Unfolding

When I first started teaching TC how to connect to the bridle, his first instinct was to retract his neck and fold himself over at the third vertebrae to come onto the bit with a rigid back.

Current TC

Baby TC

I obviously knew this was a problem that had to be fixed. Not only was it incorrect, I just really hate how it looks. So many people on friesians and baroque types at shows have this look to them and I just can't stand it. No matter how soft he was in the bridle back then, he still looked like I was cramming him onto the bit. And I sort of was because my hands were still thinking backwards.

I'm really pleased to say that of the four tests we've ridden in the rated show ring so far, not one has mentioned him being retracted in the neck or tight over his topline. In fact, we got a lot of "nice connection" type comments. And that was super fun to hear.

There was a lot that went into his training between when these pictures were taken and there were several key steps to fixing it that I wanted to break down today. One of my fears is falling back into the retraction and then having problems with putting movements on because the connection is shit. That only works for so long until you're like ah fuck and have to go back to the basics, ask me how I know (Rico...).

So retracted, but at this point I was just happy to have him at
least ON the bit

The first major change that had to happen was my thought process about putting a horse on the bit. I was taught, like many of us were, to put a horse on the bit by softening the horse downward and inward. There were a lot of different techniques I was taught over the years- hold the outside rein and then bend the horse against it with the inside rein, hold the outside rein and then wiggle the inside rein, soften to the inside then soften to the outside (uh you know, see sawing? but oh no not see sawing, this is *~*softening*~* guys, very different).

The thing that all those had in common was that they were all from a backward seeking contact. Pulling, essentially.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm all for what Jeremy Steinberg said the last time I audited, "if you don't give the horse anything to lean on, they won't be on the bit" so a contact IS necessary. And a lot of horses are tolerant of a slight backward feeling on the reins. Rico certainly was. TC isn't really, and it's not that he does anything wrong, but you can really fuck up his connection if there's any backward feeling on the reins.

I said back then that this picture was going to be what he was
going to look like when he was older, I think I was right :) 

So the first step was me learning to get my hands inching forward, that feeling of handing someone a tray in front of you or that you're just about to push the hands forward but you don't or that your reins are rods that you're pushing the horse's mouth forward with. And that was tough.

Because the connection still had to be solid. Very early on, Tracey was a big proponent of keeping him connected even if he WAS retracted, then changing the shape of the neck within the connection. So the connection had to be there, but the hand absolutely under no circumstance could even have the most fraction of an inch type feeling backwards. No *softening* the reins, because that only shortened his neck. And softness doesn't come from the horse giving to a rigid hand, it comes from the horse being connected and through. Lightness in the reins isn't supposed to be from the horse being behind the bit, it's supposed to come from collection.

This was taken maybe a month or two later, still quite short in
the neck but so so much better

Once as I fixed myself, and let's be honest, we are never fixed as riders, I started working on TC.

One of the first things that needed to happen was that I needed to be able to regulate TC's energy, tempo, and balance with my seat and leg alone. If the energy is regulated with the rein, then I can't take away energy without holding backwards, which will retract the neck. If the balance is dependent on the rein, then I can't balance my horse (half halt) without retracting his neck. Even steering him shortened his neck.

Basically I evaluated everything that was regulated by my reins, and transferred those to my seat and/or leg. This is why TC remained retracted for quite a while, especially in warm up, since most of my time was spent doing transitions to help him transfer that ownership from rein to leg/seat.

This year, this was when we were getting him back on his
hocks but he was still regularly btv

After making sure that the only thing my hand was doing was pointing his nose in the right direction and managing the connection, then I could start to change the shape of his neck.

The first step with this is to put his balance in a place where reaching out to the bridle wouldn't result in him falling on his face. This included slowing his gaits WAY down (canter is still a work in progress) with my seat and leg. But maintaining energy, of course.

The second step was to then to establish a connection. Tracey emphasized that I needed to find the connection wherever it was, but that it MUST NOT HAPPEN because my hand came BACK. I had to push him to the bridle. Which then sometimes caused him to change his balance. So I had to do some differentiation with him on the process of pushing him to the bridle vs him staying back on his hind quarters.

