Thursday, August 29, 2013

Fashion Models

I stumbled across some pictures of models today that were sporting the latest European fashions. I don't think have seen better dressed, or more beautiful models.

It was an Equine Cat walk

These are some of Eskadrons winter collection.

I don't even know where to find this stuff here in the States, but it sure is lovely and ohh so matchy, down to the coolers.


I hope you enjoy these lovely Equines and there chic outfits


These pictures were found at DressageBoutique on Face Book

All King Edwards Horses Carry Many Big Fellows

Monday, August 26, 2013

Local Championships and the Diva Mare

So The last show of the season (for Whin and I) has come and gone, While I am ready for a break next April seems like ages and ages away.
 
Poor little Diva Mare had a very hard show this weekend.  She was pulled away from her morning graze stuffed into a trailer and driven up a windy canyon. Her morning graze was replaced with a bag of dry tasteless hay, what an insult (She wonders why I think that this is an acceptable trade.) Then she was fussed over had a saddle thrown on her back and was made to prance around the warm up.
 
Then we went into the arena and the judge dares to whistle at her (after getting an off course whistle at the last show she is convinced that it is highly offensive) She did her best in that first test but with all the trauma of the day she could barely keep up the energy by the end of the test.
 
Then to top off  after having her graze cut short, her hay taken away, and being whistled at, I made her do it again with hardly a break in between. Poor Whin just couldn't handle it all. So to let me know how she was feeling. She kept stopping in the middle of movements.  She just wasn't going to be treated so.
 
So much for our championship class, I decided to gracefully excuse ourselves rather than having a large and bronco filled  "discussion" in front of an audience. I don't know if it was the best decision to make, and maybe I am the Diva for not wanting the audience to see the "discussion" and get the awful score, but that is how the cookie crumbled.
 
Whin thinks I should just be happy with the blue we got for our first test.... but she didn't see how big the championship ribbons were!
 
With all this there were many good things about the show one of them being that I rented a stall and Whin was actually able to sit back and relax, even after seeing a train for the first time. ( Trains have highly offensive whistles and clearly eat horses for breakfast.) Also the first test was nothing to be ashamed about we even scored respectable under a harder scoring judge. So all in all the show was good, we just have some things to iron out before our second level debut next year. 
 
All King Edwards Horses Can Make Best Friends
 
 
 

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Freedom

I don't usually blog about hacking out, because usually it's just a mental break for Whin and me. Yesterday was different. Because Whin is naturally more forward when we Hack  I   thought that I would practice the reinback and turn on the haunches. In the arena she gets ohh so behind my leg when we do those movements.
It worked she got much less frustrated with me and we got some decent turn on the haunches.
I guess we are going to practice those out of the arena for a while.
 
All King Edwards Horses Can Make Best Friends

Monday, August 19, 2013

Techie Fail

Last Saturday I took the video camera to the barn. I haven't had my ride filmed since Whin was 4 and had been under saddle for about 60 days. So a lot has changed (hopefully for the better) in that time. I warmed up, then hit record and pointed it in the direction of the arena.

We had a descent ride, It was storming so Whin was a little on edge but she settled in nicely. I practiced the movements that are challenging to see if I could glean insight on how to preform them better.  I did Shoulder and Haunches straight at the camera to see if we had enough angle etc. 

At the end  of it all I hopped of turned off the camera packed up Whin and headed home, eager to see the video... however I had only filmed 1 second of the door to the arena.  So much for all the wealth of knowledge I was going to get from watching my self ride.  Hopefully I can convince some one to film me at the show on Friday.

All King Edwards Horses Call Me Blessed Fool

Friday, August 16, 2013

Canter Piaffe?!?

Along with thinking that Halting really means hula dancing, Whin is convinced that Canter Piaffe is a thing. 
 What is a Canter Piaffe you may ask,
It is attempting to canter with very little forward movement, sitting down on the haunches and lightening the forehand.

(Occasionally this leads to Whin's version of Levade).

How does one aid for the Canter Piaffe?
Just about any way that is unclear, confusing or new.

