Final & Eva

Riding at home

2010-01-06T08:19:00.000-08:00

Final and I just finished a wonderful ride. He was very active and forward, while on my aids the entire time. It was like we could do anything. Half pass piece of cake, changes, no problem, a little baby piaffe and passage, what? Easy peasy. It was Heaven! Here's a picture of the baby after our ride, savoring the flavor of his cookies.

PSG, Here We Come!

2009-12-21T09:47:00.000-08:00

What's that noise? It's like a nervous rattling and thumping...oh, it's me in my boots! I am pretty nervous to show Prix St. Georges, but, like Ellen said, Final isn't getting any younger. After a few years of working on Final's flying changes, just to get them clean, I'm now starting to work on the tempi changes. It's still an issue, trying to get Final's changes clean, but we've come a long way, and it's now or never. Final will turn 19 this January. He's such a good horse, and tries so hard.

So, what are my main challenges for PSG? Tempi changes and pirouette's. Plain and simple, only not so... My counting/timing seems off in the tempi's and Final likes to loose rhythm and swing his haunches to the right on the left pirouette. But hey, at least I can identify our weaknesses, and I know what to focus on. I actually enjoy the trot work, and Final should score well on that.

So, I'm trying to decide if I should show 4th level or PSG at the show coming up in February. Hmmmmm...to be continued...

Ellen News!

2009-11-25T10:48:00.000-08:00

My instructor and friend, Ellen Eckstein, has just published a book! She also has a brand new training website up. I've posted the links under my "links" section. Check them out!

Hello Again

2009-11-19T08:53:00.001-08:00

I'm back to posting on my blog! Life is very different now than it was a year ago. Our little Izzy is just the center of our world, but I am still making time to ride Final between 4-5 days a week! People said riding would be set on the back burner once I had my baby, but nope, I knew I could balance the two. Ali watches Izzy while I spend time with my other baby. :)

Katie D., who is a long-time Ellen student, has moved to Davis with her husband while he attends grad school, and she brought her beautiful horse, Willoughby along and is keeping him at my farm! It's been great, we try and ride together each time, offering "eyes" for each other to make sure we're on the right track with our horses.

We also have great arena lights installed, making riding in the dark much more productive! Baby Final is doing really well. We're still working hard on the changes, well, most of the time, and all of the other stuff that go along with aspiring toward the Prix St. George level. I'm aiming for the show at Rancho Murieta in February to debut my first ever PSG ride. Katie even let me borrow her tail coat so I can try and get the correct sizing I need for my own coat! Pretty exciting!

Final & Eva - Late Summer Update

2009-09-07T18:09:00.000-07:00

I've been riding again, for about a month now. Ellen was up last weekend and we had 2 lessons with her. They were great, as always. I'm going to post a video so you can see what I'm talking about...Final feels fantastic! I'm really glad I had Susan ride him for me while I was busy having Izzy. Final is loose, supple, forward, and light! I'm enjoying each ride very much! With Ellen we worked on the usual, but I'm learning a very small aid that makes a huge difference. I'm trying to get the feel of catching Final's front feet as we ride. I started at the walk, and the ultimate goal is to catch his right and left front before they hit the ground into the next stride, and take it into a step backward. This makes such a difference in the trot and canter. It feels and looks as if I'm placing each foot exactly where I want it to go. The goal is to make him step higher. It's going to take continued practice to get this aid down, but man, it felt so great! Ellen said it's time to order my tail coat. PSG, look out! Hahaha. Watch for the video soon!

Back in the Saddle!

2009-07-28T15:15:00.000-07:00

I'm back to riding y'all, and it feels great! I rode 4 times this past week. The first two times were just at the walk with a thick bareback pad on, and then last Sunday I rode at the walk and canter in my saddle! Last night I rode for about 30 mins., walking, trotting (posting) and cantering. It was great! Final feels good thanks to my friend Susan who has been keeping him going for me while I was "out on maternity leave". I couldn't imagine starting to ride him if he had 2.5 months off! That would have been terrible for him and I.

Now that Izzy can eat from a bottle, it allows me a little more time and freedom to ride and do other things, providing Ali is game for hanging out with her, which he almost always is. I'm going to ride again tomorrow evening after Susan rides him. Pretty exciting! I'm even thinking of maybe a show in November...Starr Vaughn perhaps. We'll see...

Final's Showing this Sunday!

2009-06-16T10:57:00.000-07:00

Susan is going to show Final at the Dressage Derby this Sunday in Vacaville. They are doing Susan's Para Test, and then Fourth Level Test 2. I still haven't had the baby, and wonder if I'll be able to watch the show. I sure hope so...but that means I'd better hurry up and have the baby, or be overdue and not have her until after the show on Sunday. Ha, we'll see!

Susan is also going to show Final at Pebble Beach over Fourth of July weekend. I have a hotel room booked for that, but of course, we'll see what happens with Isabella. I may be overwhelmed and not be up for traveling with her so soon, so we'll just have to wait and see. At any rate, with them luck! :)

Officially let go, for now...

