Previous Rides: Stretch

This is my little Stretch. He also goes by Stewch and Stitch.

So tolerant

I got Stretch when I was in a pretty awful place in my riding. I had a lot of fear and I had just retired my thoroughbred, Quest, who bucked me off all the time. I was afraid to jump above 2'/2'3, but I had dreams of competing on the A circuit and eventing and earning my pony club ratings. So we set out to find me a confidence builder.

Along came Stretch! He was a 1991 paint horse gelding who was sitting over the winter because his owner, who had evented him through Training level, had bought a new horse. She didn't want to sell him, so she put him out to pasture over the winter. I casually mentioned I was looking for a horse while shopping in a tack store and that's when I heard about Stretch.

I started leasing him in early 2002. His owner ended up wanting to sell him later that year, so we bought him. He didn't quite pass the vet check, but I was riding him at a lower level than he had ever gone (he was a Junior Hunter for years and then evented through Training with his old owner), so he was fine. Except that he promptly went lame at the very last show of 2002, so I only really got one show season on him, but it only took one year to give me the confidence boost I needed.

Stretch was a dream to ride and he was great (at a low level) at everything. He has the smoothest gaits I've ever sat, which is what made him an excellent equitation horse for a kid with very little core. He was a steady-eddy over fences which made him a pretty nice little hunter (he was a JR Hunter before I bought him). He was very handy, which made him a fun jumper. He was the easiest horse to put on the bit, so he did well in dressage. And he'd jump anything without hesitation, which made him fun on cross country. He was the perfect all around horse! He had no bolt, no rear, and had some pretty silly crowhops for bucks. I was not afraid on him ever.

We started out playing at some B circuit shows and eventually an A circuit one. We dabbled in all three rings and here are some pictures!

At our first show in the maiden ring

2'9 or 3' jumpers just a couple months later

2'9 jumpers I believe

More jumpers, we didn't get many pictures from the other rings

Equitation at Almaden farms

Jumpers!

I then started schooling him out on cross country and earned my C1 pony club rating on him.

One of our last cross country schools

Such a good boy

The same day

schooling at the horse park

He loved cross country

We also competed in numerous little combined tests

The easiest dressage horse

I was seriously twisted in the tack for a long time

Such a cutie

So adorable

After he was rehabbed from his injury in and it was determined that he'd never jump above 3' again, I leased him out to a few of my students who took pony club ratings and showed at schooling shows on him. I had moved on to a higher level event horse in 2003, who I turned into a dressage horse in 2004, and then Rico came along in 2005. But Stretch always held a special place in my heart.

So special that my mom ended up wanting to keep him for herself! He became her trail horse and still lives at my parents' ranch today, occasionally being trail ridden down the road or at the local parks with my dad and his TWH, Riot. And occasionally being tortured in the arena by yours truly or being made to give beginner lessons to various members of my family.

He still remains one of the most fun and easiest horses I've ever ridden. I'm so happy that I found him all those years ago. He was probably the horse who gave me the most confidence in my riding and I'm ever grateful for that.

Stretch is really not amused about being made to walk next to
Riot for this picture! He really is sweet, I swear!

Previous Rides: Leo

Not much is happening on the TC front other than that he got turnout yesterday and loved it! Today I'll turn him out again (hopefully) and will actually try to ride afterward. He had a much more relaxed eye after galloping around for 20 minutes, hopefully this allows me to hold on until the light goes away and the rain starts and I need to make a real decision. So for today, enjoy the story of the start of my FEI career: a Grand Prix schoolmaster named Leo.


I met Leo in 2009 when I got to ride him for a switch at my first A rating. I took the rating on Rico and was not prepared. But when you really dig into it, Leo was essentially the reason why I failed. I remember texting his owner (Katy, my then future trainer and now trainer friend from up the street who *fingers crossed* I'll be riding with again soon) and feeling really bad that I had to tell her that I failed because of her horse. Her magnificent Grand Prix horse. It was a rather embarrassing moment for me.

Mr Leo and I at PSG

Fast forward to April of 2010 and I'm in need of a horse for my second A rating because Rico had gone lame and we had no idea why (surprise! It's a suspensory AND a lesion on his DDFT). Leo happened to be available and I started riding him each week with Katy to prepare for the A rating. But Katy is the sort of overachieving person whose enthusiasm is contagious so soon she was telling me that I should do a show on him. I showed 3-3 and 4-1 in July and scored in the mid 60s.

I took my rating in August of 2010 and passed with flying colors. Katy prepared me ridiculously well and I can never thank her enough for offering me this horse and helping me to my A rating, a rating only 3 people had earned prior to me (likely because it was so new, but it's fun that I was the 4th person in the country to earn it!).

