Plantation Field Recognized Event -- Open Novice (April 14th)

Chill warm ups lead to lots of drool:)

*Get ready for a ton of photos!!!!

If you been to Plantation before you're (hopefully) gonna think my illustration is hilarious. But I need it to help describe how the venue is in a class above most as far as events go. They run recognized and start trials there but I'd consider it one of the tougher venues in Area 2 for many reasons.

Basically to scale:)

It's built into the Chester County hillside and is basically a big hill with a proper arena up top, xc on one side and trailer parking on the other side. They alternate SJ and dressage in the main arena and either way you're kind screwed because whatever doesn't take place in the main arena has to happen on VERY sketchy grass on the side of the hill (near the trailers). For young horses or inexperienced riders (or both) Plantation is a BIG ask. I'll call it the great equalizer.

OH, they have snacks here? Okay then.

Scout has xc schooled there exactly one time (they offer a single xc schooling day per year) -- and was almost a full year since he's seen that big hill or been around that kind of atmosphere. The entries were stacked across the divisions and since he had to be entered in the ON division, I decided to forget about the scoreboard and hope for a great outing in all three phases.

Heading up the big hill to dressage

Dressage:

Scout had the earliest time in his division which I knew would work against us, but (again) I really didn't care about that. What I did care about was that he walked flat-footed with gusto up the hill and away from the trailers. The warm-up was fairly quiet, and I was stunned watching just how fluid and obedient he was being.

Hard to be upset when they warm up like this

Completely obsessed with this pic. The background looks like a painted backdrop!

Swoon!

They scored a 34.5 which put them in 3rd in their group and in the top 5 or so across the division. Obviously, I expected a big difference between a schooling show and a recognized event in terms of the dressage scoring. I would say as a guide you can tack 10 points on to whatever you might score at a schooling show. Scout's test was relaxed, obedient and accurate... but he lacks mileage in the sandbox and loses points in typical spots, like reaching down during the free walk and a little more OOPMH in his gaits. The judge liked him and has some nice comments about him overall.

<3<3<3

the walk isn't all bad:)

Obviously not square, but atta boy

Stadium: 

He waited patiently for his trailer buddy to go fancy prance and we got him ready for show jumping. The SJ warm-up was much kinder than the actual course itself which was wedged into the base of the hill and had gotten completely torn up from the upper divisions the day before when it poured. Regardless, he warmed up beautifully... jumping from a nice open stride. The only problem was that the Sj course did not allow for that kind of stride at all.

Oh Scout

That's more like it. This was coming off a nice turn where he got a great distance to the 2 stride

This jumped quite well for him but gave many others some trouble -- it's hard to tell but it's going downhill.

Early in the course, looking quite green.

Overall I think he had 2-3 rails down, which were simply green. The scope isn't the issue, but adjusting is stride is still challenging. His half-half is fairly confirmed and when he listens, he's able to wait and really push over the fences and that's when he jumps best (no shock there). They left the ring knowing exactly the kind of homework they need to work on. I think SJ will always be his hardest phase until he really figures things out with those long legs!

Cross country:

The course walked pretty fair for the level. My apple watch documented 11 floors of elevation gain throughout and the course designer used the terrain pretty thoughtfully. I wouldn't call Plantation a move-up course, but I don't think it was unfair either. There were a few combinations but no ditch.

This jump was a real problem on course*

Up bank to upright

Go through water and over white jump in the background

Another big ass table type jump

This was a nice size for the level on a  bit of an uphill approach. A nice final fence on course.

!!!!!

Pretty standard for the level

This looked MASSIVE to me!

Scout walked up the big hill one more time to warm up for xc and his little face at the top of the hill was SO cute.

FINALLY XC!

He was pumped. Warmed up over a few jumps and headed to the start box. The weather had a turned a bit over the course of the day and not only was it super foggy, but a light rain had started. He jumped the first two fences great and came up the hill to the jump with the fake brush on top, took a peek and then slid into the base. I honestly thought he was going to jump it from a standstill, but she regrouped him, picked up a canter and he popped right over. Again, it wasn't naughty but I think when he went to take a look at the fence he lost his grip on the slick grass (he's only shod up front). Once he was over that he locked on to everything else and jumped around SO boldly gaining confidence with every jump. He's really going to be a XC machine. He finished the course hardly blowing at all and even with the stop he came in right at the optimum time. When I met them at the finish and walked back down the hill Nora was smiling ear to ear. She said, "he's going to do everything you want him to do... he's got such an amazing brain... and I can still have fun at the higher levels." What a super vote of confidence for the young kid!

