So far behind :O

Right so while I haven't been blogging I have been riding and so thats good. My little man is making excellent progress. So in the run up to the horse trial he got really badly grass affected and I could hardly ride. I added a toxin binder to hid diet and he was rideable but still not quite his cruisey self. Later I would put the cattle through his paddock to eat out the clover and take the ride out of his diet and now he is beyond cruisey.

So at the time my expectations were pretty low and I just had him settled in his dressage warm up and got sent back by the steward to get gloves and when I got back to the arena I was one away and he was worked up again so it was interpretive, still he settled into some ok trotwork so that was ok and then the Judge comment leapt into transition which was very kind on the back of the sideways leap flail onto the wrong leg that I rode. Still it happens and I wasn't too worried about out with having done hardly any dressage later and him being very sensitive still. Showjumped clear as you would expect seeing as he has been jumping much higher. Though looked a little at the fillers.

Cross country day was interesting. He stopped at the tiny warm up fence and he was so looky. So we canter to the first fence which was a tiny log and he was all "Oh man this is a fun canter, I like this, oh watch out theres a log in the way Mum, we should go round it. Mum! Mum! Oh god its right there, stop and leap" and it pretty much went that way for the first half of the round. It took a lot of very committed riding right to the base but about halfway round he kind of stopped looking at all of the things and started to lock on and I gave him a softer ride and the quieter I got the braver he got. (interesting side note to this horse- if I pretend the fences arent scary he is brave, if I support him, or add, more contact, or encourage him to make him braver I make him chicken which is different to most of the horses I have ridden. Figuring this out has been crucial) Still the second half of the course was a lot more fun and in the end he had a step back at the water for faults but he finished happy as and going forward so even though at fence seven I was never going to event him I might give him another run.

Then I had a really good showjumping lesson which was basically about putting the polish I used to have back on. I'm making the right choices just too brusquely and not smooth like I was when I was riding a lot more. Here we dialed into the stay the same and he is brave thing.  Sometimes I find him a little irritating because he can just be an idiot hot head but he is just a horse. At a local show he jumped the 1m class for one rail but never looked at any of the scary fill!!!! Then with some bullying from my trainer I jumped the 1.10m class (3'6") He was clear in the first round and had two rails in the jump off for 2nd place which was huge. He was incredible over the bigger fences, just so much jump!

The weekend just been he had one rail in the 1m class and the ground was hard and slippery and mentally I was not in the right head space so I gave him big pats and lots of love and didnt do the 1.10m class. Dont see the point in punishing him for jumping well but landing on very hard ground. Love this guy, and if I dont ruin him he is going to be a very very good horse for me. Photo is of the 1.10m class.

Still missing you

There is a update or two coming in regards to the horse trial with tsar and it was absolutely a mixed bag and I was sorely tested as a rider! As far as lead ups to an event go it went about as badly as I have ever had when he got grass affected a week out.

I think maybe it was the fact that the horse trial just been was the last event I ever ran Butch at and the weather was so horrendous and one shoe was barely holding onto his brittle munted feet and I couldn't stud the fronts because it would put extra strain on them. I have never wanted so badly to pull up cross country as my fingers were frozen around the reins ( it must have run earlier in the season because he's been gone for more than a year) but despite everything against him, his little sharp ears were hard pricked and he just rolled along jumping perfectly out of stride. His long ewe neck and awkward baby giraffe gait almost haunts me. I can recall whole courses stride for stride. I have ridden some super horses that I loved dearly I would never have believed that this awkward munted Orange horse would still hold such a huge piece of my heart.

Sorry buddy. 

