Dressage Queens For a Day

For the first time I actually rode in an actual dressage show! And had a ton of fun.

Dee and I have spent almost all winter focusing on dressage. This winter will forever be known as Dressage Bootcamp. Since Shimmer-E was taking Ritchie to a silver dressage show, I figured Dee and I should join her, especially since they also offered non-rated classes. Even better, we managed to convince the third musketeer that she needed to bring her pony and join us. For the first time in a long friendship all 3 of us showed at the same show.

We hauled down Saturday afternoon so we could school and bathe the ponies. As per usual, I warmed Ritchie up for Shimmer-E. The unusual part was he bucked me off. I was just walking him around the small ring and the first time we got to the judges table he spooked, reared and spun on his back legs and took of doing his version of bucking (no flying back legs but a giant amount of air time while humping his back). I came off right around X. I had two thoughts as this all went down. "Don't land on your bad foot" and "Shit, now there's going to be a loose stud in a busy arena". Thankfully I managed to land on the knee and shin of my bad leg, rather than the ankle and Ritchie headed right to Shimmer-E.

Double-duty Quick Wraps (I wore it all weekend)

After a solid lunge I got back on and schooled him in both rings before Shimmer-E mounted up and had a tense but successful ride. Since my leg was very sore I elected to just putter around on Dee. She remains Best Pony as she didn't put a foot out of place, no matter what happened (spooking horses and flapping pigeons didn't even rate a look).

I was super pumped to give her a bath. Her last bath was in September. As irritating as it is to have to use copious amounts of purple shampoo, it is rather satisfying to witness the transformation.

I had completely reasonable ride times that allowed me enough time to braid Ritchie, get on him for 5 minutes, watch her first test, braid Dee and then get on for my test.

I stuck with the minimal warm-up that served us so well last year. I was on for no more than 10 minutes before I went in. I mostly walked, did a few walk-trot transitions and did not canter.

We proceeded down centerline for T-1(and remembered the first halt!) and had our most relaxed test to date! I had a solid flat-footed walk. On the video (which my mother keeps forgetting to send me) you can see a mile wide grin on my face while we are walking. I didn't care what my score was, I was super happy with our ride.

The next test, T-2, was about an hour later so I put Dee in her stall to chill. The second tense felt more rushed and tense to me but was still light years ahead of anything from last year. (Except the stretchy trot circle, that was a hot mess).

I texted this to my dressage coach and my very reserved and proper Russian instructor sent me 3 exclamation points!

I was super pumped to find out we had scored 60.4% in T-1 and a 62.5% on T-2, earning us a second. The judge is traditionally a tough but fair critic so I was really pleased with our scores. And it didn't say 'tense' anywhere on our test, for the first time ever.

Look at how white those legs are!

The best part of the weekend was this picture though. Does it get any better than showing with your besties and everyone coming away super successful?
 

Favourite part of the weekend. Smiles, pretty ears and satin

All the Back on Track!

There are plenty of things I do for my horses that I do because they make me happy, not because the animals actually require it. Supplements, blanketing regimes, tail bags, and BoT (all the BoT!).

I liked the concept of Back on Track and purchased a mesh sheet for Merlin while I was competing him. I noticed that my stiff  old man took much less time to warm up after wearing it (which was a blessing because he really wasn't as fit as he should have been). I picked up a couple saddle pads but never really contemplated getting much more.

Fast forward to February 2013. I had just gotten the half cast off of my trashed ankle and my surgeon allowed me to have a walking boot, on the condition that I put absolutely no weight on it. The boot allowed me to shower and wear socks, to combat the stench and the frigid Alberta winter. I figured that BoT socks couldn't do any harm to my healing ankle so I didn't really have anything to lose.

For the first few weeks (I was non-weight bearing for 16 weeks!) I didn't really notice a difference but as my ankle started to heal I did notice a small reduction in swelling after wearing the socks. I continued to wear them for the entire healing process.

No weight bearing required to ride (getting on was a nightmare though)

I became a huge believer after I was back to walking. Any surface that is not flat and level caused me a huge amount of grief since I had almost no mobility in the joint. I started wearing my BoT socks again and found a huge difference in how my ankle held up. To this day, I need to wear them while walking a XC course and then to sleep at night as well. It cuts down on my limping. It's not a cure-all but I do find that it helps a ton.

Based on this, I may have gone slightly crazy with the amount of BoT products I own.

Dee and Ritchie both have mesh sheets. I wish the fit on these was better but any performance horse of mine will have one.

Mesh sheet, no-bows and bell boots

Dee and Ritchie both have a full set of no-bows. I find that these take a while to break in. When you first start using them they are stiff and more difficult to wrap. As they break in they become just lovely. I find that I always have tight and cool legs in the morning.

Actually, out whole show contingent has a mesh sheet and no-bows. Matching for the win!

Dee has a full set of Quick-Wraps. I just got these in November and haven't used them much. I won't be using them as a substitute for my no-bows (I refuse to leave anything that goes past the fetlock on overnight).

Only photo I have of the Quick Wraps

Dee has a saddle pad (that I hardly ever use since she really needs a non-slip pad). I loved this for Merlin with his stiff old man back.

The Red Mare modelling the BoT saddle pad

Dee has a rain sheet. The fit on this is better than the mesh sheet. Dee's has held up well. I've had it as long as I've had her and it needs zero repairs (but she is easy on her blankets, being the undisputed top mare).

Dee has bell boots (that she wore for 8 months straight after her collateral ligament injury). I have no idea if these helped her injury but they made me feel better. I had planned to leave them on her until they fell off, but they are surprisingly sturdy. She lived in them 24/7 until I pulled her shoes in the fall and after a quick wash are still in excellent condition.

Dee has front polos. I love these as polos. I find they have the perfect amount of stretch and I really like how the inside is not fleece.

I have at least 8 pairs of socks. These stretch out quite a bit but I will continue to buy them.

I have 2 ankle braces (since I inevitably misplace one right before a show). I wear this anytime I have to traverse less than ideal ground conditions. And always on XC. It's slim enough not to really affect the fit of my boots.

I have a scarf. I've had this for years and wear it all the time. I don't really notice any difference but it does keep me warm and it's sturdy.

I have a sweater. Mine is about two sizes to big so it makes a great layering piece. I do find it exceptionally warm.

I have a polo shirt. I don't wear it that often since it is white and the piping isn't super flattering on me.

I have riding gloves. This is one of the few BoT products that I truly dislike. I should really sell them because I never use them. They are lined, but the lining moves around. I find that they are just too think to get a good feel and I find them clumsy.

So much dislike

I also used to have a set of the exercise boots. I hated these. I found they were poorly constructed and never fit well. They turned and slipped no matter how tight or what horse they were on.

I had considered buying the open front jumping boots but one of the girls at the barn has them and they seem super cheap. The BoT lining is nice but the rest seems like a $20 boot that you pay $150 for. Do better Back on Track.

It's a little overwhelming when I list it like that. I don't even want to know how much money I've spent on BoT. But I've got happy ponies and it makes me feel better, so really, I have no regrets.

Wordless Wednesday: Spoiled Pony

Snazzy new CWD halter

And new BoT Mesh Sheet

And new Ogilvy means Best Pony shall now be referred to as Spoiled Pony