And Back To Your Regularly Scheduled Brego

Oh, what fun! Alas, all good things must come to an end, and so ends the 2010 April Fool's day joke. Good memories.

For those of you who were excited to purchase a book about Brego, I salute you and your complete vote of confidence, not only in my writing abilities, but in Brego's ability to win Rolex AND inspire the single greatest actor of our time (after Harrison Ford, pre 1998 of course).

All in good fun, of course, and remember, I do this every year. You have been warned.

Anyway, in real life, Brego and I are gearing up nicely for a pretty low key, but hopefully successful season. We've been meeting our 4 rides a week goal and Brego's fitness continues to impress me. I always though taking four months off over the winter would wreck a horse, but he bounces back every spring better and better. He is still a bit shaggy, so until I get to body clip him and tame that wicked mohawk, he will remain under wraps. He needs to be presentable for his public, after all.

The big ado is that there is a schooling dressage show at the end of April. Which in itself is not a big deal, since we are very realistic about our dressage potential, but this is a special show because it's being hosted by my fox hunt. So a lot of my good friends from the hunt will be there. And as they watch us go around, amid the jeers and jokes, they just might remember that it was Brego that bounced them off the trail or took that wall in such glorious form, so I want him to do well. You know, to show my hunt. Why? Because.

Anyway, after the dressage show, we will have a break while we school fences and get ready for the Groton House summer classic and a two-phase derby. I am looking forward to jumping again, but I am most looking forward to cross country. We've gotten so much rain recently, we've been hacking on roads and the fairgrounds and I can't wait to get out and just ride.

Other highlights include our first solo conditioning set of the season and Brego did very well by himself. He's a brave boy.

So far, he's been foot perfect barefoot. We've managed to master his over-winter protocol to keep his feet concave and hard. If you recall, this time last year, Brego was foot sore over rocks. Last week, I did my trot and canter sets on a gravel road because it was the driest place to ride. Not a smooth gravel road, a road with rocks. Brego never took an off step. The secret to our success this year was frequent stalling at night to give his feet a chance to dry out and, no foolin', a heat gun. A heat gun, as opposed to a hair drier, is quick and relatively quiet. You can see his feet drying out as you watch and you get a real thorough dry. Drying his feet kept them from "splating" even in very wet conditions. I am a convert to the heat gun, it has really made a difference this year.

Once I get the big man presentable, we will be back to posting pictures. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Dressage Show Videos - Arabian Show

I have finally uploaded the videos from last weekend's dressage show. I appreciate your patience as it takes over 2 hours per video to get it downloaded from the camera, edited, rendered, uploaded to Vimeo, etc.

In rewatching the videos, it appears that by the second test (four warmups and an hour of waiting), Brego is moving forward per say, but he's really strung out and needs to be better balanced. He's a good boy, trying hard for me, but I was wrong to ask him so much, when instead I should have focused on the quality of the work instead of go, go, go. It's a good lesson to learn, and if I had stopped chasing him so much, my position would have improved and I would have been able to ask for more balance.

The judge astutely commented as such in the general remarks: "Lots of activity but needs more half halts for balance." I interpret her notion of half halts as "balancing" instead of "go and whoa".

Regardless, enjoy the videos, and good boy Brego for giving such an amazing test considering the circumstances! There's almost a stretchy trot in there in test 3! Woot!

Dressage Show Training Level 2 Test from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

Dressage Show Training Level Test 3 from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

Brego and the Arabs

The Arabian show at the fairgrounds was a big success. The dressage classes were small and had a variety of competitors, from Friesians to Thoroughbreds to Arabians. There were a lot of last minute cancellations and most of the volunteers were running the Arabian Breed classes at the same time, so we ended up without a ring steward for dressage. And that's where things started to fall apart.

After the third rider, the ride times were abandoned since there were so many time gaps. So people scrambled to go early, but there was no well defined order of go. And without a rind steward, people were forced to ask the judge when they might go, and since she was overwhelmed with, oh, judging, things sometimes got out of hand. Couple the timing chaos with a horse that flipped out and needed to be aced, but no one was sure if it was legal (albeit not advisable), so there was an ensuing argument with the judge. Sigh.

The good news is that Brego won his Training Level 2 test with a 67.1%. We scored three 9s for trot work, a definite first! Brego was forward and relaxed, but I felt like we were not well put together, like we ran the pattern, but didn't show a good presentation. Then for Training Level 3, I ended up warming up four (FOUR!) times before we actually got to go. By that time, we were both hot, thirsty, and sick of dressage. I was on Brego's back for 1.5 hours!

Brego put on a brave face and was definitely forward through the test, but I was really frazzled. The Training Level 3 test is always bizarre, but I managed to make it not flow at all. Brego broke in the left lead canter, most definitely my fault and then I blew the halt at G. We were riding the training tests in a long arena and I halted at I. Yea, I. As in, I didn't know that letter existed, as much as I live in training level and the short arena. Oh well, it was only 2 points for an error, coupled with our 4 in the left canter. We ended up with 61.7% which is a completely decent score, regardless, and placed 2nd.

I will get the videos up soon. It was not my nicest riding, but I can't fault the big boy for not going forward. He was a very good sport to put up with the confusion and the constant warm up, now sit for 10 minutes, warm up, now sit. He was very tired by the end and we still had to hack home, a 30 minute walk from the fairgrounds.

