The Gods Adore Me

Today was a good day

After bitching for an entire post, my fortunes changed and the Verizon gods bestowed upon me an iphone 6 two weeks early. I almost cried with joy.

I honestly think I deserve a medal or an award, or an adult beverage, or at the very least a fucking cookie for enduring that nonsense. Never again. Thank you EDGE plan and Verizon.

That being said, you know what that means...pictures!

The camera in this 6 is pretty bangin, but thanks to my inability to set it out of direct light of the sun, the quality wasn't great. Regular photos were pretty stunner though, and they made B look fly as fuck. I'm more than a little excited.

At Rolex I obtained some pretty awesome deals, and now finally have pics to prove it! I've ridden in the tack 3 times now, &  I think I'm beginning to become obsessed with Stubben. The quality is amazing and I honestly really like the orangeish look. The breastplate is also so fugly its sexual.

Bacardi modeling breastplate and reins

 I also peruse Ebay constantly at work and found a super super expensive bit I've always wanted to try for less than $20. I obviously bought it.

Also, modeling BoT headband in addition to new bit

One of these days I will buy the PS of Sweden jumper bridle and it will all match. Tack whoring at its finest.

I'm still on the fence about the bit. Bacardi has always seemed to not quite like bits in general and always tosses his head at initial contact. Today seemed a little less than usual, but he was also fussy. Good, but fussy.

fatty

Considering this is our third "first day back" after winter/extended time off, I gave him the benefit of knowing he is VERY out of shape and slightly weak behind. He also hasn't shed out all the way and worked up a good sweat in less than 15 minutes. Can't blame him, it was almost 90 today (in May...what is going on!)

I started off with shoulder -in exercises and trying to have soft, following hands. He really likes being put to work right away. If we waffle about, I notice B works himself up, whereas if I give him "a job" he gets right to it. Handy.

Once We loosened up, I kept it simple. Trot circles, trying to maintain proper bend and cadence, with forward energy. Seems simple, but he was all over the place wiggly. Again, because fatty and out of shape, so I maintained even contact and kept my aids supportive & let him figure it out

A little downhill

A little behind the bit

A little racey

B was  obviously a little downhill, behind the vertical and a little rushy in places at first. But I concentrated on keeping my aids steady and asking him to work into the contact properly.

Asking for some push

After 5 minutes each way, he really settled nicely and maintained a semi-steady tempo and rhythm without too much loss of balance. Doesn't help that my lawn is extremely bumpy and wonky, but I considered it an extra challenge ;)

Fav of the day

Billowy shirt adds 10lbs

Look at dat trot doh

I wanted to try the canter, even though I knew it would be a mess, simply because I miss it. All those winter hacks, there was no cantering. Goals today were no popping shoulders and minimal head tossing. I knew contact and carriage was a little out of the question with him being so weak, but I just wanted the basics.

Not a horrible transition

I like that even though hes a bit weak, he still really steps under himself and listens to my aids when I ask him to move the shoulders.

Another fav

Lovely, good B

Looks like a wild man here. Letting his locks grow out

What a good baby

Bacardi was a little more wild to the left and I had to administer some pretty strong outside aids to keep him on a circle that resembled a circle. I could really feel the weakness to the left & here is where I encountered some protesting.

Overall, a good ride. I'm not sure how well that BoT headband is really working, but both times I've ridden with it, he's resembles an actual horse instead of a complete idiot. It also is not hot outside, so who really knows. I guess the horse gods have bestowed their mercy on me finally.

"Was I a good pony?"

Always more to work on. Especially now that most people have 2-3 shows under their belt and I'm not even close..but hey. Whatever, better late than never.

I leave you again, with good thoughts and an adorable picture of the Levi dog.

Life in Shambles

I've been told sometimes I'm a little too dramatic.

But friends, this is serious shit.

I thought I had a hold on life happenings. I really did. I acquired a real person job, I starting saving my money, I became single, joined a gym, I sent Yankee to a show home and I began riding a little more. Albeit, a crazy horse, but it was happening...a little.

But I fell off the wagon recently.

Apparently I cannot function without a phone.

I am not ashamed to admit that I fall loosely under the category of a "millennial" and apparently cannot human without a tiny, square, technological device near me at all times.

I was never one to be attached at the eyeballs, but "to the hip" is an appropriate statement.

And now I has none, and my life is in shambles.

What is Facebook? How do I snapchat? Is Instagram a thing? How do I know if people are alive? How do I take pictures of things. HOW DO I WAKE UP ON TIME.

