The Conundrum Of A Sound Horse

Oh yes, they are a puzzle too, albeit an excellent one to have!  You have to decide what to do with them!

Encore feels good.  He's moving well, working well, and improving.  I am sure he will be lame again (he is still a horse), but for the time being, I want to enjoy him while he is GOOD.  Actually, I'm terrified to let Dr. Bob inspect him for fall shots, for fear of him finding a sore spot I didn't know about!!

But it means a lot of decisions.

The flying Throughbred at Becky's in March.  He's back!

He's perched on a brink, level-wise.  We've been hard at work on the assignments from Becky and Eric, and always in the background are our exercises from David and Priscilla, and he just keeps getting better.  He is working confidently in the long lines and I am encouraging him to increase the swing of his shoulder little by little.

What this all boils down to is that he is getting very close to being ready to move up to Training.  How exciting is that?????!!!  So, while he will probably break himself, I'll just pretend...

The jump is there.  3'3" is not an issue for either of us and we have schooled there quite a bit.  My eye is accustomed to it, as is his.  The gallop is there, naturally, heh.  The basics of the dressage are there.  He doesn't have an extended trot yet and we still need to work on crisper transitions within the gaits, but that doesn't worry me very much.  I am completely of the view that the dressage is always a work in progress and even scorewise, you can still do very well even when one movement is not quite there yet.  Heck, you know me, I get excited when I am not last!

Herein lies the puzzle.

I am aiming him at Five Points in September.  I just love the events at Carolina Horse Park, I very much like the new organizer, Marc Donovan, and am intruiged to see what Hugh Lochore does with the XC courses.  I always run into eventing buddies there and it's my own little vacation.  It will be a little longer this year since it will be a three-day event over three actual days (although XC last, poo on FEI format), so I will have to be little more clever with my scheduling.

Jumping into CHP water complex in Sept 2012.  Looky but willing.

Do I enter at Novice?  He hasn't run XC since this spring, but we need to do a school anyway since he needs to practice jumping into water.  He is bold and honest and I am confident on course.  Stadium and dressage will be very easy, even if I manage to hold my breath and crap up our dressage test, it's not like he can't do it.

Or do I go for the Training moveup at my home showground where I know the land and the facilities?  CHP may be familiar, but it is rarely soft for the level, especially after Southern Pines I in March.  The last thing I want is to overface us.  Solo and I ended badly, but it didn't have much to do with the level, nothing to do with XC, just a horrible time snafu.  And, as I did with Solo, Encore will do Training height during at least a jumper show and CT before we go.

All of this will require a financial investment as well.  I need to be sure, via lessons and schooling shows, that we are prepared for anything so no officials or volunteers have to be horrified (I certainly don't appreciate it when riders make me gasp with fright when I volunteer, although I certainly know 'oh shit!' happens!).  I also need to be very frugal and make sure we are getting the most bang for our buck.  It's not like spare change is lying around here.

It's something I am going to have to feel out.  I will be chatting with David about it after our lesson on Sunday to get his feedback and seeing how Encore does there and in our XC school, TBD.  I will NOT get greedy and end up moving up prematurely simply because I want to run at T.  Safety first!!!!

It's an exciting puzzle, even though I don't know the answer.  Were I closer to NoVa and had lots of money, my options might be different, but I'm not and I don't, so I need to find a schedule and an approach that will work best for me and my horse as individuals.  Hmmmmm..........

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Not So Live From The Other Side

Wow.

I have just returned from the best event I have ever attended.  What you get as a competitor is unparalleled -- heck, you get a bucket full of NICE swag just for showing up!  The clinics, the parties, The Derby!, OH MY!  The experience as a core team member is phenomenal.

Baby animals cry if you don't jump them.

There are pictures to share and stories to tell.  I met some new and amazing people, artists, product designers, facility builders, and officials, all of whom work untiringly for the sport and for those who attend, out of the sheer force of love.  Every time I work at an event, I learn more and see our eventing world from yet another new angle.  To do so from perhaps the most beautiful amateur facility that is generously opened to us on the east coast, with a group of talented individuals at the top of their game, is a privilege.

For now, it will have to wait until I have a bit more consciousness.  If you have never been intimately involved with putting on even a horse trial, you cannot begin to imagine how hard people work, most with no reward beyond the grins on riders' faces, and how long it takes to put all that together for you - it's exhausting!  It is also thanks to those people that we had only two minor rider falls due to rider error, no injuries, no one who got lost, perfect footing, an exquisite XC course, and a level of detailed preparedness for ANYTHING that the competitors had no inkling of! 

I will say, though, CONGRATULATIONS to all the competitors who successfully arrived and rode (heck, getting there with a sound horse is challenge enough!!).  And to those who completed this special opportunity, I envy and salute you.  One day, with hard work, I aim to be you, if the horse stars would care to align for me.

