Oliver 4-9-2012

Video from lesson on Monday. Ollie is drastically different from riding Butters, and I like it. He does not have a smooth round jump, and would rather rush fences versus sputter to a halt or straight out refuse them. Keeping him consistent to the fence is key, and staying with that jump is very good too! I re-learned about the magical world of mane-grabbing... it saved my butt and Ollie's mouth. The first few fences (NOT shown in the video haha!) on him were probably the worst I've ever done: I got horribly left behind and popped him in the mouth, poor guy! Thankfully it was reversed by the end of the lesson. He is also much more forgiving and tries a lot harder than Butters. Don't get me wrong, I like them both... but if I had to choose favorites, well, y'know....

I love learning on different ponies!

Greta has been quite well lately, still not too happy about the lack of a real job ("MOM walking around is NOT work!" If only more people shared the same mindset!) but happy enough nonetheless.

Trick pony, anyone?

Greta's kissy-kissy trick on video. And she has learned a new one, hugging. Cute stuff, really. I've tried teaching her other things, but if she's not gung-ho about it in the first place, I'm not successful in continuing the training. Which is allowed, because she's gung-ho about everything else in training: ground manners, riding, the important stuff. And no, she is not going to learn how to rear. That's one of the stupidest things you can teach your horse in most circumstances.

So far the failed list includes bowing, raising a hoof, and smiling. She doesn't do a lot of "smiling" in the first place, even with funny smells, so I didn't have much to work off of there. She's too smart to put her head between her legs to bow - she'd much rather just step backwards to my hand and/or look at me like, "Girl please." And she is dead-set that the only way to raise a hoof is if you make to pick it. And she has no problems whatsoever with hoof picking or picking up her hoof, so I'd rather not make it a problem. And she doesn't paw, so I have nothing to work off of there. And I'd rather not teach her to paw!

Any trick ideas? Seriously, we're starting to get pretty bored now ;)

Another Butters Video (don't get jealous Greta...)

I'd just thought I'd post this up before I add some updates posts on Greta, the Micklem bridle, and... I'll get around to that Traditional Dress post part 2 one of these days (still trying to think of how to put it, bear with me). School begins again in two days, so I'm milking these last couple days of freedom. Granted, I feel a lot freer in college than I ever did in public school. My schedule, even though I got screwed over a bit but I'm a freshman with the min amount of hours so I was expecting that, is quite accommodating for riding and doing other things. Anyway, enjoy some Butters action from yesterday. My eq has a lot left to be desired, mainly I'm popping up a bit over fences (still getting used to the feeling of a jump) and I'm rounding my back in two-point and over fences, that's mainly from lack of core muscles (well, a different set than what's needed in dressage). At least I'm anchoring my heels more! Enough of that, enjoy Butterball the wonder horse.

Photography 9-8-2011 Video

Snowman: from New Holland to The Ntl. Horse Show

Burghley 2011: My Picks

So obviously William Fox-Pitt was considered the best because he kind of won. And I will say, he did smashing, per usual... even if he does look a tad big on his horses. There were a few rides in each of the phases that really stood out to me, and I think if a rider had all three of these performances (and I was judging the dressage phase ha!) then you would've found a fabulous formula for a winner. I was rooting for Mary King, because I adore her, but on both of her horses in showjumping things went less-than-perfect. Darn shame about Kitty King's showjumping round. And one of my least favorite dressage tests was Boyd Martin's (that extended trot certainly could've been better...)

Anyway, my favorite dressage test was Sinead Halpin's on Manoir de Carneville. I think she could've gotten an even better score, BUT I am no judge. The horse looked content and moved with impulsion, and had great gaits and great training even for a "non-dressage" horse. Selle Francais are STILL nice horses haha! Sinead looked like she had done her job well, and they were just pleasurable to watch.



Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos (who had an amazing recovery after significant smoke inhalation from the Martins' horrible barn fire) had an explosive cross-country round. The Burghley cross-country course is by far the most challenging of the Grand Slam of eventing. It makes me tired just watching it, and you can tell most horses and riders are worn out by the end of course: throwing themselves over jumps, legs dragging across jumps, jumps being barely cleared, galloping slows, and I've even seen a select few riders throw two-point out the window, it's just too dang hard! But these two looked as fresh at the beginning as they did at the end. Neville was still neat and clean at the last fence, and Boyd was still doing just as well to the very end. That REALLY made me tired to watch, because you can only imagine the exertion and fitness-building that must have taken.



Mark Todd and Major Milestone had a pretty stellar cross-country round (had a wonky moment during one of the water combinations) but an icky dressage score (the canterwork was less than spectacular, I thought), so that brought him down to 21st place in the end. But this show jumping round was wonderful, and if he had done better in dressage, he probably would not be as low in the placings as he was.



What do y'all think? Who were your favorites?

Another pony poetry video...

Greta's New Digs

Greta moved today so she'll be closer to the university! She'll be kept in a large 12'x24' stall until she's ready to be turned out in a small mare pasture. I'm really going to miss the old place, but I really like this place for both Greta and I and I'm excited for our new adventure!

