Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
![]() I have a small confession: my motivation has waned, and I am so grateful. You see, I have a bit of a type A/OCD kind of personality. When I latch onto something, I am in it 'till I either beat it, or it kicks my butt. These last few months have found me absolutely driven to "fix" both Speedy and Sydney's issues all within a 180 day time frame. I was determined that I would do everything humanly possible to have Speedy emerge from his 180 day rehab sound and fit. Doing "everything humanly possible" meant hand walking 7 days a week and then riding him nearly 7 days a week for the prescribed time. It was killing me. At the same time, I had set the task of turning Sydney into a well behaved and successful dressage horse within Speedy's 180 days of rehab. I was going to kill all of my birds with that one stone. This was also killing me. Frankly, no one can keep that pace. In addition to doing a perfect rehab and perfectly training a second horse, I was feeling some frustration at work that was draining me of all sense of usefulness. I was heading down a path fraught with disappointment. No one can do everything perfectly, especially me. And then that all changed. For the better. All it took was a phone call and a vacation. I had kept it a secret from my colleagues, friends, and family (Hubby knew), but I had decided to do something about the job situation. I applied for a transfer, interviewed quietly, and kept my fingers crossed. I got a call with an offer for the position the afternoon before we flew to Washington, DC. I'll still be teaching, of course, but I'll be in a new school beginning this fall. Letting go of that particular worry started a domino effect that knocked down a slew of other worries. While we were on vacation, I didn't worry about either of my horses. I knew their needs were being met, and it didn't matter that Speedy wasn't getting ridden and that Sydney was missing a week of schooling. Somehow, taking that new teaching position erased the time impediment that I had placed in front of all of us. And then I took my boys to the vet which meant nearly another week off from "real" work. Both boys felt puny, and I was okay with it. Rather than worry at them and resent the time out of the saddle, I used those barn-free days to work on my own fitness and spend some time with my husband. And then it rained. Again, I let it go and pushed my barn time to later in the day and never felt stressed that I didn't get to spend as much time grooming, riding, cleaning, and messing around as I normally do. It's like a pressure valve has opened allowing my stress to simply be released. I hadn't realized how much my work frustrations were leaking into the rest of my life. Now that I have a new position waiting for me, everything else is just small stuff. Is it a coincidence that I had two of the best rides ever on Saturday afternoon? I don't think so.
Val
4/27/2014 05:00:44 am
Congrats! 4/27/2014 09:37:10 am
Thank you, Val. Yes, things have been challenging for all of us. It's an even tougher job when we deal with "in house" stress and conflict. I am already feeling so much more excited about next year. :0) 4/27/2014 09:38:03 am
Thanks, Lauren. I really didn't know how much stress this was causing until it wasn't there any longer. I am so much happier all of a sudden. :0)
Jennifer Keneman
4/27/2014 09:36:50 am
I'm happy for you but you will be missed. Trace really wanted you as his teacher next year. I hope the move is a good one! :-) 4/27/2014 09:41:58 am
Aw, Jen. If only there were more like you and your family. You guys are the light in a very long and dark tunnel. As you and your husband know, it's a tough job. I would have been honored to have Trace in my class. Tell him that I'll be rooting for him. Mr. D is a GREAT teacher (I TOTALLY love that guy!!!!). He'll be in good hands. :0)
Judy
4/27/2014 10:09:19 am
Good for you Karen! I'll be so excited to hear about the next "chapter" in your life. I know it will be awesome!
Sounds like a lot of hard decisions really came through for you. That's so awesome. :) Good luck with the transfer!
melinda
4/30/2014 12:12:25 pm
Yet another post I can really relate to! For me it took going to vet school. I cant see my horses every day and it is ok. I dont get all the rides and runs in ibyhink I *should* but somehow both me and farley are fitter and happier. The last couple of days I started to fall into old bad habits. Thank you for the reminder. Comments are closed.
|
About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
National Rider AwardsState Rider Awards
State Horse Awards
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
|