Rocking Horse: Dressage and Stadium

I decided to try out the staying at home, hauling in method for this show. I prepped everything, including the horse the night before. 

Bath time

Braids and some acupuncture - we'd had an AMAZING ride the week before after doing some acupuncture on his back 

Protect the clean horse, step 1 

And step 2 

I got up at 4:30, made coffee, and then drove to the barn. I brought in Ben and his buddy, fed Ben who mostly ate but did drop a bit out his stall window staring at the trailer and trying to figure out why so early, then loaded him up and put his pasture buddy back out with the others. We got to the show in time for me to have the show farrier reset both front shoes. He had been pointing his toe the night before on the wooden/matted deck (aka not soft sand) while I was braiding. And then I noticed the pad was a bit lumped up in the toe. The show farrier said my farrier was doing everything he could to not let sand get under there. But when you're Ben and you dig a hole to China before rolling, you get the sugar sand in there anyways... so we'll have to figure out a new system for pads for him since this is time number two he's managed this. 

Dressage was pretty nice, but our score doesn't reflect that. He's gotten his tongue out faster and faster each show and had it out the whole time. The judge told me she purposely wasn't commenting on it, but "[you] need to fix that". I wish I knew how... we scored a 35 for a connected, soft test. He did have a good spook at an extra rail outside the dressage arena at the start of our first canter lengthening, but fortunately didn't spook at it the next time around. I am getting the point I need to show MORE transition with the canter lengthenings and keep him off the forehand in the trot ones. The highest score in our division was a 34.1 though, and my 35.2 had us tied for 5th. Ah well. 

JT and I visually walked stadium after. The course was quite different from the past two events we've done here. Started straight across the middle of the arena then a right hand roll back to a bending line. He felt a little slow off the ground with his hind legs in warm up, and it looks that way in the video too. But he was jumping carefully and GOING. We did 2 in the 2 stride and 1 in the 1 stride. We had one rail where he came around the corner flat to the diagonal line and I did nothing to fix it. But considering when we were looking at the course after dressage I thought the jumps were definitely modified height, I was still pretty happy with that.