What a Smart Cookie

I had a lesson yesterday, it went amazing. See, it was so good I couldn’t get past the first sentence without announcing it.

We are FINALLY starting to get our lead changes. When I first bought KD we tried for about a year on them before giving it some time. She would become so frustrated that it wasn’t worth the fight. Especially only being 15 it wasn’t that big of a deal to me. Now that we are actively training and showing it was becoming a shame that she couldn’t do lead changes. She is a great mover, does super in the flats, and she is a cute jumper. If you trot in the ring, even a skip-change is an automatic 55 points. We could have 8 fabulous jumps and that would be the reason she doesn’t place as well?

We are starting to get them about half of the time. I am also learning how to teach her to do it because Hal had auto-changes and I basically just leaned and he did the work. I think that KD and I do better when we are learning together, we become easier on each other.

We worked in a circle at one end of the arena and worked on them. She is much better going from right to left, what a lefty. Which is OK because at least now I know what I am supposed to feel. We only 10 tries or so because John had already flatted her around two days before and we don’t want her to become frustrated on us again.

We then worked on a small gymnastic. It was trotting in then a one stride. Pretty simple stuff. I don’t know why but that day I was kind of nervous about jumping. Even the Xs were freaking me out a little. We worked over it about 3 times when John moved the second fence to a vertical, then he kept raising it.

Well, I decided to put my big girl pants on and keep going. We ended up jumping 3ft!! I couldn’t believe it. With the gymnastic it’s much easier to do this because I don’t have to worry about distances. Plus KD jumped it like she has been doing it for years!! The best part was that we were getting the lead changes on the backside, until she starting to just pick up the correct lead over the fence. What a smart cookie.

KD Jumping 3ft  Check out the video!!

Competition Season Begins

Kd and I had a horse show this past weekend. We were great! The show was HUGE! There was about 114 riders all together in the show. That is huge for a local non rated horse show.

It was about 94 degrees and the show waved hunt coats and said we could wear light colored polos. I wore a white polo. Yea, I probably should have stuck it out and worn my hunt coat but it was so hot and all I really wanted was good rounds not so much for a good ribbon. If it came down to hunt coats between two riders I didn’t really care enough to be crazy hot.

We did our jumping rounds around 12:15. I got all of the strides in all of my classes but at the back side of the fences especially coming home Kd was refusing to do a nice skip change and insisted on kicking out to get a change. I did my best on making it look like what she was doing was no big deal to not bring attention to it, you never know when a judge looks down! A couple of lines she wound switch over the fence and that was nice. I loved our rounds. I couldn’t have asked for it to go any better.

The flat classes went at 3:30. It was the longest wait ever. I even hosed down Kd after we jumped to cool her down. The hunter flat went really well, I found good spacing and kept to the quarter line on the judges line, making sure that I could be seen where ever I was. I had her in a nice frame and a bigger trot and I kept her loose at the canter. The only thing that I thought was a deal breaker was that on the left lead she was coughing up a lung and snorting like she had rabies. I remember thinking to myself Can’t this wait two minutes!! Then when they asked for the walk Kd swapped her lead RIGHT in front of the judges box. I brought her down to the walk within seconds and we lined up in the ring. I couldn’t believe when they called #288. That was my number!! I was shocked. I guess all of Johns nagging about making small movements that matter over making a fuss with her made all the difference.

All together we got 1st on the Beginner Hunter on the flat out of 18, then we got 3rd on the Eq on the flat out of 18, then we got 6th over fences in the Eq out of 32.

It was really amazing with the 6th over fences, I almost scratched that round because I thought that Kd was becoming very fussy. I am glad I went back in the ring and worked it out with her because it ended up being my best round.

I even got a little trophy!

You Jumped the Crap Out of that Kate

I had a clinic with Diane Carney on Sunday. It was FABULOUS!! We were in the 2ft group but we ended up jumping a little higher. It was also really hard because it was 91degrees outside. So hot!

We started off doing a trot pole exercises, we got a lot of praise in that section. We had to go to the poles go all the way to the fence then turn. Really focusing on not cutting the corners. The only thing that was pretty hard about it was that KD has a huge step and I had to keep half halting her and then she kept getting pissy for me to get out of her way.

Then we started to jump a little course. It was a gymnastic 2 stride around to the second jump of a line. Kd was fabulous. We had to work on our pace up to the gymnastic but other than that we did really well.

We started doing our course, which was 13 fences. It was huge and it was across an even huger arena. It was great, KD had a rodeo moment right before I jumped the first jump. But I forgot about it once she was done doing whatever she was doing, the first half of the course was great! Then we got to the first jump of a three stride line. She jumped the CRAP out of it. My face ended up meeting her neck because I wasn’t expecting it.

