Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
I have a white horse. I am grateful that Speedy is such a diva because otherwise, I don't think I could live with a white horse in winter. Even though he avoids mud and poop, Speedy's very long coat still gets pretty stained and coarse. With a show just days away, I was really worrying about how to make him at least somewhat show presentable. And then the weather gods smiled from above and gave us a Saturday filled with warm sunshine and highs in the 60s. My mission was to turn my grimy floor mat into a fluffy polar bear. Speedy wasn't too happy about it as the water was pretty cold, but he got a through bath with bubbles. The only thing I left dirty was his face. As I hosed and scrubbed, dirty water flowed from his coat rinse after rinse. I am sure I could have kept scrubbing, but at some point I decided he was clean enough, especially since the show was still a week away. I covered him with a fleece cooler and set him free in the yard. It took the better part of an hour for him to dry off, but he looked and smelled so much better. In the sunlight, it almost hurt my eyes to look at his coat; it was so white.
We'll be in the Ventura area for the show, and the weather there is predicted to be warm and mild for this weekend. Speedy will get another bath tomorrow where he'll hopefully come out looking less like a carpet and more like a fluffy show pony. Maybe we'll blind the judge a little during the half pass, and he won't see our trailing haunches. 2/14/2020 06:33:27 am
Well, when his hair is matted and dirty (through no fault of his own) ... he really does look like a carpet! :0) 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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