Brego will get lots of rest and I am going to bump his feed back up. He's in pretty consistent work now and can use the extra calories.

Dressage Lesson 11: Bring on the Pain

We've been blessed with sunny, warm weather all week. I think it's been almost 7 days since it last rained. Unheard of!

Yesterday, I took advantage of the dryness and took another dressage lesson. It was warm and the humidity was low, but Brego was not engaged. It felt like we've had a major regression where he was heavy in front and he felt like he was about ten feet behind my leg. I wormed him on Wednesday morning and I wonder if he was feeling a little under the weather.

So instead of working on the tests for tomorrow's dressage show, we just worked on getting him thinking forward. It ended up being a marathon dressage lesson, just over an hour, and we only took one walk break. The rest of the time was trotting, transitions, canters, halts, turns on the haunches, shoulder ins. I was amazed that instead of getting tired, Brego got softer and more forward. I was exhausted, however!

We ended with some really nice canter work and then I had to call it a day. My trainer was very impressed that Brego even knew some of these moves, even though we did not execute them to perfection. I told her that I have schooled turn on the haunches from the beginning because it disengages his locked shoulders and gets his weight back. The exact exercise was performed trotting a 20m circle. At twelve and six o clock on the circle we reversed direction by transitioning to a walk and performing a walking turn on the haunches and then trot off immediately. Brego did exceedly well at this exercise, with nice crossing over in the front on the turns. I thought it would be too much to ask on that sized circle, but he did very well and it got him stepping up under himself nicely. We also did lengthenings on the long side of the arena and collecting to a volte in each corner. All the transitions worked their magic and we ended up with nice work.

My homework today is to take him for a short gallop to get him thinking forward and then the show is tomorrow. I will not be riding the tests in advance, unfortunately. I will watch videos and try to visualize our ride instead. The ultimate goal is forward so I don't want to drill the tests. I will be tweeting our progress through the show.

The End and The Means

My recent dressage lesson video prompted some interesting comments. Many thanks to those who take the time to write in. I read every comment, even if I don't always have the time to respond.

I wanted to write up my thoughts about how I train my horse in the discipline of dressage. I should note that these are my opinions and thoughts and I do not actually have the skills or body control to ride as perfectly as I would like. Furthermore, I realize that much of what I believe is currently unpopular with the competitive dressage set. But there are some principles that echo throughout all my training. Despite my best efforts to confuse and befuddle, Brego very much is the product of my training. The happiness in his work and his willingness are cultivated very carefully. I cannot take credit for his talent, but I can take credit for his everyday work ethic and his progress through the exercises.

It is no secret that I fancy training methods that improve the movement and gait of my particular type of horse. I ride a horse that has a natural carriage very much on his forehand. I am not so lucky to buy a horse that was born half trained with an uphill, floaty trot. But that does not mean we are doomed to plod around on the forehand. I have done extensive reading, watching of videos, and, dare I say, experimentation on my own forgiving horse to see what works best for him to help him carry himself.

A horse Brego's size, when asked to do the heavy work of dressage or jumping, should be encouraged to unweight the front end, to free his shoulder and allow maximum shock absorbency on his front legs. His obviously powerful hind end should be slowly and carefully built up to carry more of his weight in balance, to give him more power through his back, and increase his agility. To be light and nimble, he must have his weight back.

To this end, I have been most successful in practicing principles esposed by the "classical masters" of dressage, namely Baucher, La Guérinière, Oliveira as translated and executed by Phillippe Karl. I find his teaching style very approachable and his examples clearly illustrate some of the physiological issues about how and why horses move through their gaits.

I ride Brego in plain nose cavesons, loose enough for him to graze in his bridle. I use french-link or double-jointed snaffles for everything but cross-country or foxhunting. I will not use a flash, crank, or figure-eight nose band. My goal is to make Brego's mouth comfortable and relaxed in his work and if he is gaping, gnashing or lolling his tongue, then it is a training issue for this particular horse (knowing he does not have a physical condition) I must correct, not mask through equipment.

I do not punish anticipation. I have heard in many dressage circles that the horse must not anticipate the next movement. If I am schooling simple changes on a figure eight and Brego anticipates the change in bend in the middle and perhaps changes early or lightens in the bridle in anticipation of the transition, to me it is because he is mentally engaged. He is thinking about the problem, the intent of the exercise, and he is showing initiative and a willingness to please. Good!!! Brego is not a robot, and especially while hunting or cross country, I want him a thinking, eager equal. I need him to be there helping to keep us safe.

I do not school perfect 20 m circles. I introduce lateral questions early and often. Why is a shoulder in a 3rd level move??? It is critical to strengthening the inside hind and moving the shoulders. How can you achieve straightness, one of the most critical dressage tenants, while trotting 20 m circles without lateral exercises? Perhaps Brego is just not that talented of a horse, but until I taught shoulders- and haunches-in, there was no hope for straightness. He has strengthened through the lateral work and with his strength, comes his ability to move straight. Does he do the lateral movements to perfection? No, but rebalancing and strengthening is still gained through the attempt.