I'm still chuckling about that sign at the end. ATX locals might also recognize the Salt Lick BBQ entrance, it's right down the road from the new barn haha! There's also a very grand Hindu temple and two very nice show barns nearby: Oakhaven does dressage and jumping and brings in some big name clinicians and Weddle Training Stables does Arabs at the big national breed shows.

Also, a product review: SmartCalm Ultra paste really worked. She was so chill getting off the trailer. You can see in the video she was not dopey, still alert, just not panicky. Thank goodness I did the buy 1 get one free deal. Very happy.

2011 - Stuart Horse Trials - Socks' Helmet Cam with Commentary

Doug Payne riding Rivertown Lad at the 2011 Stuart HT at prelim where "Socks" finished 8th. It was fun to listen to the commentary. I thought I heard him drop a potty-mouth word towards the end coming down the curve on the hill, but I probably would have too haha! Socks runs like Greta: they get so into the gallop and focused on what's ahead, they get really strong and your seat has to become an anchor so they'll slow up and refocus a bit! A half-halt at full gallop lol!

Lesson 7-11-2011

"Jumping" 7-3-2011

Who knew one needed to canter over ground poles like that? hahaha Yeah, excuse my eq, it's been a while, but it's getting there. I need to actually, you know, get OUT of the saddle over a jump! I've had a jumping lesson recently, and it helped a lot, but I didn't realize how unwilling I was/am to give a bit on the reins and to stay in two-point all the way over a jump haha. I also need to work on not roaching my back. Granted, I have seen worse, but I still need to work on it. This will be wonderful for my core!

Greta loves jumpies and dressagies. What a good girl!

Woooo, I need a hobby!

As much as love riding the ponies... I go home and really just sit on the computer haha! SO I'm volunteering at the local humane society next month, and then when college starts I'm ROCK CLIMBING!!! I have some old scores to settle with the Barton Creek cliff faces. And indoor rock walls. I have old scores to settle with rock climbing in general. That and I will also be walking up and down the giant hill that makes up Texas State. It seriously is like climbing a Mayan temple. I had to go halfway down the hill to the testing center during orientation, and I counted a little over twenty flights of steps (staircase steep, not the big, easy, flat kind) with a little over twenty steps on each flight. And that doesn't count the multilevel buildings, since those are built into the hill too and the elevators aren't always a practical option! I will have a body like one of the Williams sisters!

But I do get to pass by their super cool horse statue in the middle of the campus. I like to take a good long stare at it every time I go by. It is a truly fascinating statue.

The college does have an IHSA team, BUT lessons are extra and I won't have the time and it would get expensive. Greta and I will get to know each other even better then haha!

My jumping lesson last week made me realize how weak I really am LOL! Jumpers... you rock!

In Memory of the True Prospect Horses

For Inspirational Purposes...

I know show season is still a few months away for most of y'all, but get inspired early! Oh, and enjoy one of the comments from YouTube:

"Keira Knightly shows more believable conviction than Brad Pitt or Colin Ferrell. Bulky wimps, both of them. And if you were going to use a clip from Lord of the Rings, it should have been Theoden's speech, hands down."

Amen to that. Too bad Theoden's speech is a bit suicidal, not as inspiring as VIGGO'S!

And LOL at the Peter Pan bit!

Greta and Maximus...

I LOVED this pony. LOVED him. And that little smile reminded me of something Greta would do. Everything else... in my dreams. But still, can we not all imagine our horses as cartoon characters every now and then? Or perhaps that's just me being weird... again :)

BTW it's fun to go see these movies with horsey friends. Our nerdy joke of the night: "Did he just jump from a rooftop? That horse could do eventing! HAR HAR HAR HAR!!"

Soooooo, question of the week, or whenever I get around to posting again:

What cartoon (or live-action) horse does your pony remind you of?

I would have to say that Greta could be the Unicorn from The Last Unicorn.

Haha. In my dreams.

Best. Freestyle. Ever. Period.

Maybe not Ashley and Pop Art's best ride ever, but she still won!! THIS is where I want to see musical freestyles go if the dressage world EVER wants to get the more of the next generation interested. Keep it classical and for the most part traditional, definitely, but keep it fun. I love this one along with Steffen Peter's "Safety Dance" freestlye (one of my favorite 80s tunes haha!) that he (ironically) dedicated to Courtney King-Dye and that won him a bronze at the WEGs!

Plus a question for y'all: what would be YOUR dream freestyle?

I've come to the realization that Greta's gaits and personality would really do well in a freestyle with a French theme. Maybe some of the accordion music from Amelie for the canter, some Cœur de Pirate or Camille for the trot, maybe even a little bit of "Comptine D'un Autre Été" (the famous piano tune from Amelie).

Though somebody really needs to do a Bollywood freestyle. That would be beastly. It would require a horse with some energetic, elastic gaits and something a little exotic about him (or her.)