Fad Attack

 I appreciate all the feedback about Levi :) He's been great so far!

Thanks to a Facebook post by Virtual Eventing Coach, highlighting how Jimmy Wo disproves of the 'cruising position' fad that eventers seem to be very taken with, my post will focus on that.

I for one can't stand it (haha, pun) and was relieved that a respected professional rider & coach dislikes it as well.

For those non eventers, or not familiar with the cruise position...

...This is it. All joints locked, heels up,  butt and crotch far ahead of the pommel and hands braced on the neck.

Does anyone else see the glaring flaws in this? Am I crazy? ARE YOU SERIOUS EVENTERS? Why. Why. Why?

All my life I was taught the 2 point was the most effective position for the gallops between fences....

....Butt off the saddle but not ahead,  knees and ankles bent, body slightly crouched and forward, hands either on neck or floating.

Effective. Safe.

People argue that the cruise position gets the rider off the horses back and allows them to conserve energy galloping.

I disagree. Does the 2 point not do the same thing? I don't see my ass in the saddle at all.

If anything the rider, precariously tottering, barely in the saddle will go AGAINST the horses natural gallop motion.

From experience, I can atest that this cruise position is crap. During the Brian Sabo USEA riders certification clinic, my instructor (not Brian), forced me to cruise and it was the most frustrating uncomfortable thing I've ever done in my life. I have a strong core & legs but there is NO WAY that I could stay with a horse balancing over them like that. Yankee was horribly confused, thrown off and couldn't make distances at all with me sitting above him, then coming down to jump. Perhaps I was doing it wrong, but she just kept telling me "GET MORE AHEAD, more more more" And I was like, DAFUQ. Have we regressed?

Secondly, with your hands pressed into the neck, ALL your weight resting on them, how do you have control of the reins? In 2 point I don't need my hands to balance and I'm free to lengthen and shorten as I please, QUICKLY and not disturb my position. To change rein length or control the horse, you MUST take your hands away from the neck, thus removing your stability.

Thirdly, the riders weight is greatly shifted when they come down to jump a jump. Wouldn't you think this would throw the horse off MORE than simply staying in 2 point and just releasing your hands over a jump?

Lastly, the cruise position makes it very easy for a rider to fall if a horse suddenly shifts, spooks, etc. With ALL your joints completely locked, there is no room for wiggling. Literally.

I just can't see a point in it.

I tried it and it just didn't work for us. I don't see how the mechanics of it truly 'save' the horse energy and how it could possibly be more effective. Perhaps it really works well for others. What are you opinions? Have you tried it? Do you like it? Hate it?

Barn Doggies!

So I've been witholding some cute news until I figured out if it was for certain or not...

I got a doggie!

Its been a year since my baby Tonka died and I decided instead of smalldogs, I wanted a medium size dog to come to the barn with me. I've always had dogs and hate being without one. My deluge of bad dog luck has been with me since I moved to MO and I'm hoping this little guy doesn't mysteriously get sick and leave me :(

I had a Chihuahua for 12 years in addition to various barn dogs while growing up. My favorite was a White Golden Retriever named Terra and she was the best thing. She was perfect: she loved being at the barn, loved the horses and always went on rides with me. I even trained her to pull a cart to help me haul water in winter. She's now 11 and lives in Ohio still and it left me wanting for a barn dog when I moved here.  Of course I loved Tonky more than my own life, but when he died it was terrible and I decided I was done with smalldogs.

Baby boy!

 I knew I wanted a herding dog and toyed between an Aussie, a Heeler and a Border Collie. For a really long time I wanted a Corgi, but they have such tiny legs that they could never keep up with a cantering horse on trail rides! I also have friends at the barn who have an Aussie and he is great, but my boyfriend already has an Aussie and she is my lady love. A friend from Ohio has a Heeler and he is literally the best dog in the world. All of my experiences with the herding group has been nothing but positive, and I really loved their loyalty and intelligence.

Since I didn't want to spend outrageous amounts of money, and support breeders, I scoured the shelters and Craigslist for what seems like months. I never really found anything that seemed promising.

I needed a dog that was good in the house (no chewing, barking etc) since I have a night job, and one that would stick around off leash.

A few days ago I found an ad for a Blue Heeler and I pretty much fell in love. I went to see him and took him home the next day. I was supposed to have him on trial for a week but 3 days in he's already attached and I absolutely think he is perfect for a puppy.

