Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
My Facebook memories reminded me that eight years ago yesterday, Izzy joined my family. I actually think I might have paid half of his purchase price the day before and then the rest the next day when I went and picked him up. Either way, I still forgot about it until Facebook reminded me. I always remember that he joined my family near Thanksgiving, but I always forget the exact date. In some ways, actually, in a LOT of ways, my journey with Izzy has been quite disappointing. I was certain that he was going to outpace Speedy and quickly earn me all sorts of awards. We'd sail past First Level in that first year and quickly conquer Second. Third would be a bit of a challenge, but before I knew it, we'd be schooling Fourth. HAHA. What I was smoking? Nope. No. Hard no. Laughing Hysterically as I shout NO. None of that happened. Not even the First Level Part. But. It's hard to remain disappointed as I look back at all that I have learned because of this horse. And even though none of it happened on Izzy, I did win all of the things including a USDF Bronze Medal. I just did it on the horse that I thought couldn't do it. The horse who is well bred, just not specifically for this sport. So while I haven't managed to be successful on Izzy, Speedy showed me how much fun showing (and winning) could be. It's not like Izzy and I haven't done things; it's just that we haven't necessarily done them well. Feeling nostalgic, I decided went back and looked at some of the things we have done:
There's a lot this horse can do. If I ever want to go somewhere, I never give pause. Sure! I'll bring Izzy is my usual response. I don't always have complete confidence that he'll keep his hamsters on their wheel, but so far, we've never died or been maimed or even been kicked out. I often wonder what things would have been like had I bought the other horse - a petite warmblood that I looked at before deciding she wasn't right for me. She might have come up lame, she might have been boring, she might have hated working with me. You just don't know what might have been. And frankly, I don't want to know.
Regret is a wasted emotion. There are a lot of things that I wish I had done differently in my life, but when the what ifs rear their head, I quickly remind myself that it is the totality of my experiences that have placed me where I am today. Had one decision been different, I might not have had horses at all. For better or worse, blue ribbons or no ribbons, Izzy and I are a team. I choose to celebrate his "gotcha day" with gladness that we met. 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
|