As you may have been able to glean we do quiet a bit of Canter Piaffe, especially lately since my trainer discovered that we could not  reinback and our turns on the haunches were rusty. With all the new/rusty aids, I have had my hands full (or rather trying not to confine her too much (epic fail)) of trying to convince Whin that no test at any point in her career will ask for the canter piaffe.

I wish I could report that I have made a break through, and Whin now realises canter piaffe is not a desirable thing,(And that she is not doing the levade correctly, so she should just give it up) but I haven't. Perhaps contacting the FEI and convincing them to add the canter piaffe  in to the Grand Prix would be easier.

All King Edwards Horses Call Me Blessed Fool

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

This is why I take lessons

Again, with the not blogging, So I will just recap last weeks lesson. Through the week in my quest to get a light forehand and more engaged haunches I started doing lots of transitions. Which is encouraged in dressage.  Accept I was asking for the almost walk steps and then not asking for enough forward (this is a problem of mine, I think I secretly want to be a Western Pleasure rider) Whin was only too happy to oblige in the teeny tiny steps.
And this is why I take lessons, while I am puttering around the arena patting myself on the back for  doing transitions and  balancing my horse so well (delusions of Grander), My trainer starts yelling at me for doing small steps instead of the big forward ones (reality check). Lesson learned, maybe, tiny steps are not collection even though I am convinced they are.
I also learned that Whin likes to change things up. Often. We ran through second level test 1 (It didn't go as poorly as I thought it might) to see what we need to work on in the next 9 months before next show season.  The longer we went the better she got, My trainer mentioned that Whin does well with change. I started doing this in our work outs. It works. I plan 2 different movements to work on and then I create a sort of pattern intermixing the 2.
Example last Friday.  I worked on canter walk transitions (which are really hard for us at the moment) and leg yield.  I walked asked for canter, cantered asked for walk, and weather it was good or not I then did a leg yield at the trot. Change directions and canter/walk the other way. Whin got much less frustrated, and in the end we accomplished nice canter/walks quicker than if I had just repeated them until they were satisfactory. 
It takes more thinking on my part but  it makes Whin so much happier.
 
All King Edwards Horses Can Make Best Friends

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Back to Basics

Whin is convinced that she was born to be a hula dancer.  Particularly after doing turn on the haunches or forehand.  When I ask her to halt and give her no direction as to which way to bend or turn, she takes matters into her own hands. The dance usually goes something like haunches left, rein back haunches right step forward, ect.

given  that we practiced turn on the haunches last lesson, I decided we needed to work on the halt Saturday. Sure enough, we should have had the luau music playing in the back ground.   Whin was very good with every thing other than the halt.  I did make some head way though. I realized that if I ask her to take two little strides at the trot just before asking for the halt, she gets it.

So in retrospect, maybe I learn that its just all me, not setting her up for the halt properly. I guess it really doesn't matter weather it is the horse or riders fault. The horse is not going to be the one to fix it.  On other notes Whin is really starting to get the transitions with in gaits. when I do baby steps to bigger steps she bends her hocks a bit more. I really do adore this mare despite her hula dancing ways!

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Catch up

EEkk so I haven't blogged in ages... so much for me trying to remember what I learned in each ride.  Any ways I will try and recap what I learned this week.
Tues. taught me that when Whin has lots of days off that she get all weird. Way behind my leg, and it doesn't help that we are trying to develop a second level frame and she just doesn't think it's possible.

Wed. was my lesson and I feared all the weird sticky canter on the spot junk was going to ooze over, but no not at all. She was an angel the whole time. forward in a good frame, it was great we even found a new notch in the lengthening, the first time I stopped her, I don't know why, maybe it was to much awesome lengthening for me to handle. Also I learned that although  our shoulder in and haunches in have been improving the angle still varies. Some thing to work on.

Thurs. was a hill work day.

Fri. She was very good again, we got the awesome lengthening again, but this time I didn't stop it. I also feel that I kept my leg off of her which is a big accomplishment. I have a horrible habit of clinging with my leg, and I wonder why she is behind the leg... I still need to work on the shoulder and haunches in, but at least I have about 9 months before I have to pull that out at a show.

All King Edwards Horses Can Make Best Friends