Road to Aintree National Amateur SJ Champs

[Ample Prosecco]

I’ve had a funny couple of weeks and riding has taken a backseat, with Lottie mainly hacking. She’s been regularly ridden but I’ve not had the time or inclination to plan anything. So I’ve just bimbled.

And then today I woke up and realised Aintree is 2 weeks away! I’ve booked a stable for the duration and am competing every day in a variety of fun classes and qualifiers. It’s my first stay away show since Weston Lawns years ago which I hated! But I was hopelessly overwhelmed by the atmosphere back then, and Amber was a nightmare. I have a lot more experience of collecting rings and Lottie is a lot more sane. I do feel very in at the deep-end though.I’m there for a week! With no hookup, so praying for mild weather.

Anyway I figured I’d better do some jumping!

I can’t see the point of aiming for safe clears. Steady clears won’t be enough to progress anyway so I might as well take risks and trim the track as much as I feel I can. So today was jump off practice. Lottie was fab. She’s such a great horse. So, so lucky.

I’m entered into fancy dress pairs going as a zebra. I have a zebra onesie to wear but want to paint stripes on Lottie. Anyone happen to know what paint Horses Inside Out use when they are painting anatomy?

Pics just because…

 

[tinselbobs]

I have no advice but I’m looking forward to hearing all about Aintree!

 

[COldNag]

Good luck!

I have used bog standard facepaints (Snazaroo usually) for horsey fancy dress before.

 

[Maddie Moo]

I use water based children’s paint for painting anatomy onto horses, I’ve found Crayola the best paint but as long as it’s water based, it just rinses straight off!

 

[photo_jo]

I turned a horse into shere khan using children’s poster paints

 

[ycbm]

I turned a horse into shere khan using children’s poster paints

We have to see a photo of that!
.

 

[humblepie]

Fab. Aintree is the easiest place to do a stay away other than a long walk from stables to arena. Everything is there in the stable block, it’s immaculate and stable team amazing. I did a one night at Weston Lawns and was disappointed in the place. May have been unlucky but it was really untidy overflowing bins etc. Look forward to your reports. Aintree is definitely the best .

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Mega learning zone lesson....

This week I have very definitely been in the learning zone! My learning zone used to be rhythm, steering and control, and all my rounds were a bit scrappy because my canter quality was not good enough and Lottie was not rideable enough. I have put in loads of work on that, and now I can usually pop around a course in a nice rhythm, and get to the fences more or less in an ok place, and with a good enough canter to get over safely.

It would be very nice to stay there and enjoy riding rounds that feel flowing and easy! But with Aintree so soon, I want to try and up my game. Initially I was so surprised and excited just to be there, that aiming for steady clears seemed the obvious choice. I was not planning on trying to be competitive. But why not? Lottie is ace, and if I take risks, and have a bit of luck on the day, who knows what we can pull out! Plus, I’d rather be unplaced with faults, having ridden an attacking round, than unplaced with a safe clear. So I have nothing to lose by riding to win!

My new limiters are: tight turns on the right rein, sighting fences quickly enough, stopping Lottie locking onto the wrong fence in twistier courses, riding on a forward stride to the fence, steering after fences, and establishing changes quickly enough. My fab RI set up a route with ALL of those challenges. Which made the lesson an exercise is messing up over and over again. Including a near decking – sadly not on film.
We were in a small, spooky indoor. There were arena eventing fences set up and small gaps to steer through. The biggest challenge was coming off a tight right hand turn with just 2 strides to an upright, and landing heading straight for an arena eventing fence backwards. The gap I needed headed straight for another backwards arena eventing fence, with a tiny gap that you could not see till you were there. Technically challenging (for me) AND bloody scary! (I needed some persuading that landing LOTTIE on a straight line to a backward XC fence was not completely insane!!) Plus tight turns from the previous lesson in which the biggest challenge was stopping Lottie lokcing onto the green fence as we turned, and then turing to a biggish oxer off just 2 straight line strides.

But we did it. Eventually. Hurrah. The successful lines look easy once I did them. They really weren’t!

Most of the outtakes are not included, as my RI was too busy explaining how to ride each bit to film it. But a few problems are shown.

These will hopefully encourage other people to get ok with being a bit cr@p as you are learning! I learned more by making 20 mistakes on the way to getting it more or less right, than I would have done if I had just ridden a nice course with nice lines. The Learning Zone is uncomfortable, but it is well worth taking a deep breath and just tolerating being there some of the time.

This could also go in the Safe Place To Mess up thread. I am a big believer in calmly accepting it does not always look pretty!