I do not keep my hands low and fixed. I agree greatly with Phillipe Karl's write up on the critical roll of the hands to communicate and encourage the correct weighting and bend. Modern dressage confuses the end with the means. Yes, a schooled horse should be presented (FEI level) with a fixed and low hand showing his or her understanding of the questions, self carriage, and light response to aids. Keeping my hands fixed and driving Brego into them would not invite any suppleness through the poll or the throat, instead he would learn to lean on them, a weight I am unprepared to carry.

In the same vein, I do not drive with my seat. I do not pump. The ultimate goal is to lighten Brego's front end. Driving with the seat is riding "down" not riding "up". A nicely balanced horse is a "nice place to sit" with a gait and cadence that "carries" you. The rider should not be compelled to push the seatbones down and forward, which invites the horse to hollow the back to evade. Certainly, it does not raise the back to carry you. I have been guilty, once or twice, of fixing my hands, leaning back, and driving with my seat and the response was immediate and drastic. He rounded his neck and went immediately behind the bit, dropping his back. In shame, I must admit that I did the move almost as a punishment, a "Hey, listen to me!" move when he was blowing off my aids. Paul Belasik describes using his seat as a weapon until the poor horse he was riding reared in protest and collapsed in an exhausted heap on the ground. That is not to say that one should not have a following seat, but a driving seat pushes a horse and does not lighten a horse.

I strive always to lighten my horse which is why I do not increase leg pressure, I train him to respond to less and less pressure. I also do not school in spurs. I will wear nubbin spurs at shows to get a little extra attention from him, but I do not school in them. People use them with great success, but I personally do not have the leg control to not deaden my horse to the aid with them. I realize this about myself and so I make the choice appropriately. In fact, the last few months, we've worked almost exclusively on lightening the aids, until at the last lesson, I squeezed lightly and he bounded into a trot, or rolled into a canter departure. This is the ultimate goal. Riding a well schooled horse should take very few muscles. :)

Finally, I do not force a head set. I don't use draw reins. I don't see-saw on my horse's mouth to get him to tuck his nose. I ask for softening, I ask for a mobile jaw, and I release. I ask for him to push from behind and he carries himself.

I am not a particularly talented rider and I am certainly not a dressage expert. I am a training-level rider on a training-level draft horse so everything said herein should be evaluated with a healthy dose of skepticism. But I start with the premise of "do no harm" and everything I do is geared towards the longevity of my mount. A light, responsive, happy horse is a good mount. It's worth taking the time to get him there.

Luckily, I have found a talented dressage trainer who agrees with my principles and is happy to guide me on my path. Measure progress, not perfection.

Dressage Lesson 10

We were very crafty and got up early to take a dressage lesson from our neighbor/trainer before the rain started again. I was concerned that Brego would be tired or sore from our gallop ride yesterday. Instead, it seems to have stretched him out because he was very forward (for him) and relaxed today.

So today we worked on introducing long and low, the hint of suspension (still a far off dream) and canter transitions. We have a little Arabian dressage show in a little over a week, so I wanted to try to refine some of our transitions. Brego did very, very well and seemed eager to stretch and work through his back.

A note on the video: My reins are too long. Period. I have no idea why my trainer did not scream her bloody head off at me. What the hell have I been doing to get this nasty habit? She mentioned they were long, but didn't correct me until I got them under control. I completely need to fix this. Secondly, my equitation is horrendous. Whenever you start to wince watching me ride, just focus on my big, beautiful horse doing everything right, ponder for a moment how such, er, unusual riding can warrant such an amazing result, and then vow to never ride like me. mkay?

The video is published without sound intentionally because the cinematographer and my neighbor's husband were having a delightful conversation on how to trap the fox eating my chickens and I did not deem it horse-appropriate. My apologies.

Those who suffer through the whole video will be treated to a delightful walk-canter transition, completely unintentional. I was asking for a shoulder in. Or at least, I thought I was. I am sure I asked for the canter and Brego, being the very intelligent and sensitive animal he is, transitioned nicer than I ever get when I think I am asking for it. That's horses for you. It just tells me I am off balance when I really ask for it, perhaps throwing myself at him or dropping my left shoulder.

Dressage Lesson 10 from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

Despite the slow summer and wet conditions, I am very pleased with the progress Brego is making this summer. This is just more foundation building up to our show season next year.

Back in the Arena

Brego got two days rest after the big hunter pace while I worked on the farm. Today, we went back to work on dressage. It's been awhile since we've done dressage and neither one of us were excited to be back in the arena. But we have to pay our dues in dressage to be balanced and obedient enough to have fun cross country.

Brego started stiff, but more forward than usual. I was sure to be very clear with my leg aids, so I didn't fall back into the nagging trap. He did very well, consider he's had a couple days off. To mix things up a bit, I worked on him just responding to my legs from sidepass to turn on the forehand to turn on the haunches to reinback to walk to shoulderin. I would change his bend or his direction every few steps which has a lightening effect on his front end. My former dressage trainer used to say that you want your horse so balanced it feels like you're perched on top of a big exercise ball: he could go any direction at any time. Brego is not quite that balanced, but he was very obedient to my leg and moved instantly in the direction I indicated.

I also concentrated on not collapsing my inside shoulder on circles which is a terrible habit I have. And miraculously, when I sat up straight, he stopped dropping his own shoulder into the circle as well. I really shouldn't be surprised when I am taught again and again by my horse that my riding is the issue, but it still amazes me that he can be at once such a sensitive creature and a giant meathead. It's all about expectations, I suppose.

