Baydale
Well-Known Member
Today I was booked in to try something different, a change is as good as a rest and all that, so Ralph (blue and white pony), C (proud mum) and I went to the Fernie PC ODE at Rolleston.
Now, it's been a hell of a long time since I did anything Pony Club other than shout at, I mean teach
, them, so I wasn't sure what Level 3 meant, and I swear C was being economical with the truth when I asked her what that meant....I now know "you'll be fine" might not be descriptive enough for next time.
Anyway, Ralph warmed up for his stressage being stared at (again
) so I checked I hadn't split my breeches - no - and that there was nothing hanging off us - no - before carrying on. It didn't start well when I did travers down the centre line in the heavy shower to be met by the judge sticking her head out of the car door saying "you haven't started, have you?". No, of course not, but funny that C thought it was her car's horn that we'd heard too.....what a couple of geriatrics.
So we started again, straighter this time as the shower had passed, and did an ok test that got better as it went on, other than a Jemima-stylie shimmy to the right in halt, corrected by a swift kick as he has never done it before and knew it wasn't "how we halt".
I was ok with 35, and the jaw-droppingly gorgeous pro horse we'd seen was only 5 marks ahead of us, so no disgrace.
Off to walk the cross country, bearing in mind I've not jumped a simple rustic or cross country fence on the little 'un, and only heard secondhand from C how he is when she's been on him. And I thought Level 3 was PN-like, so when we got to the 5th fence to be met by a meaty hanging log skinny, followed by another slightly wider one on a dogleg (bizarrely the wider one had an "L" option
), I was a bit
about it, especially as he'd done the grand total of one skinny a few times the day before, in my arena, when C had come in for a lesson. Hey ho, my mantra is "it's all there to be jumped" when I walk courses, so no whingeing and whining about it, just give it your best shot. All well and good until you get to the next skinny three fences later: a rolltop before the water, but not even on a straight line to it, and the water was a decent step in with a log on the lip.
Repeat after me: it's all there to be jumped....
It did have an "L" otpion next to it though, and "L" doesn't necessarily stand for "Loser".
Then up a hill to a decent logpile, then a pheasant feeder (HUGE if you're on 15hh of green 5yo
) on the brow of a hill - the clue to the size was the "L" fence next to it.
Down to another murky, mucky water with another skinny before it (are you getting the theme here?), then out into the open to a hedge, less-skinny log, house and log with brush on top to finish. Oh.....My......Goodness......cue Baydale chanting "it's all there to be jumped" ad infinitum, all the while making encouraging, positive noises to the now-quiet proud (she hopes) mum.
But first we had the showjumping to get out of the way, my favourite way of looking at it. It was 1.05m with those 'orrible plastic poles and some particularly spooky fillers, two doubles and two related distances. Hmmmm, I tried "you've gotta be in it to win it" to see if that helped, but in the end deep breathing seemed a better option. Ralph has a fab canter, but at the end of the day he's only 5 and the first fence he saw was when C tried him last autumn
, so 10 fences like that was a big ask. I had to work quite hard to keep him on his bum and get deep spots to the wide oxers (ie. all of them) to keep his back end operating, but he was a dude and just rolled the out part of a double of uprights after a related distance, and pinged the last one like there were monsters thereunder.
Big pats and polos.
A quick change, more deep breathing and three practice fences and we were off, Dumb and Dumber. When he ballooned 2 and 3 I did wonder whether his bottle might go, no matter how much support and encouragement I gave him, but I needn't have worried. Ok, so he wasn't always looking at the right fence until the last stride or two, but pingy ponies with tidy front legs don't scare me as much as hulking great big huge ones, so we got away with it at the skinnies at 5 and 6, then trotted to the rolltop before the first water. I tried the straight route into the water but he did his "huh"
thing, and I decided the L was a better option rather than a smack for something that was way out of his comfort zone and level of training. We minced through that one, flew up the hill to the logpile, round to the pheasant feeder (fab photo here, making it look like it's 2ft
), down to the next skinny and water - trotted the skinny, minced through the water again - then got going over the last four really taking them out of his stride and not feeling like his brain was full to overflowing. Yay, more "good boys", pats and then a leisurely walk back to the trailer (I did get off him, as if you're 15hh and have got round all that with me lumping about on top, you deserve a break.....and a medal
).
I was SO chuffed with him: for such a green horse he was more than happy to have a go, take confidence from me saying it was ok and, as he's got so much jump, he was never left wanting, therefore (I hope) came away thinking it was easy, all ready for the next time. (Scores weren't up so don't ask me for a total, I'm thinking long-term goals here so one day in his whole career hardly seems important.
)
Vids and photo to follow when C, another ageing technophobe, works out what to do with YouTube and a scanner....there's still some pinot grigio (pink, v tasty) and chilli if you've got this far. Enjoy.
Now, it's been a hell of a long time since I did anything Pony Club other than shout at, I mean teach
Anyway, Ralph warmed up for his stressage being stared at (again
Off to walk the cross country, bearing in mind I've not jumped a simple rustic or cross country fence on the little 'un, and only heard secondhand from C how he is when she's been on him. And I thought Level 3 was PN-like, so when we got to the 5th fence to be met by a meaty hanging log skinny, followed by another slightly wider one on a dogleg (bizarrely the wider one had an "L" option
Then up a hill to a decent logpile, then a pheasant feeder (HUGE if you're on 15hh of green 5yo
But first we had the showjumping to get out of the way, my favourite way of looking at it. It was 1.05m with those 'orrible plastic poles and some particularly spooky fillers, two doubles and two related distances. Hmmmm, I tried "you've gotta be in it to win it" to see if that helped, but in the end deep breathing seemed a better option. Ralph has a fab canter, but at the end of the day he's only 5 and the first fence he saw was when C tried him last autumn
A quick change, more deep breathing and three practice fences and we were off, Dumb and Dumber. When he ballooned 2 and 3 I did wonder whether his bottle might go, no matter how much support and encouragement I gave him, but I needn't have worried. Ok, so he wasn't always looking at the right fence until the last stride or two, but pingy ponies with tidy front legs don't scare me as much as hulking great big huge ones, so we got away with it at the skinnies at 5 and 6, then trotted to the rolltop before the first water. I tried the straight route into the water but he did his "huh"
I was SO chuffed with him: for such a green horse he was more than happy to have a go, take confidence from me saying it was ok and, as he's got so much jump, he was never left wanting, therefore (I hope) came away thinking it was easy, all ready for the next time. (Scores weren't up so don't ask me for a total, I'm thinking long-term goals here so one day in his whole career hardly seems important.
Vids and photo to follow when C, another ageing technophobe, works out what to do with YouTube and a scanner....there's still some pinot grigio (pink, v tasty) and chilli if you've got this far. Enjoy.
) many a time!