Losing your nerve

You know that sick feeling in your stomach, the adrenaline rush where you feel a little spacey, and your fingers and toes start to tingle? That was me the weekend of the Pine Hill show - I was strangely plagued by a really bad case of show nerves. I had a jumping lesson on Saturday before the show Sunday,  and I was totally second-guessing myself and Paddy. I  was SO NERVOUS in the lesson - I rode like crap, he stopped 3 or 4 times, and halfway through our ride I was to the point of withdrawing from the show. This was a new experience for me, and I didn’t quite know what to do.

In the distant past when I was competing Cash, I only showed when I knew we could go out and OWN the division. That sounds cocky, but I was always so confident in Cash, and what we could do, that I was never worried about stops on XC or rails in stadium (in fact our whole jumping career, he only stopped once). By the time we were showing seriously, we’d been a team for four years, and we had such an amazingly solid partnership that I knew exactly how pretty much every fence was going to go down. Don’t get me wrong, Cash was a tough ride – very sensitive, very fast, and you couldn’t touch his face – but we understood each other and we made it work. Sure, I’d get nervous in the start box, but the adrenaline rush is part of the fun, right?

This used to be no big thang. That's a maxed-out Training level fence - 3'3, with a 6 foot spread.

But my show nerves for Pine Hill were totally different – they were based on doubt. Could I ride Paddy well enough to get him over the jumps, or was I going to freeze up, get loose in the tack, and throw him at jumps? Was I fit enough to ride strongly for the entire course? Was he going to stop and stare at every single jump? My list of worst-case scenarios kept getting longer in my head and I got more and more worried.

Today, this is terrifying. It's 2'3.

What's even more strange is that I rode Red in his first event on this exact same course almost a year ago, and I was totally cool about it. But I've ridden Red for 10 years, and I knew he'd jump it all. Besides, I took him eventing on a total whim - we had nothing to prove to anyone and we were only there for fun.

This looks like fun, right?

Luckily, I have some good friends and a good trainer who put things into perspective for me and Paddy. I was NOT going out to win – I was going out to school my very green horse, who I’ve had for FOUR MONTHS, around his first event. My only goal was to make it a positive experience for him, and to set the stage for the future. I needed to ride the best I could and be positive so that HE would be positive and confident. Somehow, thinking about it that way took the pressure off enough for me to get us around the course without me throwing up. My stadium round was less than stellar (I threw him at the fences and crawled up his neck) and of course we had the stop XC.  But we lived, I didn't ride THAT badly, and there were a lot of really good things about each phase of the event. I came away feeling like I'd done a relatively good job, all things considered.

Alas, we weren't as together as we usually are.

But still. Where do I go from here? I have a green horse, and I'm not gonna lie, the Starter Novice jumps look plenty challenging. Paddy's got so many holes in his training - no fault of his, of course, but he got a late start in life and doesn't have the skills that Cash did at a similar point in his career (for comparison, Cash was started as a 2 yo in reining). I can (hopefully) work myself and Paddy through this and we'll be a stronger team, but to what end? I've done the eventing thing before - I know how much is involved and I'm not sure I want to do it again. I just don't want it bad enough right now.

I'm sure I'm not the only one to have lost my nerve. What's your experience, and what was finally the tipping point where you were able to move forward again? If you're still struggling, what are you doing to work on it?

Paddington's Debut Event! Starter Novice @ Pine Hill

Yesterday was Paddy's first-ever event! We went Starter Novice (also called "Goldilocks" down here), which is Beginner Novice Dressage Test A, with 2'3 jumps in stadium and cross-country. I'd love to say that we kicked ass and took names, and we did... mostly. He was a super-duper boy and I was very pleased with his performance at his first outing, although our final score doesn't reflect that.

Saturday I had a miserable jump lesson (he stopped 4 times) that was definitely not what one wants in a confidence-building ride the day before a show. I was SO nervous, I just couldn't hold it together. That's weird because normally I do get some butterflies (who doesn't?) but it's usually the day of. I don't show unless I'm confident we can go out there and get the job done, and I was having serious second thoughts after that lesson. But... as Deb Rosen said last weekend, eventers need to have a little bit of "get it done no matter what" attitude, and I figured I'd never forgive myself if I didn't at least TRY. So I loaded the trailer Saturday night and was on the road in heavy fog early Sunday morning.

