Third Times the Charm

Well lot's to update. Maryland was quite an improvement, but we did not achieve our result of completing an Intermediate.  Dressage was solid and show jumping was soooo much better.  I messed up the first jump, which was a training level vertical, and had that rail.  I just lost the power in the canter, but we were clean the rest of the round and it was much smoother and I felt better.  Still trying to get more in sync with him, but all in all it was a huge improvement.  XC started out fantastic and he felt great through the entire first half.  We had a brush to a right hand 90° turn to a corner...it was pretty slick out due to a lot of rain and guess what...he slipped in the turn and I had a runout at the corner.  I tried to come back around to it, but I really didn't do very much and another runout.  By this time we were both pretty shaken up and shocked and I should've hung it up, but I didn't and I got a big fat E!  At first I was just happy that I had gotten a little bit farther in my quest to go Intermediate, but as reality set in, of course I was disappointed.  I didn't get to try some of the tougher questions on the course including the water.  So we decided to reroute and try and go to New Jersey.  Now, I had officially banned the state of New Jersey from my show schedule.  I had never had luck there...all the way back to Pizzaz and dressage shows...it was CURSED!  But nonetheless, I decided things couldn't get much worse so why not try and break the curse.  So I emailed them and found out they were still accepting entries on Event Entries after the closing date.  So I entered and got ready to go. 

So the Wednesday before the show when times came out, I wasn't on the list...the damn curse.  All day Seth was trying to get ahold of the organizers with no luck.  At this point I'm thinking a higher power really just doesn't want me to go to NJ.  Turns out there was a miscommunication and we were all good and I had my times by Thursday evening...but I was really having doubts during that time of uncertainty.  And so off to NJHP we went to try the Intermediate.  They ran dressage and stadium on Saturday and XC on Sunday which was a bonus for me.  More time to digest the material and be more focused.  I was not sure what to expect...I thought the XC may be a bit difficult knowing they run a 2* there, but again I didn't have much to lose.  So of course I see the class list and it's all Advanced horses and professionals which was quite daunting.  Then after my first warmup we decide to watch a little bit of the Prelim SJ....it was a bloodbath.  We saw 2 falls, multiple refusals including knocking down standards.  That got in my head (imagine that), so dressage was so-so, he got a little tense and we ended up with a 38.  Honestly, considering the competition I really didn't care what my score was and I was freaking out a bit about SJ.  We are still trying to figure out how much time I need in my 2nd warmup.  At MD I felt like I didn't have enough time to warmup my shoulder-in and haunches-in with 10-15 minutes but at NJ I felt I had a bit too much time with 20 minutes, so it's still a work in progress.  So after the Preliminary disasters I was feeling nervous about stadium...I didn't get a chance to walk it and it looked big.  The triple was 2 huge oxers to a vertical, both 1 strides.  I was the last Intermediate to go and watching others the course seemed to be riding much better. 

Courtney warmed me up and he felt great, but I had been there before.  The round was great...I was very pleased again with our improvements, but still have some work to do.  I had changed my bit to a full cheek with a gag converter after MD to try and get him to be more responsive and less curled and it seemed to work...although we are still getting used to it.  So 2 rails down but a much smoother round and improvement...I was happy and relieved to make it to Sunday! 

