HUGE congratulations to my clients, who had a very successful show this past weekend at Once Upon a Horse in Eagle, Idaho (my home base). Since I was gone for almost three weeks before this show (left June 4th, back to work June 22nd), most of my other horses and riders had some vacation time!! In a little over a week's time I was able to whip everyone back into shape and get them organized and refocused for the upcoming show.
Barb Sparks and her own Wolcott earned her second qualifying score for Regionals at Second level, in addition to winning both her classes with scores 63-64%. Overall, their balance has improved tremendously and both look fairly comfortable with the second level work. Now the goal is to improve the engagement even more and improve the suppleness in the back.
Both Beth Harris/Samorano and Paige Haas/Donegal McSweeney earned two scores over 60 at Fourth level tests 2 and 3. Sam has really made strides in his uphill balance and strength in the canter. We've been working on straightness quite a bit, which has messed with the changes some. Also need to work on better bending through the body in lateral work. Paige and Danny are getting much better with the difficulty in fourth level, and Danny has become much more ridable and less tense about the changes. Now to carry that into the test with a higher degree of reliability!
I rode Michelle Surkamer's beautiful mare Quite a Star to two second place finishes at Training level and her second qualifying score for Regionals. Cindy McKim's fantastic horse FiveStar HW overcame a spunky, exhuberant start in his first test to score 69+ in his First level debut, and finished the weekend with a 75 in Training level 3, winning the Training level Open Championship and the Overall High Point Open. Both horses are working towards improved engagement and the uphill balance that is necessary for First level, particularly developing the thrust required for the lengthenings.
Charismatique had two solid rounds at FEI, PSG and I-1, to score in the lower 60s. His scores were disappointing, particularly given his fantastic showing at the Idaho Festival, but I think he took his vacation time a little too seriously. :) His second test was far better than the first, mistake-free with pretty solid balance. I was very happy with it. I was disappointed to only score 64%, but there you have it.
The huge-moving and impressive Bolero started out spooky and tense in his first round, but came back with a 69 in First 3. He improved on that the next day with a 72.5 in First level 3, and also won the First level Open Championship! He needs to work on increasing elasticity and become a little looser in his back and neck. Then I need to add more power for the lengthenings. Judges really love him, when he goes well he scores pretty consistently low 70s at First level. But he is capable of mid to upper 70s at First level, and that's my goal for the end of the year.
Overall, a great weekend for everyone. For now, back to training and thinking forward to the next shows!
Monday, July 2, 2012
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Finally home!!
After a grueling 15 hour drive yesterday I'm finally home back in Boise (or more specifically, Eagle), Idaho. Lana and I drove straight through; it is always a tough drive but it doesn't really matter if you lay over or not...its still tough! We got into Eagle at about 1am, after having left W Farms at 7am. The drive was relatively cool (although hot in the Mojave desert, which we thankfully traversed early in the morning).
I made the difficult decision to leave Monkey at W Farms and put him up for sale. I've been thinking about this for a while, so those of you who know me know that this isn't a new development. He's 14 this year, and coming off of a successful showing at the Festival of Champions (FOC) means this is good timing to sell him. I'd really rather not, as I'd love to do the GP on him, but in the end I think the timing to sell him is really good. I was very impressed with David and Alisa Wilson and Amanda Barr-Olson and their facillity, and think they will do a good job finding him an excellent home where he can teach someone all that he knows and be spoiled rotten (certainly more than I spoil him!!).
This certainly isn't the end of my high performance career. I've got several superstars in the wings that will be competitive for next year's FOC. Rumor has it FOC will be in CA next year, and I'll for sure be ready. :)
I made the difficult decision to leave Monkey at W Farms and put him up for sale. I've been thinking about this for a while, so those of you who know me know that this isn't a new development. He's 14 this year, and coming off of a successful showing at the Festival of Champions (FOC) means this is good timing to sell him. I'd really rather not, as I'd love to do the GP on him, but in the end I think the timing to sell him is really good. I was very impressed with David and Alisa Wilson and Amanda Barr-Olson and their facillity, and think they will do a good job finding him an excellent home where he can teach someone all that he knows and be spoiled rotten (certainly more than I spoil him!!).
This certainly isn't the end of my high performance career. I've got several superstars in the wings that will be competitive for next year's FOC. Rumor has it FOC will be in CA next year, and I'll for sure be ready. :)
Monday, June 18, 2012
Back in Chino Hills again!!
Today was another travel day for Monkey, Lana, and I as we made the long trek back across the country (made significantly shorter by flying rather than driving!). The truck was scheduled to be in Gladstone at 5am to pick up Monkey and I, which meant we had to be at the grounds at 4:30am to finish getting everything organized and strip the stall (yes, at this show you have to strip your stall otherwise they keep your $125 deposit). I didn't sleep at all last night, for some reason when I have to wake up super early I have a heck of a time sleeping the night before. So I was pretty zombie-like in the morning!
The truck was pretty much on time, and it was a BIG one. It was an 18 wheeler, and the semi was huge! I've never ridden in a rig like that before. The hauler said he could put 15 horses on it if need be.
Monk was going to be traveling with an elite group to the airport, as several of the other horses from Gladstone were flying back to California. Breanna (Kathleen Raine's GP mare), Fandango (the GP horse Guenter rode), Sundance 8 (Steffen's short tour horse), Royal Prinz (the I-1 Reserve Champion with David Blake), and Pretty Lady (the YR Champion with Brandi Roenick) all traveled with Monk on the same truck to the airport. The truck was packed to the gills with their equipment, it was a good thing I packed relatively light! I couldn't believe how much stuff they had brought. Luckily that truck was big!
This time we traveled to the Allentown airport in Pennsylvania, which was quite a bit closer and easier to get to than the Farmingdale airport (since we didn't have to go to Long Island, New York!). There all the horses loaded up on the plane; it was the same plane we had flown over on with the same group of guys loading the horses and flying with them. Monkey got to fly next to Breanna, I told him he needed to talk to her about piaffe and passage. :)
The flight was totally uneventful, this time I was so tired that I just slept pretty much the entire time. I was prepared for the cold this time and brought one of Monk's coolers (which I never used, since it was never cold!) to use as a blanket. We had a few bumps but mostly the ride was smooth. We did have one horse in the very back (right in front of us, unfortunately), who would kick when he got stressed. So every now and then if the ride got a little bumpy or the engines powered up he'd kick the back board and wake us up!
Once again we landed for a short period of time in Kentucky (Louisville) to pick up a few more horses (racehorses), who were on their way to California and to fuel up the plane. It was about 1 1/2 hours from Allentown to Louisville, and about a 4 hour flight from Louisville to Ontario.
We arrived in Ontario almost an hour early! That was kind of a problem, as my ride for Monk wasn't going to be there until 1:30pm eastern time. And of course the agent didn't call Amanda (from W Farms, who graciously offered to pick me up) and let her know the plane would be early. There was enough to do with unloading the gear, and then unloading all the other horses, which took up enough time for Amanda to get there. It was mildly stressful, as Monk was the only one hanging out on the plane, but he seemed relatively happy and not too stressed out about it. Thankfully, the plane wasn't on a schedule, as their next flight isn't until tomorrow. The ride from the airport to W Farms was short and uneventful, and Monk settled into his stall at W Farms pretty quickly.
From there I had to go pick up Lana, who flew separately on a commercial flight out of Newark to LAX. Her flight was scheduled to arrive in LAX at 4:15, and it is easily an hour drive from W Farms to LAX (in good traffic!). After picking her up, we decided to have dinner nearby to wait for the traffic to clear up (traffic down here is insane!). So we found a nice mexican place on the bay in Marina Del Ray and watched the pelicans and harbor seals and sailboats. Every now and then a fishing boat would go by, and you could tell which ones had been successful, because they were followed by a swarm of birds trying to get at the fish guts being tossed into the water by the fishermen.
The drive back to Chino Hills was long, traffic had cleared up a little, but it was still pretty slow. It took a good hour and 20 minutes or 1 1/2 hours to get back to W Farms. My driving has gotten very solidly urban, I'm sure I'll quickly regress to driving like I live in Boise soon, but for now I do the two-blink signal and slam on the accelerator. Between New Jersey and Los Angeles, I've had plenty of time getting acclimated to freeway driving in major metropolitan areas!
We did a quick evening check on Monk, who looked pretty happy and relatively settled, then off to the hotel. Lana is already asleep, and its not even 9pm!
The truck was pretty much on time, and it was a BIG one. It was an 18 wheeler, and the semi was huge! I've never ridden in a rig like that before. The hauler said he could put 15 horses on it if need be.
Monk was going to be traveling with an elite group to the airport, as several of the other horses from Gladstone were flying back to California. Breanna (Kathleen Raine's GP mare), Fandango (the GP horse Guenter rode), Sundance 8 (Steffen's short tour horse), Royal Prinz (the I-1 Reserve Champion with David Blake), and Pretty Lady (the YR Champion with Brandi Roenick) all traveled with Monk on the same truck to the airport. The truck was packed to the gills with their equipment, it was a good thing I packed relatively light! I couldn't believe how much stuff they had brought. Luckily that truck was big!
This time we traveled to the Allentown airport in Pennsylvania, which was quite a bit closer and easier to get to than the Farmingdale airport (since we didn't have to go to Long Island, New York!). There all the horses loaded up on the plane; it was the same plane we had flown over on with the same group of guys loading the horses and flying with them. Monkey got to fly next to Breanna, I told him he needed to talk to her about piaffe and passage. :)
The flight was totally uneventful, this time I was so tired that I just slept pretty much the entire time. I was prepared for the cold this time and brought one of Monk's coolers (which I never used, since it was never cold!) to use as a blanket. We had a few bumps but mostly the ride was smooth. We did have one horse in the very back (right in front of us, unfortunately), who would kick when he got stressed. So every now and then if the ride got a little bumpy or the engines powered up he'd kick the back board and wake us up!
Once again we landed for a short period of time in Kentucky (Louisville) to pick up a few more horses (racehorses), who were on their way to California and to fuel up the plane. It was about 1 1/2 hours from Allentown to Louisville, and about a 4 hour flight from Louisville to Ontario.
We arrived in Ontario almost an hour early! That was kind of a problem, as my ride for Monk wasn't going to be there until 1:30pm eastern time. And of course the agent didn't call Amanda (from W Farms, who graciously offered to pick me up) and let her know the plane would be early. There was enough to do with unloading the gear, and then unloading all the other horses, which took up enough time for Amanda to get there. It was mildly stressful, as Monk was the only one hanging out on the plane, but he seemed relatively happy and not too stressed out about it. Thankfully, the plane wasn't on a schedule, as their next flight isn't until tomorrow. The ride from the airport to W Farms was short and uneventful, and Monk settled into his stall at W Farms pretty quickly.
From there I had to go pick up Lana, who flew separately on a commercial flight out of Newark to LAX. Her flight was scheduled to arrive in LAX at 4:15, and it is easily an hour drive from W Farms to LAX (in good traffic!). After picking her up, we decided to have dinner nearby to wait for the traffic to clear up (traffic down here is insane!). So we found a nice mexican place on the bay in Marina Del Ray and watched the pelicans and harbor seals and sailboats. Every now and then a fishing boat would go by, and you could tell which ones had been successful, because they were followed by a swarm of birds trying to get at the fish guts being tossed into the water by the fishermen.
The drive back to Chino Hills was long, traffic had cleared up a little, but it was still pretty slow. It took a good hour and 20 minutes or 1 1/2 hours to get back to W Farms. My driving has gotten very solidly urban, I'm sure I'll quickly regress to driving like I live in Boise soon, but for now I do the two-blink signal and slam on the accelerator. Between New Jersey and Los Angeles, I've had plenty of time getting acclimated to freeway driving in major metropolitan areas!
We did a quick evening check on Monk, who looked pretty happy and relatively settled, then off to the hotel. Lana is already asleep, and its not even 9pm!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
I-1 freestyle, and final wrap-up!!
Today was the last day of the competition! It seems like it went really slow for the first week we were here, then all the sudden it's over. It was quite the experience being here amongst the best Dressage riders and horses in the country.
Monkey warmed up very well for the I-1 freestyle, much more uphill and active, but without being quite as tight in the neck and tense as he was yesterday in the warm-up. I lost a little bit of that in the test, which was unfortunate but that's the way it goes. Generally I was happy with the test, the tempi changes were again the highlight. I think I got a few 7.5s for those on the bending line. The pirouettes could have been better balanced. I scored 68.8 and ended up in 13th place, which would also be my overall placing for the Intermediare championships.
By yesterday and today my nerves were pretty much under control. I was pretty nervous for the PSG, but after getting that ride over with I realized that I was at (yet another) horse show and just needed to ride like that. So the I-1 and I-1 freestyle were much better in that regard. I drew first to go in the I-1 freestyle (again), which can be tough! But the nice thing is that I got to watch pretty much all of the rest of the competitiors. There were some really nice freestyles and some that were not so great. But definitely the caliber of competition here is high! The riders are all pretty experienced, and the quality of horses here is really outstanding. It is an honor just to be here.
David Blake and Royal Prinz really pulled out all the stops in his freestyle with fantastic trot work (I didn't get to see the rest of it as I was running back to the barn to get my horse ready for the awards ceremony!) to clinch the reserve championship behind Caroline Roffman and Pie. Steffen ended up fourth with the young horse Sundance, who is an absolute super-talent (but very green) and has a tremendous future ahead of him.
Tomorrow we fly back to California. The truck is scheduled to pick Monk and I up in Gladstone at 5am (yuck!), from there we travel to Allentown, PA, then we fly to Ontario. I'm going to spend a day in California, resting from the trip, then Wednesday travel back to Boise. It'll be nice to get home and back to normalcy! But I have another show coming up the last weekend in June, and so far I am scheduled to ride 4 or 5 horses in it. As they say, no rest for the wicked!
Monkey warmed up very well for the I-1 freestyle, much more uphill and active, but without being quite as tight in the neck and tense as he was yesterday in the warm-up. I lost a little bit of that in the test, which was unfortunate but that's the way it goes. Generally I was happy with the test, the tempi changes were again the highlight. I think I got a few 7.5s for those on the bending line. The pirouettes could have been better balanced. I scored 68.8 and ended up in 13th place, which would also be my overall placing for the Intermediare championships.
By yesterday and today my nerves were pretty much under control. I was pretty nervous for the PSG, but after getting that ride over with I realized that I was at (yet another) horse show and just needed to ride like that. So the I-1 and I-1 freestyle were much better in that regard. I drew first to go in the I-1 freestyle (again), which can be tough! But the nice thing is that I got to watch pretty much all of the rest of the competitiors. There were some really nice freestyles and some that were not so great. But definitely the caliber of competition here is high! The riders are all pretty experienced, and the quality of horses here is really outstanding. It is an honor just to be here.