For the rest of you out there, I can't encourage you strongly enough to enter these long format events -- they are in danger of disappearing forever and with them, an indescribable educational experience in horsemanship and partnership that you simply will not get anywhere else, something in that category of "you don't know what you are missing until you participate yourself."  Without your entries, we cannot keep going.  What you get for your fee is an incredible bargain that I will describe in more detail later.   However, there may not be that many times you can say, "Maybe next year..." (of course, no one can control soundness, sigh).  I will keep doing everything I can to support these events because I have seen it with my own eyes:

Every person matters.

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W Is For Widiculousness

Encore:  Oooo, look trees!

In the dressage arena that is.

Encore's back was available for warmup and his body felt decent, if a bit stiff from the trailer ride.  His brain...appeared to have blown out somewhere back on Highway 1.

I worked at suppling his body and pushing his inside hind leg underneath him.  I asked for many changes of bend and tried very hard not to hang on my left rein.  Becky swung by on a big, stunning dapple grey going BN who looked ready to do Prelim Test A and she said hi; I tried not spit on myself in mortification because I already knew I was not riding at my best and my horse was spooking at camera shutters and apparently birdwatching, judging by his posture.  I can only hope she was busy riding and did not actually witness my test.  Afterwards, I actually stopped by to ask the secretary, a friend of mine, if she could post my score under a code instead of my name.  Shame.

I was unaware that he was plotting evil.

Trainwreck would be an understatement.  After trotting down centerline, Encore checked out and completely ignored my existence as he studied trees, other horses, dirt, and anything else that seemed remotely interesting.  His rider was not even close to that category.  I had zero response to leg, hand, seat, body, no bend, no push, no.thing.  I hope the judge enjoyed my downward transition to trot where I finally had to yell, "WHOA, DAMMIT!"  She tactfully wrote, "Against hand.  Rider's aids ineffective."  Ya think?  I was not in love with my horse.

I could not let that stand.  I rode back to the field behind our rig and we proceeded to have a lesson in who decides when and how and where things happen.  It took about 30 minutes, but Encore eventually ran out of evasions and realized I was just going to sit there and keep asking, so he gave in and discovered that obedience is easier.  That was when I realized that THAT was the ride I should have given him in warmup.  I'm pretty good at lessons after the fact.

I did my best to let it go, although a set of stripped out stud holes and an ineffective wrench may have led to rage-hurling said wrench across a field.  It wasn't my finest moment, although it did make me feel better for 45 seconds and since I throw like a girl, it didn't go very far; Amber had the grace to not laugh out loud and fetch it later.  Bless her.

A rather more responsive horse warmed up for XC, which was a straightforward course with some good rider balance and steering questions.  The first 3 jumps were also on the steeplechase track, which I have wanted to run on for yearrrrssss.  Oh yes, my racehorse noticed the rail and the marker poles and the oval.

Beautiful track, I finally got to run on you...

I did not put on the helmet cam, my apologies.  Time was short and I wanted to focus on my horse; additionally, post-course walk, I knew there would not be anything new or dramatic to see.  Mea culpa.  Although you might have been entertained when Encore teleported sideways when someone opened their car door (perhaps he just left his brain at home?) and I barely clung on with one calf muscle. 

Oh, and car lady, it's fine to open your door, my horse usually has no issues with that on non-idiot days and you did nothing wrong, but when someone almost gets dumped (on their already trashed leg) as you do, it's common courtesy to apologize and at least ask if they are ok instead of squawking, "OMG!"  Just sayin'.

We made it to about jump 7 or 8 when I could feel my horse was developing some muscle-tiredness behind.  He was jumping very well, boldly and honestly, but between jumps, I had a cinder block at the end of my reins.  Today I feel like I was dragged behind a truck!

It was good mileage for him though.  Encore was excellent over a log two strides from the first big water and really showed off our improved "down" skills off a big drop.  The following jump was the baby sunken road, so the ground dropped sharply behind a log pile fence and he is still leery of leaping when he cannot see the landing.  He did stop in front of it, but I insisted and he climbed over (it wasn't very big) without taking a step backwards (GOOD BOY!) so we were able to finish with no penalties except for two seconds of time.  Which was a result of my having to pulley-rein him in a circle mid-course and make him trot down a very steep hill so we would not roll down it instead.  :\

As we crossed between the finish flags, I knew I had a tired horse and I felt in a couple of lead swaps that he had developed some butt soreness.  It was not a difficult decision to just withdraw, call it a day, and head home.  There was nothing to be gained by staying overnight and jumping a flat, ugly stadium course -- that kind of mileage I can do without, thank you. 