Wairarapa A&P Show/ Gladstone Sports

Photos are all from Gladstone sports. So the weekend after the Wairarapa Champs, the Wairarapa A&P show ran in the next town. I only jumped the Friday and the Sunday because those classes best fitted with my work schedule. The Firday he was in the 1m and the 90cm class. Thw 1m class was held in ring 1 so it was quite busy and had a bit more in the way of fillers and stuff. Honestly, when I walked the course I felt sick because it was a lot gruntier than the very soft 1m class I had jumped the week prior. It was a two-phase class as well, so you go straight into the jump off if clear in the first round and the jump off part was a good 1.05, maybe nearly 1.10m. I was hoping I wouldn't get into the jump off. I went back to the horse float and was busy telling my partner how I couldn't jump it and it was too big, while the whole time I got my horse ready so go figure. (In my wussiness defense, he did say he thought it was a lot bigger than he was expecting). Horse warmed up like a dork because they were unloading pigs. Lots of the impossible to sit pepe le pew canter that jars your entire body. Still he was getting to the base of the warm up fence and just jumping out of his skin.

So he jumped super in the first round, a bit manic to ride between, quite hot and badly falling out on the turns, but I'm trusting him a bit more and not overriding so much. He was brave to the fillers as well, even when we were travelling down the six stride line he stayed brave. Super to the last triple bar as well even though I was scared. Though in looking back, we had an awkward jump over the second fence because I let him run himself really deep to it, but it was a brilliant piece of training because after that he backed himself off a little more, and rocked back and operated when he got deep later in the course. I'm so much better to stay the same, or go for the quiet distance than the ride up on this horse.

Both times I have gone for a big ride up I have ended way out in no mans land, trying to salvage the half stride. In the jump off he jumped super over the bigger fences. He shut down a little at fence 11 by the gate because he was like 'and I'm done' and I was all no no theres a jump two strides away. Still he cleared the fence and travelled down in five strides to jump the combination super. I didn't go for time in the jump off at all I just wanted to get him round these bigger fences smoothly and the 2 phase worked out well for us, because by the time he jumped fourteen fences in a row he was jumping so well and a lot more settled between. Very pleased to post a clear in by far our most difficult track. Man alive the horse can jump, over the oxer at five it felt like we damn near cleared the stands. Then I went straight down to ring 2 to jump the 90cm class and he was a bit manic again, he needs to not do classes back to back I think, and the 90cm just wasn't enough to make him think at all. He took the last rail and he felt good in places but didnt jump anywhere near as well.

Then on the Sunday, I was late to the grounds because of work and I was trying to learn the course from his back down at the ring side and ran into a whole heap of trouble. (This was with a calmer on board because I knew the atmosphere was going to be a lot for him to cope with) Ring two was very close to some of the other exhibits, including sheep racing and wood chopping and there were two guys playing ping pong and he just went to pieces. He was doing little rears and I couldn't turn him right at all and he napped all the way back down the alley was between rings until he was back in the warm ups. All the people watching were horrified and I took a pretty tactful approach because hes not a horse you go head to head with, he will throw down and he had a reputation at the track for being dangerous. So I wasn't that keen to start pushing his buttons when its not a side of him I had ever dealt with before.

 I ended up waiting until the gate was clear and then trotting him down the alley way with my partner running ahead. Once he was in the ring he was super. Had a rail because I thought he would back off a fence because it had a lot going on behind it and he didn't so I rode him through the top rail. Took a while but by fence 6 he had settled and finished really well. After my round I made him stay up by the ring and he was totally relaxed, so clearly he gets some performance anxiety. Still it was really good for him to be exposed to some real atmosphere and every round we do I'm trusting him more and learning how he goes.

The next event was the Gladstone horse sports and he was only entered in the 1m class, because I'm working heaps, but I probably should have done the 1.05m. Its taken three shows but 1m doesn't look that big anymore which is a nice feeling. At Gladstone he was the polar opposite of the horse I had been riding at the last two shows and he was completely laidback. I didn't quite compensate enough for how quiet he was by creating more canter, so I got a few deeper distances and he really didn't like the filler in the picture above, but he still jumped it. As long as he goes I'm happy. He seems to almost be more spooky when he is more quiet.

