TTT Horse Trials - Day 2

The morning starts with a cross country pace. Delicious cooked breakfast, thanks to Anita's camp cooking setup. Then, within minutes, the whole camp setup is put away, and replaced by two horses happily munching on hay.

We walk the cross country course. "Which is the hardest jump?", I ask. "Well, the first one", answers Anita. "I actually think it takes about three jumps for your horse to really get going. So the first three jumps are the hardest", I add. We are standing at jump number three - the dredge. I put my foot on the edge of the boxy wooden jump. "This will be your hardest jump. Make sure you drive." The rest of the course is pretty basic. As it should be, at grade 5. Although I think the water and the slide might sort out a few combinations.

Later at the float, Anita makes a comment that it's really the dressage, which determines how you place. I've now been to enough competitions to know that's not true. "I think you will find that there will be a lot of place shuffling after both the cross country and the showjumping".

I warm up Crownie for the cross country. We do a nice walk, trot, canter and then over the cross country warm up jump. She's a touch hesitant. We do the jump again, this time following another horse. She gets a lot of confidence from this. Once more - she powers over the jump. That's what I am looking for. Attitude. And she's got plenty of it.

We're off. Crownie lacks confidence, but she gets over one and two. At three she seriously doubts herself, but I give her no options. She bangs her legs but gets over it. And from there on it just flows. At jump 7 I slow her down because I know the photographer is on the other side. She stops at the water, zig zags left and right but doesn't actually step back. We're through. She finds the slide easy, and we bound over the last two. About 30 seconds over time. What a hoot! Best 5 minutes of my life!

The showjumping round is beautiful and flows really well. Crownie gets a rail down on the double. That's fine, since she's not really up to doubles yet. But we're under time, and it rides splendidly.

Anita also has lovely rounds in cross country and showjumping. Also a rail down.

I finish 10th. Anita is 8th!!! And she gets a sash! But the best thing is, Kris wins her grade 4 division! I think we'll be opening a bottle of champagne tonight!

TTT Horse Trials - Day 1

It takes me forever and a bit to get ready, but finally the show - me, float, horse and more gear than you can imagine - are on the road. I sms my team member. She's already there and replies that it's wet, muddy and slippery. Great.

When I arrive, Wandin is buzzing. Cars, trucks, floats, horses, makeshift yards. I have no idea where my team member Anita might be, and park myself where it looks suitably dry.

There must be well over 600 people here, but somehow, within minutes I manage to find Anita, friends Kris and Jen and an assortment of other eventers that I now "know". That's a big change from last year. But my fan club of Dad and Christine aren't here this time around. Never mind. I've had a shocking week and am happy to just get ready by myself.

I gaze at Crownie, and consider plaiting. I guess I have to start at some point, Crownie is probably the right horse to start with, and the occasion sufficiently momentous. Six plaits in, and Kris comes over to show me how to saw up the plaits into bubbles. Man, she's a pro at this. The little bubbles come out looking fantastic.

Saddle up, get dressed, and start warming up. I must admit that I am nervous. After all, it was at this very same place, that 3 months ago I competed on Gally and things slowly went out of control. At least that's how I view it now. But since then I've had two very significant lessons with Mark. I apply his teachings in my warmp up, and within minutes I am at ease and focusing on how well the horse is going, rather than whether the horse is in control.

The dressage test goes well. I probably would have like a bit more relaxation, but it's done and I am relieved.

As the day crowd retreats, we put the horses in the yards, I move my car next to Anita's, just a cooee from Kris and Jen. We put up the tent in between the cars, and the bonfire in front of the tent. Perfect!

Dinner is delicious. Sleep is blissful.

Up to the bit

Most riders, once they have mastered walk, trot and canter, get curious about how to get the horse to go "on the bit".

I am currently reading Tom Roberts' other book, "Horse control and the rider", and his chapter on "on the bit" fascinates me. I think I read it twice to really get the concept, and I definitely have never had it properly explained to me in a lesson. The one person who came pretty close was Greg Smith, my showjumping instructor.

Anyway. The conept is this. The bit is like a bar hanging in space. And the horse has to be ridden up to this bar. Further more, the horse has to take the bar in its mouth, and ride up to it just that little bit closer, and hold it in space. In the right space.

Your hands just need to hold the bar in space. That's it, they do nothing more.

And your seat and leg have to ride the horse up to that bar. And quite often you may need to use a bit of sideways movement to get there.

Ah! it's so simple ... once it's explained the right way.

Tuck your seat in

A while ago I came up with the concept of tucking your seat in, and I have stuck to this dilligently in 3 point position. And it has improved my riding.

Today I take Crownie for a ride in the state forest. It's an amazing morning (see the photos below), and I am glad to be wearing my winter coat. On the way back we gallop up a track. I really let Crownie take it away, and since she's had extra feed yesterday, she pulls out some speed.

As I am sitting there in two point, feeling the powerful galloping strides, holding my legs still, I think "and what is my seat doing?"

"OMG!!! It's somewhere up in the air, dangling around like a two bun target! Tuck your seat in!", I scream at myself.

I tuck my seat in. Wow! If I have ever had any problems in cross country, or in jumping, this is where they were. My seat dangling uncontrollably out behind me, unbalancing me on take-off and landing.

Teething problems

So, how did The Flummery perform?

Well, not bad. But, now I am totally confused whether to drive with vent open or closed? Do I leave the rug on my horse or take it off? Oh the dicisions.

