Perfect Practice Makes Perfect

It's been some time since my last post, mainly because my job (yes, actual history professoring-- I have to pay the bills somehow) has kept me quite busy.  In addition to the usual teaching prep and grading I've gone over the copyediting for my book (Fedexed out today!) and gone to Washington, DC for a conference.  But I digress...

Taco is his usual gorgeous self, and is full of energy in the spring weather.  Ideally, I'd be preparing for the Area III championships right now.  However, I probably don't need to tell the readers of this blog that competing is expensive, and my competition budget is rather tiny at the moment.  We have big competitions planned for later in the year, including the American Eventing Championships (AECs) and of course our Training Three Day.  I also want to do an event camp in early July at Come Again Farm in Indiana, with Peter Atkins, Dorothy Crowell, and Holly Hepp Hudspeth.  So I am having to make some hard choices about shows in the immediate future, including the Area III Champs. 

Given the revised show schedule, then, I need to concentrate on practicing, practicing, practicing.  I need to keep a consistent connection in my flatwork so that I don't rush him in the test.  Jumping, I'm still working on my *&$%! right leg and the same connection that I need in dressage.  As Wofford is fond of saying, "practice doesn't make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect."

The problem with this is that I am far more easily distracted at home.  Without the pressures of a competitive situation, unwanted thoughts and anxieties show up.  Witness, for example, the I hate wind post from a couple of weeks ago.  I got over my fear of Tidbit the miniature horse, but there will always be something for me to fret over (today it was having my right stirrup tied to the girth again).  My task is to focus in on my job despite the distractions, just as I would at a show.  I feel that I have made some progress, but if anyone has suggestions or experiences to share on this topic, please comment!

 Tidbit doesn't scare us!

Despite the above challenges, my practicing has been going fairly well.  On Easter Sunday I decided to try jumping again.  This time it went better.  We conquered the crossrail...

(See that right leg?  Damn!)

and then a few other little fences.

I've felt like we've done some good flatwork in the last week, too.

I had a mini-breakthrough when I realized that I've been riding with my right hip always cocked forward, which is sending my right leg back.  I go to the chiropractor on Wednesday and will ask her about this.  In the meantime I've been bringing my right hip back every time I think about it, with some good results.

Today I had a lesson and, as I mentioned above, my stirrup got tied to the girth again.  And I broke the string three times!  I think Amy was a little annoyed, especially when I freaked out each time she tied it up again.  But I freaked out far less than I had in our previous lesson, so that was progress.  Taco was plenty fresh, since he hasn't been jumping so often in recent weeks, so she suggested that I jump over something twice a week, preferably at a balanced, rhythmic canter.  I find that it is helpful for me to pretend I am in an equitation class and that I have to make smooth, but effective, adjustments between fences.

I know that a few Team Taco fans will be disappointed about Area III Champs, but look for an improved Team Taco at shows this summer and fall!  Until then...

Remedial Lesson and Many Adventures With Lauren

This week, we finally had some spring-like weather.  We seem to have skipped the 60s and gone right to the upper 70s and low 80s, and it has gone almost a whole week without raining.  The change is welcome, I must say!

In Team Taco land, we've gone back to basics.  Amy (Provost) read my last blog post and decided that I needed to jump in this week's lesson.  We walked up to the jump field... and had a walk-trot lesson.  I was a remedial student this week.

What happened was that, after a short warmup, Amy tied my right *stirrup* to the girth.  As I have mentioned before on this blog, my right leg has a mind of its own and tends to slip back and up. By tying it to the girth, Amy was hoping to give me the feeling of where that leg should be.

However, instead of absorbing the sensation and practicing using that leg in the correct position, I panicked.  My body has gotten so used to riding with it too far back that it felt incredibly strange to have it where it belonged.  I felt like I couldn't ride at all, and that Taco was on the verge of flying out of control.  Not a good feeling!

This exercise and my subsequent meltdown exposed a key problem.  Amy got on to show me that Taco was not wild and out of control, and she said that he was far from wild but that he did think that he was in charge.  That translated into heaviness in his forehand and rushing, which was what I was feeling and interpreting as "wildness."  She worked for a few minutes on his lightness and adjustability, and then had me get back on and try it for myself.  I had to use my core muscles much more than I had been doing-- instead of riding defensively and collapsing in my chest, I had to engage my back and abs and become much more stable.  And, surprise, surprise, I got some lovely, light movement from him.  End of wildness.