He got into the jump off and he had a rail in the combination when I overrode him between the fences (sense the theme??) It wasn't that long, he would have smoked through it easily if I left him alone a little and gave him the time to really jump into the air. I definitely need some lessons. Still I couldn't be happier with him. So next weekend he is in a horse trial and I'm pretty sure I'm going to die on the cross country. Why didn't I do the intro class instead of the pre-training D:  

Wairarapa Showjumping and Showhunter Championship

So I'm back into it. My first proper affiliated show in a year. Like a proper rider. Honestly I felt rusty and so ring green. Like once I was un the ring I just felt mildly panicked and like everything was happening too fast. Ok but stop, so he had the physio on Thursday and basically she said he is lacking muscle on the right shoulder and she thinks as he works, that shoulder being weaker, eventually gets tight and sore. Man did he feel good afterwards, everytime I saw him that day he was getting aerial playing. She said by all means to jump him if he felt good. The next day it was pouring but even though he wouldn't stay straight in the weather he felt great on that shoulder. And probably the loosest he has ever been. In happy news he was very loose in his hindquarters and neck, just tight in the shoulders and a bit in his back.

So I stop in at the show after work and they had already started my class (90cm /3 foot class) so I was like well I'll hurry and maybe I'll make it. But really. Hurrying a horse is never a good idea, I really struggled to catch him and then he was just a nervy twit to deal with. Arriving at the showgrounds I saddled up and got on and holy hell, I wish I had training as a helicopter pilot because man did we get aerial. Leaping, plunging. Just an absolute treat. I immediately shifted the goal posts to just jumping a warm up, but my old boss with her Bex is chickening out instinct turned up and helped me warm up and got me into the ring. To be fair he jumped quite well, though a cheap rail at the third fence and then fence 4 and 5 seemed to me like huge oxers and I jumped four and then just panicked and had a circle before 5. After that though, I settled and he jumped super, got all the strides in his lines and was really brave to the filler. Though he is a little wild in the ring and I'm still finding this. He just loves it and is so enthusiastic, land and zooooooooooom.

The next day more hurrying and into the 90cm class and I overode the first fence and overshot the turn and was all disunited and circled again ( Chicken!!) and then settled and he jumped well, though backed off the filler some and landed crooked so the related line rode a little long. Then at the last double he had a bobble at the last where he was like and I'm done and I was like no no buddy keep jumping!! He was clear too, Which made my circle a little more depressing. Still progress! The next day he was in the 1m (3'3") class and I turned up to warm up with four horses to go. This is the downside of trying to work and show in the same day. Luckily I dont like to warm up too long anyway, and the track hadn't been changed from yesterday which was a little disappointing. Though it must have gone up some. And the plus side of the same track, is I basically got to correct my mistakes from the day before. The only real bobbles happened in the second phase (jump off starts after the double) was when I got a bit keen down to fence nine and then two strides out really hooked him back to add the stride and survive so that was ugly, and my saddle pad started to shuffle back and he started pig jumping at the end of the jump- off. Still for three days I'm so stoked at the improvement. Video of second 90cm class and 1m class.

Actual Video!!!

Ok so my lack on technical savvy has resulted in this video taking like four hours to be publishable. The quality is pretty poor, but I would love to hear any impressions.

Video!!

So here we have a video of my horse doing a few jumps with me. I left the talking in at the start because it makes me laugh. The first clips are in my saddle and the final two down the grid are in his old owners saddle. The video is crap but if you think he looks happier I'd love to know. You can see he is hotter in the cross country clip. He's very different to ride out in public. I wish I had some clips of the bucking and stuff he was doing. I really like this horse though. He was still a little off on the lunge tonight and so he won't be at the show on Saturday. He must have heard me say the word show.  Bugger.

