After Horse Park Finn and I jumped right into some new
training! I finally purchased a dressage saddle that I love and I took a lesson
with Sally Cousins. To work on our jumping, my trainer had me cantering endless
ground poles. The ground pole acts kind of like a jump and it gives horse and
rider an opportunity to work on distances and things like that without constant
concussion on the horses legs. At first Finn and I couldn’t get any of our
distances and things seemed a little bit unorganized but after working on it he
began to get better and better. After working with the ground pole and heading
out to Flora Lea for a cross country schooling I was feeling great! Then came
my lesson with Sally Cousins.
The
first two jumps of my Sally lesson were run outs. After convincing myself that
I am capable of jumping the jumps and that I am a good enough rider to be doing
this training project I put my heels down and went to work. Suddenly something
clicked and it was perfect. Finn flew over ever jump I pointed him at and we
jumped a variety of combinations and lines. After this lesson I was ready for
the event!
Finn
and I did not have a very good dressage test. There was a green electric box in
the corner of the dressage ring and Finn was terrified. We ended up getting a
47 on our test which was not exactly my idea of fantastic. However, we both got
through it and at age 4, that should really be my only expectation for Finn. I
hope to improve that score immensely by the time we get to Flora Lea for our
first beginner novice event.
Show
jumping was pretty good other than one silly rail in a combination. Finn was
very looky and that resulted in some effective but ugly jumps. The show jumping
was set up on a hill and overall the course was pretty technical for an
elementary course. However, by combining small jumps with technicality they
made the course very hard to ride because none of the striding really worked.
Cross
Country was great! We had one stop at a scary jump but other than that Finn was
great. He listened well and powered through the course like a great event horse
would!
Sometimes
the hardest part of being a rider is accepting that sometimes failure happens.
This weekend when I loaded Finn onto the trailer for the Starter Event at HPNJ
I never thought that I would face the complications that I did. When we got to
the show it was already about 80 degrees and the horses seemed exceptionally
mellow. I left Finn on the trailer as we ventured out to walk our courses and
double check our ride times. Before the day even started the dressage times
were running an hour behind and the show jumping was not set. Since the show
jumping was not set, we decided to walk cross country and count on the courses
being posted later on in the day. The cross country at HPNJ seemed to have a
lot more terrain than the cross country at Fair Hill did. I was a little
concerned at first, but Finn had been schooling really well so I thought that
things would be alright.
At noon
it was finally time for my dressage. After having to get on and off a couple
times and having the times continuously pushed back, I was really relieved to
be able to ride. This weekend we had to ride Beg. Novice Test A which is much
harder than the walk test that I rode at Fair Hill. To my surprise, Finn was
fantastic! He used his hind end in his canter and we managed to get our first
ever 7! I was also happy to get a 6 on my rider position score. Finn and I
still have years of work ahead of us for our dressage but I truly believe that
we are on the right road.
When it
came time to jump I was feeling a little nervous. I hadn’t had time to walk my
show jumping and because of the time changes I hadn’t had any time to eat
during the day. Finn and I poppe dover some warm up jumps and then something
really unexpected happened. Two strides after jumping an oxer Finn tripped and
I fell off. As he tried to get up he trotted over me, luckily not hitting me
head on. The EMT cleared me so I decided to get back on and attempt my course.
Half way through I felt very sick and I decided to retire. Before I was through
the gate, I got extremely sick.
Not
every show is one that you will win. It is always important to drink water and
eat during the day. For me, the show day was a really hard test of my ability
to handle stress. In the future I hope that I will improve and Finn and I can
avoid days like HPNJ. My next event will be at Carousel Park in DE. My goals
are simple for that event. I would like to complete all three phases and go
clear for show jumping.