2009-05-21T14:27:00.000-07:00

I have been going back and forth, trying not to ride since I am in my 9th month of pregnancy, but every now and then I get an urge to get on and I can't shake it! But Susan is back from Chicago, and has started riding Fin again, so I feel like he's in good hands and I can officially let go of riding him until after the baby.

Susan rode Fin the past 2 nights, and it was pretty exciting! The first ride she had to remind him of the things he's learned over the past year or two, since he had 2 weeks off before that. He's getting older, his memory doesn't work like it used to, at least that's what he says. Hehehe. But her ride went very well last night. They did the hard movements from fourth level test 2 and he performed them with ease. Of course he has a good pilot on board, but still. He even got all of his flying changes, allbeit "expressive".

Fin will have an evening off tonight, I'll take him for a walk, and then Susan will be back tomorrow night for another ride. We're signing him up for a show in Santa Rosa on June 14th where Susan will show him 4-2 and her Para-Test. I won't be able to go since I'm supposed to be close to home in case I go into labor, but she promises to take great care of him and call with a recap. After that show, it's a visit from Auntie Ellen where they will work hard on all things, but especially flying changes, and then it's off to Pebble Beach in July, which I'm really hoping to be able to attend!

Wish them luck!

Great Ellen Lesson!

2009-02-22T12:14:00.001-08:00

Ellen was here this weekend, and we had the most wonderful ride yesterday. Final was calm, relaxed and an overall good boy. We worked on keeping an active canter in the pirouettes which really made a difference. He was becoming quicker with his hind end and elevating him front end, and it took very little effort on my part, just lots of concentration. I would slow his front end down, and liven him with my lower legs, all while sitting very still and a little lighter in the seat so he was really able to step under himself.

And the flying changes were PERFECT! Well, maybe not perfect, but they were pretty close, especially for Final and I. :) Ellen mentioned tempi-changes, and Prix St. George, and tail coat. Yippieeeeeee!!!!!!! Probably not until late Fall/Winter because of the baby, but that's okay, we need the time anyways. To even compete one time at that level would be so exciting. FInal is getting older (he just turned 18!), so I know our time in the upper levels of dressage is limited, but it would be such a treat!

I love my lessons with Ellen. She has taught me so much and more than anything, she has helped my riding relationship with Final bloom. We always have such a blast, and he tries really hard. He always has a happy expression on his face and tries to do something every time I ask, I think that says so much. I remember the days where he would pull me around the arena, and I used to think to myself, why am I doing this? I'm tired, sore, and he's grumpy. It wasn't any fun. I will never go back to that feeling again!

Fun Riding, Baby Bump and All!

2009-01-26T12:24:00.001-08:00

Ellen was here last weekend for a clinic, and it was great, per usual! Baby Final was very good, although very sensitive. Silly boy. He felt great under saddle, supple and light. We worked on the usual stuff, but he got a little amped on the flying changes, which was funny. He just makes me laugh. Even when he would jump and buck a little, I have to laugh. I know it may not be the best combo, what with me being pregnant, but I never felt unsafe and I know he wouldn't try to get me off, so it's okay. If you get mad at him, his feelings get so hurt and he gets scared, so you just can't go there with him.

Susan snapped a few photos, some were EXCITING! I'll post a few when she sends them to me...

Poor Final

2009-01-16T14:23:00.000-08:00

He's stiff, and reluctant, but we're trying to get back in the swing of things. I'm managing to ride 3 days a week, and Leila is riding 1 day a week. Leila does the ever important riding at the walk for about 30 mins. Just asking him to walk actively forward and lots of changes of direction to try and loosen him up. Then I get to do all the hard work! 4 days a week of riding isn't bad, but I find I'm just managing his fitness level and suppleness rather than actually improving on anything. But that's okay, I do what I can. At least the days are getting longer so I should be able to squeeze another riding day in there so hopefully we can start improving again, rather than just maintaining. :)

This weekend should be a great weekend for riding. This Spring-like weather has put me in a great mood! :)

Second Trimester = Riding Again

2008-12-29T16:35:00.000-08:00

I am feeling much better now that my first trimester of pregnancy hell is over! I am able to ride again, which is such a delight. Susan gave me a good tip the other day while at my place...since I can't manage the sitting trot so well, she suggested I do all my lateral work in rising trot, but on the opposite posting diagnal for shoulder-in and counter shoulder-in, and then for half pass, go back to my correct posting diag. What a difference that made! I was able to keep my balance and still be effective with posting half halts. So now we get to do everything we did before an alien invaded my body!

Final is doing well. He's worked hard the past 5 days, so he gets today off, but it's back to work tomorrow.

At this point, I'm just thankful for every ride, since I never know how I'm going to feel tomorrow, or next week, or next month. This pregnancy stuff is not for the weary, it's HARD!!!

Hi-Jacked!!!!

