Hunter's Run Pony Club Camp 2014- Dressage and Flatwork

Hunter's Run Pony Club Camp 2014

Chapter 2

Dressage and Flatwork

The format of camp allows each rider to have two lessons a day with Mimi Combs. The first day begins with a lesson on the flat, mostly for Mimi to watch each rider and mount pair to evaluate their skill level. They each have to perform a warm-up routine, and then explain to Mimi what the warm-up consisted of...and why. Then they assess how the warm-up felt on the horse. Of course, the younger kids are still learning this process, but it is fun to hear them mature in their understanding of a ride. Then Mimi sends them back out again to do a bit more, ask for more. 

Youngest and SonnyG. have a trot with McKenna and Starz behind.

Starz- steppin' out!

During the week, they all have a dressage lesson with Mimi as well. Some riders choose to have more than one, while others choose to work over fences instead. 

 Scooter and Katie are working on lengthening his Quarter Horse frame to give him elegance.

 Savanah is just learning the canter this week. But she has a nice soft, natural seat, and had no problems with staying balanced at the canter.

 Mimi is wonderful at explaining things to the riders and helping them to work towards a well-balanced frame. Kaylee and Dakota were tasked with getting him to lower himself through the top of his body and use that powerful hindquarter to push the energy from back to front.

Anna's horse tends to travel behind the bit, squashing his shoulder movement and shortening his stride. Anna worked on getting Heath to pick up his head and lengthen the top of his neck which changed the whole picture. Once he learns to use this energy line, she can then start asking for him to push from hindquarter to poll and back to her hand.

 Nikki is not a huge fan of the dressage arena, but Kelly has worked very hard on her movement and use of her hind end and back. They did very well at USPC Championships last year in Dressage, and have added another dimension this year with elevation- Nikki has a bounce in her step! Our very own equine Benjamin Button just keeps surprising. 

 MacKenzie has some Dressage challenges in Sunny. He'd like to be a bit stiff (he is 24?) and seemed unenthralled by the idea of bending or leg yield. But MacKenzie was game, and we saw a little bit of give by the end of her lesson. 

This is our third year at camp, but the first time I've seen Mimi ride! Mrs. Holmes had asked her to get up on Fancy and give an evaluation, so up Mimi went- and got a surprise. She was startled by how much Fancy wants that big head held up, and doesn't really respond to the seat. She thought she could soften her in the front and let her go, but that just made Fancy to faster! 

Mimi on Fancy

It was another illustration on how Hannah may not be big, but she is effective.

When Middlest arrived for her Dressage lesson, Mimi said to her "Hand her over." Mimi wanted to see where the nose to the sky issue was based. Is it a physical thing? Mouth? Teeth? Soreness? Nope. None of the above. The mare wants a trustworthy outside rein, a ton of inside leg and a bend, and BOOM! No more turkey in the rain. 

Mimi on Nelle

Inspiration for Middlest to continue to strengthen her lower leg, and be a bit more demanding with her contact.

In between riding, cleaning up and eating, there is always time for an "appointment" in the salon! Kaylee wore a full crown of clover by the end. 

By the end of the week, the horses varied from a bit worn out (Starz- but the little pony does three times as much as the horses!) to ready to go out on Cross Country (Fancy. Not sure what it would take to tire her out!) But the last lessons of the day were for the kids who had chosen another go at Dressage with Mimi. 

 Listo and Val have qualified to represent our region at the USPC Championships in Dressage, and performed their musical freestyle for Mimi the last day. I had seen the same test a few weeks ago, and was greatly impressed by the changes in the pair. Val had a lighter seat and an effective leg, Listo was travelling forward and relaxed. They made it look effortless and enjoyable!

I know you can't see Hannah and Fancy's faces in this shot, but I'm just in love with this picture.Look at their alignment! The perfect bend on the circle! Hannah's lightness- even more amazing with the understanding from Mimi of how heavy Fancy is in the front. I give them a "10"!

 Rylee and Falcon also qualified for Dressage Championships, but also qualified on the Quiz team, so are going to compete in Quiz. But, they also showed off their musical freestyle to the group for fun.
And, it was fun with accompaniment from an orchestral version of Aerosmith.  

