Geoff Update: Area 22 Dressage!

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

It's been a wee while since Geoff last had an update on here. It's been pretty quiet - I've been busy with work, and Geoff has been doing lots of schooling, working away on flexion and increasing suppleness, and me sorting out my position and wobbly hands, and both of us doing some jumping. However, about six weeks had passed since doing any dressage due to our local BD venue cancelling two comps in a row (grrr!! book your judges IN ADVANCE), so on realising the Area dressage comp was approaching, we hurriedly booked a lesson.

We got mightily told off in our last lesson about me having forgotten a bit about the suppleness work - especially for a slightly stiff 10yo ex-racer. So this time I was very pleased that we looked a bit better! We worked on me maintaining my contact and not letting my reins slip, and keeping my leg on when he starts to bring his hocks under him to maintain the forwardness. She made me do 90% of the hour in sitting trot, with lots of shoulder-in, turn on the forehand and leg yielding too. I was knackered by the end, but she thought he was looking the best he ever has, and starting to get strong enough to maintain it too so was pretty pleased. We also cracked our medium trot - he doesn't get as much extension as the warmbloods, but he has cracked the hind leg action to lengthen which means at least it is correct if not impressive.

We had entered the non-qualifying section of our Area comp (Area 22 being the furthest away Area from the champs, they would never get enough entries for qualifiers to run a comp if they didn't run a non-qualifying section as well - it's a 2 day drive!), but it very quickly looked like we were jinxed and not meant to be there. Firstly, our original lift fell through. Thankfully, a friend from my yard was stabling there overnight from the jumping day, so she said she could bring us back if we got a lift down. Found a lift down (a lovely friend), but then yard friend decided to withdraw, so no way of getting home. Another friend offered to pick us up, only to discover her trailer was broken on receiving it back from someone who had borrowed it.

I gave up and emailed our team manager with my withdrawal, and went down to write for the style jumping judge on the Saturday. Whilst down there, our club chairman told me she could pick Geoff up on the way down in her lorry if he didn't mind travelling very early with the dressage arenas in beside him... so suddenly I had to learn two tests and clean my horse and tack!!!

Arriving at 5am on the Sunday, Geoff had lost a shoe. There was an on-call farrier, but even after trekking around the field there was no sign of the shoe. Thankfully, the punctured sole Geoff had last month was the same foot, so I had a spare shoe fitted for that foot in my tack box... so despite everything piling up against us we did get there and have four shoes in the end!!!

We had originally entered the Novice Riding Test and the Novice 24 dressage, but with teams being shuffled around due to drop-outs, I ended up an individual for the riding test, and asked to do prelim 12 instead for the team. I was a bit apprehensive about the prelim, as Geoff has decided prelim is boring, and invents impressive Spanish Riding School-esque movements to spice them up, but we were prepared and ever hopeful.

I maybe hadn't quite taken into account that Geoff gets a bit excitable on grass. We always do dressage on a surface, and at parties on grass we usually jump, and with the atmosphere at the Areas (people from as far north as Caithness and Shetland, and south as Fife, so a pretty big party) he was BUZZING and as a sharp as a tack. I took a deep breath and made him canter around for a while, which did take the edge off. I'm getting better at managing his dramatics! He wasn't quite relaxed and concentrating enough in the warm up, but on realising my watch was 10mins slow, I was suddenly chased into the ring for the Riding test.

Geoff at this point decided that there were monsters in the bushes at the far end, and our test slightly resembled a skittery giraffe doing Tokyo Drift. Whilst it was very much damage control, there were two big positives: firstly, the medium trot, which normally is either non-existent or breaks - the second medium I really felt him engage his hocks and give me some lengthening, so was over the moon. Also the downwards transitions form canter, which often can be a bit floppy, have improved enormously since I've stopped collapsing through my abdomen. Judge's comments essentially said 'TOO FAST' which I was TRYING to change, and commented on my wobbly hands, which due to the head tossing going on they were worse than usual - we ended up with a 57.8, which I was a bit disappointed with, but it wasn't the worst so I guess that's something

. Offered to sell Geoff to the burger van man as I went past, but he didn't even want him.

Photos below - and before you laugh at how on the forehand he looks in some of them, the dressage arenas did have an incredible slope to them which we didn't really suss in the first test, so I am sticking by my opinion that that exaggerates it and make sit look worse

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

Now, I gave myself a bit longer before the dressage to warm up, deciding he WOULD be calm and listening and do a half decent test this time! So determined Khalswitz came out, and suddenly Geoff was soft, round, listening and generally very well behaved. This time we TROTTED over the arena, keeping him in front of the leg and into the hand, so he didn't have time to spook. Seemed to work - a friend of mine was calling in the next door arena, and we got a massive wink, so I'm assuming he looked ok

Geoff then went on to give me one of the sweetest feeling tests he has ever given me. He was soft, he was in front of my leg, he wasn't resistant through the bends, his transitions were sharp and felt good, and he just TRIED really hard

. I was beaming as we went round.

I think this test could have been an all-time high scorer for us, if not for something very unfortunate. All I heard was a bang, and Geoff shot out from underneath me like a shot from a cannon. On checking him afterwards, he actually over reached and gave himself a nasty cut to his fetlock as well. However I was calm and quick to react, got him back and I think we only lost one or two movements, and I was very proud of him for coming straight back to being soft and listening and working again afterwards. On leaving the arena, I was told a horse slipped in the arena next to me, landed on the boards, and tipped the old man on top onto the floor, setting off his air jacket.