We're due for a string of beautiful dry weather so his foot adhesive is off and we're gearing up for the schooling three phase on May 31. I plan to go schooling on the cross country course early next week. Tomorrow, we will be doing dressage, but I am going to ride down to the fairgrounds to the big turf arena in the parking lot and see if that gets us more excited. I do love dressage, but the rush of the hunter pace is still pounding in our hearts.

Thinking

I love dressage because it makes me think. I hate dressage because it exposes my weak body control and awareness.

But I love dressage because it exposes my mind.

I love jumping because it exposes my heart.

I love cross country because it exposes my courage.

But tonight, it was all about my brain. My second dressage lesson with my neighbor was twice as illuminating as the first, if that's even possible. Brego was more forward, but still more sluggish that I would have liked. But it was all about me, me, me me me.

It's all about my twisted right shoulder that creeps forward, negating the boundaries set by my right hand when tracking left. Woops, there goes my outside rein, my rock, my pillar, my wall.

It's all about my brain, computing angles, planning transitions, anticipating Brego's mysterious magnetic pull to the exit of the arena.

It's all about my hands, both harbingers of good and evil, giving, taking, rewarding, discouraging.

It's all about my ears, or my balance, feeling him drift, collapse right, always right. At the halt, at the transitions, up and down, it's all about right with Brego. So I have to out think right. And fix that damn right shoulder, which actually resulted in me riding with my head looking backwards over my right shoulder, looking where we have just been, backwards. And then lo, the horse went straight.

That's what I love about dressage. It doesn't make any sense if you think about it logically, but if you just use your brain and your balance, it works.

What tonight was NOT about was riding the front of the horse, what it was not about was a head set, or a flash nose band, or short cuts. My trainer and I agree on that, thankfully.

When I could get Brego straight, his right shoulder properly in front of his rear, his spine aligned, it's like Brego super charged. Huge power, indescribable power. But I've been siphoning off that power by letting his outside shoulder escape, especially to the right. Dressage is all about the minute corrections, the impossibly small differences that turn a trotting draft horse into a spectacle.

His canter, if I say so myself, was completely delicious. I just grinned from ear to ear.

I've said it before, and I will say it again. I am the luckiest person alive.

Getting Into the Swing of Things

Another day, another great ride.  We popped over to the neighbor's outdoor and just worked on the stuff we learned in the last lesson.  After Sunday's ride, I wanted to go easy on the legs and just work on the brain.

Brego has been getting more feed with his hay, as his work load has increased.  He's still a little chubs, but he needs quality energy to produce quality work in the dressage arena.  So I was happy to see that he was way more forward than during the lesson.  We got a nice walk-canter departure both ways (surprisingly, the left was better than the right) and called it a night.  Then a short walk through the woods home and, just like that, a great ride in under 30 minutes.  I love it.

I did take my laptop to my neighbor and showed her pictures and videos from last year when Brego and I were doing much better.  She was very glad to see them and completely impressed with Brego, especially his jumping.  I showed her the 3'3" triple bar picture and she couldn't believe it was the same horse (she did believe that was me riding though :) ).  So now she has raised the bar for us, seeing what we are capable of.  I am excited.

Next lesson is Thursday.

Dressage Lesson 9

New state, new trainer, almost 4 months off from serious work. Our last dressage lesson with me riding Brego was February 17, 2008! Yea, it was one of those kind of lessons. It was warm and sunny and I had to wake Brego from a nap to get him ready to walk next door to our neighbor's outdoor arena.

Needless to say, he was behind my leg perpetually, which weakened my position as I nagged, nagged, nagged. I am always hesitant to get after Brego in front of a new trainer. So instead of popping him like I should have to reinforce my leg aid, I nagged, which made me slump and draw my leg back.

Additionally, this lesson proved that Brego, in all his fat glory, if fitter than I. I was huffing and puffing after the canters. Brego, aside from looking lazy and slow, looked like he was trailing, not really stepping through. He's definitely weaker than last season. But it's hard to get serious about his movement when he wasn't really trying.

Ok, now on to the good. Brego was sound, sound, sound. He was well behaved and it looked like his left hip was moving well. His left canter was not a complete disaster and he only broke gait when I screwed up.

The best part is that I LOVE my neighbor/trainer. We agree on many philosophical points, she's definitely way above my level. She normally teaches big clinics down in Mass, so I am sure she was having to dumb down a lot of her instruction. But she was still positive and as quick to praise both me and Brego as to correct. It's funny, but I am not used to instructors praising me, just the horse. It was weird to hear a "Good girl!" come out of her.

My biggest challenge in dressage is that I lack the coordination to be consistent with my aids. My neighbor/trainer would ask me to do something and I would understand her, but it took way too long for me to coordinate all my aids, execute, and then release. So definite room to improve there.

Edited: Now the video has sound! Sorry about the technical mixup.

I learned a ton during the lesson, mostly about my largely non-existent outside rein. I have been so focused on the inside bend that I just leave the door wide open for him to evade outside. He does it on transitions and especially at the canter so he can run around haunches in which is easier for him. All because of my training, so now that I am on to him, we can work on it.

Anyway, I feel so lucky and grateful to have the amazing luck to move in next door to an excellent trainer. She is also way too generous. I asked her how much for the lesson and when she told me, I laughed, doubled it and it was still the cheapest private lesson I have ever taken.

