Let's get back on track

I blog for myself. I don't have a huge following, I don't try to attract followers and I don't comment much on other blogs to get followers. And that is okay. The fact that I have a handful of people who follow my adventure tickles me, which is why I am currently disappointed in myself that I haven't blogged at all over the past month. Though again, to my defense, I didn't do much horse wise. But that isn't a good excuse.  So, what's been going on?

I had an amazing lesson on Aug 17 after my show.  It started with Mia being stiff and sore because she was covered in rain rot, but she worked out of it, tried really hard and we got some amazing work done.  We found she will disregard my aids and come off of a straight line in a canter transition, so I need to really focus on keeping her straight and forcing her to stay accountable. Just like in our canter/trot transition, I cannot let her relax, I have to force her to stay accountable. I also have come a long way in my arms, even if I hate how they look.  #NeverHappy No more hunter looking arms for me! I signed up for another lesson for Sep 22, even though I will have had 3 weeks of no riding due to crazy life described below.  But hey, it is a goal to aim for, so a goal was set.

That following week I went back to Michigan for our (car) race. A short 13 hour, one way drive. The ride out went well enough. The race went very well, earning 13th of 52 cars after the 15 hour race.  Our best placing yet!  I was also the fastest driver again, so I was happy to regain that spot.  The drive home SUCKED though.  We weren't even an hour out and a trailer tire blew.  We always carry 2 spare trailer tires and a trailer aid, so in 15 mins we were back on the road with one spare left. Thankfully the trailer tires held up for the rest of the trip so that was a relief. The same cannot be said for the truck tires as in the middle of western NY, the passenger front truck tire got a puncture.  Thankfully we were able to pull off onto an exit and got it changed in about 30 minutes with minimal problems.  The tires were going to be replaced after we got back to PA anyway, so at least it wasn't a brand new tire like we almost had.  Plus hubby fell ill after we left MI with a fever, was coughing and was full of mucus.  Our 13 hour trip took just shy of 16 hours to get home.  Boo!

The next weekend was a trip BACK to Michigan to see the wedding of K, the woman who bought TWH.  She was riding him in the wedding and I was the hauler and handler of him. I loved seeing him again, though he didn't even seem to remember me.  He was super cuddly with K though.  *wahhh!*  That's okay dude, I still love you even though you have moved on.  He was absolutely perfect for the entire event.  From pictures, to ceremony and just hanging around, he didn't put even one hoof wrong.  No spooks, no impatient moments, no pushy times, he was just amazing. I am so glad he has such a great home and someone who absolutely adores him, he is such a good, good horse. 

Last weekend I had to go to Kansas City for a business trip with some friends. It was super busy, super tiring, and super long, but it was a lot of fun and I am looking forward to doing it again in February.  I loved the people I was with and I still got to do some fun things.  I got to see the comedienne Jeanne Robertson both at her show AND at breakfast as we were at the same hotel. I got to visit a t-rex at the museum of science, I got to ride the electric trolley, visit the WWI memorial and museum, eat at multiple BBQ places and make a lot of contacts with networking.  Thanks to the tropical storm Gordon, my flight back was in all disarray and I didn't get home until midnight.  And then it rained for 2 straight days, but at least I was home?

This week I have ridden bareback once and Mia was very good.  I wanted to spot check my balance and strength and they were both up to par. This weekend I will actually have a full ride, we need to focus on fitness for both of us if we want to be at all useful in our lesson in a week.  Mia's rainrot is thankfully gone thanks to some MTG plus.  It smells SO much better than MTG!  It still smells, just not nearly as bad.  I am very happy that she cleared up so easily, considering I couldn't be out there every day for almost 3 weeks.

So that gets you up to date and to today.  The next post will be a picture dump, and hopefully words will be flowing more freely for more frequent blog posts.  I am feeling more energized than I have been lately, so I hope I can keep it up.  What do you do to reset yourself if/when you are in a blogging slump?

Prix Caprilli debut......coming very late. But there is video!

Mia went first in the class and really kinda rocked it.  In watching the video, I really don't know WTH was going on with my hands.  Like, am I a 4-H kid who hasn't been riding most of their life?  UGH.  I know, we are our own worse critics but still.

My reins are still miles too long, especially in the canter, but it looks good.  It would have been better if I hadn't gone off course *eyeroll*.  I blanked and started to go across the diagonal in the canter when I should have been going down the long side.  The hazards of riding multiple test without a reader I guess!

So. Many. 8's.

The other two rides were decent, but I thought Mia was much more relaxed and certainly was more unphased by the jumps in the arena.  Haha, practice practice practice! How do you make your horse take a 2' fence like it is a canter stride? Do it about 30 times a day for a week.  HA!

Even with me being a bit of a mess though, the horse is judged and not the rider so we ended up with 6 as our lowest score with lots of 6.5's, 7's and 8's!!  Apparently the DO mark you down when you land on the wrong lead over a fence. *sigh*  That's okay, now I know for next time.

The first level test was the hard one though. I had worked hard to not need a reader and while I almost regretted the decision, I am glad I didn't have one. I have never in my life had a reader and I don't want to start now!  Mia wasn't as amused, having to do TWO dressage tests and was much more distracted this time. I still rode with reins way too long and but it went very well.  We even got a WOW comment on our 2nd leg yield, and ended with a 66%.  A fabulous effort that made me very happy.

So what now? I've been quiet for a while, I know. I've kind of lost my blogger voice I guess.  There isn't a lot going on in the horse world, I don't have a lot to goals to ride for and I'm in a blogging slump.  If you can't tell, this post was written in 2 parts and the 2nd part really lacks enthusiasm lol.  The horses are doing just fine, I just finished a 3 week whirlwind gone-every-weekend-no-time-to-ride adventure.  I am signed up for a lesson next Saturday, so I need to really get back to work if I want it to count for anything.  I had signed up for the re-scheduled Wofford clinic for Sept 24, but then it was cancelled again due to lack of entries.  Oh well.  Maybe next year, I wasn't in shape for it anyway.

Up next will be a recap of a lesson I had....um....a full month ago.