Thank you Lord for bringing me Rocky.

So things have been going pretty good in my life lately, something which is both surprising and amazing.  One of the reasons I feel this way has definitely got to be Rocky.

Once again I am late to the punch in reporting on how our show went, but it's a good way to introduce this post, so I forgive myself.  (Hopefully you forgive me too.  After all, remember the title of this blog...?)

Our last-minute show at Langley Riders went so incredibly well.  Like, better than I ever expected.  After the Willoughby show I figured that, laid-back as the Rock may be, he was still going to get a bit "spicy" in public and need a fair amount of work and exposure before we'd be successful at shows.  After all, his owner informed me that the last time he'd been shown was in 2011 at the Sporthorse show - in the halter classes only.

Well.  I was wrong.

He took to the Langley Riders grounds like they were his own home arena.  And we proceeded to kick butt big time.  We wound up with firsts in equitation and hunter under saddle (both of which were classes that, if asked which classes I'd specifically like to win, I'd have named - eq because it's judged solely on me, meaning that perhaps my eq isn't as bad as I expected??  And HUS because Rocky was bred for it!).  We also won the pleasure pairs class which was fun, I'd never done it before.

Then we placed second in discipline rail and third in english pleasure.

I have to say that I think I was actually the victim of a little bit of breed bias - in my favour.  This is a bizarre thing to me.  I have spent most of my career riding arabs and arab crosses and fighting the breed bias.  At this show, the judge was a QH judge, and in a couple of classes I feel fairly strongly that she purposefully looked the other way during some of our minor disobediences.  Discipline rail is a good example.  Early in the class they called for turn on the forehand, which we hadn't practiced at all (had never attempted, actually).  Asking Rocky for it confused and frustrated him and he began acting up.  (It was also the end of the day and you could pretty much tell he'd kind of had it.)  Anyway Rocky threw his little temper tantrum, and the whole time, the judge stood firmly with her back to us.  Then they asked for a counter-canter, which was something else we hadn't worked on - it took me a couple of tries to convince Rocky that the wrong lead was REALLY what I was asking for.  The judge awarded us a second place.  Maybe she honestly didn't notice, but I find that hard to believe.

Anyway.  The whole experience was fantastic.  I love this horse SO MUCH.

Pics!

Warming up

In class

Picking up our ribbons!

Anyway.  All in all, a great day.  I was very happy with the people running the show as well, other than the announcement that show coats were usually mandatory - seriously, for $8/class, you think I'm going to crack out my $200 show coat??  No thanks!!

So I am looking forward with great anticipation to the Sporthorse show next weekend.  I sent in my entries so we're all set.  I decided to skip the halter classes and only show for one day, reducing my costs drastically as I don't have to pay for a weekend stall.  I'm showing in 2 english pleasure classes (19 and over, and coloured horse), 2 hunter under saddle classes (also 19+ and coloured), and the 19+ equitation.  I tried to enter the classes that would give us the best chance at success.

There is another show at Langley Riders the following weekend, a trophy show which could be fun but we'll see.

So I've been thinking a lot about what I'd like to try and accomplish with this horse.  In my mind, I am still an event rider, even though I've only really done dressage for the last *cough*decade*cough*.  When I first met Rocky I thought the same thing - he'd be a killer lower-level event horse, just on the strength of his temperament.  But... if my time in Calgary's jumperland taught me much, it's that jumping really isn't my thing.  Eventing appeals to me more than jumpers but in truth I think I'd always be battling my fears... which is fine when you have time and energy, but maybe not so much with my lifestyle.  Plus, truthfully, Rocky is not ever going to be much of a dressage horse.  Lower-level dressage, of course, because frankly I will always believe that dressage will help any horse.  But it will never be that easy for him.  He naturally wants to carry himself a bit downhill, with a flat-kneed stride.  So, I figure, why not play to his strengths and try AQHA for a while.  I worked at an AQHA barn in my formative years so while I have never personally competed with a quarter horse, I am very, very familiar with what they are looking for, and Rocky would be killer.  So... I think I've decided to give it a try.  After all, it's probably one of my strengths too... I am a very good show rider, I am great at finessing a fussy horse around a ring making it look like the desired "pleasure" to ride.  (Of course with Rock it doesn't take much finessing!)

I guess then that's our goal.  Next year I will keep doing the schooling shows and aim for maybe another Sporthorse show and try for an AQHA show - though I won't complain if I have to wait until 2014 for that.  They are super competitive so I definitely want to be ready.  In the meantime I may try to find an AQHA barn and/or trainer to hook up with.

