First ride was basically just to knock the rust off - no worries for Charlie, he was great. Me on the other hand, not so much. I was actually a little sore which kind of surprised me; not awful but I could definitely feel a few twinges. Second ride, I was a little more insistent about asking for some bend and ensuring he was forward into the contact. I feel like we've lost a lot of ground on where we were 2 months ago. Oh well, such is life.
And today we jumped! Nothing crazy, but it was fun and I think he enjoyed it. One thing I didn't really expect out of this whole hiatus is that I think Charlie missed being ridden. I'm not going to lie - I've been a bit of a bad horse mom these last couple of weeks. I didn't really pay much attention to him (bad me!!!). I looked him over at every feeding and sprayed him with fly spray but I didn't really brush him or spend time with him and I think he missed that. I know I did.
So I promised Charlie that I wouldn't let that happen again. Even if I'm not riding, he still deserves to be pampered. The fact that he didn't buck me off after a 5+ week break is enough of a reason but when you take into account how flipping sweet he is, he definitely deserves it.
Now onto the quandary...this is something I've been contemplating for a while now. I'm kind of not into the whole eventing thing anymore. But not for the reason you probably think. I love jumping this horse and he's a blast to ride across the country but I HATE dressage. I hate riding a test! I don't mind schooling it and taking dressage lessons but I hate actually riding a test. I hate worrying about whether or not he's halting squarely, whether or not he's stays round in transitions, etc. When I stop thinking about movements in the context of the test and just ride what I feel underneath me, life is good. But when I have to think about them in the context of a test, I get very frustrated when things aren't perfect. Makes me a very bad rider. And Charlie doesn't deserve that. So I'm not entirely sure where this leaves me. I'm thinking jumper land because I love the technicality that comes with the jumpers - the more technical a course, the better I ride. But we'll see. I'm supposed to go to a schooling event in June (can we say HOT?) - I was going to use this as my move up to Novice but I'm thinking that's not such a smart idea given our recent hiatus. We'll see. I've identified myself as an event rider for so long it's a little unsettling to think of myself switching teams...
Charlie's cute face - he's so curious! Whenever I try to get a head shot, he won't just stand there. He walks toward me to check out what I'm doing.
Don't know if I've mentioned it before, but Charlie has spots! The sun is making them tough to see but he has 2 very noticeable white spots on his left butt cheek and 2 darker ones (think liver chestnut) on his right butt cheek. And yes, those are hives on his tummy from what, I don't know. Next time I think it's a good idea to get a chestnut, someone please smack me. Oh, and no more white - he has a ton of crud on his white sock legs which I've been coating with stuff. Think there's anything on the non-white legs? 'Course not.
Not a very good picture, but can you see the blimp? Charlie saw it first!
I'm being rushed off to dinner, so apologies if the editing is lacking - I promise to proof read later!
Test-riding is a skill in its own right and it's certainly something you could practice, study, and get better at, if you wanted to.
ReplyDeleteOf course, if you don't want to and/or it's not worth it to you, there's nothin' wrong with deciding to do something else instead! :)
One of the eventers at our barn just switched over to jumpers. Her horse made it very clear that while he has a ton of scope and is fine at dressage, he hates being alone out on XC. They are having a blast in the jumpers.
ReplyDeleteThe other jumper advantage is that if you fall off in one class, you just hop back on and do your next class. You aren't disqualified from the whole show.
I think that Charlie is oh so handsome. I know chrome can be a pain but he is lovely!
ReplyDeleteI have never been an evener - though I do love to school cross country and often take what I deem as baby dressage lessons - but... I did do some low level jumper classes last summer with my last horse and it was a blast! I had so much fun. I found the courses to be a lot of fun but definitely more of a challenge to memorize (coming from hunter land).
Not every discipline is right for every horse and rider combo. I have never tried to ride a test but just thinking about it makes stress out. I think that there are a lot of people might feel that way about dressage or the reverse and about jumping. I vote do whatever makes you happiest! This is after all supposed to be FUN :)