 Middlest also performed her musical freestyle to music from West Side Story, even though it was hot and dusty. For the first time that I watched it, Nellie didn't match her stride to the music and was a bit fast. Maybe we have one more ready to go back out on Cross Country! 

Appropriate as Cross Country is Chapter 3......

Hunter's Run Pony Club Camp 2014- The Cast

It was a busy week in the Cowfeathers Chronicle. Both The Fair and Hunter's Run Pony Club Camp were the same week in 2014. While this isn't exactly a tragedy, it still stinks.
The fact remains for our humble selves, being in two places simultaneously is impossible. So, Middlest and Youngest had to choose between the two. Middlest was fast out of the gate with her decision. Youngest took a while, but in the end they both chose to go with the horses.

They still did 4-H projects, but they had to complete the projects prior to the fair, and didn't show any animals. Huz and Eldest held down the fort at The Fair all week, supporting the club and cheering for the Saddle and Sirloin team. Middlest, Youngest and I headed to Twin Towers Horse Park for Camp. That sounds really simple, but in reality, getting there was tough.

My last blog about the Jimmy Wofford Clinic the days prior to camp, I left out the part about my truck having trouble on the second day drive to the clinic. I didn't think we'd make it. We did, (miracle)....and on the drive home the problems did not recur. But it comes to the point of trusting the truck. And camp means driving the camper there, then driving home, then driving back with the horses. Roughly 5 hours driving hauling precious cargo. I was undone.  We arrived home from the clinic in the mid afternoon to the problem of "How do I get a camper and two horses, all the stuff without a truck?" Rent? Hitch? UGH!

With the unbelievable generosity of friends it all worked out. I borrowed a 3500 diesel truck for the week, with trailer brakes and goose neck hitch- really. Just a simple "You can take my truck." And then next a "I'll take your camper out there for you and then come get it." from another friend. I'm going to have to do some MAJOR giving to re-balance the karma. Such blessings! I am deeply grateful.

We arrived in the early evening in time to get the camper parked and the horses set up before our first storm of the week moved in.

It was our first opportunity to thank God (and camper transporter, Terry Mike)  we were not in a tent! It brought some winds that picked up one of our campers and spun it around, blocking the door of the camper next to it, so those girls couldn't get out until we moved the camper! It also overturned a big handicap accessible porta-pottie on the grounds. Ew.

 But before we get started on the adventures of camp, how about introducing the cast!

 The Director and the Producers:

First of all, the women who make it possible. On the outside are Mrs. Holmes and Mrs. Stalter. They are the joint DC's of our Pony Club, so they are the work horses that make Pony Club possible; paperwork, organization and enthusiasm! In the center is Mimi Combs, our instructor for the week. Mimi is based in Charlottesville, Va. and comes up to instruct our camp each year. She has been a CCI**** rider, and first alternate at the '96 Olympic Games for the US.  She is incredibly in tune with the kids, their horses, and really gets the best work from each rider, gently, all while making them feel challenged and accomplished. I love listening to her instruct, as I get to learn so much too!

The Players:

 Hannah on Fancy: Hannah lost her elder statesman and experienced eventer just a few weeks ago, and managed to find Fancy and take her to a recognized event and then to camp. She qualified for USPC Championships in Eventing on this horse she had just met. Hannah is an extremely effective rider.

 

Youngest on Sonnygirl: Youngest lost his sweet pony to colic in March (this is where the theme ends!) and found Sonnygirl, picking her up May 1. She is a joy! She really likes her boy and the feeling is mutual. Although Sonnygirl knows how to do a LOT of things, she hasn't really gone many places to do them, so her generous disposition allows this pair to work nicely. 

 

 McKenna on Starz: They are also a recently matched, and well suited pair. Starz is a rescue pony, who was grossly obese just few months ago. McKenna rides her very well, and the pony is showing that she is pretty amazing, while also being A-DOOOR-ABLE. These two are always perfectly turned out, like a catalog ad.

