Hastings House B&B is where I stay when in find myself in Murfreesboro TN for days on end. I love my barn friends just not for days on end. OTOH, I don’t want to wallow in a hotel room alone for days on end. Therefore, a B&B is the right combination of privacy & someone to care, or at least notice, if I undergo spontaneous combustion.
The lovely proprietress willing adapted the breakfast times and content to work with my ever-changing show schedule and my ever-neurotic show stomach. She even came by the show. Although, I probably wasn’t friendly when she did. (Waves Hi!)
Photo by Morgan King, National Horseman. Used with permission.
I’ve never had a coach. I’ve avoided team sports with the enthusiasm of a dedicated couch potato. Although I was on the riding “team” in college, the lessons were as any other riding lessons and the ostensible coach was a burned-out, upper-level rider. Displays of enthusiasm were passe.
While I’ve had good instructors, in most cases, my problems ceased to exist the moment the lesson was over. In some cases, I ceased to exist while the lesson was in progress, but I don’t dwell.
Before now, I’ve never worked with a riding professional who knew me well enough to say, or not to say, just the right thing at just the right moment.
Example 1: Driving
Coach had pondered ways to improve my soft-to-the-point-of-ineffective hands. She decided on long-lining. This morphed into driving lessons. On the first day, we talked endless driving theory: how to do it, what to expect, how it should feel, how a class is conducted. She stood in the ring and answered every question I had for as long as it took.
Before my next driving lesson, I was still nervous about the whole idea. I started asking more questions. She interrupted me with, “Just get in the damn cart.” Okay, she’s Southern, so she probably didn’t actually say damn, but it was strongly implied.
At Nationals, I had mini-meltdowns before each drive. She stood at Alvin’s head, silent and impassive, until I just got in the damned cart.
Example 2: Riding
On the second day of the show, I experimented with my position, achieving personal if not commercial success. On day three, I was going over my game plan. Coach agreed. Same idea. Same ride. I was in the zone. She added, “Don’t overdo it.” Yup. That was exactly what I was about to do. [Show Report]
Example 3: Facebook
The relationship between coach and student is a sensitive, compassionate, and deeply nuanced one. This is best exemplified by the sign she posted on my Facebook page after the show:
A jump-off is a balance of speed and carefulness. The faster you go, the more likely your horse is to knock down a pole, earning penalty points. The more careful you are, the more likely you are to finish in the pastels. This was obvious to me. I had not realized that it applied to other disciplines, for example, to a saddle seat academy class.
In my lessons, I can get the slow, collected, “tea cup” canter fairly reliably. It’s the same canter one uses to rollback for a jump. In shows, I was hesitant to press for it. One has to, in broad terms, heave the front end while motivating the hind end. As I pranced around attempting to impress the judge, I had been reluctant to sufficiently heave on the front. If I misjudged and heaved too hard, the horse might downshift into a trot.
After placing last & second-to-last on day one of Nationals, I had nothing to lose. So, Sam lost the canter. What where they going to do, give me last? I rode in the class as I did in a lesson. I worked on elevating and gathering at the trot – to the extent Sam & I are capable. I insisted on cantering slowly but powerfully. Ditto. I still placed second-to-last, but with a huge personal improvement in understanding what was needful. This helped me to big fluffies on day three. [Show Report]
You can place if you compete. You can only win if you are willing to lose.
In the weeks before Nationals, I had two-a-day lessons for two weeks. (More on this later). I improved commensurately. I improved so much that I undoubtedly lifted myself from the pastels into the primary colors. (For purposes of discussion, green or sixth place, counts as a pastel.) Hence the redesign of my predictions [Show Today].
I improved so much that I entertained fantasies of winning the whole thing. I envisioned a ribbon rack holding eight blues, including two National Championships and the driving Championship. As it turned out, I was deeply wrong about my ribbon haul [Show Report]. However, once the idea of a blue streak was planted in my head it would not go away.
This rendered me EXTREMELY nervous. Last year, I could barely eat my breakfast by Sunday. This year, I was that nervous on the first day. (By the second day, I had much less to worry about, but I digress.) The possibility of doing that well put me in a very weird head space. It didn’t end up affecting the way I rode, but it made the ramp up way too tense. Bottom line, if I am that nervous, I am not as ready as I think I am.
Contrast this with my attitude before the Equitation Final. I knew – down to my seatbones knew – that if I could qualify to ride the pattern, I would lay down the best line in the class. I might not win the class, but I would win the pattern. Bring. It. On.
Between preparing for Nationals, attending Nationals [Show Report], and recovering from Nationals, the home team got an unearned but hefty vacation. They’ve had sporadic work when my Top Hand had time, or when I wasn’t face first in my pillow from two-a-day lessons. But no noses to grindstones.
No longer! Back to work! Time to make something happen!
Sigh.
In theory, the Thoroughbreds offer me so much more. Riding my own horses. Riding every day. Jumping. Remember jumping? In reality, the Saddlebreds have the edge at the moment. Horses to actually ride. People to talk with. Ribbons. Big, fluffy, ruffled, awesome ribbons.
Bridles, tack, & helmet were dragged out this weekend. Rodney did couch time & long-lined. Milton long-lined twice. On the one hand, nice progress with both horses. On the other hand, an infinitude away from were I wish to be with either one.
Hastings House B&B is where I stay when in find myself in Murfreesboro TN for days on end. I love my barn friends just not for days on end. OTOH, I don’t want to wallow in a hotel room alone for days on end. Therefore, a B&B is the right combination of privacy & someone to care, or at least notice, if I undergo spontaneous combustion.
Virtual Brush Box 