The third step after getting the connection was to push his nose out while maintaining him setting back on his hind end. It's easy to dangle the reins out in front of a horse like this, but I didn't want to have such a fragile connection. I wanted him to really REACH for the bridle and bring his chest up, not just give him the space to fill (which he is happy to do with a dropped wither too). So that involved even more lifting from my thigh to keep him set back, pushing with my calf to generate energy and put it forward over his back, and just enough giving with my hands to make space but to keep him connected.

Then seeing how this paid off, he's still not as far back on his
hocks as I want, but he's much more comfortable in front of the
vertical

It all sounds really complicated looking back, but each step took months to accomplish. I really wanted to break it down to the most simple pieces so that at any point, I could return there even in the show ring. Riding a half halt with my seat when the balance went bad, riding a half halt with my leg when the energy slowed, pushing my hand forward to give him space to reach. Repetition over and over.

There was no complicated exercises, no higher movements than simple transitions and twenty meter circles. No hidden key to getting the neck out and the booty down. Just a lot of hard work.

And it paid off! So far no negative comments on his connection. For a horse that started out so... bad in the connection, he's really figured his shit out.

So much better, he may look like he's in a "lower" frame at this
point, but look how much he's lifting his chest and how soft he
is over his back in comparison

It's a constant maintenance though, and currently as I'm putting on the collected gaits, we're back to slow deliberate work in a different balance, redoing all this work with more bend in the hock, more lift through the withers, and a greater degree of straightness and impulsion.

Our rides look dull and boring right now as we're looking down toward First level- circles, straight lines, transitions. We school the lateral work once, maybe twice a week, and the fancier stuff (counter canter, changes, etc) maybe once a month at this point. But every time we do it the work gets easier. And that's evidence that all my transitions are paying off!

Show Gear

There was a blog hop going around, not sure if it was official or not, about what show gear we all have. I figured I'd jump on board with it given that TC is now a newly minted rated show participant and I finally made it back into a rated show after nearly three years off.

Outfit kiiiinda boring

What I Wear 

There have been some equipment changes over the last three years, most notably is that my shadbelly is back in its coat bag until either someone wants to hand me an FEI horse or TC finally makes it there himself. So I have a new coat and a few other things to add as well. I think we'll go top down.


Helmet: GR8 with Gray Stripe
I love these helmets even if they are really hot. They fit my sometimes seemingly oddly shaped head really well and I love the gray stripe, it matches my gray butt breeches!

Short Sleeved White Show Shirt by Goode Rider
I got this shirt at Expo for half off a few years ago, it's freakishly comfortable. Like so stretchy and quite tight but structured so helps smooth some things out. I like them tight because I don't like bulk under my jacket. But I'm also not as fit or skinny as I once was, so having a bit of structure has been nice!

No Name Pre Tied Stock Tie
On my list of things to replace. This stock tie does its job and it got me my gold, but it's boring. I do hate tying stock ties, so that's its one major perk for me.

Love this jacket, even if it's plain

No Name Stock Pin
Again on the list of things to replace since this was Rico's. I feel weird using it, since I've replaced everything else that was sentimental to Rico. Like TC will never use Rico's browband, that's Rico's. This stock pin matches my browband and I really want to figure out a new stock tie/pin solution that is just for TC.

Goode Rider Show Coat
Got this at this year's Expo and it's a bit plain but fit the bill and my torso pretty well. I kind of like that it's plain because then I can go a bit nuts with other things. Part of me wants to try to add some stuff to it myself (maybe gray piping), but I also don't trust myself AT ALL. I will probably eventually look into having it professionally done and see if that's worth it. I bought this coat with the expectation that in a few years I'd splurge and get a SUPER nice jacket.

White Back Brace
My black one is a bit bulky, though more comfortable, so at shows I try to use my white one. I always ride with a back brace, read more about why here.

