An Aiken end to 2023

Stayed at Jumping Branch farm - our favorite!

Hamp and I skipped town for a short getaway to Aiken, South Carolina last week. I love Aiken and it doesn't take much to convince me to take some PTO and go.

We arrived on Wednesday and took the boys (Hampton and TB eventer/dressage buddy, E) on a 40 minute walk before absolutely binge eating at TakoSushi. This is becoming a tradition haha.

Lesson day

On Thursday we hauled over to SD's place where we both had super lessons. Takeaways:

Smoothed out I-2 trot half pass zig zag. Think shoulder-fore instead of pushing haunches out.

Less leg! Too much begging. Take legs OFF.

Travel the piaffe, then bring back and ask for more engagement. Let out.

Stay uphill in changes, if he dives abandon changes and circle

Shortened my stirrups a half a hole, this helped with dropping heels away

Keep following in walk and extended walk. Cue to piaffe is to stop following.

Leg yield in, half pass back to the rail

You bet your ass I double time him so he doesn't escape from the trailer.

Schooling day

On Friday we hit up 4 tack stores before 11 a.m. I was really surprised my bank didn't call me to ask what the hell was going on. I mostly behaved myself with one exception. I purchased a lovely pair of navy DeNiro boots, which off the rack fit me perfectly. It's the first time I have ever been able to buy a nice new pair of boots for myself. They are AMAZING and so comfortable.

This photo does not do them justice. A really pretty, subtle navy blue.

After boosting the economy, we hauled over to The Vista where both of us were able to work on our dressage freestyle choreography. My freestyle ended up being a minute too short, which was annoying but at least I found that out now. I spent the evening re-doing some of my freestyle to eat up more time. The Grand Prix freestyle has to be between 5:30 and 6 minutes. I can't believe the judges want to watch me for 5 minutes. I can literally do all the requirements in 4 minutes and then put you out of your misery.

The Vista is really lovely!

Show Day

We were up bright and early for an 8:39 centerline time for the I-2. Hampton warmed up great. The test was decently solid, pretty average really. Unfortunately I made a mistake in the 1s and let Hampton do 12 instead of 11. So we missed a 60 just barely. 

Love Stable View's indoor area with perfect perfect footing.

We have zero cushion at the Big Tour for any mistakes, so it is what it is. I need to ride better. I think I got in my head about how pretty it is to show at Stable View haha.

Sunday

After spending most of Sunday morning in Eventer Land, we got lucky with the rain and were able to go video my new and improved Freestyle. This time we hit up a new-to-us farm called Sandy Hills. They had two dressage arenas (with mirrors!), XC jumps, a POND TO SWIM IN, a gallop track and a derby field. Really cool place and we will be back.

It rained on and off this day but it was still beautiful.

Anyway, got the freestyle to hit the right time this go around. Done and dusted!

The dapples kill me haha

It's time to do some homework over the holidays, before heading back to Aiken in March. 

The World is not your oyster

Gotten a request to write more so ... here goes. haha.

I don't have experience in the trenches of many disciplines, so maybe my observations are off base. But is it just me or do dressage people expect to be constantly accommodated? 

Photo by L. Dean. October 2023. I-2

Years ago, I was at a small dressage show (recognized) and there was a tent for a vendor set well away from the show ring, but along a walking path for both people and horses. It was Friday and we were schooling. I hear a lady start to shout that show management should take the tent down because "it is spooking my horse!" 

Hampton fucking around at third level because behind the judge there was a wall he could see over and he wanted to look so I put my inside leg on him. Whose fault is that? Not anyone's but my sucky riding.

More recently, I saw a post on the book of Face, regarding construction going on at the Kentucky Horse Park. They are making improvements for equestrians and for the park in general. Including building brand new barns. Yes, some of that construction was next to a walking path for the horses. And yup, it riled up some fresh dressage horses. Boy did people complain. 

Horse fly attack. Also, no one's fault.

I have never ONCE seen any Morgan or Saddlebred people act so entitled and except the environment to be accommodated for their "spooky horse." They just sit back and hang on. And while I have not been heavily involved, I would be willing to bet the western disciplines would never make such a comment. They also have hot, spooky horses, in spite of what many might believe.

I have certainly had many moments where Hampton spooked at something in the distance, or a sound, or seemingly nothing. I remember one instance where a plastic bag flew right into the show arena while I was doing a turn on the haunches. Hampton never flinched. My training and our partnership won in that moment. 

Remember the time I threw event tack on Hampton and he stopped at the second fence AT STARTER and I fell off? He was doing I-1 at the time, by the way. He was buddy sour that day and I failed at riding. FAILED.

But other moments it did not. You know whose problem that is? Mine. And only mine. Not the show, not any other competitor, not my coach, not the person who served me breakfast. It is MY training and MY partnership with the horse. 