Its like I've completely fallen off the face of the earth. No one knows how to reach me, and I cannot reach anyone else. I feel so alone.

I'm scared.

Is anyone else out there? Do people exist outside of the internet and social media? I'm convinced that they do not.

So I literally do not know what ANYONE has been up to for the last two weeks. I can confidently say that I've visited Facebook twice on my PC, and not read one blog, nor blogged myself. I miss Instagram something fierce. I miss all the ponies. Everyone's ponies. Snapchat was my tie to Yankee, and I dont have that either and I feel like I'm dying inside. I did everything off the phone...everything.

Apparently you CAN be addicted to an app, I've discovered.

Drama aside, really though, you try it. I bet you can't. Everyone's all like "yeah not having a phone would be nice and going unplugged for a while would be chill" but you can always pick up your phone after a few hours away from the world.

Dying.

Friends, do not drop your phone on a pond. Or any other body of moisture.

11 more days and I can person again.

Also, I do really own a horse, a swear. And I do ride.

The equines are doing wonderful actually; blooming, if you will. They adore their turnout in the grassy fields and B will gallop around at minimum, 5 minutes each time I turnout. Fat and happy beasts.

 I have not ridden once though (big surprise) since my last fabulous ride 2 weeks ago (which I have yet to blog about) due to an unfortunate bout with a mild case of rhabdo, in addition to having come down with a cold after Rolex..

Apparently sitting in rain for 6 hours gets you sick. Who knew.

Fellow blogging friends

It also appears I have 87% immersed into the Crossfit cult and I literally destroyed my arms doing a hero WOD (for those non-CFers, that woudl be a stupid hard workout that no one should ever attempt ever because so hard).

I knew it was too much for me, but the competitive edge came out and I worked until I couldn't anymore. I also wasn't last to finish, go me. In return, I got T-rex arms and couldn't do shit with them for over a week. I still feel like I just stepped out of a rough workout, so note to self, quit when you know you should or you will be half paralyzed for quite some time.

Hopefully, one day soon I will return to the side of the living, but until then, enjoy this picture of Levi being precious.

**let it be known I am well aware there are worse things to happen. The struggle bus is real though and I am the captain

My Very First RK3DE

 Quick update on the Rolex weekend Experience...

Normally, I've taken to the interwebz for Rolex coverage. I still did a bit of that this year (*cough cough* minimized dressage screen while at work Th/Fri) but the real kicker for me was making the 1.5 hr trip to KY to watch XC live on Saturday!

Every year I've wanted to go, I've either been too young and the parental units didn't want to deal with it, or I've been taking college finals/Living in MO, where the drive is 9 hours instead of less than 2.  This year I said fuck it, I'm doing it. And I did.

Unfortunately, my phone is at the bottom of a pond and I literally lost EVERYTHING from Rolex on it, as well as everything from the past year and all my numbers. Devastation is a weak word to describe my sadness. I'm also stuck with a T9 phone and I think I might also toss that in some water soon.

Losing my phone did not take away from the total blast I had in KY though, thankfully. I still have the memories! Luckily also, like a total millennial, I uploaded a few photos to FB right after snapping the photo, and my friends have sent me a few, so I at least have a few pics.

Rolex ya'll

We rose at 4AM, like total horse nerds,  because I was determined to get a spot right.up.front at the Head of The Lake fence, in addition to breakfast and coffee on the way down. Arrived with plenty of time at 7:30, and tucked into to our spots until kickoff at 9:30AM.

In case you weren't aware, the forecast was rain. Torrential, unrelenting rain. And we sat in it with the rest of them for 2 hours before XC even began. Glad we brought raingear.

We are all mental. All 30,000 of us that showed up on Saturday.

However, watching Olympians walk the course beforehand, close enough I could touch them, was like a dream. I had seen some of them before at WEG,  but this time it seemed more real. WFP is literally the tallest person alive. Buck, Phillip and Ellen were all so close to me. I felt like a fangirl. The excitement kept me warm for a few hours, but once the rain began to blow sideways I began to rethink my sanity. Only Eventers.

My Feels

 The Head of the Lake was exciting as always, and the combination was tricky. I almost peed my pants watching the riders jump the skinny in the water on the buckle after the drop into the water. Those horses are masters at their job and GIT IT DONE. I was so impressed.

After a few riders, we moved on. I was reluctant at first because I wanted to stay hunkered down at THoTL, since it was an exciting combination, but apparently the way to do it at Rolex is to migrate.