I may also do some hunter shows, and aim Rocky toward AQHA hunter over fences.  But that won't be the focus.

It's so nice to have some goals, some things to look forward to.  With everything that's happened over the last year, I will take anything positive that I can get.  This horse is something I will always be grateful to have in my life, a chance I never ever thought I'd get in a million years.  I love you Rock!!

Me: "Rocky, let's go for a ride."
Rocky: "om nom nom."

Show tomorrow

Me: "I don't know why I'm so nervous about showing this weekend!
My boss: "Imminent demise is always something to be nervous about."

***

Yes, Gia makes her dressage debut tomorrow. Our last couple of rides have been awful. I don't have high hopes :)

I would like to say I have goals for tomorrow... I don't, really. But here are some things I've thought of:

I want to do my best to make sure I stay calm, quiet, and soft. I tend to get nervous and brace against her, which makes her brace against me and get hollow and stupid. Let's try not to do that, lol.

When I get nervous, I have a tendancy to coast-- to just try and "get through it" rather than focusing on doing as good of a job as I can on the test. I really want to try not to do that. I'm going to try and remember to actually correct her if she needs it, rather than just try and float past any disobediences and get the test over with.

The only thing I can really control is my own position. Rider position and effectiveness of the aids has a coefficient of 3 so I want to try and pay attention to my ride as much as possible. That way if all else fails, maybe I'll get a good score for position :)

All in all I really don't want to overthink it (because in the long run, does this one dinky show really matter that much?) but for some reason I'm really keyed up about it. Relax, Elizabeth. It will all be fine.

Wish me luck, and I'll see you on the other side!

Stuck on you

So, I guess I've made my decision about the Supermodel. I thought about it a LOT, I waffled a lot, I second-guessed myself a lot. I decided to sell her. I stuck to my decision until the last possible moment... then just a bit PAST the last possible moment... and then I changed my mind.

This horse is a part of me. How did this happen, I don't know. Do I need a high-maintenance drama queen of a horse? Heck no! But she's my girl, and it looks like she's going to be my girl for a long time.

Sooo... where to go from here. Since making the decision I've thought about this a lot too. I thought about taking her to the Sporthorse show but truthfully, it's kind of a waste of money. I can walk into a halter class and know exactly how we're going to place. She won't beat the warmbloods with their extravagant movement, so it depends on how many warmbloods are in the class as to where we'll place. It's a bit hard to justify for a show that will cost me more than $300.

So then what? I refuse to do the schooling shows. I have to say that being that the lower mainland is like the horse capital of the Northwest, the schooling shows I've seen have been very poor quality. Worse than the Tri-cities, I must say with shame. There must be a great divide in shows around here-- dinky little schooling shows where the same people tool around in circles or over fences accomplishing nothing, or A-level shows that only those with a lot of discretionary income can afford. I'm not interested in either at this point.

What else is there? G will never be an event horse (even the thought of her princessy butt going cross-country makes me laugh), I could do Arab circuit but the thought just doesn't do it for me. So... dressage.

Dressage is my bread and butter, and has been for a long time. I love it. I just didn't think it was G's cup of tea. But at this point... I don't care. I found out that there's a dressage schooling show on the 24th, and I started thinking that this may be the perfect solution. Get her out in public but set her up for success-- leave Moira at home (she'll be going a 2-phase the next day), no other horses in the ring with her, and get her really working and focusing (if at all possible). I'm going to enter 3 walk-trot tests so that even if she has a breakdown in the first one, hopefully we'll see some improvement with each successive test. In fact, I think that should be my goal.

We'll see what she thinks. I rode her yesterday for the first time in a couple of weeks (we just moved into our new house and it's been CRAZY!) and she was really great. I kept the longeing to a minimum (I'd love to not have to longe her every time I ride, so I am weaning us off of it) and I was so thrilled with her. Forward, swinging, round, concentrating. She got cranky toward the end as she got tired, but all in all it felt really good. There may be hope for us yet.

I did get a few pictures of Jessy riding her the other day, unfortunately no jumping pics-- she was not impressed with jumping. G didn't freak out or refuse, she just didn't care. She tried to trot everything, and if she couldn't, she'd just plow through it. After a couple of decent efforts we called it quits.

Perhaps it's a sign that she isn't meant to be a hunter :) Would she just make up her mind already??





Gotta admit, high-strung or no, the mare is freaking adorable.

Quandary

Isn't that a great word?