David Blake and Royal Prinz really pulled out all the stops in his freestyle with fantastic trot work (I didn't get to see the rest of it as I was running back to the barn to get my horse ready for the awards ceremony!) to clinch the reserve championship behind Caroline Roffman and Pie. Steffen ended up fourth with the young horse Sundance, who is an absolute super-talent (but very green) and has a tremendous future ahead of him.
Tomorrow we fly back to California. The truck is scheduled to pick Monk and I up in Gladstone at 5am (yuck!), from there we travel to Allentown, PA, then we fly to Ontario. I'm going to spend a day in California, resting from the trip, then Wednesday travel back to Boise. It'll be nice to get home and back to normalcy! But I have another show coming up the last weekend in June, and so far I am scheduled to ride 4 or 5 horses in it. As they say, no rest for the wicked!
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Much improved ride in I-1
Today was the first full day at the show, starting with the GP special, then the first round of the Brentina Cup, and finishing with the I-1. The GP special class was very good, although most of the horses and riders looked a little less inspired than yesterday. Steffen managed to edge out Tina Konyot today with a beautiful piaffe/passage tour that made up for some small mistakes in the tempi changes. Adrienne moved up in the standings with a very nice ride on Wizard, and Heather and Paragon also had a much improved ride. Looks like the team is Steffen, Tina, Jan Ebeling, and Adrienne (the US gets to send one individual rider in addition to a team of 3 riders). Todd and Otto look to be the alternates.
I didn't get to watch the Brentina Cup rides, as I was getting ready for my I-1 test. The scores were quite good, however, with a couple of riders breaking 70 and several others in the mid to high 60s.
I was the first to go in the I-1 at 2:15pm. I was a little more motivated and tough in the warm-up, to get Monk more active and uphill. The warm-up felt a little rough, but I smoothed it out for the test. The test itself was quite nice, everything looked more balanced and organized than the PSG, with the exception of my first pirouette which I bungled. I ended up with a 67.816%, which I was very happy with.
The nice thing about going first in the class is that then you can watch the rest of the class. There were a bunch of good horses in the class and several really super rides. I was very impressed with David Blake and Royal Prinz and Mette Rosencranz and her horse (who's name I can't spell). Both rides were very well balanced, active, uphill, and supple throughout (in addition to being mistake free). Their scores were well deserved. Some of the others I was a little less enthusiastic about, although they still scored relatively high. But it wouldn't be a dressage show if you didn't disagree with the judging!
Tomorrow I'm first to go again in the I-1 freestyle at 10:30am. It'll be fun to ride my freestyle in that arena, I think it will be great! I plan to have a similar warm-up for tomorrow, and I'll have to deal with that left pirouette issue in the warm-up as well. Monk's been a super star, so I just want to have another good, solid ride. Then Lana and I will get everything packed up so we can leave bright and early Monday morning!
I didn't get to watch the Brentina Cup rides, as I was getting ready for my I-1 test. The scores were quite good, however, with a couple of riders breaking 70 and several others in the mid to high 60s.
I was the first to go in the I-1 at 2:15pm. I was a little more motivated and tough in the warm-up, to get Monk more active and uphill. The warm-up felt a little rough, but I smoothed it out for the test. The test itself was quite nice, everything looked more balanced and organized than the PSG, with the exception of my first pirouette which I bungled. I ended up with a 67.816%, which I was very happy with.
The nice thing about going first in the class is that then you can watch the rest of the class. There were a bunch of good horses in the class and several really super rides. I was very impressed with David Blake and Royal Prinz and Mette Rosencranz and her horse (who's name I can't spell). Both rides were very well balanced, active, uphill, and supple throughout (in addition to being mistake free). Their scores were well deserved. Some of the others I was a little less enthusiastic about, although they still scored relatively high. But it wouldn't be a dressage show if you didn't disagree with the judging!
Tomorrow I'm first to go again in the I-1 freestyle at 10:30am. It'll be fun to ride my freestyle in that arena, I think it will be great! I plan to have a similar warm-up for tomorrow, and I'll have to deal with that left pirouette issue in the warm-up as well. Monk's been a super star, so I just want to have another good, solid ride. Then Lana and I will get everything packed up so we can leave bright and early Monday morning!
Friday, June 15, 2012
Riders set the bar high in today's GP
Today's GP class was absolutely unbelievable, with every combination coming in and putting forth absolute top effort! It was really interesting to watch the improvement from last weekend, where each competitor rode very conservative and looked slightly petrified to ride in their first GP in the Olympic trials. They have steadily improved over the 3 tests, and today set a huge standard for GP in this country. Many of the tests were not only clean, but the horses were so much more uphill, cadenced, and active throughout than they were last weekend. It was very exciting to watch! Tina and Calecto had a fantastic ride, starting with a gorgeous first halt that earned her multiple 9s and a 10. The entire test showed suppleness, activity, lightness, and power. Calecto really tries his heart out for her. She deserved her 80% and the win!
I rode Monk, trying to channel the GP rider's power and verve, and he went very well. Tomorrow I hope to ride with more power and expression, even if I make a mistake or two. The weather has continued to be perfect, in the upper 70s to low 80s with some clouds and relatively low humidity. We've been very lucky in the weather department!
I'm starting to put together my return trip (that wasn't high on the priority list until recently). Looks like the truck comes to pick up Monk and I bright and early on Monday morning at 5am. We travel to Allentown, Pennsylvania, where we get on the plane for Ontario. We are scheduled to arrive in Ontario at 1:30pm, and I have arranged to have the very awesome Amanda Barr-Olson from W Farms come pick us up. After getting Monk settled at W Farms, I have to pick up Lana at LAX (she arrives at the greatest time, 4:30pm, right during rush hour!). Then I think we'll stay a day in Chino Hills before driving home to Boise. I think I'm going to be exhausted Monday evening!
I rode Monk, trying to channel the GP rider's power and verve, and he went very well. Tomorrow I hope to ride with more power and expression, even if I make a mistake or two. The weather has continued to be perfect, in the upper 70s to low 80s with some clouds and relatively low humidity. We've been very lucky in the weather department!
I'm starting to put together my return trip (that wasn't high on the priority list until recently). Looks like the truck comes to pick up Monk and I bright and early on Monday morning at 5am. We travel to Allentown, Pennsylvania, where we get on the plane for Ontario. We are scheduled to arrive in Ontario at 1:30pm, and I have arranged to have the very awesome Amanda Barr-Olson from W Farms come pick us up. After getting Monk settled at W Farms, I have to pick up Lana at LAX (she arrives at the greatest time, 4:30pm, right during rush hour!). Then I think we'll stay a day in Chino Hills before driving home to Boise. I think I'm going to be exhausted Monday evening!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
First test at Gladstone...check!
The show finally got underway for Monk and I today, with the Prix St. Georges test. The competition was tough, with 5 riders scoring above 70%. We were one of the last combinations to go, and we had a solid, mistake-free ride to score 65.76% from the 5 judges and place 11th among some of the best Intermediare combinations in the country. I was very happy with my ride! I've had some issues with the PSG with Monkey recently, for some reason he likes to throw in one-time changes in various locations. Plus I was a little nervous for this ride, being my first test at such a venue! So I was relieved to ride the test mistake-free.
The Intermediare I is on Saturday, and my goal for that test is to add more uphill expression and power to his overall way of going. Everything worked today, but the comment from the judges was that I was too conservative and he needs more power/expression. We have a schooling day tomorrow to address some of those issues.
The biggest problem with this show is how much down time there is! I'm so used to riding a bunch of horses and having several clients to teach, that having a lot of time to sit around and hang out is hard to get used to. It is a little harder to control your nerves too when you have that much time to think. I did spend some time in the morning watching some of the GP horses school, which helped give me a good mental image for my ride. Tomorrow I'll get to watch the GP (it starts at 9am), then ride Monk afterwards. That will help too.
Weather was perfect today in Gladstone, maybe 80 degrees with some sun and some clouds! We really lucked out with that.
The Intermediare I is on Saturday, and my goal for that test is to add more uphill expression and power to his overall way of going. Everything worked today, but the comment from the judges was that I was too conservative and he needs more power/expression. We have a schooling day tomorrow to address some of those issues.
The biggest problem with this show is how much down time there is! I'm so used to riding a bunch of horses and having several clients to teach, that having a lot of time to sit around and hang out is hard to get used to. It is a little harder to control your nerves too when you have that much time to think. I did spend some time in the morning watching some of the GP horses school, which helped give me a good mental image for my ride. Tomorrow I'll get to watch the GP (it starts at 9am), then ride Monk afterwards. That will help too.
Weather was perfect today in Gladstone, maybe 80 degrees with some sun and some clouds! We really lucked out with that.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
The FEI jog for Intermediare horses
First we showed up to Monk's flooded stall this morning. It rained quite a bit last night, and the way the stalls are situated (on a hillside) and where Monk was located, meant that he was standing in a bunch of water. Luckily he had enough shavings to keep him above the water (mostly, although he had charmingly dug a hole in one corner that was water-filled). We were able to move him to the neighboring stall, which had formerly been the tack stall for a couple of the juniors. The Juniors still hadn't left yet (they were waiting for some Paralympic riders who were sharing the same truck), but we managed to convince them to move their stuff and let us move Monkey.
I rode later in the morning and got him in the main arena again today. Much better weather today, dry and relatively cool (70s or so) with a light breeze. He was very good again, trying to outdo those fancy GP horses warming up next to him LOL.
The jog was at 3, and was relatively uneventful. They held the jog in the main arena after they rolled the heck out of it with a roller (last weekend it was on the hard ground next to the indoor). It was good to get in the arena with the huge scoreboard, which had spent the last few days at the Paralympics, so Monk hadn't seen it yet. It is huge, and has large shifting lights on it (a score, a horse's name, the USEF logo, etc), and it makes a funny buzzing noise. Monk seemed pretty uninterested in it. He trotted just fine for the jog and passed with no trouble. I think everyone passed without a problem.
I ride the PSG tomorrow at 12:23pm eastern time. The class starts at 10am, and I'm the third to the last rider. The PSG is actually the toughest test for the two of us, being on the cusp of GP I think it gives him a little too much time to think now. My goal is mostly to get him a little more uphill in the trot work. I also want to ride the changes clean, as that has been an issue lately (he loves to throw in one-times). So we'll see how it goes. It's an accomplishment just to be in the arena competing!
I rode later in the morning and got him in the main arena again today. Much better weather today, dry and relatively cool (70s or so) with a light breeze. He was very good again, trying to outdo those fancy GP horses warming up next to him LOL.
The jog was at 3, and was relatively uneventful. They held the jog in the main arena after they rolled the heck out of it with a roller (last weekend it was on the hard ground next to the indoor). It was good to get in the arena with the huge scoreboard, which had spent the last few days at the Paralympics, so Monk hadn't seen it yet. It is huge, and has large shifting lights on it (a score, a horse's name, the USEF logo, etc), and it makes a funny buzzing noise. Monk seemed pretty uninterested in it. He trotted just fine for the jog and passed with no trouble. I think everyone passed without a problem.
I ride the PSG tomorrow at 12:23pm eastern time. The class starts at 10am, and I'm the third to the last rider. The PSG is actually the toughest test for the two of us, being on the cusp of GP I think it gives him a little too much time to think now. My goal is mostly to get him a little more uphill in the trot work. I also want to ride the changes clean, as that has been an issue lately (he loves to throw in one-times). So we'll see how it goes. It's an accomplishment just to be in the arena competing!
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Wet day today in Gladstone!
The weather here is just wacky! A few days ago it was almost 90 and high humidity, Lana and I were laying around in our chairs dying in the heat. Today it rained all day, poured at times, although it stayed relatively warm. I really wanted to get Monk in the main arena again (as he was a little tense in there yesterday), luckily for me it coincided with one of our significant rainstorms! Monk and I were totally soaked by the end. He was a trouper though, and trucked right through it like it was no big deal. I rode him bigger and more forward today, and it helped his activity level and engagement. Now I just have to try and slow him down without losing that. Always trying to make things better!
In the morning Lana and I watched fellow Northwesterner Erin Alberta ride her Paralympic Individual test. Unfortunately Rocco was overly impressed by the environment and got behind the leg. Erin worked through it. and has kept a super attitude about this setback. The Paralympic riders were inspiring to watch!
Tomorrow is the jog (3pm). So I have to ride in the morning, then get both of us ready for the jog. There's also a rider meeting at 11am. So getting busy! No more laying around in our lounge chairs. We'll know ride times for Thursday (psg) by tomorrow evening.
In the morning Lana and I watched fellow Northwesterner Erin Alberta ride her Paralympic Individual test. Unfortunately Rocco was overly impressed by the environment and got behind the leg. Erin worked through it. and has kept a super attitude about this setback. The Paralympic riders were inspiring to watch!
Tomorrow is the jog (3pm). So I have to ride in the morning, then get both of us ready for the jog. There's also a rider meeting at 11am. So getting busy! No more laying around in our lounge chairs. We'll know ride times for Thursday (psg) by tomorrow evening.
Monday, June 11, 2012
USEF High Performance meeting and other news...
Today was a transition day at the show facility, with the juniors and young riders leaving for home (or preparing to leave) and the I-1 and Brentina Cup riders arriving. The usual travel woes ensued, one Junior left for her 13 hour drive home to Kentucky, only to have truck problems 20 minutes from the facility and turn around and come back. They took the truck in to the shop and are hopeful it will be fixed tomorrow afternoon. Another Junior has her horse leaving on a truck for California, which was supposed to leave at 6am, but has been significantly delayed (they were still at the barn when we left around 5pm).
I attended a USEF High Performance meeting this morning. Most of the GP riders attended and a few I-1 riders. It was pretty interesting, as it was basically exactly the same discussion that our Jr/YRs (and their parents) have on a regional level, only now on a much higher (national/international) level! The discussion boiled down to: fundraising and selection competitions and the size of this country. The meeting started with Debbie McDonald talking about wanting to clarify and/or specify the criteria for the Developing Rider program, as she feels the current criteria aren't picking out the caliber of riders/horses that have international potential. The discussion moved to how to find talented younger riders/horses and how to get the help they need. Then the discussion moved to financial issues. The Developing Rider program has been largely funded by Akiko (Steffen's sponsor), as many USEF programs have been cut due to budget cuts. Anne Gribbons talked about wanting to send some promising GP combinations to Europe next year, to get the US team European exposure, but several riders felt that those funds would be better spent developing combinations in our own country (which I tend to agree with).