PSG

In summary, we need to suck less. Ride better, be a better handler, do more homework. Suck less. Also, horses will sometimes spook and go AWOL anyway. We need to better prepare our horses and ourselves to handle different environments. And if it doesn't go our way, laugh it off and try again. 

Quite expecting to be accommodated.

Dipping toes back in

 After a really solid summer of competing I-1 and doing a lot of polishing especially as far as test riding, I decided to do a brave thing and entered an I-2 at a little recognized show a couple hours south. And I took the double bridle, which I have not shown Hampton in since The Big Shutdown of 2022.

Photo by L. Dean

We watched our DQ friend kick some booty in her two tests, then I tacked up Hampton, warmed up in the facility indoor and said hell let's see what happens.

A peeping Tom by the trailer dressing room.

Somewhere along the line this year, a switch went off. Something clicked with both of us. I can ride Hampton within the test without him shutting down, he is pretty darn reliable in the movements, and even his uphill balance has somewhat improved. And by that I mean he doesn't dive down in the bridle so horrifically. (Let's be real he will never be uphill).

The judge rewarded a willing horse with clear gaits, who was on the aids. Yes the passage was pretty flat that day, but that's our homework. We walked away with our best score to date in the I-2: a 64.1% which shattered our previous best by far.

The BEST boy.
Photo by L. Dean

He didn't shut down at all, although I felt him THINK about sucking back behind that double bridle. So while it went very very well, I think my best bet is to stick with showing him in the snaffle. But it was fun to experiment and see where we were.

I really enjoyed the facility which was a small private farm, but they gave out wonderful entry goody bags, had a lovely staff, good footing and an overall pleasant atmosphere. Good for them for hosting a USDF recognized show! We need more of these one-dayers.

Good dressage bay boys!

Next up we will be preparing for a clinic in December, and shortly after making a short trip to Aiken where I have another I-2 on the radar at Stable View. 

And in the meantime ... we are working on another freestyle. This time Grand Prix.

I am a masochist.

From Pork to Chop

 It's Hampton's favorite time of year.

He gets to be nekked, he is furry, he is no longer overheated all the time, he gets to get dirty, he starts getting a little more food, and work lets up (just a little haha).

FML.
That's a tail nest of burrs.

His transformation from sleek show horse to .... feral beast ... cracks me up every year.

Regionals recap!

USDF Region 2 Regional Championships 

Attending Regionals is always 1) A super cool and special experience. It isn't like a normal show, and everyone works their ass off to earn their way; 2) An exhausting marathon for people and horses.

Prologue

Hampton qualified in both the I1 and I1 freestyle this year and I threw in the AA Equitation Finals class so we had something to do on Friday that was not physically taxing for Hamps. We arrived on Wednesday after a 6 hour drive, and went on a brief walk-only hack. Thursday we had a lesson with one of my favorite Indiana trainers where she kicked my ass about keeping Hampton's shoulders up, and not letting him hide behind the aids. So I was thankful I had planned Friday to be an "easy day." Harr dee har.

Porkchop's penthouse

Friday

The AA Equitation class was Friday afternoon and the class was jam packed full of really great riders. There was at least 15 people in the class, probably more. We all did walk and trot together in the arena, and they split us into 3 groups for canter work.

After that, each person did the posted pattern. When it was all said and done, the class lasted AN HOUR AND A HALF. Hampton and I were both over it, and if you tried to stand still at all you got eaten alive by gnats. So I tried to keep walking.

Hampton was of course perfect for all of the work, and landed us a solid 5th place. The competition was tough and I'm just not exactly what the judges are looking for because I am 1) too stiff of a rider and 2) too "saddleseaty" because I try to be too perfect, instead of actually effectively riding my horse. In any case, I earned a 78% from the judges and honestly anyone who got a ribbon in that class should be pretty damn proud.

That class was miserable, lady. You better insert treats.

Saturday

Saturday morning was my much-anticipated freestyle! Many thanks to my coach who talked me into putting one together almost last minute. We literally choreographed it in one lesson, and my other barn friend whipped the music together for me. I showed it twice at Indiana to qualify, and Regionals was  the 3rd time I have ridden through it. 

But of course Hampton was perfect and absolutely smoked the test. I made a mistake in our circle of twos by overbending him, but recovered quickly. Between the two judges we scored a 65% and some change, which landed us in 4th place (we missed 3rd by .3) in tough company. Could not have been happier with Hampton. In fact I had a mojito right after our test. It was 10 a.m. That is how you horse show.

Had a few more drinks that day too, hahaha.
It was well earned.

