Competition

Dressage Day

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Yesterday Galahad and I were at another dressage competition.  As it was a small, friendly event we had a go at doing two Prelim level tests – we normally do one Intro and one Prelim.

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Always correctly attired!

Cantering is not our strong point – Galahad’s weaker hindquarters makes it hard for him, especially picking up the correct lead on the right rein.  However, it is good to push yourselves a bit and I thought we were up to it.

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Galahad felt pretty relaxed in the warm up which was a good sign after our last outing.  Something spooked him just as we were entering the indoor arena though so we shot in at ninety miles an hour and it took him a while to settle again.  I did for a minute think we would have a repeat of last time but once we got going he went really nicely.

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It only took two attempts to get the correct lead on the right rein but I was so focused on that I muddled myself a little and cantered our circle in the wrong place.  Other than that it was a nice test though.  We scored 62% – which for us is good at Prelim level – and came in fourth.

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Our second test was better navigationally and felt really good to ride too.  It took us three goes to get the right canter lead but otherwise I was very pleased with it.  Our score was 64.8% which gave us sixth place.  Both tests got us some nice comments from the judge but as ever we need to work on getting Galahad responding better to my leg and covering the ground more.  We seem to have managed to crack the straightness issues we had so I’m sure this will come in time as well.

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Mainly though, I was pleased with how relaxed and calm he was.  It made for a lovely day overall and the dressage classes were almost incidental.

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It was an odd thing for us though to be competing later in the day.  Most of the time I am hanging about after my classes but this time Galahad was loaded back onto the lorry almost as soon as we finished.

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Partly that was to keep the ponies warm – the wind was a little chilly – but it was also the end of the day.  Once the ponies were loaded there was only one test left to watch.  It made me feel very grown up!

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It was a great day which has given me a lot of confidence that if we work hard we can improve and do even better in the future.  Definitely something to work towards!

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Waiting for our turn (with my Dad as groom!)

 

Full of Beans

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Sunday was a beautiful day sandwiched between many days of rain, for which we were very grateful!  Well before it was light the yard was a hive of activity with ponies being brushed and plaited left right and centre.  Of course, as Galahad and Cookster are native ponies, we don’t have to worry about plaiting which saves a lot of time.  Although, I did quite enjoy it when I had to do it.

We arrived in plenty of time but had some confusion with the parking so my warm up was a bit shorter than I would have liked.   Galahad felt pretty good though and I was fairly confident when we went into the arena.

We walked around the arena once before Galahad decided that he would really rather be outside with Cookster and started cantering towards the gate.  The only show he had ever been to been to with Cookster before this was a cross country event so, although he felt a bit wound up in the warm up there, it really didn’t matter once we started as I could let him run.  It turns out it’s a bit trickier when you are trying to do a walk-trot dressage test!

Of course, it didn’t help that this time Galahad could actually hear Cookster calling him.  They were both incredibly noisy – so much so that I didn’t hear the judge telling me I could start.  We ended up doing the worst test of my life.  Galahad never really relaxed,  we  cantered several times and our steering left a lot to be desired.

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My sister was waiting outside and our instructor told her Galahad was being a toad.  He was – he can do a very nice test – but it was also a learning experience for both of us.  I learnt that Galahad needs much more time to settle when Cookster is there!

As soon as we finished I took Galahad as far from the arena as I could as I didn’t want to wind Cookster up if I could help it.  It was just as well – Galahad was still calling and was extremely loud and shrill.

The judge evidently did not notice me leaving – she finished writing her comments, looked up and demanded the next competitor, even though my sister had already said hello to her.  I suppose one Exmoor does look very much like another!  Cookster and my sister did a very nice test and managed to come seventh.  Unsurprisingly Galahad and I came last but the judge did commend me for keeping my composure.

