Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
Um ... a little surprise ...
I should provide a bit of information about myself in explanation. While it may seem that I am very forthcoming about my horsey life, I am very selective in what I actually share. What I mean is that I only share what I have thought hard about, or what I am certain of. You might have noticed that I share things after-the-fact. The reason for holding things close to the chest is that I don't like to get too many opinions, which can be conflictive, and I don't like to appear "flakey" as in nope didn't do that, nope didn't get there after all and so on. I like to ask specific people for their advice and I get a bit cranky about too much unsolicited advice. If I put something on the blog, it's out there to be shared and discussed and feedback is very welcome. Memoirs of a Horse Girl gave me some great advice the other day. Big decisions, like buying a horse, take a lot of thought without a lot of "background noise." And with that, meet Sydney! Sydney is a 16.1 hand, 9 year old, New Zealand Thoroughbred. His previous owners really wanted him to be a hunter/jumper. They tried, he tried, but he didn't enjoy the work and frankly, it stressed him out a little bit. He enjoys working on the flat though, and decided that dressage might be more up his alley. Enter a new trainer. Yep, dressage was a better fit, and he was put up for sale as a lower level dressage horse with potential to do more. Taz's mom, who knows my heart very well, and Cha Ching's mom who knows horses and my riding ability very well, both graciously offered to spend the whole day in the car with me as we drove up north to check him out. Heads began nodding almost immediately. Debbie Davis, of Sport Equine, was riding him as we pulled into the drive. As we watched him work under saddle, all three of us immediately commented on his floppy ears - a sure sign of a relaxed pony. After some discussion, I climbed aboard, and with some nice instruction from Debbie, I was able to do a fair job of riding this very kind guy. Here's the video of my very first ride (unedited, bad equitation included!). By the way - I bought him!
Val
6/29/2011 11:22:05 pm
Wow! This is a BIG surprise!
Cha Ching's Mom
6/29/2011 11:34:23 pm
Thanks for sharing the video! I like him so much and for see many successes for you both!
Marbaskin's Mom
6/30/2011 02:30:12 pm
Wooo, Girl! He's gorgeous! I've had some good advice from Debbie about a couple of horses, so I hope this turns out to be a wonderful match! 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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