White and Gray Piper Full Seat Breeches
I got these a couple years ago and didn't get much chance to use them until recently. I LOVE them. The gray butt stays a lot cleaner (or hides the black saddle stains better) and it even matches my helmet!

Pretty horse makes up for boring outfits

Ariat Volant S Tall Boots
This is my first pair of schooling tall boots that are also doubling as show boots. Best idea ever, I don't feel so out of place with them on like I did with my previous show boots. They won't last as long being ridden in every day vs every few months, but I love them and don't care. They're the most comfortable boots I've ever ridden in.

Old White/Cream Gloves
I should probably be in black with the young horse but I don't have any, so white it is! Well, they're either really faded and turned a bit cream colored or ARE cream colored. But they're superior to the other pair of white gloves I found in the trailer, rode in during my first test at the first rated show, and realized that they were literally disintegrating in my hand.

No Name Rowel Spurs
I love rowels and don't have any spurs that aren't rowels. I bought this pair as my "small" pair with Rico and they're now the "big" pair with TC.

Cheap Whip from Expo
Again nothing fancy with my whip! Just black with a white handle.

Want new gloves

What TC Wears

Very Old Vespucchi Snaffle Bridle
This thing is seriously disintegrating. I bought it back in 2002 when I was working at a tack store so had a discount. It... looks fifteen years old.

No Name Blingy Browband
I told TC when he hits 70% at a rated show, or when we win a high point, he gets a new browband, so I'm ordering one now! This one cost me $30 at a local tack store and is completely obnoxious, so I love it. New one is going to have a splash of blue in it, which is TC's color.

18mm KK Ultra
His normal bit, I find it odd when people swap bits for shows, don't you?

Custom Saddlery Versailles Saddle
I got this saddle very used and slightly green at a local tack store. It cost me $600. I LOVE it. It's so comfortable and the tree is completely changeable by a rep.

Fleeceworks Half Pad with Inserts (nothing in them)
This half pad has been around for years! I can't even remember when I bought it. I like using a half pad because TC regularly sweats through saddle pads.

Classics III White Saddle Pad
I love these pads but I will admit that it's quite boring. But my saddle tends to make some pads look GIANT and these pads aren't too big for my saddle.

Albion Girth
Came with my last saddle and it's a nice leather girth. I mostly like it because I know how far up to put it on each side!

Boring saddle pad, I'm thinking about a new one soon...

The list to upgrade includes:

Gloves
This is probably the number one on my list. My gloves are cream colored, which you can't tell from far away but it bugs me. And I want me some bling on there!

Browband
I already promised TC a new browband for hitting 70% at his first show (and being high point, I need to buy him TWO new things then). I have one in mind and I can't wait to show it to you all.

Bridle
I seriously need a new snaffle bridle. TC isn't going to go in a double any time soon, if at all, so I'd love to replace his snaffle bridle with something nice.

Saddle Pad
I have plain white pads and that's great and all, but I want something with a bit of pizazz I think. I have no idea how to even begin looking for something that is appropriate but fun. So I'll be doing some research later on.

Stock Tie & Pin
I can't find the one that I really loved from a while ago. I would love something that is black/white/gray with maybe a touch of navy on it. And then of course a new pin to go along with it.

Spur Straps
These are just silly to replace, but if I can find some with bling on them to match my new stock tie maybe... I dunno, maybe.

Girth
I'm toying with the idea of getting a girth with more of a cut back for TC's front legs, though part of me feels like I don't really care that much and that he should just get off his forehand and not put his front legs so far under him lol.

The Rest of the Fall

While the traveling isn't letting up for me this fall, I will be carving out time to do stuff with TC. I figured I'd put together a calendar of the rest of the fall and see where things fit in. 

He's pretty cute

August 12th/13th: Clinic with Jeremy Steinberg and our first overnight visit this year

August 20th: Show at ASH (Training 2 and 3), I was SO SO SO bummed when I found out that I couldn't go to see the eclipse but then I remembered who was judging this show and I was only a bit bummed after that. She's a tough judge but I've ridden with her and she likes my horse so fingers crossed for breaking into the mid-70s. 