But that's not where my story with Leo ends. Rico at this point was still lame and not coming back from his surgery so I sent him down to my parent's house for retirement. Wanting a horse to ride, I kept riding Leo with Katy and began preparing for Prix St George in September 2010. Despite a trot pirouette (woops), I took home a blue ribbon and a score in the 60s.  I then earned my USDF Silver Medal on October 3rd, 2010 at Hossmoor.

Pictures of me earning my USDF Silver medal:

Pirouette left

The old man in extended trot

I felt great about my accomplishments in 2010, but with a dwindling bank account, I made the hard decision to let my lease on Leo go. I took the winter off of my own aspirations and evented a client's horse down at Galway Downs (woo! I wish I had something to event again). But I was desperate to get back to the FEI ring- I had been told by Katy that I should try for my USDF Gold Medal (about five minutes after I had earned my Silver btw, this is the enthusiasm I was talking about earlier) and I kind of laughed it off.

Ecstatic after earning my Silver, hadn't gotten the score but it
was completely obvious- a clean test

January 2011 Katy and I started working together again, and 12 rides later, Leo and I cantered up centerline at Yarra Yarra again, this time at Intermediare II. Not only did we make it through the test (with some serious faults in our pi/pa tour), we got a score for my Gold!!

In April of 2011, just one year after starting to ride Leo, I cantered up centerline again at I2 at Greenville and earned another score for my Gold! I signed up for my first Grand Prix.

Warming up for Grand Prix! 

Then, Leo went lame. He was older, so had navicular changes and typical old horse arthritis. Katy and I worked hard to bring him back in time for my GP and we were successful. Despite not cantering the week before our test, Leo, now sound, and I once again cantered up centerline, but this was our last time.  Leo was retired from the FEI levels after my Grand Prix. He soon retired for good and is now living at Katy's beautiful property.

End of a medium in our Grand Prix!

I can't describe how grateful I am that this little horse came into my life. He gave me opportunities that I didn't deserve. He made me the rider I am today. He's the reason why I was able to bring Rico back and show him at the FEI levels. He gave me confidence in my ability to ride at the FEI levels. He gave me experience at those levels so I could teach Rico the movements.

I love him and Katy for all that they have given me, and every now and then (like now) I start really missing the time we had together. I learned so much and this is now reflective in my teaching and in my riding.

Previous Rides: Larkin

I've had Rico for so long that sometimes I forget I used to ride other horses. Now that new computer is all set with pictures from my past, I figured I'd share some pictures and stories about the horses I used to ride, especially when there's a lull in new content (yesterday conditioning ride, today trail ride, tomorrow Heidi).

Larkin remains one of the coolest horses I've ridden. He is a percheron x thoroughbred gelding who evented at the training (and I think was solidly schooling prelim) level with his owner before I leased him. Larkin had attitude. He was very lazy on the flat and very forward over fences, which remains one of my favorite types of horses to ride. I light horses up on the flat and can't stand the hot, anxious types, but that's exactly what I want (minus the anxiety) over fences. Over fences I want to just sit there and regulate. Larkin was... kind of that.

Always the classiest of jumpers! My position looks great too... eek!

He had a bit of a bolt in him, not helped out by my hot seat and inexperience. I think he thought it was funny. I remember that he wanted to run at all the fences. I was maybe 100lbs soaking wet and he would just leave with me clinging onto him. It took a while to find the right bit combination but once as we did, I was able to jump him around without risking my existence. I still remember the jarring SPROING he had over fences. Coming off of my equitation horse who had the flattest jump of all time, it was weird to be on something with such a round jump.

I started riding him in 2003 with my previous event trainer. I evented him once at the Novice level at Rancho Murieta that year. That show was great! I earned a 35 in dressage despite not knowing how to keep him on the bit (he had a fabulous walk and canter). Cross country was a BLAST, although the last time Larkin was there, he schooled prelim, so we had some minor steering issues as he downshifted and took off toward a preliminary fence instead of the tiny novice log. Woops. Stadium went well and I moved up to either third or fourth, I forget.

Hey look! A Prelim fence! That looks fun

Larkin at Murieta

After leaving my event trainer, I did a couple of schooling shows in the spring on him before he decided to stop jumping. He was getting old and started taking rails and eventually jumps down.

Stylish, this was his go-to jumping form

Such furry feet! And I'm always twisted
 one way or another

Learning to put him on the bit...

Jumping! Actually straight this time

Second place! Our last jumping show

I was struggling to find a jumping trainer I liked and had found a dressage trainer instead who convinced me to show him at Villa Rosa. I earned a couple of 70%s and some pretty picture frames which are still on my wall.

Warming up, so much rounder! I'm still twisted though :) 

Winner!

From then on, I was bitten by the dressage bug. I continued riding at shows, eventually qualifying and competing in CDS JR/YR Championships at Training and First level in 2004.

Look at this fancy animal!

So much better

We earned a 10 on this medium walk!

Championship JR team at Training level!

That fall, my back was not holding up to Larkin's jarring trot so my parents decided to buy me one last horse!

And that's when this weirdo comes in