The One with Jasmine's Valentine's Day Show

Yes it rained! Every time I got up on Sudi, the rain would come. Thankfully, it was never a very heavy rain though, and we did indeed get some respite at times.

To back up for a moment, I must say that on Friday afternoon my chances of going to the show looked very dismal. My poor father’s truck has died and needs a new motor. Tammy, however, was VERY generous, saving the day by allowing me to borrow her Forerunner and trailer.

Friday morning was VERY early and DARK at 4am, but we were able to pull out of the barn by 5:45 (Sudi wasn’t even awake yet! Hehe). I’m SO very thankful that the rain didn’t start until at least dawn – which made the travel so much better.

Sudi was a great traveler – and while I was a bit nervous as this was his first show all by himself, he really was a trooper! He was a bit nervous being tacked up, but once I was able to hop on him and get him moving, he was just fine.

Jasmine Farm had a LOT of scary props and decorations everywhere – which was GREAT education for him. The beginning of the warm up had its ups and downs as I worked on getting his attention and keeping it! But eventually he came around. He had some stellar moments – lots of energy and suspension! I was very pleased with his first dressage test though. Despite the neighboring horses galloping about in the field next to the dressage arena, Sudi was able to retain a bit of focus, and he came out with a 32! I was thrilled.

The jumping section was a bit intense for him (and ME!) as it had 11 VERY scary efforts. The warm up was a bit stressful too, as he was really flinging himself over the fences to begin with. Eventually he settled down though, and I felt a bit better as our time approached, although the rain had indeed picked up. I forgot my floaties!!

We ended up having a fun time though, despite one refusal (he was actually spooking at some scary rolltops though) which added 4 faults to our score. We topped out at a 36 though – winning the Amoeba class!! I was so very excited for him. We even won a fun mug.

We had a two hour break before Sudi’s last dressage test in which all of us got a short break and some lunch. Sudi, however, was a bit stressed and tired and didn’t have a spectacular test. Again, he had some lovely movement and energy although he wasn’t relaxed through his top line. We ended up with a 59%, which put us 3rd (the horses next door were really causing some issues and scores were dropping) out of 8.

(Note on video: I can see that my saddle isn't fitting me properly - It was putting me in a "chair" positional all day. *sigh* Hopefully we'll be able to look at a new one by the end of the year!)

Overall, I was really pleased with the day. I felt like it was incredibly educational for Sudi – which was indeed one of my goals! Special thanks to my mom for toughing out the weekend in the rain and being SO MUCH help!! Couldn't do it without her!!

We’re now looking forward to a jumping lesson with Susan and Kehbir’s show the first weekend in March. More to come – and Happy Valentine’s and President’s Day!

The One Where It's Time for an Update!

So – WOW. The weather this week has been absolutely NOTHING short of amazing. 70’s ALL week!! I bet you can’t guess what’s projected for Saturday? Oh wait – you can?? You mean you know I have the worst luck with weather EVER?? ;-) j/k But you’re right – RAIN. All day. I guess I need to learn how to tough it out, but seriously – after this week, RAIN this weekend just seems entirely ALL too unfair.

So – Sudi is scheduled for his first CT this season at Jasmine Farm. Should be a busy day! We have dressage first thing at 8:40 and then his jumping round at 9:40. Then he gets a lunch, I get a nap, and we’re back on for dressage at noon. Yep – long day!

I’m trying not to put any pressure on us for this show as I’m using it basically as a warm up for this season, and to just keep him in the show atmosphere. I’m glad it will be a somewhat busy show since that’s good for him. My goals are to hopefully have him stretching through his dressage test, make it over all our fences (and me stay on!), and to have a great time – even if we ARE getting rained on! Eventers are tough right?! (I feel like I need a big, tough guy beside me grunting in encouragement - hehe).

Kehbir had a FANTASTIC ride this past weekend. We had a lesson with Susan, and although he started off as a COMPLETE spaz, he calmed and ended actually VERY nicely. He’s a very smart horse, and always tries to figure out what I’m trying to ask before I ask it. This makes him a bit nervous – once he settles down though and learns to wait on me, I think we’ll start doing much better.

Susan made a BIG emphasis on the fact that he really wants me to be his “head mare” and take over. He’s a big wimp and doesn’t want to handle the scary white box by himself. Once I get his attention and get him focused on his job, he forgets all the scary places in the world. He’s not one of those horses that can be allowed to go check everything out first to calm down. He HAS to be ok because I’m on him – he HAS to know that’s his safe place. I think that was a big a break-through “AHA!” moment for me – understanding him just a bit better. The more I understand him, the more I feel I can ride him correctly. We’ve come a good ways in the few weeks I’ve been schooling him, so I’m excited to see where he’ll be at the end of this month!

Ok, and to wrap up – our future goals:
Sudi will be taking some jumping lessons with Susan. My goal is to have him ready for a Sr. Maiden HT up in Southern Pines by the end of May. I feel this is reasonable. I also have the free schooling pass for Full Gallop from when I was jump judging, so I need to take him up there by himself to do a practice run in April-ish I think. If the ht in May goes well, he’ll move up to the next level – Pre novice. If I feel we need another run, we’ll hold off on the Pre Novice (really BN) and run the Maiden again. I really just want him (and ME!) to get the feel of cantering/galloping to the fences and taking them in stride. I want him to feel confidant at the end of full of himself!

Kehbir has his upcoming (REAL USDF SHOW!!!) dressage show in March here at John’s Island. If all goes well with his training, I plan on having him up to training level by the end of the year. I have some tentative dressage shows planned out – although I really want to get him into some kind of clinic this year as well. We’re also doing some cross bars at home – he seems very confidant about them, and doesn’t seem to be real worried. I don’t plan on any CT’s/HT’s with him until the spring of next year though. I just want to take it slow with him – he comes along so much better that way.

Ok – well enjoy the weather! I’ll be jealous that I’m stuck behind my desk…*sigh* one day!!

The One with the Start of 2009

So show season is finally making its way to a head: February 14th (Jasmine Farm CT) and March 7-8 (The Low Country Classic – Dressage). These dates are coming more quickly than I’m perhaps mentally ready, but alas, it comes anyway!

Lately I’ve been really pushing myself to ride both boys on a regular basis. Kehbir is really starting to impress me. To be honest, our first few rides were a bit of a battle. Him against me. And believe me, neither of us were winning. However, now that he’s figured out that I can be quite nice when he behaves, he’s opted for that route. We’ve gotten RHYTHM! Woohoo. Now we’re working on the long and low frame – although for Kehbir, it’s not quite the same long and low frame Sudi gets in. At any rate, we were so comfortable that we were able to do some basic grid work! (See fun video - ignore my bad hands though!)



Sudi has been able to work on some grid work and muscle building, and the best part is that he’s really starting to enjoy it! While some of his jumps are still a bit extravagant (see video), I am immensely enjoying his training. He is stretching my riding ability and teaching me what it means to be a rider and not simply a passenger. While I still feel like this is outside my comfort zone, my dedication is reaching new limits!



On a sad note, we didn’t win the Championship for the GSEA Green Horse Intro division. While all of the points that I calculate say that he did, somewhere something has gone amiss as I’m told we came in third. Needless to say, I’m extremely proud of my boy as he came away with great 2008 achievements from those shows (and many blue ribbons!).

So now we are on to 2009 and hoping for a fun and SAFE filled competition year. Best of luck to everyone!