The discussion then turned to next year's CDI schedule, and the sad lack of CDIs in California next year. It looks like we have about 5 or 6 in California next year (3 or 4 in So Cal). The California riders bemoaned the fact that there are so few, but the response from the High Performance committee was that the show managers have a hard time to fill them. According to the East coast riders, many riders on the East coast will enter them, just for the experience and to be part of the show. Therefore the classes are pretty large and the CDI can actually pay for itself. In fact, one GP rider complained about having too many CDIs in Florida! However, on the West coast, many riders are intimidated or unwilling to enter CDIs, so only the elite riders end up in the classes. As a result, the classes are small and the CDIs have a hard time making any money. Therefore fewer CDIs.
I rode Monk for the first time in the Main Arena today. He was a bit more tense and stiff today, I think both of us were intimidated by the atmosphere. I didn't think I would be intimidated, but riding in that arena for the first time was a little difficult! We'll ride in there the next couple days, so we can become comfortable with the atmosphere. Additionally that arena stays very warm and stuffy, because it is surrounded by (quite tall) trees on all sides it doesn't get any breeze at all. The outdoor arenas up by our tent stalls are on a hillside, and are much more open with better airflow.
I attended a USEF High Performance meeting this morning. Most of the GP riders attended and a few I-1 riders. It was pretty interesting, as it was basically exactly the same discussion that our Jr/YRs (and their parents) have on a regional level, only now on a much higher (national/international) level! The discussion boiled down to: fundraising and selection competitions and the size of this country. The meeting started with Debbie McDonald talking about wanting to clarify and/or specify the criteria for the Developing Rider program, as she feels the current criteria aren't picking out the caliber of riders/horses that have international potential. The discussion moved to how to find talented younger riders/horses and how to get the help they need. Then the discussion moved to financial issues. The Developing Rider program has been largely funded by Akiko (Steffen's sponsor), as many USEF programs have been cut due to budget cuts. Anne Gribbons talked about wanting to send some promising GP combinations to Europe next year, to get the US team European exposure, but several riders felt that those funds would be better spent developing combinations in our own country (which I tend to agree with).
The discussion then turned to next year's CDI schedule, and the sad lack of CDIs in California next year. It looks like we have about 5 or 6 in California next year (3 or 4 in So Cal). The California riders bemoaned the fact that there are so few, but the response from the High Performance committee was that the show managers have a hard time to fill them. According to the East coast riders, many riders on the East coast will enter them, just for the experience and to be part of the show. Therefore the classes are pretty large and the CDI can actually pay for itself. In fact, one GP rider complained about having too many CDIs in Florida! However, on the West coast, many riders are intimidated or unwilling to enter CDIs, so only the elite riders end up in the classes. As a result, the classes are small and the CDIs have a hard time making any money. Therefore fewer CDIs.
I rode Monk for the first time in the Main Arena today. He was a bit more tense and stiff today, I think both of us were intimidated by the atmosphere. I didn't think I would be intimidated, but riding in that arena for the first time was a little difficult! We'll ride in there the next couple days, so we can become comfortable with the atmosphere. Additionally that arena stays very warm and stuffy, because it is surrounded by (quite tall) trees on all sides it doesn't get any breeze at all. The outdoor arenas up by our tent stalls are on a hillside, and are much more open with better airflow.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Now I know what rain is!
Everyone had warned me about the crappy weather here in New Jersey today. The morning was actually pretty nice, overcast and not too hot, but by the afternoon the humidity increased and it heated up significantly. By 3 or 4 o'clock it was in the mid 80s and 53% humidity. I'm told that it wasn't even that bad by NJ standards...I can't imagine what it would be like if it were 90 degrees and 90 percent humidity!
By late afternoon storm clouds were forming, and then we had the heaviest downpour I've ever seen! I'm from Portland, but I've never seen rain like that. The weather instantly went from hot and humid to absolutely POURING down rain in huge drops. Water was running down the streets in less than 5 minutes. It was amazing! I can't imagine riding a test in that kind of rain. Holy cow!
We watched the GP special today. All of the horses and riders were much better today, everyone looked like they had breathed a sigh of relief after getting through the GP and therefore rode their horses much more uphill, active, and forward today. Several combinations looked like they were riding different horses! Tina Konyot had an amazing ride on her own Calecto, she rode with tremendous power and expression while keeping the harmony and suppleness. She scored 76+% and seriously challenged Steffen and Legalos (who nevertheless won with 77%). 3rd through 6th continues to be very tightly fought, with any of those combinations more than capable of filling a spot on the Team (Todd/Otto, Jan/Rafalca, Adrienne/Wizard, Guenter/Fandango). Heather and Paragon were much improved today and broke 70 percent. Both Pierre St. Jaques/Lucky Tiger and Shawna Harding/Come On III also had beautiful and much more expressive rides today, coming very close to the 70 percent barrier.
We also watched a few of the early Junior rides. I was impressed by the seat and position on many of the riders, I think they must have come up through the Dressage Seat medal program. They had textbook positions and rode very quietly. Most of them didn't ride with enough half-halts, so their horses weren't as well balanced or prepared for the movements as they could have been. But the riders generally looked like they were on a good way.
Monkey is doing great, his body feels better because he is drinking and eating normally again. He doesn't feel like sitting on a stick horse anymore! He was great to ride again today, once again getting inspiration from the GP horses I suppose.
By late afternoon storm clouds were forming, and then we had the heaviest downpour I've ever seen! I'm from Portland, but I've never seen rain like that. The weather instantly went from hot and humid to absolutely POURING down rain in huge drops. Water was running down the streets in less than 5 minutes. It was amazing! I can't imagine riding a test in that kind of rain. Holy cow!
We watched the GP special today. All of the horses and riders were much better today, everyone looked like they had breathed a sigh of relief after getting through the GP and therefore rode their horses much more uphill, active, and forward today. Several combinations looked like they were riding different horses! Tina Konyot had an amazing ride on her own Calecto, she rode with tremendous power and expression while keeping the harmony and suppleness. She scored 76+% and seriously challenged Steffen and Legalos (who nevertheless won with 77%). 3rd through 6th continues to be very tightly fought, with any of those combinations more than capable of filling a spot on the Team (Todd/Otto, Jan/Rafalca, Adrienne/Wizard, Guenter/Fandango). Heather and Paragon were much improved today and broke 70 percent. Both Pierre St. Jaques/Lucky Tiger and Shawna Harding/Come On III also had beautiful and much more expressive rides today, coming very close to the 70 percent barrier.
We also watched a few of the early Junior rides. I was impressed by the seat and position on many of the riders, I think they must have come up through the Dressage Seat medal program. They had textbook positions and rode very quietly. Most of them didn't ride with enough half-halts, so their horses weren't as well balanced or prepared for the movements as they could have been. But the riders generally looked like they were on a good way.
Monkey is doing great, his body feels better because he is drinking and eating normally again. He doesn't feel like sitting on a stick horse anymore! He was great to ride again today, once again getting inspiration from the GP horses I suppose.
Saturday, June 9, 2012
First Leg of the GP!
Today Lana and I watched the best Grand Prix combinations in the nation compete for a spot on this year's Olympic team. It was inspiring, to say the least! Each combination absolutely deserved to be there. Steffen expertly guided his newest ride Legolas through a beautiful test and was far and away the winner with 76 percent. The piaffe/passage tour on that horse is unbelievable and I'm sure easily earns him 8s and 9s. Tina Konyot had a beautiful ride as well on her stallion Calecto to slot in 2nd with 72.7. The next 4 riders were all incredibly close, all within 1 percent. It is going to be a very close fight for the 2nd and 3rd spots on the Olympic team! It was nice to see some of the riders make mistakes, not because I wish them ill, but because it helps me see that even at the best riders in the country are human too! Even at the highest level it is still a sport and everyone still has something to work on and improve.
I rode Monk after the GP, he was super. I think we got some inspiration from the GP class! Today I worked him a bit harder, predominantly on getting more activity and expression in the trot. I also worked some on the half pirouettes from the PSG, which are harder for me than the full pirouettes in the I-1. I find riding them out of half-pass helps to keep the bend, but eventually I have to ride them off of a straight line.
It looks like pretty much everyone is warming up in the indoor, then moving to the main arena. Monkey and I haven't been in either of those arenas yet, that will be next week's project.
I rode Monk after the GP, he was super. I think we got some inspiration from the GP class! Today I worked him a bit harder, predominantly on getting more activity and expression in the trot. I also worked some on the half pirouettes from the PSG, which are harder for me than the full pirouettes in the I-1. I find riding them out of half-pass helps to keep the bend, but eventually I have to ride them off of a straight line.
It looks like pretty much everyone is warming up in the indoor, then moving to the main arena. Monkey and I haven't been in either of those arenas yet, that will be next week's project.
Friday, June 8, 2012
First day riding
I rode Monk for the first time since arriving in Gladstone today. He was pretty good. He's lost some weight (and those of you who know him, know he isn't heavy to begin with), so right now he's kind of like riding a cross between a giraffe, a racehorse, and a greyhound. I didn't want to work him too hard, just did some basic suppleness and activating work and some changes on the diagonal. I don't want to overdo the piaffe/passage work, but it helps to activate and loosen him if I do it right. He also loves to throw in one-times (mostly in the PSG), so I've decided to spend some time the next week riding lots of diagonals with single changes or 3 changes every 5 or 6 strides, to keep him with me.
Afterwards we went for a "trail ride", also known as the trek from the warm-up arena to the show arena, over the bridge and through the woods. Monk's not much of a trail horse but he decided it was fine after I insisted that he needed to do it. It looks like the indoor arena next to the show arena is closed to members of the "Gold medal club", whatever that means (probably means you have to spend a bunch of $$$ to be able to warm up there). So one of my projects this week will be clocking the time from the warm-up arena to the show ring. It shouldn't be a problem, it isn't that far. I had to face a similar issue a number of years ago at one of the Arabian Regional Championships at the Puyallup, WA, fairgrounds...the warm-up arena was easily 5 minutes from the show arena, and you couldn't see the horse in the show arena so you had to really watch the time to make sure you'd get over there when you were supposed to.
We spent much of the day resting in our new lounge chairs. I decided after getting here that we needed some chairs (since I hadn't brought any, being paranoid about how much stuff I could or couldn't bring on the plane) so we went to Target and bought a couple. Those of you who know me are familiar with my fantastic and much coveted horse show chair. Well now I have another one!! The juniors and young riders (and especially their mothers) were running around frantically getting ready for the jog and vet inspection, and Lana and I spent the time reclining in our chairs. We got several comments. LOL
We ended up missing much of the jog; all the GP horses had gone by the time we got there. We did see some of the Juniors and YRs. Luckily we did get to see Steffen schooling Legolas in the indoor, which was amazing and beautiful to watch. That combination is currently in #1 position going into this weekend (since Ravel isn't here) and I think they are the combination to beat. He didn't do a whole lot with him today, but lots of basic work on suppleness and ridability. In San Juan they were unbelievable. Can't wait to see his tests over the next 2 weeks!
The GP starts tomorrow at 8am. Lana and I are going to be sure to get over there early and take care of Monk beforehand, so we can watch the class. Should be awesome!
Afterwards we went for a "trail ride", also known as the trek from the warm-up arena to the show arena, over the bridge and through the woods. Monk's not much of a trail horse but he decided it was fine after I insisted that he needed to do it. It looks like the indoor arena next to the show arena is closed to members of the "Gold medal club", whatever that means (probably means you have to spend a bunch of $$$ to be able to warm up there). So one of my projects this week will be clocking the time from the warm-up arena to the show ring. It shouldn't be a problem, it isn't that far. I had to face a similar issue a number of years ago at one of the Arabian Regional Championships at the Puyallup, WA, fairgrounds...the warm-up arena was easily 5 minutes from the show arena, and you couldn't see the horse in the show arena so you had to really watch the time to make sure you'd get over there when you were supposed to.
We spent much of the day resting in our new lounge chairs. I decided after getting here that we needed some chairs (since I hadn't brought any, being paranoid about how much stuff I could or couldn't bring on the plane) so we went to Target and bought a couple. Those of you who know me are familiar with my fantastic and much coveted horse show chair. Well now I have another one!! The juniors and young riders (and especially their mothers) were running around frantically getting ready for the jog and vet inspection, and Lana and I spent the time reclining in our chairs. We got several comments. LOL
We ended up missing much of the jog; all the GP horses had gone by the time we got there. We did see some of the Juniors and YRs. Luckily we did get to see Steffen schooling Legolas in the indoor, which was amazing and beautiful to watch. That combination is currently in #1 position going into this weekend (since Ravel isn't here) and I think they are the combination to beat. He didn't do a whole lot with him today, but lots of basic work on suppleness and ridability. In San Juan they were unbelievable. Can't wait to see his tests over the next 2 weeks!
The GP starts tomorrow at 8am. Lana and I are going to be sure to get over there early and take care of Monk beforehand, so we can watch the class. Should be awesome!
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Beer situation resolved, and in other news...
Today I figured out the beer situation here in New Jersey. Not only do they not have hefeweizen in this state (which was bad enough, I have to drink Blue Moon instead), but they don't sell beer or wine at all in grocery stores! You have to go to a liquor store to buy it. Keep in mind that I'm coming from California, where you can buy 80 proof vodka at Albertson's! It never ceases to amaze me how different the liquor laws are between the different states. I'll never forget my trip to Texas when I discovered what a "dry county" is, now that was wierd.
Monkey looked super today, much fresher and rested from traveling. He's very perky! Lana handwalked him a couple times and he was feeling a bit frisky. According to her, he tried to show off his "fancy moves". I asked if that meant passage and she said yes, he does it quite well. Now he just has to do it when I tell him! He's been drinking a ton of water and eating well, thankfully.
So far the weather here has been very pleasant, much cooler than California and Idaho. It's been in the mid-70s during the day and mid-50s at night. Skies have been overcast and we've had some afternoon thunderstorms and rain showers. The humidity is definitely higher here than in Boise (surprise, surprise) but not unbearable. Yesterday the forecast read that it would heat up to around 90 over the weekend, but today it looks like its supposed to stay in the upper 70s, maybe low 80s. I told Lana the weather seems like a cross between Portland and Boise weather...overcast and slightly humid all the time like PDX, but with afternoon thunderstorms like we get in Boise sometimes.
I have to say I rather like the New York/New Jersey accents. The accent gives the person a certain edge and makes them sound cooler and tougher than they probably are (at least in some cases). That said, so far the East coasters have all been relatively friendly (as opposed to what I expected). They are curt and blunt but not unfriendly. The driver of the truck yesterday was the first genuine New Yorker that I've met, and his first conversation with me was complaining (loudly) about how the Mexicans on the plane wouldn't help us load our gear onto the truck. "They just stood around!! Unbelievable!!"