I'm so glad we did! The fences out there on course were MASSIVE and tricky and I got to see almost every rider jump something different. Let me tell you, watching Olympians gallop past you on their beastly horses is a sight to behold. Watching Jimmie Schramm navigate the back to back opposite corners after the big tree was SO cool too. I've only ever seen her on Youtube, so to see her 10 feet away on Bellamy...my feels. Not to mention Jung, WFP, Phillip, Buck, etc. All like a dream.

Photo credit: Lauren Stewart

The wetness was real while standing outside for 6 hours, and I was slightly nervous for the riders. I can't imagine the level of suck that had to have been for them. In all honesty, I would have scratched. But thats just me. I know those riders are pros and their horses are seasoned, but even then, it was sketchy. The footing was pretty dangerous. Numerous times I saw horses fall out from under themselves. The Hollow was especially tricky with the steep hills/banks. I gasped a few times. The amount of falls alone on XC was rather high, I thought. I couldn't believe how many were eliminated or pulled up after XC. I also did see in an article on COTH that a foreign horse ended up being put down due to injuries sustained on course. I was appalled the officials kept the OPT time at 11:06, but thats a discussion for another time.

We ended up seeing the majority of the course, but after 6 hours we tapped out and headed indoors to do some shopping. At this point too, our feet hurt, we were freezing and our shoulders ached from hauling our shit around. It was a real workout. 

Levi actually was a total trooper and seemed to be enjoying himself and all the attention he gets whenever we go in public.

Because adorable

We also met a wolf. Like an actual timberwolf from Alaska. I also got his hunky owners' number, so theres that ;)

The yellow eyes get me

If I hadn't just seen Olympians and badasses tromp the XC course, this would've been the coolest moment of my life. Just look at his head. Its 3xs the size of Levi's. He comes up to my mid thigh. That thing was ridiculous...ly beautiful. And slightly scary.

Shopping was on another level. I think I could've walked around for 4 more hours just touching all the tack and things and stuff. DONT LET THE TACK WHORES LOOSE.

I had budgeted about $150 for the day on tack and stuff and things, which really wasn't much...but I was proud of myself. Did not go over and I scored some serious swag.

Stubben was having a stupid sale so I snagged 2 pairs of schooling reins, a loose ring bit and a jumper breastplate. Totally didnt need any of it, but you know how that goes. You can never have too many, reins, bits OR breastplates. Never. Especially Stubben. You'd be surprised how smashing chesnut looks on a chesnut. I would show you pics, but they're at the bottom of a pond. I also grabbed some free liniment, score. The odd shaped black sock looking t hings are Equisleeves, my total spur of the moment purchase. I've been curious about them for a while, tried to win them in a raffle a while ago, and after walking past the booth, the British guy totally sold me on them. For the price I paid, can't beat it. The other oblong black shaped thing is a Back on Track crownpeice. Also another spur of the moment purchase, with purpose. I've always wanted BOT swag, but could never stomach the price. $90 for one saddle pad? Please. I've only heard good things about it though and I say to the sale rep, "um what IS that thing". She responds, "Oh that goes on the bridle, helps to calm nervous horses" and I was like NEED IT. So I bought it for less than $30. What can it hurt right? (review later ;)). I also donated money to my favorite organization, New Vocations. Since I'm an ambassador I felt obligated, and with it received a wicked cool t-shirt hoodie, green and lime green. It beautiful. Total swag, total score.

I've also decided that I am buying a Voltaire. I spoke with the president (who is a seriously hot French guy), he sized a saddle to me and we discussed payment. I honestly knew I wanted one before I ever sat in it, and once my ass hit that perfectly tanned leather I knew it was destiny. I havn't owned a saddle in my entire life that fits, so I am more than ready. Cannot wait!!

In short, Rolex was more than amazing, and I have no words to describe it. Once Lauren gets all her photos uploaded I will share with ya'll how close we were to all the riders. Despite the rain & getting sick after wards ( I have a tremendous head cold) it was worth it and I really hope to go back next year & perhaps stay through Sunday.

 
For those of you that went, was was your favorite part? For those at home, what was yours?

Holly Hill vs. The Pants

I say VS because the cards were not stacked exactly in his favor this weekend.

Lauren had been sick the week prior and not able to practice as much as she wanted, they didn't do the first Novice together 3 weeks ago, and it literally POURED for 2 days straight while they were in the Deep South. Louisiana man.

All that being said, I had the utmost confidence in my lil team because Yankee has been killin it at the CT & Jumper show game and training has always been a breeze for him (me, not so much). Plus, hes been in constant work since practically December and was more than ready.

For example,

yeah, he ready

He made the trek from Kansas to Louisiana like a champ, per usual and settled in for the next day with his  PJs and braids.

