A weekend that can be best described as "durchwachsen"

It means “so-so”, some good, some not so good. Saturday I trailered both boys to Sandy’s for lessons. Saumur was good, but to my surprise we had problems with our flying changes. As it was toward the end of the lesson and the next student had already started we couldn’t really focus much on it so all I could to was try to get a ‘somewhat clean one’ to finish on a good note.

The lesson with Remy was more of a struggle, I have a hard time keeping him in front of my leg going forward. After 30 min. of “forward – more forward – more forward - more round” I was quite frustrated. Also the saddle I have on trial seems to put me behind the movement. (Luanne is coming back this week to check/fix).

By the time I had everybody home again over six hours had elapsed and I was pretty exhausted, mentally more than physically. It bothers me probably more than the average person when things don’t go well, and I am over-analyzing everything.

Sunday morning I completely overslept (probably ‘thanks’ to the Motrin-PM I took). Luckily JP got up early and took care of everybody – on his birthday! Once I crawled groggily out of bed it was too late to hit the road again for lessons. I rode Remy in our outdoor arena, and after some initial ‘discussions’ we finished on a very good note. Then JP and I took Chambord and Saumur on a trailride, and the four of us had a lovely time in the woods.  The evening finished with a great birthday dinner at JPs favorite restaurant, which provided me with ‘lingering effects’ in form of a headache caused by white wine and champagne. Not exactly the desired ROI (Return on Investment)!

A fitting poem to life with Saumur - and a positive interpretation

I came across this poem by Robert Frost, and thought it fits my travels with Saumur (and my life). Here is an excerpt:

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

 - Robert Frost

Note: My sigh will be one of happiness that I took the road less traveled!

Busy weekend - and some minor frustrations

Saturday I took both boys for the first time by myself to Sandy’s. Luckily Saumur and Remy load and travel well. We had really good lessons, with voluntary (saddle trial) and involuntary (left double bridle at home) equipment changes.

Remy sported the Triumph saddle to see if he and I like it. It really fits him well, and I do like it, too. Sandy commented on how good my position was in this saddle as opposed to my Wave. Still, this is a big investment, so I need more rides before being absolutely sure. Luckily Luanne let me have it for a 10 day trial.

I do feel a bit awkward about the saddle situation, as Sandy is sponsored by a different saddle company that takes very good care of her. So naturally, it is important that her students should support that particular company. I’d like to do it but.. The saddle fitter comes from out of State. Sandy does a great job organizing the fittings at her barn, but naturally there are often months before the appointments, and then everybody has to be scheduled at a specific day.  OTOH, Luanne has been working with JP and me for years, and she always provided great service. And I do like the saddles better… and Luanne is local, and very accommodating to our schedules.

Saumur got to go in Remy’s snaffle, as I had left his double bridle at home. He was a very good boy, but note to self: if it is hot, hands are sweaty, and you are having laced reins: wear gloves! We did a cool exercise: 10 m canter circle on the center line then continue on the 20 m circle in counter canter, returning to a 10m circle on the center line in true canter.

The boys got a stay for a slumber party while we had a nice dinner with Sandy and Francis at the Redwood lodge. I definitely prefer sitting on the patio, inside I feel like my salad and I are scrutinized by the huge stuffed moose head on the wall.

Sundays lessons were more challenging, and I got really frustrated with myself. I am, and always have been, my own worst critic. Sandy wanted me to do a counter turn on the forehand, and with my left/right issue (“no, not this right, the other one”!) I felt I’d never get it. Good thing two out of three (Sandy and Saumur) kept their cool!

Then frustration with the saddle – I could not get the stirrups onto the trial saddle (I had been swapping leathers and irons between the saddles). The space was way too tight. In order not to waste too much time I used Saumur’s saddle and have to say, both Remy and I would have preferred the new one. With Remy, the key still is determination on my part. To make him more supple we work on breaking straight lines up with a lot of circles. The nice thing is that each ride is another building block on the previous one. Sure is better than me building up my left-right issues!

A perfect start to the day - and too good to be true?

What a great start today, sleeping in until 8 a.m. (!), waking up to perfect weather. We drove the farm pick-up "Old Buddy" to the local diner for breakfast. In order to get into the lovely village we have to go through Kensington, crossing the Huron River, seeing all kinds of wildlife. I felt so good that I even snatched a piece of crispy bacon off JP's plate (I'm a vegetarian). We really have embraced "small town America" and love it. I am thankful every day for the kind of life we are having. And yes, indeed, enough sleep will give you a rosier outlook.

