Needs More Wild Turkey Energy

On Sunday, I woke up at 4:40am. Obviously the only way I get up that early is for horse things, and sure enough, I had to get down to the barn, braid, and leave around 6:30am for a horse show! Let me say right now, I love how strict these shows are being about masks and social distancing (for example, as you drove in, they gave you your number so no office necessary!), it was beautifully run and it felt very safe. 

This was TC's second outing at Third level and I was very nervous because the judge was someone who I have a ton of respect for. He's also the same judge who was judging when I had to withdraw TC from the 1-3 two years ago because he wouldn't stop bucking. He's also the judge who was at my L program last time and really impressed me with his judging and teaching. Now that this show is over, I want to see if I can convince him to give me a remote lesson. 

The happiest horse

So beefy

We arrived perfectly on time with only one of his braids threatening to pop out. I led him around the property and he seemed interested but a little cautious. He is really sensitive to ground and there was a lot of interesting footing changes as we walked around the property. I tacked him up and then we went into the warm up, where he was afraid of walking into it because there were cavalletti near him and he also thought the ring steward was going to murder him for some reason. Every time she moved he stared at her skeptically.

In the warm up, he was a bit tense, but then settled right into the connection with a good amount of energy. I felt like I was riding a horse worth ten times as much as he really is worth. He positively floated over the ground and the connection through his whole body was incredible. We saw a group of wild turkeys and it was the epitome of antifragility, he got even more connected and through with the birds mildly terrorizing him from afar (honestly, he was probably more annoyed that I wouldn't let him go see them vs actually being afraid of them). He gave me big, clean changes, fabulous trot work, and a collected canter that made me so happy I wanted to just go home right there and quit riding forever because nothing would ever feel that good ever again. 

I love his trot, even if I'll never sit it comfortably

TC, your tail is absurd and takes me too long to brush out

We walked over to the dressage court early and it's a good thing we did because we had several footing changes to deal with. The normal gravel path, then a concrete piece, immediately into the barn aisle with pavers, then more concrete, then the arena footing. Also making things tricky were a giant pile of footing near the entrance and a fan or something on the other side. 

I'd have loved the turkeys to follow us over to shove him into the arena, but instead we settled for being coaxed into the barn aisle by the ring steward and then being led into the arena by a trainer. 

TC got into the ring and his eyes bugged out of his head. He's never been in a fully indoor arena like this one. It's fairly light and airy for an indoor, but he was trapped. And he coiled himself up behind my leg and was like "mom I'll follow you wherever you go" and I was like "well uh dressage doesn't work like that, you're supposed to be in front of my leg" and TC said "no mom, it's dangerous out there" and that's how the whole test went. 

Setting up for the change

But honestly, the antifragility stayed and though I was disappointed that I basically had to chase him through the whole test, I won't lie and say that I didn't come out grinning. The trot work was... fine... but the canter work was fabulous, the changes were big, clean, and on my aids, the ten meter circles were well balanced, the medium and extended canters were slow, as you'd expect, but solid. The last trot extension I finally had him in front of my leg and he positively floated. 

At the end of the test I was ecstatic and exhausted. Ecstatic because we'd just put in our first EVER clean test in the history of showing this horse. Exhausted because I'd hoisted him through the whole thing while he wanted to contemplate why he was showing inside a large room instead of outdoors. 

We earned a solid 70% at that test. No moment in canter scored less than a 7, our trot work was 6.5s with a 6 for our halt and rein back because that's been weak lately. 7.5s on both changes and ten meter circles. The judge said that we had some very nice parts, that the changes were progressing nicely, and that we had a willing partnership. His advice was to work to have more energy and uphill balance, which are very much connected. 

Medium canter with floppy ears

We went back to warm up to add some canter half pass and get some more of that wild turkey energy we had out there. Sure enough, he was on fire out there, but I pushed him for more than I'd gotten before, knowing the show ring would have a sedation effect on him. 

Around the outside of the arena, I rode bold trot mediums in posting trot and a few canter mediums as well. I must have looked like a crazy person, especially when I started laughing maniacally when TC jumped clear over a pigeon and then went to bolt. The judge probably couldn't take any more of that and rang us in. 

