Virtual Brush Box

Names Matter, PreShow, Full Circle Horse Park, April 2019

Jumping Diary

tldr: Deciding on & practicing for a super-low show jumping class.

The words … I has them.

Should we or shouldn’t we?
Yes we should!
Maybe not.
Did we or didn’t we?

Should we or shouldn’t we?
After our raging success in our inaugural jump(ish) class on Saturday [Kinda, Sorta], it was suggested that we consider something similar the following weekend at Full Circle Horse Park. The lowest class was 12″ crossrails. Hmmm.

Sunday morning was spent pondering the idea.

On the plus side. He stepped up to the poles class. One doesn’t make progress without pushing the envelope. We’ve trotted the FCHP warm-up jumps already, hopping over both before we went out on into the XC pasture [Dynamic Duo Does Dinky Jumps]. It’s not in a ring, but it’s wedged into a corner of the field with fence lines on two sides. He seems to consider the area safe, at least safer than out in the distant wilds of the XC pasture [Ditto]. We can always pull up if he’s overwhelmed. It’s a buncha tiny crossrails. At worst, we walk over them.

On the minus side. We had never done more than three crossrails in a row. Wait for the next one. Practice at home first. Patience has worked so far. Don’t rush it now.

Result. The closing date had passed. Since we were already in late fee territory, the plan was to wait & decide on the day, or as late as the organizer would let us punt. As with the poles class, it would depend on what kind of day Milton was having. If he was super awesome, we won’t. If he was super awful, we won’t. If all was well, we would wander over and have a go.

Names Matter
I had a choice of what class(es) to enter

Option A: Two Classes
3. USDF Intro A. Counts as its own class.
&
23. 12″ Cross Rails. Separate class. Not timed. Ribbon for clear round.

Option B: One Class
16. Pre-Amoeba CT USDF Intro A/12″. Dressage score converted to penalty scores. Any crossrail penalties added.

The rides are the same.
The scoring is different.

The difference is nonexistent.
The difference is everything.

Entering the Combined Test meant entering an official, formal jumping competition, even if we wouldn’t be jumping. The idea immediately spiked my anxiety meter into the red zone.

On the plus side. The effort is the same for the horse. He has no idea what the classes are labeled. At some point, I’m going to have to enter a jumping class, see envelope-pushing, above. This would be a well-known, low-key place to start.

On the minus side. Milton should have more than one show with his new, relaxed attitude before we declare him an old hand at this show gig. The goal of all of these has been to settle the horse, not to do Intro dressage. Therefore, I need to be as calm as possible in my own head, whatever it takes. It is too early to expect him to be the adult.

Result. We decided to keep the classes separate, ridiculous as it is.

Yes we should!
Sunday afternoon, we loaded up and headed for Stepping Stone Farm. With the one jump [Rollerskates], a caveletto, poles & driving cones, my jump crew cobbled together a “course” of three super low fences. We did two laps in one direction, reversed, then two laps in the other, with a bonus fence to finish on. In total, 13 tiny crossrails taken at a trot, trotting over them, no jumping. Milton definitely noticed when we got to up into jumps 7 and 8, but kept trundling along.

We got this!

On Tuesday, we went over for our regular Tuesday lesson slot at Falcon Hill Farm. Coach Molly had us canter two poles. Well, okay. We haven’t been able to do much cantering since our last lesson. Then, she set pole-to-crossrail. Hmm. Trot the pole. Jump the cross rail. Alright. Next, canter two cross rails. Do what?! This was definitely edge-of-the-envelope territory for us. Well, that’s why one has lessons. We did both directions.

Okay, now can I practice a course? I didn’t say at a trot. I meant at a trot. I thought at-a-trot was obvious. I can live with the “bigger” fence, as long as I can trot into them. She set five cross rails. Nice, gentle crossrails, but high enough that one had to jump them rather than trot over. Then told us to canter over them. DO WHAT? Does this woman understand how little cantering Milton and I have done together? There’s a good chance she has seen the majority of our cantering. There was hyperventilating involved. By me. Horse was fine.

Milton was a star. We did the course a handful of times. I kept my leg on to encourage him and keep him straight. Otherwise, hippity hop – in the good way – over he went. We trotted one, when I got in wrong and he trotted to fix it. Fine fellow.

He got angry with me at one point as he got tired. Then a walk break and he was back to being lovely.

We so got this!

Other Firsts
One. At FHF, I took off my fleece vest while mounted and draped over the side of the ring. He didn’t care. Nor did he spook at the new thing in a new place. After the lesson, picked up the vest, got out my camera & took pictures [We Canter]. Mox nix. Horses have spooked at less.