Later today I'll take Saumur and Remy for lessons to Sandy, the boys will have a sleepover at Sandy's. That way JP and I can have dinner with Sandy and Francis, and I'll return for lessons Sunday morning and then take them home.

I'm getting a bit concerned about our combined fitness. Two more weeks until George! His lessons are pretty intense, and they certainly require a good deal of fitness. Actually, the main concern I have is Saumur, he had a pretty laid back time recently. Good thing the boys are keeping themselves  fit with galloping in our rolling pastures.

Last night we took Remy to his saddle-fitting. The place where we met Luanne looks like out of an advertisement "Better Living for Horses". Even the aisles are covered in springy rubber, there is a large cupola, and the indoor is humongous. I appreciated the friendly welcome from the boarders, having had different experiences in the past, trailering Crissy to our jumping lessons. The boarders there viewed us as intruders and made no bones about it.

Yesterday a woman told me her Morgan lived to the age of 43, roaming freely at the farm. Oh boy, if Remy lives that long I need to find a retirement home that takes both of us!

Regarding the saddle it seems the 3/4 independent shoulder relief system works best for him, and the saddle we have on trial now (a Triumph) is build standard on a shorter tree. I also tried a Link II but didn't care for the Mono-Flap. If I decide that I don't like the Triumph I can have a Wave build with the Triumph panels. It's never easy, is it? Back in the old days in Germany the store owner would bring two or three saddles to the barn (if you were lucky), and this is what you got to choose from. Period. The nice thing is that I can keep the saddle on trial for 10 days, so I am looking forward to see how it works in my lesson today.

What I meant with "Too good to be true" is Remy's behaviour in the new place. He was curious, but calm, didn't get bothered by all the horses looking at him through their half-doors. I, of course, had to immediately scout for monsters. Saumur at the time was convinced they were everywhere. I shouldn't have bothered. Remy clearly is not concerned about monsters. He was a gentleman on the longe line, let us adjust and fuss with the saddles, stirrup leathers, etc. and was attentive and polite under saddle, soaking up all the attention. Paranoia setting in I asked JP if he thought something was wrong with Remy?? OK, granted, this didn't even deserve a comment!

Taking the horse to the saddle - and appearance versus comfort

Bob Tarr, the awesome photographer, took some great shots of Remy at Waterloo. I was so excited when I received two photos per email (the ordered prints will take more time). Junior sure looks good! I, OTOH, briefly contemplated if the cooling vest makes me look 'fat' :-). Well, it does soak in water, and expands... JP's comment on this was a quick and to the point French version of "You are nuts!". Anyway,  I opt for being cool in scorching temps, and as long as I am not looking like the Michelin Man I am fine.

Tonight we'll have a road trip to try more saddles for Remy. Usually, Luanne would have come to our place, but after the heavy rains the outdoor arena is too mushy. With the draught we are having I don't want to complain about rain, however, our dirt roads are so slippery now that I have to put the traction control on to avoid sliding around in the mud with my car.

It will be fun to see how Remy reacts to being in a new indoor arena. I took Saumur there before for a freestyle clinic and he did not handle it well. Knowing Remy it won't be a problem. The problem will be making a decision! The two saddles to try are not what I am looking for, but they have the panels Luanne think will work for Remy. If Remy likes the panels, and I don't like the saddle we'll have to have one build. Actually, price wise it will be the same, but it will take ten weeks. What do they say, good things take time -- too bad that I WANT IT and I WANT IT NOW!

Horse Training Advice from the 'Iron Lady'

Like her or not, but here is a great quote from Margaret Thatcher. Initially I wrote it down to help me with some leadership issues at work. Really, though, it applies equally to training horses:

If you just set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing.
- Margaret Thatcher

R E S P E C T - No more 'just co-existing'

Whew – what a weekend! Busy, hot, tiring, but a great learning experience.

Friday night we had a good schooling session. Our Saturday classes  started well, despite Remy’s little bucking fit in the warm up. His attention and focus, as expected, were a bit skewed. He was calling for his friends, ‘humping’ up his back, but all in all we had good moments.

Sunday was a good progression on Saturday, Sandy finally got through to me J in that Remy needs to RESPECT me more and do what I say. Yes, this is nothing new, but it seems I need to go out in public to really get it. Nothing like your horse acting up in the warm up in front of the professionals and other competitors (George’s comment: “Your young horse seems to have some spunk”).

Barb, another instructor and also one of Sandy’s students, put it really well. She said that she noticed that at home she and her young horse ‘co-exist’, meaning she is not pushing issues (that should be addressed) too much in order to keep the peace. Well, thanks, Barb, that hit home!

So, once I rode with more authority, with some growling in French thrown in for good measure, we did quite well. I was really happy with this weekend, and in addition to a mountain of laundry (horse and human) to remind me of it I have good judges’ comments and scores.

The other big ‘aha’ moment was when I realized that Remy IS NOT Saumur! Huh? Well, with Saumur I am constantly on the lookout for anything that could upset him. Remy, OTOH, is a cocky little guy, he doesn’t scare easily. I can ride him like a ‘normal’ horse. Wow, after all these years – I can actually have FUN at a horseshow J

Speaking of fun: Sandy’s students really cleaned up at this show. Sandy was by far the most successful trainer, with five students accumulating:

-        Three championships

-        14 1^st places

-        one 2^nd place

-        six 4^th places

-        one Dover Medal.

 
We had our share in it J

Embrace the spark - or pull out the fire extinguisher?

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.

-        Albert Schweitzer

I came across this quote from Albert Schweitzer and thought “how true!” for so many situations in life. Also applicable when it comes to horses and competitions. My flame lately is burning pretty low concerning horse shows and the whole competitive stress.  Add another bout of stomach flu to my overflowing schedule and my motivation to pick up Remy tonight and take him to Waterloo for a large recognized dressage show is not really there.

Enter JP, who is not just ‘rekindling the flame’, he’s pouring gasoline on it! Without him, I would have said “forget the entry fees, we are staying home!”. But he is so supportive and really proud of us (even when we don’t do well) that it’s hard not to be motivated by him.

So, I guess JP put enough fuel on the flame that I agreed to spend the weekend in 90F weather at a very crowded show with a four-year old. And did I mention that my ride time requires me to get up at 3:30 a.m. tomorrow morning? Perhaps I should have had a fire extinguisher ready!

The honeymoon is over - pick up your socks!

Long day on Tuesday, we trailered Chambord and Remy to Sandy’s for lessons after work. It was well worth the effort, though, as JP had a great lesson on Chambord, and I got the (needed and deserved) strong nudge to move along.

As with the previous lessons, Sandy still had to point out that I am not asking enough precision of Remy, meaning he needs to respond right away, and not just "maybe". So she came up with more images to help me. One was that as we were trotting along she called out “There is a big sink hole right in front of you – halt!”.  The other one was “There is  branch about to fall off behind you – trot on!” That really helped with getting quicker responses. From there we could refine it to smoother transitions.

 So, yes, buddy, I guess the honeymoon is over… you need to listen and do what I say! (hmm, just don’t ask me how well this is working with my human partner…;-)

A huge step for one - and child's play for another

Trying to keep our training sessions interesting and varied I decided last night to set up a big blue tarp in the outdoor arena. I had it laid out like a water jump, with poles at each end for stabilization. Saumur notices and reacts to the slightest change in his environment, so when I longed him next to it he was jumping, snorting, and galloping before eventually settling down.


I stuffed my pockets with horse cookies, put his rope halter on, and led him up to the tarp. Sure enough, at first Saumur planted his feet and didn’t want to go near it. Chambord was the trail blazer, after a thorough inspection he decided it’s not going to eat him, so he walked right over. I patiently tried again with Saumur, and big surprise: He put his nose down and walked over it. Calm as could be, and we repeated it several times. A first in all the years we’ve been together! It truly shows how much more relaxed and confident Saumur is now.


Then comes the Four-year old: one look at the tarp, the head goes down, teeth are bared, head comes up… waving the tarp triumphantly from side to side and up and down! Clearly, this one thinks “fun and play first – worry later (if at all)”. I went a step further and put the tarp on Remy’s back, walking and then trotting him around. Imagine this big floppy sheet covering most of Remy’s body, billowing all around, and then sliding off behind him. Remy didn’t even so much as look behind him. Junior sure is pretty cool (and well, yes, pretty cocky, too).


What was child’s play for Remy took years with Saumur. It doesn’t seem like much to most people, but for us it was a HUGE step. It shows once more how important it is to embrace each horse (or human, dog, etc.) as individual and not to try to make everyone fit the same mold. I couldn’t have been happier with all three of them. And no, I didn’t wave the tarp around to celebrate – I opted to open a cold Stella Artois instead.

Searching for the right (saddle) fit - and where is his bathing suit?

Luanne, the rep for Schleese saddlery, came today to help us find a good saddle to fit Remy. Luckily we caught a break with the heat, 'only' mid 80s today. Initially I had thought I could get away with using Saumur's Wave saddle, but despite a Thinline pad with shims it's just too wide for Remy.