The 3-3 was much more forward in trot and the scores did come up by about a half point (mostly 7s instead of mostly 6.5s). Unfortunately, the moment we walked, TC fell asleep again and uncharacteristically stuck in both walk pirouettes for 4s. Fuck. Like seriously, FUCK, the horse has had 8 and 9 walk pirouettes and this show we swung wildly down. I'll be addressing that later. But then all of our canter work was a 7 or above, again! Fabulous changes, solid extension, good half passes (even the tough one earned a 7). But then TC stalled out twice coming into the trot transition for another glorious 4 before we redeemed ourselves on centerline with a 7. 

So unfortunately, the fours dragged our score down to a 67%. The judge said that we were a talented pair and again mentioned how well the changes were progressing. He said that he wanted more self carriage and engagement (at least he didn't say energy for this test! Though it's all related) and for us to add more bend in the half passes, another symptom of not having enough energy and engagement with this horse. 

Finally showing good sitting in his collected canter! Now if only
I could also show good sitting lol

We won both classes (the first one was against other people lol) and got some cookies to show for it. Then we headed back and I got home fairly early after putting TC away and grabbing lunch. 

I'm so unbelievably proud of this horse this year. I felt so iffy about Third level at the last show even though we got a 70% there too, but now I feel like it's official, not a fluke, I have a Third level horse. 

Even more exciting is that he is so solid in new places! Not only do I not have to worry about being launched or having to withdraw anymore, he's putting in cleaner and cleaner tests every show. 

I realized as I was driving home that this show was FUN. I actually relaxed and trusted him and our training so I wasn't worried the scores would be bad or I'd get bucked off. Thinking back over the years, I haven't felt like this in a very long time. With Rico, I was moving up so quickly that it was always a possibility that we'd be in the 50s (we only got a 59% twice but we got a lot of 60.001%s, yikes). Then with TC, we'd pretty much score well UNLESS he became explosive. 

Now finally I have both combined, a reliable horse who I'm not shoving up the levels so quickly that I don't get to enjoy some good scores. 

After a change

I wish I'd smile more, but I love the look on
his face here, so happy

We have two more shows between now and the end of September to get our All Breeds scores for this year. I'd really like to be able to do that. I know that with COVID numbers getting worse, we're probably just weeks from shutting the state down again (or even the country), and I do think that'd be best. But until then, I'm happy to go to these little shows with their strict requirements for masks and social distancing, with the hopes that we can have one shining moment of getting our scores in for All Breeds. Getting a big ribbon this year would be extra exciting given how shit it has been. 

But after Sunday, I feel like we've already won! So maybe I'll make us our own ribbon if shows get shut down again. 

Bitting Experimentation

This Saturday, I experimented with a new bit! TC has always had a bit busier of a mouth than I'd like and has struggled to reach for the bridle, so I'm always on the lookout for something new (but cheap) for him. He's currently in a KK Ultra and that works just fine, but he's always a bit backed off of it.

I was intrigued by the bomber happy tongue bit because of the lack of tongue pressure, but they're expensive and I'm pouring all my resources into figuring out remote lessons right now. But, I found a knockoff and figured that if TC loved it, I'd spend the money to try the official one.

Good news! TC went to the bridle. Bad news, TC went to the bridle aggressively. Extra bad news, it pinched his lip on Sunday. This post is about Saturday though.

I realized that while the connection felt great and he was way easier to get up through his back, after years of riding a horse who won't touch the bridle, my ability to hold our collective shit together when he's basically leaning on me was limited. My arms immediately got sore and I found myself way less willing to ride him positively forward, knowing that he'd only get heavier when I did that.

So much better but so impossible to bring into collection

So while the warm up was just fabulous, he never curled, he stayed positively into the bridle, so much more over his back... the moment more collection was involved and he needed more support, I just couldn't give it to him with this bit. And as such, our canter half passes weren't nearly as good, his changes were questionable, and keeping him collected was a full body workout.

Yes, he should be on my seat, but the moment he got that heavy, I had no stability in my position to ride him on my seat. I had to keep yanking my shoulders down and back, resisting the urge to waterski on my stirrups, and generally he became a way more physical ride.