This was my first show where I've had a coach there in... oh, 15 years. Lisa Bauman of Austin Eventing did a great job of coaching us (she's only seen me ride twice), and it really showed for our dressage test. I'd planned on sitting all the trot work, but she suggested posting so we could both be a little looser. Sure enough, her advice paid off, and we put in a stellar (for us, right now) test. Our transitions were great, circles were round and our centerlines were straight (!!!!). Our only bobble was on the right lead canter, where he sort of bolted into it. I hadn't set him up well for the transition and it was in a corner with deep footing, so he was understandably unbalanced. We got it back under control in half a circle, but otherwise had a super nice test.

We got dinged a lot for him having an open mouth... steady, quiet, soft contact is definitely a work in progress.

But look! We can canter without running around like a freight train!

And we had some suuuuper fancy trot moments.

So at this point you guys are probably like "SO WHAT WAS YOUR SCORE ALREADY!?!?!" but I have this weird thing where I DO NOT look at my scores until I'm done with all my rides. I don't want to go into any phase thinking "If I drop a rail that will take me from 2nd to 8th" or whatever, so I just don't look. I also tell whoever I'm with not to tell me. It's not failsafe, but somehow not knowing takes some of the pressure off. So let's just say I was super happy with our test... especially since 2 minutes before we went in the arena, a MULE came into the warmup area and started braying. Paddy, bless his giant Haffie heart, didn't even bat an eyelash. What a good guy!

We had a bit of a break until stadium, so I cooled Paddy out, stuffed him with carrots, and changed clothes. My white breeches were pinching badly behind my left knee, so I opted for tan for stadium. I went and walked the course in between divisions (nice inviting figure 8 shaped course, but the footing was DEEP). One challenge during the day-long shows is to eat and stay hydrated, so I had a few bites and some water, then it was time to tack back up. Warmup for stadium was short - an X, 2x over the vertical, and 2x over the oxer. Lisa reminded me to stay back and keep my shoulders back, and to ride what I had. I had decided to trot the fences unless he felt really balanced, in which case I would canter if it seemed right. We stuck with the plan and cantered the one line in a lovely 6 strides - he was soft and just as nice as you please. I think we trotted the rest of the course but can't quite remember, lol! We had two hard rubs but the rails stayed up - maybe someone duct-taped them in place? Still, it only counts if they come down, so we were clear and still standing on our dressage score.

Looking sensible and not like a train wreck.

Last jump - can you see my smile?

WhattaGoodHaffie!

We had a long wait before XC, so I took the opportunity to get more to eat and drink, visit with some friends, and do a bit of shopping. Let's just say I now have one of the new Horseware washable jackets, which I am SUPER excited about. Do you have any idea how gross a coat gets after a day fox hunting? I'm sorry, but no amount of dry-cleaning can possibly get that much horse snot and mud out of anything. Yay washable jackets!

Anyway, on to XC. We kept warmup short and sweet. Paddy felt tired for the first time I have ever ridden him. He still had plenty of gas, but I didn't feel like I was holding back a bullet train for once. We did a warmup log and oxer, then Lisa and I talked through what I would do if I had a refusal (I believe in having a plan, even if I had no intention of having a refusal!) After that, we headed over to the start box for countdown. I punched my watch with two seconds to go, then trotted out of the box and asked for a canter. Of course he got the wrong lead, but off we went anyway!

The first jump was a roll top, which went great. As we were cantering toward the second fence, I heard the Austin Eventing crew yell "GO PADDY!!!!" and had to smile. It's super nice to be with a group! 

On to fence two, which was the white coop in this picture:

Sproingy XC.

Three was a small ramp, no problem, and four was an option between the water and a log. I picked the water - he had a tiny hesitation and then plowed right in. We had a nice canter over to a second roll top for fence 5, and then over to a tiiiny drop for 6. Except that he leapt off it like there was an 8 foot moat with alligators in it.

Can you even SEE the drop? That's how tiny it was.

So of course I got bounced around in the saddle a bit, but managed to stay on board. The next jump - which you can just barely see as the blue dot past the drop - looked like this:

Seriously, that's 2'3???

This was one of the fences on the course I was worried about. It was narrow, out in a field, huge, and BLUE (you can also see it doubles as a BN jump coming the other way). I had planned to sit up, leg on, cluck to him, and ride hard. And I did just that. But remember that 8 foot leap off the tiny drop that was the fence before? Yeah, I didn't take enough time to get ourselves reorganized to actually make my riding plan work. Paddy ducked left, then right, then left, then stopped in front of it. I was disorganized, he was unbalanced - it was a recipe for disaster on a green horse. Totally my fault - he still needs me to keep us together at this stage in his career. Unlike Cash or Red, he's not going to save me and jump anyway if I don't have everything together.