Back in training, I feel like we have a purpose. When I finally admitted I was not going to shoot for nationals, or even regional championships, we lost some long term goals to work towards, you know, beside surviving the year of transition on the farm. Now I have this amazing resource right next door. There's so much we can work on, without the pressure of big money shows. We'll take time out for school show just to get an outing, but I can funnel my very limited money into lessons. I am inspired!!

P.S., only one more month until my neighbor's jump field will be ready!! We're also talking about building some arena jumps (she also used to event).

Good Reading

In my last post, I alluded to some great Jane Savoie tips. I listen to her CDs and got a lot of my inspiration there, but she also writes an incredibly informative blog. I love Ms. Savoie because she speaks to the average rider, even though she is an Olympian.

I am a mere mortal, but even playing around with some of her tips have really helped Brego and I. The emphasis being "play" and experimenting. I am always trying to find the key to my particular horse who is quite unlike the "average" dressage-oriented sporthorse. He requires that I think outside of the box, and not push leg into hand (a method enjoyed by my TB). So the main themes that drive my riding with Brego are 1) Balance and 2) Flexibility.

If Brego is not balanced, weight off his forehand, we cannot be successful. He is too big and clumsy. For a year, I have focused on balance and his hind end and it really helps. He will never be "catty" with huge suspension, but he does push well from behind and is much more coordinated.

Brego has a thick throatlatch and can get heavily muscled through the neck. So keeping him supple and flexible through his body is key. I spend time "in hand" and under saddle, asking for him to unlock his neck. I even overbend him to the side, allowing him to pop his shoulder if necessary, sometimes just to make the point. Not every movement we make is perfect or beautiful, but it all should be following the themes. I can cram his head in a perfect frame or never let his hind legs cross or never pop his shoulders, but he will not learn to loosen his neck. A lot of time, from the ground, our rides looks pretty weird. But he *feels* great!

This is just what works for me. After doing all the exercises, I spend the last week before a show putting him back together in a consistent way, to ride the test in a flowing manner. I don't ride the test to train, I train to ride the test. Well, actually, I train to have the most rideable horse I can. But the point is that riding countless 20 m circles does not improve Brego. I have to go beyond to strengthen him and then we can put together a nice 20 m circle. Nothing revolutionary here, just my thoughts on the matter.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Here's the good information from Ms. Savoie:
Clearing up Confusion About Canter Aids
How to Help Your Stiff Horse Bend
Strengthening Your Horse's Weaker Hind Leg

Of Canter Cues and Bending

We had another nice ride in the indoor tonight. Brego definitely feels better having lost some weight, I would guess maybe 50-100 lbs. He still has a nice layer of fat over his ribs, but he's lost the roll behind his shoulder blade and over his withers. I no longer struggle to get the girth on the first hole.

Since we're getting back into the swing of things, I kept cantering to a minimum. We worked just enough on it for me to practice my new canter cue. I have been listening to Jane Savoie on CD and she talks about the canter cue being a "windshield wiper" type movement of the outside leg (in addition to the other aids). She says too many riders hold their outside leg back for too long and then cue with a squeeze. Guilty as charged.

For as long as I had Brego, getting him to canter was such a chore that I liked to "warn" him it was coming, so he could gather himself and try not to fall on his face. As he improved and got stronger, I, being the weaker link, kept the cue. So the last couple of times we have ridden, I was retraining myself and Brego to canter with a swift outside leg cue. It takes more coordination than it sounds. :)

Regardless, tonight we started to get it. Brego definitely understand the new cue, but his body is still in hibernation. A couple of our departures were more like lunges into the canter but the key is that we both have agreed to change our vocabulary and seem to be talking once again.

At the walk and trot, I worked on Brego's bend. He (or rather I) tends to be one sided, so I tried to work on strengthening his weak hind leg by overbending his stiff side and counter bending his good side in a figure 8. I am not sure I completely understand the logic, but Brego certainly did. It was very hard for him to counter bend. Think of turning Brego like a bus.

After trying this at the walk and trot, Brego started offering a very relaxed and true bend on his bad side (if I could remember to keep my inside leg at the girth). Lots of mental thinking and coordination during this session, which is the part I really love about dressage.

Overall I am encouraged. Brego's mind is as sharp as ever and he seems willing, even excited, about the mental gymnastics. Now if it would stop snowing and we could go for a real ride and let him stretch his legs. The smallish indoor really does make me feel like we're both boxed, anticipating that next corner coming way too fast. I tried to mentally trick myself that the arena was larger than it was to not cut off the corners. It's amazing that when I focused on it, Brego did much better. Horses are mirrors of our thoughts.

Schooling in the Indoor

I finally got some video of the progress Brego and I have made in the balance department. Of course, since there was a video camera present, the magical harmony of the previous ride was replaced with some tension. But I can't complain too much because Brego was still well behaved, he still tried his heart out. I think he might have been a bit tired from the work we did the last ride. He felt just a bit stiff in the mouth and neck. My riding could also have been a problem, since I always tense up for the camera.