Now came the "wicked" XC course.  It looked very fair and upon first glance I was OK with it.  I think I'm to the point that I know it's not going to be easy anywhere and there are always going to be a lot of tough questions...but isn't that what Intermediate should be?  Or else everyone would do it!!!  It was definitely tougher than MD, but over the course of the week leading up to the show I had gotten mad and I had a different attitude.  It was basically my old self, motivated and excited to challenge myself and embark upon something new.  We had done all the prepping and now I just had to get it done!  Saturday night was a sleepless night for me.  As time went the bad nerves came...the doubting nerves...the jumps got bigger and closer together in my head and I just got a little wacky.  I was super nervous on Sunday morning.  Seth and Mom were trying to talk to me and get me out of my head, but at this point I just needed to be alone.  I got on and started to warmup but again things were a little different.  The past few shows I just wanted to get on and get it over with so my nerves would be gone.  I tried to embrace them this weekend and enjoy the tension and then relief from getting through and learning.  I really tried to think about what I was doing and have a plan for everything and I think it helped.   My warmup for XC was OK...I saw a bunch of folks come through the water which was pretty tough and it seemed to be riding well, so in this case it was good to watch others unlike stadium.  I was pretty nervouse about #6 which was a left corner just like the one that got us at MD.  We started out on course and again it was riding really well...#6 came and went and he was great.  7 abc was a table, bending 7 strides to 2 BIG skinny brushes 4 strides apart. 
I always get nervous for these b/c he jumps so big over the tables I tend to get thrown around and then overcorrect and miss my line...it rode great he was perfect through it.  He was a bit shifty at the coffin which I think was partly due to the new bit configuration but we were good through there as well.  A few more big tables and then came the water.  We had to make a right had turn sort of away from warmup and he got a little nappy, then it was a house down a steep hill to a big log into the water, left bend 6 strides, house in the water, 6 strides to a skinny brush out.  Well there is no way I got any of that striding correct...it was a bit of a mess with him kind of jumping into the water on all fours trotting a few steps and drifting left leaving an extremely long spot to the jump in the water.  But with my new attitude and Hobby's heart, we got it done...it wasn't pretty but we were clean.  Then we had the trakehner and a long gallop to a shark's tooth looking jump on a angle to 2 offset houses on angles.  Coming up the hill on a gallop I never really checked him back and got him straight...I thought I found my line, but I felt him shift to the left about 3 strides out and I knew I was done...another left runout :(.  I actually used my whip and took my time to turn around and jump it straight...I had 4 strides until the next jump and they weren't big, so I knew I had time to sort out the line.  Looking back I probably should've taken the in straight from the beginning considering the issues I had been having with the left side.  So we got through and there was only one major question left...table to a corner...my favorite.  Luckily it was a straight line and a right corner.  He jumped in big over the table, but I just made sure to not pull on the reins and I sat up and kicked and he stayed right on the line and we got through.  So one runout, but a completion of our first Intermediate.  I can officially say we are an Intermediate team now!!  It hasn't fully sunk in and although we weren't competitive this weekend, we are certainly ready for this level.  I think I've realized that this moveup is harder for us because I don't have any experience at this level and I only ride one horse.  I certainly would ride the water differently if I could do it on a 2nd horse which is what most of the riders at this level can do.  It may just take me more time to figure it out and I have to be ok with that.  I have adjusted my expectations and tried to not let the mistakes (runouts or E's or RF's) get me down.  I got to compete at Intermediate and I feel pretty good about myself and my Hobby!  It was nice to celebrate a success with the Beaventing clan...I know Seth and Mom feel my pain when thing go badly and they feel my joy as well.  I can't always process it right away b/c I'm wound so tight on show day, but as the days pass I am just getting more excited for the future and looking forward to continuing my journey with Hobbs.

 

"Ryde or Die" ~DMX

 

Here we are again two weeks before another try at Intermediate and I'm getting some DMX in my belly.  I'm not as intimidated now seeing the big "I" next to Hobby's name.  I'm definitely feeling different going into this one...I want to classify it as confidence, but I think it's more numbness at this point.  I went to Jumper Schooling at Windurra Farm last week and had a positive experience.  The jumps were Intermediate height and yeah I wish it would've been smoother, but it was good to get out and do a few rounds without a major hiccup.  I still need to get the right pace and make sure he's out in front of me for the larger jumps.  I think that's one adjustment I've not been consistent on...he's got to have the momentum to get over the big oxers and I think that was part of our problem at Windurra and why I felt like the rounds were somewhat disjointed.  I do also need to make sure he's up in front so his shoulder gets out of the way...I did feel like he was getting underneath a lot of the jumps and in my jump workout yesterday I discovered a stronger half halt a few strides out does wonders.  It's all the little things falling into place :).  I'm getting much more comfortable jumping at the 3"11" height now and I'm anxious to build some new standards so I can go even higher.  I want to start thinking about how to be perfect instead of just how to get around...I've had an attitude adjustment!