I'm not saying this is a bad thing. I want him that connected! I just can't ride him like this and at the end of the day, I need to be able to ride him. Even if he's better connected, if his changes are shit and I can't get him to half pass, that's not the right bit for us. So we go back to the KK ultra and I go back to brainstorming. Thinking of a myler comfort snaffle next, which gives some tongue relief but is thinner so maybe he'll be happy to go to it, but not as aggressively.

I ran through 3-1 to prove to myself that it's an easy enough test to show in a week and a few days and while the test was easy and clean, I just couldn't keep him together as much as I need to and I couldn't get him as forward as Tanya wants him to be. It was a good test, but it wasn't a great test. The horse can be great.

Even connected okay to the right, which is very difficult

All that being said, I'm keeping the bit, I'm getting bit guards then setting it up on another bridle, and I'll be using it on days where I don't ask for collection. There are tons of days that I ride where all I want to work on is throughness or where it's so hot that I just want to do a stretchy ride or something that isn't pushing for the mid levels all the time. And this bit would be PERFECT for those rides.

And maybe by doing both, I can get to a point where I end up fully swapping him over to an actual bomber happy tongue bit (egg butt style) but it's too expensive to buy if I don't think I'll be using it. I think it's a combination of me not being physically strong enough to get him back on my seat when he inevitably falls off, and him not being strong enough to hold himself together without my assistance at times. We may get there, I mean, hopefully we will.

At the end of the day though, I have to remember that the KK ultra is already a really soft bit. TC doesn't have to go in the world's softest bit. Most people are jumping into double bridles at this stage of their training, if not well before it (meanwhile multiple judges I've spoken to have said that they think Third level horses should be in snaffles). And here I am thinking "can I find a softer bit than a KK ultra?" so I need to relax a bit lol!

Test Riding 3-1 and 3-3

Sunday we finally got a break in the heat and I could finally ride outside again! So I obviously forgot the micro SD for my soloshot... All these days I've brought it down ready to go and had to ride inside because of the heat, of course this time I have no SD card!

I decided to test ride because the dressage court footing was pretty decent. It's been weirdly deep some days so I've been riding in the covered or one of the other outdoors. So when I saw it was ready to go, I immediately wanted to test ride.

With shows potentially beginning again in June, and with studies showing that we'll likely get a second wave in fall and therefore possibly get shut down again, I've been debating what to do. Do I show in June and July and quickly snag my scores for All Breeds at Second? Or maybe Third? Do I just get one score at Third on his record to make sure it gets put there and then plan to go out in fall if there are shows? Or do I just wait until me feeling ready and shows being available happen at the same time?

These weeny pictures brought to you by
the fact that my soloshot wasn't charged
enough to track

I decided to try the 3-1 and 3-3 tests because those are the ones I'll need for All Breeds and see how good I could get them before my next lesson. Then see what Tanya thinks. Then decide about what to do in June. I feel confident the 3-1 is showable right now, it's such a basic test, but I didn't know about 3-3 where everything requires much more accuracy and collection. There's tons of down time in the 3-1 and not too many movements, it's hard to get it wrong if you've got all the movements on. But the 3-3 leaves less room, and I'm on a large horse. 

The 3-1 went beautifully at first. The trot work is beyond easy for us, it flows well and I can focus on the quality of the gaits rather than holding things together. I noted that I needed to do more reining back and endless walk work to get him to stop wanting to jig, but those were just little things. Walk pirouettes solid, medium canter solid, right canter circle solid, change from right to left solid.  

Extended canter went well but I could feel him getting more and more amped. It was honestly nice, he's been the sort I've had to hoist through tests and I was appreciating having him on but not acting up. I thought "is this going to be a clean test??" because we have them so rarely. Then he bolted out of the canter circle to the left, and bolted through the change, I came back around and we did the same thing but sub the bolting for bucking. Eventually I got a good pattern and we ended well, but man that'll teach me to think good thoughts! Still, solid test! Just need to do it a bit more and keep managing those extended paces so they don't reduce rideability like that.

