Welcome back!
The last 8 weeks have zoomed past and I can’t believe we’re racing through the summer at such an alarming rate. We’ve settled in to the new rhythm of ‘not competing’ really well and I now might have a struggle getting back to it! It’s been lovely to concentrate on quietly training away and having more lessons with Gareth than I would normally manage. I know I’m lucky though, because I’ve always been able to see the big picture and not feel the need to compete for the sake of it. I love competing but I love just being with the horses and training, so it’s not been too hard an adjustment.
Now that lockdown has eased and some form of normality can return we took advantage and had a Bitting expert come to the yard, something we’ve wanted to do for months! Charlotte Warman came and was fantastic. We had some great results. Anyone wanting to find the best bit for your horse this is your lady! She has hundreds of bits and you only have to ride in a couple to see the clear different feel they give to your horse’s mouth, it’s quite amazing. Fortunately ours are very communicative and let you know within minutes (sometimes seconds, literally) whether they like the bit or not! Ruin for example was trying double bridle bits – he went around with his mouth wide open in one and then in another stopped dead…the winning bits revealed a happy Ruin doing his own version of Valegro! We plan to have Charlotte back out in a few months to help with a couple of the other horses too.
With some venues opening again we arranged for G’s first outing! This was a big day for her (and us). Apart from her counselling retreat last summer (with a behaviourist to try and understand her frazzled brain, end result – who knows!!) this was the first time we’ve taken her away from home in the two years I’ve had her. We hired a very local fantastic venue, Burrows Court, for a play, with my mum’s horse Truffles for companion and calming duties. We had zero expectations considering the trauma we have had with this mare and her past career as a wild show jumper… Well she was ace! Very ‘alert’…but as a previous show jumper she was probably expecting mayhem and jumps! She was a little wired but we got a good bit of walk…yes ‘rising’ walk and not something many would necessarily recognise as walk but it was walk!! And she settled so well to do some lovely trot and canter work. She was so pleased with herself it was adorable. Absolutely thrilled with her! The aim is to do this once or twice a month to build up her confidence. Who knows, maybe we’ll actually be able to go to a competition in 2043… I’m so proud of her, I genuinely thought we’d never see this day, less than a year ago we tried to put her in foal because the riding was so traumatic!
A few weeks later we went for another playdate with G, same place again so we can build her confidence in a familiar arena away from home. She definitely recognised her surroundings so was more relaxed and did some really lovely work! We also took her on her own this time, and not with her babysitter Truffles, to see how she coped. Interestingly she didn’t seem bothered when we unloaded and got her ready etc, but she was definitely more anxious during the journey than last time. Having cameras in the horse area is a real godsend! So our plan is to do very nearby outings on her own so she builds her independence, but further away journeys with Truffles for company and confidence giving. The ride was great and she soon relaxed to produce the same work as we have at home. Having felt like we’ve established the little trot now (rather than her OTT Valegro impression) I’ve started to allow a little of a less little trot… but without losing the plot! I decided to try a bit at Burrows as she was going so nicely and she did really well, so a great start. I couldn’t be more pleased, she really is a gem. I’m building things up to hopefully at some point taking her for a lesson with Gareth!
The other horses are doing well. Ruin has had fortnightly lessons with Gareth and it feels like he’s really stepped up the quality of his work. I don’t plan to take him out competing again until we can do much improved tests. He doesn’t need the mileage and he’s so laidback it’s not wise to let him get too familiar with the competition venues for fear he might take a nap mid-test! He loves his lessons so those outings keep him happy and feeling important! Sidney is being great and really consolidating the advanced work. He could do a green PSG now, which is exciting! He’s one that’s really needed time to mature both physically and mentally and now he’s 8 you can see the difference. We still won’t compete him yet and instead plan for next year when he’s very established at Small Tour level (PSG and Inter 1) and can breeze through it. The next aim is to take him for some lessons with Gareth over the winter so watch this space!
That’s it for this time but there are some exciting things in the pipeline I should be able to share next month! Hope everyone is healthy and happy. Bye for now!
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