Seth and Jango will also be making their Recognized debut at MD II at Novice.  They had a positive XC school at Laurel Hill and will be looking for one more school before the show.  They are getting along great and have been building their relationship over the past few weeks.  The flatwork has been looking fabulous and I'm excited to see what this pair can do this year.  He's hoping to qualify for the Novice 3-Day at Waredaca in October.

Unexpected Outcomes

Well the big move up to Intermediate didn't quite go as planned.  I felt prepared and ready for the big day and we started off amazingly well with a 34 in dressage to sit in 3rd place...I was so pumped!!  He was very steady and rideable in the test and I really feel like our warmup method is rock solid.  It was great to show off his skills at this level and score so well. 

Then we were on to Show Jumping...here's where it all fell apart...literally.  He was a little bit rank to start the course, but I wasn't too upset with jumps 1-4.  Jump 5 was a triple bar 2 strides to a vertical, 5 strides to an oxer.  Well it was a bit of a mess and I got to the oxer in 4 1/2, but we made it through.  I overadjusted then and got him a bit backward for a rollback to a skinny and then a bending line to the triple combo.  We hit the triple on stride, so I thought, then all of a sudden I was counting 1 and a half.  He popped over the maximum oxer middle element and popped me right out of the saddle.  So a big fat E and we never made it to XC.  Obviously I was really disappointed to not finish and knew I had some work to do.  I just didn't like the feeling that I wasn't ready and I wasn't good enough.  And I struggled a lot with my confidence in the weeks after the event.  I was doubting EVERYTHING.  I decided to move back down to Prelim for Seneca in June and then see where we were.  The week of Seneca was extremely busy for work and in hindsight I shouldn't have competed this weekend.   I was in Boston for half the week and then Philly for a customer event so it was very hectic.  Plus my ride time was super early and we had to get up at 3am...not a recipe for success.  I rode terrible in dressage and was very disappointed in my test and somehow got a 33.  Show jumping was the reason I was there and I desperately wanted a smooth round.  Luckily, I think, they had the same exact triple combo set in the course, vertical 1 stride big oxer 2 strides vertical.  I walked the course several times and of course was nervous.  During warmup he was extremely testy and nappy and I was worried.  I didn't warm up enough and should've taken more time to make sure he was adjustable and listening, but chalk that up to my bad attitude.  He bolted a bit when I first got in the ring, but I wisely halted him and took my time after they blew the whistle.  I need to try and apply some of my dressage knowledge to SJ...45 seconds is a long time and I need to take advantage of that and try and settle him in before we start.  Anyway, I was really, really happy with the way the course rode.  He wasn't listening well in the turn from 1 to 2 and then I made a move at a long spot and he sort of shuffled into it but that was our only bobble.  Everything else rode exactly as I walked.  And the triple was simple...he skipped right through it.  Everything was set for a 6' takeoff and landing and I really paid attention to the striding and knew if I jumped a little shallow I had to let him roll down, but he's very easy to lengthen so if it seems long most people may need to ride and I need to just settle and if it's at all short I need to WHOA.  I made a really dumb mistake on XC and had a runout at a table...I got there on a really long stride and tried to take it at an angle to better setup for the 110° turn I had to make and I never put my left leg on.  He was right to runout...again disappointing because all of the combos rode great and it felt easy and smooth the rest of the course.  I just had a little mental blackout. 