His half pass is looking like a half
pass right now though!

I went into the 3-3 skeptical but determined. I just wanted to see how the trot work rode because the half passes were steeper and everyone fucks up the two half circles in trot. I definitely need to ride those more but the trot work was so fabulous! Again, it just flows so easily for him.

I went to start the canter work and he stalled out but picked it up. The canter work went shockingly well! The half passes aren't too steep for him, the changes happen easily, and I rode the extension at the end conservatively but the whole test was clean!!! 

It's not feeling too rideable though. The canter is tough, he's the most rideable when he's amped up but then he's more likely to lose it mentally. It's an issue we have only in tests because I can feel him getting to that point in work and just change what we're doing and he calms down. Sounds like I need to push him for longer and get that comfort zone moved out a bit more.

Also pleased I'm not doing weird
shit in it like I used to

Still though, I'm so pleased!! He's such a cool horse, I never would have guessed the third level work would be so easy for him. His canter will forever need developing and I think it'll take me some time to be able to ride him on edge like I need to in order to keep him rideable... Add into that being in a new place and in front of a judge and all. But all the pieces are there! 

So we'll see what happens this summer with shows. Tanya is coming back at the end of May so I might get her eyes on the 3-1 and then sign up for a show in June to just do that test once or twice. Then if he scores well and handles his shit, I can dump him into a bunch of shows and get my All Breeds scores, if not, then I'll fix what needs to be fixed and we'll stick with 3-1 until he's ready for 3-3. That test is no joke! But we have one clean test under our belt and that's pretty exciting. Just keep swimming. 

Schooling Third Level Test 1

Since riding with Tanya, TC has been fabulous, if a bit high. The ride after her lesson, we couldn't wander around the ranch like we usually do because he kept jumping out of his skin. The minute we were in the arena, he relaxed mentally and was so excited to practice what we'd learned. Then on Monday, the same thing happened, he walked on tip toes being all weird until we got into the arena and then he was all business (except a small bolt away from the UPS truck). Never thought I'd have a horse who was more interested in working than I am.

Learning to be uphill!

I'm primarily working on inflating him up and getting  him to commit to being in that place. His canter is the toughest gait to get that commitment from him, so we've been doing a lot of that. The trot is pretty good, though it's quick to lose suppleness, so we've been schooling more lateral work and some circles/spiraling in and out.

All of this work culminated in my confidence that we could probably get through Third Level Test 1. Honestly, 3-1 is a relatively easy and simple test. The half pass only happens in trot and is not very steep, the trot extension/medium are split in the test (so you don't have to kill your abs), the canter work is exceptionally easy and short.

Really, the big parts of that test are the flying changes (which aren't even a double coefficient) and making sure there's a difference between the medium and extended paces. Honestly, I've seen plenty of people snag 60s or even 65s without having changes or the paces well defined.

Happy that I'm giving him water nearer to his
dry stall so he doesn't have to walk in the mud

So the fact that TC has run through 2-3 comfortably meant that the minute I had changes, he'd find 3-1 easy. And he did!

His changes were great in warm up, we were in the court so this was yet another new arena for him to do them in. His trot shoulder-in, haunches-in, and half pass were great too. So I figured I'd throw him at the test in the end, and it was clean, aside from the bolt!

The horse loves centerlines, so he charged up to his halt and was all excited, he was a little confused about not turning off centerline into a medium, so we had a stutter step into the shoulder-in. The lateral work pattern could flow better, the 10m half circle after shoulder-in was a little overbent at first as I left his shoulders on the rail a step too long. Then the half pass was quite good, though I rode it probably too steep. He just learned his zig zag, so the corner rode well as he willingly switched bend.

The first medium felt amazing, he got very elevated in front and stayed that way for most of the length of the long side. It just needs practice, which I need to do carefully. All the walk work was easy. I could have ridden the first walk pirouette better, it was just a bit big and I let him slow down a bit. The next one was picture perfect. His walk-canter transitions still need work, so he got a little crooked at C.