Gah, those ears. That face.

At 8 months he already seems like an adult and has yet to put a foot wrong. He needs to be fixed and is currently being treated for worms, but after a little TLC he will be perfectly healthy.

So adorbs. I can't even.

I took him to the barn this morning for the second time, first time off leash, and he never strayed from my side. Didn't bite the horses, stayed out of the way, and minded me when I called him. He is scary smart! On the drive home he totally fell asleep, it was adorable.

He gets distracted around other dogs, so I'm hoping a few trips to the dog park will teach him to listen to me when other doggies are around but I'm pretty happy I've found a little buddy to keep me company.

I know a lot of you have dogs that come to the barn with you. Cairo is my favorite so far that I've seen on the blogsphere (Kate's from Adventure's of Lucy), but what do you guys like/own?

I think a good barn dog is something all equestrians should have :)

Its Us. Always Us.

How I even managed to get my tired ass on my horse today is a miracle. I don't think I've sat down since 6am this morning and I feel like I'm going to collapse. Anyways.

I've been meaning to talk about the clinic I watched this weekend, but I really don't know how to put it into words. Jana is literally the best rider I've ever seen set foot on a horse and I was floored. I think I icreated mud in my intestines from the amount of dust I inhaled, simply because I couldn't shut my jaw. Most of the riders had her ride their horses first and she put all kinds of horses through their paces and I was just blown away. BLOWN. AWAY.

She was so solid, perfect and calm. I didn't know riders like her existed. And I've seen pro's ride in person. Even when the horses were acting a fool or not doing what she asked. I don't think she ever moved, but damn, she could get a horse to do things I didn't even know were possible...all without seemingly moving a muscle! GAH.

After seeing that kind of riding I wonder if I will ever get there. I realized today how out of riding shape I am, and its pathetic. She has got to be in beast mode shape to be so still but get horses to half pass canter, pirouette, piaffe etc without even moving. Even her whip work--it was like the whip moved by itself. Never have I seen a more efficient rider.

Typical German. ha.

One of the things she hit on was how completely unaware most riders are of lateral work. WE only think about forward, rarely back and in the lower levels, laterally. She noted that most horses are very stiff sideways and have trouble unlocking their hips and shoulders. Thus, their flatwork will suffer.

I already knew that about the hips, but never really thought about working the shoulders much, even though they ARE a part of lateral work.

I ran Yanks through her exercises, and was impressed by the way he responded.

 End result was a relaxed, supple horse throughout. Have you ever ridden a horse and just felt like you were on top of a stretchy rubber ball? It was fantastic. I NEVER thought I weould ever get my OTTB to feel that way.

I've been concentrating so much on getting him to unlock his neck and push through the bridle from behind I never even considered part of the problem could be a stiffness in his shoulders. I'm glad I thought to try it though because he was a totally different beast!

His trot had LOFT and his canter had POWER. He wasn't flat or hanging or crooked. I just...can't even.

I also played around with schooling the halt. Another thing I rarely think about but is oh so important.

This practice made me realize how tense I can get and how it transmits to the pony. Its difficult when you're trying to teach a horse something to think about what your body is doing as well. BUt 97% of the time, its us that screws our horses up, not them. I consciously have to MAKE myself think about where my body is since I am so out of riding shape. I tend to crunch forward since my muscles arent used to being long.

Yoga. Need dis.

As soon as I relaxed my shoulders and fingers and remembered to sit and close my legs before half halting to a halt, he didn't come above the bit. And was ALWAYS square.

Funny how that works.

Selfish or Savvy?

OK, I'm back after a mini vaca/sick/sleep days. I worked WAY too hard for 2 days in a row outside and at the restaurant and I was pretty burnt out. But I feel MUCH better now. Yay.

Per my title, I wanted to ask you guys if I'm being selfish. I don't think so really, but there is always that little inkeling of doubt.

Yankee has ALWAYS been the most retarded of all hard keepers and it took me years to figure out what will keep weight on him. In Ohio it was $65 bags of grain that was a mixture of beet pulp, oats, high fat (%11) feed and corn. He went through about 4 of those A MONTH. God. Luckily I was still in high school so I didn't have anything else to pay for, so that was easy to swing. That was $260/mo

Then I moved here, and had to change his feed because it was a local shop that made his prissy grain in Ohio. The grain NSF used wasn't high fat enough and I was adding gobs of supps in addition to his almost FOUR scoops of grain a day, costing me an additional $70/mo. So that was technically $445/mo but I bet the grain costs were about half that.

