A late throwback Thursday post - First Dressage Show with Gadget

With all of the throw back Thursday posts on facebook, I started looking through some of my old pictures and videos. I found videos from my first recognized dressage show, which was also Gadget's very first show at Grand Haven. I planned to ride all training level tests, but when my good friend had trouble on Friday with first level, I gave her two of training level spots and took two first level spots. The improvement from day one and day two shows that my nerves were probably playing a huge part in Gadget's performance, but it's so neat to look back and think how far we've come since 2010. (The narration from my coach at the time is pretty funny too.)

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When old becomes new - update to my old Pikeur Diana!

Here is the finished product! It was a plain black jacket so I added white and light blue trim with RHINESTONES! It's very sparkly! Here's a closeup of the collar, which looks better than the pocket. Now I am going to try to add coordinating trim (minus the rhinestones) to the saddle pad.

New Near, New Goals - 2019!

NEW YEAR, NEW GOALS! I usually love reviewing my goals, progress and dreaming up new goals for the coming year, but this year was a tough one with the loss of my dear Gadget. I read a great set of articles on the Chronicle of the Horse by Matt Brown about how to shift your thinking about goal-setting. He makes the argument against fixed, outcome goals and to instead set more of "growth mindset," process-oriented goals. And here's a link to the first article: http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/a-case-for-not-focusing-on-your-goals-part-1 They are totally worth reading. I think dressage requires a strong focus on the "process" and I've always enjoyed thinking about the little things that build to success. However, I will totally admit to being outcome goal driven. I love setting specific score goals and even the goal of mastering a movement. Just as Gadget taught me lots of humility and patience, Iggy is going to drive those lessons home in a who

August 2019 update!

I have really put this poor little blog on the back burner this year, but there's actually been lots of great things happening! Iggy and I have made huge leaps forward this year in terms of balance for both of us. I am finding ways to stay softer in my hands and more supportive of his straightness that has really helped. Iggy has really gained so much strength in his canter and feels like a totally different horse. We still get changes behind, but it's no longer the defining point of the ride. We switch back and carry-on just fine. Iggy has attended 3 horseshows, and he has been wonderful. He has gotten progressively braver at each show in the warm-up, and I think he actually understands the drill now. He gets a bit excited and "takes over" a bit, but it's a great feeling to have a horse that wants to go! Although I am most thrilled about the huge boost in his confidence, his performance has been great too. He has won all of his classes, with only one score o

Dressage Day by Day

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