Riding club dressage qualifier

Wow! It has been an incredibly busy but just amazing one!  

Saturday was my owl handling experience...lord, I LOVED it  
Such beautiful creatures, was very humbled to look into their eyes...
'How To Train your Dragon 2'in the afternoon with the smallest bear...tis a weepy, but very enjoyable...followed by DVD night with lovely OH who bought me 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' and a lovely bottle of prosecco...
If you haven't seen it, it is one of the best films I have seen in years...cast of thousands and so clever!!  

Today was Riding club shenanigans...National Qualifiers, team and individual competitions...arrived early for traditional picnic, muchos wine flowing (not for the drivers obviously!  ) great conversation, lots of giggles...they are a great bunch and so friendly and welcoming

Lovely to see FP! and the very smart wombalina in her very smart wombalina carriage...perfect for a princess  I have serious lorry envy!!  
Hilariously, riding club rules dictate no wearing of smart casco hat allowed....no kite mark apparently...so luckily had smelly old crash hat in back of car...the shame of wearing a brown hat with black jacket!!!  

The small brown one has been working very hard these past few weeks, have felt a huge step forward in his progress/training...took our time tacking up,it had got bloody hot by 2pm...middle of a field, fly-a thon...you get the idea  

Never warm up for long, especially in this type of heat, also ground very hard and the precious dressage pony doesn't do grass as a rule...slipped over a couple of times in transitions, so took it steady...long low warm up in walk, trot and canter, then pick up for some more direct transitions and a working frame...he felt bit hot and bothered, not as pingy as he can be, but pleased he was listening  Felt very calm about it all today bizarrely, maybe that helped, relaxation and submission definitely so much better today! Centre line had a nice spook at the plastic flowers at the entrance to the arena  but generally ok, halt square, picked him up for collected trot and off we went. Felt we really used the arena properly today for the first time, kicking myself for not preparing the mediums well enough (well deserved 6's) but positive comment about the rhythm of the trot work. Canter transition was great, 5.5 for falling over in the 5m loop and losing the canter altogether, but we will forgive him that poor soul  
8's for simple change  and final halt  and paces  
68.8%...almost fell over!!!

COuldn't have been more chuffed. He really made it feel easy today,like there was a lot more to come...a huge confidence boost for both of us! Team came 2nd so we may, may get to the nationals if the first placed team can't go for any reason  

Next stop, Unipone lesson on Saturday, then some BD ele through the summer holidays, before we head up to Moreton Morrell for area festival in October Half term at either Ele or Novice depending on sheet collection abilities! Might see you there John!! Looking forward to a good old pony party with all of my horsey girls (I used to live in Rugby)...stock piling the vino as we speak!!  

Exciting times
Love that boy  

competition report 12.7.14

I truly don't care />/> 

Following our DISASTER and subsequent upheld complaint by BD against FSM judge,we picked ourselves up and soldiered on!

Since leaving dressage trainers yard (financial- not fall out!  ) have struggled to get back there for lessons...I work full time, he is competing so much at the moment, felt a bit lost at all at sea for a couple of weeks  ...however, how lucky we were to fall on our feet at a yard with an advanced dressage rider who is quite the most lovely, positive, encouraging person I have ever met in the dressage world. She has 2 youngsters herself and trains with Douglas H and Sue R, and having seen her ride asked for some help...she knows other trainer and methods/theories very well, so has been a wonderful bridge between the two. Completely different style of teaching, but everything is explained in such detail it has helped me no end. Also, she is not scared of trying different things if the standard approach doesn't quite work. Having pointed out that the Small Brown one is actually quite a sharp and sensitive chap and I need to bear that in mind,be more sensitive in my approach. The introduction of the double has been a revelation if I am honest  It was initially because we were showing and he just didn't like the pelham, but I have found I ride so much better in it as I am hugely aware of hands, aids, moving him forward and up into a receiving hand. Pony seemed to approve too  
So it has been intensive work really, lots of pole work, cantering on the track to get him forward, hacking  transitions transitions transitions, but lordy it does seem to be paying off  

Apologies if this gets long, think I need to record for my own benefit...most have given up reading/commenting on my relentless drivel months ago!!!

Been feeling for a while that the Elementary style 'questions and challenges' suit him much better. He isn't good at trotting huge circles, cantering endlessly around the track for Prelim and Novice, in fact the busy-ness, engagement required and variety within paces suits him much better in his chosen role in life as a little rubber ball of tension!Lateral work is easy for him once the rider gets her shit together, and he is so maneouverable it makes it a joy when it he has a lightbulb moment with me  

Anyhow the plan was even if we come last every single time, we have to get out and conquer our collective competition nerves. Warm up has been worked on at home, so we have a long stretch in walk trot and canter (with me off his back totally so he is swinging through). Simple really but a real change for us, as I quite wrongly had been working him straight away after the Sparsholt warm up nightmare where I fell off  

We went off to Priory today to make our affiliated BD Ele debut (only training as I wasn't sure how we would be recieved! />/> ) Our unaffilated attempt last weekend was passable, still last....but 65% was 5% more than our very first attempt a few weeks previously for the riding club! />/> 

