Showing
Wednesday, October 18th 2006
Fizzy and I left today for two weekends of showing in southern Germany. After an eight hour van ride Fizzy and Michael Barisone’s horse, Neruda, arrived safe and sound at the show. The facility is absolutely stunning, set right in the middle of dozens of hills and cornfields (about 45 minutes from Stuttgart). It is a training facility in addition to a competition facility, so there are resident horses here, as well. The barns are beautiful and pretty perfectly constructed- complete with a whirlpool for the horses (for injuries), an indoor walking machine and a treadmill. There are two indoors and for the show they will use the smaller ring (about the size of a regulation dressage ring, perhaps a little wider) for warm-up, and the large indoor hall for the show. The hall is beautiful with seating on the longsides, a restaurant that overlooks the ring, and lots of additional VIP-type seating. The footing is interesting- some sort of fiber/felt material, but it seems to hold up well.
I rode Fizzy this morning before we left and had a nice ride, so we will school for the first time here tomorrow. I am doing the Short Grand Prix and the Grand Prix Special this weekend, and the Intermediare II and Short Grand Prix next weekend. My goal is to ride consistent, clean tests. I know he can be absolutely brilliant in most of the work, but I don’t know that I can ride him for brilliant and consistent quite yet. :-) So, we will see how it goes.
Monday, October 23rd 2006
Well, we survived! Fizzy schooled really well on Thursday and Friday with lots of energy (energy is never a problem with him!), and I rode two very green Grand Prix tests with some big mistakes. But as Klaus said, it was all a good learning experience. I had an amazing time, and getting to ride in a show against Isabelle Werth definitely goes on the list of surreal moments in my life!
Could our rides have been better? Absolutely. But the most important part is that we got through it and the judges had positive comments about our potential as a pair. I worked Fizzy today and schooled some of the places where I had trouble in the test, and I am looking forward to having a whole week to work on things before competing again. I know six months from now he will be stronger and I won’t have the same issues I am having now, so I just need to get through this next show, and then continue making everything better.
What I will say that I learned after this weekend is that I need to ride Fizzy more in the routine that I used to. I try so hard to listen to Klaus and do what he says, but sometimes, if I have a feeling that isn’t so good, I need to address that, and voice that. Klaus asked me what we did differently for the Brentina Cup classes (or, riding at a show in general) and I told him we worked less on the movements and more on the rideability of the horse. I never once rode my Intermediare II at home in preparation for competing (in the Brentina Cup). Movements from it, yes, but I never rode in a regulation sized arena until our first qualifier! Is this the best preparation for a show? Maybe not. But, it was what I did, and it worked.
In contrast, Klaus had me do the test a number of times before the competition in preparation. This did make me very familiar with the tests and how quickly the movements came up, but it also completely changed how I warmed up and everything I knew. My mom comes on Wednesday, and Klaus suggested she help me for this weekend. I’ve been working with her for so long, and I think it will be helpful for Klaus to see our system, so that maybe we can incorporate that a bit more into our routine. Everything that Klaus says is of course correct, but sometimes I think I will try to do what he asks when we’re not prepared enough to do it well.
I will say the highlight of my weekend was getting to do the awards ceremony for the Grand Prix Special (we were 8th overall). The top eight riders went back into the big indoor hall with all of the lights turned down, and then there was a beautiful ceremony for us, complete with a marching band and spotlights on the horses. I was a little glum in the ceremony because we hadn’t done as well as I had hoped. As I sat there, pondering what I could have done differently, one of the committee members came over and handed me a little stuffed horse as a prize for competing.
As Fizzy and I waited patiently for the photographers to finish taking pictures of the winner, I looked into the crowd and saw two little girls standing on the arena railing looking at me. They were looking at me the way I looked at Carol Lavell or Michael Poulin or Nicole Uphoff when I was seven or eight years old. The girls didn’t know that my ride hadn’t been my best, or that I blew both lines of tempi changes, or that my right pirouette needed to be smaller. They grinned and giggled when they saw me looking at them, and I smiled. Turning back towards the awards, I thought for a moment, about being a horse-crazy little girl, and how lucky I was to be sitting in that indoor hall, having just completed my first Grand Prix Special at 22. I turned back to the little girls and did what I would have wanted if I was them- I asked them if they wanted my stuffed pony. Grinning they both shook their heads, and the one who caught it turned beet red and managed to mouth the word, “Danke” before turning and running to show her mom what she had just been given.