Two. At SSF on Sunday and FHF on Tuesday, I got on without a header. This is a big step for me. Only the 2nd and 3rd time ever. (Well, 3rd & 4th time ever, but we are not counting the first one, lo these many years ago.)

Are we slick or what?

Maybe not.
By Tuesday evening, Milton was furious. He wanted to bite the world. He was sore and tired and cranky. He had cantered. He had jumped. Grumble. Grouse. Bite. I’m thinking he’s the sort of horse who wants to be left alone when he’s recuperating.

We canceled a possible Thursday lesson and spent the rest of the week getting Milton relaxed and happy. In the mornings, I took him for a hand-walk to loosen his back. Then hand-grazed him in the front field for half an hour. In the evenings, I would ride for 20 to 30 minutes. Wednesday at a gentle walk. Thursday, we added a little bit of mild trotting. Friday, a tiny cross rail as a reminder.

When we started jumping – to use the term loosely, Milton perked up. He accelerated to the jump. He cantered away from it. Yay, my horse likes to jump. He’s attacking them with gusto. You know, I might need to consider a strong bit.

I was delightfully pleased with myself, right up until Milton landed from the cross rail and got a case of the hops. Not the good kind. While it wasn’t as bad as his previous attack [Two Hops], at least one hop had serious hang time. I yelled and brought him to a stop. I stayed on. I didn’t fall off. I didn’t dismount. Jump crew lowered everything and we trotted the poles.

Note to self. Milton is not a puller. If he is strong, it is a sign that he is upset. If we keep going, he will blow a gasket. A good lesson to learn. Not a lesson one wants to learn the night before a horse show.

Did we or didn’t we?
I won’t make you wait until Thursday. We did.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

We Canter Our First Course!

Jumping Diary

The words … I have them not.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

