Woodhill HT - 27 March 2011

Having had one SJ lesson on the Thursday, being our only SJ since the fall, and two dressage lessons Wednesday and Friday, we headed off to Woodhill sands Horse Trial.

They were running a practice SJ on the Saturday morning, which should be perfect for us going into the Horse Trial.

Despite atrocious weather, I toddled down to the sand arena. Sampson was rather full of it, and I was a real nervous nellie...tense and tight. Eventually trotted! ... and finally decided to actually attempt to jump....however, my horse was a different horse to that pre accident!!

Off he charged toward the fence, head up and as soon as I tried to slow him down (panicked and grabbed) he started propping badly head still up, and did an awful jump. However into the ring we went, and I was thankful that the jumps were pretty small.

The first few were awful, we were quite simply fighting each other and he was immensely strong. However, I then (finally) stopped pulling and fighting at him, started to use my core and actually ride him, he settled and we got into a rhythm. Started again at jump 1 and did a passable round. Left it at that.

_______

DRESSAGE
He warmed up well with lots of long and low and stretches.
Despite the disgusting weather - he had probably the worst of it, being a total downpour! - he was a very good boy and did a nice test. Predominantly 7's and 8's with just a couple of 5's - one where he broke from canter (other canters were 8's) and the other where he fooled me and curled under at free walk. Judge also commented on "this lovely big horse"....

Scored 67.5% for a penalty mark of 32.5 - just 0.5 behind Danni Lodder!!!
He ended up 7th after dressage, so very pleasing that he was up with the 'big wigs'... :)

SHOW JUMPING
Jumping was scheduled for the Sunday and thankfully despite rain continuing overnight, it wasnt actually raining. Needless to say everything was rather wet.

I actually only jumped the upright and oxer practice fences once each as he felt fine (as did I).

Into the ring I went, (with some very sage advice that if he took off on me, too bad and just vrrooom around the corners)....perfect advice as it turned out.

Jumped 1 and 2 and take off he did, but I just looked at number 3 steered to it, and he went "ooops, mum's not going to fight me", and so he got VERY deep somehow got over it, then settled and jumped beautifully for a clear round. He was very pleased with himself and I had to get off and lead him back as he was so full of himself.

CROSS COUNTRY (cross country photos by Michelle Horan: Kiwi Sporthorses)
I had intended to go for time (and may well have done had I known I was sitting in 4th place after SJ)....however, the course passed by the warm up on the splotty noisy sand, and every horse galloping past wound him up more and more (including horse running back to their trucks after depositing rider somewhere on course). I actually only managed to pop him over a practice jump just before we went.


He basically took several jumps to get onto the job....the steering was a bit peculiar and he was simply popping over the jump at the last minute when he kind of realised it was there. But by the time we jumped back onto the sand, he was back on him game. Just let him toddle along in a rhythm and sat and steered.....he just lined up every jump and popped over happily....didnt back off the water jump at all, and cantered through it and popped out over the skinny.

Gave me a lovely lovely ride, and I felt confident and happy. Indeed I did so little that apart from being hot (it was muggy) I wasnt even puffing!

Amazingly, despite 22 time faults he still ended up in 8th place!

YAY....onto Kihikihi and time to push myself out of my comfort zone.

Waihou Dressage - 12.03.2011

OK; time to put into practice our Shorter warm up, to see if it helps.
Having lost a lot of confidence in the fall, I also really needed to have an outing.

However, having lost a lot of confidence was the prime opportunity for the Big pony to exercise his sense of humour = NOT appreciated.

He was quite tense and on edge, and having timed it for about a twenty minute warm up, I arrived at the warm up area to find the ring was running well ahead of time with the rider before me already in and doing her test. I then dropped my back number so had to scramble to get it tied on. And onto our WALK around the arena....eyeballs sticking out at every opportunity!

The test was not much better, with a leap and bound and skedaddle across the arena, with me fearing us jumping out, and worrying about stopping. The rest of the test was pretty dreadful with him laughing at me the whole time and me riding by the seat of my pants.

But my goodness was he pleased with himself when he waltzed out of the arena, and thought he would march back to the truck. I knew then that the little blighter had been playing on my nerves! Yeah; huge joke - NOT.

