Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
After he bankrupts me, Speedy is clearly trying to send me to an early grave. As I came driving down the ranch driveway yesterday, I looked for him as I always do. He's easy to spot with his nearly white coat, especially this time of year as there's no foliage to hide him. When I did lay eyes on him, I could only shake my head in disgust. Since a dirty horse doesn't really tell the whole story, let me clarify. Since Willy's move to a new home, Red Mare is Speedy's new best friend. She lives in the adjoining dry pasture. A maintenance crew has been dragging composted manure out to the bottom of her pasture, so she was temporarily moved to a small grass pasture immediately adjacent. Even though I wasn't there, I know exactly what Speedy did (and said) about her move 50 feet to the west. He ran himself into a lather, screaming his head off all the while. She was well within sight, but he was no doubt pissed to be separated from her. His frantic gallop up and down the fence line stirred up quite a cloud of dust which is now pasted to his once white and fluffy coat. But that wasn't the worst of it. Why does Speedy have duct tape hanging from his hoof? I hear you ask. Well, he literally wore through several layers of duct tape as he paced the fence line wailing piteously for his lady friend. Jerk. I peeled off what remained of the wrap and redid it. But first, I poked around at the drainage hole and was pleased to note that he didn't appear sore at all. As I walked him back to his pasture, I asked him to pick up a jog in the grass. He was very nearly sound.
Well, hallelujah. Maybe we'll be back to work sooner than I thought.
Jamie
1/25/2019 07:39:48 am
WHY do horses do these things to us?? ;) Comments are closed.
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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
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