Still there are shows on both the following weekends close to home so there's no rush. It's just a great show to start at without too much atmosphere and stuff 

Saddles, niggles and stumbles

So I have been making more of an effort to do more jumping to get braver at it and I have been out cross country schooling a couple of times and he is pretty brave. Bolder than expected but a bit of a dork with all the other horses going around and can be a bit cheeky. He's getting up into the air nicely and making a really nice shape.

My saddle hasn't ever really fit him super well and I have known this but wasn't too concerned because it wasn't terrible either but I tried another saddle on him and while I hated it, he was possibly a little softer in his back and didn't Buck when I galloped him. I always just thought the bucking was hijinks because he is that sort of guy but perhaps it's more than that. I really want to try an Ogilvy half pad because they look like a super product but they haven't made it to nz. But then still a lot cheaper than a new saddle. 

Terrible cell phone pictures yay!!! Still those knees though. He has had this intermittent oddness in his front right, and I was starting to think that maybe he has some issues brewing that are rearing their heads now the ground is getting harder but I had a good chat with his old owners and apparently he is prone to getting really tight in his shoulders and where his neck ties in and so I might try a physio first and see if that works. If it doesn't I might look at getting a work up done because it's  better just to know. It's just hard to work up a horse who is probably less than a 0.5 out of 5 lame. 

Though today while I was trotting and discussing whether or not he was lame with my boyfriend we had a stumble and he ended up scrambling along the ground on both his knees. I have no idea how he stayed on his feet but well done pony! Now though he is like 2.5 out of 5 lame on the left front. I'm hoping it's just a tweak and he'll be ok to show next weekend. Time will tell I guess. Just hard to do something about the right front when he's now off on the left. Dorky horse I think he stood on his bell boot 😕. It was a very scary few moments having seen someone concussed by a horse that was trotting and then stumbled the same way but then added a flip on the end. 

America

So when the title says America it's because I just got home from spending two weeks in North America. 10 days in the US and 4 in Canada. It was a bit of a whirlwind trip with my brother and sister and it was amazing because I haven't spent that length of time with my brother in ten years or so because he lives in Germany. So it went San Fran, Vegas, then so much driving in Nevada, Utah, Arizona and and to Denver. Mostly it involved hiking to see rocks and stuff. The wave which is a pretty incredible rock formation, Grand Canyon, monument valley and Arches National Park, even a trip up mt Evans. I gotta say every we saw was pretty epic, huge open vistas and just filled the eyes. And far apart. Everything was so far apart, just hours and hours of driving. My entire country is like around 1000 miles long so the states felt huge. Can't say I loved the cities, being not very used to so many people. Loved Canada it had a similar feel to home, and Drumheller with te dinosaurs totally rocked my world. I'd love to come back and do an entirely horse related tour, ride a hunter, a cutter, a Reiner, a barrel horse, Tennessee walker, western pleasure Arab and so forth. It would be an amazing learning experience.

My pony has been a good boy lately and has made heaps of progress. Two weeks until our first show for the year and I'm hoping to do more this season. He can really jump but he tends to land on the backs of his front feet which can be terrifying especially because then he gets upset and bucks. 

Its a good thing my horse is cute

Seriously, how adorable is that face?? Though that black thing is the side lights that have been pulled up and destroyed by these two imps. I really still don't know what I'm up to with this riding lark. Its all pretty disheartening, I see so much ugly around me all the time. I just find its so frustrating seeing horses sold into inappropriate homes and then its the horse and the new owner that both suffer. Especially when the old owner should know better. I know of one four year old that was sold with arthritic knees to a home that didn't have the knowledge to see when the horse was uneven, and so doomed the horse to ongoing suffering.

I keep thinking I'll sell my horse, but he's somehow still here. He's everything I ever wanted in a jumper only 5 years ago. The only horse I really want to ride, is to go eventing on my big ugly munted chestnut mate, and I really need to get over that and move on. Tsar is cool though, he's a pretty pretty mover, and he has plenty of scope and he wants to be careful. I'm so rusty though and frustrated at my utter lack of facilities (It's literally just a paddock). Still I'm lucky to have that and it's not that bad provided I remember to control the outside shoulder. Nothing like a huge open paddock to encourage horses to fall out through the shoulder.