So Seneca was a bit of a confidence boost, but I really need to figure out how to manage the mental side of the sport.  I'm still shaky and balancing riding at this level with my career has proven to be a lot harder this past year.  The plan is to move back up at MD II in July.  I'm comfortable there and I think it's the next logical place to give it a go.  I've been really focusing on training in jumping and am going to try and tackle a jumper show this week....we'll see how that goes.  I think it will help to just be able to do multiple rounds and smooth it out for confidence.  I'm going to look for more throughout the summer, but it's proving to be difficult to find them at the height I need.  My expectations have been reset now and I'm just looking one show at a time.  I really want to succeed and figure all of this out...I am trying to keep dreaming and believing....my support system is really trying to help me, but I think this is for me to figure out on my own. 

Intermediate here we come...

So it's t minus 3 days until the big move up to Intermediate....I still have trouble seeing the word in print (although I've looked at the entry status a million times this week and still love seeing I next to Hobby's name)!! 
This has been an interesting week so far, I'm a bit of a nutcase, but Seth seems to have expected it.  I'll say that it's been an emotional rollercoaster and we're only half way through the week!  At times I'm surprisingly calm, but I just don't think my body can handle the nervousness all the time...it would be emotional overload!

I started off the week with a fantastic jump school with Martha Redman....we jumped BIG!  I was slightly disappointed because I continued to have trouble finding my rhythm down the diagonal to a big oxer.  I kept softening six strides out and then tried to gun it and ended up with a flat jump.  We were also in an indoor so I think that was backing us both off a little.  I just need to keep the rhythm and ride his canter forward and up all the way to the jump and then we were golden.  And of course the biggest thing is for me to keep my eye up or else Hobby jumps me out of the tack :).  Then on Sunday it was a dressage lesson with David Smith.  He dissected the new movements for me and Hobbs was a rock star.  My biggest aha moment was when David was explaining that the medium trot and canter are collected movements and it's very different from the lengthenings.  His analogy was to think of asking for a rein back with each stride of the mediums.  The rein back happens when all of the forward energy bounces off the bit and transfers his weight to his haunches.  During the mediums I should always be thinking of transferring the weight to the haunches...and he can't get any faster. 

So after these lessons I thought I would feel prepared and ready to go.  But Monday came and so did my feelings of doubt.  I just kept thinking what happens if I screw up?  I don't want to scare him or myself.  I called Courtney to congratulate her on her fantastic weekend at Jersey and she tried to talk me off the ledge, but I wasn't quite there.  Then of course last night I have a pretty terrible ride on him...I just felt tentative and uncomfortable.  Tentative is NOT AN OPTION this weekend!  The fact is I have a great jumper, he's done it before, he loves it, I love it and I've done everything I can to prepare.  Now I just have to believe and have a little faith in us.  It's off to a lesson today with Danny and then I just have to put my game face on and be confident.  I know myself well enough to know that I'm just going through these phases this week...Saturday will come and sure I'll be nervous but we will rise to the challenge!!

Welcome Jango

Seth finally got a little tired of just being my groom and we decided to try and start looking for a new partner for him.  I put the bug in Courtney's ear in Aiken and when we got home we tried a few at her place and Seth really got motivated.  He realized just how much fun jumping is and we really started to ramp up the search and get serious.  About a month ago Seth tried Mr. Bojangles aka "Jango" and it seemed to be a perfect match.  He was really kind and sweet and went very nicely for Seth.  His competition record was somewhat spotty for the past year with several stops at Training and Preliminary, so we were apprehensive.  We decided to take him XC schooling at Fairhill and see what we had to work with.  Well...he was a perfect angel...Seth was schooling most of the Training elements and they looked great!  We signed an agreement with a contingency that Seth would show him at the Fairhill Schooling Show the first weekend in May and have a successful event.  We had Jango and our place for a week before the show and he was such a pleasure to be around that we were definitely rooting for everything to work.  Well Seth laid down a 26.9 in dressage and ran clear in stadium and XC, so needless to say it was a SUCCESSFUL EVENT!!!  It was great to be there with Seth and see him be rewarded with such a great partner.  Seth has been my rock for the past few years and keeps my horses going without complaining that he doesn't get to ride in shows.  I'm so glad we found Jango and am so excited to see what this pair will do this season!!!