Monkey looked super today, much fresher and rested from traveling. He's very perky! Lana handwalked him a couple times and he was feeling a bit frisky. According to her, he tried to show off his "fancy moves". I asked if that meant passage and she said yes, he does it quite well. Now he just has to do it when I tell him! He's been drinking a ton of water and eating well, thankfully.
So far the weather here has been very pleasant, much cooler than California and Idaho. It's been in the mid-70s during the day and mid-50s at night. Skies have been overcast and we've had some afternoon thunderstorms and rain showers. The humidity is definitely higher here than in Boise (surprise, surprise) but not unbearable. Yesterday the forecast read that it would heat up to around 90 over the weekend, but today it looks like its supposed to stay in the upper 70s, maybe low 80s. I told Lana the weather seems like a cross between Portland and Boise weather...overcast and slightly humid all the time like PDX, but with afternoon thunderstorms like we get in Boise sometimes.
I have to say I rather like the New York/New Jersey accents. The accent gives the person a certain edge and makes them sound cooler and tougher than they probably are (at least in some cases). That said, so far the East coasters have all been relatively friendly (as opposed to what I expected). They are curt and blunt but not unfriendly. The driver of the truck yesterday was the first genuine New Yorker that I've met, and his first conversation with me was complaining (loudly) about how the Mexicans on the plane wouldn't help us load our gear onto the truck. "They just stood around!! Unbelievable!!"
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Travel day to Gladstone
My morning started at 1:30am with my alarm clock going off. Then packing, driving to the hotel, and getting all my stuff ready to travel. Hubbards showed up around 2:30am to pick up Monk and Rocco, and after some discussion we got Monkey to back into the straight load stall. Luckily for me, the driver had no room in the cab so I got to ride to the airport in the back of the horse trailer. I have to say I have a newfound respect for the noise and discomfort those horses endure in the trailer, particularly when careening down a Southern California freeway! It was bouncy and extremely noisy.
We arrived around 3am, and after a short wait we were able to get into the airport. The horses are loaded directly from their truck onto the plane (ramp to ramp, so they don't touch the tarmac). So each truck pulls up to the plane, unloads the horse(s), then drives off, then the next truck pulls up. The horses are led up the ramp into the plane, and once up there the tie-stalls are built around them. The horses haul three across in small tie stalls. The stalls consist of interlocking panels that are easily assembled or disassembled. There is a small section in the very back of the plane for passengers (people), there were only 16 seats back there.
The wierdest thing about riding in a cargo plane is that there are no windows on the sides, so you have no visual orientation for where the plane is in space. You go by feel and by the sound of the engines, as to whether you're acending, descending, cruising, or what-have-you. I could tell when we were going down to land, but didn't know if we were actually landing until the plane hit the runway. The flight was generally very smooth, as the pilots make sure not to make any sudden turns or steep inclines/declines.
The horses were a little more nervous and active on take-off and landing, and also if we hit any turbulence. I think it was partially how wierd it must feel to them, when the plane moves around, but I also think it is the noise. When the plane lands and the pilot reverses the engines to slow it down, the sound is deafening and the horses all react to it!
After a short layover in Kentucky to fuel up and pick up more horses, we landed in Farmingdale, NY, and got on a truck for Gladstone. It was unfortunately early afternoon, so rush hour was just starting. The trip was fairly long (probably 1.5 to 2 hours), and I got into Gladstone about 5:30pm (eastern time).
Lana had no trouble on her flight from LAX to Newark, and was able to get a rental car and made it to Gladstone just 10-15 minutes before we arrived. I had a last minute panic about hay yesterday, but it turned out to be no big deal as I had no problem ordering some and Monk rather liked their timothy. I also brought along a bale of compressed alfalfa for him, to try and keep his calorie intake up. Right now he looks like one of those racehorses that was on the plane with him!
All of us are exhausted. Off to bed! Quite the day of travel.
We arrived around 3am, and after a short wait we were able to get into the airport. The horses are loaded directly from their truck onto the plane (ramp to ramp, so they don't touch the tarmac). So each truck pulls up to the plane, unloads the horse(s), then drives off, then the next truck pulls up. The horses are led up the ramp into the plane, and once up there the tie-stalls are built around them. The horses haul three across in small tie stalls. The stalls consist of interlocking panels that are easily assembled or disassembled. There is a small section in the very back of the plane for passengers (people), there were only 16 seats back there.
The wierdest thing about riding in a cargo plane is that there are no windows on the sides, so you have no visual orientation for where the plane is in space. You go by feel and by the sound of the engines, as to whether you're acending, descending, cruising, or what-have-you. I could tell when we were going down to land, but didn't know if we were actually landing until the plane hit the runway. The flight was generally very smooth, as the pilots make sure not to make any sudden turns or steep inclines/declines.
The horses were a little more nervous and active on take-off and landing, and also if we hit any turbulence. I think it was partially how wierd it must feel to them, when the plane moves around, but I also think it is the noise. When the plane lands and the pilot reverses the engines to slow it down, the sound is deafening and the horses all react to it!
After a short layover in Kentucky to fuel up and pick up more horses, we landed in Farmingdale, NY, and got on a truck for Gladstone. It was unfortunately early afternoon, so rush hour was just starting. The trip was fairly long (probably 1.5 to 2 hours), and I got into Gladstone about 5:30pm (eastern time).
Lana had no trouble on her flight from LAX to Newark, and was able to get a rental car and made it to Gladstone just 10-15 minutes before we arrived. I had a last minute panic about hay yesterday, but it turned out to be no big deal as I had no problem ordering some and Monk rather liked their timothy. I also brought along a bale of compressed alfalfa for him, to try and keep his calorie intake up. Right now he looks like one of those racehorses that was on the plane with him!
All of us are exhausted. Off to bed! Quite the day of travel.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Trip to Gladstone tomorrow!!
I dropped Lana off at LAX this afternoon, as she was unable to get a spot on the charter flight with Monkey and I. Almost 2 hours later, I was back at the barn (you've gotta love LA traffic). Monk was definitely more settled today, I rode him this morning which seemed to help him calm down some and feel more at home. I finalized my packing for the trip; I tried to condense everything down to bare essentials, to minimize the amount of stuff I have to tote across the country.
The flight leaves tomorrow at 5am, which means we have to be at the airport in Ontario with horses at 3:30am. Which means Hubbard horse transport is going to be at W Farms to pick up Monk and Rocco (the horse Erin is riding) at 2:30am. Which means I have to be awake to pack and get going at 1:30 or so. I set my alarm for 1:15am. Ick!!
The flight is to arrive in Farmingdale, NY, at some cargo/military airport around 3pm (eastern time) or so. From there, Monk and Rocco will be trucked to Gladstone (Monk going directly to the show grounds, Rocco going to a nearby farm for a few days). ETA for arrival at Gladstone is around 5, depending on traffic, which can be hideous on Long Island.
I had a last minute panic about food, I realized that this is a charter flight for horses, not a commercial flight for people, so I figured they probably wouldn't have any kind of food or beverage service on the plane. Combine that with the two trucking trips (somehow I think they won't stop at Subway for me), and I ran to Albertson's this evening and picked up a bunch of snacks and a couple bottles of water.
I also proceeded to panic about hay, as I don't know if they'll provide hay on the trucks and plane or if I should. Or if Monk will like the hay they have. I am bringing one of my bales of pressed alfalfa (it fit very neatly into one of my rubbermaid containers), so at least I'll have some of that for him. Alfalfa is evidently hard to come by in New Jersey. I'll probably end up bringing some of my grass hay in the morning for him. Although he probably won't eat that either.
He's still a little dehydrated, so I'm worried about what he's going to look like when he gets to Gladstone. I did give him a senior/beet pulp mash this afternoon/evening, which he ate pretty well, but I can't make it very watery or he won't eat it at all. He's very picky about that.
The flight leaves tomorrow at 5am, which means we have to be at the airport in Ontario with horses at 3:30am. Which means Hubbard horse transport is going to be at W Farms to pick up Monk and Rocco (the horse Erin is riding) at 2:30am. Which means I have to be awake to pack and get going at 1:30 or so. I set my alarm for 1:15am. Ick!!
The flight is to arrive in Farmingdale, NY, at some cargo/military airport around 3pm (eastern time) or so. From there, Monk and Rocco will be trucked to Gladstone (Monk going directly to the show grounds, Rocco going to a nearby farm for a few days). ETA for arrival at Gladstone is around 5, depending on traffic, which can be hideous on Long Island.
I had a last minute panic about food, I realized that this is a charter flight for horses, not a commercial flight for people, so I figured they probably wouldn't have any kind of food or beverage service on the plane. Combine that with the two trucking trips (somehow I think they won't stop at Subway for me), and I ran to Albertson's this evening and picked up a bunch of snacks and a couple bottles of water.
I also proceeded to panic about hay, as I don't know if they'll provide hay on the trucks and plane or if I should. Or if Monk will like the hay they have. I am bringing one of my bales of pressed alfalfa (it fit very neatly into one of my rubbermaid containers), so at least I'll have some of that for him. Alfalfa is evidently hard to come by in New Jersey. I'll probably end up bringing some of my grass hay in the morning for him. Although he probably won't eat that either.
He's still a little dehydrated, so I'm worried about what he's going to look like when he gets to Gladstone. I did give him a senior/beet pulp mash this afternoon/evening, which he ate pretty well, but I can't make it very watery or he won't eat it at all. He's very picky about that.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Rest day in Chino Hills
Today was a nice rest day here in Chino Hills for all of us. After yesterday a rest day or two is necessary! We slept very well, of course after a 15-16 hour drive you generally sleep pretty well. Normally I feel like I have a major hangover after such a long drive, but thankfully not so much this time.
We took Monk out a couple of times during the day and hand-walked him around to stretch his legs and get him moving. He looked good, pretty settled in and not too anxious. He is a little dehydrated, which is unsurprising given the long drive and hot temperatures yesterday. He's eating hay and his grain pretty well (although he didn't eat much of his beet pulp). Tomorrow I think I will ride him lightly in the morning to get him out and stretch his legs. I will probably also give him a mash of equine senior to try and get some more water into him. He's a little finicky about what he'll eat (can't put too much water in it or he won't touch it), so I have to find the magic mixture of enough senior with enough additional water.
We spent some time this morning watching the training sessions with David and Alisa Wilson at W Farms, which were very nice to watch. Good riding and nice horses! Additionally I met up with a horse I've known from years ago at Sonnenberg Farm, the Dutch mare Sarrington whom Brooke Voldbaek showed for several years. She's currently boarding at W Farms with her amateur owner. It was fun to see a horse from the past; I'm continually amazed at how small the horse world is.
We spent the early afternoon relaxing at the hotel, then ran a few errands later in the day. At this point it looks like Lana is flying separate from me and the horses (unfortunately), so I will drive her to LAX tomorrow evening so she can catch an early flight on Wednesday from LAX to Newark. I also have a call into Hubbard Horse Transport to figure out the situation for Wednesday morning...would be nice to know when the truck is going to be at W Farms?? I know they're coming to pick up Erin's horse Rocco, and I know we have to be at the Ontario Airport with horses at 3:30am...
This whole adventure has been a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of deal, and continues to be one. We shall see what tomorrow brings!
We took Monk out a couple of times during the day and hand-walked him around to stretch his legs and get him moving. He looked good, pretty settled in and not too anxious. He is a little dehydrated, which is unsurprising given the long drive and hot temperatures yesterday. He's eating hay and his grain pretty well (although he didn't eat much of his beet pulp). Tomorrow I think I will ride him lightly in the morning to get him out and stretch his legs. I will probably also give him a mash of equine senior to try and get some more water into him. He's a little finicky about what he'll eat (can't put too much water in it or he won't touch it), so I have to find the magic mixture of enough senior with enough additional water.
We spent some time this morning watching the training sessions with David and Alisa Wilson at W Farms, which were very nice to watch. Good riding and nice horses! Additionally I met up with a horse I've known from years ago at Sonnenberg Farm, the Dutch mare Sarrington whom Brooke Voldbaek showed for several years. She's currently boarding at W Farms with her amateur owner. It was fun to see a horse from the past; I'm continually amazed at how small the horse world is.
We spent the early afternoon relaxing at the hotel, then ran a few errands later in the day. At this point it looks like Lana is flying separate from me and the horses (unfortunately), so I will drive her to LAX tomorrow evening so she can catch an early flight on Wednesday from LAX to Newark. I also have a call into Hubbard Horse Transport to figure out the situation for Wednesday morning...would be nice to know when the truck is going to be at W Farms?? I know they're coming to pick up Erin's horse Rocco, and I know we have to be at the Ontario Airport with horses at 3:30am...
This whole adventure has been a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of deal, and continues to be one. We shall see what tomorrow brings!
Drive from Eagle, ID, to Chino Hills, CA...done! Check!
Yesterday Lana and I made the long and exhausting drive from Eagle, Idaho, to Chino Hills, California, in preparation for our flight from Ontario to the east coast (which leaves on Wednesday morning). We left the barn at right about 4 am (mountain time) on the nose and arrived at W Farms in Chino Hills at about 8:30pm (pacific time). That's a long day.
This time I took the route east to Twin Falls, Idaho, then dropped south through eastern Nevada (Wells, Ely, then down into Vegas). From there we went west on I-15 through the Mojave Desert and over the San Bernadino mountains, dropping down into the east side of the LA "area" (the sprawling metropolis that it is, with all of its huge suburbs).
The drive was long and HOT. I wasn't anticipating the heat to be as bad as it was, although I knew that Vegas was forecast to be over 100. Much of eastern Nevada was in the mid to upper 90s, and my truck clocked 108 when we were driving through Vegas! You could barely see the strip when we first started heading into Vegas because of the heavy smog and heat layer sitting over the city.
From Vegas the drive towards LA wasn't much better. The temperature was consistently above 103, sometimes 104 or 105. It is the Mojave Desert, afterall. Surprisingly, we ran into some traffic problems in the middle of the desert...who'd have thought you'd be out in the middle of nowhere in a long line of traffic??! It was Sunday evening, and all the partiers who went from the LA area to Vegas or so for the weekend were driving back home. We were going 5-10 mph at times, if you can believe that. The entire expansive desert, and this long line of cars creeping along at a snail's pace!
Of course I worry about my horse (and my truck) in that kind of heat, and kept trying to coax Monkey to drink some water everytime we stopped. He mostly kind of played in it and tried to throw it on me, so I was pretty unsuccessful. However it is not at all unusual for him to not drink on a long drive like this one; he pretty much never does. He did eat some hay and was generally very quiet the entire trip. That has improved a lot since he was younger, as he used to never eat anything and spend much of his time pawing.