Have been struggling massively with the warm up situation and the sheer number of horses he has to contend with...choosing venues with few entries (not easy to predict it seems!!) or grass areas we could quietly get on by ourselves.
Today we had no choice...man up or bugger off.
Lord alive it was HOT...a bit like riding in an oven! />/> 
No air, humid, sweat was running down my boots just tacking up (too much info??!!)
Bizarrely, Ele was before Novice...not that it mattered...he was AWESOME! />/> 
Warmed up like a dream, coped with knobbers riding at us across the diagonal...managed a good long stretch, picked him up and he was firing really nicely despite the heat.Only did 15 minutes...seriously couldn't breath! Judge very kindly said we could ride without jackets! />/> 

Arena of doom...test 1...he hates the hedge and all that is horse killing behind it! />/> 
WE have been working hard in lessons on dealing with the spooking...for a bog pony he is surprisingly sensitive and sharp! />/> Shoulder fore has been a godsend and luckily he has thrown some shapes while trainer has been there, so have managed to work a plan out! So chuffed with how hard he tried for me. To look at us we aint a'dressage horse' that's for sure. Some super smart and fancy combinations there today...definitely the smallest and the brownest />/> It felt fine for once, a couple of moments, but felt we might have squeaked a 60% if we were lucky...if not would have been happy with 58/59% />/> 
For once I went into the arena with a bit of determination, straight into canter and shoulder fore down the hedge of doom...perfect...cheered me up significantly  

Centre line and halt felt a bit wobbly (7)...we had a discussion about spooking at horses in lorry park (4), lots of 7's (plus one for my riding />/> )a number of 6.5's and a couple of 6's( for the medium trots, but that is standard...we still have to work on that!!). 
Just so bloody chuffed with 64.4%! Such positive comments too:'Lots to like and obvious potential' being the nicest things I have read about him like ever.... />/> 

When we left we were actually in 2nd place!!! Yet to find out final potential placing (as obviously we were training so don't affect anyone else today />/> )
Less said about the Novice the better.Too hot, too flat...rider hadn't a clue were they were going...judge had to get out of car TWICE!! />/> 2 errors of course...well deserved 61.5% />/> and almost definitely last!!!

Can't tell you what it means to warm up sanely, complete a test having dealt with a 'moment' to get positive comments and feel like there is much more to come.
As if there wasn't enough love for the Small Brown wonder pony, tonight I would gladly retire a very very happy girl />/> />/>

Training 26.7.14

Warning: will be sickeningly positive and full of video/picture evidence!!! /> 

Its been a year!! /> 

Hells Bells the time flies past...always love to get Lili's insight, she always has a little trick or two up her sleeve which helps the penny drop for both of us, masses of positivity and we come away having worked hard but with a big smile, just as it should be /> 

Decided to go in the double, he does go much better in it at the moment.Twas at least 50 degrees in the shade /> but there was a nice breeze coming up the valley. Warmed up so could get a look at us and then straight on into the canter work /> 

On and back first, focusing on control and relaxation of the neck,really riding from the seat and rhythm, rhythm, rhythm. Lili quickly spotted he set off nicely for first couple of strides, then happy to 'mince' along, not really going forward into the hand enough. Reminder to ask for quicker hind leg so canter can't become 4 beat /> 
useful tips on managing the spooks...smile and ignore the silly sod /> 
Simple change work...again very quick to pick up our habit of diving onto the forehand but more importantly not being straight enough across the school. Drifting is a bad habit of mine, more letting him out at the shoulder, not planning and not looking at where we want to be. Couple of poop efforts, then the mounting block and trainer barricade came out, which was bloody useful in thinking about the turn, riding straight, asking for collection, walking in a soft, round frame and then off again:
Videos of our efforts here: Canter work

Practice, practice

Better- good boy!!

Pleased with his progress, definitely finds the upward transition so much easier, but I now have lots to think about.

The very privileged to have Lili sit on the wonderpony...he was a very good boy, so lovely to see him ridden by an advanced rider, as we dont have mirrors at home, spend a lot of time relying on 'feel' which in my case is not ideal /> 
I think he may have another little fan...he did look super smart in my biased eyes /> 
She immediately picked up on the lack of lateral suppleness though, which is definitely our next port of call training wise.

Swapped back and onto some lateral work...we do quite a bit of shoulder in at home, traver, and have worked on leg yield more recently...so today was baby steps to half pass, getting us both to be able to move forward and across at the same time...easier said than done /> 
Great tip was to ride straight for a couple of strides, shoulder in for a couple and then leg back to move him over: Our efforts here...one side much better than the other as you can see />

left to right

Clever boy


All in all a fabulous session
Stills here: Hot, hot, hot

I have to learn to enjoy it a bit more (I do, I think I am just so busy concentrating I forget to relax, smile, laugh, loosen up a bit  )
Clearly he still throws a few moves occassionally, but no reaction needed, sit, relax, ride...  

Today was spent mooching on a cool morning through the woods on the buckle end...
I truly am blessed