 Kelly on Nikki: Nikki is the luckiest pony, ever. Just two years ago she was looking old and worn out. Kelly has completely restuffed her, muscled her up, given her a new lease on life and she is astonishing to see as Nikki II. She isn't exactly speedy, but they are terribly efficient, and effective.They also have qualified to compete for our region at USPC Championships in Eventing.

 Kaylee on Dakotah: This big boy is a marshmallow. Kaylee is teaching him to jump as he hasn't much experience there. He is the horse she is training to follow in the footsteps of her Haflinger pony, Zac, who is her main squeeze, but Dakotah is inching into her heart! Kaylee and Zac round out our triple team of Eventing riders who will represent Tri-State region at USPC Championships.

 

 Savanah on Ricky: I loved this picture, in a "been there, done that" way. This is day 1 of camp, and Ricky hadn't decided to listen to Savanah yet. She is a very instinctual rider, and she turned that around quickly! Savanah is the newest addition to our camp, and fit right in. She also didn't have to fight with Ricky's love of grass after we assembled grass reins for her. Which, I'll point out, were only needed for a day or so. Ricky is smart and Savanah is determined!

 Rylee on Falcon: This pair has been together for a few years, but it is this year that they've blossomed! He's a flashy pony, and Rylee has gained her confidence and rides him rather well.

 Katie on Scooter: This is their second attempt at camp with a two year hiatus while Katie gained skill and confidence on her other pony, Joey. Now she's ready for Scooter, and he has matured as well. This boy doesn't just shine- he sparkles. He likes his girl, and she rides him with softness and determination!

 Middlest on Nelle: This is the second year at camp for this pair. They have come a long way, baby, in a year and now are more ready to take on challenges.

 Val on Listo: Last year Val was still on her small pony, Snickers. This year she and Listo have begun their partnership. He is an Andalusian gelding who was a long term stallion and dressage master, who is now very happy to have a girl who loves him, rides him bare back, is teaching him to jump and isn't just doing dressage. I had a great time watching him thrive on the cross country course.

 MacKenzie on Sunny: This pair has been together for a long time. He is a beauty, but not terribly confident by nature and MacKenzie supports him very well. At age 24, he looks like a million bucks!

Anna on Heath: Anna rode at camp but was also an instructor in the barns. She brought Heath, a thoroughbred with a sketchy history. Anna is a joy to watch ride. She is quiet and correct, consistently in the right place with great judgement. Heath needs a confident rider, and he's a lucky boy, because he can't do better than Anna!

Let the story begin.....

Jimmy Wofford Clinic- Opportunity Accepted!

Big doin's for Cowfeathers. We have just returned from a week of intensive riding at camp...more in the next blog. For now, I must rewind.


The weekend before we left for camp, Middlest rode in a clinic taught by none other than the great Jimmy Wofford. (Think multiple trip Olympian, and US Eventing Coach longstanding, emeritus- in the world of Eventing, he's done it. )

Jimmy Wofford, going Cross Country, 1978

She couldn't afford the clinic, and neither could her main backers (me and Huz), but amazingly, two ladies who think highly of Middlest decided to sponsor her entry cost! I expect she will pay them back in labor and pay it forward as well, but without a doubt it was especially generous of Kara and Des. And Middlest took advantage of the opportunity.
Jimmy is not a "warm fuzzy" instructor. That isn't what he's paid to do. He gets results. I think some of the riders had a harder time than others with that, but Middlest accepted it with aplomb. Quote from day one Jimmy to Middlest "Your eyes were in 16 different places, NONE OF THEM CORRECT." Or, day two "WHERE are you going???? Look at me. Look at ME! LOOK HERE!LOOKHEREHERE  HERE!!!!!"
But she figured it out, and had a ton of fun.

The first day of the clinic began with a Q and A and a short lecture, mostly clarification of the "three point, light three point and two point seat" In this shot, Middlest had asked about working of Nelle's current head set issue, and Jimmy is explaining a following hand. "A good hand follows when a horse goes forward, takes when the horse comes back. A trained hand resists when a horse resists, and softens when the horse softens."