So, we paused, took a deep breath, and approached again. He took it like a pro, and we were off to the next one. This was another one I was worried about - a big brush fence. But I stuck to the plan, coming in at a balanced trot and giving him plenty of time to look at it. Sit up, leg on, and he sailed over. Next was a small log pile, also no problem. Our last two fences were a big log and another roll top, both pointed toward home. We were both pretty tired by then, but I did my best to ride him to the fence and encourage him with leg. He took them both with no problem and finished well. We were roughly 20 seconds over time, but we did have a refusal and that's easily 20 seconds right there, so I know we were right on pace for this level.

Good 325 mpm canter - and we're even balanced and he's not pulling! My stirrups need to go up 5 holes though.

We walked back over to the start area to report our go to Lisa, and then I took him back to the trailer to cool out and feed him dinner. I cleaned stuff and put it away, since I knew I'd be too tired to do so when I got home. Finally, when I was ready to load, I went to check the scoreboard.

Sooo... yeah. I'm not going to lie, it would have been amazing to bring home a blue ribbon. Even so, I'm not at all disappointed with our day. We had a great dressage test, a good stadium round, and a cross-country course that was pretty amazing, considering where he is in his training. The mistakes we made were all me, not him being dirty or ugly. We definitely have our work cut out for us, but we're laying a solid foundation. 

Good Haffies get extra carrots... right?

Many thanks to Lisa Bauman for great coaching on-the-fly, and the folks at Austin Eventing for making us feel so welcome and providing a cheering section. Also, all the pics on this page (except for the last one) are courtesy of Lisa. Thanks so much!

The Great Eventing Vest Dilemma (opinions needed!)

Years ago, my parents gave me a Tipperary eventing vest, back before vests were required for competition (yeah, I’m that old). I LOVE that vest – it’s light, breathable, and super flexible, and even in 100+ degree Texas heat, I don’t really notice I’m wearing it.

Most of the vest companies recommend replacing vests every 2-5 years, or more often if you hit the ground in them. Mine is... uhm… at least 15 years old. Although it still fits just fine, the foam is noticeably thinner than on the new vests I’ve tried out, and the zipper is shot. In other words, it’s waaaay past time to replace it.

My Tipperary vest, circa 1999

I really want my new vest to be certified – the Tipperary vests are not certified because they are constructed of many small pieces of foam, and theoretically would allow an object to puncture the space between the foam. So I’ve been looking at a couple of other companies that make certified vests, namely Airowear, Charles Owen, and Rodney Powell.

Charles Owen vests

The design and construction of these vests is quite similar – solid pieces of foam over the body. Our local Dover store carries the Airowear vests, so I tried a few of them on. After wearing the Tipperary for most of my adult life, I can definitely say that I do NOT like the bulk of the other style of vests. The Tipps are very flexible and really move with you, but in the Airowear I felt like I couldn’t even get my arms down by my sides because of the bulk of the vests. But ok, whatever, I’m willing to sacrifice a bit of comfort for a certified vest.

Airowear vest

However, I’ve encountered a stumbling block that may leave me with very little choice as to the vest I ultimately purchase. My original Tipperary vest is custom-made, because when I got it, Tipperary ONLY did custom vests. What I did not realize is that despite the plethora of sizes that are now available, I may still need to have a custom vest made, because NONE of the off-the-rack vests fit me. Here are the issues:

• Chest size – Much to my embarrassment, I’m a kid’s size. Even the smallest women’s sizes leave too much of a gap around the bust. But if I go with a kid’s size vest, they are far too short in both the front (don’t cover the ribs) and the back (don’t cover my tailbone).
• Tailbone protection – The Tipperary Tall XS is the only vest that actually covers my tailbone. All the rest of them, even in the “long” lengths, are at least an inch (even two!) above the end of my tailbone. Airowear does make an “extra long” length, but the measurements show that it will probably still be too short. And because it’s special order, I can’t return it if it doesn’t fit.
• Rib protection – The front of the Airowear vests are at least an inch above the end of my ribs. However, the Tipperary covers my entire rib cage. 