Thankfully, the interior of the trailer stayed surprisingly cool. I stepped in it a couple times to get hay (I keep the hay in the first stall, which has a lower partition), and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it felt in there. Of course, he had the entire 5 horse trailer to himself, so there was alot of space, good airflow, and no additional heat being generated by other horses. My truck pulled like an absolute champ, even with the heavy trailer in that heat. It only had one horse to contend with, but still, that was a huge relief.
Now we layover at W Farms for a couple of days. I'm so thankful W Farms was able to accomodate Monk for a few days, it is such a relief that he has this time to rest from the long drive! The plane leaves from the nearby Ontario airport Wednesday morning bright and early at 5am. That means we have to be at the airport with horses at 3:30am. I told Lana we were going to be on east coast time before we even get there!!
This time I took the route east to Twin Falls, Idaho, then dropped south through eastern Nevada (Wells, Ely, then down into Vegas). From there we went west on I-15 through the Mojave Desert and over the San Bernadino mountains, dropping down into the east side of the LA "area" (the sprawling metropolis that it is, with all of its huge suburbs).
The drive was long and HOT. I wasn't anticipating the heat to be as bad as it was, although I knew that Vegas was forecast to be over 100. Much of eastern Nevada was in the mid to upper 90s, and my truck clocked 108 when we were driving through Vegas! You could barely see the strip when we first started heading into Vegas because of the heavy smog and heat layer sitting over the city.
From Vegas the drive towards LA wasn't much better. The temperature was consistently above 103, sometimes 104 or 105. It is the Mojave Desert, afterall. Surprisingly, we ran into some traffic problems in the middle of the desert...who'd have thought you'd be out in the middle of nowhere in a long line of traffic??! It was Sunday evening, and all the partiers who went from the LA area to Vegas or so for the weekend were driving back home. We were going 5-10 mph at times, if you can believe that. The entire expansive desert, and this long line of cars creeping along at a snail's pace!
Of course I worry about my horse (and my truck) in that kind of heat, and kept trying to coax Monkey to drink some water everytime we stopped. He mostly kind of played in it and tried to throw it on me, so I was pretty unsuccessful. However it is not at all unusual for him to not drink on a long drive like this one; he pretty much never does. He did eat some hay and was generally very quiet the entire trip. That has improved a lot since he was younger, as he used to never eat anything and spend much of his time pawing.
Thankfully, the interior of the trailer stayed surprisingly cool. I stepped in it a couple times to get hay (I keep the hay in the first stall, which has a lower partition), and was pleasantly surprised at how nice it felt in there. Of course, he had the entire 5 horse trailer to himself, so there was alot of space, good airflow, and no additional heat being generated by other horses. My truck pulled like an absolute champ, even with the heavy trailer in that heat. It only had one horse to contend with, but still, that was a huge relief.
Now we layover at W Farms for a couple of days. I'm so thankful W Farms was able to accomodate Monk for a few days, it is such a relief that he has this time to rest from the long drive! The plane leaves from the nearby Ontario airport Wednesday morning bright and early at 5am. That means we have to be at the airport with horses at 3:30am. I told Lana we were going to be on east coast time before we even get there!!
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Ready for leave for CA...
All packed and ready for the long drive to California tomorrow. I decided to do it in one fell swoop, 15 hours or so to Chino Hills (W Farms, who have so graciously agreed to house Monk for a couple days until the flight!). I thought about overnighting somewhere, but decided it would be better to just get there so we could rest for a couple days before the flight. It's not like I've never driven 15 hours before, it just sucks every time. We're planning on leaving the barn with horse at 4am, so hopefully arriving in Chino Hills around 8 or so.
I think we've got Lana's (my co-pilot/groom/substitute coach/substitute mom) flight arrangements worked out as well. It is still up the air as to whether she can go on the charter flight with Monk and I (still??? The flippin' flight leaves in four days!!), so she has made alternative flight arrangements which are cancellable within 3 days (full refund). We will hear from the agent Monday morning about whether she can go on the charter flight or not. So either way we can get Lana there...just having to jump through a few hoops to do so.
I ran through my freestyle one last time this AM with Ernie. Monk has been going fantastic, he's probably happy to be on the reduced stress program (focusing on the PSG/I-1 rather than the GP work). I ran through the PSG a couple of times earlier this week, as that is always our weakest test. We like to showcase our one-time changes in that test (although they aren't required!!). I feel very comfortable with the I-1 and our I-1 freestyle.
One of my clients ran into me this afternoon at Albertson's when I was buying a few last-minute necessities and beer. I wasn't there just for the beer, but of course that is what she zeroed in on! She laughed and laughed again..."now you're ready for Gladstone!!!"
I think we've got Lana's (my co-pilot/groom/substitute coach/substitute mom) flight arrangements worked out as well. It is still up the air as to whether she can go on the charter flight with Monk and I (still??? The flippin' flight leaves in four days!!), so she has made alternative flight arrangements which are cancellable within 3 days (full refund). We will hear from the agent Monday morning about whether she can go on the charter flight or not. So either way we can get Lana there...just having to jump through a few hoops to do so.
I ran through my freestyle one last time this AM with Ernie. Monk has been going fantastic, he's probably happy to be on the reduced stress program (focusing on the PSG/I-1 rather than the GP work). I ran through the PSG a couple of times earlier this week, as that is always our weakest test. We like to showcase our one-time changes in that test (although they aren't required!!). I feel very comfortable with the I-1 and our I-1 freestyle.
One of my clients ran into me this afternoon at Albertson's when I was buying a few last-minute necessities and beer. I wasn't there just for the beer, but of course that is what she zeroed in on! She laughed and laughed again..."now you're ready for Gladstone!!!"
Friday, June 1, 2012
Transportation woes!!
Nothing like the challenge of putting together a trip for two people and one horse from Eagle, Idaho, to Gladstone, NJ, via Ontario, California. First challenge is finding out how others are getting to the show from the west coast...thanks to Erin Alberta for helping me with that! Second challenge is getting a spot on a charter flight that leaves from Ontario, California, with under a week's notice. Third challenge is getting the horse to the airport in Ontario, CA, from Idaho. Not many horse haulers willing or able to make the trip from Eagle to Ontario on such short notice. Decide to screw them all...I've driven to So Cal on numerous occasions so I'll do it myself!
Fourth challenge: getting two people to NJ. One person is fine to accompany the horse on the flight to the East coast, two people...not sure. Still not sure, according to the agent, although the flight leaves in 5 days and I leave to drive to So Cal in 2. So of course, we're looking at flying the other person on a commercial flight...oh yeah, how much is that going to cost on such short notice? Plus there are no flights out of Ontario, you have to go to LAX or one of the other commercial flight centers (since she's driving down with me). Add in additional driving time (heck, after 15 hours what's another hour???), plus the uncertainty of how it'll work on the other end. I arrive with horse in NY (charter flight arrives into Farmingdale, NY, or something like that), commercial flight with Lana arrives into Newark, NJ. Timing? Rental car? Aaack!!
Oh yeah, we haven't talked about the return flight yet. Not going there until we figure out how to get there. Oh, and did I mention when the flight leaves on June 6th? Yes, 5am. We have to be at the airport in Ontario with horse at 3:30am. I suppose I won't be sleeping anyway, so that will fit quite nicely into my insomnia pattern.
Today I rode outside in 95+% degree heat in a black jacket (not my show coat), just to get acclimated to it. Maybe tomorrow we'll turn on the industrial-sized sprinklers and I'll ride a test through that, to simulate the other NJ possibility, torrential downpours. Wait, is this supposed to be fun???
On the plus side, my FEI passports arrived today. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that after I decided, yes!! I'm going to do it!! I realized that I couldn't find Monk's FEI passport. Oops. After tearing apart my house, and then my horse trailer, I realized where I had left them...at the last CDI I attended. So I call up show secretary extraordinare Connie Davenport and *thank god* discover that she's had it (them, I left all 3) all along. Connie agrees to overnight them to me, and thankfully they arrive at my house today. Did I mention I leave for So Cal on Sunday???
Fourth challenge: getting two people to NJ. One person is fine to accompany the horse on the flight to the East coast, two people...not sure. Still not sure, according to the agent, although the flight leaves in 5 days and I leave to drive to So Cal in 2. So of course, we're looking at flying the other person on a commercial flight...oh yeah, how much is that going to cost on such short notice? Plus there are no flights out of Ontario, you have to go to LAX or one of the other commercial flight centers (since she's driving down with me). Add in additional driving time (heck, after 15 hours what's another hour???), plus the uncertainty of how it'll work on the other end. I arrive with horse in NY (charter flight arrives into Farmingdale, NY, or something like that), commercial flight with Lana arrives into Newark, NJ. Timing? Rental car? Aaack!!
Oh yeah, we haven't talked about the return flight yet. Not going there until we figure out how to get there. Oh, and did I mention when the flight leaves on June 6th? Yes, 5am. We have to be at the airport in Ontario with horse at 3:30am. I suppose I won't be sleeping anyway, so that will fit quite nicely into my insomnia pattern.
Today I rode outside in 95+% degree heat in a black jacket (not my show coat), just to get acclimated to it. Maybe tomorrow we'll turn on the industrial-sized sprinklers and I'll ride a test through that, to simulate the other NJ possibility, torrential downpours. Wait, is this supposed to be fun???
On the plus side, my FEI passports arrived today. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that after I decided, yes!! I'm going to do it!! I realized that I couldn't find Monk's FEI passport. Oops. After tearing apart my house, and then my horse trailer, I realized where I had left them...at the last CDI I attended. So I call up show secretary extraordinare Connie Davenport and *thank god* discover that she's had it (them, I left all 3) all along. Connie agrees to overnight them to me, and thankfully they arrive at my house today. Did I mention I leave for So Cal on Sunday???
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Invited to Gladstone, NJ, for Festival of Champions
Monkey (aka Escorial) and I have been officially invited to the Festival of Champions for I-1 in Gladstone, NJ. Aaaack!!! I wasn't expecting to even come close this year, as I felt my CDI scores just weren't strong enough. But they held (I think in part because the focus is on the Grand Prix and the Olympic Games, so the competition for the PSG/I-1 wasn't as intense as it can be). I just eeeked in, initially as an alternate but then I was given the invite. Exciting, and terrifying as well; the competition is in less than 3 weeks and entries are due on Friday (I received the invite yesterday, Tuesday). Yikes!!!
Erin Alberta, a para dressage rider from Seattle, has been immensely helpful in sorting out the transportation issue. It is one thing to get invited to such a prestigious event, and another thing to figure out how to get (you and your horse and your stuff) there! I still haven't sorted that out yet, but hopefully (or necessarily??) will have that done in the next day or so.
Attending Gladstone has been a big goal of mine for a long time, and it's hard to believe its actually happening. Initially I was inclined to skip it this year, but opportunities like this don't come around very often. Like Lana said, "Heather, this is what you've been trying to do for so long! And you actually did it!!"
Erin Alberta, a para dressage rider from Seattle, has been immensely helpful in sorting out the transportation issue. It is one thing to get invited to such a prestigious event, and another thing to figure out how to get (you and your horse and your stuff) there! I still haven't sorted that out yet, but hopefully (or necessarily??) will have that done in the next day or so.
Attending Gladstone has been a big goal of mine for a long time, and it's hard to believe its actually happening. Initially I was inclined to skip it this year, but opportunities like this don't come around very often. Like Lana said, "Heather, this is what you've been trying to do for so long! And you actually did it!!"
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
2012 Idaho Dressage Festival a huge success!!
Last weekend's Idaho Dressage Festival was a huge success for my clients and my horses. I was thrilled with everyone, they have all improved so much from last year and were able to showcase their improvement at the show. I broke my personal record for number of tests ridden in two show days with 14...8 rides on Saturday and 6 on Sunday. Whew! Here is a brief summary of the results:
- FiveStar HW (owned by Cynthia McKim, ridden by Heather): 75.6% Training level test 3 (including a 9 on gaits) and 7.6 in first FEI 4 year old test (including an 8.0 on the trot) on day one, 7.3 in the second 4 yr.old test and 73.2% Training level test 3 on day two
- Quite a Star (owned by Michelle Surkamer, ridden by Heather): 66% Training level test 3, 68+% Training level test 2, 64% Training level test 3
- Victor (owned and ridden by Heather Oleson): 69+% in both the Intermediare I and Prix St. Georges
- Bolero (owned by ZoeAnne Arrington, ridden by Heather): 73+% in First level tests 2 and 3 on day one, including 8s on gaits and 8.5 on rider position/seat, 65+% on day two in First level test 3
- Charismatique (owned by ZoeAnne Arrington, ridden by Heather): 69.5% in Developing Horse Prix St. Georges (including a 71+% from one judge) and 66% in Intermediare I
- Beth Harris and Samorano: 61 and 63 in Fourth level tests 1 and 2 on day one, 62 in Fourth 2 on day two
- Paige Haas and Donegal McSweeney: 58 in Fourth 1 on day one, 62 in Fourth 2 on day two
- Barbara Sparks and Wolcott: 62 and 64 in Second level tests 2 and 3 on day one, 58 in Second 3 on day two
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Conrad Schumacher clinic notes, April 2012
Here are some notes I took from last weekend's Conrad Schumacher clinic in Longbranch, WA:
We do not work dressage, we play dressage.
Don't pull the arm back--turn the wrists back and give.
Swing with the hips to the hands to the ears.
Collection means power, power on the place
Exercise for refining canter collection: canter-walk-canter transitions on 20 meter circle. Start with 5 strides walk and 10 strides canter, then 4 strides walk and 8 strides canter, then 3 strides walk and 6 strides canter, then 2 walk and 4 canter
A good dressage rider must have "feel" memory or "body awareness" memory
"Take him back and give" or "Turn the wrists back and give"
Ride serpentines with an "s" curve rather than straight across the centerline, helps to get a hold of the horse by working him from inside to outside
Outside hand must give in the turn if the inside rein takes, outside hand must allow
The horse must be open in the body
Outside leg must be back and on--this is particularly important for getting the horse round
In canter pirouettes, inside leg doesn't do much, just stays down, outside leg rides like in half pass. Inside rein leads along the path of travel, outside rein is soft. Give the inside rein to get out of the pirouette
When you allow, the horses can move. When you "try to ride", you block the horse. "Stop riding and start allowing"
We control the young horses with transitions not with the reins
Everything to form the horse comes from: 1) transitions 2) turn on the forehand (basis for lateral work) 3) reinback (basis for collection)
We do not work dressage, we play dressage.