I always say I don't make plans, I set goals. Plans can change, sometimes because of reasons out of your control, but your goal can still stay the same. But I am learning that, with horses at least, sometimes you have to be fluid in your goals as well. For example, I had to change my focus from dressage (which has pretty much been my life for the last 10-ish years) to the expensive, competitive world of hunters because it's what Gia wants. But now, rather than having the goal of competing in hunters, I have the goal of getting my horse out in public without her having a complete mental breakdown.

Next week she is going to a friend for a bit of a butt-kicking. She is going to be taken out on trails, ridden in their busy arena, and other scary stuff like that. She's not going to be allowed to be the princess she is at home. I hope to heaven that it makes a difference, because if it doesn't, I honestly don't know what to do. Hence, my quandary.

It's been mentioned by a couple of people (and mulled over by myself) that I sell her. She'd do very well in a big Arab barn with a regular trainer, and she'd clean up at sporthorse in hand and sporthorse under saddle classes. I'd be happy to see her in a home like that, too. If I can't get her there, I'd like to see someone who can... I just don't want to show on the Arab circuit, myself.

I really don't want to sell her, though. This is the first horse I've had in a long time that I really want to work with, really want to succeed. I feel like we've come SO FAR, it's really been amazing. But we've hit a wall.

Other options include leasing her out, breeding her, or trying to tough our way through it.

Then there's me. I need to take a good hard look at what *I* want to do, what *I* want to accomplish. I don't HAVE to show hunters. I'd be just as happy showing dressage, or even eventing. But that would mean moving on to another horse.

As an adult amateur, working full-time and caring for my kids (plus husband, family, social life, et al), in a way it makes a lot more sense to have a horse who is more broke, who I can just get on and have fun with. A horse I can take to shows without worrying that it's going to flip out (or flip over). A horse who can teach ME something and advance MY ability.

But... it's Gia. Someday she's going to be a superstar. Maybe. Or, someday she's going to be a pasture ornament, or someone's pretty pet. Depends on if we can get through to her or not. I'm not willing to give up on her YET... but... I don't know what's around the corner.

Rising above

I am referring entirely to horses at this point, although there are many other things in my life right now that I am struggling to rise above :)

But I'm talking about Gia's terrible last show. I talked to my instructor about what happened, and where to go from here. I was scheduled for a lesson on Tuesday, I asked her to make it a training ride instead. It went fairly well. It's interesting to watch someone else on Gia, I'm the one who started her under saddle and I'm the only one who's ever ridden her-- except I put Jessy on her to canter for the first time.

When a horse is your "baby", like G is to me, you let them get away with stuff you wouldn't let another horse get away with. So it was really good to see Miraya ride her and really get after her.

She recommended a couple of things... first, a standing martingale. G has a habit of whipping her head around to get away from the bit, which to be honest I'd kind of not really noticed :) I guess I just got used to it.

The other thing she recommended was a B1-Thiamin supplement, to help take the edge off. My farrier enthused about it's benefits as well, so I started her on it yesterday. We'll see how it goes.

We are going to have a lesson and another training ride next week, and then Miraya is going to ride her at the Willoughby show next weekend. I also noticed that she was in flaming, disgusting heat at the last show so hopefully that contributed to the craziness. Ugh. Keep your fingers crossed that this next show is way better.

After that, we will be super busy getting Moira ready for the event at CVP in mid-August, so G won't show again until either Sunnyside or Willoughby on August 28th. And then the big finale (hopefully) of the season is the MREC Labour Day show, which I'm hoping to actually JUMP Gia (gasp!) So we're going to have to work super hard through August to get her going over poles. I don't have high expectations, some crosspole and 2' classes would make me perfectly happy.

We will still have the Sporthorse show on the 23-25th of September to round out the year, but that's no biggie, judging by the last Sporthorse show :)

I am trying to stay fluid in my goals for her. Honestly, even watching her have temper tantrums with Miraya riding, I still had to be grateful because this time last year I was wondering if she would ever be rideable at all.

We'll get there! We're in no hurry.

Nervous!

I can't believe I'm still freaking out about this show tomorrow. I haven't been this nervous about a show since the state dressage championships in 2006 (which, for the record, I won!) I am sitting here bored at work, thinking about everything I need to do today to prepare. It's going to be a long day, and an early morning tomorrow!