2008-12-03T10:04:00.000-08:00

I'm hi-jacking Baby Final's blog temporarily...I haven't been riding him because I'm 12 weeks pregnant. It's not that I didn't want to ride, but I have been soooooo sick, it was hard to even feed the horses, let alone ride. But I feel like I may have turned a corner. Last night I got to the farm to feed the horses, stood up out of my car, and felt.... NORMAL. For the first time in a month and a half, I felt like my normal self-which is GREAT!!!!

I opened the gate, jogged into the barn telling Final, "Come on, let's go for a ride!!!" He happily jogged into his stall, wondering what the fuss was about. I pulled him out so fast, threw on his bareback pad and bridle, and we jogged down to the arena. I threw my leg over him and off we went! It was the best feeling I've had in a while. Of course, Final hasn't been really ridden much at all, and here I am pregnant, hopping on my horse on a very cold evening in the dark, bareback. For horse people, they know that's probably not a good combo...but, Final took care of me. We walked and cantered, but left the trotting for when I have his saddle on. You could feel he had so much energy, but was containing it just for me. His ears were sooooo perky, his mouth sooooo foamy, and despite the energy, he was loose and supple. We only rode for about 20 mins., ending with a mini-trail ride around the farm. I put him in his turnout pasture while I went to feed the horses, and he reared and bucked and spun and raced around before starting to graze. What a good boy that he didn't do that with me on him!!!!

Susan has been riding Final, until she hurt her arm riding another horse, so she's taken a little break. But this weekend she will start up again. I'll try and get some pictures of them, she's doing a great job with him, now that she knows she has to sweet talk him and baby him. :)

Pictures & Update from Championships...

2008-10-13T11:14:00.000-07:00

The annual show was a success for our whole group. First, the stats: I ended up 4th for USDF and 9th for CDS Horse of the Year at Third Level. Susan ended up 5th for USDF and 7th for CDS Horse of the Year at Third Level. Katie D. ended up Champion for USDF and Reserve Champion for CDS HOY at First Level, and Katey A. ended up placing 8th (I'm pretty sure) for CDS! It was a successful show for all of us, and I had a great time! I will write more about the show when I have time, but for now, enjoy the great photos Scott took...

Annual Show, here we come!!!

2008-09-23T09:35:00.001-07:00

Final is feeling much better now that he got his hocks injected. We're back to regular work, and all is going well.

We have our ride times/schedule for the annual show, and we've got some stiff competition. Really, all I ask is for everything to go smoothly, AND get our clean changes both directions!

It's going to be such a fun trip. We have a great group going and Ellen will be there guiding us the whole time so we're in good hands! I will post the results when I return, after Oct. 12th. Wish us luck!

Juiced up and ready to go!

2008-09-15T09:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Final got a much needed oil change. He got his hocks injected, and his monthly Adequan, so he is ready to prepare for the Championships! I will spend today and tomorrow riding him at the walk, and then on Wednesday we can go back to normal riding. Hopefully that's just what he needed.

Final's Turnout Pasture

2008-08-13T13:01:00.001-07:00

Ali and I have finally finished a turnout pasture for Final. He thinks it's his pasture, but he's nice enough to share it with the other horses, ONLY if he gets the first turnout each day. :)

We have one more turnout to finish. I'm very happy with the size of the pastures. I thought they were going to be too small, but they're just right. Yipeee!

Yarra Yarra Report

2008-08-11T09:06:00.001-07:00

We had a show yesterday at Yarra Yarra Ranch in Pleasanton, and I'm pleased to report it went pretty well! Susan and I went together, we've become quite the team when it comes to shows. Susan showed her freestyle, and did awesome! She scored a 71%!! I didn't get to watch it though because I was busy warming up for my class, however I could hear the music, and knew exactly what she was doing at each point of the music, having watched her FS several times!

Fin and I showed 3-3 and 4-1. Our 3-3 test went pretty well, and we scored a 65.113%for second place. The first place rider had only 3 points more than me, so IF we had a clean right change, that would have made the difference for first place. I'm very comfortable riding 3-3, and I can actually think about the things I need to be asking Fin while we're riding the movements, or preparing for the next movement.

That is not how I ride a Fourth level test though. I am concentrating so hard on just doing the movements in the right place, that I forget about the quality of the movements, which is the most important part! So that needs to be my focus at a show. :) We showed 4-1 for the second time, and it was okay. We got a 60.0%, so it's a qualifying score towards my silver medal. Now I just need 2 scores from 2 different judges at Prix St. George to complete my silver medal. I'm guessing that won't happen for a while, but at least I've got my Fourth level scores. :)

Trip to Horse Camp Report...