Don't pull the arm back--turn the wrists back and give.
Swing with the hips to the hands to the ears.
Collection means power, power on the place
Exercise for refining canter collection: canter-walk-canter transitions on 20 meter circle. Start with 5 strides walk and 10 strides canter, then 4 strides walk and 8 strides canter, then 3 strides walk and 6 strides canter, then 2 walk and 4 canter
A good dressage rider must have "feel" memory or "body awareness" memory
"Take him back and give" or "Turn the wrists back and give"
Ride serpentines with an "s" curve rather than straight across the centerline, helps to get a hold of the horse by working him from inside to outside
Outside hand must give in the turn if the inside rein takes, outside hand must allow
The horse must be open in the body
Outside leg must be back and on--this is particularly important for getting the horse round
In canter pirouettes, inside leg doesn't do much, just stays down, outside leg rides like in half pass. Inside rein leads along the path of travel, outside rein is soft. Give the inside rein to get out of the pirouette
When you allow, the horses can move. When you "try to ride", you block the horse. "Stop riding and start allowing"
We control the young horses with transitions not with the reins
Everything to form the horse comes from: 1) transitions 2) turn on the forehand (basis for lateral work) 3) reinback (basis for collection)
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Overview of CDI Rancho Murieta
I'm back home, after a relatively easy drive from the Sacramento area on Easter Sunday. The weather agreed with us, it was probably 60+ degrees the entire way (including over Donner Pass, at 7200+ elevation!). I was relieved to be home, particularly since the weather was actually quite nice when we got home (7o degrees or so).
Overall, the show at Rancho Murieta went quite well. Majek was absolutely consistent, 63-64 percent each time out. He was probably the most solid of the 3 horses over the two weeks, coming out consistently every time. Monkey was a little disappointing in Murieta; although he scored the highest of the three he wasn't really on his game like he was in San Juan. At home we've been able to get him much more uphill and engaged, and I just was unable to get that feeling in Rancho. He scored very well, and placed 3rd in both the PSG and I-1, but I wasn't really thrilled with how his tests went.
Victor went very well in the PSG at Rancho (even though I bungled the first canter pirouette), and ended up with a 64+ % to tie for 5th. I unfortunately overrode him a little for the Intermediare I. He was super powered up in the trot work, but was a little too difficult in the reins and that caused problems in the canter work. So we had some mistakes and ended up with a 60%. It was kind of too bad, although I didn't get one comment on his hind legs from any of the judges, which was great!
The next shows are local, we have a schooling show here the first week in May, which I'll probably ride young horses at. The next big recognized show is the third week in May. That's going to be a busy one!
Overall, the show at Rancho Murieta went quite well. Majek was absolutely consistent, 63-64 percent each time out. He was probably the most solid of the 3 horses over the two weeks, coming out consistently every time. Monkey was a little disappointing in Murieta; although he scored the highest of the three he wasn't really on his game like he was in San Juan. At home we've been able to get him much more uphill and engaged, and I just was unable to get that feeling in Rancho. He scored very well, and placed 3rd in both the PSG and I-1, but I wasn't really thrilled with how his tests went.
Victor went very well in the PSG at Rancho (even though I bungled the first canter pirouette), and ended up with a 64+ % to tie for 5th. I unfortunately overrode him a little for the Intermediare I. He was super powered up in the trot work, but was a little too difficult in the reins and that caused problems in the canter work. So we had some mistakes and ended up with a 60%. It was kind of too bad, although I didn't get one comment on his hind legs from any of the judges, which was great!
The next shows are local, we have a schooling show here the first week in May, which I'll probably ride young horses at. The next big recognized show is the third week in May. That's going to be a busy one!
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Last day at Festival of the Horse
Today was the last show day at the CDI San Juan Capistrano. Many of the dressage riders have already left; in particular the CDI riders mostly only show Friday and Saturday (those are the days of the qualifying classes). The CDI freestyles were quite small today, with only three horses in the Intermediare I freestyle.
Monk warmed up much more energetic and active today than yesterday. It had rained quite a bit last night, the stalls were quite wet right in front of the doors and there was water and mud everywhere. As a result, the warm-up was also a bit muddy. But Monk was undeterred. The test itself went quite well: very active, no mistakes, and pretty well coordinated with the music. I scored 68.58 percent, with one judge scoring me over 70. We placed 2nd out of the 3 horses entered in the class, so I got a ribbon for the first time this weekend!
The other two had the day off, they just got hand-walked or lightly lunged. It was super busy around the stabling area with a bunch of people leaving, so it wasn't very conducive to handwalking.
The weather was much better today than yesterday, the sun was out most of the day. I hate coming to Southern California and having cloudy skies and rain. Ick! Tomorrow Mom and I drive to the next show in Rancho Murieta, outside of Sacramento. Evidently it has been raining quite a bit up in that area, so hopefully the weather will start to clear up for our show next weekend. We got most everything packed up and are pretty much ready to leave tomorrow. We'll probably be leaving around 8:30 in an attempt to avoid LA traffic.
Internet access can be more difficult for me in Rancho Murieta, I will do what I can to continue updating my blog.
Monk warmed up much more energetic and active today than yesterday. It had rained quite a bit last night, the stalls were quite wet right in front of the doors and there was water and mud everywhere. As a result, the warm-up was also a bit muddy. But Monk was undeterred. The test itself went quite well: very active, no mistakes, and pretty well coordinated with the music. I scored 68.58 percent, with one judge scoring me over 70. We placed 2nd out of the 3 horses entered in the class, so I got a ribbon for the first time this weekend!
The other two had the day off, they just got hand-walked or lightly lunged. It was super busy around the stabling area with a bunch of people leaving, so it wasn't very conducive to handwalking.
The weather was much better today than yesterday, the sun was out most of the day. I hate coming to Southern California and having cloudy skies and rain. Ick! Tomorrow Mom and I drive to the next show in Rancho Murieta, outside of Sacramento. Evidently it has been raining quite a bit up in that area, so hopefully the weather will start to clear up for our show next weekend. We got most everything packed up and are pretty much ready to leave tomorrow. We'll probably be leaving around 8:30 in an attempt to avoid LA traffic.
Internet access can be more difficult for me in Rancho Murieta, I will do what I can to continue updating my blog.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
CDI Intermediare I at San Juan Capistrano
I had another early day today, Victor drew the first ride in the Intermediare I at 8am. It was very overcast and misty at the show grounds all morning, and kept threatening to rain. Not exactly Southern California weather.
Yesterday the judges had been critical of Victor's lack of suppleness and bracing throughout the test, so I decided to warm him up a bit deeper to make sure he gave a little more in his back. He warmed up very well although I had to be a little tougher on him to get him better through. His test went very well and he scored 65.395. For his first I-1 I was thrilled! He ended up 7th in the I-1, just outside of the ribbons.
Monkey was next. In the warm-up he felt a little flat in the trot but the canter was really super. I tried to get him a little more up and active in the trot, but I wasn't very successful. The test itself was accurate and solid, but he didn't feel quite as inspired and uphill as he was in the PSG. He scored 65.132.
Majek rounded out the class. He felt much, much better in the warm-up. More active and uphill and much more accepting of the connection with the double bridle. The pirouettes weren't very good in the warm-up, I did what I could to get them a bit better on the aids. The changes were super though. The test itself went fairly well, I bungled the left pirouette but the changes were all quite good. Some of the trot work generally lacks lateral suppleness, so we lost marks there as well. All in all I was happy with how it rode, and again, it was his first Intermediare I in competition. He scored 62.412.
David Blake won the class again on Royal Prinz, scoring above 70%, Steffen and Sundance were 2nd with 68, and Mette Rosencranz was third with 67. The next 6 or so horses were all in the 65 to 67 range, so Victor and Monk were right up there in the pack. A very good result for the day! Victor and Majek are done for this show. Monkey has the I-1 freestyle tomorrow. The sun finally came out over here!
Yesterday the judges had been critical of Victor's lack of suppleness and bracing throughout the test, so I decided to warm him up a bit deeper to make sure he gave a little more in his back. He warmed up very well although I had to be a little tougher on him to get him better through. His test went very well and he scored 65.395. For his first I-1 I was thrilled! He ended up 7th in the I-1, just outside of the ribbons.
Monkey was next. In the warm-up he felt a little flat in the trot but the canter was really super. I tried to get him a little more up and active in the trot, but I wasn't very successful. The test itself was accurate and solid, but he didn't feel quite as inspired and uphill as he was in the PSG. He scored 65.132.
Majek rounded out the class. He felt much, much better in the warm-up. More active and uphill and much more accepting of the connection with the double bridle. The pirouettes weren't very good in the warm-up, I did what I could to get them a bit better on the aids. The changes were super though. The test itself went fairly well, I bungled the left pirouette but the changes were all quite good. Some of the trot work generally lacks lateral suppleness, so we lost marks there as well. All in all I was happy with how it rode, and again, it was his first Intermediare I in competition. He scored 62.412.
David Blake won the class again on Royal Prinz, scoring above 70%, Steffen and Sundance were 2nd with 68, and Mette Rosencranz was third with 67. The next 6 or so horses were all in the 65 to 67 range, so Victor and Monk were right up there in the pack. A very good result for the day! Victor and Majek are done for this show. Monkey has the I-1 freestyle tomorrow. The sun finally came out over here!
Friday, March 30, 2012
CDI PSG at San Juan Capistrano
The CDI PSG today took up much of the morning, it started at 8am and finished around 11am. I had all three in the class, so it was a bit of a marathon but then all over before lunchtime!
First to go was Majek, who went surprisingly well despite having to deal with the double bridle. Our tactic to surprise him today with the double (I've ridden him on snaffle for the past 2 weeks) worked, he was pretty good on it and relatively ridable. I had a nice test, it had some issues but I was very happy with how it rode relative to how he's been going on the double recently. On the double he tends to back off more and not want to take the connection. As a result, I had to ride a little conservatively. We ended up with a 62.8%.
Monkey was next. I was very happy with how he warmed up, much more active and uphill today without all the extra tension from yesterday. The test was equally good, and I felt like I could ride close to full power at the trot. He threw in a couple of one-time changes in the threes again, that has always been a problem in the PSG. But he was so much more solidly uphill, active, and on the aids, everything else felt absolutely solid. I was very happy with the test! I expected to be able to break 67 or 68 percent, but was disappointed to see I had only scored a 64.2. Grrrr. That's dressage shows for you.
I finished with Victor. He was really super in the warm-up, I got him much more consistently uphill and active throughout the work. The pirouettes are still a little dicey, he can easily drop behind the leg, so I ride them conservatively as a result. The trot work in my test was very good, with a few little bobbles, but he got a little bracing in the canter work. I was able to ride relatively clean, but it wasn't as fluid and supple as I would like. He ended with a disappointing 61.5% today.
The winning ride was David Blake and the Oldenburg stallion Royal Prinz, with 69 percent. The next two placings were 68%, so the scores weren't super high anyway.
I went and watched the CDI Grand Prix later in the day, which was won by an absolutely amazing ride by Steffen Peters and his new mount Legolas. The horse is unbelievable and Steffen rides him so well. I think they scored 75% or something insane like that. Guenter also had a very nice ride on Fandango, scoring close to 70%. He had a few unfortunate mistakes in the changes, but the horse was beautifully uphill and cadenced in the rhythm throughout. I think Ralfalca and Jan Ebeling were 2nd; they also had a beautiful ride.
The Intermediare I is tomorrow, both Majek and Victor will be doing their first Intermediare I in competition. My goal is to put out a relatively workable and harmonious test on those guys. I'm hoping to bring Monkey's score up a bit tomorrow a few percent. I have a few ideas to improve my warm-ups for tomorrow. On to the next show day!
First to go was Majek, who went surprisingly well despite having to deal with the double bridle. Our tactic to surprise him today with the double (I've ridden him on snaffle for the past 2 weeks) worked, he was pretty good on it and relatively ridable. I had a nice test, it had some issues but I was very happy with how it rode relative to how he's been going on the double recently. On the double he tends to back off more and not want to take the connection. As a result, I had to ride a little conservatively. We ended up with a 62.8%.
Monkey was next. I was very happy with how he warmed up, much more active and uphill today without all the extra tension from yesterday. The test was equally good, and I felt like I could ride close to full power at the trot. He threw in a couple of one-time changes in the threes again, that has always been a problem in the PSG. But he was so much more solidly uphill, active, and on the aids, everything else felt absolutely solid. I was very happy with the test! I expected to be able to break 67 or 68 percent, but was disappointed to see I had only scored a 64.2. Grrrr. That's dressage shows for you.
I finished with Victor. He was really super in the warm-up, I got him much more consistently uphill and active throughout the work. The pirouettes are still a little dicey, he can easily drop behind the leg, so I ride them conservatively as a result. The trot work in my test was very good, with a few little bobbles, but he got a little bracing in the canter work. I was able to ride relatively clean, but it wasn't as fluid and supple as I would like. He ended with a disappointing 61.5% today.
The winning ride was David Blake and the Oldenburg stallion Royal Prinz, with 69 percent. The next two placings were 68%, so the scores weren't super high anyway.
I went and watched the CDI Grand Prix later in the day, which was won by an absolutely amazing ride by Steffen Peters and his new mount Legolas. The horse is unbelievable and Steffen rides him so well. I think they scored 75% or something insane like that. Guenter also had a very nice ride on Fandango, scoring close to 70%. He had a few unfortunate mistakes in the changes, but the horse was beautifully uphill and cadenced in the rhythm throughout. I think Ralfalca and Jan Ebeling were 2nd; they also had a beautiful ride.
The Intermediare I is tomorrow, both Majek and Victor will be doing their first Intermediare I in competition. My goal is to put out a relatively workable and harmonious test on those guys. I'm hoping to bring Monkey's score up a bit tomorrow a few percent. I have a few ideas to improve my warm-ups for tomorrow. On to the next show day!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
FEI jog and Vet inspection
I had a very good day today with the horses, everyone went very well in warm-up in the morning. We had to get started early because we had the vet inspection at the barns and the FEI jog at 3:30 in the afternoon. All three horses needed to get out and get ridden, then braided and cleaned up for the jog.
Monkey was first to go; I was on him around 8am. We still had a marine layer over San Juan, so it was a little cooler than it had been yesterday. He was very energetic and kind of spooky today. Everything worked well, the trot was good, the canter work was pretty solid (except he threw in a few ones in the tempis). However, he did get weirdly nervous in the CDI warm-up arena for some reason--he behaved, but felt very tense and worried. He calmed down somewhat after we finished.