So when I moved to SHF and went on self care I played around with his grain rations and found a mixture that worked pretty well, but was also hella expensive. It was 3 different grains, Omelene 200, Omelene 500 and Strategy-about %12 fat total. He would get 1/3sc of ea. AM/PM, 1/2sc of alfalfa cubes, and 3 flakes of hay at night, in addition to $65/mo in supplements. The bags cost about $20 each, and alfalfa was $11 (x2/mo) and I went through about 3-4 bags in a mo. So thats about $147/mo.

As you all might know, I am piss poor and barely make enough to feed myself since I spend all my money on bills and my horse. Trying to be savvy, I looked into the nuggets they put into the Omelene that adds all the fat. AND THEY SELL THOSE NUGGETS SEPARATELY. IN 50 lb bags. For only $29!! So. I thought, if I keep him on a competition feed that has %14 protein and just add the nuggets at 1lb a day, that should work right? The bags are $14, he will use 3 a month, plus 2 bags alfalfa, and 20 lbs of the nuggets (out of a 50lb bag) [have I lost you yet ;)] thats about $75/mo!

Now, I didn't count hay into those hay costs at all, minus the cubes, because I get those at the feed store. But I think with the protein and fat content remaining that should keep him stable. Haha, barn pun.

But seriously, the more processed the grain, the ^ the price, so why not buy the contents separately and mix them myself?

Am I being selfish doing this, trying to save a buck, or is this smarter?

PLEASE, do NOT think I am trying to neglect my horse in any way. As I said before, he comes first, always. I've been late on rent because I make sure hes fed, shod and housed before anything else. Its just what I do, he's my baby. But there's no harm in trying to save.

Right?

Does anyone else lay awake at night thinking about feed programs, haha. Lawd. Horses people is cray fo sho.

Hug A Horse

I was going to write a post about tails & my nice ride today but the combination of working from 7am-5pm (and going to the other job at 6) plus the news that one of my friends today lost a very dear ponyface to colic, made it difficult to summon the energy.

I never knew what it would feel like to lose a horse so close to me until Spirit The Wonder Pony died last spring. I didn't even own him anymore, but I still cried for days and broke down the instatn I heard the news. He was my first eventer and I loved him from the instant I saw his ad in the Dayton Daily News. I loved his scarred nose. I loved his white mane. I loved his speckles. I loved his ginormous head and tiny butt. I loved how he tucked his knees over fences. I loved training him to load into a trailer for hours at a time. I loved him. Funny how horses can touch your souls without you even knowing it.

And then a few weeks ago, with a terribly worded text message, I thought my Yankee was dying and I felt my world crashing down. I literally could not function. It was ridiculous and I never want to feel that way again.

It made me think of my friend. The heartbreak he and his girlfriend must be feeling over the loss of a beloved pony. I texted him condolences and he wrote back, "driving home with an empty trailer is the hardest thing I will ever have to do" and literally burst into tears right there against my pitchfork. I didn't even know what to say to that.

So please, everyone, go hug your horse and remember that even sometimes they duck a shoulder and refuse that coffin line, or have a sticky moment in the canter transition, or wont flex their ribcage to the right, or can't quite get their hind end to stay in line when half passing, or nail that lead change over fences, remember what it would feel like without them giving you hell.

Time for A Poll!

I've noticed that I have 93 followers now, which is awesome! Thank you guys!

It kind of blows my mind since I made this for myself as a journal I could look back on, but I've made so many great interwebz friends that it really is a special thing to me. I don't care how many people wish to read up on us, but its still pretty cool that you guys do, because apparently I have haters on the internet for no good reason.

So, as a little thank you, I thought I would do a contest of sorts when I hit 100 followers (who knows when that will be). I'm not near as crafty as Kate, and I don't have bitchin T-shirts like OTTB Tees but I CAN draw!

WAHOO!

So, my lovely bloggers of the equestrian relm...what would you like the futuristic prize to be? A portrait of your horse? Or is that lame? I have no idea.