2008-08-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at Ellen's last week, lots of riding, lunches, dinners and shopping. What more could you ask for? The drive was long, especially when you don't have company. We tag-teamed down to Templeton, CA (near San Luis Obispo), Fin in my trailer, and Paloma and MP in Susan's trailer. I kept myself entertained by listening to hip hop and rap from the 90's, my high school days. And yeah, the music was blasting, so I missed several cell phone calls along the way! I was about ready to scream from boredom when we finally pulled into Ellen's driveway. :)

The next 5 days were filled with riding in the morning, eating, shopping and napping in the middle of the day, and riding again in the evening. It was great fun to hang out with my horsie friends, Susan and Jen. Staying at Ellen's was a treat! She has the most comfortable guest bed I've slept in, and it was fun rolling out of bed, having breakfast together, and rolling to the barn for riding, and not having to get in the car and go anywhere!

Ellen helped us a lot, as usual. Basically, I need to make sure Fin is being really honest in our connection, and not running into the bridle. Anytime that happened, (and it happens a lot) I would correct him by stopping him and doing a rein-back. Once he got the hang of it, just a small half halt did the trick, which is what it's supposed to be, right?!!! Oh well, so we take our time learning. Hehe. Fin was a very good boy, he's such a baby. Always tried hard, and never complained.

Susan took some nice photos of us, which are now posted above. One major highlight of our Ellen trip was that Susan offered me the opportunity to ride MP's flying changes. She's a SUPER horse, and she was great fun to ride. Riding her only helps clarify the qualities I want in my next horse. Susan and MP have developed a wonderful partnership, and it has been fun watching them grow together, and I'm so looking forward to all the big things they're going to do together in the next few years!!

Up next in the horsie adventure, a show this Sunday for both Susan and I. Susan's doing her freestyle, and I'm showing 3-3 and 4-1. Stay tuned...

Wonderful Dennis Callin Clinic & Interesting Show...

2008-07-22T09:04:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we rode with Dennis Callin, who travels all the way from Germany to teach us every couple of months. My lessons with him were great! We worked on keeping Fin round and moving forward, and of course did some work on the flying changes. I learned that I need to counter flex Fin AND bring his shoulders to the inside before asking for a change. Seems easy enough, for the dressagey people reading this right? Well, apparently I never thought of the two together. I think I have tried changes with his shoulders to the inside, and changes with him counter-flexed, but for some silly reason, never together. So, it made a world of difference. I actually felt, for the first time, a clean change from left to right. Usually I have to wait for Susan or Ellen or whoever is around to tell me if it was clean, but this time I knew it was because I could feel it!

On Sunday, we had a show in Lodi. We showed for Caulene Glass, whom I'd never heard of before. I was rushed in my warm-up because I didn't factor in the fact that Fin would be tense and would need to be lunged before my ride. Of course, that was my fault for not budgeting enough time, so we only had about 15 mins. of riding warmup. I threw in a couple half passes at the trot and canter after our warmup, and then it was time for us to go into the ring! Whoops!

I thought our test went pretty well, especially when you consider our warmup. There were no major problems in the test, and Fin felt pretty good the whole way thru. We did have a "dirty" change, as Dennis likes to call them, from our left to right, but our right to left was clean! I was happy about that. Unfortunatly, I feel my score didn't reflect my ride, but that's okay, I was happy with how it went, and that's really the important part.

Susan's husband, Scott, was my "rent-a-husband" for the show that day since Ali wasn't able to attend because of work. Scott was nice enough to carry my coat and lunge line, and even take pictures of our ride with their FANCY new digital camera. This thing is the Mercedes Benz of all cameras, at least in my opinion, I wouldn't even know how to work it! But at any rate, he got some great shots of me and Fin during our ride, and I will post a few when I get my hands on them. :)

On Friday, Susan, Jen and I (and our horsies) are off for a week of intensive training with Ellen Eckstein, and hopefully lots of wine tasting, tack shopping, swimming and relaxing as well! It should be fun!

Training at home

2008-07-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Asking Final to wait in the front, and keep coming thru from behind. Always a challenge, even at the walk!

USDF Bronze Medal!

2008-07-01T09:51:00.001-07:00

Well, I'm very proud to say that Final has helped me earn my Bronze medal from the United States Dressage Federation. In order to achieve this medal, you need 2 scores of 60%+ at First level, Second Level and Third Level. I earned my First level scores on Yochi, my horse of a lifetime. With Final, we competed at Second and Third level and got the scores needed to earn the medal. I finally applied for the medal, and just received my certificate. The medals are given at the end of the year, USDF Banquet. I won't be attending that, so they'll mail me my medal after the banquet, and I get to submit a photo of us for the awards publication. Yipieee!

Up next, the Silver Medal, which is 2 scores of 60%+ at Fourth level and Prix St. George. I already have 1 score toward my Silver Medal at Fourth level, so I'm on my way, slowly, but still...

Sukkar

2008-06-29T09:51:00.000-07:00

Since Sukkar doesn't have his own blog, I thought we'd post a pic of him on Final's. On Friday I gave him a bath, and then we went for a walk around the farm. This is him enjoying the view toward the mountains, by our "lake"! He's doing great. 28 years old, and happy as a clam!

Pebble Beach Dressage Blues...

