I am so sorry, but I think I have to enjoy it while it lasts,we all know what horses are like...preparing my arse for the coming down to earth with a bump
/> Bit late, but with the end of term craziness,life has been hectic...wouldn't have it any other way
/>Monday we met Douglas Hibbert...he trains my trainer and she has managed to persuade him to do monthly clinics at our yard, which is an amazing opportunity which we have grabbed with both hooves
/> He had a look at us warm up said he was happy with his general way of going and pleased that he seemed to be equal in both reins, not one side particularly weaker than the other and a quick chat about the Smallbrown one...as usual I began to reel off all the problems we had and the things we couldn't do....he stopped me and said 'Is there anything good about this horse!!' That stopped me in my tracks....I MUST stop belittling ourselves.
The focus of the session was Power and Reactivity. I was glad it was one of the first things he wanted to look at. My MASSIVE bugbear the more dressage I watch is the kick, kick, kick I see every stride. He said all that tells the judge is your horse is not going forward and NOT off your leg. It all starts at home....use an aid you would like a reaction from and if there is no immediate reaction back it up with a firm, quick reminder. He strongly believes that whips discourage the rider from insisting immediate reactivity to subtle leg aids , so away my whip went! It hasn't made a reapearance since!!
/> We looked at 'sparkling' a little as we are guilty of trying to look fancy without truly being forward and powerful. Smallbrown thought all his Christmas's had come at once when he was asked to 'gallop' down the long side repeatedly
/> We tried the activity we do in our polework sessions, changing the number of strides and he challenged us to get down 60m in 5....wow, really made me think about the LENGTH of stride!! But, he went forward and after a couple of rounds,a tiny leg aid was all that was needed /> The same was true of the trot, he got me to lift my hands and send him forward with conviction off the single leg aid, once he knew I meant it...we were off!! He talked a lot about the gears in every pace 1-5 and the lightness in the rein 1-5, was VERY interesting...I am still absorbing an awful lot.The most interesting thing was the focus on the walk quality. We went onto a 20m circle and he asked me to do nothing...would he carry on walking forward without dribbling to a stop, slowing down. How many strides would he do without an intervention from me? Fascinating and very thought provoking. He declared him pretty good at this, by the end we were managing a whole 20m circle with a quiet rider allowing her horse to move forward without constant nagging...a clear aid, with a clear response. He then looked at the quality of the walk, adding a bit of 'sparkle' without a nagging leg....the determined and clear aid again, collecting him on the seat for the collected walk but maintaining the energy. He asked us to think 'Could we go into canter from our walk at any point?' Medium walk and then extended walk seemed to improve with the energy and activity...I was chuffed to bits with him
/> There was so much to take in, it was a really, really fabulous 45 minutes...Learnt so much with so much to take away. We have changed spurs to a small pair and Mr whip has gone on holiday (I am sure he will come out when we do the ground work for the piaffe and passage
/> )Thursday was then our little outing to local BD venue in West Sussex. Was busy even though regionals were in full flow. Had to go on my own, with a lovely friend popping along to support and read the Medium test for me later on. First challenge for me is being able to remember tests at higher levels...my old age has made it hard, but I was determined this time. Outdoor warmup, with a super surface, indoor tests with a spooky gallery/cafe. He warmed up really well, but man alive it was HOT
/> We didn't do too much, but focused on the rectivity and forward and softness....it was the first time without a whip and it felt a little bit odd, but we did it!!! Clearly I didn't have him quite off my leg and forward as he managed to do some pretty impressive sideways teleporting in the test...for a couple of 5's 
/> One of which had me having to stop and regroup and have a firm word with him....the trot work was calm and relaxed, 7.5's for the leg yields and medium trots, both of which are MASSIVE improvements 
/> I had to laugh as he was sooooooooooooo silly in the medium canter...was more than happy with 66.4% with the comment that canter tension had affected our marks today!Hour wait between tests, so back on the box for a rest, planned to do 10minutes warmup mainly focusing on the lateral work but in the end did 15 as they were running late. Pleased with his stamina. He was super, really listening, half passes in canter still make me grin if they come off well. He felt good
/> Aim was to get over 60% if at all possible, then we would have our 2 sheets for Petplans.I am beginning to love Medium level, yes, it is harder (as it should be) but the sitting trot really suits us, I feel so much more connected with him and able to use my aids effectively. The business definitely suits him...no time to get into any trouble
Supergroom was reading for us, so I had my comfort blanket. Took a deep breath and off we went. It felt good (for us) still a little tension in the canter half pass, but he is definitely getting the idea- we both are! We did all the bits in the right places, I am beginning to think I can make subtle changes to his way of going during a test, so don't have to satisfied with what he offers. I also don't feel like I am in a rush to get it over with, taking my time to show us off a bit more, so that is a MASSIVE change of mentality for me!
Took him back out feeling satisfied we had had a good go. Warmed down and popped him back on the box for a munch of haylage while I took an envelope back to the secretary. Went to look at results and thought they had been written up wrongly....
67.2%!!!!!!!!!!!! I burst into tears, so pathetically surprised and proud was I!!! 
The poor lady thought I was crazy I am sure when I went to ask if she could double check it was written up correctly 
I haven't got the sheets yet, but the lovely lady let me look at it....bloody hell, we got 8's for the free walk and extended walk and 7.5 for the collected walk....absolutely down to the work we had done with Douglas
Stopping and starting also good, I think 7.5 but by this point I was too overwhelmed to take it all in...will be interesting to see her comments when it arrives in the post. What a clever boy
So blessed, so blessed to have such an amazing team around us who have enabled us to get this far, far beyond my wildest dreams!!!
The boy is going to spend the next few days hacking and then 2 weeks off which are so well deserved. We need to regroup and have think about plans, we have 6 Regional points already, which is the stuff of dreams, so we will see what trainer thinks about attempting to qualify for regionals. Either way,as long as he is sound and happy that is all that matters...he will enjoy hacking and a bit of jumping...whom am I to deny the boy.
Onwards
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