Sunday

Sunday morning was our AA I-1 test and HAMPTON was mistake free, but I had an error of course when I started to do the 3s when it should have been the extended canter. Argh. I don't go off course very often but it happens to all of us and I blame it on the exhaustion. I did recover quickly though and finished off a very nice test. It is Regionals though, and the judging is TOUGH, as it should be. We finished with a 60% and some change. That kept us just out of the ribbons in 9th place. Region 2 is one of the most competitive regions so I will take it.

I-1 test done and dusted

As wonderful as Hampton is, he is a 6 right out of the box especially at a show of this caliber. That is something I have accepted long ago and gave Porkchop all the love and pats for a job well done. We were just outclassed and that is ok! To show in that big arena was so special. I cannot wait for the photos!

It seems like this year Hampton has really come into his own. He he is reliable now, and while not the easiest to ride at FEI, I don't struggle and pray for my life like I used to. lol. He is just the best boy. Well behaved, safe, fun and can take a joke.

Now it's time for a small let down. I don't think I was able to punch a ticket to Nationals, so our next adventure will likely be a trip to Aiken. 

Sit in the mud

 It's been a helluva year.

A good friend and barnmate lost her horse in January after a bizarre string of heartbreaking, demoralizing, emotional and unpredictable events. The horse was a frequent adventure buddy and friend of Hampton's.

Hampton and his late friend.

The BFF just lost a horse of a lifetime, a gift of schoolmaster, to an eerily similar sequence of events. This horse went from healthy to dead in less than 24 hours. Small intestine torsions are no joke and if a vet tries to give you good odds for survival, I would seriously question them.

Grief is an interesting thing. It is fascinating to me to observe the ways people process it, and also try to navigate a friend going through grief.

I am not going to spew platitudes like "He is in a better place." "I know how you feel." "Keep fighting." I think people mean well when they say these things, but it just ... isn't helpful. Others send gifts, and others back away - unsure of what to say or how to navigate the situation. There are a handful who start giving unsolicited advice, judgement or one-upping your grief and situation. Even worse, others hit you with the "You should have ... "  or "What didn't you do this ..." crap that is utterly unhelpful.

A pretty photo of Porkchop lol

We all know losing a horse is not just losing a horse. You lose your best friend, you lose the dreams, goals, hard work, and the parts of your identity tied to the horse. Not to mention the money.

Grief - especially the raw days and weeks following such a traumatic event - can get very messy. It becomes ... muddy. Some people's puddles are bigger than others. Sometimes it is very uncomfortable to be around someone who is in the midst of raw grief. But everyone needs someone to sit in the mud with them. You might get dirty as well. It might be uncomfortable. But just sit there. In the mud. No agenda.

Not everyone will do it. Not everyone can handle sitting in the mud. You don't have to understand, you just have to be there. Presence. 

Encourage forward movement, but if the puddle is still too muddy to crawl out of, just sit there.

Final Chapter | 2001-2023

Hoosier Horse Park in 2008 with T-Bone
(spot my dad in the background holding a cooler lol)
and no that is not an approved helmet. :|

I am not sure how many long LONG LONG time followers I still have, but when this blog started (in August 2007 holy smokes), I had a bay Morgan gelding named T-Bone.

 T-Bone (AMHA registered name Final Chapter) was 16 hands and full of piss and vinegar. I acquired him in 2003 when he was 2 years old, and I was a naïve, horse-loving recent college graduate who thought I would enter journalism and thrive in that career. ha. ..... hahahaha. I made $19,000 a year, I had absolutely no business owning a horse.

Some random Hunter show

After getting him started under saddle, I rode him around randomly for a year or two with no real purpose. We did Hunter classes at some Morgan shows, we jumped a bit. We did some mediocre dressage. But then after a series of .. tough .. events, I ended up moving him and myself to a dressage barn in Indiana where I started taking more consistent lessons. I started to fall in love with the sport. That barn and the instructors literally changed the way I thought and rode. 

T-Bone at 2 years old.

I did end up taking T-Bone to a couple of USDF rated show where we weren't particularly successful but got some scores in the 60s at Training level. He was a hot little number and required an exhausting amount of lunging just to be able to trot him less than 100 mph. He was never bad, never offered to buck or rear or deposit you. But he was bred to trot fast and that he did. Of course I knew NOTHING back then on how to finesse such a horse.

My dad cleaning my boots. 2008.

He learned how to do some mediocre second level stuff. Shoulder in, haunches in, leg yield. He could do a little half pass, and a change occasionally. He was smart and nothing ever spooked him. He was as sweet as they come, although he could be a bully in the field to other horses.

The amount of flexion in my ankle is ... unhealthy.

When 2008 rolled around, I was furloughed from work A LOT. I was already financially struggling, and this made it much much worse. I ended up moving T-Bone from the dressage barn to a smaller barn, where I was able to work off some of his board in order to keep him. But after a while, that wasn't even enough. Thanks to T-Bone, I had met a couple of fellow Morgan lovers who let me keep him at their little hobby farm for free. 