2008-06-27T11:19:00.000-07:00

Blue as in down, not as in ribbons! The Pebble Beach Dressage Show is next week, over 4th of July weekend, and I'm not going. But I really wish I was! I've always wanted to show at Pebble Beach. I remember the first year I started taking dressage lessons, I went down to PB to watch my "then" trainer show her horse. I was fascinated by the white tents, the flags flapping in the wind, the beautiful cool, foggy weather, and of course the beautiful horses all around me. It was the most exciting feeling being a part of it all, and I've wanted to go back ever since.

My excuse this year is I waited too long to decide if I was going to go or not, and the few people I would trust to watch over the farm and horses all have 4th of July plans. So, I get to stay in Davis and work on the farm! I love every part of having my own farm, but it does make it much harder to leave town.

So next July, I'm going to plan early so all ends are covered and I can go to PB! Who knows, maybe I should order a tail coat and I can show Prix St. George by then? Ha! It's good to have goals right?...

We're on You Tube!

2008-06-21T22:49:00.000-07:00

I finally took the time to upload a few videos to You Tube. These are from a clinic at my farm in the Spring with Ellen Eckstein. Enjoy, Dad & Aunt Lynne? Just copy and paste this address in your browser window, and you should see a few videos pop up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWG4AWxCJ8g

Everything's Fantastic, but I need to be chased by a whip!

2008-06-20T09:28:00.001-07:00

After giving Final 2 days off after the Ellen clinic, it was back to business. Both rides were nice, but last night was especially nice! He felt so fresh and forward, but listening to my aids, it was fun! I'm working on Final driving from behind, and waiting in the front, and it feels like this constant forward and back game. Constant!

What I learned over the weekend from Ellen is while I ask Fin to "wait in the front and come from behind", I need to not nag him with the whip. Only use the whip after he "waited" and while I drove him forward. In my everyday schooling, I was gently tapping him with the whip, like every stride, hoping it would create the energy from behind, but it never really had an effect, good or bad. He just kind of ignored it all together. Riding is all about timing, and if I time the use of the whip right, then it becomes effective. Aha!

Susan and I are planning on getting together so we have one person on the ground with a lunge whip encouraging the horse to come from behind, while the rider can sit there and concentrate on the feel so hopefully we can create it on our own eventually. Unless they change the rules of showing, and you can have someone chase you around with a lunge whip? Haha.

Our next "horsie" thing is the Dennis Callin clinic in July, followed by a show in Lodi where Dennis will come and coach us. Should be fun!

Ellen Clinic a Success!!!

2008-06-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

Ellen was here last weekend, and I'm so relieved to say, Final is feeling GREAT again!! On Friday, he was feeling okay, but Ellen had us work on medium and extended trots to really keep him round and coming thru from behind, and I think somehow that unlocked areas that he was holding in his body. Sat. and Sun. he felt fantastic! We worked on walk - canter transitions, to make him really "snappy" and responding to my aid, and that work helped with our flying changes. So now I have some great homework!

There's been a little change in plans as far as sending Fin down to Ellen's. I was going to take him down today, but instead I will take him in late July, and then when I go pick him up, I will stay a week to work with Ellen. We all thought this would be more beneficial. And a group of us are going to go down, me, Susan, Jen, and possibly others. Sounds like fun!!

Progress with Final's feet...

2008-06-10T09:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had our appointment with the new farrier. He comes highly recommended thru a few of my horse friends, and he works closely with UC Davis animal science program. He said Final's feet were off balance, and his front and back left feet were growing out toward the side of his body. Not a good thing. So he started the process of correcting Fin's feet, but it will take 2-3 shoeings to really get him back on track.

I decided to ride Fin last night, once it started to cool off, and I'm happy to report that I think I have my horse back. He did stumble a few times, and we only did about 15 mins. of walk, trot and canter, but he felt much more willing to carry himself and move forward. So I think we're on the right track, but I'm cautiously optomistic. I posted a few pictures, and I will post again after my 3 lessons with Ellen this weekend.

My arena is "one" again...

2008-06-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

My arena was fixed last Friday! They had to dig out a 8 x 15 section of my arena and pull out the gravel base and dug down 2 feet of dirt, and then they re-packed it with gravel. So it's seems to be fixed, I guess we'll know when it starts to rain again, if it's actually fixed or not!!! Ack! But one day at a time, and yesterday I rode lightly and it felt good.

In our never-ending project after project at the farm, we found ourselves at Lowe's yesterday purchasing supplies to set up a drip system for our orchard. I picked up another sprinkler and hose and that seemed to help with the arena watering last night. I now have 4 sprinklers going, but 6 would be ideal! :) We are waiting on our neighbor and landscape designer to get back to us with his master plan, which includes watering for the arena and landscaping, so until then, my sprinklers will have to do.

I'm taking Final to his new farrier appointment today. I will post with an update and pictures of his feet for comparison. Hopefully this will help him feel more comfortable and we can get back to the fun work we've been doing!

Arena is getting fixed today!