 The clinic was divided into three groups of 5-7 riders. Middlest and Kara were in the intermediate group.
Riders up!
The first day was in the arena, and was mostly two hours of what we call "gymnastics". This is jumping a lot of jumps in a row with different numbers of strides between fences. They are designed to work on balance, accuracy, evening the speed of stride and training the eye and the position of the rider. These exercises help in a lot of ways and are important to take out on the cross country course with you. Accuracy means you go over the jump with your horse.

The sequential photos of this gymnastic line show Jimmy riding it right through with Middlest. He's practically in the line. When I was a kid, my Dad would watch me take a bite, and he would unconciously move his mouth too, afraid the food was going to fall off my fork, he would go through the motions of the whole bite from plate to mouth. Jimmy did this with Middlest while she jumped. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not worried a bit about Kara, he just watched. 

Des rode in the last group. She is a new rider, having picked up the sport only a few years ago. She's gutsy and game. But she's also riding with 4 broken toes, courtesy of Patches, acquired only that week after another jumping lesson. A two hour jumping lesson with Jimmy was a lot to ask of those poor tootsies, and Des sat out of day two's cross country lesson.

The cross country day went really well. So, it is strange to start it out with this photo! Middlest had a bit of a direction and balance problem early in the schooling that landed her off the horse, but on her feet.  Jimmy's thoughts?                      "Don't. Fall. Off."

 

 

 

 

 The mare was doing her silly head tossing, nose in the air, like a turkey in the rain thing all through the warm up fences. Then, when they came down off a hill and over a large coop, you could see the mare realize "Hmm, maybe I should pay attention, and look where I'm going!" After that they got to business.

 If this fence seems directionally challenged, this is because the moment before takeoff is when the mare realized she had to focus a bit.

Kara's mare, Indy, loves the open jump and started showing her stuff right away. But, new things make her stop and have a look. She did NOT like the look of these barrels, but Kara rode her just right, and on time two they were over without issue. Jimmy said to those of us watching " Notice I'm not yelling anything at Kara? This is because you can't ride it any better than that, and I've nothing to say."

 Indy and Nelle coming down off the hill next to the beautiful house at Red Tail Ridge. They had just completed their first set of obstacles, with great success.

One of the challenges you face on Cross Country are ditches. Jimmy wanted to see if they would do a ditch. The answer from Indy was "I will jump it, but I'm gonna make darn sure I don't get too close!" 

 See the mare tucking up her hind feet? Just in case something is in the ditch pops out and tries to swallow her. Not a balanced jump to ride, but Kara sticks it. Your camera-lady is standing on a log. Indy's front feet are still about 2' above the ground.

Nelle is more reasonable about the ditch than Indy, but she's still not casual about it! Nice ride by Middlest though!!!

Jimmy coaches Middlest through the bank- another one of the complexes of Cross Country. 

 

 

 The biggest challenge on a Cross Country Course is often the water. Indy was pretty uncertain about jumping out of it. The water at Red Tail Ridge is deep, and black....horse-scary. But again, the second time Kara asked her, Indy took the leap!
Middlest and Nelle went right in and through and out. But, Middlest dropped a stirrup on the way into the water. After she finished the complex Jimmy said " You lost your stirrup...what happens when you drop a stirrup on cross country? You fall off. Why do riders lose a stirrup?" Middlest answered loudly back "Because they didn't keep their weight in their lower leg!" Jimmy Said "RIGHT!"
I think she's heard it before. :-)

Middlest thanks Jimmy for his time and knowledge.

The gray mares with Team Green! 

 

What a weekend!!
Now, time to go to camp.....