 

Aiken!!!!

Well after the high of the Area II Championships last October I finished out my season at Waredaca.  I was pretty nervous about a table corner combo on the XC course and as it turns out I picked up a VERY disappointing 20 points at that combo.  The whole course just wasn't flowing...I was getting tossed around pretty bad and I really was not focusing on keep my upper body steady.  The combo was at the very end of the course and there was a long gallop up a hill...a big old table bending right 4 strides to a corner.  We jump in big and I end up in a heap, jerk myself up mainly with the right rein and Hobbs braces and we miss the line and have a run out.  It was disappointing because I just didn't focus, but live and learn.  Hobbs and I ended up being the Area II Adult Amateur Preliminary Champions for 2012 which was fantastic!  Despite a few hiccups, we had a great year in 2012 and got to ride at BROMONT!!!

I decided to keep training through the end of December before I gave him time off to try and take advantage of the weather.  Working with Martha Redman seemed to really be helping our show jumping and everything seemed to keep getting better.  With Danny gone I also spent some time training with Courtney Cooper....she's definitley not afraid to raise the heights beyond my comfort level...it's so much fun!!!  Hobbs was feeling a little off on his right front, so we gave him some time off in Jan.  Even when we started to come back toward the end of Jan, he still didn't feel right so we put pads on him to try and protect him against the hard ground.  We got his coffin joints injected and that paired with the pads seemed to do the trick.  After spending the winter focusing on all the details I felt ready to start the season.  We had a bad winter with lots of cold weather and hard ground so I was debating going to Aiken for a week or two to train with Courtney and open my season. 

Despite some other family hiccups, with Legend getting sick again and Legacy tearing open his chest repeatedly, we decided that I should make the trip to Aiken and Seth would fly to NC to meet me for the show.  I left early on a Saturday morning...the drive was rough for the first few hours, but Hobbs seemed to love his new trailer and so did I. 

I spent the week with Courtney in Aiken and then travelled to Southern Pines and met Seth for my first outing.  The week with Courtney was great, except for the nightmare hotel at Hampton Inn!!  The day I got down to Aiken the temperature was 77°!!!  As the week went on it got a bit colder, but considering it was snowing at home, I was in heaven!  I got to XC school at Paradise which was a great facility.  We were a little rusty, but Hobbs was soooo calm and really mature about it.  There were no flip outs or rodeo episodes so I was really happy.  I was a little worried because he definitely did not seem to be in the best shape.  As we were leaving the facility, one of the girls put my cell phone on the wheel well of the trailer and I drove 2 miles down the road before we realized it.  We spent the next 1 1/2 hours looking for my stupid phone and somehow we found it on the side of the road 1.5 miles away from the facility...somehow it still worked!!  It was great to be completely absorbed in the horses for an entire week...I got to watch Courtney jump school at Sally Cousins twice and watched her work with her Advanced horse a few times....it was awesome!! 