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We had a much better warm up for the pairs test, although when we practised passing each other the ponies were still calling.  The test itself went very well – they worked together much better than they had been.  We could ride much closer together than before as well.  The sections where we had to work apart were still the best though – at some points the ponies’ steps were pretty much in sync and most of our crossings were spot on.  There was just one where we were too much of a mirror image and my sister had to walk to avoid a collision.  I was very pleased with the overall test though, especially as it was our first attempt.  We managed a  fifth in that class which I thought was pretty good.

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I spent the rest of the afternoon wrapped in blankets writing for the judge.   It was absolutely freezing but it is a job I quite enjoy as you can learn a lot from it.  Plus it meant that I got free hot chocolate and cake which was very welcome!

Galahad and I may not have had the best of starts to the day but overall I think it went reasonably well.  Cookster was amazing though and I was so proud of him.

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Championship Pony!

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I have written before about the dressage tests Galahad and I did for BHS Somerset’s online competition over the summer.  As we had two scores over 64% we qualified for the championship in October – quite an achievement for us!

I  was very aware that the main comments we had for our previous tests were that Galahad needed to be more forward so I was really focusing on that for this test.  I struggled to get him bending to the right but at least he wasn’t feeling sluggish.   In fact, he felt far too rushed from on top.

When I watched the film back, however, it didn’t look rushed at all – clearly I have got too used to Galahad’s usual pace so that the right energy feels too much!

My score sheet just came through along with a lovely rosette and the best score we have ever received.  We actually got the same score as the rider in fourth place but didn’t do so well in the collective marks.

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We got some wonderful comments from the judge and it was a great way to end the season.  We will definitely be taking part again next year!

Dressage Progress

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Galahad and I recently did another online dressage test.   Recording it was fun – the first day I tried it absolutely poured down with rain and there was no way I could record in that!

The next time we tried my Dad – who was filming – was half hidden in shadow so Galahad felt the need to spook every time he went near him.  That was no good either.

Eventually I managed to get a decent test two days before the closing date.  Galahad was a bit more forward than last time – although there is still room for improvement  – and was only slightly spooky.

He is still a bit stiff on the right rein but he actually feels much better than he used to and I am very pleased with his progress.

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Our score sheet arrived last week and although we did not get a rosette this time our score showed some improvement which I would class as a success.

Trying New Things

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Last month I decided it was about time I entered an online dressage competition.  I have been meaning to do so for ages and I was given the arena markers way back in March.

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I picked the event run by BHS Somerset but didn’t manage to film my test until the day before the deadline.  In fact it was the evening before, the light was fading fast and the camera really struggled with the dark – it kept going in and out of focus.  I wasn’t overly happy with the test – Galahad felt very sluggish – and I was debating whether to film again the next day.  However,  I wasn’t quite sure whether entering before the deadline meant entries on the day would count or not.  I decided to just enter and hope for the best.

At 11.30pm I set the video to upload but I had forgotten how long that would take.  I  sat up as long as I could but in the end I had to give up and go to bed.  It was just as well – it finally finished at about seven the next morning!

I had almost forgotten about it when last week this wonderful parcel arrived.

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I thought the judge was very kind to us and I love what she said about Galahad at the end.  Most of her comments were about needing to get him going forward more which I would definitely agree with!

It was a great experience and I will be entering again next month.   I will try to be more organised next time though!

Making Progress

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Last Sunday Galahad and I went to a jump-cross challenge competition – a round of show jumping followed by a cross country course.  Given our last cross country outing had involved a lot of stops I was feeling a little apprehensive.  However, Galahad was jumping very well in training (barring some braking issues).  That and the fact that his back was probably a bit sore last time gave me some reason to hope we would manage better this time.

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We entered the 50cm class and the show jumping went pretty well.  We had one stop – I still don’t know why – but the rest of the round felt really good and back up to our normal level.  We made our way to the cross country course and actually managed to get over the first fence at the the first attempt.  That was much better than last time – as you can hear if you watch to the end of the video and listen very carefully!