I can't believe I am resurrecting this photo but here we are. I didn't even own a dressage saddle or bridle. And apparently no shirts that fit, or a helmet.

Around the time I started to get a little more serious about this whole sport of dressage. You can see a difference in both of us. (The lack of helmet is cringe, I know. So is the skank top and half chaps. My god.)

My financial and mental state in 2009 was dicey at best, so I made the tough decision to sell T-Bone. I ended up selling him to a wonderful lady who ADORED him for the past 14 years. Absolutely loved him, and somehow got him to go slow enough to do Western Dressage. That alone is a miracle. haha. 

He was a lucky horse to have been loved twice by a horse crazy lady, and to have lived his last days so loved and cared for. His owner reported he died during surgery at the end of June. I didn't ask what kind of surgery, but we can always draw the logical conclusions. He was 22.

Loved peppermints from The PepperMint Dispenser. (my father)

After I sold T-Bone in 2009, I took a small amount of that money and made a really stupid financial decision and paid $500 for another unbroke bay 2 year old gelding. From the same breeder, although this one wasn't a Morgan. This one was a TB/Hanovarian/Clydesdale cross. 

And as a nod to his predecessor T-Bone, this gelding was deemed "Porkchop."

A tour of the fly-over states

 It's been a few years since Hamp and I did a double-header. Two shows, two weekends in a row. 

Hoosier Horse Park is our second home haha

My goal was to try and qualify at both I-1 and I-2 and then pick one for Regionals depending on what I was feeling.

INDIANA

First up was Indiana Dressage Society's June show, where I entered I-1. This ended up being the most relaxed show I think I can remember in years (for me, haha). I didn't even show up on the grounds until 7:30 p.m. Friday night. Hampton doesn't need to school there, and I figured the less time he had to stand in a stall the better.

Spot the new hardware

Saturday's test was pretty solid other than I made a little bobble in the twos when Hampton got a little crooked on me and I lost the rhythm. I was able to fix it quickly though. A 64%+ which I was very pleased with. Hampton felt quite fit and fresh that morning and I probably could have warmed up longer.

Sunday's test I went in and tried to add some power. Hampton was super, and we had a organized, clean test. I was absolutely thrilled with a score of 66%! That is a personal best for us at any FEI level test ever. I have always thought maybe a 65% would be at the top of what Hampton might be able to reach at FEI so a 66 was super awesome.

Unfortunately I really failed at getting much media from that weekend. But I really wish every horse show was as relaxed and low stress as that one was. haha.

OHIO

The following weekend we ventured almost 4 hours to Ohio for the Ohio Dressage Society show at Brave Horse Equestrian Center. After hearing nothing but good things about the facility, I was pretty excited to go. It didn't disappoint. Gorgeous stabling, GGT footing, lovely warm up and arenas. Plus the show staff was OUTSTANDING. They gave out super prizes, were friendly, and even drove by offering free popsicles. There was also a night check guy for no extra charge. He walked through the barns every hour or so. Top class.

Some epic photo opportunities too

I ended up sleeping in my hammock in the tack stall because a really nice breeze rolled through the barns and at night it felt really nice. The horses do eventually shut up around midnight and didn't bother me too much haha.

My cozy Hotel Tack Room

I will say that one improvement Brave Horse could make it maybe a small shower facility for those that camp on site? I was a little crusty by Sunday.

Anyway, Hampton was ON FIRE on Friday for schooling. I could barely touch him with my leg he was so hot. Guess all that swimming has made him quite fit. But he was a good boy and we schooled all the things.

Spotted on the drive to Ohio. 

We were the first ride of the day on Saturday and went in and had a decent test at I-2. It's been I think 2 years since I have attempted that test and while "easier" than the GP, it really is no joke. I made a mistake in the one's when I failed to communicate to Hampton that THE ONES ARE COMING. So, due to that mistake we had a 59% and some change. Argh. Still not a bad score at the level though.

Sunday morning I had just a little less gas in the tank, but in true Hamp fashion he tried his heart out. Our only mistake was again in the ones, when he threw in TWO EXTRAS. I can't be mad at him for that. lol. But still, the test was good enough for a 60.7%! I was just super proud of him for trying so hard and he really holds his own at such difficult levels.

Warming up before 8 am.

Turbo

So, didn't get my qualifying scores for I-2. Not a huge deal. If I go to Regionals, I think the I-1 will be the better choice anyway. Or I can try for one last score at another show once my bank account recovers.

Pro photos by Kelly&Kelly

Another really fun weekend with my barn friends who are just the best peoples. All the horses were fantastic and I love seeing everyone reach big goals they work so hard for.

Oh, and in more important news: