Plan your ride - ride your plan

OK, that’s pretty much plagiarized from the old foxhunting mantra “Plan your Hunt – Hunt your Plan”. Still, gotta have a plan – and my plan is very easy: Keep my hind end in the saddle!

Saumur has had me well trained over the years. I have been riding more or less in a modified two-point position, not willing to put my (whopping) weight into the saddle for fear of upsetting Saumur. As soon as he spooked I became even lighter in the saddle, so as not to disturb him. Not sure where that logic came from – certainly not from a dressage book or instructor.

With Remy it is really important that he feels me firm and steady in the saddle as it gives him confidence. With Judy’s help I’ve been working hard on improving my position and it’s coming together now. No (especially undeserved) flattery from Jude, so I was really happy when she commented yesterday “you have always been a pretty rider, but now you are an effective one”. Hohes Lob aus berufenem Munde! That made me really happy.

Plan my ride: Keeping my butt firmly glued to the saddle. Ride my plan: Someone better be ready to pluck me off afterwards!

 

I'm working on my head - and some interesting conversations

“Working on my head” means addressing the bouts of anxiety I am still experiencing. Flashbacks to being thrown, to be precise. I am embarrassed to admit it, after all, there are people breaking bones or worse and get on with it. From a rational standpoint I know very well that it was a freak accident, but my mind doesn’t seem to be convinced. Enter Julie, certified Hypnotherapist. She had helped me in the past and so I booked another session. If nothing else (not to diminish her talents in any way!) I always leave deeply relaxed.

After the session we chatted a bit and Julie offered to come to our place and treat Remy also. I was rather skeptical, to be honest. Hypnotherapy I can grasp and see where it helps – but talking with a horse? Nevertheless, I thought it can’t hurt, and so Remy had his session.

It was really interesting to see how he reacted, I had him loose on a leadrope in the barn and Julie was sitting in a chair in front of him. Remy didn’t move, but I could see how his ears were going back and forth showing that he was indeed engaged in some non-verbal communication. He was relaxed the entire time, deeply sighing. Julie said she could feel that he has the biggest heart ever, Remy wants to please, and that he is a real sweetheart.

So.. how did the conversation go? Well, Remy communicated that he felt really shocked and guilty about what happened and that his biggest fear is  that “he gets send away again”. Now, that is interesting. I never told Julie about his past. Remy was sold as a six month old and got shipped from California to Montana. From there he was sold as a three year old and subsequently had to travel across the country to get to us. Remy also mentioned that he doesn’t always like his work (hah!), it is sometimes too constraining and he likes to be free. Hmm… buddy, wouldn’t we all like this!

Still, I take the hints: We’ll make sure the work is appropriate, the playtime is ample – and yes, it is a lifetime commitment for both of us. So, where’s my ring? J

Rained out - but not washed out

Waterloo lived up to its name "Water" (and actually IMO the "Loo" isn't too far fetched either). First show this season and it started hot and sunny with temps in the mid 80s. Remy was pretty chill, schooled well in the new arenas. The Waterloo Hunt Club did a very nice job in re-arranging the layout in preparation for the Regional Finals.


The plan was for Judy to show Remy Friday and Saturday in order to get him (and yours truly!) into the swing of things. Then I would chime in Saturday and Sunday. Ah, the best laid plans... Remy's 'Premiere' at 2nd3 was off to a very good start: 68.049% despite some glitches on Friday. Saturday the weather changed and storms moved in, right when I was about to get him ready. There was no room to longe, and Remy -sensing my anxiety- tried to get my focus back: By a well placed pinch in my arm. Ouch! Then the heavens opened and I decided to scratch.


Judy had a later ride and -as usual- did an awesome job: 68.78% from our 'nemesis', Hilda Gurney. Hilda had placed Remy last at Regionals, way below the other judges. We didn't have high expectations even though it was a very good ride. However, the score and comments were right on: "Nice uphill horse, shows correct collection for this level; well ridden". Thank you, Hilda. And of course, Jude, you are the BEST!!


It went downhill from there - weather-wise. The temps dropped 40 degrees overnight, with constant heavy rains and high winds. "Cold and miserable" are the words that fit the situation to a 'T'. Most of the competitors, with the exception of a few very hardy souls, scratched today.


Clearly, I am not one of the hardy souls! We got to the show grounds early this morning, I scratched, we loaded gear and horse and drove home. Remy was greeted by his three buddies and all four decided on an instant party by happily running and bucking in the pastures.


My 'welcome home party' consisted of going through huge piles of dirty horse and human laundry. Somehow I just didn't feel like running and bucking through muddy pastures, wonder why??

"Hi, my name is Saumur and I'm a HSH with a HSP"

My daily perusal of the WSJ led me to a huge eye opener. No, not regarding the stock market, hedge funds, M&A's... it came in the form of an article titled "Don't take it the wrong way, you may be highly sensitive". Well, OK, I already knew that I'm a bit on the sensitive side. But when I took the test I fit neatly into the HSP "Highly Sensitive Person" category. One of the questions: "When I compete I become so nervous or shaky that I do much worse than I would otherwise">.


Other signs of HSP's are being conscientious, deeply moved by arts or music, having a rich and complex inner life (isn't that the truth!), getting overwhelmed by strong smells (JP is very familiar with that one: "Ugh, ca pue ici!"). So, yep, that all fits me pretty well. Other items on the questionnaire weren't a match, so I guess I'm borderline. Hey, who needs a shrink we you can do a Google search??


If I apply it to the boys then Saumur scores off the charts, while Remy is definitely borderline. According to the article this is not a disorder (good!) or a condition, rather "it is an innate, permanent trait" (sorry, JP, guess you have to live with Saumur and me 'as is' - it's not going to get better).


So, Saumur's new intro goes like this: "Hi, my name is Saumur, and I am a HSH with a HSP".

"Technically qualified ... Mentally not so much" - and how about a room mate?

Remy got to travel with a “femme d’un certain age” (Buffy is a fairly opinionated middle-age equine lady) to meet Maryal. Buffy showed Remy right away what she thought of his advances: Nothing! So no equine love story here. 

The temperature had dropped over 30 degrees from one day to the next, so I was expecting a very ‘fresh’ Remy. He was a good boy, though. Maryal was especially happy with our shoulder-in/10m circle/travers tour. She said she rarely sees good (correct) travers when she judges. Well, that was the good news – the not so good news was our medium canter “you are too tight in your hips, he can’t go, because you are not following”. So we practiced medium to collected to medium – and low and behold, it got to the point where I could feel the push from behind and the front end elevating: Nice!


But then… my mind … as soon as there are distractions I lose focus and we fall apart. It was bad enough for me to have the ‘peanut gallery’ watching – albeit a small and kind one. Still… and then we heard horses being turned out and loudly calling, which Remy found very interesting and I worried. It’s a vicious cycle which I seem to be unable to break. So at the end Maryal pronounced us “technically qualified” – but gave me a pep talk about my mental readiness (or –more accurately- the lack thereof).


Frozen but overall happy we came home – to find that the bedroom was gone! We are in the process of remodeling the house, adding an addition that will give us a master suite plus sauna (yay!) and walk-in closet (double-yay!). Based on past experiences we were not prepared for workers being THAT efficient, though. I thought I’d have more time clearing out. Wrong!  I can only hope they keep the pace, because in the meantime we are ‘huddling’ in the smallest bedroom, with ALL my clothes stuffed in rolling wardrobes.

Wonder if Remy would like to have a roommate in his posh quarters at Judy’s? After all, he has the master bath (wash stall) right next to him. How about moving there… JP?? J

Preparing for the season - and "Here come Huff and Puff"

Topline’s indoor arena is getting State-of-the-Art footing! Yay!  Well, I didn’t feel quite so enthusiastic when I got to the barn yesterday and saw all the heavy construction trucks, bob cats whirling around, the base layer noisily being dumped… It meant I had to ride Remy in the outdoor arena right next to it. Remembering (sometimes I don’t appreciate my good memory) the disaster at Lamplight when he freaked out about the equipment I braced myself. Not to worry, after some initial looking around he went down to business. The only times we lost it was when my focus wandered (umh, a touch of ADD perhaps?).

 
We continue to work on getting those hind legs to push and carry. Between Remy’s ‘front propeller’ and my hips that need to be more in front of my shoulders we have our work cut out. I might have been a bit overambitious entering 2^nd3, but what the heck. The weak spots are the walk-canter transitions and the medium trot. The rest should be fairly decent. But then, of course, that doesn’t count in the unknown – still, overall I am sticking to:  “We can f..ing do this!”

 

Remy is not the only one in our household with a ‘weighty issue’ – Teddy looks like he had spend the winter on the couch, scarfing down pizza, chips and guzzling beer. So, after grooming I took the little guy out for a run. He clearly had fun, and those short legs sure can outlast me. I imagine anyone seeing us exclaiming: “Look, here come Huff and Puff!”. So.. the question begs: Who’s Huff and who’s Puff??

"Little man" is growing up - and a bit of a 'weighty' issue

Two awesome rides with Jan this weekend, Sunday building up on Saturday – I couldn’t be happier! Remy was right on both days, never wavered, never complained: Just a stellar student. Luckily JP videoed the rides, so I can put more detailed notes on Jan’s exercises and comments together.

Overall, Jan wanted Remy to be rounder, with more engagement in his hind quarters, and more responsive to my aids. Same as we are working on with Judy. And without Judy’s meticulous preparation we wouldn’t have had nearly as good rides as we did. Jan added the ‘extra edge’ to it, and at the end of day two we had true collection and Remy was on my seat and legs. We hardly had any walk breaks, but luckily we both are in good shape (or so I thought, more later on the subject). I made a point of praising Remy often, which clearly motivates him and keeps him going.

I guess the picture taken at the end of our lesson shows how happy we are (and no, I didn't ride as crooked as I looked when the photo was taken).

Speaking of being in good shape: First thing Jan said when he saw Remy was “well, he looks like he came good through the winter”. I took it as a compliment – until Jan clarified that he found Remy to be quite on the chubby side. Oops. I guess when you see a horse through the eyes of love you don’t notice subtle (or not so subtle) changes in weight. 

Fortunately, Remy’s weight gain has an easy explanation: While both Judy and I were traveling Remy had a week off to lounge in the pastures, enjoying the food lovingly served by JP. Easy remedy (sorry, buddy): More work, less pay … but only until you are back to your svelte self. No need to send for the union rep from “Sporthorses United, Local 101”!