August 26th/27th: Haul out to ride with Tracey if things aren't fixed with my rogue left hand

August 28th: Show at ASH (Training 2 and 3)

September 2nd/3rd: Megan traveling

September 9th/10th: Show at Yarra Yarra Dressage (either Training 2 and 3 to finish up his Training level award or First 1 and 2 debut!) 

September 16th/17th: No set plans yet, probably haul out 1-2x

September 23rd/24th: No set plans yet, probably haul out 1-2x

September 30th/October 1st: No set plans yet, probably haul out 1-2x

October 7th/8th: Megan traveling

October 14th/15th: Possibly ride with Olivia LaGoy Weltz OR I'll be traveling again, ugh omg this fall guys, honestly just this year

October 21st/22nd: Not sure, leaning toward showing at the Fall Classics show if he was good at Yarra Yarra and we've gone to a few new places (First 1 and 2)

October 28th/29th: Show at Greenville Dressage (First 1, 2, and probably debut at First 3 on the second day), our first overnight show

November 4th/5th: Could show at Osierlea if I reallllly wanted to, but I probably don't want four weekends of showing in a row

November 11th/12th: Show at Starr Vaughn Equestrian (First 2 and 3 x2 days hopefully) 

After that I'm not sure what will happen over the winter. I'm traveling at least twice and am currently feeling apprehensive about doing another winter with TC. No plans have to be made just yet. I want to focus on all this fun stuff coming up!

I love him all braided up

My main goals this fall are to:

- Qualify for all breeds at Training level (half way done!) 

- Debut at First level (possibly only a month away)

- Trail ride (September for sure)

- Ride in some clinics (Jeremy and maybe Olivia coming up)

- Solidify TC's behavior in new places

- End the year feeling like Second isn't so far away

Stretch goals include taking TC camping, taking TC swimming and/or to the beach, and the stretchiest of them all, earn a 60+ at First 3 and start planning a freestyle! Might start planning it sooner rather than later and then a super stretchy goal would be to do it twice at Starr Vaughn and get my first two Bronze Freestyle bar scores. 

By the end of the year, tentatively, we'll be staring down at Second level. From like a while away. We will probably start the year next year off at First and look to move up to Second in the fall. 

Mostly I'm just so excited to do all this fun stuff with him! And doubly excited because the shows in my list are so close and cheap (except SVE), I can grab lots of show experience and scores without breaking the bank toooo much. Gotta pick up some teaching this fall to help me out though. But all this traveling makes it harder! 

Spooky As

Fuck.

Rico wasn't a very spooky horse. He would spook mostly to get out of work or when he was super amped. It wasn't a fearful response as much as it was that he learned that exhibiting this behavior meant that I would back off my aids and get nervous, clearing a path of less resistance for him that had been closed before. Essentially, I taught him to spook.

Upon reading Academic Horsemanship, I realized that the combination of me eventually learning to ignore his spooking and him needing generally more pressure to go through to him made him so so solid.

Won't stop using this picture, it's hilarious

I miss this horse, he was so silly

TC is an inherently more sensitive horse. And I again don't mean sensitive in a snowflake-y way, I mean that I don't think I could watch a bee sting him and have him not move like Rico did.

This means that he definitely has a bit more of a predisposition for spooking and is more in tune with me as a rider. So when he was spooky when I was afraid of him, I then made him even spookier. But he tends to be spooky about some stuff but not stuff I'd expect him to be spooky about. I don't know if it's that he was exposed to a lot of weird stuff as a young horse or if he's just a little bit kooky sometimes.

TC as a baby being exposed to all sorts of weird stuff at that
barn! Like goats/donkeys/camp kids/tractors/water trucks/etc

The key to dealing with TC's spookiness is to ignore it. I don't even acknowledge that it happened. If you think about it... if TC was in a herd of horses and he spooked at something and then all the other horses were like HOLY SHIT YES THAT IS A TERRIFYING THING LET'S GO, he'd be validated in his spook and would be more likely to spook again. If TC was in a herd of horses and he spooked at something and then all the other horses just kept grazing, TC would be more likely to become habituated to the spooky thing.