Dressage was...good. Apparently he screamed for his barn mate the entire time, which is exceptioanlly uncharacteristic of him, but still snagged a 34.5 in Training Dressage. Not too shabby. I wish I had seen it, but I'm quite proud.

An extra good photo of dressage for ya'll

My man has never scored well in dressage even though hes pretty fucking fabulous. Something about judges not liking TBs. Who knows. We sometimes made up for it in jumping, but the way eventing is going...ya'll know dressage is literally the most important phase now.

Stadium was tricky for Yanks. As I mentioned before, it poured for two days and thus, soaked the ground. For some reason they ran Stadium grass even though there was a ring. As soon as Lauren told me that my heart sank a bit. The Pants is a HUGE baby about grass rings. Very cautious and timid. Usually pulls a few rails because he is not forward enough. Honestly, who could blame him though for stepping lightly?

I advised to stud and just feel it out. I was super nervous to hear how it went.

Unfortunately, he pulled four rails, as I had feared. The Prince just didn't "feel it" that day and was a wee sucked back. Typical for him. I was disappointed, but that is his one quirk. I told Lauren to keep her chin up, XC the next day!!

Yankee came out strong on XC day though! He was a machine. See for yourself!



If that isnt working, the link for the video is HERE.

I about cried watching him tackle XC like a freight train. No qualms, whatsoever. Double clear!

Dat tail doh

Couldn't be happier ending on that note. Stadium on grass will always be an issue for The Pants, but luckily he has a bomb ass rider, trainer and support system to help him thorough it all! Honestly, XC with no penalties is amazing. I always managed to rack them up, so in all honesty I'm happy he has a rider than can take him where I cannot! Next time, buddy.

Gone For A Minute

I have really missed the blogging scene.

After I write this post I plan on catching up with as many blogs as humanely possible. Who knew you could actually miss internet friends & their lives?

I've literally not done anything besides gym, work &  workout since my last post. And take pictures of sunsets.

Which means I also haven't ridden since my lesson on April 1 (with the exception of yesterday) due to the weather and work. The weather has been atrocious. So bipolar and shitty; mud, mud everywhere. Work also is kickin' my ass ya'll. If given the chance I will never live farther than 15 minutes from my place of work ever again. 40 minute commutes essentially destroy your days and the 10-7 schedule is horrendous. So theres that.

The horses have thoroughly enjoyed their "vacation". I literally didn't touch them for 2 weeks. I barely had time to drag my butt into the shower and collapse into bed, let alone mess with them. I really think they had no qualms with it though. They got good and dirty, ate new spring grass & didn't have to do any work and still got fed at regular intervals. What more could an equine want?

Now that I have acclimated to the schedule change at work, I decided to overwork myself yesterday by doing all the things. On top of one of the most intense upper body Crossfit workouts I've ever done, I decided to split one of the pastures into paddocks so the grass can grow in. This involved hand pounding metal posts into the ground, and stringing electric tape, moving round bales and round bale feeders and cleaning, scrubbing and moving the water tub. Naturally, the pain game in my upper body is real today. But now the babes have their own paddock, with their own hay and the field can finally grow in!

Girl power

I also dug the bests out of their mud covered hairy bodies. I specifically bought an industrial sized curry comb with a HANDLE because I broke (yes, broke) THREE rubber curry combs trying to tackle the mud and hair on previous occasions. It will take several sessions, but hopefully they can be slick and shiny soon like everyone else's horses.

Hair pile

It felt so wonderful to swing my leg over a saddle after almost 3 weeks absence.

Lilly is finally over her bitchy mare heat emotional issues and she was a total doll. Bacardi was a little hyped, but honestly he has settled so much in the last month or so. Glad winter is OVER to say the least. I didn't do much with either, just about a 20 minute hack. I had intended to ride today too, but I woke up to a torrential downpour and it hasn't stopped since.

In other news, Yankee competed at Holly Hill this weekend! Full and total coverage in another post later this week.

Also also, who is going to Rolex?? I will be there with Levi and a few local equestrian friends. Holla t yo girl!

How To: Not Giraffe

Its been a hot minute since I've had consistent coaching on a regular basis. We're talking, ohhh about 6 years, give or take a little. I used to have two amazing coaches throughout high school and I lessoned weekly. What a treat that was!

After high school, I couldn't afford to lesson on the reg, thanks to college and all the expenses it entails. Broke bitch status continued throughout the wonder years and even after graduation I could only get a lesson here or there when we were really having issues. Ballpark, I think maybe a grand total of 6 lessons over the past 3 years. 