So, budget conscious person that I am, I asked Luanne if she could find me a used Wave that could get adjusted to Remy. Yes, she did, and she brought it today for a trial, together with a new one. Make a long story short, the saddle was in great condition, but seven years old, and the flaps were too short for my legs. Deep breath... let's try the new one. I liked it right away, but the panels didn't fit Remy. So, Luanne is off to try to find us the same saddle with different panels. If not, one has to be build -- ah, the things we do! But then... Remy's human namesake (my nephew) doesn't have the need for a saddle, but for a  drivers license, a Jaguar (!), Bang and Olufsen equipment... considering all that, I guess outfitting 'Equine Remy' is a bargain!

During all the try outs, saddle on, ride, saddle off, saddle on, ride saddle off... Remy was just awesome, polite, attentive, even when his hind leg got caught on the mounting block he didn't get rattled, just walked calmly off. Junior sure earned his treats today!

Later this afternoon we turned all the boys out in our outdoor arena, as the pastures a bare due to the extreme heat. At least around the outdoor there is still nice grass. We were having a drink on the patio, watching the boys graze, when I noticed Saumur rolling, rolling, and then just laying on his side, grunting. Oh, no, I of course started to assume the worst. JP, always seeing the glass half full, calmly said, "Saumur just enjoys the warm fluffy sand, he probably thinks he's on the beach", and to Saumur he called "Saumur, where is your bathing suit?". Well, I guess that embarrassed Saumur enough to get up, shake the sand off, and return to grazing.

Hitzefrei = No work due to heat

Last night the thermometer outside our front door showed 115F - 46C! This morning at 5 a.m. it was already 86F, with a forecast of hitting the100sF again. JP and I looked at each other over coffee, still sleepy eyed, and decided not to risk trailering the horses to our lessons. I emailed Sandy and re-scheduled to next week, in the hopes the intense heat will let up a bit.

As I was already up I decided to take Max and Jaas (our Viszlas) for a run. Yikes, aside from the heat the deer flies were trying to eat us alive. So much for the effectiveness of fly spray, except for smelling funky it did nothing to deter the beasts.

We are very fortunate, though, we have power and air conditioning. Our neighbors down the road have generators running, as the downed power lines still haven't been repaired. There is a live cable smoldering on a tree, hanging over the road, numerous calls so far only netted yellow tape "Live Wire" being strung along the road.

So, I guess it's time to tackle all the things I've been putting off, like sorting filthy horse blankets and take them to the laundry. Great, 12 stinky, heavy blankets and sheets in a car in this heat. Shows you how procrastinating for "when I have time" can backfire. What was this about hitzefrei??

See Spot run ... and catch the bright blue ball

Wake up call at 5 a.m. today, in order to beat the 100+F temps. The boys are currently spending the nights outside, it is cooler in the pastures and the open run in shed than in the barn. However, it meant that I had to get them in to feed at 5 a.m. in order to leave at 6:30 a.m. for our lessons - on my vacation day! It was all worth it, though.

I started again with Chambord, and I don't know what happened...  he was just awesome. Soft, round, on the aids, I couldn't have asked for more. And the nice thing was that he kept it for JP. It's not easy for a horse to have to adapt to two different riders. As Sandy pointed out, I keep my long legs close (sometimes too tight) to Chambord's sides, where JP's legs are at a different point of Chambord's barrel, and he is moving them more. Chambord adjusted nicely to both of us and really did a great job.

We worked quite a bit on my position again. Seems my long upper torso is 'swaying in the wind' in downward transitions. I absorb the motion upwards instead of in my hips and thighs. Sandy compared it with a long backed horse (as opposed to a short backed one). Collection for the long backed horse is usually harder. So... more collection exercises for me!

Now - what's with the "See Spot run ... and catch the bright blue ball"? Another one of Sandy's apt analogies. I still have the tendency to ride Remy like a baby, even though Sandy has been on me to "ride him like a trained horse", meaning asking for more. So today she came up with the comparison of kids in school: Children need to move on from reading "See Spot run" to more complex sentences like "See Spot run and catch the blue ball". Same with Remy, he needs to progress in his learning. Don't get me wrong, we are not skipping grades here, but we are moving up correctly and consistently with the training scale as our 'bible'.

For example, I tried using Saumur's exercise of shoulder-fore for straightness with Remy today. Initially, I got too much bend and we lost the rhythm and relaxation. After a bit more practise we succeeded it made a great difference in Remy's way of going.