Pony Club Show Jump and Dressage Tri-State Region

This weekend was the first big riding competition weekend for Middlest and Youngest. It was the Tri-State Region Pony Club Show Jumping and Dressage Rallies. Middlest has been competing in this rally for 3 years, but this year was a first for Youngest. It was a challenge for me, as well. Having started the riding season rather late (lost Youngest's pony to colic in early spring, then Middlest's horse had the colossal battle with a bull gate that had her confined on stall rest for a month, and Middlest and me confined to lots of nursing care...plus Mother Nature enjoying winter so much she kept it around until summer) this competition zoomed up pretty quick! And, I haven't had two kids to prepare before. It was all great fun, mind. But in order for them to ride I have to trailer the kids and horses somewhere- our front field footing is a disaster- and my truck hasn't been, let's just say "reliable". Which has all meant a very involved preparation.
The truck quit "going forward" on the way to a Pony Club lesson 5 days before departure for the rally. Thanks to quick thinking, and a lot of effort, another Pony Club Dad, amazingly, with his mechanic, seems to have conquered the problems in the truck (well, these problems) by installing a Bullydog Chip. Beyond my current scope of understanding, I need to do some reading to comprehend the thing, but it got us to the competition and back in good order. It is a 3.5-4 hour trip on the Semi-truck saturated Interstates and a few backroads. Not an easy drive. I did some sweating on the drive, and not just because my air conditioning is kaput either. But, God did not make horsewomen short of courage or long of sense, so off we went. "We" were four Moms, driving four truck and trailer combos full of horses and children. It is always nice to have a little convoy!
My job this weekend was that of "Coach" to the two teams from our Pony Club. I enjoy this role. The kids I have to work with are each little gems, with well suited mounts, and they make my job easy by being well- prepared, smart, confident and handy little riders. That being said, it is not a relaxing job, and it left me quite chuffed to crawl into our tent and recharge at night.
Middlest and Youngest were on separate teams ( always a good idea to split up the sibs), and on arrival set to getting their mounts settled and their competition tack rooms set up and organized. Youngest made a break for the parking field before it was dark to set up our tent- thank goodness for his efficiency and  favorite saying "I'm on it!" Between Youngest and the Moms, we soon had sleeping quarters, cooking and dining areas, a place to wash and food to eat. The kids got the horses settled, (two water buckets on double snaps- snap facing wall, clean stalls, hay, fed, walked and put to bed) and we had dinner after dark. 10-ish? Then, to sleep for tomorrow is a big day. Well, I didn't quite get to sleep. Youngest and I went to check on his pony before bed, and she was anxious, weaving, whinnying, not drinking... so I stayed up with her for a while until she drank and settled. The people that spend the night at the barn to care for the horses kept an eye on her all night, which was a comfort.

 The sun was waking by 6 a.m. and so were we. The competitors to the barn to prepare for their Formal Inspections, and the Moms to our support jobs. Pony Club is unique, in that the parents are not permitted to even be in the barn area, let alone do anything for their kids. Parents are not permitted to give instruction or help, beyond helping a child in danger, or a catching up loose horse. As "Coach", I have a special dispensation. My job is to interact with the kids in a coaching capacity when they are mounted and away from the barn.  I am there to keep them safe, encouraged and to help make necessary corrections between rounds of competition. So, I got to watch from the sidelines as my own left the barn and presented themselves for Formals.

 Clean, polished, perfect. The Formal Inspection is meant to demonstrate that the rider knows how to care for their pony, tack and equipment and themselves in a way that not only keeps pony and equipment safe but also sends a polished impression. There is no scurfy skin bits in their tails. There is no dirt or dust on their tack. They are fitted perfectly and appropriately. The kids know what every piece of equipment is there to do on their pony- and why. They are judged as "Meets Standard", "Exceeds Standard" or "Does Not Meet Standard" on a host of points that get more technical as they get more experienced. Proudly, Middlest works very hard on a regular basis to meet these standards, and at her Formal, she "Exceeded Standards" in 6 separate areas! That is unheard of. Well, until now.

Then, it is through the jog-outs to demonstrate the horse's "soundness"- that they are not lame atall atall- and up on ponies! (FYI, in Pony Club, they are all "ponies" no matter how huge, and there are some really big ponies at these events! )

 Nelle and Scooter had the first rides of the day for our group. They were both fairly calm and seemed ready to get on with it. So a lot of walking, some nice loose trotting, a bit of a canter to get muscles warmed and nerves out, and into the warm-up arena.

 "Coach Cate" observes over a few warm- up fences...
And then into the arena for the first round.

At this point last year, Nelle was rearing up- too much energy to contain. This year? Calm and settled. I love progress.

 First round always has inherent challenges, and Scooter and Nelle both had positive rounds, but Nelle and Middlest miscommunicated about fence #3, and had a stop there, and Scooter and KZ had a stop and a spin at fence #3 too. I guess Scooter watched Nelle and thought that must be the scary one. Scooter is fairly new to jumping, but sooo cute and willing!