So my job is to not get after him for spooking, which I'm sometimes bad at doing because it's so damn annoying, and not to pet him and tell him it's okay (aka praise him and encourage it) when he spooks, but to totally ignore it as if it isn't happening. This technique, as well as making him work while he's spooky, has been really paid off.

TC now not only has reduced the number of spooks he typically offers, he's reduced the severity of them. We still get the occasional bolt, but for the most part he startles or zips off for only 1-2 steps before calming right down. Yay!

Sometimes the occasional bolt is in the schooling show ring

To address specific fears of TC's, and not just general spookiness, I've been really working with TC's natural curiosity. Luckily he's not your typical fearful horse, in that he really is a very curious horse, he's just nervous and has a pretty good initial flight response.

I've worked on using praise and soon clicker training to get TC more curious about objects. I'm hoping that eventually, and I already see it working, TC will stop himself from spooking and go investigate an object. Already he's a lot less likely to step away from an object while spooking.

What I did was I chose behaviors to praise when he was scared of something, namely putting his head down, chewing, and taking a step toward the object. Any time TC did any of that, I praised him. Any time he put his head up or went backwards/away from the object, I stopped praising him. TC loves praise enough where he is willing to work hard for it. I can usually coax him forward (and he normally does what I call the "pidgeon" where he sticks his head straight up, then puts it down and snorts, then straight up, then down and snorts- so I can praise on the down) and then praise that first step. After that he's all about stepping forward for more praise.


I think TC will always have a bit of a spook in him. But I'm really pleased with how he's learning to use his curiosity when faced with things that initially scare him vs just evacuating the area. Slowly but surely this horse is turning into a solid citizen.

What is Logical vs What is Right

At our last show, TC made some good friends. I noticed it at the Wednesday show, but it didn't really sink in until the Sunday show that TC was getting himself quite a little fan club of people I didn't know.

I feel stuck in the past a bit with this horse. I still remember the gangly baby horse with the okay gaits who my trainer said miiiiight be able to go to Third with a lot lot lot of training and time. I bought him for a fifth of what I bought Rico for. He was bred at a local, low key breeding facility that maybe produces two or three babies a year, all of which are not show quality, but are super solid husband/trail horses. His canter was lateral and his trot was choppy with his hind legs way out behind him.

I know that he's come a long way, but I didn't know how he was going to compare to other horses at the show. Much nicer horses. Turns out that both judges liked him well enough (7.5-8.5 on gaits!) to score us in the 70s despite me not even putting in as solid of tests as we are capable of.

Canter turned out to not be terrible!

But it still surprised me when people in warm up came up to me and told me they loved my horse. And more people came up after my test to tell me how great he was (and my favorite comment "you guys are so in tune with each other"). And when I got an email from someone who said she loved him and asked if he was still for sale.

What.

Turns out that his ad that I wrote way back in March or April when I was having problems with him and wanting to sell him was still around in the dregs of the search engine. With this email, I started thinking.

I bought TC as a resale project. A long term one- I wanted to head up the levels with him, one level a year, and when we hit the place where he struggled to move up or seemed like he'd be happier going back and showing someone the ropes, I'd sell him. The only reason why I can retire Rico and have TC is that my parents love him and have a spot at their ranch. It helps to have Rico there holding down the fort, keeping Stretch company, and being a good pony ride horse. And I got him when I was a teenager so they feel like he's part of the family.

Unfortunately TC is not part of the family, so he will eventually be for sale.

Trot can get some lift to it

I always thought that I'd sell him later on, and actually recently I asked Tracey how much she'd put him for sale at and she kinsd of hesitated and gave me a number but then told me that she thinks he's too quirky to sell right now (aw poor TC, I don't think you're quirky). He needs a confident rider but he needs a tactful rider. As he himself gains confidence and learns his job, he won't need as confident of a rider and then I can find a sweet junior or amateur who he can show the ropes to.