10 days to go....... Eeek

 

[ihatework]

So much improvement well done.
Half a gear up and moving forwards to those fences and the slightly off strides will disappear in the first video

 

[RachelFerd]

Agree with @ihatework - think those videos are showing a big improvement from where you were a few months back

 

[MagicMelon]

Only reason for a safe clear in a jump off is if you're last to go and nobody else is clear, good to get someone to watch the class and they can update you before you go in. Good luck!

 

[Red-1]

Those videos are a world apart from previous ones!

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Thank-you for kind comments! I am at that slightly frustrating place of sometimes riding well and sometimes riding like a total muppet and not really sure what I am doing differently. Whe I am riding better, the fences magically apear on lovely strides and Lottie feels soft and rideable. When I'm not, they don't and it gets a bit scrappy again. I know that this will become more consistent over time as I ingrain new learning, but I'm not quite there yet. I will get there! Less than a week to go...... First class is next Tuesday.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Had my final tune up jump. Have chosen my 'pre-comp-get-in-the -zone' music: 'Nothings going to break my stride'.

Got gas and water sorted in the lorry. Got feed and hay sorted and in the lorry. It is all feeling very real now.

And here is my final video to watch before I go in and channel the feel of. It's obviously not gonna be perfect - I'm a total amateur and this is a whole new world for me - but it's as well as I can ride right now, so if I can recreate that forward, flowing feel and those last few turns in competition I will be delighted. And if Lottie keeps them all up too - well that would be pretty amazing!

 

[Squeak]

Looking good AE. Is the champs this weekend?

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Hi it is Monday-Sunday next week. First class is Tuesday morning. Travelling up on Monday.

 

[oldie48]

Have a great time! You look so happy on Lottie, she really suits you.

 

[AmyMay]

Good luck

 

[Kunoichi73]

Good luck!

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Have a great time! You look so happy on Lottie, she really suits you.

I have to pinch myself sometimes at how well it worked out. Lottie was my final throw of the dice after Scarlett (loan horse) failed the vetting and Toby and I weren’t very compatible. Never dreamed I’d stumble on another horse I could love as much as Amber x

 

[TPO]

Good luck for Aintree x

 

[Ample Prosecco]

I’m here! Came early to avoid the windier part of the day. Lottie is not settled at all. Flappy temporary stables, jcb’s everywhere beeping. Bars over stable door so she can’t look out. Keeps rearing to try and look over the door. . Not high and not dangerous - but just wanting to see what’s going on.

She’s happy to see me but then seems to be trying to tell me to get her out of there. Circling and pawing. Gets more stressed when I go. But I’ve had sneak peeks and she does settle after a few minutes and is calmest of all left alone.

So I think she will be ok. I just wish they would build these stables with a bit more horse welfare in mind
Why have bars up?!

I’ll book the permanent ones next time - if there is a next time!

 

[suebou]

It’ll be great! You can ride in the small area by stables, hack to arena in front of the grandstands and maybe even ride on the track…..it was a brilliant experience when we went but very competitive! Professionally and beautifully run with use of grooms area for tea and coffee and the wash box, sauna too! Food and drink whenever you want from on site facilities. Fingers crossed weather is kind to you.
say hi to Di, one of the course builders from Sue

 

[humblepie]

That is a shame you haven't got one of the permanent stables as they don't have grills and if you are lucky you get a famous one. We had Red Rum/Ballabriggs/Amberleigh House's stable on year.

 

[j1ffy]

I’m here! Came early to avoid the windier part of the day. Lottie is not settled at all. Flappy temporary stables, jcb’s everywhere beeping. Bars over stable door so she can’t look out. Keeps rearing to try and look over the door. . Not high and not dangerous - but just wanting to see what’s going on.

She’s happy to see me but then seems to be trying to tell me to get her out of there. Circling and pawing. Gets more stressed when I go. But I’ve had sneak peeks and she does settle after a few minutes and is calmest of all left alone.

So I think she will be ok. I just wish they would build these stables with a bit more horse welfare in mind
Why have bars up?!

I’ll book the permanent ones next time - if there is a next time!

Bless her, it's not the weather for temp stables Can you get her out and working? She might settle once she realises there's a job to do!

 

[vhf]

GOOD LUCK!!But most of all, have a blast on behalf of those who are riding with you in spirit...

 

[Bradsmum]

Good luck.

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Bless her, it's not the weather for temp stables Can you get her out and working? She might settle once she realises there's a job to do!

They have banned riding till the wind drops. But we’ve all been evacuated as some stables were coming down . I’ll post some video of my awesome horse calmly munching hay in the maelstrom just before the order t evacuate was given

 

[Ample Prosecco]

Those look like laughing emojis. They are meant to be shock faces. I’m hand grazing now but that’s not great either because debris is flying around

 

[TPO]

Stay safe x