After about ten minutes of working him at walk long and low and a relaxing stand under the trees, I gave him his final warm up just as the horse before was in the arena. What a different horse...he felt light soft and obedient.

We proceded to trot around the arena, and then the bell went for us to start our test. As luck would have it, at that moment a horse did a huge noisy scramble up a truck ramp....just the excuse he needed to do a monster skedaddle with head in the air, and leap about....I promptly lost my stirrups and had the fleeting thought that my still injured body really couldnt cope with another fall from that height.

Managed to halt, with the giraffe head up and eyes on stalks.

OK, time for positive action: we had a dressage test to do. Pushed him up together, told him to get on with the job, and he did!

Slightly tense throughout the test, but a completely different and rideable horse compared to the first test. - which again goes to show that he plays on my weaknesses and thinks it is a huge joke. Now to work on ignoring his antics in the future.

Andrew Scott SJ clinic 23/24 Feb 2011

First Day

Sampson a little keen perhaps, but was advised that he could still have more go, although he was definitely getting off the ground quicker and getting snappier in front.

Thrilled with how he went, and how I felt about it. NO anxiety or nerves AT ALL!! And he really felt great.

Did some grids, interspersed with single jumps, and essentially the main area I was cocking up repeatedly, is on the darn turns. Every jump off a turn, I would shut him down on the turn, rather than riding the corner.

That led to me being asked to do what I would term the circle of death. Four jumps on a circle....basically meaning you have to be thinking about turning as you are jumping.

However, all in all a great lesson.
Sampson also thoroughly enjoying his jumping, and definitely now taking me to the jumps rather than being a bit lackadaisical about it all.

THURSDAY

Really looking forward to today's lesson.

OK....some advice....DO NOT buy a new helmet the day before a lesson, with the intention that your previously 'good' helmet could become the 'everyday' helmet.

Second tip.....DO NOT , upon donning an ancient T shirt, comment to yourself about how you have had the shirt over thirty years, remember buying it, and being impressed how it has worn, considering it has no holes or anything.

Tip three.... DO NOT wonder to yourself if you should arrange an x-ray on your still sore shoulder after a fall several months ago, just to check nothing is going on in there.

....
Started warm up, and Sampson felt great....if a little "I know it all"....which led to us on approach to a relatively high X oxer, taking a flyer (there was easily another stride)...unfortunately it was that one time out of a hundred, where it turns to custard, and rather than being an uncomfortable jump, it was a somewhat painful one.

He caught the top rail between his legs which then brought him down on landing, catapaulted me headfirst into the arena, and apparently also led to him rolling over my hip.

Ooops

Helmet split eyebrow (which after about 6 hours at A & E required 6 stitches), and extremely sore neck and shoulder. (Shoulder had almost healed after my last fall off the big guy). A little uncomfortable and nerve wracking however, to have a neck collar in case of spinal injury....I'm afraid I had my fingers tightly crossed awaiting the outcome, and then onto that shoulder x-ray that I had considered getting the week before. Doctors and nurses seemed surprised to find they were clear, given the weird knobs and sticky outy bits of my shoulder - they had thought a dislocation at least.
I was just thankful.

So, having had my xray, my thirty year old t shirt cut off, and getting a new helmet....I have now had to fork out for a second helmet in less than a week.

Poor pony also has skin off his knees, shoulder and above his eye. :(

Hopefully, he is none the worse for wear, and the wee tip over wont affect his confidence (except perhaps to make him a little more careful)....also hoping my own confidence isnt too badly affected.

Plan is to jump both horses some time this week, and then decide what to do about Puhinui - even if I just ride one, and perhaps get another rider on Sampson?

Hunua HT 20 February 2011

Yay, another HT on the wee pony.

Didn't have a particularly good start with a pretty poor dressage.
He actually warmed up really nicely, being soft and round almost straight away. Unfortunately however, the ring was running somewhat late and I overcooked him. By the time we got to do our test, he was feeling very heavy and I simply couldn't get his front end up.

He was very obedient and well behaved through out his test, but afterwards I did have a bit of a joke to everyone about exactly how many times the judge would give comments on either his being overbent, or behind the vertical.