In fact, the whole course was miles better than last time.  It was almost the same course and the only fences we stopped at were the quarry (which we had previously only jumped with a lead in the pairs class) and the chair (which was the fence we had to miss out last time).  Everything else we just flew over.  I was enjoying it, Galahad was enjoying it and it was so much fun.

We had too many stops to place in the cross country or the combined competition but as the show jumping was split into senior and junior riders we managed a fourth place for that which was very welcome.

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We also entered the show jumping section of the 65cm class.  Galahad felt even better and I was much more confident.  I did however completely misjudge the turn into the double and presented Galahad with a horrible angle at one of the widest fences on the course.  I was convinced he would either stop or just crash through it.  He did hesitate slightly but popped over it and the second part of the double with no problem at all.

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We did knock one fence down but in a completely unrelated incident.  We claimed fifth place in that class which felt very good indeed.

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It was good to feel that Galahad was enjoying his jumping – the rosettes were a bonus and we had a fantastic day.

TREC Winter Awards Show

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For once we had a glorious day for our trec competition on Sunday.  It certainly helped bring a cheerful atmosphere to the final event of the winter season.  Although I wasn’t so sure when I saw these little people in the arena!

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They had a tarpaulin right behind them and I was sure Galahad was not going to like them one bit.  I was watching all the in hand competitors walking their course and bemoaning the fact that I hadn’t entered – at least then he would have got a chance to see them before I rode him at them.  I was told I was welcome to enter as someone had pulled out.  I jumped at the chance!

I hadn’t done a full in hand class before so my brain wasn’t really engaged.  I forgot I was meant to be walking as quickly as possible until we were halfway through the control of paces section and I completely forgot I could trot under the low branches.  I was really treating it as extra training for the ridden class.  I did notice that without me riding Galahad negotiated the s-bend with no trouble at all.  Clearly all our problems lie with my dodgy aids when riding!

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Photo credit: Rosie Squires

It was good fun though and I was pleased with how relaxed Galahad was  – he even walked straight past the gnomes with no trouble.   That did get us my favourite ever comment on the score sheet – ‘Slight gnome tension.’

I wasn’t expecting to place well at all as the other competitors had been doing this class many times over the winter.  However, my name kept not being called and we ended up winning.  It was a bit embarrassing really but obviously I was thrilled.  It was completely down to Galahad being sensible.

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Photo credit: Rosie Squires

We then went straight into our individual ridden class.  There were only two entries in this but I knew the others were more than capable of beating us.  The control of paces went well – hopefully we have cracked that now – but the first ridden obstacle was bending.  Galahad went round the first two posts and then just charged past the rest. Not a good start. The rest of the course felt a bit messy and worst of all was the immobility.  We have never scored less than a ten for that but on Sunday he only stood still for six seconds.  It was just one of those days.  On the bright side the gnomes were not an issue at all.

The gate was still a problem though – we didn’t even manage to open it.  We did show an improvement as Galahad would actually stand next to it this time. Baby steps.

 We went a little better in the pairs class.  The gate was still an issue but the immobility was back on track and we managed to do the bending properly.  It wasn’t pretty  – we had some very wide turns – but we did complete it with no mishap.

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Photo credit: Rosie Squires

The prize giving was again a bit of a surprise.  We were the only entry in the pairs class so we were expecting to win that (our first sash!) but we had also just managed to scrape the prize in the individual class.  We got a trophy for that one. Galahad stood like a rock and let our rosette and trophy be handed up to me.  I was incredibly proud of him but I got off before we received the sash.  That would have been pushing it too far!

Not only that, as this was the final event of the season the league prizes were presented and we were reserve champion in the novice rider class.  At the beginning of the season that was such an unlikely event that I didn’t even consider it.  We have worked hard though and the improvement in Galahad has been amazing.  I am so proud of how far he has come.

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Intrepid Treccing

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On Sunday Galahad and I had another trec event.  Most events in our area were cancelled – it was blowing a gale and pouring with rain (and sleet and hail).  We are pretty tough though so our event went ahead.   Luckily it was so windy that although the showers were very heavy they blew over pretty quickly.