 See his face? Adorable.
They had great second rounds in this arena- Scooter just ticked a rail and it fell (which is points off) - and then it was time to go to the "Big Arena". This was a first time for one of my own to head to the big arena. Middlest and Nelle were going to try some really colorful fences and a complicated course. KZ and Scooter were also going "big".

 Meanwhile, it was time for the next set of our team to get up on their ponies. But when I got back to the warm up after course walking, Youngest was not on his pony. His pony was having a "moment". One that included behavior with no feet touching the ground. This is not typical of his pony, and not suitable for a beginner to ride, either. So, I took her into the warm-up in hand, and reminded her with a lot of ground work commands that paying attention and staying calm has benefits.

An anxious Youngest looks for teammate support as Coach Cate works to settle his pony in the background.
To test her relaxation, I put her on a lungeline and indeed, she lunged calmly (this is her going in a circle around me on a long line). So, I put my baby boy up on her back. Sometimes it is hard to be a Coach and a Mommy.

But 5 weeks after picking up this pony, and 3 weeks after jumping for the first time, they road three clear rounds, and did it with style. SO PROUD of them!

 And how adorable is this pony??? This is MZ riding "Starz", and they are a perfect little pair. They also pulled out three clear rounds, for a successful day. Easy coaching. 


And, talk about PROUD! Middlest so confidently approached the jumps in the big arena....

 She and Nelle going over fence #2 "Captain America". The sides of the jump have big cut outs of the patriotic superhero. Nelle was a big apprehensive of the Captain, but over they went!

 And over the Jungle, Sea World, Carousel Horses, Buckeye Proud.... building confidence with each fence.

 Now, they are "in it".

And pleased with their well done, clear round! Great job girls!  Scooter and KZ followed next, and had some "HOLY MOLY! You want me to jump that?" moments from Scooter, for whom this was a huge leap of faith, but they managed to finish strong. That darn Captain America was just a bit too intimidating at first.

Now, at this point I should mention all the previous photos were courtesy of Huz! He made the long trek up just to watch the kids ride for the day. And, with a long trip home yet, he departed after our own children's last ride. But there were other teammates yet to go, and go they did! With RL on her long time pal "Falcon" turning in two clear rounds, and one stop in round two, and VG on her new mount "Listo", an accomplished dressage horse who is new to jumping , gently jumped all three rounds clear!

 Eventually, all are done, ponies again clean, tack polished and ready to go for tomorrow, and a tired, happy bunch show up for the Show Jumping awards.

 First competition was a success.

 With pretty ribbons to show for it. This is their second place Horse Management award, finishing with NOT ONE PENALTY POINT ALL DAY LONG.This means for one day in Youngest's life he put things back, kept his world tidy, did not leave one sock on the floor! It can be done?

 "Do I look happy about it Mom?"

Well, he was! But he's also a silly, wonderful boy. 

 Middlest's team also incurred zero...ZERO penalty points in Horse Management for the day, also taking second in HM for their efforts, and winning third place overall. Well done, Ladies!

The Hunters Run Pony Club Team Photo for Show Jumping Rally 2014! 

 18 jumping rounds, 13 were clear, and all were well ridden. I am enormously awed by these young riders.
Way to go team! And, the green ribbon in RL's hands is her sixth place in equitation overall. Wonderful!

But, we are not done...sorry. And as long as this blog seems, the days were much, much longer.
One More Day.

With rain predicted, severe storms possible, and no Huz as Papparazzi, I was divided on whether to bring the camera down to the horse park at all. But I did. As Coach, the camera was not in my hands much, but between storms, the Moms did their best to get pictures. Thank You Moms!

 Youngest and Sunnygirl turn the corner to start their first ride.

They rode the Intro test A and Intro test B, the first two tests in the Dressage playlist, and scored very high, marking a 69.4 and a 74. 8 to start the day. This nice forward trot earned an 8!
Plus they got in both their tests before the downpour began.

 Look at that nice square final halt. Good Pony!

