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Not-So-Speedy Dressage

From Endurance to Dressage

No Need to Hope for Someday

10/10/2015

 
After 8 years, I can finally say that Speedy is the horse that I had hoped he would become. That doesn't mean he's perfect, dude's got an attitude after all, but there is no longer any need to rest my hopes on "Someday." 
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"Saddling" up - rope halter, no saddle, no leg boots. We opted for naked and fun.
There are certainly days when he frustrates me, and we're nowhere done with his training, but at eleven years old, he has become a very solid citizen. JenJ, over at Wyvern Oaks was teasing on Facebook about anyone wanting a "free" haflinger. I joked that I had a horse for trade, too - I was thinking of a big, brown Zweibrücker. When she replied that she would trade for Speedy, I stopped suddenly and realized that while I used to make that joke about him quite frequently, I no longer write for sale ads when I am mad at him.
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Best "bareback" back ever!
For the first several years that I owned Speedy, I spent lots of time writing sale ads. He was simply incorrigible. He routinely bolted, bucked, spooked, ran into me, and acted as though I was plotting his murder. He's always adored me, he frequently hollers at me when I go out of sight, but for whatever reason he was certain I was always making poor decisions about his welfare.
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Loopy rein, relaxed, and easy.
But now, Speedy seems to have realized that while I am not perfect, I am not conspiring to send him to his doom. We've come to an understanding that I get to make most of the decisions, but he gets a vote too. As a team, we have a lot more fun together.
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No worries ...
More than ever, Speedy wants to work with me. When I pull into the barn, he's already looking for me. When l get out of the car, he greets me at his fence and starts talking to me. He doesn't necessarily want to work on walk to canter transitions, but he definitely wants me to play with him.
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Yes, that is an apple tree!
For the most part, Speedy has become super dependable. He is still a horse though so there are the occasional bloopers. Just last week he kicked me in the forehead while I was applying his rear boots. He hasn't worn them before so he gave the hind one a good shake while I was strapping on the other one. I still have a knot on my forehead.
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He can't quite pluck them out of the tree himself, so I pick them from his back and hand them to him.
And the last time I rode him bareback, he got all uppity and excited and jumped out from underneath me. I landed squarely on both feet with the reins still in my hand. I guess that technically some skill was involved, but it was mostly luck that I didn't land on my butt. Speedy was quite chagrinned over the incident and meekly sidled up next to the closest tractor so I could get back on. 
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Eating apples on the trail is one way to get a foamy mouth without a bit!
I am glad that he's not perfect. I don't think I'm ready for a blooper-less relationship. I like the occasional Oh Crap! moments as they keep things interesting. I still need Speedy to be spunky and sassy because Someday, he'll be a senior citizen that won't be able to do walk to canter transitions. 

I don't know that he and I will be together until he's an old man, but I'd like to hope so. The reality is that Someday he may need to be a little girl's horse or a tried and true packer for a more timid rider. I'll have to wait and see what's best for him.

I hope that Someday is a long ways away ...
lytha
10/10/2015 09:55:36 am

He looks so much like Baasha in some of those photos it's almost creepy, but no, it's nice to see that view again.

I'm Speedy's number 1 fan in Germany: ) Now trim his bridle path.

Bakersfiedl Dressage link
10/10/2015 12:03:54 pm

HAHAHA, Lytha. Before I even saw your comment I did clip his bridle path. :0)

We have a USDF show in two weeks, so I've been letting it get a bit shaggy. I did both horses' bridle paths and weird facial hairs (gasp, I know) this morning. Speedy just looks so much nicer with a trimmed muzzle, and I haven't found that he has trouble finding his water or feed without them ;0)

Every one of my horses has been fairly distinctive looking, so I haven't had two that looked alike, Sydney and Izzy are the two that sort of remind me of each other since they're both large and dark. My Arabs were all so unique from one another that I could spot them in a field of a hundred other horses. :0)

I hope seeing Speedy brings back good memories of Baasha and not painful ones. And you might be Speedy's number one fan worldwide. I think you might like him even more than I do. He can be a bit of a stinker in real life. :0)

Teresa link
10/10/2015 05:06:21 pm

I remember my early days with Irish. I used to think I'd lost my mind thinking I could work this ADHD, bucking, squirrel brained lunatic. Then one day at a show someone said to me 'you are so lucky to have a quiet horse like Irish'. After I stopped laughing I realized how far he had come.

that gives me hope for Carmen too.

Bakersfield Dressage link
10/11/2015 06:39:06 am

That's about what happened to make me realize that Speedy is really a pretty nice horse. It's hard to see it when you're around them every single day. It took someone else pointing it out for me to stop and say, wow - he IS a nice horse.

With time and effort, they can all get there. I am still waiting for Someday to arrive with Izzy too. :0)

jenj
10/10/2015 06:57:33 pm

<3 Speedy! You suuuure you don't want a cute Haffie as a trade? ;)

Bakersfield Dressage link
10/11/2015 06:41:35 am

You're so kind, JenJ. I would LOVE to have a Haflinger - the ones that I have met have been awesome horses and cuter than anything. :0)

Paola link
10/11/2015 03:49:33 pm

I'm happy that all is well and that he is becoming the horse you want! Seems like he is a lovely horse.

emma link
10/12/2015 09:14:09 am

awww i love Speedy!

Cathryn link
10/13/2015 08:36:04 am

He's such a cool guy - glad you had a good ride!

ColbyJazzmus link
12/15/2015 10:16:25 pm

I think maybe it's a first horse thing, but Jazz is in no danger of the "free red mare" ad going up, nor has she ever been. Someone was asking me about if they could come see Jazz recently, and I said no because I was showing her to someone else, and they said, "You're not selling her, are you?" I had a good laugh over that. She is stuck with me for life whether she likes it or not

Bakersfield Dressage link
12/16/2015 06:32:03 pm

I try to be a realist, but right now, Speedy's kind of stuck with me too. :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.
    Picture
    Photo by Lori Ovanessian

    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.
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    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.
    Picture
    March 2021 (PC Tess Michelle Photography)

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    Bakersfield Dressage approved!
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    FOR THE SMALLER EQUINE ATHLETE
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    National Rider Awards

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    USDF Bronze Medal - 2020
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    USDF Second Level Rider Performance Award - 2018
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    USDF First Level Rider Performance Award - 2015
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    USDF Training Level Rider Performance Award - 2013

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    CDS Ruby Rider Award - 2018

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    Speedy G - 3rd Level Horse Performance Award - 2020
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    Speedy G - 2nd Level Horse Performance Award - 2018

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Among other things, Karen is a Wife, Friend, Reader, Writer, Rider, Traveler, and Dog Lover
Contact her at bakersfielddressage@gmail.com
  • Home
  • About
  • My Horses
    • Horses
    • Imperioso
    • G Ima Starr FA
    • Sunshine
    • Nakota and Gideon
    • Corky
    • Sassy
    • Montoya DSA
    • Mickey Dee
    • Sydney
  • Show Results
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