In the end, it was not a total loss.  We were pushing our timeline between his back injections and the event, so I am not surprised his muscles tired early.  I hope that a few more weeks of slow, steady work on some hills and the lines will bring him back to solid.

Sure I caaan be round, but...oh look, pony!

There were good lessons:  I need to push harder in warmup, take more time, and bloody well RIDE, no matter what anyone else is doing.  Encore got in a much needed XC run and handily answered all questions, with only one minor hiccup.  So my entry fee was not wasted and hey, even with all that, we still weren't last!

I will employ some Advil and enjoy an unexpected Sunday break crammed between two weeks of work travel and fish rodeos.  Encore can rest and we will resume our work at a slower pace later in the week.

To come:  the promised unveiling of a surprise at the event.  Better pictures need to be procured to do justice to said surprise.  Trust me, you will be filled with want. 

Last but not at all least:  THANK YOU, Amber, for being an expert team crew despite my dressage tantrums (I did not eat or drink enough, bad bad event blood sugar rule breaking!) and stud struggles.  You are truly awesome and I am so so so grateful to have had your help!

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Just Keep It Clean

That is my goal for this weekend, as Encore and I head out to compete at Longleaf Pines Horse Trials.  It may be our only recognized horse trials this year; medical bills and other things demand my meager resources.  But Longleaf has always been my favourite, for some reason, so I entered it anyway.

Do this plz.

With the generous help of the Amazing Amber and lodging thanks to the Awesome Alison, we will be attempting  to make centerline resemble something straight-ish as I remember to breathe and Encore banishes all thoughts of llamas at 1:09 pm on Saturday.  After our mandatory sandbox prancing pattern, we'll shed our drab accoutrements and gear up for the start box at 3:46 pm.  Stadium jumping will be Sunday in reverse order of placing.

I also have a very cool surprise to show you -- it shall be making its unveiling tomorrow!

Everyone's ride times and an approximate show jumping schedule can be found here.  I know I will be keeping on eye on Becky and RJ (Telperion) in Training!

You can follow us (although if I have a giant brain absentia incident, just pretend you didn't...) on the live scores here.

Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in...butterfly!

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Happy Happy Happy Sad

I have a few more Becky insights to share with you, but to share the most recent reason why only crazy people own horses:

I did our first home long lining session on Saturday and although it took a bit for me to get sorted out, I got some REALLY nice trot work from Encore!  Happy!

Solo and I warm up at Tamarack in 2009.

Monday, after being very patient and positive and ignoring all his silly head flinging and eye-bugging on a cold, windy day, we finally settled into a dressage school and he was connected, moving over his back, and just generally awesome!  Happy!

I noticed on Monday that his left lead canter felt quite disjointed, but I attributed it to post-training muscle soreness and gave him some bute and a few days off.  No problem, a little rest and we can still go visit the Emersons' lovely farm in Southern Pines, Tamarack Hill, for their fantastic schooling HT series (if you haven't, you should go, EXCELLENT courses, Denny and his wife, May really make it a welcoming, educational experience for the horses).  Still sticking with happy...

Today I got on for an evaluation ride so I could make sure he was ok before spending diesel money and getting up at 4 am.  NOT ok.  I have the horse I had a year ago and my gut says he needs his back re-injected.  He is stiff, running around on his forehand, stumbling behind, and very anxious about his back.  Naturally...because we have already entered Longleaf.  And we definitely won't be heading south tomorrow, I will not run him when I know he is uncomfortable; it's a waste of time and money and will only jeopardize future outings.  Sad.

Post-XC Tamarack 2009 -- yeah, it was that good.

On the plus side, I called Tamarack to scratch him and May was very, very kind and generous and has offered to send us some entry money back, which is unheard of in eventingland, yet is like water in a desert to this house of poverty!  Thank you, Emerson peoples!  I am very sorry that I won't get to run their course but I hope we'll get to support their efforts in the future and oh, did I mention, YOU SHOULD GO!  There is another one on April 13th. 

Countdown to Monday morning and call Dr. Bob.  Already emailed the NCSU vet school orthopedist who worked on Encore almost a year ago.  Of course I did.  Sigh.  I don't mind the maintenance at all, but it would be a little less brain-exploding if it had been mentioned that we might need to repeat when there are big changes in strength and fitness...

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A Gear In The Complex Machine, Pt. I

Before I start, to all my friends, human and equine, north of me, please stay safe and wear a lifejacket!  I know those areas are not as accustomed to our tropical visitors as we are down here, so just buy an extra case of beer and keep your blankets handy.

Seriously, sun!!  At Waredaca!!  In October!!!

I've been gone the last four days (Wed-Sat, I know, I heard you sobbing) doing my annual volunteer stint at the Waredaca Training 3-Day Event (now including the Novice 3-Day!), which is run by my beloved Area II Adult Riders (see sidebar) group with the help of Gretchen Butts, the owner of Waredaca who donates the use of her amazing facility (omg, the XC footing...) to use for the event.  As longtime readers know, this event has been my riding goal ever since I first set foot on the showgrounds in 2009.  And hell or high water (both of which you might actually be in right now?), I WILL ride that course.  I tried to make it happen last year.  We all know how that ended.  But not this year.

I am always a strong proponent of volunteering for our sport.  I firmly believe EVERY SINGLE MEMBER from me to Boyd Martin should be required to spend 8 hours volunteering each year if they want to compete at a recognized event.  Doing ANYTHING.  Because there is a lot more to running a horse trial than judging cross country jumps.  Every time you are out there competing, we are running around like mad behind the scenes, most of us completely unpaid, there for the love of the sport, without which, you couldn't feel the rush of that course.  We make it happen for you - pass it on. 

Psh, a few judges, a TD, and some jump judges, what more could it take, you think?

Task Priori:  Keep Russell the russell warm!

I arrived around lunchtime on Wednesday; the first soundness jog-up was scheduled for late afternoon.  OMG, THE SUN WAS SHINING (This never happens; the T3D is usually held in 30 mph wind with a cold rain, during which I wear all the clothes in my suitcase at one time)!  I held on for dear life as the golf cart launched into warp drive to collect order of go sheets, distribute them to Gary from GRC, our dedicated photographer, Brian O'Connor (yeah, that one), smart-ass the entertaining announcer, TD, ground jury, and myself (jog steward) and one fellow yearly volunteer who also doubles as the stabling manager (MASSIVE job who is in charge of everything including safety checks, shavings, payments, posting announcements, answering 1,000 questions, and keeping the snack bowl stocked).  We also hold a briefing for riders, led by Stephen Bradley of how to organize your time and pace on endurance day (roads and tracks, steeplechase, cross country).  The riders stare back like spotlit kittens on a highway.

Post-jog, there is dinner to prepare for, dressage tests to be organized on clipboards with 27 pens apiece for judges and scribes, more orders of go for the warmup steward and all the rest (that printer's already smoking in protest),  The arena is set up, and everyone is already in pre-freak-out mode about endurance day (Friday).

The 10-minute box:  the last thing between you and XC

Thursday, as the frightened kittens riders perform their tests in the sandbox, I am once again clinging to a golf cart that is surely performing outside of its design specifications as we bounce off clumps of dirt on the side of a hill.  Have all the flags been staked for roads and tracks?  Where is the steeplechase practice jump?  Will the steeplechase be the same for Novice and Training (nah, they hedge-trimmed inbetween)?  Has someone fixed that decoration that blew over?  How are we going to stretch the 10 extra Friday volunteers (for shame, peeps, for shame) over 47 positions?  Is the 10-minute box roped off?  Can someone put out the finish flags for phase C?  Where is the start box for D?  Who will be control for cross country and will they be on the same radio channel as roads and tracks?  Has anyone seen the TD?  Have we picked rider reps yet?  Don't tell them how much paperwork it involves.  No one has STILL fixed the blowover?  Thank cod vet school minions are showing up to help in the 10-minute box!  Will we ever convince the kittens that the end of B and the start of C are the same location?  By the way, did anyone ever mark that?   

You get the idea.

I managed to steal about 30 minutes to watch Tremaine Cooper (FEI course builder and excellent teacher) and Stephen Bradley coach some of the riders through steeplechase practice after their dressage tests.  Two words:  FAST and FUN.  Just let go, ride the gallop, and it becomes a beautiful thing.

Want it done right?  Hire OCD girl.

Then I spent about 1.5 hours putting together all the clipboards for endurance day judges, talking through the system with the volunteer coordinator, labeling, re-labeling, stacking, mapping, and hoping people would actually show up.   After that, it was helping Michele, our magical, incredible prize coordinator, organize prize buckets and loot from a variety of donors and sponsors.

Then it was more dinner, including more attempts by our dedicated volunteer vet, Dr. Julie, and Max Corcoran (do I even need to explain who she is?) to teach riders how to untangle the pile of 4 phases of string and make it into a smooth line of endurance day awesomeness:  A - B - C - 10 min box - D - vet check - done.

Led by a cold beer and a warm bed, I was passed out by 9:30 pm.  And there were still two days to make happen, two days to give 50 lucky people the (safe!) ride of their lives around a championship level course.  Easy....

To be continued...      

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The Horseman's Decision

Dr. Bob warned me on Tuesday that Encore would be sore for a while following a rather large chiropractic adjustment and recommended that I keep him on bute for the rest of the week.  I asked if he would be ok to do the horse trial and he didn't say no.  But I saw a look that I knew and I wondered.  Looking back, I think he made a gamble and because he knows me, hoped it would work.

I schooled Encore lightly on Thursday, some walk/trot lateral and stretching work and a few crossrails.  He felt great.

We trailered to the Horse Park on Friday and settled in for the night.  I wanted to hack him that evening, but ran out of time and daylight and we had to settle for a walk.

Carolina dawn.

 The Moment of Weakness

Dressage warmup was ugly.  Encore was unfocused.  I regretted not making the time to at least longe him the day before.  He had no bend, ignored my leg except to leap forward from every application.  He was stiff, cranky, and anticipatory.  40 minutes of work brought some improvement and I thought we might squeak through.

We didn't.  He turned like a motorcycle, ignored every aide, had no bend in either direction, stiffened and braced whether I was soft or not, and generally brought me near to tears by the end.  Which is almost impossible.  I made a promise on this blog that I would be open about the whole process, that I would not create some kind of false Facebook life where only the good is shared.  So yes, there is a video.  A sad, sad video.  Erm, at least I am getting better at sitting up straight?  And yes, yes he is violently allergic to the rail and wanders drunkenly down the long side like a lost cow. 



I slumped in despair when we left the arena.  Arriving back at our stall, where we were next door to our friend Sue and her magical, wonderful homebred, Rocky The Amazing Horse, I finally said it out loud:  "This just makes me want to give up.  I want to pack up my trailer right now and go home."

The Rally

I didn't.  I took a deep, shaky breath and took a long look at my horse.  I gave him a snack and a drink and thought hard.  He is a worker bee, he does not generally just behave like an asshole because he can.  Gearing up for stadium jumping (it was a one day HT), I decided to feel every step and carefully evaluate what was going on beneath me.

He jumped five or six warmup fences well, moving up when I asked and mostly maintaining a rhythm.  But he leaned hard on the left rein and his left lead canter was a bit flat.  We started our course and after jump 1 when he hit the ground running, the pieces began to form a clearer picture.

He ran at the jumps and about halfway through, started pulling rails behind.  There were only 9 fences so it ended quickly and as we walked out, the answer was clear:  his left hip was still sore, despite the bute and he needed more time.  Apparently a few jumps was ok.  15 was too many.

The Big Decision 

We began our walk over to XC, my first thought being, "Well, we might as well finish."  Then I paused.  Why?  There was nothing to gain -- the course was EXACTLY the same as the once we jumped at 5 Points, there were no new challenges.  I hadn't checked our dressage score, but I've gotten fairly accurate in my assessments and it certainly was not competitive and we'd just pulled at least 3 rails.  I knew my horse was sore and there was nothing to be gained by running him up and down hills for 4 minutes, knowing he would jump flat, chip in, and generally try his best while being physically compromised.  That would just be stupid.

So I walked over to the steward (who was very kind and sympathetic, thank you), calmly informed her we were withdrawing because my horse was sore, and returned the barn to pack up.

The legendary CHP steeplechase infield would not see this Thoroughbred's hoofprints today.

Disheartening?  Absolutely.  A hard choice?  Not really, because I strive to always put my horse first.  Frustrating?  Well, considering my day would have been better spent drinking and setting $300 on fire, yes, I'd say so.  Six hours of driving and we had neither learned nor developed a thing.

The Aftermath

I knew someday it was a choice I would have to make -- looking out for my horse in the long term vs. the short term gratification of completing an event.  It was a choice I will never forgive myself for not making for Solo and it cost us both a great deal.  It was the indisputably right choice to make for Encore yesterday.  I was also encouraged that people in stabling near us that I didn't even know expressed their support and good wishes for our choice and our future when we made it back.

I don't think there is any real damage done; I will talk to Dr. Bob on Monday and assess.  The only real stressor is that we have four weeks and I'm already $400 in to the VA Horse Trials in November.  A part of me wants to just give up, scratch, move the surgery up and be done with it.  This fall season was supposed to be fun, the last good thing I had to look forward to for a long time.  Since 5 Points, it has not been fun.

Because I think it all traces back to that point (ha, see what I did there):  Encore was going very well and had an excellent dressage test.  But he had two big slips on XC on the hard ground and even then, I felt something that I couldn't identify and he jumped poorly on Sunday.  Now I am just upset with myself for not figuring out the problem sooner -- a tweaked up back that just needed a reset and some time, which I attempted to do too close to a competition because I was too slow.

But I am stubborn.  Perhaps stupidly so.  But I'm not giving up just yet; I never thought for a second any of this would be easy.