I opted to underride the medium canter because he had already spooked at the UPS truck. The 10m canter circle rode easily and then his change was ENORMOUS and clean. The other direction rode very well too, though the change wasn't as good, I think it was clean but he slowed down to do it and then stuttered afterward. Final trot extension wasn't great only because I was experimenting with getting more hind end without letting him out the front so much and he didn't understand. No problem, just gotta work on it.

I started my clinic at 7:15 last Sunday, the sunrise
was beautiful!

So I have a nice long to do list with most of it being kind of easy. Throughness and responsiveness in the walk-canter transitions, getting my head out of my ass for the walk pirouettes, bigger walk for the free walk (he wants to jig, it's very annoying), better suppleness in the lateral work, and continued work on the changes.

I was so proud of him! He's really taking to the Third level work so well, it gives me so much hope for his future. I was explaining to boyfriend that there are three big "jumps" for horses in dressage. The First - Second level jump, the early-Fourth to late-Fourth/PSG level jump, and the Intermediare I-II jump. Basically: collection/counter canter; pirouettes/tempis; piaffe/passage.

TC has surpassed the first of those three jumps and he's very comfortable where he's at. Hopefully he will take to the canter pirouettes well, I know the tempi changes will be easy (fitting them all in one long side might not be easy), then we'll find out how his piaffe and passage are going to come on hopefully this year! So by the end of this year, I hope to know whether he'll make it all the way.

Delicious

My stretch goal for this year suddenly is to see if we can do the 4-1 at the November show we might go to. Then next year is all Fourth level as we prepare for Prix St George. Two years from now, that shadbelly might have to fit me again! But that's all on whether I can swing regular lessons, still working on that.

A Closer Look: Third Level

Third level is probably one of my favorite levels, and is the next edition of this series. Yay flying changes! Yay half pass! Yay double bridle! Except that for some reason I can't find many pictures of me showing Third in the double, most of these pictures came from the two shows I showed in my snaffle, wtf.

Purpose of the Levels

To confirm that the horse demonstrates correct basics, and having begun to develop an uphill balance at Second Level, now demonstrates increased engagement, especially in the extended gaits. Transitions between collected, medium, and extended gaits should be well defined  and performed with engagement. These should be reliably on the bit and show a greater degree of straightness, bending, suppleness, thoroughness, balance, and self carriage than at Second Level.

These things are getting long! I think Third and Fourth level are about perfecting the things we've worked on previously- the impulsion from First level, the collection from Second. Putting those together to improve the engagement and the rest of that long list from Third. I feel like after the Second level purpose, Third and Fourth could just say "yah all that but MORE."

Warming up for third level

Third 1

Love this test. It's so friendly and warm. If it were a person I'd totally invite it to tea on a rainy day.

It's one of the few tests since First level that doesn't ask for a medium right off the bat. It's the return of the First level ice cream cones, but with shoulder-in and half pass. The thing I always see with this movement is people starting the shoulder-in too early. You have to go straight down the long side and develop it from straightness rather than in Second when you can develop it from the corner.

The trot half pass is quite shallow and friendly and has some wiggle room if you were to make your half circle a little more oval-y so you can get into the corner if angle is your problem. It can be a bit too long for a schooled horse, but again you can end your shoulder-in slightly early, make your half circle shallow, and get to the rail a touch early if you so choose.

Coming up centerline

You almost always start with medium paces (vs extended paces) when you have tests doing a medium and extension. I spoke about this before, but I recommend (unless you have a spectacular medium AND extension) just going for it in your first medium like it's an extension. Better to get an 8 on that and then a 7 when you perform the same thing as an extension rather than hold back for the medium and get a 6 with "not enough shown" and then a 7 on the extension.

The canter work is really kind. You start with a medium canter to get the horse energized, then you get a 10m circle to get your horse set up well for the change that occurs in the second half of the short diagonal you're asked to ride. Then you can hop and poke and wiggle and fix your shitty change with plenty of room before your extension. Same pattern the other way, with a trot transition at C. This pattern is a breath of fresh air from your crazy long Second level patterns. Phew.

You get your first taste of two scores for your extensions at this test- with the last extension both being judged on the quality of the extension (10 points) AND the quality of the transitions (10 points), get used to that shit.