The second time that we jumped the jump was much better!

Then from that three stride we had to turn right after it to the bridge jump. It was intense. About 6 strides out I remember thinking to myself “I am going to die” Kd and I have only jumped one oxer in 4 years. I couldn’t believe that coming to the jump she never backed off of the jump. We actually jumped it out of stride. It was awesome. Of course though she jumped the CRAP out of it. Which is okay! This is a picture of the second time that we jumped it.

Overall it was an awesome experience. I am so proud that KD and I have accomplished this together. Earlier in the week my trainer asked me if I wanted to even ride KD in the clinic, I could have taken a school horse in it. But somehow I had this feeling that KD and I were ready for this. I am now so excited for the next horse show in June.

Here is a couple more pictures!

Being a Guinea Pig

I have become a guinea pig. Our barn is in search of a new trainer and because I like to come out early in the morning I have been the test dummy. Today I had a lesson with a man named John. He is a very accomplished rider but decided to become a fire fighter for a couple of years and then decided to take the plunge back into the horse industry.

We started off by working in the smaller out door ring on the flat. I could tell right away that it had been a number of years since he had taught a lesson. I warmed up at the trot and walk then he decided to change the length of my stirrups. It seems like every time I ride with a new trainer my stirrups have to change lengths. But today it felt really good to have them one hole longer. I felt that I had a lot more contact with KD without getting in her face. It was much easier to wrap my legs around KD and I could still keep a light seat. Almost as though when my stirrups are shorter I am perching on KD and with them longer I was ridding with KD.

Then we made our way to the big ring. That big ring scares the crap out of me. First of all it is HUGE. Plus the far end of the arena has woods on the other side of the fence. KD is convinced that there is a bear that is going to jump out and get her. Once we started jumping John started to remember how to teach a lesson and it was fabulous. He learned that I had a hard time keeping the same pace. KD was jumping perfectly though! Then we brought it back down to doing canter poles and getting 6 strides then 5 then 7 and it was such a learning experience that I haven’t had in a while in a lesson. It also made me taller in my body and I can tell that my abs are going to be sore tomorrow.

I was such a proud mom of KD today. She has been such a trouper these past couple weeks.

Bridles and Saddles

I am crazy about cleaning my tack. When I was younger I cleaned my tack after I rode. Every single time. Now that I am older and have work, school, and trying to keep some sort of a social life I clean my tack at least once a week if not more.

It has always been the same routine. I use hot water with Murphy’s Soap Oil. It gives it the perfect amount of shine and keeps it clean and it doesn’t dry out the leather. I do the same with my saddle, boots, chaps. Once in a while I put conditioner on it.

My parents paid for all of my tack when I was a teenager. I was very lucky and my birthday was just 5 days before Christmas. I used that as a bundling package to get nice tack. Even this year my mom gave me a card that read “Remember that saddle I bought for you 3 years ago, that still applies this year for your birthday”. I think that is the reason why I am so devoted to cleaning my tack. If I don’t care for my tack now and it does happen to break I know that my mom is not going to pay for a new one. So I better take care of it now!

I do wrap my bridle after I use it. EVERY TIME! Sometimes when I am tired I tell myself that I can leave it undone. I still end up wrapping it. It is probably one of my best habits.

That is also how I know when someone rides my horse. When I ask someone to ride KD I can always tell that they did it because they can never wrap it exactly how I wrap it.

Not Enough Time!

Let me start off by saying this, Kd has been wonderful these past few weeks! I just love her! I’m sad to say that I did not attend the horse show this week. I started a new job this week and I am one of two employees. And we need two employees at all times. The 13 hour days before the horse show had started to take a toll on me.
I found myself awake at 4:30 in the morning after i had just worked 13.5 hours trying to organize my day. When I realized that there was no way I could fit it all in. 😦
There will be other horse shows and it will be a better experience when I’m not tired and cranky.

The good news is that Kd got a bubble bath…. That is probably her bad news!

It Takes a Village

Two weeks ago KD and I went through one of our biggest rough patches. She was mean, she was mean on the ground and riding. She wouldn’t stop spooking or bucking. Then she wouldn’t go forward then she wouldn’t slow down. I was becoming a nervous wreck. I started having panic attacks because I was so affriad of what kind of mood she was in at that moment. What was going to cause her to shut down again. It came to a point where I was seriously thinking about putting her out to pasture to retire.

When it came time for my lesson my trainer, Kelly, decided that we weren’t even going to lesson. She could see it on my face that I was shutting down. Just thinking about trying to jump KD let alone canter her was making me want to go back to my car and cry. Kelly then brought me back to the indoor to ride and she kept an I on me while I was hacking KD. Kelly pointed out that I was hanging on KD’s face and asking her to go to slow. All this was doing was just irritating her. “Just let her pick her speed and just ride it for half an hour” and surprisingly I did. It was a super fast trot that almost made it hard to post.  I was so nervous but I just kept at it. Kelly needed to back off of me one minute then push me the next. It became more of a therapy lesson.