Enough. This is my last moan. The banner of this blog is I will jump sweet jumps. What happened to that enthusiasm and determination. It used to be all I wanted but honestly I guess I feel like I'm not good enough and I'll never get there. (I would still love to jump 1.30m one day, but it would be nice to jump amateurs again in the next couple of seasons) Having a horse is a privilege not a right, and having a nice horse is a huge privilege. I'm not sure if he'll event though, he isnt very brave but surely if I start really really low??? XC training in two weeks so we'll see I guess. Anyway, enjoy these snippets of my absolute goober of a pony.



He's a chatty wee pony, but he is really feeling his oats at the moment (he doesn't actually get feed oats, it's just Spring starting).

Dressage/Jumping days and good ponies

So since I last posted, I have done a dressage ribbon day and a jumping day and the picture above is the only picture I have of my own horse Tsar. He has been a superstar though. At the dressage day he did two level 1 tests, for a 63% and a 65%, for third and second, respectively. He was only second by 0.15%. He did two smooth tests, was really smooth though he is a bit above the bridle in the canter and wants to get a little deep in the trot. I rode for a bit more in the second test, and he is jumping into his canter transitions a little, but honestly at this point I'm going to need some help to make the step to level 2, because while I can produce a horse to travel straight and be soft and school the lateral work, its not quite what they want for dressage in terms of engagement etc.  

At the jumping day Tsar again did the 80cm and the 90cm, he was pretty hot in the 80cm, but I stayed pretty quiet and kept asking for the extra stride and he had a rail but mostly jumped super. In the 90cm they added in this hideous filler and he wouldnt even walk up to it so I wasn't sure how that would go. The first line from 1 to 2 I gave him quite a strong check so I could just soften for the five strides to come up easier and he jumped really well, much more settled. He hesitated really briefly on the corner to the spooky fence, but then trucked down and jumped it super bravely, though he gave it plenty of air. Then was the jump-off and it was quite good I gave him the check, because I just had to sit up and not alter my contact and he collected so the five strides was super smooth.

I did a few inside turns and angled a few fences because it's easier to train this stuff while the fences are still small, but didn't really add any speed just let him roll around in a rhythm.

Charlie has made huge strides in his work mostly in the amount of engagement and forward he is giving me. He scored a 68% and a 69% in both the level 0 tests, so he is ready to move up to level 1. He was second in both those tests, and yes I got my butt whipped by a twelve yr old. The joys of level 0. I'm so bad at dressage so hunchy and showjumpy in my leg length. 

                           

At the jumping day, despite the fact he hadn't jumped for a month, he rocked around the 70cm and the 80cm easily. He has just reached the stage of knowing all the things but both times he buried himself at fence three and had an awkward jump and then after that jumped really really well, smooth and rhythmical. He has never consistently jumped 80cm and I couldn't have been happier with him. Still I have told his owner to lower his price and get him sold because he deserves to be in a home where he gets more time than I have for him.

And now because life is crazy, I'm doing something I swore I would never do because it can lead to hard hands, and you have to be so careful switching between codes with balance, and being tall in the saddle and long in the leg, but times are tight so I find myself doing trackwork and I goof off to it, its pretty cool but physically so hard. My muscles are screaming

Wairarapa Showjumping Recycled Ribbon Day

So it was an absolutely stunning and mild day for the showjumping which is good. I was a bit unprofessional in that I was out late and up out of bed late, which I would never do when I have a client, but the first class took over an hr so I still spent ages cooling my heels. Charlie was up first in the 60cm class and the warm-up was something of a whirling dervish. He started out like he was going to be a bit naughty but I had had a bit to much wine the night before hand and I wasn't in the mood. I haven't really gotten up him before but he rolled over and was a really good boy. He really is a very brave pony, he doesn't look at any fillers. He rolls along like a good pony, jumped out of his rhythm though he is a bit of a minimalist when it comes to effort in the air so its hard to know how scopey he is. He does pull left in the air a little bit but he is improving. He does seem to quite enjoy it, because he trucks around.