However, even I didnt expect it to be mentioned for almost every movement (including the free walk which does somewhat astound me, as it was one of the movements where he wasnt)...and the grand total is......ta dahhh....TEN...the word overbent is mentioned TEN times in my test sheet.

Needless to say, the overall score was one rather forgotten.

Next time I plan to allow very little warm up, probably better with skedaddles than overbent?



Onto the show jumping.
Looked to be a nice course, with I have to say, nothing that made me feel in the least bit anxious. Again making me wonder if it was up to height (as I have done at all of the Training HT's I have done on him).

However, he did indeed react to the martingale. Approaching the first jump he went to tootle off, threw his head up, and was rather annoyed to find that avenue closed off to him. Resulted in taking the rail at the first jump. After a couple more jumps he settled again and resigned himself to listening: he gave me a lovely ride around the rest of the course, making it all feel rather easy.

Next day was XC day, and having walked the course, again there was nothing of even the slightest concern, apart from getting him to cross the river (not flagged).

He knew what was coming, and although I attempted to warm up I gave up having almost catapaulted into others trying to warm up. I did trot him over one practice jump, but he was fine, focussed on it immediately so I knew I didnt have to worry about the jumping side of it.

Left the start box rather (VERY) slowly and cruised around the course. It did take a wee while to convince him to cross the river, but he obliged. Basically he just popped over everything I pointed him at and again gave me a lovely ride with no concerns whatsoever.

Although I did find it amusing that having completed our XC, I actually had to get off and lead him as every time something happened he did huge skeddadles....ummm obviously a little fitter than required.




So the wee pony has now completed two pre trainings, and five trainings with no stops on either show jumping or XC phases.

VERY excited at stepping him up to pre novice at Rotorua.

However......as can be seen by my splatter at a show jumping clinic just days before Rotorua, that wasnt to be. He was also WD from Puhinui as although I had a rider for him, he was still a little sore after the fall.

next outing, then: Woodhill.....he is entered PN, but with my own confidence flagging after the fall, I may well drop him to training to get ME back on track, and aim at starting him at Kihikihi.

SOOO frustrated.....just when I really felt it was all coming together....oh well, onwards and upwards.

Lucinda Green Clinic 5/6 Feb 2011

SATURDAY

Today we worked on little exercises using show jumps....skinnies, points, walking over barrels etc.

Sampson was amazing: he did everything he was asked without question - even popping straight over the point of the apex from the difficult side.

I hadn't been sure how he would take being asked to jump a barrel from a walk, but he just popped over without even thinking twice. However on second attempt, he obviously decided that it didnt even warrant a wee 'pop' over, and proceeded to literally WALK over it, one step at a time. Considering his size, I would say he was displaying intelligence - however, it was not what was desired.

So I had to 'squeeze' him up over it to prompt him to actually jump it and land in canter....which of course he was happy to do.

The only thing I REALLY badly stuffed up, was the supposedly easiest exercise which we did to finish. Simply jump two spreads out of their stride. First time it came up nicely, and he jumped them nicely. Then I got this thing in my head that I had to go fast, and then tried to dictate where he was to jump from...he wanted to pop in a short one .....CRASH!!! down came the jump.

However, I then got it....and just sat up and allowed him to choose his own take off and he did it very nicely.

SUNDAY

Out onto XC proper. .. starting with walk ditch exercises, before adding skinnies on take off and landing....and then a sharp turn from ditch to skinny.



Unfortunately, Sammie had other ideas, and upon being asked to turn, shot his head in the air. It wasnt too long before, despite my protestations, he was wearing a martingale. WHAT a difference....as soon as he went to argue he was put in his place and calmly did just what he was told.




We went on to do some coffins and stringing a small course of jumps together including a small palisade and corner. He jumped beautifully, and I was really thrilled with him.

I had also taken him for a wander into the river the preceding day, and he walked straight down the bank and in without concern, and likewise, when we got to playing in the water jump, I felt that he definitely felt more confident than he had previously. I am sure with mileage his confidence in water will grow.

All in all very happy with him, and I'm afraid I will be arranging to get a martingale for his next outing - better that I have it on and not need it than the other way round.

Woodhill HT 30.01.2011

Travelled up to Woodhill on the Friday night with dire weather forecasts....Although it rained all night, we were spared from riding in the wet.