Percheron Schooling Dressage from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

I've been listening to Jane Savoie on CD on my commutes and every section reveals at least 12 things I am doing wrong. :) But one exercise she mentioned sounded really cool so I wanted to try it. On the second track, perform a shoulder-in, to renvers, to shoulder-in then a straight halt. The hind legs should stay on the track as the front shoulders move to the inside, the outside, back to the inside and then straight halt. On the second track, it's very hard, since you don't have the rail on the outside as a crutch. I filmed our first attempt at it. In the video, the second track lines up with the post in the background, so you can see how far we stray. The video highlights three major things I need to work on: Rhythm,Tempo and Bend. Brego's bend to the right is delicious, but he is much more stiff to the left (or the renvers side in this case). Also, as he performs the movement, he loses his rhythm and the tempo slows. Now I say that "Brego is this or that", but more likely, it's me or my cues. So this is something I need to work on. But I thought the exercise was really good at manifying these flaws so I can work on them.

The walk-canter transitions are coming along nicely. They illustrate Brego is gaining strength and balance. Even through his frame is "low", he is powering nicely into the transition and staying balanced.

The final thing I am proud of is the final halt. Brego actually dropped his butt in the downward transition instead of falling on his forehand and stabbing his legs into the ground. The canter to trot is weak, but the trot to walk to halt is much improved. Woot! Notice that I am not focusing on where his head is at all, I am focusing on his butt and his balance. The head "set" or frame will come out of these improvements we are making in his balance. The most important thing is to keep that big body pushing forward from behind and staying off the forehand.

As for my riding, I look pretty weak and I am still not sure what to do with my hands. I feel like my reins drift too long and you can see that when I break contact to shorten them, Brego comes up in front. I need to fix that bad habit to help him stay more consistent.

All in all, not bad for some winter work. I am not ready to go out and do my Training 4 test, but we will be ready by Summer, so I am very happy.

The Dance

I admit it. I've been a bit down on the horse thing. On the riding thing. On the New Hampshire thing. The ice storm took the wind out of my sails about my quaint little farmette.

Ice Storm Beauty...

I spent the drive home today ranting to my friend in Texas about how I just can't *think* about riding. I lack the time and the enthusiasm. I can't get excited about the little nuances of my hip angle. I can't wax philosophical about the virtues of the outside rein. I just can't. Riding sucks right now. It's been a week since we've ridden and that was in the indoor. I feel like we are falling behind... behind what I don't know. My friend pointed out that I am still in the "Texas year round" mindset where winter is where you train the hardest because it's too hot in summer. I need to ease myself into the "winter is for relaxation".

Anyway, I was not looking forward to riding tonight. Brego with a week off is one feral, hairy monster.

When I pulled open the door to the indoor, it was empty. An arena to myself. I will longe, I thought. I haven't done that in a while and it might do my addled brain some good to let Brego get his ya yas out while I am safely on the ground.

I attached the longe line and sent him out. Now, you must know, Brego is the WORLD'S WORST LONGER. He never moves forward and he knows exactly how long that whip is and if you're an inch too far away, he mocks you with his lethargy. When you get close enough of the whip, he explodes into dominant displays which melt the bravest heart. I hate longing him. But tonight, he was different. He moved out into the biggest, lightest, most uphill trot I have ever seen on this horse. Period. With no sidereins to lean on, he was elevated and pushing from his hind end. I was frankly in shock.

He threw in a couple of head tosses and showed me his "stallion" pose, but it was just a game. From the ground, I could see it was a game. He performed some unbelievable walk to canter departs and never once pulled on the line or acted up.

And you think that's good... under saddle he was even better. He moved with me. He breathed with me. I collected him with my seat. I asked for transitions with my abs and he spun around on turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches with the slightest leg aid.

I seriously began to wonder if someone had swapped Brego out with a well-trained horse. But then, he knew me too well. He knew what I wanted and did it, light as a feather. I rode for 20 minutes and called it a night. A week. A month. He was too perfect.

As I walked him home in the cold, dark night, I choked up a little. This horse, who is often a pain in the ass and a bully and eats way too much and destroys way too much, is a gift. He is a mirror into my deepest feelings. In one hour, he removed all doubt about the move, the farm, the weather. We can and will accomplish everything I desire because he *is* a well-trained horse. He's trained perfectly for me. And tonight, we danced.

Stiff as a Board

It was 22 degrees when I headed to the indoor.  I clipped Brego in an abbreviated chase clip, down his neck and his chest, but not his belly or even back as far as his girth.  He sweats so much when he works, I worry about him getting a chill even though I use coolers, blankets, towels, and curries to help dry him.

He did well.  His personality is 100% back.  Playful, goofy, calm, content.  We worked a lot on keeping our rhythm through lateral work at the walk.  My riding buddy pointed out that he looked really stiff and was not bending, just moving sideways.  I took the time to go back and stretch him, both by the "classical" and "modern" methods.  :)

I like Phillippe Karl's idea about raising the bit so it pulls up against the corners of the mouth instead of down against the gums or the bars.  So on a circle, I will raise my inside hand almost straight up.  This introduces the bend, but also lifts the inside shoulder if Brego happens to be laying on it (because that NEVER happens :)  ).  But I also like the approach my last dressage lesson taught me which is to lower my hand down to my knee, and rotate the hand while gently pulling out, not back.  This bends the head, and for Brego encourages the stretch on the off side.  But be careful with the inside leg because he will collapse on the inside shoulder.

So a little combination of the two approaches and he was stretching down, then lifting up, and stretch left and right, then raise the chest, then back to a low stretch.  I then reattempted the lateral work and he did better.