I have not tried on either the Charles Owen or the Rodney Powell vests, but I could order both types of vests to try on and see if I like the construction. Neither manufacturer makes off-the-rack vests in a size that I’d have any hope would fit me, so I’d definitely have to return whatever I ordered and order something custom-made to fit. Tipperary, Airowear, and Rodney Powell will make vests custom-sized, but it doesn’t look like Charles Owen will (boo).

Rodney Powell Pro Body Armor

So it looks like my choices are a non-certified custom Tipperary, or a custom certified RP or Airowear vest. I’m super-tempted to go with the Tipperary, just because they are a comfortable and known quantity, but there’s that little certification thing in the back of my mind. So, anybody had any experiences with any of the other vests, or with having a vest custom-made from any of these companies? I need some help making a decision!!!

Jumping ALL THE (small) THINGS on cross-country

Yesterday, the weather finally cooperated and hubby and I made the two-hour drive to Pine Hill to take Red and Paddington cross-country schooling. It was Paddy's first time out, and I wanted to have a super positive experience. The plan was to jump all the Green-as-Grass (GAG) and Goldilocks fences, and maybe to a Beginner Novice jump or two if they didn't look too scary.

Almost as soon as we unloaded, we were accosted by a lady who had grown up riding a Haffie. Paddy got the requisite "HE'S SOOO CUUUTE!"  exclamation, and we chatted a bit about how awesome Haffies are. Paddy's great at the trailer except he wants to be able to see Red at all times, so he carried on this little one-sided conversation while we were tacking. Red could have cared less about the whole thing, and ate grass on his side of the trailer while pointedly ignoring Paddy.

Eventer Haffie outfit.

Eventer war pony rockin' the plaid.

We started out with a WTC warmup each direction - he was super awesome. Not looky, didn't rush, got the canters both ways with minimal fuss (hooray!). We took a quick walk break, then trotted up to a small log. Paddy hit the brakes right at the base, I clucked to him and smacked him on the shoulder, and he launched over it. We jumped it a few more times, then moved on to the first official fence on the course. Given that he was hesitant about the first jump and I wanted this to be very positive for him, I decided to follow Red over the next few fences. We did a rolltop, a small white coop, then a brush fence. Paddy jumped them all like a pro following Red, then we went back and did each one by ourselves. He was balanced and forward and cracked his back over every one!

Next we decided to play in the water a bit. Paddy followed Red in the first time, but I don't think I needed to have been concerned about him going in - he was quite happy splashing around in it, and popped in and out with no problems!

Needs rubber duckies.

Other notable highlights included a canter up a steep hill to a small log at the top and then cantering down the hill (no problem, and he was very balanced both up and down the hills), a small ditch which he cleared by 10293472 feet, and a good-sized brush fence that he didn't even blink at. The very last jump on the course was a rolltop that is shared with BN - not huge, but Paddy made a good effort over it.

For his first time out, I could not have asked for more. He was quite balanced and rateable (I rode him in a kimberwicke) and he jumped ALL THE THINGS. We had a few iffy moments at some "scary" fences, but I sat up, closed my leg, and gave him a little smooch or tap, and he went right over.  He's definitely a forward-thinking guy, and that's really what you want in an eventer.

Now we get to go out and do it for real at a schooling show on January 19. Eeep!

Pics from Pine Hill HT with Red

Remember back in January when I did the HT with Red? We finally got our pro pics, yay! They were just stadium, I wore my vest instead of my coat, and my saddle pad didn't match my vest 'cause I was in an all-fired hurry to get to the warm-up arena, but other than that... we don't suck!

 

Cute Feerless War Pony rocks stadium!

 

I am super proud of my position here. I'm solid in the saddle, totally with him, and I'm not doing the Funky Chicken with my elbows. Alas, as my H/J trainer is ALWAYS telling me, I need to pull my stirrups up a hole (or three). An automatic release would be nice too, but I've never mastered that, so... something to work on!

I'm really looking forward to showing Echo this fall over some baby stuff, but if I'm honest I would love to take Red again too. He was just such a BLAST to ride, and I'm really proud that I navigated him around an entire XC course that he'd never seen or practiced before. 

We'll just ignore the dressage part, mmmkay? ;)

Pine Hill Schooling Horse Trials with Red

I believe it was just two weeks ago when I made the statement that “Red would never event, and never do dressage, because he’s gaited.” Or something of that sort. Well, I should have had more faith in The Feerless War Pony, because he has proved me entirely wrong.