Perhaps my reading should get a bit more complex, too. I've always been a ferocious reader of a great variety of books: Classics, novels, academic books, training manuals, etc. but right now I am glued to a murder mystery. Not exactly food for higher learning, but then, who knows, I might have to draw on it some day: "How to win over the handsome FBI agent". Of course, only to give advise to my single friends :-)!

Back to the scene of the accident - and Nordic people are not made for heat waves

Despite the heat I was looking forward to trailering Saumur to a lesson with Sandy today, the first time since the accident. Sandy is healing well, she has physical therapy several times a week with good results. Saumur has been going well at home so I was eager - and yes, a bit apprehensive, too - to see how he would be back in Sandy's indoor arena.

I am VERY HAPPY that everything went well, neither Sandy nor Saumur seemed to relive the trauma. Sandy fed Saumur sugar in the area where they fell, which I found quite touching. We had a very good lesson, focusing on precision. At first glance that seems pretty easy, but it is darn hard (at least for me). One exercise was having Saumur in a shoulder for at the halt, keep it in the walk, and then canter off without the haunches swinging in. Saumur is now at a stage of his training where he is very 'tuned' to the slightest aids, which of course will backfire when the rider (uh, me!) is not precise.

Saumur did not spook once, despite the side doors of the arena being open. He was supple and relaxed, and we finished on a good note.

While the heat did not seem to bother Saumur, my Nordic ancestors did not do me any favors when it comes to dealing with the sun. Very fair skin, blond hair and blue eyes allow for more sunlight to penetrate the body (and thus producing more vitamin D) which is great for living in Northern Europe, but definitely does not jive with 100F heat waves in Michigan. On the other hand, Chambord definitely does not have any vikings in his pedigree, and still gets sunburned. Pass the SPF 50 sunblock, please!

Luckily Luanne beat me to re-scheduling our saddle fitting session for Remy today. Even with the best of intentions I could not envision myself in our outdoor arena in the scorching sun, trying out saddles. Note to credit card: you have a reprieve until Sunday!

Does he need another quarter? - and more "Yes, Ma'am"

Finally - back to lessons with Sandy! We trailered Chambord and Remy today, hitting the road fairly early due to the intense heat.

I warmed up (actually that's quite an oxymoron, better to say I loosened up) Chambord for JP, as JP's knee is still healing. Chambord worked really well, but his little quirk is that he is used to get a treat for an exercise well done. When he thinks that's the case he will stop and crane his neck around, waiting for the sugar to come. Lavish praise from me after a good job obviously was not cutting it, Chambord refused to proceed without his reward. Sandy jokingly asked "Do you need another quarter in?" That's exactly how it felt!

Remy did retain the progress from our last rides well, he is much more consistent in the connection. What is lacking is the "Yes, ma'am!". He sometimes takes his sweet time to react, meaning he is behind my leg. No fun pushing him along in 90F weather. Remy is right at attention when I carry a stick (I don't have to use it), but the little bugger knows when I don't have one. Nevertheless, we managed to improve from "Hmh, maybe?...OK, then" to "OK, off I go". Not the sharp "Yes, ma'am" Sandy would like to see but a good move in the right direction. I sure could get used to more "yes, ma'am's"... anybody taking the hint??

Vacation for the humans = back to work for the Equines

JP and I are off next week - an entire week of vacation! Something most Europeans cannot understand, anything less that three weeks is not a vacation in their eyes.

The weather is not entirely cooperating, temps in the high 90s F (high 30s C), with extreme dryness. The grass in the pastures is dried to dust, and our hay man gave us the bad news that he is very doubtful about being able to harvest any second cutting hay this year.

With the extreme heat yesterday we decided to give the boys another day off, and headed first to the Ann Arbor farmers market and later to the movies and dinner. We both agreed that the film we saw was one of the best films ever "The Untouchables". A really awesome movie!

Today we got a head start on the heat, I brought the boys in at 5 a.m. for breakfast (they had spend the night outside, where it is cooler than in the barn), and we started at 8:30 a.m. with grooming and tacking up. While Chambord was sulking a bit ("work? are you sure?? I'd rather snooze!") Remy and Saumur were eager to get going. I am thrilled, because after two weeks off both of them were working really well. Remy picked up where we had left off, no problem. Saumur clearly is much more comfortable after the treatments, and he was soft and supple. For the most part, I kept it low key with him, but started practising a bit portion of 4th level, such as enter collected canter, x halt salute. At least we can enter correctly!

So... vacation... will we go back to work in a week like Chambord or like Remy and Saumur??