But hey who am I to argue if someone likes him now and wants to give me money for him? I could always use money. And he probably would be fine with an amateur or junior in training with a good trainer. And this person is exactly that.

However, the thought of selling him right now, even for a pretty good chunk of money (I kind of put him up for a lot because at the time, I was like meh if someone wants him for this, take him), makes me hesitate.

I mean he trail rides now too

I feel like I really need this horse in my life. I know that if I was a *real* professional, it'd be the best thing to sell him now if someone wants to pay me a certain amount. Take that money, cut it into fifths, buy another "diamond in the rough" and start over. Maybe flip horses for a while.

But I really don't want to sell him. He's teaching me so much and he whinnies at me all the time and I am FINALLY at a point where he's fun and I feel like if I went through all that bullshit with him getting him sound and sane and I can finally ride him bareback... and then I sell him?

Obviously there is a price for everything. I WOULD sell him if it was life changing money, at some point I would have to let go. But he's simply not worth what would amount to being life changing money right now.

I love him

I talked to Kate about it and told her "I know the logical thing is to sell him but I just don't want to" and she told me that what is logical isn't always what is right. And that's not really something I had considered. TC brings me a lot more to my life than what he is worth financially. I feel like he's making me a better rider, he brings me so much joy day to day. And sure there are other horses out there who would make me a better rider and bring me joy. But I really like this horse.

So he's not for sale. He might be for sale next month or next year or in ten years. But he's not for sale right now. It's not logical and I'm sure this winter when he's being a nut I'll be looking back at this decision to not pursue selling him as a mistake. But money doesn't whinny at you from the paddock or pounce on bird shadows.

Unreasonably Crooked

It's no secret that I've been struggling with my position lately. And being uneducated and probably too trusting in my skills as a rider, TC is quick to become quite crooked to match me. Both of those together feel like to me, we're heading toward shit show status, though we're holding it together okay right now. 

The crookedness has been getting worse though, and I was kind of ignoring it for a while up until the shows. I just didn't want him to have to experience a major change in his rider (even if it's for the better) right before a show. And it paid off, I'm glad I didn't change, even if I feel a little cringy looking at the pictures.

Too much me on the left side of the horse, ugh

The crookedness is caused by a lot of different things. First, let's not forget that I've always had the same crookedness even on Rico. But the problems have gotten worse for a few reasons. I'm now sitting for the majority of the day- when I was riding Rico, I was in school and training horses when I wasn't sitting in a classroom. I still had a long drive and still sat a fair amount (more so than I did when I was training full time), but it's nothing compared to the 10 hours of consecutive sitting I do these days (8 hours at work, an hour each way). That plus an SI injury that makes me not want to sit into my right seat bone (sciatica is a bitch) and sitting for hours on end is a recipe for crookedness.

I also used to ride more than one horse. This month has been what feels like an all time high riding exactly three other horses. Riding different horses helps me practice what I learn in lessons and those horses aren't used to my crookedness so respond differently. In addition to more horses, I was an avid crossfitter before getting injured (wrist injury so no front rack for me) so I was rather strong and coordinated. I feel significantly less strong and coordinated, which makes fixing things harder because of my lack of body awareness and propensity to actually get a little tired sometimes.

AND when I was riding Rico, I was taking one lesson a week. I simply don't want to afford that right now. It's possible but I've got other things I'm doing/saving for and doing weekly lessons had to go. I know we'd be progressing faster if we did, and I might splurge for two lessons this month vs just one, but I don't want to pour everything into my riding like I once did. Weekly lessons though are amazing, it really caught me before I over corrected like I tend to do. In a week I can get toward straightness, give me a month and I'm way way over corrected and have new straightness problems.

More lessons = less rogue left hand

But this post isn't about why I'm crooked, it's about how I'm crooked and what I'm doing to fix it!