2008-06-06T11:57:00.000-07:00

My arena has had a blemish in it since our first rain last fall. We poked thru the base and created 2 nasty holes in the footing, so we've been avoiding that area like a crime scene. But today, it's getting fixed! I can't wait to be able to do an extended trot accross the diagonal and not have to avoid the bucket at the last minute. Yipieeee! Next, fix the arena letters....

Changing of the (Foot) Guards

2008-06-03T16:29:00.000-07:00

I've made the decision to choose another farrier. My old farrier is not working out anymore, which kills me because he's such a nice guy, and has always been reliable and very good with my horse. It seems over time, he's created "coke can feet" and Final is pushed up on his toes with long heels. It's finally caught up to him, and he isn't feeling very good, as my last posts reveal.

So with the suggestion from friends Jen and Susan, I have decided to switch to their farrier. He seems to be the very best in our area, and does a lot of work with UC Davis, and teaches courses. We are lucky to get an appointment with him, because he didn't really want to take on new clients, but I think because he came highly recommended from some of his clients, and the fact that I'm an upper level competitive dressage rider, he decided he would take us on. He specializes in Sporthorses and Orthopedic shoeing. Our appointment is this Monday. I need to trailer Fin to his clinic in Vacaville, which isn't too far away, about 20-30 mins. I really hope this is the answer to helping Fin feel better. As always, I'll keep you posted...

Feet

2008-06-02T19:13:00.001-07:00

Not feeling so good...

2008-06-01T12:28:00.000-07:00

We had our show today, and even though I got my last qualifying score needed for the Championships in the fall, our ride was below average. Final got his feet done last Monday, and up until that point, he had been feeling fantastic. The next day Final felt sore, and stiff through his body, and didn't want to go forward. It seems that his feet are extremely off balance, he's sitting up on his toes, and I think that is what is creating this. Poor guy. I'm amazed we even got our score. He did the best he could do with what he had. The path now will be to figure out how to correct his feet and bring him back to his fantastic self! Out of some 40 pictures Ali snapped, this is the ONLY semi-decent one to post. I do like my new top hat though, very polished! :)

Cute Baby!

2008-05-29T10:40:00.000-07:00

Dressage Derby 6/1/08

2008-05-26T10:58:00.001-07:00

We have a show coming up this Sunday. We're riding Third Level, Test 3 Qualifying. I'm hoping to get my final qualifying score for the USDF Championships at this show. We need a score of 60% or higher. We're riding early, 9:19 am! I will post results and pictures after the show...

Woodside Show a Success

2008-05-13T09:12:00.000-07:00

Sadly I have no pictures to post yet, but the show was fantastic! The highlight of the show was my debut for the first time ever at Fourth Level! Our ride was early on Saturday morning. I got out of bed at 5:45am to make it to the show grounds by 6:30am. I was on by 7:30am with Ellen in my ear coaching me during my warmup. She has this great wireless communication system where she speaks into a small microphone clipped to her coat, and I wear ear buds and can hear her perfectly, even if I'm at the other side of the arena. We had a fantastic warmup. Final felt light, soft, supple!, and forward. Not his usual feeling. :) We cantered down centerline and proceeded to have a really nice test. What was great was that he stayed light and soft thru the whole test. We scored a first place with 65.114%, and that was with late flying changes, darn it, but everything else was so wonderful. At the end of our test the judge stopped us and said "I'm sorry, but you can compete with the best of them!" That was very nice to hear, because usually judges don't speak to the competitors, other than a "hello" or "good luck" kind of thing.

I had a huge fan club on Saturday morning too. Aunt Dee, Uncle Bill, Jennifer, Bob, Maria, Ali & Josh were there to cheer me on which was so great. I also had great support from Ellen, our coach/trainer, Susan, my coach in between Ellen visits, Katie A., my braider & test reader and overall everything lady!, and Katie D. It was a great group to be at a show with, I had a fantastic time. Susan did very well, building on her Para E-Quest towards the WEG. There's a link to her blog if you're interested. Katie A. showed Andy, and beautiful, huge white horse and they did great. Katie D. showed her handsome chestnut horse Willoughby, and did very well.

The rest of my tests went well, I scored a 66.9% at Third Level test 3, and then a 63 & 63% to finish it off. All of my Third Level classes were Second place finishes.

I've got lots of room to improve, but we're off to a great start!

Successful Clinic & off to Woodside Show

2008-05-05T08:38:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, Ellen was here. The main things we need to work on is keeping him "coming" from behind in the trot and the canter. In the canter, it will really help our flying changes. When he responded quicker to my leg, the change was much better than when he waits a stride and then changes. So that was the main thing.

We're off to Woodside on Wednesday for a 3 day show. I'll try to get pictures, and of course update when we return.

Nice ride last night!

