Better Things to Come

Looking back at my Equilab Tracker, until August 12 I had ridden once in 7 weeks. Between work, haying, farming, and vacation Sierra has had a long hiatus, and after a much needed vaycay I was excited to get home and get back on my pony.

With the Online Dressage Show coming up (Deadline Aug 24, go Enter!!) I decided to bomb through some tests just to get a baseline and some feedback, which means I need to actually ride if I want a semi-decent score. I'm one of two judges and therefor i'll only get a score from the other judge but i'm okay with that as my purpose isn't to try and win.

Bribed with cookies

Yesterday I was about to get on and one of my friends/boarders arrived to see her horse and offered to take some video for me. I haven't had any video other than the video from our Dressage Clinic back in June in literally like, years, and after watching the video from my ride yesterday I have some * serious * work to do. On the plus side, we have been having some issues with our leads and after watching the video's, I am confident that it's 90% my fault and now I can work better to improve things. With the pain of Kidd's retirement still raw, I was worried that her lead problems meant something was wrong.

Having barely ridden the past 2 years or so really takes it's toll on a body and your natural feel. Lately I feel quite foreign on a horse and my fluidity is all but gone. At some point I developed a habit of riding 'backward' in the sense that I seem to pull back rather than push forward, and my hands have gotten jiggly. I also noticed my leg swinging a bit in the Canter, and my infamous wandering hand has returned with a vengeance... but at least now I'm more aware of it, and can work to improve things.

OTTB Cow Pony?

After each ride, I have a routine of brushing, massaging, stretching and liniment to the neck, shoulder, back, hind quarters and major joints and tendons of the legs... but being so out of shape, I have taken to also putting liniment on myself after each ride (seriously) and doing some stretches.

Send Halp

Things to work on (Personal):

Hands forward
Solid base (lower leg back)
More contact in the saddle during canter; don't pump
Correct Hands
Keep chest open
Trust Her

Things to work on (Sierra):

Soften topline
Improve suppleness, especially in Canter
Develop better straightness on the right rein
Figure out our lead departures
Improve response to leg aids (especially lateral)
Improve transitions - drastically

I'm Awkward, but she's cute

2nd Ride back in the tack and I was dead

Supper time! I'll be doing a blog post soon about her weight issues and what i'm feeding now!

Comments

10 Needles

On February 6, 2018 the day had come. Kidd was booked in to see the travelling Vet who comes to our area to follow up on our appointment last month. In our last appointment , we isolated Kidd’s issues and confirmed he is not 100% in the hind end; a concern I had lurking deep in my muddled brain for an unfortunate number of years. I had been convinced by peers and coaches alike that Kidd was fine - I just couldn’t ride him well enough - however my growing suspicions convinced me to seek a professional opinion. My concerns were quickly confirmed when he saw the travelling High Performance Equine vet in early January. Upon failing the flexions in both hind limbs, we put Kidd on Previcox while I tracked his reaction and wrapped my head around the possibility of needing to have Joint Injections done. Scrub-a-dub-dub... Note how 'different' Kidd's front feet are Unfortunately shortly after seeing the Vet in January, Kidd su ccumbed to the viral co...

Vet Trip #2 For The Big Lady

I don't talk about her a ton, but we were given Lass, a Clydesdale mare with a rough past who is well into her teens, last fall. Friends of ours who live on an acreage but really aren't 'horse people' 'acquired' her after seeing what kind of condition she was in. They had a vet out to address some concerns that included some sort of fungal issue on her legs and open sores housing fly larvae on her back. The Vet said her teeth were fine, and they did their best to get some weight on her. They attempted to sell her, but quickly realized it was in her best interest to just give her away to an experienced home. They're friends of ours, and they asked us if we would take her - My hubby has wanted a draft for some time, so he twisted my rubber arm and I agreed. Shortly after our friends acquired her When we went to look at her, it took 4 of us about 30 minutes to catch her. She was extremely standoffish and made it clear she didn't want anything ...

Farewell, Sierra | How & Why I Chose My Trainer

I've mentioned several times now that Sierra is going down to my trainers, Carol Ann's (often referred to as "CA" because #lazy), and I thought it fitting to make a post solely related to my decision and the process I took to find her. I have never used a trainer before and it's been several years since I had the pleasure of having a regular coach (IE: a clinician who came here 6x a year), and it wasn't a decision I made lightly. Perhaps I feel the need to explain myself and work through my decision to clarify things in my own brain, or perhaps I thought my situation may help others who find their way to my blog. Either way, as I write this future-scheduled post, Sierra is currently on the road and I am a total nervous-nelly about the entire situation. Trying on Liners to prepare to pack Late last summer, I was driving 'round and 'round dragging a square baler for hours on end while I contemplated all life's biggest questions. As I f...

Alberta Equest

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