Seriously, those of you that lesson regularly, SAVOR IT! I might give my left tit for  the chance to lesson weekly again.

That being said, I was beyond stoked to find a trainer in my area that I meshed with AND specialized in OTTBs. I will FULLY disclose, I was skeptical at first because I had never heard of her before but I didn't judge too quickly. Her facility was amazing, I had an excellent referral and my first impression of her was fabulous. What. A. Doll. Just picture like, the cutest & sweetest horsewoman you can muster and that is my new trainer. She's a gem! I hope I can continue to afford bi-weekly sessions because we galloped through so many barriers last Sunday. 

For one, B loaded and unloaded like a semi-normal equine. That alone was an absolute victory in my mind.

I will admit, I was extremely discouraged when he began executing classic Bacardi misbehaving and evasion techniques the second we stepped in the indoor. I wouldn't say it was equivalent to the fuckery in the field, but I was unable to get him to calmly even walk in a straight line. Like, could I at least get one lap without a snort or jig?

Bacardi

In his defense, there was an extreme amount of commotion going on; construction in the barn tack room, the wind was howling outside, another horse in the arena and the ring was full of scary jumps. But still, Giraffing and spooking were not okay. We are brave eventers, dammit!

I was preparing to put foot in mouth and let everyone tell me how wrong I was and this horse is practically impossible/useless. Close to tears and I hadn't even been in the saddle 3 minutes. Awesome.

Perfectinstructorlady came in and immediately put us on a 20m circle. I was all like, but he's spooking, but frame, but tempo, but engagement, but giraffe and she was like, stop it and ask him to MOVE. She completely ignored his spooks when the sand hit the barrels and just said 

"Push HARDER, forward, engage his brain. He lacks consistency"

Once we got a really forward, but awful trot, we then started asking him to move his shoulders in and out of the circle, and only his shoulders. Which, by the way, is NOT easy on a green, massive bodied OTTB. Inner thigh burn.

I was still like, but frame, but engagement, but proper bend, but tempo, but giraffe and Perfectinstructorlady told me to ignore it for the time being. This might have been even more difficult for than than asking him to move his shoulders in and out of a 20m circle for 15 minutes straight.

I think Bacardi struggled with the concept of this exercise more than myself though. You could almost see the toggles in his brain flipping about. 

B was completely distraught with the fact that we were ignoring his now minor flaws and working through a problem by continuously asking him to move his shoulders in and out in and out in and out. I think it was mentally killing him that I wasn't giving up. He was so offended that we were asking him to do SOMETHING with that beautiful body of his, for once.

t was also killing me to not concern myself with the fact that surely he looked like a giraffe traipsing around. Killing me. 

And then after 25 minutes of shared frustration...engagement. Relaxation. Responsiveness. I was able to move his shoulders freely, and he executed perfect 20m circles on the bridle, through the contact, STRAIGHT and 100% listening to me.

I wish I could describe what I was doing with my seat, legs & hands during this exercise so everyone can understand, and I wish I could convey the 180* difference I felt in my horse. It was in him all along! I just needed to unlock his brain and find a way to communicate with him!

So we tried in the canter. It was a bit more difficult in this gait, especially since we haven't cantered since October, but the effort was A+

After all that,  I addressed all of my fears and concerns that while he's big, beautiful and bouncy, he has a  hair trigger when it comes to spooking, especially over fences & it worries me he will never be a successful eventer.

So Perfectinstructorlady asked if it would be okay to trot over poles. She wanted us to begin at ground zero, literally, and work up. Sure, he can jump 3'6, but to what end? (Taking it slow is so so so difficult. And I thought I WAS already taking it slow with crossrails and tiny verticals.. Apparently not).

At this point, we had only worked for about half an hour so I was like, well, we can try, but he usually spooks at them and refuses the first few times.

He of course, did. So we ignored it, and kept pressing him forward with lateral movement. Sounds contradictory, but it kept his brain unlocked and concentrated on what I was asking and not the horse eating thing on the ground. B realized that it wasn't the pole that he was bothered by, in the end, it was that the ride r(me) was justifying his concern with more concern and attention to said pole/spooking. 

Eventually, we had him trotting on a 20m circle over 4 poles, no problem. He didn't even bat an eye at the last two. I was ecstatic. I could've cried! WE did this, TOGETHER!

Look at us, two spazzes getting along.

I'm hoping the next few lessons  (bi-weekly hopefully!) will progress as far as the first. In time, I KNOW this horse is going to be something someday. And I just knew all our issues revolved around that damn field. 

Le tired ponykins

.......Until next time.