The Letters of Dressage II

On My Mind, Miscellaneous Visuals

~~~
Process Notes: I see why designers like vector graphics. For the initial drawing, pixel and vector take the same amount of time. If anything, vector drawing takes slightly longer, at least for me. The difference comes when changing the design. For these, I reused the letters from last time [The Letters of Dressage]. Draw gridlines to indicate new size. Put cursor at the top/side of the box that frame each letter. Squoosh letter down and then over. Voilà, perfectly resized letter.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Settling On A Show Name, Finally

The Georgia Dressage & Combined Training Association sponsors or recognizes or has some relation to the Full Circle shows. Not sure of the exact details. All I know is that I had to sign GDCTA releases last year, whether or not I was a member.

This year, I decided to join. If they are supporting shows, I want to support them. Plus, there may be a chance of acetate at the end of the year, always a motivator for me.

Keeping track of series points means keep track of the horse. We needed to make a decision on Milton’s show name [Roll Call]. We liked Milton 2.0. As with Miltonn (two Ns), it would be too much confusion for too little return. We went with …

… drumroll …

… Major Milton.

This harks back to his race name, Major Conn, while using his current name.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Milton Is Chill, Show Photos, SJ Equestrian, March 2019

Dressage Plus Schooling Show
[Show Report]
Jeremy Villar Photography

Schooling Ride
Jeremy Villar Photography

We wait.

We begin.

Intro A: C. Track Right (at a walk)
Jeremy Villar Photography

Para-Olympics has a walk-only test. I don’t know how they do it.

Checking the Order of Go. Note the dropped reins. Not a smart safety practice, but ever so chill.

I don’t know what is going on here, but Milton and I do not approve.

This may be from our brief canter. I know we never trotted fast enough for his mane to blow in the breeze. If so, it is a record of our first canter in public. Our first intentional canter in public [The Canadian Horse & The Red Queen]

Tests were a slight decline from our previous show. Kept a decent trot. Not so much with the contact
[Previous outingShow Photos].

Whoa there, Wild Horse.

Trot Over Poles Class
Jeremy Villar Photography

As the day warmed, I switched to a quiet pink shirt. When I tacked back up for the poles class, my groom suggested using Milton’s red pad. I had the red shirt in the trailer. Why not?

We be done.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Our First Kinda, Sorta, Almost, Jumping Class, Show Report SJ Equestrian, Poles, March 2019

Jumping Diary

Dressage Plus Schooling Show
[Show Report]

Major Milton
Trot Over Poles Class – 3rd of four

We checked in. The Order of Go listed two extra classes. Whas is dis? The Trot Over Poles Class was trot twice around the ring over two sets of poles. The Trot Canter class was a group class. We elected to enter the former but not the latter. We do not need our first group ride to be with a bunch of munchkins. Yes, they were kid classes. I offered to ride HC.

Jumps in a dressage ring can be a Prix Caprilli class. This involves a standard dressage maneuvers/patterns with an occasion diversion to the jump(s). I did one decades ago in another state and Previous Horse and I did one. He loved it.

However, I’m calling this our first Hunter class. It had entry and exit circles, as hunter trips do. The local hunter/jumper association offers trot poles classes. Hunters it is. We have now ridden in our first official jump class.

If Milton had been stellar in the two dressage tests, I reserved the right to stop there to reward him. As it turned out, our warm-up was so low-key that he really didn’t work that hard, regardless of what he will tell you. I was on for a while, but it was walking and standing. Between the test and the poles, we had time for a short break. Milton grazed; I changed my shirt. This will be obvious in the pictures tomorrow.

First set of poles: ‘Dude, these were not here before.’
Second set: Rider opts for exaggerated two-point over the massive gymnastic.
Third set: ‘I got this.’
Fourth set: Over the last and head for home.

So, it was definitely new. He did a bit of a corkscrew over the first set to keep his eye on them as he went over. He was also definitely decent. He did a nice little bouncy trot over the third set, away from the ingate, no less.

I offered to give back my yellow ribbon for the kid who placed fourth. Turn it into a junior class. The organizer said thanks, but she’d already handed out the rest of the ribbons. She also thought a little bit of competition wouldn’t hurt.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Winning The Warm-Up, Show Report, SJ Equestrian, Dressage, March 2019

Don’t be too excited. I was the only Intro Adult.
Hence the ribbon photo set on semi-opaque.

Dressage Plus Schooling Show
SJ Equestrian, Organizer
Falcon Hill Farm, Host
Wilsonville AL, USA
Saturday, March 30, 2019

Major Milton
Class 3 – 2019 USDF Intro Test A (Walk-Trot) – AA (Adult Amateur), 1st of 1, 63.8%
Class 4 – 2019 USDF Intro Test B (Walk-Trot) – AA (Adult Amateur), 1st of 1, 60%

Highest score: 7, various
Lowest score: 5, E-H, Medium Walk, aka The Spook

The Tests
Rides were not forward or straight. Rides at home are neither forward nor straight. What you lack at home will not magically appear at a show. Pit crew says we got 90% of what we get at home.

The Warm-Up
This is where we made huge progress. Milton’s first act coming off the trailer was to start grazing. It was nice, pleasant gimme-grass grazing, not I’m-so-stressed-I-must-eat tearing at greenery. As we tacked up, a largish trailer arrived. We know how that goes [Victory]. We stopped. We waited. Milton watched.

We walked up to the ring. We walked in-hand a few laps. I got on. Sans preliminary lunging. He walked. He looked. He knew he was at FHF. He also knew that it was different than a lesson day. He spent time regarding the trailers parked down the hill behind the ring. He said, ‘Those aren’t usually there.’ He was fascinated with the spot where horses appeared/disappeared as they walked up/down the road to the trailer parking. It was magic. These two observations became important later.

We went back to the trailer. Switched to the fancy white show pad and black show hat. We wandered back up. We trotted on the buckle. We even cantered. Once. The transition was horrid. By the time we upshifted, we only had room for a few strides. We did it. Milton failed to get upset. I felt froggy enough to try.

I can’t stress how relaxed he was about the whole thing. Not, he’s doing okay all things considered, or he’s coping well. Just sittin’ on my horse waiting for my tests. Awesome.

The Spook
The dressage ring was laid out on one side of the big FHF ring. Warm-up was the other half of the ring. Right next door. As we came up the long side in our second test, a horse spooked about 10 feet away. Milton gave a short spook, then stood, looking around to see what was wrong. As the judge said after our test, “There must be something wrong if he (the other horse) is spooking.”

I kicked. Milton looked over the end of the ring. We could see the roof of one rig. ‘Was that the problem?’ he wondered. I managed not to yell at him, ‘It’s your own damn trailer.’ I’ve done this in the past [Georgia]. I kicked again. A horse appeared in the magic horse apparition spot. ‘Was that the problem?’ he wondered. I finally got his eyes back in the boat. We finished our test.

One never wants the horse to decide to play statue in the middle of a dressage test. OTOH, if his response to spooking is to stand still, I can live with that. The judge was kind enough to label this “loss (of) impulsion” and give us a 5.

The Other Bits & Pieces
It was eerily easy getting ready in the morning. The show was close to home. We know the barn. I know the judge. We have done so much shipping for lessons, we have the packing and loading down to a science. It all felt too easy.

Note to self. Wear rubber boots in the morning. Even if it hasn’t rained, the dew will soak my toes. Bring sneakers for later. Maybe if I write this here, I will remember next time.

The show had an Academy classes. Before this, I’ve only seen Academy at Saddlebred shows. It’s a great idea for all disciplines. Gives good-hearted lesson horses and beginning riders an inviting place to start.

The Scores