As of this past Wednesday, he is tapped for studs and wore them on Saturday, so we shall have no more slipping.  Hopefully, all he needs is a bit more time for his hip to settle and rest and he will be back to good.  Did you hear that, big, young, thing?  Get good, I need you!

Oh, we'll be back.  The dream will not die that easily.

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Encore Goes Training!

Only without extended trot.

I can see your face now:  o.o

That's what mine looked like on Saturday too.  To be fair, one never does know what you'll get with a schooling horse trial, but I have been to a number of excellent ones in our area and never gave it a second thought.  This particular trial had its inaugural run this spring; the farm owner is lovely, gracious, generous woman, who allows us to school on her her amazing XC facilities and enjoy her gorgeous farm.  There were some hiccups (and 30 mph wind!) in what was Encore's first BN HT, not unanticipated given that this was their first go at putting it on.  I sent some email feedback on points that I LOVED and points that I thought could be improved to make for a smoother experience.  So I decided to give it another chance.

Sigh.

Our dressage test was once again a llama parade on downhill grass (Encore has not quite mastered the balanced AND round AND go down a hill thing yet).  Even though our score was slightly better than the one we received at Five Points, I was very unhappy with the test and my horse was tense and unhappy in the "arena."

The rather humbling downside of going to a schooling event in Southern Pines is that half or more of your division is probably made up of people who have, at one time or another, ridden around Rolex, or train 8 horses a day.  The horse before you and the horse after you will very likely perform a soft and lovely dressage exhibition that doesn't even have a whiff of llama hovering in the smallest corner.  You are certainly left with no false impressions as to how you stack up in the wide eventing world!!!!

Ride times were again so close together that you'd have to be a marathon runner to walk your courses and get back in time for your jump times, because locales were far apart.  Fortunately, I keep my bike in the back of my truck during eventing season; it helped some, but I was exhausted already when I finished the course walk and got on to jump.

The stadium warmup was.....uncontrolled chaos in a very small space.  Encore cantered around very nicely and jumped well, but at once point, we slid to a halt as the path in front of us was completely blocked by two horses leaping and spinning and we had no where to go.  My horse watched with much curiosity, like what is up with that???

The course itself had walked okay, but was taking down riders left and right with refusals and missed lines, many at the first fence.  I closed my leg to it and told Encore it was over or through and he did it all!  The lines were very twisty and difficult, especially for a green horse and we pulled the last rail, a big oxer off of a bending lines of 4 or 5 strides.  But I was proud of him for being in the half of the division that survived it and making 9 out of 10 challenging fences clean jumping efforts! 



Side note:  Even though we've been at this for a year now, because of my job and travel, much of Encore's training is still rough around the edges, so he still remains quite green about some things in comparison to a horse who is ridden and in training every day.  Finesse will come with time, but one of the hardest parts of being a working adult amateur is FINDING (usually MAKING) that time.  I almost feel as if I am letting him down a bit because he has enormous ability and I should be presenting it better -- I know that he doesn't know that, but I do.  And since I won't be able to ride after November for quite some time, we are out there, rough edges and all, while I still can.

Cross country  was definitely a tough course if you didn't have an honest, bold, and steerable horse.  Lucky me!  There was even a mini Stockholm slide (watch for fence 11, a small log with a drop slide behind it) that Encore was sure had no ground on the other side.  Fortunately, stumbling/walking over a  jump still counts as "jumping."  It was very different from any course I have ridden with several new challenges, so I really enjoyed it -- I could tell Encore was getting a bit tired, we did this whole event in 3 hours (0.0) but he jumped well to the end....and then fell asleep in his water bucket.  You can watch the helmet cam, but I advise you to tilt your left ear about 45 degrees to your left shoulder -- we had so little time to get ready for jumping, I just slapped it on the helmet, so the horizon is, well, unconventional.



Because of the complexity of questions asked and the rideability the jump courses demanded, I did leave feeling as if we had just completed a Training Level HT with slightly smaller jumps.  I'm not sure how I feel about it.  On one hand, yes, I am proud of Encore for finishing it!  On the other though, this fall was meant to be confidence-building mileage -- and I'm not sure bombing around sharp turns in showjumping is quite that.  I also don't really enjoy having to dash around the entire time like a headless chicken.   Efficient is great, but give me a chance to sit and eat my WHOLE granola bar at least and for my horse to get a snack and a drink, since we don't ALL travel with staff.

Again, the farm and owner are wonderful and it is a big, generous thing to open your land and private property so other riders can use the facilities you have built and I am always grateful for that.  I am a bit sad that it appears my feedback fell on deaf ears, but I am not an organizer (HUGE job) so there may be limitations of which I am not aware.