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First of all we had a great lesson.  Galahad went over all the obstacles with no trouble at all.  The only issue we had was a group of scary people watching us.  We had a bit of an argument about whether to go past them.  Eventually I won – apparently he had a hilarious expression on his face when he realised he wasn’t going to get away with it.

We then had our individual class and Galahad was again really good.  Our main problem was that I did the neck reining obstacle in trot but got my reins in a bit of a mess and didn’t quite pull up in enough time before the next obstacle.  That happened to be the s-bend of poles which needs a bit more control than that!

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We also did not do well at the jump in hand.  Galahad was so good at it in training but I think I hadn’t given him enough space to think about it so he stopped dead before hopping over.  The judge still thought it was the best course she had seen us do though so I was very pleased.

Next we went straight into our pairs class which actually went even better.  The in hand jump was still not good – we didn’t get over it at all – but everything else was brilliant.  Galahad was a star and I was so proud of him.

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It turned out that we had managed to win both our classes.  That has never happened to us before so it was pretty exciting.  We had a fantastic day despite the weather and I am so looking forward to going again.

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Teamwork

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Galahad and I recently got another chance to compete as part of a team, this time with the riding club.  It was again teams of four with each person jumping a different height.  Obviously with my little pony I was jumping the lowest height.

The warm up was again on rather damp grass and given our mishap on our last outing I was very careful over the practise fences and didn’t come out of a trot.  We still slid into one of the jumps and Galahad was a bit wobbly trying to avoid the muddy take off spot so I didn’t over jump him.

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Our first round went very well and we whizzed round clear.  My team mates did the same so after one round we were in the lead and quite excited.

Galahad was also great in the second round but I messed it up for him.  Between fences three and four we needed to change the canter lead but I got my whip tangled in my reins and was distracted by trying to untangle it.  I didn’t even think about the leading leg until it was too late.  We had to jump off the wrong leg so Galahad wasn’t well balanced and we knocked the fence down.

It was such a silly mistake and it really wasn’t necessary to untangle my whip – I felt pretty bad about letting both Galahad and my team down.  The next two members of my team both got four faults as well and the last got twelve.  We ended up eighth out of ten which wasn’t bad but was rather disappointing after our good start!

Part of a Team

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Galahad and I have made our debut as part of a team!  It was incredibly exciting as I haven’t been on a riding team since I left university and Galahad never has.  I was nervous I would completely mess up – not on my own account but I did not want to let my team down.

The day didn’t have the best of starts as the warm up fence was on grass and it had been raining.  Galahad was jumping well but slipped over just after landing and we both ended up on the floor and pretty muddy.  Luckily neither of us was hurt and after getting the worst of the mud off Galahad we were ready to go again.  I was a little concerned he would have lost his confidence but he popped back over the fence with no problem and we were all set.

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I needn’t have worried at all – Galahad was a star and flew round the course clear.  Each team member jumped a different height and had two rounds – the second against the clock.  Our practise over angled fences gave me the confidence to push Galahad a bit harder in the timed round and again Galahad was super and flew round. I could not be more pleased with him.

We ended up coming second in the class and were only beaten by a boy on another team from my yard which wasn’t so bad.  Apparently there wasn’t much between us time wise and I was absolutely thrilled (the fact that I had done well for the team definitely helped with that!).

I spent the rest of the day manning the arena gate (and getting sand constantly blown into my eyes).  It was good to feel part of the team and I got to catch up  with a few friends I hadn’t seen for a while so I had a great time.

The next member of my team won her class, then the other two came tenth and eighth.  It was a very close run thing but overall as a team we came fourth which I was very pleased with as a first attempt.  We were second out of the three teams from my instructor’s yard and as we were the least experienced I thought that wasn’t bad either!

Overall I had a fantastic day and was very pleased with the way Galahad went.  He has improved so much over the last few months and I have a lot more confidence in our ability now.  It feels great to take him round a course and I can’t wait for the next time!