I haven’t
updated the blog in three weeks now and I have a lot to cover! Coming off such
a great weekend at Fair Hill, my trainer and I decided that Finn and I should
move up to the two foot three division at Horse Park this upcoming weekend. In
order to do well at Horse Park, Finn and I have hunkered down and begun working
on the details that can make a good day a great day. The week after Fair Hill
was spent working on our dressage. At Fair Hill, Finn and I had finished on a
score of a 46. My trainer decided that it was time for me to ride my dressage
in a dressage saddle. I must concede that I have yet to find a dressage saddle
that fits my horse properly and I have fallen into a rhythm of riding in my
beloved Nona Garson Elite jumper saddle. I ended up saddling up Finn in one of
my friends Devoucoux Makila dressage saddles and oh did Finn and I love it! The
monoflap design made it very easy for me to feel Finn’s movement and place my
body accordingly. I have also been riding Finn in a new bridle with a monocrown
that he seems to LOVE. With some really hard work on my arms we have almost
eliminated the bridle rooting.
We also
worked on our jumping this week. I feel it is important for me to admit that my
jumping is not all that. I have jumped horses (I jumped my friends ex-hunter
this week-more on that later) but I have never jumped a horse as green and as
willing as Finn. Finn is a hot horse; sensible but very forward. In my first
jump lesson after Fair Hill my trainer put the jumps up to about 2 foot 3 to 2
foot 6. The first part of the lesson was amazing! I am finally figuring out how
to sit on Finn without driving him towards the fences and he is starting to
jump up to me. Then came the line. I am a nervous nelly when it comes to
combinations that start with an oxer. This combination started with a huge oxer
(ok so maybe not huge but still). In an effort to get a nice approach I was stifling
his ability to jump fluidly through the line. My nervousness resulted in a bad
lower leg and a scrambling canter between fences. We managed to get a good ride
through the line at the end of the lesson and decided to try again in my next
lesson.
In the next lesson, my trainer
had be ride in her Chiberta. The Chiberta has a much larger calf block than my
Prestige saddle and she thought that might provide me with some mental
security. Finn was fantastic! It seemed like the last lesson hadn’t even
happened at all. We both were in tune and we were able to get a great ride
through the line (we did put it down a hole though). We also jumped a bunch of
planks and other jumps to get Finn ready for show jumping.
This last week was not very consistent.
After an AMAZING flat work ride Finn ripped off a shoe. A day after getting his
shoes reset, he proceeded to rip off the other shoe. I decided to give Finn off
a couple of days and ride my very kind friend’s horse and work on my own
position. Her horse was a hunter for a very long time before beginning his
transition into eventing. I managed to jump him around a course by the end of
that lesson. At first, I had a really hard time not trying to jump for him, but
I worked through it. It is amazing to me how different horses can be from one
and another. Cooper was far more rhythmic than Finn, yet he required a lot more
push to get to the fences compared to my horse. With training I believe that
Finn will only get better.
Yesterday
we took Finn to the Horse Park open schooling day. They hadn’t set out many of
the smaller jumps so we ended up schooling the BN and N jumps. Finn was
AMAZING. He tackled every jump like a rock star and he had the perfect mixture
of get up and go and calm and relaxed. I can not wait until next weekend’s
event!
The
last two weeks have been momentous! Not only did I take Finn to Fair Hill for cross
country schooling, I also competed him in his first horse trial. After a lot of
hard work in lessons and many sleepless nights, we arrived at the cross country
schooling in a knot of nerves. As usual, Finn loaded beautifully onto the
trailer and stayed well behaved for the hour and a half drive to Elkton
Maryland. Upon arrival, I went ahead and unloaded him from the trailer and unwrapped
his legs as quickly as possible. In order to let him get his silly’s out, I led
him around the trailer parking lot and let him get a good look at all of the
people and their towing rigs. At that point, I went ahead and tacked him up
while my trainer gave me a pep talk. It was really important to me that the
schooling went well. As a rider, I always want to be the best equestrian I can
be, but in this case my reasoning was different. I knew that this was going to
be Finn’s ever post-racing off-farm experience and I did not want it to be a
discouraging one.
Roll top take one
Roll top take 2
After
getting a leg up, Finn and I followed our group through the woods and out to
the jumps. We were accompanied by two other green horses and two horses that
had been out and about for a while. Finn and I started by trotting over a very
small log. I made sure that my heels were down and that my leg was not sliding
back as he jumped over the log a bit too enthusiastically (ok, so he overjumped
it) and then I pointed him over the log again. After jumping a couple more
smaller jumps fairly successfully, my trainer suggested we tackle a larger blue/green
colored roll top. The first time that Finn and I jumped it, I made the mistake
of shortening my reins too much and not allowing him to find the proper
distance. In an attempt to get him to add, I ended up annoying him and taking a
bit of a flyer. The second shot, my trainer repeated “soften, soften, soften, and
breathe” and I managed to get the proper distance.
Our
next adventure was at the water complex. At first I tried to coax Finn into the
water calmly, but he had other ideas. After a lot of fidgeting on the bank,
Finn lept enthusiastically into the water, launching himself 3ft in the air and
about 3ft across. My barn mates and I laughed about Finn’s display and then,
with the help of an older horse, we managed to get Finn trotting calmly through
the water.
Fast-forward
a week and we were heading to Fair Hill for our first event! Finn once again
trailered nicely and unloaded like a solid citizen. My dressage time was at
2:00, so I took my time walking my courses and brushing Finn in the morning. I made
sure to leave myself about 20 minutes before dressage to warm him up and 10
minutes before that to lead him around the dressage area. Dressage ended up going
fairly well. We scored 46 penalties and I was pretty happy with that score.
Although a 46 is in no way a great score, it is a great starting point. Some of
the best comments from the judge were: “great cadence” and “beautiful length of
stride”. I hope that as Finn progresses in our training our dressage scores at
horse trials improve.
Dressage
After
dressage, Finn and I both got changed into our jumping gear and headed up to
the jump field. We went ahead and trotted over some verticals and oxers, and
then headed into show jumping. I made a large sweeping circle, passing anything
that could be potentially scary and then started my round. Finn and I ended up
going clear. I must say that my position during show jumping left much to be
desired. Instead of sinking down into my heels and opening my knees, I got a
little stiff with nerves and ended up hindering Finn over the first two fences.
Cross
country was definitely Finn and I’s best phase of the day. We trotted and
cantered along at a nice and calm pace, and cleared all of the jumps easily.
Some of the jumps were a little tricky for Finn and me but I had identified
them during the course walk as possible problem areas. One of the jumps that caught
Finn a bit off guard was a hay jump that had wagon wheels on both sides. With a
little nudge of the leg Finn jumped politely.
After
all three phases, Finn and I ended up in 4th place out of 8 people
in my division! I could not be any prouder of my horse and how far we have
come. I do not know what I would do without my family and trainers, not to
mention my friends. Next adventure on the list: Horse Park of NJ Horse Trials!
Finn's jumping form is really starting to improve!
Two hours after my last blog post, a decision was made: Finn
is competing at the introductory level at Fair Hill on May 5th.
Although I was excited (jumping up and down), I was also extremely nervous. It
has been awhile since I was judged on my performance and I had to accept that
with this being Finn’s debut, I might not do very well. Finn’s jumping has
improved immensely in the last week, many of my lessons have ended with me
skipping up and down the barn isles and singing show tunes because I am so
happy. Our flatwork is different. My favorite part of eventing has always been dressage.
Nothing in the world can compete with the feeling of a perfectly in sync dance
between a horse and rider. Lately though, Finn and I have not felt so
beautiful. Our warm-up is always good, there are moments where I swear I can
feel every muscle in his body respond to mine, and then comes the lesson. When
Finn is nervous he has a tendency to root pretty enthusiastically on the
bridle. Up to now we have tried three different bits with very little
improvement. Going into the event, this is not very comforting.
We practiced loading on and off a trailer this week!
Although
it is very easy to blame the horse, sometimes as a rider we have to look at
ourselves. It is easy to change bits, it is easy to tighten martingales, it is
easy to pull as hard as you can on the outside rein when your horse roots that
you convince yourself he will listen, but it is hard to change yourself. My dad
(best barn dad ever) has videotaped close to every ride I have had with Finn
since I bought him and I decided to consult the videos. It seems that the issue
with Finn’s head is not curable with magic tack; instead it is cured by me
learning how to use my arms. I don’t mean yanking and pulling and tightening, I
mean learning how to use my arms and make it look like I’m not using my arms.