A few years ago I wrote an article on the North American Young Rider Championships- after I had competed in 2003 at Bromont. After witnessing some less-than-stellar sportsmanship from my fellow competitors, I came up with a quote for how I feel about competing, “Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose, but we must always play the game with grace and compassion.” I hope someday Fizzy and I will get to stand in that main spotlight, and lead the victory gallop, I really do. But to be where I am, doing what I am, is a one in a million opportunity. And for that, I am forever grateful to the people who inspired me, and encouraged the passion that lives within the heart of many a little girl. I only hope that I can continue the tradition.
Monday, October 30th
This weekend went much better than last weekend! Although our scores weren’t that much higher, I was really pleased with my last ride (the Short Grand Prix) because it was the first test where I finally had no major mistakes. We got both the two tempis and one tempis, and at least got quietly through the rest of the test. I didn’t do enough piaffe steps for the piaffe/passage tour, so we had lower marks for those, but other than that, everything was a “6” “7” or “8.” It was wonderful to have my mom help me and go a little bit back to my “old” system- with doing fewer test movements and more working on the throughness and rideability. Klaus was very supportive and said it is important to not change your routine too much. This is really my fault, for not saying anything to him earlier, but live and learn, right?
Overall, I think these past ten days have been an incredible learning experience. Getting to watch riders like Ulla Salzgeber, Alex Simmons-de Ridder and Isabelle Werth (not to mention compete against them!) was a super opportunity to assess my own riding, and what I must do differently. They ride every step of every test, and while I sometimes get too caught up in worrying about the next movement they prepare for each movement- setting the horse up so he can do it well. This is something that I know will come for me with more experience.
Tuesday, October 31st
Today, I had the best ride I have ever had. I rode in the snaffle, no spurs, no whip, and Fizzy was light, responsive and completely wonderful. Having my mom help me was super because she reminded me to actually ride and not just wait for instruction. This, combined with the work we’ve done with Klaus for the last month and a half, made Fizzy absolutely incredible. He was up and open in front and light, but waiting for me. I rode every corner and played him forward and back to the point that all I had to do was close my thigh a little and he came immediately more collected. We made easy, straight tempi changes without mistakes, and did a collected trot that was huge and supple with super cadence. I couldn’t help but grin. There are no words to express how grateful I am to have a horse like this.
Fizzy and I left today for two weekends of showing in southern Germany. After an eight hour van ride Fizzy and Michael Barisone’s horse, Neruda, arrived safe and sound at the show. The facility is absolutely stunning, set right in the middle of dozens of hills and cornfields (about 45 minutes from Stuttgart). It is a training facility in addition to a competition facility, so there are resident horses here, as well. The barns are beautiful and pretty perfectly constructed- complete with a whirlpool for the horses (for injuries), an indoor walking machine and a treadmill. There are two indoors and for the show they will use the smaller ring (about the size of a regulation dressage ring, perhaps a little wider) for warm-up, and the large indoor hall for the show. The hall is beautiful with seating on the longsides, a restaurant that overlooks the ring, and lots of additional VIP-type seating. The footing is interesting- some sort of fiber/felt material, but it seems to hold up well.
I rode Fizzy this morning before we left and had a nice ride, so we will school for the first time here tomorrow. I am doing the Short Grand Prix and the Grand Prix Special this weekend, and the Intermediare II and Short Grand Prix next weekend. My goal is to ride consistent, clean tests. I know he can be absolutely brilliant in most of the work, but I don’t know that I can ride him for brilliant and consistent quite yet. :-) So, we will see how it goes.
Monday, October 23rd 2006
Well, we survived! Fizzy schooled really well on Thursday and Friday with lots of energy (energy is never a problem with him!), and I rode two very green Grand Prix tests with some big mistakes. But as Klaus said, it was all a good learning experience. I had an amazing time, and getting to ride in a show against Isabelle Werth definitely goes on the list of surreal moments in my life!
Could our rides have been better? Absolutely. But the most important part is that we got through it and the judges had positive comments about our potential as a pair. I worked Fizzy today and schooled some of the places where I had trouble in the test, and I am looking forward to having a whole week to work on things before competing again. I know six months from now he will be stronger and I won’t have the same issues I am having now, so I just need to get through this next show, and then continue making everything better.