Saturday, we had drawn a rather late dressage being the last horse to go in the training, and indeed found ourselves the only rider on the sand at all, with just the odd rail sounding of those last few doing their show jumping.



Sampson found the whole thing rather exciting, with people up on the hill walking the XC proving a worthwhile distraction. He had actually warmed up ok and I had worked through the skedaddles, only to find there were still three riders to go at our allotted time. By the time he went, I think he was rather over it....and he proceeded to overbend and do his own thing right through the dressage...a dig in the ribs by the spur did produce a leap and a bound, and somewhat better listening skills however.

A little disappointed with his dressage, but absolutely wrapt that I (almost) held it together and did get through it.

We ended up doing our SJ at some time after 5.00; the poor judge having to wait for us. A quick pop over the warm up jump and into the ring we went.

I was thrilled with how he went, particularly given the deep going, which was good experience for him. He found it a little difficult to focus on the double given the mud and splatters, but he went, even though it came down. We also incurred plenty of time faults, although many others were in the same boat. Still it's all experience.

SUNDAY

Yay; Cross country day, and the wee boy definitely knew what was coming. He was very fidgety and produced many splatter poos. Warm up was rather yukkkk....he was quite skedaddly, but Wendy helped me work through it.

However, once on our way, he was wonderful. Jumped everything without question, apart from needing a few reminders not to back off the water jump. He did start off just a little too keen, so the first five jumps I was reminding him to mind his manners, after which he was quite happy to just toddle along.

I think he is pretty fit too, he was certainly not tired after the finish (in fact still spooking at everything), and I couldnt even hear his breathing....or was it that I was breathing so loud I drowned out his!

Thrilled with the ride he gave me.
Another training Horse Trial completed with no stops.
YAY

Waerenga HT 5th Dec 2010

Very hard, and somewhat rough ground for all phases.

He was a little silly warming up for dressage, but settled relatively quickly and was quite focussed when our turn came - although the coffee expresso machine at the entry end of the arena did unsettle him somewhat, but he kept it together.

All in all a good test, with just a few glitches, which in all honesty were more rider errors than anything.

5 x 8's, 5 x 7's, and some 5's and 6's, so very pleasing. He scored 8's at all paces, so not like I have a specific thing to work on, just accuracy and preparation.

64.5% to finish in 12th after dressage, just 5% off 2nd place.

He was DREADFUL warming up for SJ, just wouldnt focus, skedaddles, napping and lots of taking off with head in the air. I gave up in the end and just stood quietly near the ring entrance.

However, once in, and through the flags he did focus and gave me a lovely round. Just one rail which to be honest seemed a small moment where he lost concentration.

4flts

Onto the cross country, and although he was still spooking all the way to the start, he warmed up quite happily. Popped over #1 and on to #2....umm unfortunately it took a lot of time and encouragement (the old reins in one hand whip in the other) to get him through the small river crossing - he was genuinely scared, despite my having spent some time the evening before getting him into the river.

However, in terms of the course as a whole, he was absolutely wonderful. I went WAY faster, and I am sure would have gotten the time if not for the problems getting through the river crossing (he jumped the second one!).

Did all the quick routes, including the bounce where he was incredibly athletic and quick, straight over the corner, and just jumped everything I pointed him at. He didn't pull or get strong at all, just stayed in the same rhythm right the way round. I simply had to sit up a few strides before a fence and he just kind of brought his hocks under him...it was a lovely feeling.

He did have a wee look at the water jump, but never stopped going forwards, so with time he will gain confidence with water jumps.

The only jump that wasnt quite so nice was the palisade. He jumped the preceding jump beautifully and I probably rode him too forward to the palisade (in case he backed off the ditch)...however, he did not back off it AT ALL, and consequently did a silly little hop over it.

Good to know he doesnt seem concerned about palisades!

He finished the course happily, not even puffing, and indeed continued to spook at everything on the way back to the truck like he'd been for a trot around the paddock.

Without the time flts XC, and in spite of the rail, he would have been placed.

All in all however, thrilled with how he went in all three phases, and especially happy with how he (and I) felt going XC.

Just seems too long till our next start now!