t think she was that bad. Rose colored glasses and all.
I’m sure I will pay for this the next time I ride
I should have taken her off her competition feed when I stopped competing her last summer. It wasn’t such a big deal where we boarded last because there wasn’t really any grass. The Duo is out on a ton of grass now though and it is showing in thier expanding girths.
So Gem is now officially taken off her snickers bar equivalent competition feed until such a time as I amp up her training again. Now it’s kale: Triple Crown Lite with only 9.3% NSC to help offset the rich grass and 3 flakes of hay at night to keep them eating.
Waddling off into the sunset
She won’t be happy with the change, but it is for her own good. Once I start riding her more regularly again, hopefully later this month once things settle again at home and work, and the grass burns out in the summer heat she can have her feed back.
I adore shadow pictures and find myself taking one nearly every time I ride. It must be my thing. This is at the entrance to the dressage ring.
Traffic can be really finicky which puts me at the barn either an hour early or barely on time depending on if I leave 15 minutes earlier or later from work. Growing up 15 minutes early was on time and anything after was late, so I always err on the side of way too early and Wednesday was no exception. It was 85F and sunny when I pulled into a crazy busy barn and I really enjoyed getting to sit in the grass and watch the lesson ahead of me. They were working on a really cool jumping exercise that I hope to someday be good enough to get a shot at: four cross rails were set creating an inner 20 meter circle. The girls would jump into the circle at the trot, maintain the canter after the jump and circle depending on which direction the instructor told them as they jumped in, and eventually she would tell them which jump to exit the circle on. It was all about maintaining a rhythm and rideable canter and planning ahead. It looked really hard and really fun!
But that wasn’t what my lesson was about.
I tacked up Ralphie, the Welsh-Arab cross gelding I rode the first time, and Trainer J told me we were going into the dressage arena. I was a little disappointed to not get to jump, but that soon evaporated in the lovely weather and good horse under me. Any time spent riding is good by me.
She explained the inner workings of the large dressage court I would be riding in which was all new to me having never been in an actual legal size one before and she put me to work riding down the long side on the quarter line, making a sharp and direct turn and back down the opposite quarter line. The goal was to work on straightness. I failed. When I turned down the other short side and headed back down my original quarter line I saw my woefully drunken sailor line I had previously made. Straightness is not my friend. We did it again and this time I worked really hard at keeping my horse between my legs and gong straight. It wasn’t perfect, but it was much improved.
Dusty and Wyatt showed up around the time we began a series of exercises that really helped me 1000% and I actually got some pictures to show you!!!
In order to better figure out both my own and Ralphie’s body, Trainer created a 20 meter circle at C placing a cone at the pinnacle f my circle at the center of the arena (no clue what letter belongs there, but it was a 20 meter circle at C). She asked me how many corners are on a circle: none. Then why was I adding 4? Oh.
It was pretty difficult at the walk to get Ralphie to actually bend and I wasn’t riding it right anyway. I wasn’t preparing far enough ahead and was making more of a flat tire at every single point of the circle.
Love my paint skills, don’t you? The point was to only take 1-2 strides anytime I hit the rail or cone and to make sure my horse was bent into the circle, my shoulders were turned and my inside leg was pushing his body out while my outside aides stayed on and steady.
I’m pretty sure she was about to just give up on me when we started to trot and it just hit me. I began to sit taller, and actually look ahead. Once I figured out to look one full marker ahead of where we were and turn my entire body to reach that point, Ralphie’s body bent around my inside leg and we maintained bend around the entire circle.
It was like a light bulb cam eon and it felt amazing to ride him like that!
Back to walk. You can see how much I LOVE to keep those darn elbows locked out straight. ugh. But…..all those tracks were mine and they are actually CIRCLES!!! Like my horse was bending and tracking up and we made 20 meter circles!!!
She then took us to the very far end and we repeated this going the other way. It took e a few revolutions to get back to where I ended before, but we got it and I saw her grinning just as much as I was. I wasn’t a lost cause after all. We finished this exercise by adding a third circle in the center.
They were all actually circles, but you get the point
After that was done and we took a short walk break, she had me string it all together in a steady serpentine along those same circles. This was my favorite exercise to date. I’ve done serpentine exercises with Gem, but apparently never really correctly as I always squared mine off. This time I had to keep on those same 20 m circle tracks I made earlier and really plan as they came up quickly in the large dressage court.
We did this at the trot mostly and everything really clicked for me here. I had to be constantly changing the bend n my body to allow Ralphie to bend too and it forced me to really open up my shoulders and relax my body. Trainer was being gracious and mentioned that I try to sit so still to be quiet which makes me stiff. I replied that I am really just that stiff of a person. Seriously, you should watch me try to dance. I look like Frankenstein. Loose doesn;t come easily to me.
I really like this picture. My arms are a lot looser, Ralphie is relaxed and head down and we are still on the circle.
I thought we were over at this point having accomplished a lot, but she said it was time to work on the canter. My stomach knotted up a little. I was doing so well. Why end it with so much horror?
We went back down to the circle at C and did a few revolutions (pretty sure that isn’t how you describe it in dressage terms, but oh well) to get the feeling back and then she told me to sit two strides and cue the canter.