I want to take my mind off of tomorrow, but I can't think of anything else but horse shows, so I'm going to post our planned schedule for the rest of the summer:

July 10th: Sunnyside Saddle Club hunter show
July 24th: Willoughby Saddle Club show
August 28th: Sunnyside Saddle Club hunter show
September 23rd-25th: BC Sporthorse Fall Show

Also, Jessy and Moira plan to do the CVP Horse Trials August 12th-14, and we are toying with the idea of sharing Moira at the MREC Hunter/Jumper show over Labour Day weekend. We'll see on that one.

So... my goal for Gia was to do two big shows and one schooling show. After this weekend, I will be most of the way to that goal (having done one schooling show and one big show).

I also intend to start taking lessons. I have a hunter/jumper trainer coming next week for a trial lesson, we'll see how that goes. I don't know what Gia wants to do yet... hunters? Dressage? Usually I can tell pretty quickly but not with her. So we'll let an experienced H/J rider tell me what she thinks.

Well, back to my obsessive list-making about what I have to do and pack tonight... okay, can't forget the hay bag, treats, oh and of course the bridles...

Balance

Yesterday I went to physiotherapy for the first time, for a longstanding back issue that has only been exacerbated by pregnancy and getting pitched off the Supermodel. It was very interesting, I learned a lot-- about how the way I hold myself and the things I do affect my back and neck pain. I was sent home with lots of stretches and exercises to work on to improve my core muscles, which is kind of exciting to me as it will only improve my riding.

I feel very positive right now, for the first time in my life I feel like I'm actively working toward both my physical AND mental health. It's not an easy road, and I have a tendancy to get overwhelmed and upset. Hopefully I can look back at this post and remember that it isn't always like that, and it WILL get better with work and time.

One of the very interesting things that was pointed out to me is that I am not very good at breathing. (How can a human being NOT be good at breathing, you ask? I know, right?) I have a tendancy to hold my breath at the slightest provocation. I have to learn to relax and breathe... which we all already know I'm not good at. :) That will help my mental state, and of course my riding as well. Yes, I tend to look at things from the point of view of my riding-- but it gives me a physical, concrete perspective on what I'm trying to accomplish or change.

At any rate. I will be doing my exercises diligently (in fact, my boss even put out an exercise ball for me in the office!) and looking forward to the results. In the meantime, our show is this coming weekend, so there's lots to do right now!

My big goal for the show: concentration and focus. Gia lacks both, and it'll only be worse when there are a bunch of strange horses around her. I expect she'll lose her little pea brain at all the excitement. So I want to work very hard at both of us maintaining our focus, not getting distracted and/or frustrated. Anything else is gravy.

I can't wait! (Oh, and cross your fingers for good weather, I don't want to be hacking to the show in the rain!)

Mare makeovers, and showtime!

Well, I took the plunge... Gia's mane came off. She is officially a Big Girl now, a working horse, not just a pretty face. It looks pretty good, but definitely needs some tweaking and a couple of weeks to grow out and look natural.

I finally broke down and did it because showtime is coming up! We are taking both the Supermodel and the Superpony to a teeny-tiny schooling show in two weeks. Honestly, I know that we aren't even close to being ready for a show, even a little bitty one like this. So, my goal is to go to the show, get on at some point, and not get bucked off :) If I actually end up entering any classes-- even walk-trot-- I will consider that the icing on the cake.

Two weeks after that is the BC Sporthorse/Sportpony show in Cloverdale. I plan on taking her to that show in the halter classes. I'm pretty excited about that, it's a bigger show, plus I'm really interested to see how she does in a halter class. I personally think she's very well built but I know that conformation is by FAR not my strong suit. So I'm curious as to how others (such as judges) will see her.

I'm happy to be making plans for the show season, so often for me, life gets in the way of my goals. And this is only the beginning!

Anyway, I had a chance to take some pictures of the ladies a couple of days ago before the heavens opened and the rain came down (again). I let them into the arena, and of course they ran around like crazy people, with much snorting and Arab head-tossing:







(Doesn't Moira look like a Breyer pony??)

After the running around, Gia had to roll...



... then resume her fancy "look at me!" trot.





"I'm the beautiful-est!"



Moira tried to keep up for a bit...



But eventually just got cranky about it (see her ears, lol)



and decided that eating would be way more fun.







Gia ran around a bit more but eventually did slow down, and I managed to get a couple of pics of her new mane...





And of course, a couple of pictures of adorable Moira just for fun.





How can you not love that face? <3

Anyway, they are both doing well and are happy, and I can't wait for the good weather to get here (HELLO, it's almost JUNE, where's our SUMMER??) so I can ride more consistently, and hit the shows!

Wish us luck!