clairebearnz
Well-Known Member
After all my complaining about Fready's bad behaviour, he showed me up rather a lot at the weekend. He has been rather awful on the ground, mainly nipping and leaping around then striking out. If he's ridden every single day, he's alright under saddle, otherwise he's a hot and spooky mess.
However, he behaved himself admirably. It was a low level riding club derby/SJ day so I'd put him into the 70cm and under derby and two SJ rounds at 75cm and 85cm. A show jumper, he is not so every round is good experience for him. He was fairly well behaved to warm up although did some fairly spectacular four-footed leaps when another horse kicked off, but settled once I took him into a quieter part of the warm-up.
In the derby, which was under Table C rules, he had a couple of stops at the water and the sunken road, along with a lot of people. He did gain in confidence through the round, but I'm going to give up a run at 65cm at View Hill on Labour Monday as I think we could both do with a nice easy confidence building round.
Show jumping, the 75cm was rather ugly. I lost my mind entirely and kept gunning the poor guy at everything from miles out. By some fluke, he jumped clear but I apologised him once we finished. The 85cm was, by comparison, a really nice round. He was jumping confidently and in a stride, and I was waiting for the damned jump. We had an unlucky rail due to him being rather lazy with his hind (a perpetual problem) but I was very proud of him.
No show jumping pictures as the camera battery died but derby:
Enthusiastically through the water
Fready very uncertainly into the sunken road.
However, he behaved himself admirably. It was a low level riding club derby/SJ day so I'd put him into the 70cm and under derby and two SJ rounds at 75cm and 85cm. A show jumper, he is not so every round is good experience for him. He was fairly well behaved to warm up although did some fairly spectacular four-footed leaps when another horse kicked off, but settled once I took him into a quieter part of the warm-up.
In the derby, which was under Table C rules, he had a couple of stops at the water and the sunken road, along with a lot of people. He did gain in confidence through the round, but I'm going to give up a run at 65cm at View Hill on Labour Monday as I think we could both do with a nice easy confidence building round.
Show jumping, the 75cm was rather ugly. I lost my mind entirely and kept gunning the poor guy at everything from miles out. By some fluke, he jumped clear but I apologised him once we finished. The 85cm was, by comparison, a really nice round. He was jumping confidently and in a stride, and I was waiting for the damned jump. We had an unlucky rail due to him being rather lazy with his hind (a perpetual problem) but I was very proud of him.
No show jumping pictures as the camera battery died but derby:
Enthusiastically through the water
Fready very uncertainly into the sunken road.