Middlest and KZ, on the other hand, started their warm-up dry, but a few minutes in were soaked to the bone. Both had nice warm ups, and The only thing we worked on for Middlest and Nelle were improving their canter depart, because otherwise they were ready and lookin'good!

That is where the day became...interesting. The calm, pretty pair left warm up and somewhere in between the warm up arena and the dressage arena, everything changed. The elevated trot, the back to front connection...it all disappeared, and Middlest was riding a resistant, inattentive horse whose nose pointed to the sky and body wiggled like a snake. She looked uncomfortable and irritated. Middlest kept her cool, but didn't know what to do. I couldn't blame her, having had such a nice warm up, the unexpected change would've rattled me too. But that is what it is like to ride a horse. I the scant minute between her first two rides, I tried to give her help and encouragement, but there is little you can do when you horse is really NOT cooperating.
After her rides she had a long break to groom the pony and reset the expectation for her last ride. It was her Musical Freestyle. This is an optional ride, but probably the most fun. This is where you choose music to suit your horse's gaits and personality, and create a dressage test that shows off the pair's best traits, with a few required elements. There are two judges for the Freestyle that watch from the front and from the side and score all the things you do technically, and artistically. Middlest and Nelle chose music from West Side Story. I include them both, because Middlest chose a few different options and then played them all for Nelle while riding her. It was obvious that Nelle liked the song "Cool" from West Side Story. She also like "America" from the musical, and so "Cool" was the trot music, "America" was the canter music and "Somewhere" was for her walk. Youngest and I learned how to mix music and created the soundtrack for her ride, with the correct timing for the walk, trot and canter, weaving the songs together to give them a opportunity to shine.
Middlest and Nelle worked out the test with my help, staying within the requirements, but letting them choose what to do, "dancing" with the music. They worked hard for the weeks leading up to the competition, and I know Middlest was disappointed that on the day of,  Nelle was not feeling cooperative. During their warm up for the Musical Freestyle we worked mainly on relaxing the horse. Watching her, I just felt like there was something wrong. We hadn't seen Nelle be this resistant all year. So I worked on her back, and sure enough she was back sore. Whether it was sore from her jumping the day previously, or her saddle was bothering her, or what, I think it was more than just inattention, I think she was ouchy. I worked on her back in the warm up, massaging her muscles from loin to poll and we stretched her out. Middlest decided to ride the test anyway, knowing it wouldn't be pretty, but choosing to follow through. And, you know, it wasn't bad. Middlest rode it very well, staying off the horse's back and letting her have her head instead of restricting her or fighting about it. I was deeply proud of her maturity. And, of Nelle too. You could see her trying over and over to come round and step into the bridle, but no, not comfortable, so instead, she would pick up her head and bop to the beat of the music..selling it.

 These were some of the best pictures. You can see Nelle trying to make it happen. Now we are home and will try to figure out what is hurting and why. Maybe they can perform it for just our club, one more time, and show off what they created together.

Our club had three Musical Freestyle riders,  RL on Falcon and VG on Listo put in very pretty rides with nice scores. Both of the pairs did so well throughout the day that they qualified to go to USPC Festival Championships in Kentucky to represent our region in Dressage! Congratulations to both pairs!!

With the rainy day, a 4 hour drive home and six ponies to pack up, we raced through awards and proudly brought home a first place blue and a second place red ribbon in Horse Management for the Dressage competition, with ONE point off for the entire weekend for both teams. Gulp! Fantastic! And, that one point, for a brush box left in front of a stall on the ground will likely never happen again for these kids...
they had serious vigilance to have that kind of score. Kudos to Horse Managers KS and HH. You earned it!

Overall, Youngest's team brought home a second place finish in overall dressage and Middlest's team earned fourth place.The kids had the tack rooms broken down and horses ready to load in no time, and we rolled out of the Buckeye Horse Park well before dark, making it half way home before nightfall. In our own driveway by midnight.
Truck made it there and back, thank you, thank you, Gerry Z. Bullydog and, the power of prayer.

And now to unloading, washing, drying out everything after a day out in soaking rains, oiling saddles that got wet, helmets that are still soggy. It ain't over 'til it's all put away!