At the Working Equitation clinic last weekend, I was encourage to enter an eventing schooling show this weekend. On a lark, I decided to go. We entered the “Goldilocks” division (there is no such actual USEA division, this is made up by the show organizers) – Beginner Novice dressage test A, no flowers or scary fences in Stadium, and 2’3 max height on the XC fences.

We had a lot working against us. I haven’t jumped Red consistently in probably a year, although he’s jumped 3’ coops a few times while out foxhunting this season. I was out of practice and so was he. Also, he’s never, EVER schooled a cross-country course. He’s never jumped a brush fence, or gone into a water jump, or anything like that. Most people at this show had not only been XC many times, but they had schooled the same course that they rode this weekend. And then of course there’s dressage. Yeah, we made huge inroads last weekend, but there’s a big difference between having a trainer (with magic trainer dust) walking you through every stride on an endlessly repeating 20 meter circle, and having to string movements together in a test. So yeah, not the most prepared I’ve ever been for a show. WTF was I THINKING?

And as I walked the XC course yesterday morning, I was also wondering WTF was I DOING! Those 2’3 logs were HUUUUGE! And could we make the time? 300 mpm? I mean, sure, Red can keep up hunting, but usually we jump 2 or 3 fences in a row and then we’re done. Would he quit on me halfway through? I made some whiny comments to MC, who went with me to groom for the day, and questioned my sanity. Again.

The dressage warmup was pretty awful. The warmup area footing was super hard, and Red did not like it AT ALL. Even his trot was flat, and his canter was worse than it has been. We missed a bunch of leads, and they had been so good on Saturday. Me being tense did not help at all, I’m sure. I’d studied how the test would be scored carefully beforehand, and of course there was a lot of emphasis on the up/down canter transactions (each scored separately) as well as the canter itself. I knew we’d have to make up for it on the trot work if we could.

We went into the arena and gave it our best go. The initial trot was really good, and then we blew the left canter lead, which landed us a 4. Downward canter/trot transitions were as awful as expected, although I managed to get him to actually trot and we got back into a fairly tidy trot quickly. We got an 8 for the free walk, which was extra good since it had a 2x coefficient. The right trot circle was OK, and the right lead canter depart was iffy, as was our right canter circle (his hard direction). I believe the comment said something like “loss of rhythm” – um yeah, that would be where my horse was doing a 4 beat gaited thing? I dug my spurs in and urged him to keep going, and we did actually manage to complete the entire circle without breaking. I had a hard time getting him organized enough for the right turn down center line, so we rather flubbed that move, but we finished the test and stayed in the arena. Overall we scored a 39 (YIKES!) and landed in 3rd place.

 

A good moment in trot.

 

Free walk. I'll take the 8!

 

This is what a gaited "loss of rhythm" canter looks like. Note how far forward my outside leg is, turning his shoulder. We got the circle, but wow my leg looks funny from head-on!

 

Another nice trot moment.

Each competitor is required to volunteer for an hour at these shows, so MC and I went out to jump judge Prelim and Training. We had an impressive ABC combo for Prelim – an enormous rolltop, 2 strides to a ditch, 2 strides up a hill to a seriously skinny fence. All 5 Prelim competitors rode it well, and I was SO happy to hear two of them come through counting “One-TWO, One- TWO!” before the first fence. I’m not the only one who does iiiiiiiit! (singsong voice)

I had to head back early to get ready for stadium, then about had a heart attack when they said our division was going early. I raced to tack up Red, sped up to stadium to walk the course in 30 seconds (I handed Red to some stranger to hold while I walked it), and then hopped on to warm up. Red liked the footing in the stadium warmup arena much, much better – I had a nice, forward, bouncy pony under me. I kept warmup to an absolute minimum – we jumped the X, the vertical, and the oxer, and called it good. Red isn’t the type that will put up with a lot of warmup or repetition – he wants to get out there and get the job done, no fuss no muss. Fine with me, it just means that *I* need to be spot on so I don’t have to drill myself.