I rode Victor next, he was fantastic. Super energetic and uphill, we worked on getting him a bit slower and more uphill in the canter in the mediums, then worked on getting the changes a little more through the back and less bracing. The trot work was super.
Majek was also very good, much more supple in his body today and very solid in the canter work. Changes were much better than yesterday and the pirouettes were quite good. We kept him on snaffle today (although I rode the other two on the double). He's been a bit difficult on the double the past month, initially I just rode him on it expecting him to get used to it. That didn't work, in fact he got worse, so the new tactic is to ride him on snaffle so he's confident then pull a last-minute-switch on him before the CDI. We'll see how that works.
Monkey and Victor passed the jog with no problem, but the judges made me re-jog Majek. I could by their expressions that they didn't like how he trotted; boy did I start getting nervous! At FEI competitions the jog can be a deal-breaker--if the judges think your horse is off at all, you can be excused and unable to participate in the show. The first time I trotted him he was super quiet and slow and wandering, the second time I made him go forward more. Thankfully in the end they passed him. Whew! One bullet dodged.
Monkey was first to go; I was on him around 8am. We still had a marine layer over San Juan, so it was a little cooler than it had been yesterday. He was very energetic and kind of spooky today. Everything worked well, the trot was good, the canter work was pretty solid (except he threw in a few ones in the tempis). However, he did get weirdly nervous in the CDI warm-up arena for some reason--he behaved, but felt very tense and worried. He calmed down somewhat after we finished.
I rode Victor next, he was fantastic. Super energetic and uphill, we worked on getting him a bit slower and more uphill in the canter in the mediums, then worked on getting the changes a little more through the back and less bracing. The trot work was super.
Majek was also very good, much more supple in his body today and very solid in the canter work. Changes were much better than yesterday and the pirouettes were quite good. We kept him on snaffle today (although I rode the other two on the double). He's been a bit difficult on the double the past month, initially I just rode him on it expecting him to get used to it. That didn't work, in fact he got worse, so the new tactic is to ride him on snaffle so he's confident then pull a last-minute-switch on him before the CDI. We'll see how that works.
Monkey and Victor passed the jog with no problem, but the judges made me re-jog Majek. I could by their expressions that they didn't like how he trotted; boy did I start getting nervous! At FEI competitions the jog can be a deal-breaker--if the judges think your horse is off at all, you can be excused and unable to participate in the show. The first time I trotted him he was super quiet and slow and wandering, the second time I made him go forward more. Thankfully in the end they passed him. Whew! One bullet dodged.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Wednesday in San Juan
Today was another lazy day for me here in San Juan Capistrano with the boys. Most of the dressage riders arrived today, creating a bit of chaos in the barn area. Everything in the stabling area is pretty packed in, so it doesn't take much additional activity to create a major traffic jam. Not that this feature is unlike the rest of Southern California. Mayhem and traffic jams go with the territory down here.
The CDI arena was all set up today, complete with flags all along the "C" end, little potted trees (that kept falling over in the breeze), little plastic plants around the letters, and a row of tables (with flapping tablecloths) along one long side. San Juan has a perpetual breeze, so we seem to have quite a few scary flapping objects at any one time. All three of my guys were great, they all seemed very much at home in the arena. Other CDI horses weren't so settled, in fact, one rider got off their horse because he was being so unruly.
It is quite a trek from our stalls to the dressage competition arena. I clocked it today using the stopwatch on my phone; it is about 6 and a half minutes one-way on horseback. Quite the walk! Not only is it long, but it also goes directly by the lunging area, so you have to walk by a bunch of nutty, leaping horses as well on the way. I'm definitely going to be putting that into my warm-up time.
Tomorrow is the in-barn inspection and the FEI jog. It'll be a busy day, between getting everyone out and ridden in the am, braiding, getting the FEI vet to look at my passports, getting the horses prepped for the jog, etc. Ernie got in tonight just fine. It will be nice to have one more person to help.
The CDI arena was all set up today, complete with flags all along the "C" end, little potted trees (that kept falling over in the breeze), little plastic plants around the letters, and a row of tables (with flapping tablecloths) along one long side. San Juan has a perpetual breeze, so we seem to have quite a few scary flapping objects at any one time. All three of my guys were great, they all seemed very much at home in the arena. Other CDI horses weren't so settled, in fact, one rider got off their horse because he was being so unruly.
It is quite a trek from our stalls to the dressage competition arena. I clocked it today using the stopwatch on my phone; it is about 6 and a half minutes one-way on horseback. Quite the walk! Not only is it long, but it also goes directly by the lunging area, so you have to walk by a bunch of nutty, leaping horses as well on the way. I'm definitely going to be putting that into my warm-up time.
Tomorrow is the in-barn inspection and the FEI jog. It'll be a busy day, between getting everyone out and ridden in the am, braiding, getting the FEI vet to look at my passports, getting the horses prepped for the jog, etc. Ernie got in tonight just fine. It will be nice to have one more person to help.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
First riding day at San Juan
Today was our first full day in San Juan Capistrano; it was sooo nice to be able to sleep in a little bit and not have to drive for half a day or more! I thankfully slept very well (aside from Mom waking me with her snoring at 2am). My back felt much, much better today as well.
The show grounds here at the Rancho Mission Viejo Riding Park are huge. I haven't counted the number of show arenas and warm-ups, but I'm sure the number is more than 10 between the hunter/jumper and dressage shows. The grounds are beautifully manicured, and much of the hunter/jumper portion is being held on turf. The CDI arena for the dressage show was being set up today as well, luckily for me they also set up a bunch of brightly colored flags along the back side of the "C" end behind the judges' stands. Good for added impulsion (particularly since it is perpetually breezy here).
There must be 20 separate barns, some permanent, others portable (we're in the portable stalls). When we first got here yesterday, the stalls were total mud from the nasty little rainstorm that had come through the night before. Having no other options, we laid down the shavings and put the horses up, thinking we would probably have to totally redo them today. I was surprised at how well they held up!
The trek from the show office to the dressage arenas to the stalls rivals my trip from the barn at home to the local Starbucks! I got my golf cart today, and am proceeding to get entirely too comfortable zipping around in it amongst horse trailers, other golf carts, pedestrians, small dogs, trees, and various other obstacles. If you've heard of the infamous Thermal golf cart incident, you know I can be very dangerous with a golf cart.
I rode all three horses today, starting with Majek who was the most tense and goofy of the three (not unsurprisingly). To his credit, he had to deal with the most hectic environment; about the time I got him in one of the arenas a host of jumper riders decided to join me. Majek was already wanting to leap around and that only made him more wound up. Mom said he looked fantastic, he felt like a bomb waiting to go off!
Next was Monkey, who was quite good. We winnied quite a bit during the ride, which is totally unsurprising given how much he winnies at shows anyway. He hates to be away from his buddies. Luckily his whining doesn't destract him too much from his job. In fact, the added energy tends to help him to be more uphill, active, and expressive.
Finally Victor. He was a bit wound up but generally well behaved. We did have a few spooks and goofy moments when someone would walk out of a trailer that was parked next to the arena or someone's horse would jump around behind the bushes. Otherwise he was very "boingy" (someone watching him commented on how springy he was).
In general everyone settled in very well. Thankfully tomorrow I'm having a glass guy come out to the show grounds and fix the window in my truck!! Tomorrow is one more "lazy" day here; Thursday is the vet inspection and FEI jog, then the CDI competition starts on Friday. Looking forward to it!
The show grounds here at the Rancho Mission Viejo Riding Park are huge. I haven't counted the number of show arenas and warm-ups, but I'm sure the number is more than 10 between the hunter/jumper and dressage shows. The grounds are beautifully manicured, and much of the hunter/jumper portion is being held on turf. The CDI arena for the dressage show was being set up today as well, luckily for me they also set up a bunch of brightly colored flags along the back side of the "C" end behind the judges' stands. Good for added impulsion (particularly since it is perpetually breezy here).
There must be 20 separate barns, some permanent, others portable (we're in the portable stalls). When we first got here yesterday, the stalls were total mud from the nasty little rainstorm that had come through the night before. Having no other options, we laid down the shavings and put the horses up, thinking we would probably have to totally redo them today. I was surprised at how well they held up!
The trek from the show office to the dressage arenas to the stalls rivals my trip from the barn at home to the local Starbucks! I got my golf cart today, and am proceeding to get entirely too comfortable zipping around in it amongst horse trailers, other golf carts, pedestrians, small dogs, trees, and various other obstacles. If you've heard of the infamous Thermal golf cart incident, you know I can be very dangerous with a golf cart.
I rode all three horses today, starting with Majek who was the most tense and goofy of the three (not unsurprisingly). To his credit, he had to deal with the most hectic environment; about the time I got him in one of the arenas a host of jumper riders decided to join me. Majek was already wanting to leap around and that only made him more wound up. Mom said he looked fantastic, he felt like a bomb waiting to go off!
Next was Monkey, who was quite good. We winnied quite a bit during the ride, which is totally unsurprising given how much he winnies at shows anyway. He hates to be away from his buddies. Luckily his whining doesn't destract him too much from his job. In fact, the added energy tends to help him to be more uphill, active, and expressive.
Finally Victor. He was a bit wound up but generally well behaved. We did have a few spooks and goofy moments when someone would walk out of a trailer that was parked next to the arena or someone's horse would jump around behind the bushes. Otherwise he was very "boingy" (someone watching him commented on how springy he was).
In general everyone settled in very well. Thankfully tomorrow I'm having a glass guy come out to the show grounds and fix the window in my truck!! Tomorrow is one more "lazy" day here; Thursday is the vet inspection and FEI jog, then the CDI competition starts on Friday. Looking forward to it!
Monday, March 26, 2012
Trip to San Juan Capistrano complete!
This year I opted to split up my trip to the Festival of the Horse CDI in Southern California into two days. Normally the show has been held in Burbank, which is a good 15 hours from Boise. This year it was moved to San Juan Capistrano, a little bit further south and more west (through LA). The travel time wasn't significantly longer (only 16 to 16.5 hours) but enough that I decided to split it. Those last few hours on a super-long trip get exponentially worse; it is rather like the Richter scale that way (the difference between a 1.0 and 2.0 earthquake is much smaller than the difference between an 8.0 and 9.0).
So Leg #1 took place yesterday. Mom and I drove (actually, I drove) from Boise to Bishop, California, and overnighted at the Tri-County Fairgrounds, home of the Bishop "Mule Days". The facility was recommended by some eventer-friends of mine, the Culligans, who live right next door to Once Upon a Horse. Several event riders from the Boise area travel to a big event in Temecula, and regularly use Bishop as their overnight rest stop.
The first part of Leg #1 was beautiful, southwestern Idaho and northern Nevada were in the 60s with bright sunshine and clear skies. Ironically and irritatingly enough, the weather deteriorated as I traveled south; a fairly nasty spring storm came through Southern California just in time for our trip. It started with wind, the rain picked up, and eventually we started getting snow flurries as we climbed in elevation. We had a surprisingly high mountain pass to cross in western Nevada (elevation 7600 feet) which was getting pretty significant snow flurries that was even sticking to the ground. We got through just fine, although I'm always a little nervous when the snow starts sticking! It is a fairly desolate two lane highway, literally you can drive for an hour or more and not see a car or any evidence of civilization. Just lots of sagebrush.
We arrived in Bishop after about 11 hours. Ironically enough our eventer friends also happened to be overnighting the same evening on their way to Temecula. The Culligans came through the same route a couple of hours after us, and evidently the snow had gotten significantly worse. Kevin said it was near white-out conditions with visibility of only a few hundred feet. He white-knuckled it at 15 miles an hour. Nevada driving can become very scary in a quick hurry--it is not a nice feeling to be out in the middle of nowhere, not a soul or car for the past hour, no evidence of civilization, and snow coming down.
I destroyed the rear window in my truck that evening, trying to turn my trailer around in a very tight spot. The trailer is not easy to maneuver around; particularly on a rainy, dark evening after having driven for 11 hours (yes, it was raining in Bishop; we even got some hail). I was focusing too much on where I was putting the trailer and not enough on how close it was getting to my cab. Ooops. Mom and I spent the rest of the evening fashioning a make-shift window with plastic and duct tape (which does not stick to the outside of my truck, by the way).
Leg #2 of our trip took place today; we traveled from Bishop down here to San Juan Capistrano. It was a relatively short trip, only about 6 hours, but seemed quite a bit longer. I think it was partially because I'd driven 11 hours the day before and partially because much of it was through various (busy) suburbs of Los Angeles. The roads are also total crap, particularly in some of the more traffic-laden areas, so the truck and trailer are bouncing all over the place as we're careening down the freeway. We also had the plastic window making a boatload of noise, and no way to keep out all the extra road-noise! The plastic window held surprisingly well on the entire trip.
We found the facility, settled the horses in, and got ourselves settled into our hotel. I'm exhausted tonight and I'm sure Mom is too. It is very hard to maintain concentration for that long and not be totally worn out. My body isn't very happy about sitting in a truck for that long either. Here's hoping a couple of beers and a good night's sleep will help me be rested for tomorrow!
So Leg #1 took place yesterday. Mom and I drove (actually, I drove) from Boise to Bishop, California, and overnighted at the Tri-County Fairgrounds, home of the Bishop "Mule Days". The facility was recommended by some eventer-friends of mine, the Culligans, who live right next door to Once Upon a Horse. Several event riders from the Boise area travel to a big event in Temecula, and regularly use Bishop as their overnight rest stop.
The first part of Leg #1 was beautiful, southwestern Idaho and northern Nevada were in the 60s with bright sunshine and clear skies. Ironically and irritatingly enough, the weather deteriorated as I traveled south; a fairly nasty spring storm came through Southern California just in time for our trip. It started with wind, the rain picked up, and eventually we started getting snow flurries as we climbed in elevation. We had a surprisingly high mountain pass to cross in western Nevada (elevation 7600 feet) which was getting pretty significant snow flurries that was even sticking to the ground. We got through just fine, although I'm always a little nervous when the snow starts sticking! It is a fairly desolate two lane highway, literally you can drive for an hour or more and not see a car or any evidence of civilization. Just lots of sagebrush.
We arrived in Bishop after about 11 hours. Ironically enough our eventer friends also happened to be overnighting the same evening on their way to Temecula. The Culligans came through the same route a couple of hours after us, and evidently the snow had gotten significantly worse. Kevin said it was near white-out conditions with visibility of only a few hundred feet. He white-knuckled it at 15 miles an hour. Nevada driving can become very scary in a quick hurry--it is not a nice feeling to be out in the middle of nowhere, not a soul or car for the past hour, no evidence of civilization, and snow coming down.
