Liz Austin Dressage News

www.lizaustindressage.com

2011-07-11T21:20:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone!

From now on all my updates will be in the News section of http://www.lizaustindressage.com/

Thanks for following me over the years. I will keep this one up until I figure out a way to transfer my old posts to the archives.

Love,

Liz+Fizzy

Fall 2010 and Beyond

2010-11-30T08:41:00.002-05:00

2010 Show Season Continued--- Galant did his first CDI competition in the small tour in September. Although we had some bummer mistakes and little miscommunications both days, he was FANTASTIC and was exceptionally proud of himself. I was also exceptionally proud of him. Now we're working on strength, fitness and greater degrees of collection in preparation for the Grand Prix ring in Florida. Hopefully we'll be ready to do a few Intermediare II's by February.

Comtesso and Annabel did their first Grand Prix in October and did very well at the GMHA Dressage Fall Show. She earned her first score for her USDF Gold Medal as well as an additional score over 60%! Next, while I had to stay home with a sick horse, Annabel went, all by herself (with her amazing husband for moral support!), to Mystic Dressage and earned two more good scores- including one in the mid-60s! HUGE Congratulations to Annabel and Comtesso. I can't believe she got her silver AND gold medal this year! Hard work does pay off!

Ups and Downs--- In October, Allure, the five-year-old mare I've had for the past year left to go to a trainer closer to her owner's home in Indiana. Although I was sad to see her go, I still strongly believe that she will be a great horse and look forward to seeing her success in the show ring. This is always the hard part of riding horses that you don't own- sometimes they leave. Of course I still miss her and miss riding her, but life goes on. While that door closed I received an e-mail from a woman that bought a now four-year-old gelding from us a few years ago. Bellagio or Baloney as we call him has now returned to me for training for a few months and we are having a BLAST! He is comfortable and fun and fancy and safe and honest... I like him even more now than when we sold him! I am so looking forward to bringing him to Florida and competing a bit. As a youngster we always thought he could be a successor to Fizzy and he's proving that to be a very realistic future. He will return to his owner in the spring but until then I know we are going to have a ton of fun together.

I Love Teaching!
I did two clinics this fall- one for Lendon Gray's Dressage4Kids that was a pony clinic, and one at Silvercryst Farm in Massachusetts. Both clinics were a great success and made me realize how much I enjoy teaching. All of the horses and riders made progress with some combinations really excelling. It is so fun as a teacher to see horses and riders "get" something and watch their entire demeanor change. As I gain experience and knowledge I realize how much better I am at reading horses and how to best help them achieve success and gain confidence. Riders, too, but especially horses!

Fizzy Rocks Equine Affaire
While Fizzy had a fairly quiet fall we did gear up to do a four-night Freestyle performance at Equine Affaire this November. WE HAD SO MUCH FUN. With one night of rehearsals and three nights of performing it was definitely a tiring week, but Fizzy walked out to perform each night more excited than the night before. He LOVED the audience- 5,000 screaming fans, a spotlight and a completely blinged out, rockstar costume- what more could a self-centered, cocky stallion ask for? Even while the crowd cheered, whistled and clapped through our performance, Fizzy quietly performed each night PUMPED, but totally obedient and on-the-aids. I'm pretty sure we'd both like to run away and join the circus. So much more fun than dressage shows!!! For a video of our Friday performance, please go to the following link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pfl6eC5nMk

Galant Rocks Equine Affaire, Too!
One of my stipulations for performing in the Pfizer Fantasia with Fizzy was that I could bring an extra horse with me. I thought this sort of venue would be wonderful for Galant with so much going on, but absolutely zero pressure on him. On a whim, I called the woman organizing the Hanoverian breed demonstration to see if I could ride Galant in it, and as luck would have it, we ended up getting to be the stars of the show! Galant was fantastic and has matured so much in the last year. He had the best time handwalking all over, going adventure trail riding, meandering through seas of people, having his picture taken approximately 1,000 times and meeting and seeing all sorts of horses. Driving horses, Gypsy Vanners, Spotted Drafts, Miniature horses, Icelandics, Friesians, Paints, Clydesdale's and everything in between! He is for sure the most accepting, unbiased horse I've ever met. While Fizzy was appalled at all the different shapes and sizes (and not going to lie- wanted to do some BAD things with those Icelandic ponies!), Galant was thrilled to visit (nicely!) with everyone. He really is something else. The gentle giant.