I headed back up to stadium and watched a few rounds to make sure I had the course down. It was just simple poles, no flowers, brush, rolltops, or stone walls, so I wasn’t worried about the actual fences. A couple people had stops and rails down, but I just wanted to ride the course forward and balanced, and not let Red chip. My turn came, we trotted in, got the whistle, and started on the left lead. Fence 1 was a crossrail which I flubbed (oops), then an easy turn to a vertical, and 3 was another easy vertical. We made a wide-ish loop to fence four, and oxer. Red was on the left lead but kept his balance through the right-hand turn, and I opted not to try to fix it but just ride what I had. Fence 5 should have been a right lead as well, but he stayed left and I didn’t mess with him. We had a bit of a mess turning to fence 6 – he was unbalanced – but we got it back together in time and had a nice spot off a short turn off the rail. A long canter to fence 7, and another long go to fence 8 – he came barreling down and I sat up a little to organize him, but we got over on a bit of a long spot anyway. However, no rails down! Go Wonder Pony!!! I patted him over and over again and told him what a superstar he was, and I’m pretty sure he was like, “Yeah, I’m all that!”


We had a long break until XC, where DA (who was also showing) and I talked a little and MC snuck in a nap. The warmup area was the same as for dressage, hard as a rock. I trotted Red around once each direction, cantered once each way, and jumped the warmup log once off each lead. Red was starting to get frustrated with everything, snatching the reins out of my hands during the walk breaks. I took him over to MC, where he ate grass for a bit. While we were waiting for our turn, Red ate MC’s Charley Bears, which are actually dog treats that she’d brought along for her service-puppy-in-training. Apparently Red likes liver-flavored dog treats, who knew?

 

XC warmup.

Finally, we were up! I started my watch with 5 seconds to go, walked into the start box and cantered out of it. Red seems to have this extra gear reserved for foxhunting and cross-country – powerful and balanced. We blasted over the first log and came around to fence 2, a rolltop. I screwed up the spot ‘cause I was looking at the fence, and lost my right stirrup on the landing. Red kept going as I fished around for it, and fortunately we had a nice long run before fence 3, a ramp. Fence 4 was another log going up a bit of a hill, and then a sharp left turn and another good run took us to fence 5, which was a small drop. Red looked at it a bit as we came up to it, as if he couldn’t quite figure out what to do with this half-log on the ground, but we’ve dropped off a small bank at home enough times that he went over it without fuss. We then had to weave through a Novice and Training set of fences to get to fence 6, a bridge. He trotted boldly over that, then a sharp left to fence 7, which was a HUGE log that we shared with BN. I kept my eyes up, leg on, and clucked to him, and he went right over. We had a bit of a zigzag through the woods to fence 8, which was a brush fence. I felt him take a good look at that one when we came around the corner – he’s never jumped brush before – but I again closed my leg and it was no problem. I looked at my watch and we were FAST. Ooops! I’d figured that I could make up time on course between 9 and 10, but opted to ride quietly instead. Fence 9 was another log that I almost missed the turn to, but Red’s super-maneuverable and recovered from my mistake in time to make the jump look tidy. A long canter to fence 10 (I had to remind myself to slow down, I was having so much FUN!), which was a trot through the water. Red took a small look at it but went right in and trotted through, splashing everywhere. He got a bit behind my leg and I was a little worried about him taking the opportunity to stop for a roll, so I gave him a tap with my whip and reminded him that he was still on the clock. We came out of the water, I asked him for a left canter, and we made a tidy turn around some trees and headed for home. We took a HUUUGE (for him) spot on fence 11 and galloped across the finish line, with me yelling “WOOOHOOO!!!!”



OhMyGawd, I haven’t had that much fun in YEARS. I’m still picking the bugs out of my teeth!

 

Definitely bugs in there.

So yeah. We finished second on our (not so great) dressage score, two points behind a lady riding a 22 year old made eventer who had done Training her daughter several years before. You know, I’m good with that. :)

I think Red has the scope, talent, and heart to do Beginner Novice jumping-wise, but if we really want to be competitive, I have got to get our dressage together. I suspect that part of the not-bending-left thing may be tooth-related, which is logical since everyone is due for a floating anyway. I also know that our saddles don’t fit him very well, so I’d like to get our saddle fitter out to see what we can do. I’m hoping that I can get some shorter panels for my RP dressage saddle and change the billet system around, and perhaps get a shim pad for my jumping saddle. I’m hoping that better-fitting saddles will lead to less hollowness in the canter, as well as fewer balance problems.

And for those of you who are thinking, “Wait, weren’t you looking for a new horse?” Yeah, I am. But it doesn’t seem so pressing right now. After all, I have Reddums the Feerless Eventing War Pony!

 

Rawr.

Red ribbon for the Reddums! :D

I take back everything I ever said about Red not being able to event. ;)