We’re nothing if not consistent
We did training test 2 again at the second MRF Dressage schooling show yesterday. I was much less nervous, having had another month's worth of lessons and riding and a good ride the day before (in the rain, no less!) After a short trailer ride over and picking up my packet and bridle number, I discovered unfortunately that my test--like all the tests ridden in the small arena--were going to be ridden in the indoor. I really don't like riding tests in indoors. Psychologically it's just all sort of boxed in and restricted. Cramped, really. But, on the bright side, the warm up was in the large outdoor sand arena.
Memo to myself: now that I'm no one's working student or groom, I dont have to rush and take a lot longer tacking up and getting ready to ride, therefore, I have to leave myself more time to get ready and warm up. It was a shorter warm up than I anticipated and wanted, but it was effective enough as I headed up to do my test. Once I got into the indoor, I suddenly went from having steady Clover underneath me to spooky, scaredy, in heat Clover. She didn't want to go near the judge's table at C or the spectators at A, so I did a few circles in the middle to settle her and managed to ride her determinedly around each short end before the bell rung to signal me to start my test.
With Clover still spooking and sucking back, I managed to get through the test with some accuracy--although I lost my focus when a ruckus started in the trailer area just outside the arena as I was starting the free walk movement. Earlier, while I was warming up, my friend's horse who'd trailered in with me started pacing around in our stock trailer when I took Clover away, and because it's a stock trailer, it makes a lot of noise and things tend to sound a lot worse than they are. So naturally I thought the ruckus was something really wrong with my friend's horse because to my ear it was a prolonged, super loud incident, and a woman who sounded a lot like my friend was shouting. I lost my focus, and I forgot to let the reins out during the first half of the free walk. I got a 6 (out of 10) for the movement, with the comment "nice stretch/needs to keep energy up ..." even though I didn't let the reins out right away! Go figure.
Still, even with only half my attention on the test, and Clover being super balky and in heat, I managed to get through the test with no errors, and even had some pretty good moments. I even laughed at myself and Clover when we had some real mare in heat suck back moments. It wasn't the end of the world. Strangely enough, as I left the indoor, my old trainer was there with some other students who had also left her barn and must have returned. She waved and smiled at me and I smiled and just said, "I guess it's time for Regumate!" which is the cycle regulating hormone I give to Clover before competitions to help smooth her out so we don't get the balkiness and spooking--which is manageable in dressage, but impossible trying to jump. It was kind of a surreal moment.
Later I turned my bridle number in and picked up my test, fully expecting a score in the mid-50's and a test full of 4's, 5's and 6's. Turns out we were 2nd place in our class, with a score of 66.4, just .5 of a point less than last month's test. At first I thought maybe the judge or scorer got my test messed up with some other rider's--I got a 9 on the final halt? Seriously? Clover got 7's on submission and gaits? Submission? Later I heard from the barn owner that she heard the judge really liked Clover. Hee.
Once the scores were posted, I saw that we were actually tied for first, and the tie was broken by the collectives, so I lost by 2 points. Which makes me think, if we hadn't been so in heat and unfocused, we could have done a lot better. I felt like I was riding with one eye closed.
Memo to myself: now that I'm no one's working student or groom, I dont have to rush and take a lot longer tacking up and getting ready to ride, therefore, I have to leave myself more time to get ready and warm up. It was a shorter warm up than I anticipated and wanted, but it was effective enough as I headed up to do my test. Once I got into the indoor, I suddenly went from having steady Clover underneath me to spooky, scaredy, in heat Clover. She didn't want to go near the judge's table at C or the spectators at A, so I did a few circles in the middle to settle her and managed to ride her determinedly around each short end before the bell rung to signal me to start my test.
With Clover still spooking and sucking back, I managed to get through the test with some accuracy--although I lost my focus when a ruckus started in the trailer area just outside the arena as I was starting the free walk movement. Earlier, while I was warming up, my friend's horse who'd trailered in with me started pacing around in our stock trailer when I took Clover away, and because it's a stock trailer, it makes a lot of noise and things tend to sound a lot worse than they are. So naturally I thought the ruckus was something really wrong with my friend's horse because to my ear it was a prolonged, super loud incident, and a woman who sounded a lot like my friend was shouting. I lost my focus, and I forgot to let the reins out during the first half of the free walk. I got a 6 (out of 10) for the movement, with the comment "nice stretch/needs to keep energy up ..." even though I didn't let the reins out right away! Go figure.
Still, even with only half my attention on the test, and Clover being super balky and in heat, I managed to get through the test with no errors, and even had some pretty good moments. I even laughed at myself and Clover when we had some real mare in heat suck back moments. It wasn't the end of the world. Strangely enough, as I left the indoor, my old trainer was there with some other students who had also left her barn and must have returned. She waved and smiled at me and I smiled and just said, "I guess it's time for Regumate!" which is the cycle regulating hormone I give to Clover before competitions to help smooth her out so we don't get the balkiness and spooking--which is manageable in dressage, but impossible trying to jump. It was kind of a surreal moment.
Later I turned my bridle number in and picked up my test, fully expecting a score in the mid-50's and a test full of 4's, 5's and 6's. Turns out we were 2nd place in our class, with a score of 66.4, just .5 of a point less than last month's test. At first I thought maybe the judge or scorer got my test messed up with some other rider's--I got a 9 on the final halt? Seriously? Clover got 7's on submission and gaits? Submission? Later I heard from the barn owner that she heard the judge really liked Clover. Hee.
Once the scores were posted, I saw that we were actually tied for first, and the tie was broken by the collectives, so I lost by 2 points. Which makes me think, if we hadn't been so in heat and unfocused, we could have done a lot better. I felt like I was riding with one eye closed.
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