SUBSCRIBE TODAY Smiley face  Get updates via email! 




We Are Flying Solo

May 16, 2012

When Is Naptime Again?

There are so many things I want to write for you, so many "almost ready" posts to breathe life back into the blog.  I am just trying to figure out how to do that while trying to be four people at once. 

I am, for some reason, expected to show up at work in order to get a paycheck (entirely unreasonable, I think), so there goes 40 hours.  The horses, well, who knows how many hours that is. 

Dealing with life itself, that can't even be counted in hours.

If you haven't already clicked over to Facebook to follow Team Flying Solo there, I am putting up extra content for you to have fun with because it's just a little bit faster. 

Everything Encore is pretty much in slow motion until a thousand million seconds pass and we meet with the Equine Sports Medicine Man at NCSU.  And after tonight's ride, I know we'll have to keep it slow until then.

Which means I have some time to get on Solo again; Solo, who has reduced from hippopotamus to normal horse size since the move, which is nice (unfortunately, Encore has been subject to the same phenomenon, dang TBs) so a little work has been done for me. 

So I think tomorrow, we'll put his boots on, I'll swing a tired leg over his back and settle into my favourite home for a very familiar ride. 

I can't wait.

May 13, 2012

Full Stop

It was madness on Friday.  Dashing 100 miles from our last field site of the day home, changing bags, changing trucks, only to dash again to the farm and pick up Encore and wind our way up into the Blue Ridge of Virginia.  We made it to our friend's farm around 9:00 pm, I tucked Encore in in his pasture, then passed out shortly after.

I played video and pole girl Saturday morning; it was interesting to watch the lessons I taped.  The first, especially was tackling the same problems I was having and I laughed as she finished, "I think you just got my lesson!"


We had a quick lunch with David and I was excited to saddle up Encore and show off how far he'd come.  We started our typical Warm Up Circle of Death, but as soon as we got to the canter work, I knew something was wrong.  Encore was falling out hard behind and kept doing a strange hop step with his hind feet on his left lead.  David watched carefully and said, "I don't remember this horse doing this before."

"No," I said, "he's been uneven but this is the worst it's been."

He put us through a low bounce gynmanstic.  After we did it for the fifth or sixth time, I knew he was concerned.  We never work through a gymnastic line that many times.  We tried a couple of small courses, but every jump was odd.  I stopped and said, "David, I can't see anything, it doesn't feel right, I feel as if I've suddenly forgotten how to ride, there's nothing there?"

"That's because there is nothing there, you have no canter," he responded.  My heart sunk.  "You know," he said, "I had a whole plan for this horse today but as soon as I saw the canter issues, I had to throw it all out the window."

It was like a knife to the heart but I knew he was right.  And I couldn't say it was a total surprise either.  I'd been watching Encore for a few months, not sure if it was strength issue or something else, as horses are often uneven behind until they get stronger.  But as the work got harder, the issue became more pronounced.  Our dressage trainer noticed his left hind didn't flex as well as the right and even Dr. Brian asked if he'd ever had stifle issues.  David was just the one who came right out and said, "You have a mechanical problem."

"I've just been really hoping he just needed to be stronger," I pleaded.  "I've been gun-shy since the Solo Incident."

"I completely understand that," he said, "but there is nothing to be gained by being an ostrich.  Go do your diagnostics, pinpoint the problem, then you can fix it and move on with the myriad of treatment options available today."

I was disappointed, yet at the same time, very grateful for his direct assessment and the recommendations he offered.  It gave me a concrete game plan to step forward and address the issue and his eye gave me credibility to take to the diagnostic center.

Sorry, mom.  But I wanted to make sure the insurance was worth it!
My money is on the left stifle and I am hoping it is something simple.  I've known several other horses with similar issues and a simple stifle injection or something similar had them back on track.  Well, I am really hoping it is nothing, but anyone who's been in horses long enough knows they are horses:  it is not if but WHEN you be looking sorrowfully at your lame partner.  It doesn't matter what breed or type -- they are all walking suicide machines (except for Shetland ponies, but I believe evil sustains them).