What I will say that I learned after this weekend is that I need to ride Fizzy more in the routine that I used to. I try so hard to listen to Klaus and do what he says, but sometimes, if I have a feeling that isn’t so good, I need to address that, and voice that. Klaus asked me what we did differently for the Brentina Cup classes (or, riding at a show in general) and I told him we worked less on the movements and more on the rideability of the horse. I never once rode my Intermediare II at home in preparation for competing (in the Brentina Cup). Movements from it, yes, but I never rode in a regulation sized arena until our first qualifier! Is this the best preparation for a show? Maybe not. But, it was what I did, and it worked.
In contrast, Klaus had me do the test a number of times before the competition in preparation. This did make me very familiar with the tests and how quickly the movements came up, but it also completely changed how I warmed up and everything I knew. My mom comes on Wednesday, and Klaus suggested she help me for this weekend. I’ve been working with her for so long, and I think it will be helpful for Klaus to see our system, so that maybe we can incorporate that a bit more into our routine. Everything that Klaus says is of course correct, but sometimes I think I will try to do what he asks when we’re not prepared enough to do it well.
I will say the highlight of my weekend was getting to do the awards ceremony for the Grand Prix Special (we were 8th overall). The top eight riders went back into the big indoor hall with all of the lights turned down, and then there was a beautiful ceremony for us, complete with a marching band and spotlights on the horses. I was a little glum in the ceremony because we hadn’t done as well as I had hoped. As I sat there, pondering what I could have done differently, one of the committee members came over and handed me a little stuffed horse as a prize for competing.
As Fizzy and I waited patiently for the photographers to finish taking pictures of the winner, I looked into the crowd and saw two little girls standing on the arena railing looking at me. They were looking at me the way I looked at Carol Lavell or Michael Poulin or Nicole Uphoff when I was seven or eight years old. The girls didn’t know that my ride hadn’t been my best, or that I blew both lines of tempi changes, or that my right pirouette needed to be smaller. They grinned and giggled when they saw me looking at them, and I smiled. Turning back towards the awards, I thought for a moment, about being a horse-crazy little girl, and how lucky I was to be sitting in that indoor hall, having just completed my first Grand Prix Special at 22. I turned back to the little girls and did what I would have wanted if I was them- I asked them if they wanted my stuffed pony. Grinning they both shook their heads, and the one who caught it turned beet red and managed to mouth the word, “Danke” before turning and running to show her mom what she had just been given.
A few years ago I wrote an article on the North American Young Rider Championships- after I had competed in 2003 at Bromont. After witnessing some less-than-stellar sportsmanship from my fellow competitors, I came up with a quote for how I feel about competing, “Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose, but we must always play the game with grace and compassion.” I hope someday Fizzy and I will get to stand in that main spotlight, and lead the victory gallop, I really do. But to be where I am, doing what I am, is a one in a million opportunity. And for that, I am forever grateful to the people who inspired me, and encouraged the passion that lives within the heart of many a little girl. I only hope that I can continue the tradition.
Monday, October 30th
This weekend went much better than last weekend! Although our scores weren’t that much higher, I was really pleased with my last ride (the Short Grand Prix) because it was the first test where I finally had no major mistakes. We got both the two tempis and one tempis, and at least got quietly through the rest of the test. I didn’t do enough piaffe steps for the piaffe/passage tour, so we had lower marks for those, but other than that, everything was a “6” “7” or “8.” It was wonderful to have my mom help me and go a little bit back to my “old” system- with doing fewer test movements and more working on the throughness and rideability. Klaus was very supportive and said it is important to not change your routine too much. This is really my fault, for not saying anything to him earlier, but live and learn, right?
Overall, I think these past ten days have been an incredible learning experience. Getting to watch riders like Ulla Salzgeber, Alex Simmons-de Ridder and Isabelle Werth (not to mention compete against them!) was a super opportunity to assess my own riding, and what I must do differently. They ride every step of every test, and while I sometimes get too caught up in worrying about the next movement they prepare for each movement- setting the horse up so he can do it well. This is something that I know will come for me with more experience.
Tuesday, October 31st
Today, I had the best ride I have ever had. I rode in the snaffle, no spurs, no whip, and Fizzy was light, responsive and completely wonderful. Having my mom help me was super because she reminded me to actually ride and not just wait for instruction. This, combined with the work we’ve done with Klaus for the last month and a half, made Fizzy absolutely incredible. He was up and open in front and light, but waiting for me. I rode every corner and played him forward and back to the point that all I had to do was close my thigh a little and he came immediately more collected. We made easy, straight tempi changes without mistakes, and did a collected trot that was huge and supple with super cadence. I couldn’t help but grin. There are no words to express how grateful I am to have a horse like this.
posted by Liz @ 6:55 AM
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