Here's the thing: Taco is so athletic and capable, and he has a terrific work ethic and willingness every day.  My job is to channel the willingness and talent into brilliant work.   Even though Taco supplies so much, I need to ride and not sit there on top admiring him and being a passenger.  On some days, he adds some spicy salsa to the taco, and if I have been coasting and not riding, I find that my aids do not work as well as they should!  This is what happened the other day.  It was a good reminder of the necessity of checking in on the basics.  Even on the mild salsa days, I need to check in that my aids are working, and add half-halts and practice adjustability.

After that hardworking session, yesterday was a play day.  I took Taco and Crescent to Southern Promise Farm, headquarters of Lauren and her many adventures, for a nice long hack.  We went out for about an hour and 40 minutes.  It was excellent for Taco's ligaments and tendons, and for all of our mental health (Crescent has a doggy friend there, Bandit, who came along too).  We can hack around the track at Amy's, but it is lovely to go for miles through the fields, across streams, and up and down the hills.  I am going to try to get over there every few weeks this summer for long rides.

First I had to get out of the driveway at Amy's.  Boyfriend the dog was in the middle of his nap.

Boyfriend eventually moved.  Here are some pictures of us after our fun ride.  Thanks, Lauren!

Aiken: Friday Videos

Tomorrow is our first event of 2010: Full Gallop Farm Horse Trials!  My goal is to have a positive first outing.  I want to improve my lengthenings in dressage while preserving suppleness and forwardness.  In the jumping phases, I want to continue to improve my role in creating energy, line, and balance to the jumps.

We did a short jump school today to review and fine-tune.  I was having some ridiculous problems changing leads, but other than that it was a great session.



Then Taco had a lovely roll in the paddock.  Back by popular demand, here is Taco in the sand-- this time showing off his athleticism.

 

The dogs had a great day.  Crescent found a new toy: a pine cone.



And finally, Amy jumped her homebred mare very successfully.  She goes Beginner Novice this weekend.  She's a six year old Percheron/ Thoroughbred, sired by Karsh (CAN; JC name Secret Secretary).

Midweek Report

It is hard to believe that we are already at the midpoint of our Aiken adventure.  Although I must say that everyone is sleeping well because we are all so tired!

Taco has fallen in love with Flo.  They are not terribly friendly at home, but they seem to be having a vaction fling, so to speak.  Taco is usually quite unconcerned about other horses coming and going, but when he is separated from Flo he is very sad.

As promised, I will update on my lessons with Amy.  Yesterday we worked on my dressage test for Full Gallop, Training Test B.  Since the tests were rewritten for 2010 it was a new one for me.  For some reason I started out with a lot of tension in my shoulders that I never quite overcame.  I think it is beginning-of-the-season nerves.  I revert to that defensive position when I am tense.  However, it was a productive session.  We ran through the test twice and the second time, while not mistake-free and still featuring my hunched shoulders, was considerably better.  Amy emphasized elasticity in my arms and creating some bounce in his step.

Then today we did a cross country school at lovely Jumping Branch.  It now seems obvious that our technical skills are up to the task.  We did the first half or so of last year's Training course and the number of times when Taco has to step up and fix my mistakes was very small compared to a year ago!  My main problem is-- surprise-- nerves, and I was very anxious before the session.  So the point of today was to build my confidence and get me galloping over things.  I'm happy to report that it went quite well!  By the end of the session I had done several things that had looked scary to me, and Taco made it clear that he is still his wonderful bold self.  We warmed up, then did an assortment of gallop fences, then some downhill/ terrain questions, and then wound up at the water practicing a four-element combination.  Amy wanted me to really work on keeping Taco between my aids and I felt a wonderful connection on the approaches to the fences.  I felt silly for having been so nervous at the beginning, and ready for whatever is on the course this weekend.

We barely beat the rain today, and tomorrow is supposed to be rainy, too.  We'll try to get a light ride in in the morning.  Now to bed-- and I am sure I will be asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow!

Thumbs Up!