My main problem is my seat and everything goes wonky from there. I do not want to sit on my right seat bone. So I lift off of it a bit, and that sends my ribcage to the left and I slip left. To prevent myself from falling off, I intelligently snatch the left rein to pull him under me. But he won't because that's not how you get a horse under you, so his shoulder goes right. So I open my left rein and close my right rein on his neck to get him to turn. In order to cling onto him, I wrap my right leg around him like a hook and I brace in my left leg with my thigh away from him. 


I was telling Kate about this the other day when I was at her barn to play with ponies and then eat delicious food. While she was tacking up, she handed me a book- the new Mary Wanless book. Now, I and the rest of our friend group know that it's not a good idea to be friends with Kate unless you want to impulse buy a lot of books. And sure enough, I flipped to one page, read one small paragraph, yelled "THIS IS ME" and immediately ordered it on Amazon. It came yesterday but I didn't have time to start reading it, hopefully this weekend (I still have to finish Academic Horsemanship too, gah). 

While riding her horse, she walked me through my straightness issues. It's always so helpful to have eyes on the ground for that! One thing she said that stuck with me is to imagine putting my left shoulder blade in my back pocket. That and my own image of pulling my lats into my ribcage on that side was really helpful in keeping my ribcage from popping. I still had to address my seat, and Kate used a rope around my hip (from the book!) to help me get the feeling of getting my left thigh more on my saddle. That was a really good trigger for me, realizing that I had more horse under my right thigh than my left. 

Love sitting on my left seat bone

After focusing on my position that evening, I woke up Tuesday morning really determined to fix it on TC. As we walked around the ranch, I sat straight, checking myself by looking down at the seam on my breeches and forcing it to be in the middle of my saddle, and also checking the amount of space under my thighs. 

One thing relatively unique to my rides on TC is my incredibly rogue left hand getting way far away from his neck while tracking left. So trotting to the right in warm up, I was okay, but it was SUPER hard to keep my hands to the right while going left. Instead of fighting it the whole time, I just grabbed mane with that hand and kept it still. 

TC wasn't too happy about this, he seemed really confused. But I forced myself to stay just like that. The whole ride. We cantered forever on the same damn circle with my hand stuck to his mane and us only occasionally running into stuff. 

Left hand starting to migrate back in the spring

I'm a big fan of throwing myself (and my students lol) into the deep end like that. It's how big changes happen. I told myself no more left hand to the left and I proceeded to ride my horse drunkenly around the arena completely off the bit trying to figure out how to ride him under the new regime.

As time went on, slowly, very very slowly, I figured it out. The mechanic of the outside rein had been wrong, and keeping space under my right thigh and contact on my right seat bone allowed me to ride him from that side into the right rein. I knew I had gotten it right when I could barely post my horse's trot. And he came on the bit finally! And we could mostly steer.

Last night it came SO MUCH FASTER and we actually had some really nice moments where I could legitimately let go of my mane hold and keep my left hand from going rogue. TC actually felt better to the left than to the right sometimes. Slowly but surely, we're on this.

Tired baby horse says thank you for riding better

I think this will be my big August project. We have our next show on the 28th and we're doing Training again so we don't have to put any stress on doing anything but continuing to plug away at transitions and circles. But between now and then I'm gone twice (ugh) so we'll see how far we really get.

Take Aways

It feels odd to be on the other side of the July shows. We might have one in August, but then for sure have one in early September and late October. The August show, if happening, will be back at the same facility as the July shows, which bodes well for us. The September and October shows are two separate and brand new facilities for us. I don't quite know what those are going to entail in terms of preparation and managing him at new facilities. I'd like to try him both overnight and at a new facility before making that decision.

So that's why instead of showing next weekend (not this weekend, taking this weekend off), I decided to sign us up for a clinic! We'll be staying overnight and getting to go to two new facilities. But no pressure for scores, just pressure to not embarrass ourselves in front of our clinician.