I destroyed the rear window in my truck that evening, trying to turn my trailer around in a very tight spot. The trailer is not easy to maneuver around; particularly on a rainy, dark evening after having driven for 11 hours (yes, it was raining in Bishop; we even got some hail). I was focusing too much on where I was putting the trailer and not enough on how close it was getting to my cab. Ooops. Mom and I spent the rest of the evening fashioning a make-shift window with plastic and duct tape (which does not stick to the outside of my truck, by the way).
Leg #2 of our trip took place today; we traveled from Bishop down here to San Juan Capistrano. It was a relatively short trip, only about 6 hours, but seemed quite a bit longer. I think it was partially because I'd driven 11 hours the day before and partially because much of it was through various (busy) suburbs of Los Angeles. The roads are also total crap, particularly in some of the more traffic-laden areas, so the truck and trailer are bouncing all over the place as we're careening down the freeway. We also had the plastic window making a boatload of noise, and no way to keep out all the extra road-noise! The plastic window held surprisingly well on the entire trip.
We found the facility, settled the horses in, and got ourselves settled into our hotel. I'm exhausted tonight and I'm sure Mom is too. It is very hard to maintain concentration for that long and not be totally worn out. My body isn't very happy about sitting in a truck for that long either. Here's hoping a couple of beers and a good night's sleep will help me be rested for tomorrow!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Thursday update!
Getting closer to leaving! Rode Majek today on snaffle, the connection is so much easier and more confident than on the double. I think I'll try a couple of different doubles on him in the next few days and see if I can find something that works better. I'm starting to regret entering him in the CDI; the Intermediare I will be hard enough for us in the snaffle, much less adding the double to the mix (he's never done one in competition before). Oh well, we'll just have to make it work the best we can.
Victor was a super star yesterday; it was snowing sideways and windy, blowing into the indoor, which made him super fiesty and expressive. Pirouettes are getting better, trot was phenomenal. Victor (V-man, as he is affectionately known) has also never done an Intermediare I in competition.
Victor and Monkey had the day off today, mostly to try and save my body. My back and left hip have been on-again-off-again bothering me, so I've been trying to plan my rides to keep things as easy as possible on me physically. Every morning I do a series of stretches for my back and hips, which tend to get really tight and sore, that has been keeping me functional. The two of them were nutcases in turn-out today, which is generally a good sign...energy levels are high with lots of reserves!
I have quite a lot of volunteer help this year with tack cleaning, organizing, and packing for Friday/Saturday which sure is nice! Last year it was a one-woman job (namely me), and since my body hates me it will be a huge help. Thanks guys!
Ride times are out for Festival of the Horse; of course I'm the only one with three horses in the CDI PSG/I-1 (and the only one with multiple horses). Ride times will be determined by a draw the night before the actual competition, so I only know a general time-frame at this point. Both PSG and I-1 are between 8 and 11am on Friday and Saturday, respectively, which means time for afternoon naps and/or runs to California Adventure.
Mom gets in Saturday at 2:15pm. I'm planning on leaving early Sunday, although not super early, since I only have to drive to Bishop (11 hours). Weather is looking good, today it got up to 65 degrees and was very dry. I think that is supposed to hold through the rest of the week and weekend, which will be great for the drive.
Victor was a super star yesterday; it was snowing sideways and windy, blowing into the indoor, which made him super fiesty and expressive. Pirouettes are getting better, trot was phenomenal. Victor (V-man, as he is affectionately known) has also never done an Intermediare I in competition.
Victor and Monkey had the day off today, mostly to try and save my body. My back and left hip have been on-again-off-again bothering me, so I've been trying to plan my rides to keep things as easy as possible on me physically. Every morning I do a series of stretches for my back and hips, which tend to get really tight and sore, that has been keeping me functional. The two of them were nutcases in turn-out today, which is generally a good sign...energy levels are high with lots of reserves!
I have quite a lot of volunteer help this year with tack cleaning, organizing, and packing for Friday/Saturday which sure is nice! Last year it was a one-woman job (namely me), and since my body hates me it will be a huge help. Thanks guys!
Ride times are out for Festival of the Horse; of course I'm the only one with three horses in the CDI PSG/I-1 (and the only one with multiple horses). Ride times will be determined by a draw the night before the actual competition, so I only know a general time-frame at this point. Both PSG and I-1 are between 8 and 11am on Friday and Saturday, respectively, which means time for afternoon naps and/or runs to California Adventure.
Mom gets in Saturday at 2:15pm. I'm planning on leaving early Sunday, although not super early, since I only have to drive to Bishop (11 hours). Weather is looking good, today it got up to 65 degrees and was very dry. I think that is supposed to hold through the rest of the week and weekend, which will be great for the drive.
Monday, March 19, 2012
T minus 6
Gearing up for the big trip south, leaving in just under a week. I'm less stressed about this trip than I have been in the past, but that's probably because I've made the drive many times now and know more or less what to expect. This year I will be overnighting (normally I drive straight through to Burbank, 15 hours in one day, bleeeeech!!). Festival of the Horse is in San Juan Capistrano this year, which is a little bit further away (and through Los Angeles). So, since I hate the super long drive anyway, I decided to split it up for the first time. Mom and I will be staying at the Tri-County Fairgrounds in Bishop, CA, (home of Mule Days) on Sunday evening.
Now is just a matter of getting all the details squared away. Horses are all body-clipped and ready to go, I got health certificates/coggins from my vet, FEI passports all up to date, got directions to various show facilities, some very cool stall cards are made, ball-bearings repacked in the horse trailer, oil change and general check-up for the truck, etc. I always check the tire pressure in both truck and trailer (including the spares) a couple of days before I leave, and I also check the oil level in the truck.
I made a list of things I need to bring or to do; that helps keep me organized. I hate to get down there and forget something important!
The horses will continue to get worked this week, I keep everything pretty much the same work-wise. I plan on running through my freestyle with Monkey again this week (since I haven't ridden it since last June), to make sure everything works with his new-found super trot. Majek is getting better about the double, still not very happy and a little touchy, but accepting it better than he was. Victor is also going well, we've been working on the pirouettes a bit, trying to get them cleaned up somewhat. His changes have started to come together again (they were a little crooked and bracing for a while) and he's been spunky as heck in turnout and warming up, which is great!
Saturday I'll work the guys in the morning relatively lightly, get everything loaded up, then pick up Mom at the airport in the evening. Then we leave early Sunday morning!! I'm keeping an eye on the weather report; that's always another stressor for me. So far looks like it will start to clear up around here towards the end of the week and through the weekend. Hopefully it will be clear for my drive (particularly through Idaho and Northern Nevada, those are always the places I worry about most).
Now is just a matter of getting all the details squared away. Horses are all body-clipped and ready to go, I got health certificates/coggins from my vet, FEI passports all up to date, got directions to various show facilities, some very cool stall cards are made, ball-bearings repacked in the horse trailer, oil change and general check-up for the truck, etc. I always check the tire pressure in both truck and trailer (including the spares) a couple of days before I leave, and I also check the oil level in the truck.
I made a list of things I need to bring or to do; that helps keep me organized. I hate to get down there and forget something important!
The horses will continue to get worked this week, I keep everything pretty much the same work-wise. I plan on running through my freestyle with Monkey again this week (since I haven't ridden it since last June), to make sure everything works with his new-found super trot. Majek is getting better about the double, still not very happy and a little touchy, but accepting it better than he was. Victor is also going well, we've been working on the pirouettes a bit, trying to get them cleaned up somewhat. His changes have started to come together again (they were a little crooked and bracing for a while) and he's been spunky as heck in turnout and warming up, which is great!
Saturday I'll work the guys in the morning relatively lightly, get everything loaded up, then pick up Mom at the airport in the evening. Then we leave early Sunday morning!! I'm keeping an eye on the weather report; that's always another stressor for me. So far looks like it will start to clear up around here towards the end of the week and through the weekend. Hopefully it will be clear for my drive (particularly through Idaho and Northern Nevada, those are always the places I worry about most).
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
CA bound in 2 weeks...
I sent out my entries for California yesterday. Three horses in the CDI PSG/I-1 at Festival of the Horse and the Golden State Dressage Festival. Crazy!!
Monkey has been fantastic in training, his trot is gaining expression and I have been able to keep the tempo a little slower by riding passage--medium trot--passage transitions. I typically have a hard time to keep him pushing through with his hind legs while keeping him slow in the tempo and uphill in carriage. I haven't worked on the piaffe/passage much recently, but the thought of it helps the basic trot work. Monk is currently 15th on the list for Gladstone for 2012 (top 15 get invites), so I decided to do PSG/I-1 again in hopes I can get a shot at going (I only have one score from last June, and need another). We'll see how it goes. Last year you had to have a solid 68% average at PSG/I-1 at CDIs to even be invited. Tough competition!
Victor has been fantastic in training, he's really started to consistently carry himself well in the trot through all the lateral work. I have a hard time keeping him straight before the pirouettes, and he likes to get a little bracing in the changes sometimes. I feel like I've gotten a good system of communication built up with him though. I think I'm more confident that I know how to get everything going in the direction that I need for a good test. He's a horse that has to be "fired up", it's always nice to ride him during a wind storm or thunderstorm or other such drama. A lot of applause helps too.
Majek hates the double, and thinks it is a huge affront to his self-image. Actually, he's not quite that bad, but he's definitely much more touchy and defensive on it. He's super easy to ride on snaffle, unfortunately you don't get to do that in a CDI. Some things are actually better on double, he's more uphill and expressive, but just be careful not to touch him! He's such a different ride than the other two, so much more sensitive and forward-thinking. It is a mental challenge to warm up one for a test then get on the next one.
It will be interesting to see what the CDI judges do with these horses. The expectations are quite a bit different than at national shows. I kind of know what they think about Monkey (having shown him quite a bit at that level), but not sure what they'll think of the other 2. Will be interesting!
The shows are looking to be super busy, between all the extra CDI-related activities (in-barn inspection, jogs, possible awards ceremonies, etc) and the actual tests themselves. Although I'll only be riding 3 a day it will likely feel much more busy than that!! I've got Mom suckered into coming down and helping me.
It will be nice to be in the sun for at least a little while. Yesterday here in Boise it was 65 degrees, today it barely reached 40 and was windy and occasionally snowed. I'm looking forward to some nicer weather!!
Monkey has been fantastic in training, his trot is gaining expression and I have been able to keep the tempo a little slower by riding passage--medium trot--passage transitions. I typically have a hard time to keep him pushing through with his hind legs while keeping him slow in the tempo and uphill in carriage. I haven't worked on the piaffe/passage much recently, but the thought of it helps the basic trot work. Monk is currently 15th on the list for Gladstone for 2012 (top 15 get invites), so I decided to do PSG/I-1 again in hopes I can get a shot at going (I only have one score from last June, and need another). We'll see how it goes. Last year you had to have a solid 68% average at PSG/I-1 at CDIs to even be invited. Tough competition!
Victor has been fantastic in training, he's really started to consistently carry himself well in the trot through all the lateral work. I have a hard time keeping him straight before the pirouettes, and he likes to get a little bracing in the changes sometimes. I feel like I've gotten a good system of communication built up with him though. I think I'm more confident that I know how to get everything going in the direction that I need for a good test. He's a horse that has to be "fired up", it's always nice to ride him during a wind storm or thunderstorm or other such drama. A lot of applause helps too.
Majek hates the double, and thinks it is a huge affront to his self-image. Actually, he's not quite that bad, but he's definitely much more touchy and defensive on it. He's super easy to ride on snaffle, unfortunately you don't get to do that in a CDI. Some things are actually better on double, he's more uphill and expressive, but just be careful not to touch him! He's such a different ride than the other two, so much more sensitive and forward-thinking. It is a mental challenge to warm up one for a test then get on the next one.
It will be interesting to see what the CDI judges do with these horses. The expectations are quite a bit different than at national shows. I kind of know what they think about Monkey (having shown him quite a bit at that level), but not sure what they'll think of the other 2. Will be interesting!
The shows are looking to be super busy, between all the extra CDI-related activities (in-barn inspection, jogs, possible awards ceremonies, etc) and the actual tests themselves. Although I'll only be riding 3 a day it will likely feel much more busy than that!! I've got Mom suckered into coming down and helping me.
It will be nice to be in the sun for at least a little while. Yesterday here in Boise it was 65 degrees, today it barely reached 40 and was windy and occasionally snowed. I'm looking forward to some nicer weather!!
Saturday, February 25, 2012
California bound in a month!!
Winter is finally starting to subside, and I'm looking forward to the 2012 show season! I leave for the Festival of the Horse CDI in San Juan Capistrano, CA, in late March. All three horses (Charismatique, Victor, and Escorial) will be coming with me and competing in the CDI short tour (PSG/I-1). It will be both Charismatique and Victor's first I-1 in competition, both are going quite well in training so I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes at the show. I would have liked to have done a few I-1's with those two last year in preparation, but there you go. :)
Escorial (aka Monkey) has been going really well, initially we were preparing for the I-2/GP but I decided to do PSG/I-1 again for a shot at Gladstone. With his good scores from last year's Golden State Classic CDI, he's in a good position for this year. The I-2 debut can wait.
I also have several very nice youngsters going right now, including Bolero (who is coming 6 this year) and will debut at First level later on. I also have a couple of very nice horses owned by clients that will be showing as well later in the year (debuting at the Idaho Festival in March). My amateurs are also doing well, and looking forward to the 2012 show season.
Ernie is getting a hip replacement on March 16, so hopefully that will help his pain level and give him some relief. He's also scheduled to do his knees (yes, both) in November. Guess who's going to be riding more?! As if I'm not busy enough!
I will plan on updating my blog while I'm in California (like I did last year) so everyone can follow the news. Should be a very exciting year with the selection trials for London in full swing.
Heather
Escorial (aka Monkey) has been going really well, initially we were preparing for the I-2/GP but I decided to do PSG/I-1 again for a shot at Gladstone. With his good scores from last year's Golden State Classic CDI, he's in a good position for this year. The I-2 debut can wait.
I also have several very nice youngsters going right now, including Bolero (who is coming 6 this year) and will debut at First level later on. I also have a couple of very nice horses owned by clients that will be showing as well later in the year (debuting at the Idaho Festival in March). My amateurs are also doing well, and looking forward to the 2012 show season.
Ernie is getting a hip replacement on March 16, so hopefully that will help his pain level and give him some relief. He's also scheduled to do his knees (yes, both) in November. Guess who's going to be riding more?! As if I'm not busy enough!
I will plan on updating my blog while I'm in California (like I did last year) so everyone can follow the news. Should be a very exciting year with the selection trials for London in full swing.
Heather
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