Before the realization that he was so stiff, I would have said we were back to 80% of his performance before he got kicked.  But now I think he knows 90% as much, but his body is not ready, strength or flexibility, to do it.  Which is a solveable problem.  The important thing is that he is sound and happy about his work.

He did so well that as are going back to hunting on Saturday.  Hilltopping only, but I can't wait.  And I know Brego will be so happy to be back out there.  The highs will be in the mid 20s so I am scrambling to get my gear together.  And my flask.  You know, to help keep me warm.

Back to Work

Yea, it's 28 degrees. Fahrenheit. (-1.9 Celsius) That's below freezing, y'all.

But Brego and I are totally tough customers so I got my thick breeches and my winter mountain horse boots on and we walked across the street to use the neighbor's cozy indoor. I felt so hard core when it started to snow and then I got my ass into the barn and it was nice and warm.

Anyway, both Brego and I are out of shape. He's always been worse on his left and now it's exaggerated from the loss of conditioning from his left hock. The footing is deep so it's a lot of work for him and he was drenched with sweat in about 20 minutes. I am going to trace clip him soon so he can be more comfortable while he works.

Here is a video. You can see we're both a bit rusty. His left canter is much more inconsistent than his right. And you guys are totally jealous of my Don't-Shoot-Me Helmet. 'Cause that's how I roll.




Dressage Work from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

Even though we're pretty rough around the edges, it's nice to be back in work again. I think the footing will help strengthen Brego, but I am keeping the workouts short for the near term. I don't want to over do it.

As an aside, there was a cute western reiner mare sharing the arena with me and she totally schooled Brego on balance. And obedience. :)

Baby Steps in the Dark

Brego continues to adjust to a much quieter life. He seems down. It's probably not easy to go from work 5 days a week and ruling a herd of 10 to hanging out with a geriatric (read: very non playful) mare and barely any work.

So I decided that until I could get the arena situation sussed, we were going to work, in whatever way we could. When I got home from my work tonight, it was already pitch dark. But I turned on every light on the property (even the trailer loading lights running off batteries), grabbed Brego from his "sulking spot" in the pasture and put his bridle on. We were going to work on some lateral stuff in hand.

I really want to move his hind end around, asking him to stretch his inside hind under in the shoulder in, getting the hips and hocks moving in a slow, low-impact way. We worked on my driveway which is asphalt bathed in fallen leaves. We went up and down the driveway at a shoulder in, then did a shoulder in on a volte to turn around. I made sure to get his jaw moving with bending at the halt (and some bribe cookies). He was AWESOME! I have never felt him so light in the bridle.

I couldn't help myself, I grabbed my helmet and hopped on bareback and we did it all again, up and down the driveway. He was so different form the other day -- light, compliant, interested. It was not a physical workout, but I hope I stretched him and he definitely gets points for his mental exercise. Not only did he work for me in the dark, on asphalt, with cars whizzing by, but he also did some nice shoulder in to haunches in transitions with no rail (on his good side). We also had some pretty respectable turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches. I made sure he REALLY stepped under on the turn on the forehand.

I am so jazzed. I can't wait to get him into an arena and see if he really is feeling better. I couldn't feel any real unevenness while riding from his hock injury, but with all the different aspects, it was hard for me to focus. I am going to try to get him to an arena before the end of the week and see how he is doing.

The Brego Blog Wins Fame

I apologize to everyone for being a bad blogger.

I am at the end of a release cycle at work, which means evening and weekends belong to the Other Life. I did manage to ride Brego twice this week, once working on dressage and once on jumping. I did not go to the hunt this weekend, because it was an "away game" which is about a 3 hour drive to the joint meet. It is also a live hunt (coyote) and I wasn't sure if I was up for that. I am truly a conflicted animal lover/pacifist/red meat-eater/fox hunter.

My friend in Texas sent me some Phillipe Karl dvds and I have thoroughly enjoyed learning about how much I don't understand how to train. :) Just kidding, it's been very educational to see other horses progressing by a much estemmed professional and doing the conversion in my head for Brego. Let's see, if that gorgeous perfectly balanced, perfectly relaxed warmblood stallion in the video takes 3 oz of pressure to shoulder-in from the trot, that means.... carry the one... multiply by "Draft Constant"... divide by "Green Coefficient"... to make Brego do the same thing should take... 3 oz of pressure. Wow, I am way behind on my homework!

Brego really enjoyed the in-hand session and I found him much more responsive when I finally got into the saddle. I need to remind myself to start with advanced in-hand work more often.

As for the jumping day, I set up some small fences, about 2' high and just worked on a consistant canter and counting my strides. I really need to train my eye better. I found that I could count accurately from about 4 strides out and if I didn't see it then, I would see something bad at 2 strides and think "Oh shit, we've blown it". So I really need to get better at seeing it at, say 6, and then if I don't see it, do something about it.

I then set up a 2' 9" course and worked on rollbacks. We have a fun show this weekend hosted by my barn and Brego will be in the 3' jumpers class (and costume class). He was a star and I could tell that the counting helped that round as well. I am trying not to overanalyze my position which is Step 3 in my Twelve Step Program of "Enjoying Your Horse. Here. Now."! I did feel more secure and reading the technical aspects of the course helped me to keep back and get deep distances for tight turns. I heard from spectators that I looked much better, so I am going to run with that! :)

But the real reason for this post is that the Brego Blog has been so lucky as to receive a wonderful award from a very cool blog that I have just discovered: Baba Yaga's Mirror.