Coefficients are the extended walk and both turns on the haunches. Pretty kind of them to not make a big deal out of the new movements like they loved to do at Second.

Ah yes, the realization that not riding with the right trainer and
not focusing on the basics = shitty half pass

Third 2

Ah Third 2, the return of the shoulder-in to renvers (which used to be at Second). I think that's an appropriate place for this movement, although I still personally introduce it at Second. After you go through what feels like a test's worth of trot work, you have to ride half passes from centerline to the rail. They are steeper than Third 1, but there is a lot of room to fuck it up if you want to, since they have you hit the rail at E and then sit around on the rail until you turn down the short side.

The canter gets a bit complicated as you pick up the canter in the corner from the walk, then immediately turn up centerline and at D start your half pass. You literally get a 10m half circle in canter to prepare for this. Hopefully by Third though, these quick movements are not a big deal.

Medium trot... ish, that saddle pad was just the worst

It's a nice long half pass to R and then you can change anywhere from R to M. The change from the counter canter and in such a tight spot (before you ruin your corner) is tough, but you're looking at riding your first tempis in just a couple of tests, so this is a good time to put the pressure on you. Plus you don't need to do the change AT a letter yet, so that's nice, and you could ride a steeper half pass if you wanted to give yourself more room to set up.

You also get a clear release of both reins at this test. They used to have a movement at 3-1 where you released one rein (and it was the rein that I liked releasing on Rico so yay). This movement is nice because it tests the self carriage, although it seems super random to me because after this test, you never do this again. But sure, throw that in.

You get to canter up centerline (then trot, then halt) to end, which I think sets you up really nicely for Fourth level where you have to canter up in the beginning. The entrance to the Fourth + tests can be kind of difficult, halting from the canter on a straight line is hard.

Coefficients are both renvers, the extended trot (but not the transitions), the extended walk, both flying changes, the release of both reins, and the extended canter. Damn. That's a lot of coefficients!

Ah shoulder-in with head tilting, can't wait til the fourth level
post when we actually got good- but damn what a difference the
right trainer makes

Third 3

Not going to lie, this test is beefy. It sets you up so nicely for Fourth 1 though, so no complaints here.

The trot pattern mimics the 2-2 pattern, shoulder-in to two half circles across the middle of the ring, to half pass. This time there is no wiggle room on your half pass, you have to get there by G and if you don't the judge will for sure notice. I recommend riding this pattern a million times, it's easy to make it look kind of blocky if you only ride the elements. My student doing it currently warms up with a 10m figure 8 first, then starts riding the pattern about 3-4 times each way when she works on it.

This test is the first one that you trot out of your rein back. Ideally this should be two beats from coming in in trot, to your halt, then rein back (2 beats) and trotting out. Though most people have to walk out of the rein back and then trot.

You get more time to prepare for your first canter half pass, though it is steeper (but again you have wiggle room) and you end on centerline, then turn the direction you're going. Immediately across the shorter diagonal and flying change. I like this pattern, although it's hard to hide a late-behind change since your butt is in the judge's face. I like that it sets you up well for having to ride straight after a half pass to centerline.

There's only one extended canter in this test, so that's kind of them, unless that's your strength, if so, sorry!

Coefficents are both trot half passes, the halt and rein back, the extended walk, both canter half passes, and both flying changes. They REALLY want you to understand how important half pass is, keep that in mind.

Tilting again (blurry but yay training problems don't go away)

Overall

Third is one of my favorite levels for a reason. I like how these tests are put together, I think they provide a lot of good stepping stones between Second level and Fourth level. First, you can see how the flying changes were developed starting even at Training level with the downward transition from canter across the diagonal. First level shortened the time between transitions, building up to a trot change. And Second level introduced simple changes and counter canter- two very important elements to the flying change. Third gave you three solid tests with simple patterns that prepare you really well for both zig zags and tempis, which you see at Fourth level.

The nice thing is that from here on out, you've now learned all the trot work. No more movements in trot (unless you count pi/pa, which you should not because they are different gaits). They just get harder with counter changes of hand and voltes.

Onto Fourth level! This time without the head tilt