Decided to have a go at a local 'winter' dressage series. Very casual and thought it would be something fun to do. Lots of people turned up, lots of commotion and I started to get very nervous. Even though my goal was simply to have-a-go and compare my ride\results to our last (first ever) tests, secretly I am competitive and knowing how well we CAN do I really wanted to do well here.
So seeing my horse careering around the paddock, snorting and bucking I thought "Great! this should be fun!"
(We'd had a high speed practice the day before) He galloped up to me, snorted and shied at everything as I led him in - although he remembered his manners and never invaded my space so that was something.
We had a small 'incident' in the barn while preparing, the nerves were really bad now (dry retch) then as soon as I brought him out the head and neck went up and he was on full alert.
As soon as I was in the saddle my nerves were gone and unlike other times, I didn't revert to my foetal crouch. I was almost bulletproof - all of the hard work I've been doing on opening my bent, wrongly pointed pelvis and suppling my ancient, beaten lower back came to fruition and I just sat tall and calmly on this idiot horse.
He hates working with other horses but I worked him in the warmup arena, which was a total nightmare. He shot off a few times in dangerous whirling canters, yet I sat them and spoke to him as if it was nothing, instead of tensing and gripping my legs stretched out and my pelvis was gently glued to the saddle. I didn't grab the reins. I gave up on the warmup area to take him somewhere less claustrophobic, he shied at another horse and shot down a grassy bank sideways, no problem, I even smiled and reassured horrified onlookers.
I considered withdrawing him, feeling like I had achieved everything I could ever dream of but instead took him off to a quiet area to calm down - he softened and listened and we gently entered the test area again. I didn't care about impulsion I just wanted him to be calm - then he saw the 'tent' the judge was sitting in (thanks ladies just what I needed), the audience, the other horses (again)....
We completed every movement in the test. We did add in several high speed unbalanced canter pirouettes, two flying changes and a beautiful counter canter loop (none of which got us extra marks ) but I managed the walk on a long rein and some lovely trot (yes, I know there was not much impulsion but you ask for calmness and suppleness after terror and I think its pretty damn good to get it )
We received a pitiful 45% and it was the best test\day of my life. We've another 2 in this series to go ...
So seeing my horse careering around the paddock, snorting and bucking I thought "Great! this should be fun!"
(We'd had a high speed practice the day before) He galloped up to me, snorted and shied at everything as I led him in - although he remembered his manners and never invaded my space so that was something.We had a small 'incident' in the barn while preparing, the nerves were really bad now (dry retch) then as soon as I brought him out the head and neck went up and he was on full alert.
As soon as I was in the saddle my nerves were gone and unlike other times, I didn't revert to my foetal crouch. I was almost bulletproof - all of the hard work I've been doing on opening my bent, wrongly pointed pelvis and suppling my ancient, beaten lower back came to fruition and I just sat tall and calmly on this idiot horse.
He hates working with other horses but I worked him in the warmup arena, which was a total nightmare. He shot off a few times in dangerous whirling canters, yet I sat them and spoke to him as if it was nothing, instead of tensing and gripping my legs stretched out and my pelvis was gently glued to the saddle. I didn't grab the reins. I gave up on the warmup area to take him somewhere less claustrophobic, he shied at another horse and shot down a grassy bank sideways, no problem, I even smiled and reassured horrified onlookers.
I considered withdrawing him, feeling like I had achieved everything I could ever dream of but instead took him off to a quiet area to calm down - he softened and listened and we gently entered the test area again. I didn't care about impulsion I just wanted him to be calm - then he saw the 'tent' the judge was sitting in (thanks ladies just what I needed), the audience, the other horses (again)....
We completed every movement in the test. We did add in several high speed unbalanced canter pirouettes, two flying changes and a beautiful counter canter loop (none of which got us extra marks
) but I managed the walk on a long rein and some lovely trot (yes, I know there was not much impulsion but you ask for calmness and suppleness after terror and I think its pretty damn good to get it )We received a pitiful 45% and it was the best test\day of my life. We've another 2 in this series to go ...