I just really love this horse

Between now and then, I got some great takeaways from the shows that I wanted to share, some from the judges and some just from me:

- TC needs to be better about the canter in different places. He pretty much trots the same (sometimes better) when not at home, but his canter is for sure more adjustable/rideable/better quality at home. This was shown in both his playing in the show ring and his break from canter on Wednesday. The key I think to this is just to continue to press forward with improving the canter at home and then of course, getting more miles off the property.

- We are for sure crooked together and need to fix this before we even think about moving up! Crooked horses do not get good scores on leg yields, TC. And crooked riders can't train good leg yields, so I know it starts with me. This means that I need to find more money in my budget for a few extra Tracey lessons so that I can get a better idea of what is happening. I feel like the lessons are far enough apart where it lets me have too much leeway to fix the problem and then break it again.

When I draw my leg up, I look so small on him

- I love feeling prepared for a level. I have spent the last I don't even know how many years rushing up the levels. Whenever I was capable of shoving Rico through a test, off we went. That's totally fine, and I don't regret it. But there's an element of stress when you're not sure if you'll score in the 60s. It's REALLY nice to know that the horse I'm riding is more than capable of doing the whole test in his sleep. I also really like scoring in the high 60s and low 70s and actually found myself wanting to break 75 at some point. Settle down, Megan.

- TC is a performer. I love that the last few shows he's been at, people have been there to watch him. He loves attention and will work hard for it. Sure, this led to him staring at his crowd WAY too much, but not in a nervous way, in an excited way. He did it in the free walk and the second he was halted- always looking to the crowd. I think over time, this is going to be a major asset, I think he's going to love showing more and more. Who wouldn't like showing off, getting applause, and then lots of pets/carrots afterward?

Centerline

- TC isn't nervous about stuff I'd expect him to be worried about. There were two tents set up in front of the show ring, then the judge's booth had some flappy stuff on it, and Tracey said all horses spook at the stand for the judge at B (there wasn't a judge at B but there was an empty platform). TC didn't even look at the tents or the judge's booth. He spooked exactly once while we were there (unless you count the whoaaa he did to his own pee spot, but let's not) and that was when someone was standing behind a pillar and she startled me too. I think over time he's going to become totally chill at other places.

- I've got to stop riding Rico in the court. TC was a little behind my leg in all of my tests, and rather than using my knowledge that TC does not do well with nagging and instead add energy with my seat, I nagged at him and he got sticky. This is from Rico- I would school him way in front of my leg at home but in a show, I couldn't smack him the way he needed to, so I'd nag and he'd get slower and slower by the end. TC isn't that horse! He is quite forward, but if you put on too many aids, he slows down. I didn't think he was too slow, but you can see the difference between my tests- Training 3 on Wednesday was much more lively than Training 2.

Hovering

- The connection is good but not great. I love where he's at, but we still have a long way to go before we really solidify that connection out in front of us. There's still moments where he drops his withers or gets over his shoulder. I want to have that solid before we even think about First.

- Showing with friends is fun. I knew this already from showing with Kate and Olivia at the couple of schooling shows, but it's been so long since I was at a rated show, so I missed seeing some other friends who only attend those. My friend from my old old barn was there and we chatted, she's doing so well with her new horse and it was fun to catch up.

- TC is maturing quickly, he's handling an off day of mine better and better, not coming out so defensive after one or two tough rides. He's showing it in his spookiness at new stuff- at the second show a tent had been moved and at first he was NOT okay with it and by the end of the day he didn't even look at it. Previously that would have taken days and days to get over. Now I'm better at helping him through his nerves and he's less nervous as a whole. Good boy!

His tail is so expressive!

- First is simultaneously right around the corner and a long way out. I know I could get him through any of the First level tests right now and score in the 60s. But I like that feeling that even on a bit of a rough day for us, we can score in the 70s. And we're not there yet with First level. So more time spent at home on lengthenings, counter canter, simple changes, and leg yields. Plus a lot more lateral balance on the smaller figures. Which means figuring out my straightness woes.

Generally I was just so happy about these two shows! This horse is really coming along, and he gets better with every outing. I'm so looking forward to the rest of the summer and the fall with him!