After my boot camp, it was back North to Southern Pines.  I got to the show on Thursday afternoon and picked up my groom from the airport :).  I wasn't sure how the show was going to go with it being the first outing, but I know I had done all my homework over the winter and Hobbs was feeling great.  We stuck with our same routine of a full warmup 2 hours before my test and then I get on 10 minutes before my ride time.  The weather was a bit chilly and luckily I had a 1pm ride time.  Hobbs was really focused during my first warmup and I felt good...it was uncanny how calm I felt...I didn't have any butterflies.  Hobbs seemed to be taking everything in stride and didn't seem anxious.  As we approached our ride time, Seth went over to check the timing to make sure everything was on time and I got on 15 minutes before my ride time.  As I got over to the warmup, Hobbs felt really steady.  They were running a bit early and instead of risking getting blown into the ring as soon as I got over there, I chose to go over early to make sure I could get a few circles around the ring because that seems to make him a bit tense. 
We got in the ring and he was a bit more up, but extremely manageable.  The first turn was a bit tense and in our test we went right into our mediums...because of where they are in the test, it wasn't our best but I was just happy I had a horse.  As the test went on I was shocked at how well he was behaving...I had my horse!  I finished the test and thought, WOW I'm really happy with that...it was steady and accurate....two words that are usually not used to describe our dressage.  I knew the judge was scoring pretty high, so I wasn't sure how I was going to score, but I was stoked.  Well I ended up with a 28.7 and was winning my class of 27 riders by over 4 points!!!  I could've gone home at this point and been happy...but I didn't :)

Seth and I walked the XC course and it was a solid course.  There were lots of questions including a sunken road and a bank island in the second water complex.  Ironically the first water complex was named the "Beaver Pond Question."  There was also a pretty severe angled bench combo at the end of the course that was quite challenging for Prelim.  The course had a good section through the woods and felt like a true XC course...the first water complex was a bit shadowy and of course it was in my mind about the water issues in the past.  I was excited and nervous...more nervous than I
would've liked.  On Saturday in XC warmup, again Hobbs was so mature and VERY well behaved.  I got him in the startbox again on my own and we were off!!  It was great to be on course again with this horse...he's incredible on XC.  He felt strong but not maniacal like times in the past.  Everything was riding very smooth and I had a good rhythm.  I wasn't too happy with my ride through the sunken road because I stared down into the drop but my boy was an angel through it.  There was absolutely no hesitation at the first water and I let out a huge sigh of relief.  Hobbs definitely felt tired and I didn't push.  Courtney made sure to tell me that I DEFINITELY SHOULD NOT MAKE TIME despite my first place position.  So I let Hobbs pick our speed and I cut out distance where I felt comfortable without making the questions too hard.  The second water rode perfectly and we finished clean and over the time by ~25 seconds...exactly where I wanted to be.  I was a little mad at myself on the very last jump, a big table, I lost focus and let him flatten out and we got that terrible long spot I love.  I'll give myself a break and chalk that up to endurance :).  All in all it was a fantastic first XC round.  Even with my time faults I had only dropped to 2nd!!

I had to show jump on Saturday afternoon and I knew I wasn't going to have much horse left since he wasn't in tip top shape.  During warmup he was hitting jumps pretty hard and stung himself pretty bad.  All I could think of was our outing at VA and how terrible that SJ round was.  I knew I had to have a strong upper body and help him get around this course....there were a few max oxers, but it wasn't too intimidating.  Seth was definitely nervous and desperately wanted me to be relaxed, but I was in my shut down zone where he affectionatley says it looks like my face is melting...I guess that's my focused face :).  We got in the ring and started our round...it was by far the smoothest round I've ever had.  We got to jump #3, a skinny off a turn, and he uncharacteristically had the rail with his hind.  We worked through the rest of the course until the very last oxer and I leaned at him just a tiny bit and he had the rail with his front.  It was disappointing, but definitely attributable to his stamina.  I believe the same ride in another month once he's been conditioned is a clean round every time.  I thought I had completly blown my placing any maybe would end up in 6th or so...still not too shabby.  Turns out there were quite a few rails across my division and still ended up in 3rd...if I would've only had one rail I would've won..so it was really tight!!  Winning certainly wasn't my goal, but it would've been really sweet after the hard work.  Winning the dressage phase was such an amazing feat on this horse though I certainly can't complain.  I was so thrilled with his composure in all three phases that the final result really isn't what I'll remember from the trip.  I finally hit my goal of breaking 30 in the dressage phase, I rode all of my combos on XC exactly as I walked them and I hit all of my spots and distances on the stadium course.  Let's hope this is just a preview for the rest of the season!!