On the plus side, he is not out of riding commission, so we can still work on things and do fun rides, but we cannot step forward in training until we resolve this and he is able to even up behind.  At the very least, our spring eventing season was done anyway, my summer work schedule is picking up, and we had no horse trial plans until the fall.  So I suppose if any timing is ever right, this one is.

Tomorrow morning, I shall consult the Batphone and we shall see what there is to be seen.  This, indeed, is why I insisted on insurance for the first year!

May 8, 2012

Just A Few Notices

(1)  I have finally broken down and made a Facebook page for TFS.  I admit, the curiosity got the better of me, even though I don't use Facebook much anymore.  But there are often quick things I'd like to post and it offered a faster medium than writing a whole blog post, so there will be extra content, fun pictures, videos, polls, and more -- so find the link here or the permanent link in our sidebar and have even more dorky ridiculousness in your life!

(2) I still have some times for sale on the "Sale" tab, so check them out.  Thanks to those who have purchased and I hope you have fun with your new Solo karma!!

I do remember these books though!
(3)  I NEED YOUR HELP!  I am clearly a moron and suddenly am incapable of remembering to turn on my helmet cam in the XC start box.  Help me come up with a clever solution that even an amoeba could remember and post it in the comments!  I thought to sharpie it on my arm, but that requires remembering the sharpie and remembering to write it.  I did have a sharpie with me, but did not remember to use it.  Life stress really reduces brain function!

You do get extra internet karma if you test your solution on an amoeba and it works.

EDITED TO ADD:  Pictures from Encore's run at the Carolina Horse Park this weekend are up for your entertainment.  Although he was tense in the dressage test, he still had some good engagement behind.  He definitely still jumps like a greenie, but he looks damn cute on XC!  You can view them here.

May 7, 2012

Lessons

Yes, I am lax in my posting.  Field season pulls me away 2-3 days per week and I've been gone every weekend.  I never want to drive again.

I am also a moron because I keep forgetting to turn on my helmet cam.  This weekend, I did remember at jump 3 and made a valiant attempt to turn it on there.  Unfortunately, Encore had just settled into full TB gallop and those jumps just aren't that far apart at that speed; one handing the XC course did not feel like a good idea.

I know, no cam, what's the point, right?  But we did get some good mileage.

Lesson:  Encore is great in the dressage warmup; I am finally learning what works for him and I had him soft, responsive, supple, and ready to go.  Then we left the warmup ring and entered the dressage arena at A, at which point Encore threw his head up, startled that he was suddenly alone and stared at, and I was unable to unlock his jaw for the next five minutes.  To my aghastment (it's a word now), we still scored a 36.09.  :-o  It felt more like a 45.  But baby needs a lot more mileage so he can get comfy and relax his topline in the arena and we will be hitting the dressage schooling circuit this summer, instead of the schooling HTs I had originally planned.  Not as fun, but cheaper.  The boy already knows how to jump, I'll save those jumps for the fall.

Lesson:  I was starting to figure out a few things in the SJ warmup.  I kept my leg on all the way to the base of the fence and over, hooking a finger through the martingale strap so there was no mouth catching, and we got some LOVELY jumps.  Once we got in the arena though, any place where there were two jumps in a straight line, he charged like a bull and I was left to try to half halt and be soft at the same time.  I think I have at least partially created this problem.  Basically what happens then is I end up trying to hold him to the base of the fence instead galloping through it, which will almost always mean back rails get pulled behind, and I forget all about keeping my leg on.  Hopefully, David will fix us this coming weekend.  If there is a turn or corner to use to balance, we do fine and I can focus and get him back.  A friend was nice enough to catch the rail bowling jumping round on her phone for your entertainment (I would recommend full screening and maxing the resolution)!



YOU ARE VANQUISHED!!!
Lesson:  Encore is getting more confident on XC, yeah!  And WE JUMPED THE LAST JUMP.  Oh yes, the bright rolltop nemesis was defeated with a holler and a smack.  I don't think I would change a thing about his course.  It was the same funky course as Longleaf, which I still think doesn't work well for Novice horses in several places, but it made my coursewalk much easier.