2008-04-09T08:38:00.000-07:00

I had some help last night and our ride was fabulous. I hadn't been doing much with Final for the past week because I was worried when he was sore. We've mostly been doing a lot of posting trot and stretching at the canter, but last night we got back to business. We worked on getting him more responsive to my aids for transitions in both the walk to trot to walk and the canter walk canter. We did a few trot half passes, and they were pretty good, so we worked on extended trots and concentrated on the transitions into and out of the extendeds. I need to get a more "passagy" feeling when coming back from the extended trot. That's part of my homework. :) Then we did changes. They're getting better, but I guess I'm holding too much with my right rein when I change to the right, instead I need to be giving a little. That seemed to work. So we'll keep practicing that! All in all, it was a nice ride!

Sore, and then not so much...

2008-04-04T14:33:00.000-07:00

Three days ago Final didn't feel right under saddle. He wasn't off, or lame, but just didn't feel good. I of course, started worrying like crazy. I had the saddle fitter come out the next afternoon, which was so lucky. Her name is Sarah with Custom Saddlery, and she's the rep from Southern CA who fits Ellen's horses. Anyways, she was traveling up to Rancho Murieta for the CDI, so she was able to stop at my farm and adjust my saddle. It was sitting too low on his withers. So then I rode and he felt better, but not 100%. But last night he finally felt back to normal.

It's so hard having the desire to train and compete in dressage on a daily basis, and always worrying about the soundness and comfort of your horse. Of course the horse always comes first, but it can be nerve wracking and disappointing when you loose track of your goals because of an injury. A friend of mine is going thru this again, with her horse. It's so frustrating and sad when it's your passion in life. But, if you can stay positive, I believe you can learn things about yourself and your horse. I try to not go down the negative thought path, but sometimes it's hard. I'm always re-directing my thoughts to try and stay positive.

Anyways, back to work! Final will be lunged tonight and have the night off from riding. Then tomorrow, we'll see how he feels again.

3/26/08 Beautiful Spring Morning

2008-03-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

I had a nice light ride on Mr. Final this morning before work. He had 2 days off after his stellar performance at the show, so we got back into it today. After our ride, Final got to enjoy turnout while I did some barn chores. He loves the grass up to his belly!

Success at our first show of the 2008 season!

2008-03-24T11:57:00.001-07:00

Final and I showed Easter Sunday 3/23/08 at Denville-Kanani Farms in Danville, Ca. We had a fabulous ride! We rode Third Level test 3 and scored a 69.5% to win the class! I was so proud of my boy, he was great. This was the first time (since Yochi) that I could ride a test and enjoy it. Final wasn't tense and pulling me around the arena like he's done in the past. Don't get me wrong, there are things that we need to improve on. Our medium and extended trots were very conservative, and those are a strong point of Fin's, but things were going so well I didn't want to take any chances. Our trot half passes were decent, but he needs to be stepping thru a little more. Our flying changes were clean each way, which is such a feat for us! A year ago, we didn't have clean changes, and now we do.

My friend Susan showed as well and won both of her classes at Third Level. It was a great day for both of us! Our next show is May 8-10, 2008 in Woodside, CA.

Beautiful Saturday afternoon....

2008-02-09T17:53:00.000-08:00

What a day! I had a nice ride on Final, and we enjoyed the warm weather. Mid-60's is the perfect temp. for riding! Here are some pictures of our collected canter, stretching at the canter, relaxing walk around, and coming in for dinner after grazing in the pasture and rolling in the grass. I love it!!

More Progress...

2008-02-05T16:06:00.000-08:00

Well, Fin and I have been chugging along, working on various things. We're always working on the flying changes, we still have a long way to go with those silly things. But it's getting better. A friend helped me and she suggested trying to do changes down the quarterline, but before asking for a change, do a few steps of half pass, change the bend, then change the lead. That really helped me stay back in my seat because I was getting thrown forward. We're working on keeping rhythm and cadence in the trot during our lateral work and extended trots. I'm lucky to have a good friend be my eyes on the ground in between Ellen and Dennis visits.

We signed up for a show on March 23 in Danville. We're just doing one test, Third Level test 3. Kind of a warm up for the show season. We'll see how we do, and where we go from there.

We're flooded!!

2008-01-28T20:23:00.000-08:00

With all of this rain we've been having, we finally got to see what happens when you're in a flood plain! On Saturday morning, all was well, I was riding in the arena, when around noon, the water from the street ditch poured over our berm and started gushing into our pond. Within 6-8 hours, our pond was overflowing. What we've learned is that when it rains a lot in the foothills by Lake Berryessa, it takes about 12 hours for the water to reach us. It was an amazing site. What is great, is that our barns, arena, driveway and house pad were well above the water, so that was a relief. The water has gone down a lot since yesterday, but there's still plenty of water around. The pictures speak for themselves...

Random Pics of Fin at home...

2008-01-20T21:50:00.001-08:00

Clinic with Dennis Callin

2008-01-20T21:38:00.000-08:00

I rode 2 times with Dennis Callin over the weekend. I always enjoy my rides with him, they're challenging, yet fair to me and my horse. Plus I always walk away with something to focus on in my daily riding until he returns! Today, for the first time ever we worked on half steps, preparing for the piaffe. Amazing! At first, Fin was very worried, as Dennis had a whip in his hand and was lightly touching Fin on his croup and legs. But we actually got a few baby piaffe steps! It was great. And our trot work after that was fantastic because he was so forward and sensitive. We also worked for the first time on flying changes every 4th stride. Oh man, that was fun. :) Final was such a trouper and worked so hard, I'm very proud of my boy who just turned 17 years young! Wish I had some pics to post, maybe next time.