One of the hardest things about riding is learning how to be soft but still
supportive.
When I
started this blog, it was about horse training. It was about taking a horse
that was at the end of his career and giving him a new one. I wanted everything
to be glorious, everything to be beautiful and everything to follow a schedule. I
now realize that for every lesson Finn learns, I must learn one too. There is
no horse training without rider training and there is no beauty without a
little bit of pain. Going into this event, I must realize that my only goal
should be having fun. The last two weeks have been up and down. Finn jumped his
first cross country jumps and we have started to improve our flat work. This
weekend we will be going cross country schooling and I am sure that will come
with its own challenges. Until then, I will continue to work on myself in hopes
of helping him.
On a positive note, Finn's feet have improved drastically! Look below for pictures of his feet. Note the glue on shoes on his front feet.
In the
last three weeks Finn has improved immensely. Although we are still working on
our dressage, after talking with my trainer, we decided it was time for Finn to
start jumping. After schooling what seemed like endless ground poles of various
colors, we decided it was time to make the leap of faith. We started with a
small cross-rail at the trot. Finn calmly trotted right over the cross-rail and
seemed to figure out the exercise quickly. We jumped a couple different
cross-rails from the trot during the lesson, switching colors and directions to
give him a varied experience. By the end of the lesson he was trotting calmly
through a line made up of two cross-rails.
After
another flat lesson that went splendidly and another cross-rail lesson, we
decided to venture outside to the outdoor ring and try some more jumps. Finn
was amazing once again and he easily popped over various cross-rails and even
one or two verticals. We placed flower boxes and colored poles under the jumps
to help him get used to fillers. At the end of the lesson we set up an oxer made
out of two cross-rails and Finn happily jumped it!
Because
Finn was doing so well we decided to take a lesson with Sally Cousins (USEA
Leading Lady rider for 2012). The day before the lesson, my normal
trainer had me trot Finn over a couple new jumps, including a gate and a
vertical with a brush box underneath. During the Sally Cousins lesson, Finn was
on his very best behavior! We jumped a bunch of verticals and were able to put
two of them together in the canter. At the end of the lesson I jumped Finn
through a four stride line with a cross-rail to an oxer. Finn jumped flawlessly
over the oxer and we decided to call it a day and shower him with attention.
Finn really
seems to be improving. His feet are in great condition (pictures to come in the
next post) and he has gained weight and muscle. At the canter, Finn no longer
loses the lead behind and he is beginning to carry himself very nicely. We have
decided to switch Finn to a different bit in hopes of eliminating his head
shaking. We will be working on our flat work over the weekend and preparing to
go x-country schooling at Plantation Field the last weekend in April.
After a
time change and some slightly warmer weather I realized it was again time to
update the blog! It seems that Finn and I have finally had a big breakthrough.
Last week Finn and I rode outside for the second time since I purchased him and
we were able to walk, trot and canter! To start the ride I brought Finn into
the ring and led him around; allowing him to sniff and glare at anything
potentially scary. He seemed fine so I had my dad drag the mounting block over
to the ring and hold Finn so I could get on. Right away Finn seemed ready for
work! To my surprise there weren't any spooks so I decided to go up to the
trot. With quiet hands and a bit of inside leg Finn went right on to the bit
and glided around the arena like an old pro.
After
coming to the conclusion that Finn was ready for a challenge, I decided to
stand in my stirrups and allow him to canter out. I started up in 2 point with
my hands resting on the fuzzy part of my new half pad and then decided to sit
down. Finn automatically slowed down and arched his neck (yay!) with little
protest. I repeated this simple exercise in both directions with pretty even
results.
With
such great results in the ring I decided it was time for our first hack out!
Next to the farms outdoor arena we have a cross country field so I decided that’d
be a great place to start. I kept him walking forward and I reminded myself to
breathe as we encountered some scary things like cones and jumps! At first Finn
shied away from the big jumps scattered about the field, but by the end he
seemed cool as a cucumber. I am hoping that this nice weather will last and
help me achieve more great rides! The date of our first event is set for June
9th at Plantation Field and we hope to practice a bit in the dressage arena
before then.