We all also have choices of where we go to compete and this has taught me that not all are the same and not every event will have the same expectations of your horse, even though you are the same level.  There were definitely lessons learned both positive and negative, so now we move forward to our next event, back at CHP, where I DO know what to expect and what is expected of me. 

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Horse Trials = Ridiculously Expensive Lessons In Horsemanship

Edited to add:  there appear to be some photo sizing issues in Firefox.  When viewed in IE or Chrome, they appear normal to me.  All photos have been uploaded at the smaller size, I don't know what's up with that.  Sorry, working on it.  Oh, Firefox, you disappoint me so, I have loved you long time... If you click on the pictures, you can see them at normal human size (as opposed to ginormous).

And nothing makes you feel like your HT experience was complete like sitting on the curb at AutoZone on your way home, waiting for a clerk to come bring you a new truck battery (my back was not in the mood to be lifting batteries).  Ends up, he took too long, so I stole his tools and did it myself.

It started well though and I'm going to try to keep the story short and instead, crash your browser with media.  Because I'm nice like that.  All photos by High Time Photography, thank you!

Dressage:  Wow, I had a heck of a horse.  For the first time EVER, Encore was completely rideable in the ring.  He was (mostly) soft, he did not anticipate and only had a few tense moments.  He canter was sheer loveliness to sit on.  The judge nailed him hard on almost every movement because he is still a bit counterbent quite often.  I have ridden under her before and knew she was tough, she never liked Solo's work much either.  But as I said before, she doesn't know his journey and she doesn't know what he was like even a week ago, or last Wednesday, when I spent a marathon NO MORE ANTICIPATORY BULLSHIT session that about killed my knee but apparently worked! So me = completely stoked with his test.










Where are my cute points?

Cross Country:  Here, he started to feel the hurt.  Because HE WOULD NOT DRINK ALL DAY.  It was hot and humid and the little bugger would just not slurp any water.  He galloped his heart out and went double clear, but he was getting tired.  The footing was also hard and slick (never experienced that at CHP, would never have dreamed of needing studs there for Novice!) and he lost his hind feet out from under him a couple times, so he jumped around just feeling a bit greener than he is.  Oh, and the last jump on course?  His nemesis which he defeated this past spring.  Ha!  I cooled him off and we went "home" to our wonderful friend's farm where I hoped he would tank up overnight.



















HELMET CAM I REMEMBERED TO TURN ON!  It was supposed to upload to YouTube too.  Crappy software fail.  I'm not thrilled with this one and I'm not sure why it appears we are riding in an earthquake while being pounded by hail, but perhaps you should take some Dramamine first...

I am making this a link for now, because the sizing all wrong and this whole post seems to have imploded blogger. So, CLICK HERE FOR HELMET CAM VID!

The ever-super Sue's perspective:



Stadium:  Sunday woke us up with cool, beautiful air that smelled the way a fall horse trial should.  After jump-starting the rig, sigh, Encore and I went back to the horse park and I expected a clean jump round.  Expected.  When we got to warmup, I found out that my horse had not taken full advantage of his pasture and trough Saturday night and felt a bit tired.  I warmed him up and he was jumping clean, so I let him hang out till it was time to go.  My plan was just to gallop him down the side of the arena to the start flags and just keep my leg on to keep him moving over the fences.

CHP had other plans.  They had apparently had a group meeting and voted to use all their shallowest jump cups.  The hollow "thunk" of rails in sand had been a common sound all day.  So while Encore jumped double clear with the first 2/3 of his body, his tired back toes tapped a rail.  Or five.  I couldn't be upset with him, really, and I have a call in to David to see if he will help me analyze if there is anything we could have done differently.  But Encore never gave up and never hesitated, so his heart was there.  Naturally, once he walked back to the trailer, he drank two buckets of water.  *eyeroll*

But he looked pretty...




It looked bigger, mom!




A little focus fail, but he looked too cute to pass it up.

The round:



In the end, I wouldn't have changed a thing and I already have a solution for the water issue -- I think the water in my container was just stale and I did not think like a horse and fill his bucket from the park hose until Sunday.  Sigh.  Nonetheless, I am very happy with his performance and overjoyed with his dressage transformation (I hope it sticks) and very much look forward to our next competition, a schooling trial on the 22nd.

This weekend though, we will hit the mountains, build some butt muscles, drink some beer, and be judged by no one but a few arrogant grey squirrels.  Who says Thoroughbreds can't do it all?

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A Sneak Peak At A Horse Trial High

Thank you to all of you who sent good juju our way this weekend!!

First off, CONGRATULATIONS to our friend Sue (owner of beautiful farm where we meet David in VA) and her mare, Grace, who finished 3rd in Grace's first Prelim!!!!!  AHHHH!