Then it turns out the The Flummery is longer than the old blue float that always was, and shall remain, nameless. By about 80cm! That's a lot. It still fits in the shed, but now it's tight!

The driving experience is good. Very smooth. Especially with a horse on. But oh the fuel economy! Or lack there of!

And it turns out we need a slightly different tow bar attachment to raise the float level. Hopefully that will fix our bump problem, and some of our fuel economy.

I have to repeatedly remind myself that now we don't need to do body building to lift up the tail gate, that we have a back door, and that you don't need to know special touch points to close the front door.

I am so not good at moving up in the world.

Cross country training

Time to test The Flummery.

I lead Crownie up to the float. She takes a look around. "That doesn't smell like a horse float" she seems to say. She gets on. Ploomps. "Now it does".

We're off to the local pony club to do some cross country training.

I do a solid jumping warm up in the arena, then we head out to inspect the jumps. It's very wet and boggy. The approaches to some jumps are totally waterlogged. I don't feel confident at all about the normal warm up jumps, so I take a good look around and find some nicer ones.

This pays huge dividends as I feel relaxed and confident, and as a result, so does the horse. We can do a nice canter on approach and the jumping goes well. I get a good feel about the sort of jumps she finds easy, and the ones she questions. There is the odd jump where she stops then scrambles over it. This is obviously something we need to work on, in the future.

Today we cover off the necessary basics: ditch, drop, bank, water, log, tyres, and artificial drums of an odd colour.

The Flummery

Over the last couple of weeks I have made frequent phone calls to the float makers, to check on the progression of my new float. Every time I would ring them up, my introduction would be followed by a short pause, and then "Oh yes, of course, the flummery!". Apparently the colour was "intense".

Today, the time comes to pick up "The Flummery". Check it out!

Jumping canter

Today I start off Crownie's work by lunging her first. Over trot poles, then over jumps.

I am really pleased with her work over trot poles now. It's rythmic and steady, and she's lifting her legs. Nice.

The jumping isn't so good yet. She manages to knock the pole off a few times. This will profit you not. The pole goes back on, and she jumps it. The idea of jumping her on the lunge, is so that she has a chance to work on her own balance, without any interference from me. I like to think that these days I am sufficiently balanced that I help more than interfere, but even experiencing that difference for herself is good.

Then I start riding and just do dressage. That's right. The jumping was good enough, she jumped all her final jumps, end of lesson. At least on the jumping front.

In the dressage we work on getting those hind legs underneath. Walk, halt, trot and canter. Jumping canter. The time has come to work on fitness, and that of course means canter. Lots of it. Good, quality, jumping canter. She does well, and I can see that when we are done she is genuinely tired.

Inside leg

During my last couple of rides on Gally it became really obvious to me that the inside leg does a lot more than just sit there. It asks the horse to step under with his hindqurters, it asks the horse to yield and therefore to flex. When the horse flexes, the inside leg can step under more, then more flexion can be achieved, and the horse can carry himself.

Today I test this out on Crownie, in a bid to improve her dressage. Firstly in the halt. I bend her neck with the rein and ask her to move away from my inside leg. The head goes up as she tries to walk forwards. No, this is not what I am asking for, the lowly held rein bending her neck prevents her from rushing off. It does not prevent her from walking forwards - but then she has to follow the tight circle dictated by the rein. This is not exactly what I want, but it's a good effort.

I repeat the exercise multiple times on both reins, until the hind quarters start swinging out.

Then I repeat the exercise in the walk. Walk straight 5 metres, then do a volte. Drive the volte with the inside leg. It is amazing to see that after we leave the volte, Crownie's neck remains flexed and arched for two strides. That's what we're aiming to get all the time.

Then of course I need to take this into the trot and the canter.

The Chiropractor

Jamie arrives to see Crownie. I haven't seen him for about 8 years. He doesn't seem to smoke any more, but otherwise he hasn't changed much.

He has a good poke around the horse. He presses just behind the wither and the horse tries to walk off. "She's out just behind her wither. That's causing pinching pain down her shoulder." Then he presses a spot on the hind quarters. Crownie's backside dips. "Because of the pinching in her shoulder, she is compensating with her hindquarters, and she's put herself out in the lower back too."

Jamie does some adjustments then rechecks. Crownie stands quietly still as he pokes her in the very same spots that a minute ago caused discomfort.

"Put your hand on the wither", he says. I do. "What do you feel?"

"Heat. But just in here, in this very spot."

"Good. The adjustment causes inflamation. That's what you can feel. That will go away in an hour or two. Then you can ride her."

Jamie also checks her over for arthritis, and gives her a pretty clean bill of health.

Finally, we talk feeding and he suggests adding comfrey to her food, using fresh garlic instead of the sulphur, and adding a nettle and rosehip tea.

Gally's update

The phone rings a smigin past 9am. It's Mark.

"Well, Jamie checked Gally out yesterday afternoon. He was out in his lower back quite badly. Almost kicked and bit a chunk out of Jamie, just as I was coming out to tell him to beware", Mark giggles over the phone. "Turns out he's got a torn muscle too. Will need two to three treatments with the machine, and then we can resume training."

I give Mark the go ahead.

It's a pity that my poor horse was feeling so crook. I had just bought the horse, and was still getting to know him. So it was hard for me to determine what was normal behaviour, and what wasn't.

The good news is, sounds like he is fixable.