Thole Farms: Introductory Level Test A

After our mostly quiet warm up, I was feeling pretty excited to strut our stuff at walk/trot, and Izzy felt ready to actually work a little. We followed best friend down to the ring and walked up and down the walk way, waiting for the rider in front of us to finish.

After her final salute at X, I walked Izzy up the little rise and entered at A. In a nano second all of his tension came rushing back. The E side of the arena was nestled into an avocado grove that was being watered. I couldn't see the sprinklers, but they gave a very loud hiss down the entire long side. Izzy checked out, and I knew that I needed to just get him through the ride as quietly and tactfully as possible.

You can see for yourself what I mean:

I wasn't disappointed or frustrated with him at all. Those sprinklers scared him, and since he was already only barely coping with his nerves, I simply rode the horse I had. When I watched the video, I was actually impressed with how easy I made it look. I suppose others might think I simply looked ineffective, but believe me, riding a powder keg and looking happy while doing it is not as easy as it sounds.

Pretty dang square for a rocket on a string!

When I finished my final salute, the judge asked to talk to me. The first thing she said was, "Are you an event rider or a dressage rider?" For a split second, I was horrified. I thought she said, Are you even a dressage rider? My brain hadn't processed the event rider part of her question. 

Then my brain clicked in, and I realized that she thought I might be an eventer. My head swelled so big that my helmet almost popped off. Eventers are BADASSES. The judge thinks I am a badass. Well who wouldn't after watching all that badassery going on?

In case you missed it the first time.

I can't say for sure whether the judge thought I was as cool as all that, but she certainly thought my horse was. The next thing out of her mouth was how awesome his talent for the piaffe is. No really. And not only did she say it to me, she even wrote it down!

Hello!

Best friend is new to dressage so doesn't always know when to start recording. In this case, she missed the judge's bell which means the first part of my test didn't make it on video. That's where most of the piaffe steps happened. I was a little disappointed to not see them, especially after hearing the judge gush over them.

You'll have to indulge me for a moment. This is my first encounter with a judge who LOVED my horse. I've had judges who thought Speedy was a nice horse, and he and I have earned comments like elegant pair, but wait until you see this judge's accolades.

While super engagement and uphill tendency are not necessarily glowing reviews, it's not often that you see those terms applied to an Introductory Level horse. Well, not unless you're riding my super awesome Izzy Zweibrücker!

This comment is all me and was earned for that spook demonstarted above. Even best friend said I was all business. Many thanks to Chemaine Hurtado for teaching me to sit those things out.

I shouldn't be surprised by clear talent for upper level work as Chemaine has said this to me on more than one occasion, but man-oh-man, it is soooo nice to hear it from someone that I am NOT paying.

And then there was this little gem: What a horse! Who doesn't want to hear that about their pony? Although after reading it, I was looking around for Charlotte as that's almost exactly what she says to save Wilbur from the butcher. But that's just me - my feet are solidly rooted in REAL LIFE. While I love, love, love these comments, I am also wondering if the judge was actually watching the ride.

The only somewhat okay moment of the ride!

While my common sense and deeply practical side want to discredit the judge's assessment of my horse, I am giving that side of my brain the finger. This judge completed the coursework that gives her the credentials to recognize a horse with potential and talent. I am going to whole heartedly accept her compliments and use them to keep myself motived.

During our discussion, she insisted that I keep working as this horse is more than worth the effort. In fact, she was so effusive in her praise that best friend said that everyone in the vicinity could hear her remarks.

As we walked back to the trailer, I grinned in joy and didn't even try to hide it. Those positive comments from the judge stayed with me as I went back into the warm up for our second test, but you'll have to wait until tomorrow for that part.

​Tomorrow: Introductory test B.