Then the next plan of action was to have KD’s weekly training ride be done by the new trainer Eric. KD was ridden hard, harder than she has been ridden in years and it paid off in the end. Eric has this presence when he gets on a horse. He has a plan and he wants it done a certian way. If the horse doesn’t comply then he will get after him. He is a very nice though, he doesn’t yell or scream at the horses he just rides through it. Its amazing to see a rider who doesn’t have a temper.

Once I rode KD after her training ride. It was like having a new horse. She wanted me to rub on her and baby her. She just rode around with her ears forward like she was the best horse in the whole world and did everything that I could ask.

The next lesson I had we went and jumped around a whole course! It was amazing! I like to think that KD’s parents are me and Eric. Eric gets to be bad cop and I get to be good cop. Its having someone else knowing exactly what you are going through. It takes a village to get horses in shape, happy, and healthy.

Now, KD and I are going to a horse show May 6th! That is how good we have been getting along. She is sound, healthy and happy.

This is KD and I from September of 2011. We did amazing that day. We got a 5th and 6th in over fences and a 1st in the flat. The best part was that there were about 19 people in the class. It was real tough competition and she did great!

Feeling Great!

Kd is officially back in business! I have been cantering her around for about two weeks and not much has happened. She has been a really good girl and is trying super hard to do what I am asking her to do.

In her weekly training rides she has started to pop over some X’s and she enjoyed it! She has been going around like an old school horse, nothing has been bothering her.

Next week we are going to start our lessons together again. I am so excited that my baby girl is feeling better!

When the Wind Blows

We have started working in the outdoor! I am so excited to get fresh air, the weather has been in the 80’s this past week, so weird for March. With warm weather comes a whole new set of problems becoming non-problems, and easy things becoming incredibly hard.

On Monday I rode KD outside for the second time this season. I started off walking her as I normally do, which is at least 5-10 minutes to get her muscles warmed up and realaxed. The mare wanted no part of this. It was windy and she kept flipping her head every couple of feet, obviously in her mind bugs were attacking her face, but I had yet to seen a bug or fly.

I continued to keep her trotting in a small circle at one end of the arena, trying to ignore her episodes of head flinches. Every time she would flip her head I just wanted to get after her and make it quit. But in the end I knew that I had to ignore her because by tomorrow It will be a thing of the past. I kept saying to myself,  “just ignore it, just ignore it, just ignore it.” Eventually It got better and I kept her trotting for about 25 minutes, changing directions and halting to keep her focused on me and not on the wind or the bugs that weren’t really there. I really tried to focus on keeping my legs quiet  against her and using my legs to steer her and not my hands. I also tried to be aware of one of my bad habits, hanging on her face when I get nervous.

The next day I rode I was really happy that I didn’t get after her because she only flipped her head 2 times and was really slow. Sometimes I have to just go ahead and follow her schedule.

I still love her though. It was 5 years in February since I bought her, where has the time gone?

March=Bath Time!

I love this weather. But the first time I go outside I am terrified. I think of all of the things that could go wrong, if this new venture is too much too soon to put on KD. I always give KD the benefit of the doubt, and I trust KD. Trusting KD doesn’t mean that I let my guard down.

I first rode Stacey inside for a lesson. Stacey amazes me each time I ride her. My trainer, Kelly, starts us off by doing each line by itself then adding them together one at a time. Otherwise I can get ahead of myself and mess everything up, it helps me calm down and breathe while I ride.  Stacey is so forgiving, I can do a total “chair in the air” and the next time around she can just forget it. But she waits for you to tell her exactly what to do even in her young years she is figuring this out. I was nervous about doing her first gymnastic but she acted like a complete pro.

After my lesson I got KD ready and headed outside. I was a little nervous because she had 4 days off. I am lucky that she likes days off, she rarely gets antsy or strong after a long weekend. She looked around the first lap and then once I started trotting she was super slow, but as I worked her in the warm-up arena she really started using all of her muscles to keep up. In the warm-up ring the footing is off, so one side is going downhill and the other side is riding uphill. Well last summer KD hated that ring. But to my surprise she loved working the trot going uphill. I am hoping that working her uphill again will strengthen her back hind.

I also got the courage to canter her, we only did to laps in a small circle. KD was pretty well behaved but her tail was flipping in the air but I think she was thinking about getting through the soggy footing so she wasn’t sure if she wanted to buck. I felt her frustration coming on so I let her be done with that and gave her a nice bath!