A Friday Funny

I worked for a decade to earn a USDF Bronze Medal. In all the years I rode Speedy, I thought I was at a disadvantage by not having a purpose bred horse. I now know that it takes a lot more than a well bred dressage horse to win and be successful. In my opinion, a good mind is more important than huge fancy gaits or raw talent.

Now that Izzy is my main ride, I appreciate Speedy's giving nature even more. While Speedy was sassy and a lot less talented than Izzy, when it came to show day, he was game on. I knew that if I could more or less get it at home, whatever "it" was, he would do his best for me at a show.

Regional Adult Amateur Competition - 2018

As Izzy and I ride mile after mile on the struggle bus, I often complain to Sean Cunningham, owner and trainer at STC Dressage, that I am back to being an intro level rider. I just can't do anything right. Sean always rolls his eyes at my drama llama moments and then sagely reminds me that the world's best riders spend most of their time working on the basics. One of his favorite sayings is that beginners want to spend 90% of their time on the tricks and only 10% of their time working on basics. Top level riders spend 10% of their time working on the tricks and 90% of their time schooling the basics.

I saw this meme on Facebook a few months ago, and it seemed to illustrate Sean's point exactly. There is a lot of fancy in a dressage test, but none of it happens without good basics. If something is going to go wrong, it's probably something as simple as a halt. Or a transition. Or correct geometry. Or ...

Maybe I am doing more right than I realize.