**hopefully, I'll have xc pics to add here soon -- I just need to coordinate with the photographer**

It's easy to forget that this was his second event ever. He handled everything with such maturity and eagerness. He stayed happy and forward throughout the whole day and better yet, he came off the three phases like he just ran around Kentucky. He literally strutted back to the trailer. While there were green moments, I never thought he felt over-faced or that we were asking anything beyond his skill or fitness level.

And while the scoreboard doesn't reflect what he learned from the day, I couldn't have been happier of how he handled each phase and as a much more seasoned horse at the end of the day. Onward and upward to the next!!!

Ocala visit, Part 2 -- The kid is pretty special (and a massive photo dump)

The second day I was in Florida (I arrived Monday morning and left Wednesday evening) turned out to be a bit of washout. We had planned to take Scout over to Justin Dutton's farm for one of her schooling jumper shows where you pay for one round and then get to go back in to fix anything that didn't go well, alas the weather had other ideas. The show was canceled due to a whole afternoon of downpouring -- booooo. I did spend the morning over at the Davidson's Florida compound and to hang out with my favorite little person, her pony and I got invited to go on conditioning rides with Andrea. Yes, PLEASE! The funny thing is that I've never ridden with or around her at all, so it was such a special treat to get to ride their upper-level horses without any kind of knowledge of my ability. Their Florida farm is on 600 acres, has a full track for gallops and a conditioning path that goes around massive fields with undulating terrain. After not riding for almost two months I was a little worried I wouldn't be able to keep up, but it turns out all that gym time has been paying off!

The cutest

It's not pony playtime without Twinkle Toes!

Sadly, will not fit in carry-on bag

We ALL finally got to ride together! Aubrey was SO excited!

Part of the trot paths

We did a series of trot sets and even galloped a bit which was super fun on something that is decidedly NOT a thoroughbred. The horses were all a bit wild that morning with the incoming weather a drop in temps but I had an absolute BLAST.

Scout got a bit of a spa day en lieu of the schooling show, and was not super psyched about Mom rolling in to pull his mane and make a fuss over him. I stuffed him full of treats which may have softened the blow a little:)

Wednesday, we planned to take him over to the venue of his debut event to xc school. Nora had only taken him xc once before and she was super excited to get him out again. I was so pleased to tag along and play groom while she schooled Scout and another client horse. What's even better, is that I got to see just how much he's matured in every way. He hopped onto her big rig without an issue, tied at the trailer and stood quietly for tacking and walked flat-footed across the property with an inquisitive look in his eye.

Growing up!

Starting their warm-up

It was super nice to see how she warms him up for XC. She walked him for 10-15 minutes before picking up a big, forward trot in a giant figure eight around a bunch of jumps. She walked and trotted through the water complex while doing this and picked up a canter and continued on a figure eight, adding in lead changes (!) and going up and down hills to help set his canter in balance before sending him toward any fences.

But, on to the good stuff... She's got him solidly in front of the leg and thinking forward but with a very reliable half-halt to utilize to help him sit and wait when she needs him to.

That trot THO

Weeeeee!

He was really giving everything a ton of respect but still landing in the same balance as he jumped it

This photo makes me SO happy -- she just has the biggest smile when she's jumping him

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First trakehners!

I was super pleased with his attitude about everything -- he's become such a professional about his job and he's proving to really have the right elements to make a great event horse. He still gets it wrong, maybe 20% of the time, but he has VERY good instincts to get his giant legs out of the way and carry a rider successfully to the other side -- better yet, he doesn't get upset or hold a grudge, which is perfect for an adult ammy!

I'm SO excited about our future together and I'm so unbelievably happy that he and I have met a trainer who gets us both. She has developed a really special relationship with him and he is giving 110% back to her in response. And even though I have to wait a few more weeks to hop in the irons myself, I'm even MORE excited now. He makes his eventing debut tomorrow -- so please send good vibes our way, hopefully, I'll have good things to report in a few days!

To PRO or not to PRO?

I'm just going to start blogging again like I haven't been the worst blogger in history (ahem, my last post was a month ago)... but I moved my horse, and bought a house and that's enough with excuses!

Scout has settled in beautifully at his new farm that is THREE miles from my new house. Having him so close feels like such a luxury and I'm feeling quite spoiled about just being able to pop down to see him even if just for a few minutes. It's also taken a lot of pressure over what we do each ride so his life feels more varied and less stressful in my opinion.

You could say he likes his new farm just a little bit:)

So with the weather starting to settle down (if you can call 83 degrees Saturday and 50 and thunderstorms today settling down) -- I'm starting to look ahead at what the year might hold for us training wise.

And with all horse planning, I've been cautiously optimistic because literally anytime I set money aside for any sort of training/showing purposes the shit hits the fan (I'm looking at you NYE emergency vet call). So naturally just as I reach out to an UL rider for training my truck's transmission starts slipping. But this is not a post about that.