And I don't just mean that I give Aiken a Thumbs Up, although I do.  I have been enjoying myself quite a bit and it is such a treat to be here.  No, what I mean is that a bad habit of mine has been brought to my attention: my hands, especially the left one, like to turn over so the knuckles of my fingers are up.  The ideal position, however, is with the thumbs on top.  There is something about having your hand in this position that allows the arm to move and act in the proper way.  On the other hand, the knuckles on top position creates tension and lack of elasticity at least all the way up to the shoulder.  I had thought that I had dealt with this tendency of mine, but apparently it's still there.

Thumbs on top, therefore, has been a theme in the last two rides I've had.  Yesterday, I had the much-anticipated privilege of my CANTER Mid-Atlantic auction lesson with Jennie Brannigan.  Jennie was very gracious to donate a lesson to the organization for their annual fundraising auction, and I was delighted to be the winning bidder!  Taco is a CANTER horse so it was all very apropos.  Anyway, I managed to find Red Oak Farm, where Jennie works for Phillip Dutton (a.k.a. PDutty), and got tacked up in my jumping saddle.

The idea was to start out with some flatwork for us to get to know each other, and then move on to some jumping.  Jennie welcomed me and met Carol and Amy, who both came along for moral support/ dog wrangling/ photography/ sports psychology.  And then we got down to work.  Jennie's style is very focused and she is quite descriptive about what needs to happen, which I appreciated.  And she immediately zeroed in on my position, especially my hands (thumbs on top!), arms, and shoulders.  "Ride every day as if you are at a show," she said, meaning that my position should get as much attention and be as correct as if I were in front of a judge during all of my practice sessions.  She also worked with me on straightness and on filling the space just in front of the withers with energy from the hind legs.  Taco went really well and I got some new ways to think about these important basics.

Then we moved on to some jumping.  As usually happens when I start jumping, my IQ dropped a hundred points when she had me trot the first little vertical.  I got a little flustered and forgot about some of the straightness and forwardness things I had been doing.  I calmed down and started thinking again, for the most part.  Jennie really emphasized adjustablity, pushing on between fences and then coming back but keeping the RPMs on the approach.  This helps to get him to the base of the fence and power nicely over it.  Then she had to remind me to release as he takes off.  Here we all are practicing those things.



As you can see, I got really spastic on the way to the skinny and Taco was very generous to jump it.  So Jennie had me do the line again a couple of times.  She wanted me to sit up and keep my leg on after the triple bar. I got better at this, I am happy to say.



All in all it was great fun and a good thing to do.  The things that we worked on meshed well with what Amy has been teaching me.  And Amy was able to come watch, so she knows what we worked on.  Of course, now she has backup for the various issues that she has been on my case about!  She was merciless about the thumbs on top today, geeesh.

I am very sleepy and tired and unable to write more now, but I will write later about the very constructive dressage lesson Amy gave me today.

And on a parting note, here is Taco's favorite part about Aiken: naps in the sun and sand.

Jumping in the Cold

Despite the persistent below-average temperatures, Taco and I shipped out to a jumping lesson yesterday.  It is the best day we've had in a while: it hadn't rained in a few days and it was a balmy 36 degrees (average is 51!). We met Amy at the nearby farm of another student of hers, since the jump field at home is rather mushy.  Thank you Pam for letting us come use your beautiful, well-drained arena!

Anyway, shipping out required using my rig for the first time in a little while.  I looked it over and all was well.  I started the truck, which I had driven a few weeks prior,  and matched up the hitch on the first try. 

This would be a good time to introduce my rig.  The truck and trailer are by no means new but they are safe and sturdy for Taco's traveling comfort.  My truck, the Beast, a 1995 F250, was a public works/ highway painting truck in another life.  When I got it there was an orange spinning light on the top, which I have since removed.  I kept the backup beeper, though!  The trailer, a 1989 Trail-Et New Yorker, had a previous distinguished career hauling S.S. Skipper, a wonderful Prelim and CCI* horse who competed in the 1990s and who just celebrated his 27th birthday.  They are connected by a hefty weight-distribution hitch with sway bar.  It is a good rig, even if it is not shiny and new.  

