Popping Around on the Pony

Butterball and I tackled the Florida Horse Park POP schooling show this weekend and had the best time. We're headed for Stable View this weekend, so figured we'd better get a run in at novice at home. 

It's finally gotten a tiiinnnny hint of fall here and the poor dude was very non-plussed by his 7 AM bath. But he doesn't hold grudges, so he was a happy pony again by the time I loaded him up on JT's trailer with his two buddies. We were all laughing about the fact that the 15.2 hand connemara x TB was the biggest horse of the three on the trailer that day. My BIL wanted to work on finishing up the paint job on mine, so it was easiest to just have BB ride the party bus. 

Dressage: I tried to remember my dressage time incorrectly AGAIN this time and thought it was 10:40, but fortunately checked around 9:30 and realized it was 10:30 instead. Sheesh, not something I normally do, don't know why I was trying to short myself a warm up two shows in a row. Dressage was decent, the canter still needs more work, but overall I was a more active participant this time. At home schooling we can get really nice canter work... eventually... so when you have a transition, one 20m circle, and then 2/3 of a long side, we're barely getting it nice by the time it is time to trot again. I also *forgot* the left lead canter and was planning on doing another short diagonal, so that canter transition was never going to be a good one, oops! We're riding the same test again next weekend though, hopefully it will stick better. 

Still, not upset by a 32.2 for our first time at this level and a month in to our partnership. Afterwards he got hosed off and then put back on the trailer to chill in front of the fan. 

Stadium: We had 3.5 hours between dressage and stadium, so he chilled on the trailer and I wandered around, watched a few friends go, and ate lunch. It was pretty warm by that point so there was a definite afternoon slump feeling around noon. But BB and I both managed to wake back up to go jump! 

The course was the same as the last time, but I RODE the whole time, and he rewarded me with a clear round. We met a friend of his old owner who was manning the in gate. She was so sweet, and he had a whole cheering squad when we finished the course. 

Why yes, I am perfect! 

As JT pointed out when I ride him like a horse not a pony then he goes so well and feels like he's got so much scope in there. 

Cross Country: I walked before dressage, so these are early light shadows, not the ones we had at 2 PM. We headed over from stadium, popped the brushy roll top in warm up out of stride and headed to the box. 

Out of the start box. He was actually a bit sticky and bucked once. I think *most* of the problem was the saddle, we were in one of JT's that has longer panels than he likes and he threw in a few expressive lead changes in stadium too, I think for the same reason. He is certainly more motivated when headed towards home in the course though too, so that likely played a role as well. 

But he popped right on over one no problem and landed with his mind on business

Two - bench

3- cutout cabin, from his back the training fences don't actually look big... he jumped this great

4- another cabin 

5ab- the villages - this walked as a 6. I screwed it up and did zero half-halting between so we did 5 and a bit of a scramble over B. Sorry bud. 

6- another cabin thing

7- water then left hand turn to a corner

8 - I hate corners. JT told me to go into the water close to the right hand flag and then make a smooth left hand turn to the corner "go get it buddy". I think I've shared before how much I like wedges, so I asked her if I could ride it like a wedge, she said sure. I picked the point on the face of it that she said to aim for and rode that like the tip of the wedge. 

Go get it buddy! 

Best boy! 

9- Sometimes riding BB feels so easy that it really feels like cheating. However, he is still only 7 and new to this level, and I felt him question for a second on the way to this jump. But the same way he gives me so much confidence, I closed my leg, and he responded with more confidence and headed right over

10- cut out cabin

11ab- half coffin

You can see the wedge of 12 in the distance 

Wedge, I felt him wiggle a tiny bit coming to this, but he was good and honest 

13- Brushy roll top 

14- Wagon, we were headed back towards home at this point and he was GAME!

15ab- water, left hand turn again to a wedge

We took a little chip at the base of this, but it wasn't a confidence issue I don't think, just me botching the stride

16- log, jumped it right out of stride and we were DONE! 11 seconds under optimum time

We ended up in 6th! I finally used my Garmin to count up instead of screwing around and tediously setting it to count down. We averaged 15.9 mph for the course, how fun! 

TOUCH! Refusing to pose with his ribbon. It was a long, warm day, and he was just super for the whole thing. I was about to turn him out when I tried to snap this, so I gave up after one attempt and let him go be a pony with his friend.