Getting the basics solidified

I'm a decent rider. I can ride a green horse and teach it to walk, trot, canter, leg yield, go on the bit and jump little things.  But beyond that, I want the building blocks to be rock solid. I have loose goals that I'd like to achieve. Scout is athletic and has a wonderful attitude, he's brave and willing. He's a big, bay ball of clay waiting to be molded into an event horse and I want to it to be done right. Because when I take him to an event I want to feel like we are BOTH well prepared.

When we had our short stint over in South Jersey he was being ridden fairly regularly by a wonderful event trainer who gave me some serious words of wisdom after she jumped him the first time. She said, "Don't get greedy... he's nice, he's got the brain and the athleticism, but it would be easy to do too much too quickly, go slow." And you know what, it really struck a chord in me.

So here we are after a winter of intentional and not-so-intentional slow going. Lots of tiny legos being pieced together to build him up to where he needs to be to tackle the next step. Lots of long walk warm ups, lots of doing 100 transitions per ride, you know, boring stuff. So when it came to getting him going over fences in earnest, I decided it would be well worth my money to invest in some training rides with a professional who primarily works with young TBs. I want him to feel confident and comfortable and to be rateable and bold.

I took him over to a big fancy indoor for a test ride to see how they paired up and she just LOVED him. She walked him around under saddle so he could check everything out (including himself in the mirrors) and warmed him up on the flat. She figured out his asymmetry pretty quickly and worked to block his un-eveness at the walk which helped him stay straight and balanced in the trot and canter. It's these types of nuanced fixes that make me feel like my money is being well spent. I get to see how someone more skilled that me can zero in on little things and figure out the best way to unlock him. She trotted him over a little vertical once or twice and quickly moved onto to cantering everything. Keep in mind, he's jumped maybe 4 times under saddle before this!

Cantering the vertical the first time:)

And what she was able to do, that I know I couldn't do nearly as well, is help him stay balanced and straight to the jumps, leaving at an appropriate spot and landing in rhythm. Sounds simple enough, right?

I want jumping to be fun for him and for it to all feel easy.

Weeeee! First square oxer!

This ended up as a wide X in the end

Scary waves are NBD

She let him see everything first and took her time introducing him to the liverpool even though he didn't care at all. He seems to understand the idea of lifting his legs and getting to the other side.

When we finished up, she concluded that she was dying to do more with him because he's just so KEEN, and yes... she'd take us on as clients:)

A week later (truck fixed with rebuilt transmission) I took him to the barn that she primarily trains out of for a follow up session. He unloaded, took a look around and I tacked him up for her. She got right down to business warming him up for 10-15 minutes at the walk getting him to keep his hind quarters aligned and to keep the contact and throughness in his upward transitions. She really got him stepping under himself so nicely, which paid off in the canter work. She started this time by cantering him over a cavaletti in both directions while holding him accountable for a good canter.

He did try to go around the cavaletti once when he got there with a bit of a bad canter, but man if she didn't hold the outside aids and he STILL jumped.

Again, she let him look at all fill on the jumps and touch the barrel with his nose, but then she just jumped him around like he's been doing it forever. What was really cool was seeing he rebalance him after the jumps, if he got a bit too keen she'd make a adjustment and then leave him alone, sort of an exaggerated half halt and he'd come right back into balance.

just SO cute

!!!!!

My favorite part was when she said she going to canter over the barrel one more time on the right lead and I see her heading to the two stride. He just boldly jumped in and out and even though the second jump caught him a little by surprise she brought him right back around and he jumped through like a pro. She stopped and said, "he just felt so good and the canter was so balanced I figured why not?"





What I am learning is that my horse is bold and keen, he wants to get to the other side. He doesn't really know what he's doing which is why I have utilized the help of a pro to get him feeling like a superstar over fences. I want him to jump out of balance, and even though she makes him look super easy, I know that my greenness would not help him at this stage in his training. She'll continue to jump him at a higher level then me for awhile so that the whole thing just becomes quite boring for him.

But seeing him go with a pro on board makes me VERY excited about the future. My goals are quite modest and I know that if I can get him happy, sound and comfortable mentally, I'll be well on my way to achieving them. Better yet, I'm able to get real time feedback about where he's at in his training. Where the holes are and the types of things I should work on during my rides with him.

I want him to feel this confident every time he jumps:)

So what say you bloggers? To PRO or not to PRO? Do you find value in having a professional school your horse, or do you prefer to do all the training yourself? Why or why not? I know the answers for this vary wildly and I'm so curious to hear your opinions. Meanwhile, we'll be over here on the slow boat to BN, one jump at a time.