There are so many really great blogs out there about horses that to choose five would be difficult. I will need to give it some thought and get back to posting about it.

Two more weeks until the big move to Brego Farms so things will continue to be a little hit or miss on the blog. I fully intend to document any fun outings, but the posts may slow down for the next couple of weeks. Better grab hold, this could be a bumpy ride!

Mending

I am definitely on the mend today. Brego and I had a semi-serious dressage session today. I asked a little more of him than yesterday, but did not physically push him. My shoulder is much improved. I am able to put my arm behind my back and carry things now. Woohoo!

Walk to Canter Transitions from Eventing Percheron on Vimeo.

I put together a small video of our walk to canter transitions. Not as relaxed or refined as I would like, but definite improvement. To the left, Brego took a big trot step, but he was more correct to the right. To get any sort of transition like this is a huge accomplishment. I remember a year ago when I thought it would never be possible for a heavy horse like Brego, so dead to the aids and with no motor, to perform a walk to canter departure. And now we're schooling them!! I am learning to never say never with Brego. He always amazes.

I am also sitting the canter better although my leg is still swinging. I heard a quote recently that sums up my feelings on dressage:

To truly master Dressage takes five horses and three lifetimes.

Truer words have never been spoken.

My Inner Fashionista

I spent the rainy weekend shopping for clothes. People that know me well, know that is something I NEVER do. I do not swoon over a cute pair of pumps. I do not coordinate. But somehow, my inner girly fashionista was awakened when I realized that the opening hunt was this weekend! The Blessing of the Hounds marks the official start to formal season in hunting!

So I was on the prowl for appropriate attire. I hit up Goodwill first and found a very nice 100% wool jacket, charcoal grey, that would be a nice warm cubbing jacket. Although I REALLY want a tweed, any classy jacket in traditional colors will do, so this jacket fit the bill, all for $4. It needs new buttons, but is otherwise in mint condition.

I then went to the local tack shop (aka horse crack pusher). I cannot get out of that place for less than $100 and this weekend was no exception. I found a used black 100% wool hunt jacket, probably close to $250 new, for $75. It fit very well, so of course I had to have it. I also picked up a new white dress blouse and stock tie, with a jazzy white pattern on the fabric. Finally, I rounded out the look with a simple gold stock pin, not too bling, fashionably conservative. They did have the cutest wool tweed jacket there, in my size (of course) for a mere $150. I wanted it so bad, but then I figured out how much more I needed to buy stall mats for my new barn AND I wouldn't get an opportunity to wear the jacket until NEXT cubbing season, so I couldn't justify it. I think this is the first time I have been honestly upset over not buying clothes.

Anyway, I look very dapper in my new threads and I can't wait to show them off this weekend. I also thoroughly checked and my flask fits in both my vest pockets and in the inside pockets of my wool coat. Whew! Disaster averted!

As for Brego, he got a "tidy up" trim consisting of ears and whiskers today so he will be looking spiffy. For the big occasion, I will be braiding his forelock and possibly trying to do something with his nubbin tail.

Oh yes, I have been riding as well. Yesterday, we worked on dressage. I watched a video showing Phillippe Karl and got inspired to concentrate on Brego's rhythm and cadence through his lateral movements. You always see the "finished product" and it was great to see horses in the middle of their training scale. Yes, they were doing the half pass at a walk, and they were going so slow, but in perfect rhythm and bend. So I realized I need to stop pushing Brego through his movements at a probably artificially quick speed for his level and let him really swing through them in better cadence. This had the extra benefit of restraining me from over-cuing to push him along. I could be softer and quieter with my aids, get the same bend and effort, and let him figure it out at a more relaxed and comfortable pace.

In fact, the theme of the whole night was relaxation. And in that spirit I figured out that I was blocking with my hip on the canter departure. So when I sat deep, relaxed and let my hip open, instead of falling forward, Brego had a really nice and light departure. It was a real pleasant ride and it all came about because I decided to ask for more while asking with less.

Tonight, we did a conditioning ride. I haven't ridden a committed conditioning ride since August, so I was interested to see how Brego did with only the foxhunting to build his wind. We did three 5 minute trot sets with 2 minute walk intervals and then three 3 minute canter sets with 3 minute walk intervals. During the canter sets, as our route took us through the arena, I would jump little 2'6" jumps set up and then canter out of the arena, to simulate more of a cross country feel. I even jumped a 2'6" bank at the end of the sets. Brego did very well and was completely recovered in less than 10 minutes. So I can honestly say that this is the fittest he has ever been and I can thank foxhunting for getting him that way.

Much to do this week. I have a jumping lesson to work on my form on Thursday. Then I have the Opening Hunt on Saturday. Then, almost as an afterthought, we have our final schooling 3 phase for the season on Sunday. Brego will likely be tired in the dressage on Sunday, but I am interested in how he attacks cross country after hunting Saturday. Our goal is to go and have fun (and coach the SO) so no real pressure. I intend to take it easy, especially if we have some great runs on Saturday, but if Brego manages to show off some of his new departures, I won't complain. :)