So very gutted that that ruined what I suspect was probably his best ever prelim test in front of a listed judge. However it was absolutely not Geoff's fault, and we got a 'very well recovered' comment from the judge which was nice. We ended up with a 66.6%, which is I think the second best score we've had at prelim under a BD judge, so it's nothing to sniff at, but a little gutted about the mishap in the middle. We had NO comments about contact, suppleness, or being on the forehand, which are our usual top three Typical Dressage Problems, just wanted him more forward, which I'm still trying to get right as he feels way more powerful these days and I have to suss out how forward to ride him. But it was funny, pretty much the opposite comments from the first test of the day!!!

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384624826&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384625426&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384625826&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384627226&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384627426&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384627626&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384627826&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

http://www.stephenhammondphotography.co.uk/?Action=VF&id=1384629226&ppp=0&ppwd=31497hpk

In the end we didn't place individually with either of our tests, but our Prelim dressage team did get a team 4th (with our score being the 2nd highest of the team). So we did come home with a frilly after all for our lovely dressage test which was nice

. I did find out there were 77 individual riders riding the Prelim 12, so to come 16th individually and team 4th wasn't too bad!

And a huge, huge well done to the clever boy who stood for around 13 hours on a lorry. We got picked up at 6.30am, rode between 10.30 and 12.30, for him to stay on the lorry til we arrived home again at 9.30pm (being with the chairman meant we were first there and last away!). And he just stood there, eating hay and sleeping whilst I wrote for judges in the afternoon. He impressed EVERYONE, and deserved his big dinner when he got home. What a star.

So we have two combined trainings coming up this month, as well as two SJ nights, so will have lots of reporting to do again soon after our long break

.

Crumpets and apple juice on offer for reading.

Lolo · 9 July 2014

Well done! 66% at an area competition is seriously nothing to be sniffed at, so happy for you

It sounds like things are on the up and up for you both, and he looks so well and so much more relaxed in the photos you posted. He doesn't look worried now, just a bit wary at times. Next year you'll blow the competition out the water!

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

Lolo said:
Well done! 66% at an area competition is seriously nothing to be sniffed at, so happy for you

It sounds like things are on the up and up for you both, and he looks so well and so much more relaxed in the photos you posted. He doesn't look worried now, just a bit wary at times. Next year you'll blow the competition out the water!

It felt absolutely awesome - certainly the most rideable he has been in a ring. He normally gets good marks in his walk work, but to have equal marks in his canter to trot transitions and his final halt was great. I just need to push it all forward a bit more whilst keeping the same feeling.

Glad to hear you see a difference - I'm not always sure, and the photos never look quite as good as it feels! But was just so chuffed with his really rideable attitude - and like you say, he definitely feels more confident, and knows his job now. It's got me keen for more dressage

and very keen for finally getting him eventing next month!

longdog · 9 July 2014

Well done, I am in awe of all with ex-racers who can produce a half decent test & yours looked much better than half decent! Lovely horse

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

longdog said:
Well done, I am in awe of all with ex-racers who can produce a half decent test & yours looked much better than half decent! Lovely horse

Thank you

I was just over the moon with him

you might not have said that watching the first test though!!

Britestar · 9 July 2014

Haha, don't think Mr B would appreciate being called an old man!! Lol.

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

Britestar said:
Haha, don't think Mr B would appreciate being called an old man!! Lol.

*Blush* sorry!!!! I should maybe have phrased that better... I am 22 so 'old' is a relative term!!! Is he ok? Julie said all was fine but he had been a bit winded?

Britestar · 9 July 2014

I'm sure he is fine. I wasn't there Sunday, but if I'm still doing as much as he is when I get to his age I'll be well chuffed!
Did you see the amazing riding test score in the Novice?

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

Britestar said:
I'm sure he is fine. I wasn't there Sunday, but if I'm still doing as much as he is when I get to his age I'll be well chuffed!
Did you see the amazing riding test score in the Novice?

Yeah, to be honest I would be as well! I already have a bad hip, so I doubt I will still be physically capable of riding by then unless I become part bionic... From what I heard he was really unlucky, horse looked to be going lovely but just slipped (the grass was pretty slippy between showers).

Yes I did. It was awesome! Made our attempt look even more ridiculously bad... I was writing for the N30 and N24 in the afternoon too and the standard was just so high. The judges were being tough too, as they said no point making them feel too complacent when they're trying to qualify. I actually wrote for the riding test judge on the Saturday during the style jumping, and she was super harsh (albeit fair), so for that lassie to get a 98 was even more impressive.

Britestar · 9 July 2014

I reckon 98% had to be a record. She got three 10's and two 9.5's.
She's a friend of mine. Super chuffed. She's away to frame it.
Zara was firm but fair in style.

khalswitz · 9 July 2014

Britestar said:
I reckon 98% had to be a record. She got three 10's and two 9.5's.
She's a friend of mine. Super chuffed. She's away to frame it.
Zara was firm but fair in style.

I'm sure it must be. Zara said she's never marked like that at Nationals let alone Areas before. Massive well done to your friend!!

I actually really liked Zara - I learned tons wiring for her, she pointed everything out, and explained what different riders could do to improve and why they got the reactions they did from their horses. But whilst she was totally fair in everything she said, she was far from a lenient judge, so your friend should be extra chuffed!!! I would frame it too I think!!!

Geoff Update: Area 22 Dressage!

khalswitz

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