Struggle Bus

 (if profanity offends you, you've been warned)

So of course, when I'm in a good place, happy and all that, the universe feels it necessary to pump the brakes and remind me that my life actually does indeed blow. I guess I shouldn't be surprised anymore.

I bet you're saying, "Oh this bitch over herr, she's just an overexaggerater complainer etc etc". But no. Truly, I swear to all that is holy, that I legitimately have the worst luck on the planet when it comes to accidents and unfortunate happenings. I don't really feel like highlighting "The Shitlist of 2012"  but at the top of the list in 2013 I can check off wrecking my car. This seems to be a thing for me. I wrecked my horse trailer in 2010 (brake line busted), totalled a car in 2011 (absolutely my fault), and I got hit by some dumbass in 2012.

This time I can blame it on black ice and a poorly placed cement berm. That motherfucker.

Let me spin a quick tale before we dive into the wonderland that was jumping the other day.

After my day at work & the barn, I headed over to help Jackie clip miss Isis mare at her barn. Afterwards, I decided to stay and hang out a bit, just because. A mere hour later though, there was an inch of snow on the ground and ice to boot. I figured staying the night would be safest and I would dig out my car, take my time driving and arrive safely at work and in one piece.

I took every precaution. Cellphone tucked in my purse. Creepin at 12 MPH. Eyes peeled. But god dammit, it just came out of nowhere. Felt the car starting to slip and I made a halfhearted attempt to fix the situation before I basically threw my hands up and said "This is happening right meow".

In slow motion, I saw the cement bastard coming towards us and I literally saw dollar bills flying out of my purse. Hit it with a crash, ramped, did a 180, and starting sliding backwards down the hill. I spun the wheel, hauled on the E-brake and managed to badassedly spin 180 again, righting myself. I looked around, feeling like a dejected badass, a little upset no one got to see that hot mess in action.

Of course I was only about a minute away from work (shit always happens at the END of the drive) and was able to crawl my sorry little car into the lot, clunking and sputtering. So. We will see how much that little adventure cost me. Pretty sure my axle is jacked and the front is completely out of whack. New tires will probably be in order. Awesome sauce.

Moving on from that little bump in the road (haha, punny), we arrive at how horrid my jumping position has gotten since 2010....

Ahead of the motion, lower leg slight slip

WAY ahead of the motion, leg slipped back

This is 2012, not too bad. But leg too forward

In 2010 I severed (yes, SEVERED) my achilles tendon and 6 months after that, I slipped on ice and broke the same leg. Do you see a trend here with unfortunate happenings? I gained 30 lb since I was on crutches for the better part of 8 months, Yankee stayed home in Ohio and he was leased to 2 of my eventing friends there. I healed, but I never jumped the same after that. Losing 25lbs helped a ton, but that leg is always a bugger and hurts A TON after a lot of jumping.

Struggle bus.

  

 My goal for this jump school was simple, work on my auto release, and keep my crotch in the saddle, lower leg position will follow usually. Shall we gaze upon the perfection that was my position in 2010 (In these pics I was teaching myself auto release-to do so, I have to REALLY exaggerate the movement) as a base line?

Ugh, to look like that again.

Ayla and I set up a simple 2 stride, a tough bending line-corner, 2 strides to skinny, 3 strides to vertical, and a wide oxer.

Yankee was QUITE grumpy, but did everything I asked of him in typical Yankee fashion. He made 3'6 seem boring and was actually kind of lazy. It was exceptionally warm (January's are weird in Missouri I guess. Last year around this time it was 80 deg for a few random days. I actually rode in a TANK TOP I was so hot), so that was nice at least.

Modeling the new pad and breeches!

Yankee looks fabulous here I think! Knees, topline, expression, all great. I thought my seat was still too far out of the saddle, lower leg slipped a little and I didnt get the 'perfect' auto release. No straight line from elbow to bit, though I'm totally using core strength to balance, my hand is just hovering-not using his neck at all.

 This is better for me (granted this was like try 14), but Yankee just looks hella bored, though still even and trying. I like my leg in this picture a lot, back is flat, and I don't feel I'm too behind or in front of the motion. I never did nail the auto release, but if I am counting not using his neck for balance or perching my hands like a hunter, I succeeded.

It takes a cray amount of concentration on my part, and I;m hoping after more practice sessions like this, it will just become muscle memory again.

Hopefully my birthday day goes without a hitch, ha.