Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
From this weekend ... My barn owner had just added some wood pellets and shavings to her stall, and the bags were still laying out in the barn aisle waiting to be tossed into the trash. Had I been saddling Speedy, I would have cleared the bags out of the aisle before even thinking of walking him by them. No matter how many times I've worked with Speedy, he will never get over plastic bags or tarps. They're simply his Kryptonite. Izzy on the other hand, has zero fear of anything. He never spooks at traffic noise, flapping bags, or the mower. And if he does flinch at something, his feet stay put, but he looks rather embarrassed by the momentary lapse in courage. I don't know who to thank for this complete lack of fear. Did his first owner, Noemi, expose him to just the right stuff at just the right time in his life? I know she had him playing with all sorts of weird object as a youngster. Is it just good breeding? He has some solid Oldenburg lines in his pedigree like Inbegriff and Ideal. Or is it just who he is, the luck of the draw? When I first bought him, he showed a pretty good tendency towards courage, but he lacked confidence. Back in November, he would walk past scary objects, but he wanted to do it slowly and with a somewhat wide berth. We haven't left the property in a few months; I've been busy with the under saddle work and riding Speedy. Once we're back from our trip and I am officially done with school, we'll be doing more hand walks and "trail" rides around the neighborhood. We'll see if his confidence has grown. He's looking and feeling ready to start expanding his horizons.
jenj
5/27/2015 03:33:00 am
Heh... mine think feed bags are great toys too, mostly because they can lick the last of the flavor molecules out of them. SLURP! 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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