My truck has been quite reliable, but yesterday there was a brief moment of great dismay when, after I happily dropped the coupler onto the Beast's hitch ball, the Beast's engine sputtered off.  However, after a conference with Amy over the phone (she was already on her way to our lesson), I waited several minutes and then managed to get the Beast started again.  Ice in the fuel line, we were thinking.

But the important thing is that Taco and I made it to the lesson!  We shared it with Megan and her mare Go With the Flo (not to be confused with Amy's mare Go With the Flo). Megan is hoping to move her Flo up to Training this year, so we are well-matched to take a jumping lesson together.  We also share the same need to practice increasing adjustability in the canter, so we can learn a lot from watching each other.  Amy had us practice a five-stride line quite a few times.  We would have practiced it only a couple of times, except that both of us were letting our horses get strung out after the jump in and had to repeat it a few times to get the concept.  Finally we both managed to produce five similar, balanced strides in between.  Then Amy told us to do it in six!  And I did it!  I do feel that I am getting better at maintaining energy and uphill balance.  Taco is grateful that I am getting a clue, I am sure.  He was wonderful, as he always is.

Then we finished up with a couple of short courses, continuing to practice an uphill canter all the way around.  Not bad at all.  We'll need to do this again before long... four weeks until Full Gallop!

Winter = Patience

Wintertime is a mixed bag, especially this year.  At the end of November, I realized that trying to finish a big project at work, traveling to Boston for Thanksgiving, attending the USEA convention, and wrapping up the semester were more than enough for me to do.  So I asked Amy (our "provost" from my previous post) to ride Taco for four weeks.

It's not as if Taco needed extensive training-- we had, after all, pulled down some nice scores at last year's events.  I just wanted her to evaluate him, keep him in work, and be better able to help me in lessons.  But it really seems to have brought us to a new level.

What happened was this: after two rides, Amy texted me.  "You can get so much more from him than you're getting!!" she said, and then, when I got back home after Thanksgiving, she showed me what she meant.  Wow!  Taco looked amazing.  He floated around looking like the fancy dressage horse he is.  The next time, I got on.  I was having some fear issues, I will admit.  I hadn't been on him for two weeks, it was windy (I HATE wind), and there was lots of activity at the farm that day, including Tidbit the miniature horse stallion (since gelded) running along the fenceline.

 

Oooh, scary Tidbit (scary to me, at least!)

I struggled along trying to do the suppling exercise that Amy had found useful on him.  Then she made me get off and showed me what she wanted.  Then I got back on... and I got it!  I sat up tall and pushed him out in front of me.  Amy suggested I try a lengthening and Boom, Boom, Boom!!  I found myself riding the biggest trot I have ever sat on! Woo hoo!  Taco had another gear that I just didn't know existed.

At the end of the four weeks I got the ride back and kept practicing my newfound dressage skills.  Things were going very well until The Cold Snap of 2010.  Nashville is in the South, and most people do not have indoor arenas.  Winters are mild and we do sometimes lose a few days to wet footing but those days are not too frequent.  Unfortunately, this year we tied a record of the longest period of sub-freezing temperatures-- two weeks-- set in 1942.  Great.  The footing was frozen solid.  

Then we had a gorgeous weather week.  We got back to where we had been in the dressage.  We also had a fabulous jump lesson in which I thought we were at least as good as we were last season, if not better!  And then the rains came.  It rained for about a week.  A few times, I hacked around the farm to warm up, then rode in Amy's all-weather round pen, which had the driest footing on the property, and then cooled down hacking around the farm again.  To break things up, I lunged in the round pen too. Not so bad.

Finally, this week things have started to dry out.  I escaped from work early yesterday so that I could have a lesson.  I brought Taco in and began to remove his mud mask (a favorite beauty tratment that he uses often).  And then I saw it.  The outside branch of his right front shoe was bent.  Aaaaargh!!!  Amy took the shoe off and I spent the day fussing over his grooming.

Todd, our farrier, was kind enough to come by this morning and put the shoe back on, but I generally cannot ride on Tuesdays and Thursdays because they are my teaching days.  Even if I had left work early,  I had to go to the dentist immediately after work.  So there Taco was, ready to go, and the footing was good, and I am sitting in the dentist chair getting worked on with that awful drill.

There is a winter storm forecast for tomorrow, and temperatures will not return to the 40s until Monday.

Winter = patience.