Yes, that is me with a grin while cantering!!!!
And I did. And he did. AND IT WAS AMAZING!!!
We just cantered. Trainer let out a whoop of joy and clapped. WE WERE CANTERING. In a calm, easy and bent manner around the circle while I continued to steer. It was SO MUCH FUN!
Ralphie dropped to a trot without me meaning to and all I did was sit and ask again. No fuss. No theatrics. No taking 3/4 of a turn to do it. He cantered immediately. And on the correct lead. We repeated it the other direction and the wheels fell off a little as he was now super racey in the trot and it took me a while to gather him back up, but once I asked to canter he did again. I was grinning like a fool by the end.
ZOOM!Grinning and giving Ralphie a big pat.
We called it a night after that and I was on cloud 9 the entire way home.
Things that went well:
CANTER!!!
She didn’t have to tell me to fix my lower position at all. I’ve dialed in what she calls a neutral seat since she had me fix myself two lessons ago and it has already become second nature
My circle were circles and we actually bent around them
Things to work on:
Relax those elbows and bring my arms into my body. Ugh. Will this ever happen?
Plan ahead more. Quit riding one step ahead and ride three or four. Planning makes everything better
Be greedy with my posture. Don’t let Ralphie pull me out of position in a down transition and don’t throw myself at him during an up transition
My hopes to get a lesson on Gem this weekend didn’t work out: something about Trainer sending her own horse through his first 1* event got in the way. How dare she! 😉 Plan B was to get a sitter and take a date day on Gem and Pete on the trail. Dusty and I haven’t been on a Wyatt free date since our anniversary last October. That got squashed with thunderstorms in the forecast for all day Sunday.
Saturday afternoon was warm and sunny though, so I hopped on up in the hay field to see what I could accomplish. My aim was to work on canter transitions since that is my current worst skill.
I don’t have any pictures from the ride because my phone took a swim in the toilet that morning and was sitting in a bag of rice (useless by the way) until Sunday morning when I gave up and entered one of Dante’s circle’s of Hell…aka Verizon…to see what could be done which was nothing short of paying a crap ton of money and leaving with a new phone I didn’t want. Ugh.
Anyway….
It was warm enough that I rode in a tank top which generally never happens. My blood is like ice most of the time and I rarely go out in anything short of two layers when it is under 85, but it was super sunny and just felt really good. I dragged Gemmie over to the hay field and clambered aboard in the dressage saddle.
The weather did not disappoint on Sunday. On and off storms that kept the Duo hiding in the shelter
Right away things were crap. Gem either wanted to throw her head down to eat or throw it in the air and zoom around tense and distracted. All I wanted to do was walk. For about 5-7 minutes we fought each other. I cursed her name and eventually told her I should sell her to an endurance home and get a horse that can do the simple things I enjoy doing…like walking, trotting and cantering safely and pleasantly at home.
Then I did something I have never done…I got firm. Not angry. Not rough. Not mean. Not unfair. Just firm. When I said halt I meant halt now, not in 20 feet when she decided to. When I said walk, I meant walk. Not jig, not trot, not stop and eat. Walk. Bend. Turn. Simple things that a 19 year old horse, having been ridden consistently and fairly for the last 7 years, should be able to do without issue. She isn’t green. She isn’t young.
I realized, up there on her while having no fun at all in those first minutes of the ride, that I no longer have the same horse under me as I did 7 years ago. She isn’t a delicate little egg that will crack and lose the last 2 months of trust I built up if I do one single thing wrong. She can handle the amount of pressure asking her to freaking halt puts on her without losing it. She just doesn’t want to because she has never had to. And that is my fault. I didn’t make the necessary shift in our relationship when it was time, likely 2+ years ago, and have been letting her get away with behaviors she shouldn’t have.
When I became firm with her, informed her that I do mean what I ask, she responded by fighting a bit but then listening. She halted. She walked off. She relaxed. When I finally decided it was time to trot, she picked it up and went around my 20ish meter circle nicely. If she tried to speed up, my half halt and sitting tall told her to slow it back down and maintain her rhythm. All I had to do was be clear, firm and consistent.
The next 40 minutes were a blast!
She floated around the hay field nicely and while she would get distracted at times by traffic or some such, she kept her pace, kept being relaxed and kept being rideable. We did figure 8s, 20 meter circles and larger circles around the perimeter of the area I was working in. She lowered her head, blew out and was a joy.
A beautiful rainbow out our front door
Just when I was beginning to think about working on that canter, she began to turn her head and bite at my leg. I asked her to move on, but she was clearly trying to tell me something. I listen to my horse when able and she is very honest about her feelings, so abnormal behavior such as this is typically her telling me something is off.
I hopped down worried that the girth was pinching her and noted that she was slathered in white foamy sweat. If there is one thing that my Princess hates, it is to be sweaty and here she was lathered! I chuckled at her sad expression and disdain for sweat and called it a day. We had been working pretty hard for 45 minutes and were both hot and sweaty. She had been fantastic and I had learned a valuable lesson.
It is time to hold Gem more accountable for her actions under saddle and quit thinking of her the way I did when she was mentally breakable. Being fair, but firm really helped change the dynamic we had Saturday afternoon.
The Roaming Rider 