I have to say I need to get my canter organised a little sooner and I'm a bit tentative starting out which isn't that strange on the lack of ring time and the fact I haven't jumped either of the horses over proper courses for a long time. Still the eye for a take off still works, and I am picking up my issues and correcting them myself so I'm not so bad as I thought. Charlie then cruised around the 70cm really nicely. As a small horse I gave him a good shot into the four stride line and he made the four strides pretty easily which is very good. To be honest it was unbelievable how good he was.

Pictures of Tsar for those that are interested are numbers 2447-2452 near the bottom of the page on this link

Tsar was in the eighty and he warmed up a little behind the leg because he is a bit lazy and to the practice fence I had a couple of shockers, and then he got into the ring and he was pretty wild. But that was mostly my fault. He gets into the ring and he turns into a very forward version of himself. I didn't really trust him either and definitely overrode and wasn't smooth about things. Hes a bit of a sports car, you really want to go easy on the accelerator and not jam it on. What is quite nice is that last year he was a bit short striding and this year he is getting down his lines more easily so the flatwork has paid off but he was so frantic.  That was in the 80cm class and then I was entered in the 90cm but the headache was catching up on me and I really wanted to get home so I just redid the 80cm and focused on sitting really quietly, just softening the hand to make up distance and not using the leg, except to support and at the base of the fence. He wanted to take me there so I just needed to let him. He was pretty brave because he is traditionally pretty spooky and he seems to have stopped that some, I didn't need to poke with the leg, just add a cluck.

With the softer ride he was much smoother, though still very enthusiastic and having the best time. And he got into the air really nicely, in fact the only place he was a little hesitant was into the combination so need to practice those. To the blogger who commented and asked what the best way to get used to her bigger horse I have one piece of advice, just ride as much as you can.

Courage the Cowardly Dog

Right so we are on the lead up to the my first jumping show (its a local level no pressure recycled ribbon day starting at 40cm so show is overstating it) since November and I gotta say I have jumped a couple of times and I'm feeling decidedly ordinary. What happened!! And yea the muscle strength is missing, an the eye is rusty with a capital R. But where the hell is the courage!! Honestly, its little aggravating when I used to have the look of eagles. And I used to  jump big an now a 2'6" oxer is looking a little monstrous. I didn't think I would lose it that quickly.

The picture above shows not much in the way of position but for a maxed out 1.30m oxer from a longish distance, look at the commitment. Man that horse tried for me, because she was not scopey, Anyway, I started this yesterday and I really cant remember what my point was going to be but look pictures of me doing jumpies on different horses!!

 I guess the premise is even though I'm only entered up to 90cm I'm pretty much freaking out. Awesome!

Wairarapa Dressage Ribbon Day

So neither of the horses I'm riding had been out since the new year and it that sort of a situation you never really know what you are going to get except that I knew that Tsar would be naughty. Because he just is. The last time I rode at a dressage day would have been around 10 years ago and I remember being totally bewildered by the marking, in that the test when my horse was electric and tense he marked a lot better than when he was relaxed and workmanlike. Obviously, I have improved in my riding in general since then because the marking was still a little bewildering but in a much better way. Charlie was in level 0 and Tsar in level 1.

It started poorly when Charlie stood halfway in the float and dug his toes in and we had a twenty minute stand off while I waited for reinforcements, then he got bored and walked on which was good. I need to spend a day on this, because Tsar basically self loads. Charlie is used to an angle load and not so comfortable in the straight load. Then I landed chasing my tail so that I only got on Charlie just as the rider before me was starting. He had no warm-up and so was quite tense but it was only a walk trot test so it wasn't too bad. By the last corner he had relaxed some and did a lovely halt.

