Endurance Photos: Manzanita 75 in 1999

11/18/2011

This is a continuing series of photos that illustrates the differences between an endurance seat and a dressage seat.

This photo is from the Manzanita 75 miler in 1999, east of San Diego. We were about 50 miles into the day doing a nice ground covering canter. Montoya looks nicely balanced and my contact is loose. My rein has a soft loop in it. This was her favorite way to travel. We finished 4th out of 8 riders with a ride time of 13 hours and 54 minutes!

hammerhorses link

11/18/2011 07:08:47 am

She is such a lovely mare! My new pony's mane is proportianally the same length as Montoya's, so I'm slightly terrified of it! I had to remove the first snarl last night - thank god for Cowboy Magic!!! I think I'm going to pull out my horse mane rubber bands an go at her mane tonight.

What's worse than the snarl is that she is basically white... and loves mud... so now her mane and neck are dirty brown AFTER a good grooming... already... and it snowed last night so no baths for her!!!

I am going to have to reach out to everyone I can find with white-grey horses and figure out the intensity of grooming this cutie is going to need!

Karen Sweaney link

11/18/2011 09:56:38 am

Hammer Horses - I used a LOT of Cowboy Magic. Montoya's mane was a constant battle. not only was it long, but it was T-H-I-C-K!

We don't get much mud here, and when we do, Speedy stays out of it. He's a bit of a weenie and doesn't like tog et wet! He gets brushed daily which seems to keep him pretty white. Even if I just run a brush over him quickly, it knocks off a lot of the dust. If your farm is muddy, you may have a harder time keeping your pony clean.

I can't wait to see pictures and hear more!

hammerhorses link

11/18/2011 01:54:30 pm

I'm hoping to get more pictures of her tomorrow and then maybe some video of me riding her on sunday.

As for the mud, well, I live on the rainy side of Washington. Pretty close to the water. So it rains. A lot. We almost didn't get enough hay this year because there was too much rain and not enough sun shine. We never got over 85 degrees this year. I miss the part of the deep south where we could easily ride outside year round and never really worry about mud!

Karen Sweaney link

11/19/2011 07:05:04 am

HammerHorses - Queenie is a looker. I do enjoy Bakersfield's very mild winter's but our summers can get quite tiresome. We are thrilled to see a day drop down into the 80s during the summer!

California's southern coast enjoys perfect weather conditions year round, but it's a VERY expensive place to live! Every place has some weather constraint, doesn't it?

The Equestrian Vagabond link

11/20/2011 11:27:18 pm

Hey I recognize that long-haired beast! Miss you on the trails, but glad you are having fun doing dressage!
merri

Karen

11/21/2011 11:13:27 am

Merri - it is SOOOOO nice to hear from you! I peek in on your blog from time to time to keep up on what you're doing. From endurance to dressage ... who would have thought? It's a long story, some of which can be found on the blog. See you around! :0)

Comments are closed.

About the Writer and Rider

I 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.

Photo by Lori Ovanessian

Email Karen

About Speedy G

Speedy 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.

July 2020 (PC AJSK Photography)

About Izzy

Izzy 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.