The point of SCHOOLING horse trial is SCHOOLING and I am very happy with the experience we got.  Encore feels a little more sure of himself each time out and the horse trial itself did its job of showing me where our weak spots were.  So to the drawing board we go, to come back in the fall with a big fat BANG!

April 30, 2012

Moving On

For a variety of reasons, the time came for Team Flying Solo to find a new home base.  Thus began the hunt for the perfect combination of facilities I need to train, space for my horses to move around, and no drama.  Ha, well, two of three can't be impossible.

Through an eventing friend, I learned of and visited a farm up the road and as I stepped out of the vehicle, I immediately felt calm and content (I am big on vibe).  It's an old Walking Horse farm, so it had a long low barn with no windows, surrounded by hotwalkers, several round pens and a sea of paddocks.  I wandered around and peeked in stall doors and kicked some dirt and sniffed some hay.

It wasn't glamourous, most of the fencing was high tensile wire and grass was cropped short and sparsely scattered.  But each pasture had a fluffy, nice round bale or two and I could find no manure just lying about.

All of the horses were in good condition, their feet were taken care of, and everyone was perky and bright.  No cribbing collars, no stall weavers, and every horse got at least 12 hours of turnout a day.  There was an arena with lights, a dressage arena measured out in the back, and a freshly built set of jumps.

"Can I have a pasture with a shed where my horses just live 24/7 and the fence gets a strip of white hot tape added?"

"Absolutely, no problem, when do you want to move in?" the owner replied.  He is just a SUPER nice guy, answered all my dizzying questions, and my board costs got cut in half then and there.

I'm not sure they've ever had a sporthorse boarder, as there were plenty of giggles at my detailed feeding spreadsheet and Encore's Mt. Everest of food.  The owner breeds VERY nice old-style Walking Horses, the ones I loved to see when I was a kid:  compact, sturdy, balanced, and built to last forever, with a willing, honest brain and solid feet (the new anorexic looking ones with deer legs make me sad).  In fact, the boys' new neighbours is one of the broodmares with her week old overo foal (SQUEEEEE!) who hops like a kangaroo and squeals to amuse himself.

The half-built shed.
The owner shows all flat-shod walkers now (hooray!) and has gotten enthralled with the versatility classes (horses do their regular gaited stuff, but also have dressage tests and jumping courses), so he is excitedly learning about dressage and jumping from my eventing buddy and applying it to all his training horses.

So as of Saturday, this is the TFS new compound.  I've built a tack locker by my horses' paddock so between it and the trailer, I just have my own space and my own end of the farm with the dressage arena and fields for hill work and XC schools.  As soon as I got the boys settled in, I realized this was going to be EXCELLENT desensitization for Encore.  Yes, he's already seen all the stuff on the track, but now he is seeing....

-miniature spotted donkeys braying for their dinner
-horny ducks who like to mate repeatedly while the pervy geese circle them and honk
-peacocks who call from the trees and leap on top of his round bale to squawk to the hens
-ponies whose main job is to kick the yearlings and teach them some manners
-and my favourite....

Meet Rocket, the mini stud who lives across the lane/fence.  He comes up to, oh, a little above my knees, but he reckons he can take on both those chestnuts and show THEM who's the boss.  He came "for free" with a recently purchased mare, but is actually a very nicely put together little horse and will do some breeding of his own and take over teasing duties from the owner's stud.



He paws like a little bull and assures us all that he could beat all our asses in a 'fro contest.

Solo and Encore, happily, put their trust in each other and rolled about the pasture together in an ADD frenzy, unsure of whether to be fascinated or concerned about the shrunken denizens that surrounded them.



They even showed off a new pairs routine they'd been working on, in beautiful synchronicity.



But by the time I came back on Sunday, they were relaxed and chowing down on clover and hay, the novelty of birds and stallions and donkeys having already worn off in favour of working out what the new breakfast and dinner schedule was. 

It's a big change for us, but so far, a happy one.  I've got a few projects to finish, including matting the shed and some pasture management, but in a few weeks, they'll be set and settled and I can take a deep breath and just enjoy the peace!