I then had an hour to get Tsar up and by the time he had a lunge and I got on and went down to the arenas I had about 7 minutes warming up time, he was quite tense and we bronced across the warm up at one point. I  had put a drop noseband on him so I had more control and it made him stiller in his head carriage but more inclined to buck and not go forward in protest. Still he did a relatively good test, though my expectations weren't that high. I was happy though that he gave me a few moments that felt really good, when I could really sit into his canter and just be soft and I knew he would stay with me. For a horse that can be a bit smart, that hadn't been out in public since November, and who didnt get enough warm up he was spectacular. So the morning results were a 54% for Charlie which was more than expected and a 60% for Tsar (about 6th place) which I was really surprised by, but then he is a bit of a swanky dude.

Then I had to wait for like four days (that is 2 1/2 hours) until the afternoon tests. Tsar had a decent warm up and was happier in is standard caversson noseband and I could put a spur on. He was awesome, warmed up really nicely, though was a little unsteady in the contact which was my fault because I got tense, trying to not upset him when he felt so good, instead of actually riding. And I forgot to give the rein for 3-5 strides in one movement, but he has a good free walk which always helps. I was thnking he would score similar to the morning and he did under one judge, but was 68% under the second judge, so I ended up with 64% and second place!! OMG at dressage! Go Tsar you little beauty! He even got a seven for paces, and a nine for his centerline! Loving it. Did I mention it absolutely poured in our warm up and we were both absolutely soaked to the skin? Good pony!

Charlie was the last ride and got on with about twenty minutes to warm in and he disgraced himself in the warm up, shying, reefing and bucking so I put him to work until a mother came over and told me to go away while her kid did her test because she was nervous and only ten. Cue walking for seven minutes which actually helped him relax some and I figured out it was the loud speaker freaking him out, causing the tucked tail scoot and buck. Once he got into the arena and had a job he was much better, he was late in both his canter transitions but started to show some work of the quality I get at home from him so thats good. His owner was rapt with some of the work he did, despite his warm-up. He scored a 58% and ended up 6th so I culdn't be happier because at the end of the day both horses gave me moments of good feeling and they both improved and you cant get better than that

Still Alive

Charlie horse

Sorry for the huge length of time since I last updated this. So much has happened since last time, mostly personally because actually nothing else has changed. I am finally starting to get back my will to ride. Helped by the return of Charlie who showed up for a while last Winter. And seeing as I'm down there working him with financial incentives, my own horse is getting ridden as well. I was pretty convinced I was going to sell him, but then I start riding Tsar and I remember that he is a really nice horse and he can really operate and then I'm in two minds again. There is a lot of unregistered lower level dressage and showjumping this Winter just down the road, and Charlie is on the market and needs exposure. That should help with some goal setting. 

Kimmy riding Tsar

So the first thing coming up is Dressage, Charlie can do a training test and one level 1 test and Tsar can do both the level 1 tests. I see that as a local rider I have to provide some man power which always niggles me a bit. I'm not affiliated with the group at all and I feel that to be forced into helping is a little offputting. I understand that these days run on volunterrs and blah blah blah but at least let me get a taste for it before putting me to work?? I'm so bad at dressage anyway, I get in the ring and ride like a monkey. 

So much fail in this video?!!! Blah, what are my hands doing. Shorten your reins Bex for the love of jeebers, Cocked  wrists low hands, round shoulders, its all pretty unattractive, but then I haven't had a lesson since last Winter. At least my back and seat are still quite supple. How cute is Tsar!? He feels so good now the drought has broken and some of the sting has gone out of the ground. Pretty excited/nervous to do some jumping again. Now that the financial pressure has eased some we should be able to have a really good time this Winter. So yea I'm back, and I'll blog more.