If you checked the live scores, you might have thought disaster occurred, as our number was, ummmm, not exactly spectacular.  Or even average.  Good thing I am not one of those nutty competitive people or I would have quit several years ago.

But you know what?  It was a fantastic weekend for TFS.  One of the reasons I love eventing is that the judging is relatively objective, but that also means that the judges only see a snapshot of you and your score does not reflect where you are or how far you've come in your journey with your partner.  That is why I ride for me, to find holes in my training, to improve upon my last attempt and of course, to RIDE THE XC COURSE, DUH, WHY DO YOU THINK WE PUT UP WITH ALL THIS OTHER CRAP??!  Ahem.

Why was it so great?  Well, full story with pictures and video (yes, I remembered to actually TURN ON the helmet cam) are on the way after much uploading, but I'll give you a hint:

I got to ride this horse (photos by High Time Photography) --

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How To Stalk Us, I Mean, Check On Us

It's late, bridles are sort of clean, pads are sort of washed (hey, I've been busy), the trailer is sort of mostly packed, the horse is DEFINITELY clean.  The truck still needs diesel and my bag is half empty, but, well, I guess it'll do.

What you really want:

Unicorn Ride Times:    Dressage -- 12:52 pm               XC -- 4:00 pm (sheesh)

Stadium for Novice is supposed to occur sometime around lunchtime on Sunday.

LIVE SCORING!  Click it.  Unless I screwed up.  Then don't look.

Want to stalk someone else?  RIDE TIMES!

Deep breath -- the fall season officially begins and Away Again is ready to take it away.  Again.  You know?  You know.  I know.

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Look Whose HelmetCam I Found??!

Remember how I said back here that I had tried and failed to turn the helmet cam on in mid-course at full TB gallop? 

Well, guess what?

I discovered last night that I didn't fail!

So hang on for the ride, because here are XC jumps 5-15 of Encore's very first Novice completion this spring!

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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!

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Your CHP Novice Coursewalk

Team Flying Solo basecamp

Mea culpa for no helmet cam, but I CAN give you a coursewalk, plus a few bonus bits of fun.  So take a deep breath, put yourself in the Carolina sandhills, and gallop out of the start box for your horse's first Novice course.

A simple log pile to get things going.  Then a huge U-turn to...

The ubiquitous CHP cabins.  Run down the hill to...

The BIG brush.  It has wide steps on both sides.  Say hi to our buddy Sue!

Gallop up the hill to the coop.  No visual distractions here.  Focus on your jump.

Run through the tree tunnel to 5 & 6.  Since they are numbered separately, you ARE allowed to circle between them.  But I want to challenge my horse, so we ride straight through.

The course had a nice flow up until 6.  Then it went all wonky.  You galloped down a steep hill and wound through several tree paths and made an odd turn to the table at 7.

Now you immediately rebalance down the hill so your horse is ready for the baby sunken road and rolltop at 8.  Sue is getting tired of being in my pictures.  Too bad!

Down another steep hill to the trakehner.  Encore had never jumped one before so eyes UP, light tap with the go stick and LEAP over and charge up the hill to wind another crazy line to 10.

Sue insists on being the human element for scale.  Now that you have found 10, it's a simple cabin, than a hard left turn.

The water at 11 is a simple run through, keep your eyes on your next jump and don't ogle.  As an aside, this is only HALF of the big water complex at CHP, is it not amazing??

Sue threatens to tackle as you pick your way through the trees at an angle to 12.  Encore knocked a hind leg here, it was an awkward turn and he got an off stride, but he made it work.

Now you get your stirrup back, dodge a few more trees and go down another steepish hill to 13, and immediately balance so...

You can run through the second water at 14.  Don't miss your line because you have charge up the hill to...

15 A & B.  This is a combination so NO circling.  Up the bank, one stride, jump, then a horrible right turn IMMEDIATELY to...

Our not-so-friendly 16.  But it was a terrible line.  You can see the finish flags right behind it.  Sigh.

Then, ostensibly, you have done it!  As I noted earlier, after jump 6, the course notably lost its flow.  For a Novice horse, he should be able to gallop nicely through it in a rhythm and the jumps should come up naturally, as they did with our previous, much beloved course designer, Jeff Kibbie.  But he has moved on, sadly, so it will be interesting to see how things develop.  I will send in my event evaluation to provide some feedback, organizers do value those, so send yours in too!

And just for fun, Indian Smurf made some new friends:

Our VERY favourite starter, Bill -- you can often find him at CHP and several of our area schooling trials.  He always makes you laugh and relax before you set off and was recently featured in EventingUSA magazine for his awesomeness!

Our TD and friend, Cindy (who is also our national Adult Rider coordinator) and her apprentice TD, Tim, enjoying the shade of the golf cart and having a smurfy good time!

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