Final is going well!

2007-12-24T22:15:00.000-08:00

Ever since I've moved Final to my home, he has been going so well. I don't know what the difference is, but he feels great. Softer yet more active at the same time! We are still working on the flying changes. Our left to right still needs some work, but the other way is perfect! So I'm half way there. I'll keep working! We're also working on canter pirouettes, increasing his strength. And the half pass...I'm trying to keep him soft thru his body, neck and shoulders as well as really moving over, so that's challenging, but it's certainly coming along. I think we're going to a show in Feb. at Denville Kanani. I'll update soon...

Enjoying our very own arena!

2007-12-21T21:43:00.000-08:00

It's been almost a month since I moved Sukkar and Final over to our farm. Things have been going really well, I love having them home. It's been very satisfying and a change of pace. Final is doing very well. We had to buy an atv to pull our arena drag around, and it works great. My arena footing feels wonderful. I got new boots and we were trying to get a picture of them. They didn't show up well, but I thought I'd post it anyway...

Another lesson!

2007-09-03T12:34:00.001-07:00

We had another lesson today, and I am so happy because Fin feels like he's back to 100% physically. Finally!!!! But I am out of riding shape. My abs were burning a lot and I was out of breath. Amazing what a month and a half of not riding does to your body. A friend of mine went 11 months or so without riding, and when she started to ride again, her back was killing her. I can totally sympathize now.

Anyways, we worked on getting him to really carry himself in the trot. He likes to see if I'd like to carry him with my hands, and sometimes I fall for that trap, but not in a lesson. We did some good medium trots and I'm learning to give the reins in those medium and extended trots and let him carry himself. It's fun, when we get it. Overall his canter feels better than his trot, which is so funny because there was a time when I liked the trot and hated the canter. But I think it's just a strength issue. His trot needs a little more pushing and carrying power, but it's coming along. We did one change to the right and it was clean and then one to the left, and that was clean, even though I was pooped and didn't ride thru it very well! So all in all, it was a great riding day!!! I don't have any pictures. Maybe my next lesson I can bring my camera and have Susan snap a few shots. :)

Finally, a Lesson!

2007-08-26T13:27:00.001-07:00

We had a lesson this morning with Susan. It felt so good to get back into riding dressage! Final is doing well, he's still a little sore & protective in his hind end, but continuing to improve. The trot is a little shakey. He feels good at moments and then it feels like he catches himself a little in his hind end, and then tries to balance himself on the reins, which makes him heavy of course. But we didn't want to push it too much since he's obviously still recovering. The canter felt very nice.

I think the acupuncture made a big difference for him. It's expensive, but worth it! His muscles are much looser and more supple when I'm grooming him and when we're riding.

So far so good. Can't wait to get back to the training we left off from!

8/20/07 Ride...

2007-08-21T10:52:00.000-07:00

Well, Final is continuing to recover from his injury. We did some walk, trot and canter last night. We're re-working the idea of him carrying himself because he's gone right back to trying to pull me along. We did so much work over the last year, getting him to really carry himself and he has become so much fun to ride, and in just one month, it's all gone back to the way it was before, the heavy pulling way. Arrrggggghhhhh. So we concentrated on him moving foward from behind and a lot of yielding of his hind end and the walk mostly, because I don't want to push it too much. I want to make sure he's really healed before I push. What I really want and need to do is a lot of yielding and going forward at the trot. Hopefully in the next few days I'll be able to do more of that.

He get's his acupunture treatment this afternoon. Hopefully that will help loosen his injured area, and the rest of his body for that matter. :)

Final-ly Getting Back on Track...

2007-08-20T12:35:00.000-07:00

I moved Final (and Yochi and Sukkar) to a new barn about 7 weeks ago. From the beginning, Final wasn't feeling that great to ride. He wasn't lame, but he wasn't his normal self either. He was living on a hill with a stall that was also slanted, so I thought I'd try a little experiment. I moved him to a stall and paddock that was flat, and within a week, he was back to normal. Then, he injured himself somehow. I think he may have run into or out of his stall and hit his hip on the doorway. Anyways, there was a lot of swelling and when the vet came out to scan the area (because he couldn't/wouldn't trot) she noticed there were several blod clots in the area, along with the inflamation. So, he had 5 days off, just handwalking and walking in the Eurociser, and then I was able to walk him under saddle. Yesterday, I was able to trot and canter him, which was great! So, he's feeling much better, although not yet 100%. It was very hard for me to not ride for a month or so, but a good friend of mine is finally riding her horse after 11 months off, so I really shouldn't complain. I will post pictures of him soon!