Doing the bare minimum

Jumping like a boss for a long time! I'm not sure how old I am here, but that pony is only 13.3hh and he looks huge, so I'm guessing I'm pretty tiny. That was basically the greatest pony ever. 

As for whats been happening, I am at least working my horse, and I'm wondering if I  sell him for something more laidback and versatile. I want something I can hack about the place and that isnt always on the hunt for dragons, and so difficult once he finds them, whereas Kate is an old spook nut at least she stays rideable. He likes arenas and jumping and not the outdoors. He even has a cover on so he is feeling pretty fancy. Though, I could just make him do all the things and being a versatile pony, but I just remember Butch who would hunt, event and showjump and I know Tsar doesnt thrive on hunting, but he will maybe event?? Worth a crack I  guess, take him xc schooling anyway.

In saying that I have my first jump since like November, and while I was a bit rusty and made one bad decision which ended with me a mile off it, he felt really good. I have someone maybe trying him on the weekend, but maybe I do keep him. The little bugger can really jump. If she doesnt want him I wont be going out of my way to get him sold, I'll look at doing some winter series things. Maybe even some dressage. I really need to get a full time job, so I can pay for everything and also I think I'd like to buy a house.So that one day I can buy a farm, or something. I have a big holiday in Merica and Canada later this year, in September so that's exciting. I'd like to get a glimpse of the horsey scene while I'm over there. 

So if you dont jump for  long time, Be prepared for the revival of all your bad habits, you will slouch, and collapse in front of the fence, and lean over your hands, and take one terrible distance where you are miles off of the base because you rode up instead of letting him stay in his rhythm and get to the base. He gets round though and feels great off of the ground, sometimes he even gets loose behind and feels like there is going to be a fancy back end in there. I didn't do too much, one upright got up to 90cm but the ground is so hard I need to not do much. Once I have a the float I can get a bit more mobile which will help, because I'll travel him to arenas and save his legs. So yea dunno

Am I scared to jump?!

I am at least riding a bit more now, my little horse is making god progress with his flat work though he is unbelievably fat, especially considering how long it took me to get him up to weight after buying him. Its incredibly dry here now, and the ground is very hard. I guess I'm turning into a bit of an arena baby, because I feel mean working him on hard ground, even though he lives on it anyway, and when there weren't so many arenas around I worked them on hard ground all Summer without any issues. I don't think its such a problem providing their legs are harden off, with hacking and low intensity work. That being said, I wouldn't jump on this ground. I have even been at my old bosses riding the odd horse here and there, which is good because my balance and fitness have suffered some.

He is a funny horse to work, he always wants to travel kinked slightly to the right, so he is quite blocked in all his lateral work to the right, so that's a good little issue for me to continue working on, that and getting him in front of my leg. He is so lazy, its hard to believe he ever won money on the track. He hates hacking but I make him go. Once the third horse is picked up from the grazing I might just ride Kate the old boot and take him out on the lead, in the hopes he will enjoy himself more. He just lacks confidence and gets quite shut down and then on the way home he is very naughty. Never had a horse who doesn't look around just keeps his head straight in front of him and then looks for dragons. Very strange.

What is also strange is my lack of desire to jump. Also driven by my lack of transport though, but yea definitely feel like I cant jump a horse anymore. It's been so long Im sure my eye wont exist anymore. I have never been a brave rider, and maybe I'll never jump again. I sort of want to try other things, maybe go on a trek (even though I say this and then when I go trekking I absolutely hate I because its boring). I'd like to dabble in some dressage, maybe even get a few lessons when I have some money to spare. Or I'll suck it up and take him for a jump, because he is a super promising jumper. Damn it. How can a sport I lived and breathed for 14 years suddenly seem both daunting and not so important.
There is currently a huge amount of trouble within the NZ jumping board and there has been restructuring and rule changes that have really turned me off the sport as well. I'm not inclined to give them my hard earnt money when they are all being a pack of petty unorganised jerks.

Maybe I'll find something local to go play at. Sigh, life.