Amye
Well-Known Member
I've never posted in this section before, and probably won't have much cause to in the future as we're not very ambitious 
(feel a bit silly now with you lot doing fantastic in dressage/eventing reports)
A TREC trainer had arranged to come to our yard for some training sessions for newbies and the more experienced.
I'd signed me and J up for it for some fun as we'd done a similar session in Jan 2016 and he'd been ok at it all (no expectations as i'd only had him 5 months then!).
It was also a chance for J to redeem himself after his little gallop off with my mother on Saturday morning! Long story short - Girl had got off to do a gate in our fields as we were walking around the edge towards the gate (me on foot, mum on J) and her horse spooked or something, she lost hold and horse comes galloping towards us. I honestly had no clue how J would react! J either though: 'cr*p i'd better run away too' or 'this looks like fun!', turned around and off he went with mum on board and the runaway horse in tow (I've never seen him move so fast!). Mum managed to stop J when he got into the second field and the other horse overtook, I couldn't see either of them as there's a little corner and panicked. But all was ok! Runaway horse was captured, her owner mortified at what had happened and we carried on with our hack.
Back to TREC...
All in all it went OK. J was a good boy as always and if anything I let him down with getting flustered and a bit flappy as I wanted to do well and have a go at everything.
The indoor isn't a massive arena so not loads of room. We weren't great at the bending, we can do the poles in trot but canter we struggle with. I HAVE done bending poles in canter with him before and he can do it nicely, but I think it's easier for him to have a run up to get his canter balanced and in this arena it was a sharp turn and then the poles so no run up.
The S bend was terrible like last time, he can *almost* do it but he's long and I think i don't help as I can't work out when to ask him to turn
. I think it's probably me not asking right as I'm sure he could do it. We practiced a few times at this but I think he got fed up at the end as he just started walking all over it.
The rest were OK, he'll walk over anything without hesitation so the ditch/footbridge/water (tarpaulin) he has no problems with. The corridor we managed once in canter but, again due to the arena size, this was off a sharp turn and (my fault) we weren't always lined up so had to stick to trot. We also did the low branches in canter (once) which I was pleased with - and he ducks his head for it too bless him. Rein-back we also did quite well and neck-reining too.
We did a little course at the end and that was OK. Corridor and low-branches were after each other and I got a bit flappy trying to get him to canter quickly after the reinback, and keep straight into the corridor, he still did them fine in trot but looked a bit messy and I got a bit flustered! S bend wasn't great (but he was fed up with that by then). The rest of the course went well though.
Some positive points but definitely things to work on! I've signed up for a level 1 competition in April so we need to practice.
Oh we ALSO got a new saddle on Friday so it was a good bit of testing.. New saddle is SO comfy!!
It did remind me how much I love my horse though, this winter he really has come into his own and he's been so brilliant. He's been the best first horse, kept me on my toes at times, but looked after me and now it feels like he trusts me and we're a team
Few fuzzy pictures my OH took
And little one of mum and J on their hack post-gallop
Cookies to everyone who got this far! Don't normally have much to report on and didn't realise it was so long
(feel a bit silly now with you lot doing fantastic in dressage/eventing reports)A TREC trainer had arranged to come to our yard for some training sessions for newbies and the more experienced.
I'd signed me and J up for it for some fun as we'd done a similar session in Jan 2016 and he'd been ok at it all (no expectations as i'd only had him 5 months then!).
It was also a chance for J to redeem himself after his little gallop off with my mother on Saturday morning! Long story short - Girl had got off to do a gate in our fields as we were walking around the edge towards the gate (me on foot, mum on J) and her horse spooked or something, she lost hold and horse comes galloping towards us. I honestly had no clue how J would react! J either though: 'cr*p i'd better run away too' or 'this looks like fun!', turned around and off he went with mum on board and the runaway horse in tow (I've never seen him move so fast!). Mum managed to stop J when he got into the second field and the other horse overtook, I couldn't see either of them as there's a little corner and panicked. But all was ok! Runaway horse was captured, her owner mortified at what had happened and we carried on with our hack.
Back to TREC...
All in all it went OK. J was a good boy as always and if anything I let him down with getting flustered and a bit flappy as I wanted to do well and have a go at everything.
The indoor isn't a massive arena so not loads of room. We weren't great at the bending, we can do the poles in trot but canter we struggle with. I HAVE done bending poles in canter with him before and he can do it nicely, but I think it's easier for him to have a run up to get his canter balanced and in this arena it was a sharp turn and then the poles so no run up.
The S bend was terrible like last time, he can *almost* do it but he's long and I think i don't help as I can't work out when to ask him to turn
. I think it's probably me not asking right as I'm sure he could do it. We practiced a few times at this but I think he got fed up at the end as he just started walking all over it. The rest were OK, he'll walk over anything without hesitation so the ditch/footbridge/water (tarpaulin) he has no problems with. The corridor we managed once in canter but, again due to the arena size, this was off a sharp turn and (my fault) we weren't always lined up so had to stick to trot. We also did the low branches in canter (once) which I was pleased with - and he ducks his head for it too bless him. Rein-back we also did quite well and neck-reining too.
We did a little course at the end and that was OK. Corridor and low-branches were after each other and I got a bit flappy trying to get him to canter quickly after the reinback, and keep straight into the corridor, he still did them fine in trot but looked a bit messy and I got a bit flustered! S bend wasn't great (but he was fed up with that by then). The rest of the course went well though.
Some positive points but definitely things to work on! I've signed up for a level 1 competition in April so we need to practice.
Oh we ALSO got a new saddle on Friday so it was a good bit of testing.. New saddle is SO comfy!!
It did remind me how much I love my horse though, this winter he really has come into his own and he's been so brilliant. He's been the best first horse, kept me on my toes at times, but looked after me and now it feels like he trusts me and we're a team
Few fuzzy pictures my OH took
And little one of mum and J on their hack post-gallop
Cookies to everyone who got this far! Don't normally have much to report on and didn't realise it was so long