Musings on Equine Affaire
I had a wonderful time at Equine Affaire. Fizzy was great. Galant was great. Everything went perfectly. That wasn't what was so wonderful however. The wonderful part was how many people I met that genuinely love horses. Of course, Galant at 18 hands with four white stockings and a big blaze garnered a ridiculous amount of attention. Number one asked question was, "how many hands!?" He stood perfectly to be petted, admired, scratched, admired and photographed by his fans. Emilee and I joked about "catching" people in the barn having their picture taken with him. He loved it. So did we. Sometimes at dressage shows it feels like everyone is so wrapped up in THEIR thing that they don't take the time to look around and appreciate everything. At an event like Equine Affaire, we have time to appreciate. I watched Denny Emerson teach jumping clinics. I rode Jane Savoie's horse simulator. I got teary-eyed watching some of the versatility horse and rider combinations and thinking about how much those horses really trust their riders. I talked to people riding their Spotted Draft Horse's bareback about how I trained Fizzy to do so much cool stuff. I learned about reining and cutting. I met cowboys and saddleseat riders. I got to sit on Jerry Diaz' gorgeous Friesian stallion Rosario during Pfizer Fantasia while he had to help his wife, Stacie, do her Roman Riding act. Rosario was perfect. I was flattered. Sometimes when you get in the heat of the moment, at the height of competition season, you can lose sight of why we all do this. Please don't. We are all so lucky to have horses in our life and do what we love.

Florida 2011
So, it's official! Coltrane gets to come to Florida. He's just starting under saddle now and is a delight. He is so smart and so enthusiastic it's ridiculous. Just like his father he will do ANYTHING for a cookie. His nephew, Copland, will also be coming. Copland is Baloney's full brother and if it's possible, even taller and darker and handsom(er?) than his older brother. My old Young Rider stallion, Hierarch, will also be coming for my working student to ride. He is PHENOMENAL and at 21-years-old having a wonderful time teaching Emilee about the highest levels of dressage. Comtesso will also be joining us, as will of course Fizzy, Galant and one new horse. I am so looking forward to warm weather! We will again be in White Fences and of course taking advantage of "the loop" for fitness work. Pretty cool statistics on our crew this year- four Grand Prix horses, one Intermediare horse, a five-year-old and two four-year-olds. Talk about the whole spectrum!

Busy Busy! 2010 Schedule continued...

2010-08-26T10:51:00.002-04:00

GMHA July was a great success! Go Comtesso and Gogo!

What a crazy summer it's been! I think I've had three weekends where I wasn't at a show or clinic! A bit wild, but very fun. When I have time I will post a more in-depth update, but for now, here's a little info on the ponies- the abridged version!

Fizzy- is amazing. He got the worst case of scratches a week before Gladstone... of course this was the first time he's ever had scratches- Murphy's law, right? Anyway, I could barely work him for the entire week before our Grand Prix trying to let them heal, worked him a bit on Friday and he went in for me on Saturday in the Grand Prix and was absolutely WONDERFUL. We brought him out for the Grand Prix Special on Sunday only to find that he was too uncomfortable to show. I was bummed, of course, but OK with everything. The heartbreak was making eye contact with him in the wash stall after and he looked so upset and defeated. Definitely the saddest look he has ever given me. As much as I joke and complain about him being a big, fat, lazy stallion, on that day, I know for sure he felt terrible that he couldn't go and show for me. On the other hand, it made me realize that he actually really does like his job. So, water under the bridge, no World Equestrian Games, but I am still so incredibly proud of him for trying so hard for me in that Grand Prix- we really belonged there.

Galant has had a ridiculous show season. I keep joking that showing him is like showing at the hunter shows- where you come home with all the big, fancy ribbons. At GMHA June he won his PSG with a 71%, won FEI High Score of the Day AND FEI High Score of the Show. At GMHA July we moved up to I1, he won both his classes, FEI High Score of the Day (both days) and Reserve FEI High Score of the Show. We are now eagerly looking forward to the NEDA CDI where we will do the CDI Small Tour. He is such a wonderful show horse and is really enjoying all the adventures. In addition to the shows at GMHA, we were also invited to participate in two clinics with Debbie McDonald at Gladstone this summer which both went incredibly well. All I can say is that Gogo is going to be a heck of a fun horse to show Grand Prix! He is so sensitive and forward and talented, talented, talented! As someone said to us in Florida, "His future's so bright, he's gotta wear shades."

Allure is working steadily towards learning all of the FEI 6-Year-Old work. Her trot is really starting to develop into something special and her lateral work is going to be super easy. I applied to ride in the NEDA clinic with Steffen Peters this October so fingers and toes crossed that we get in!

I have Annabel Sattler's wonderful horse Comtesso back in training for a bit. She earned her silver medal with him in TWO shows- getting her 4th level scores at the first show (her first time showing above 3rd level!) and her PSG scores at the second show! For fun she did the I1 at GMHA July and won FEI High Score AA with a 66%! So now we're taking the plunge and seeing if Comtesso is up to returning to the Grand Prix ring. At 22 years old he is more supple, more energetic and more excited to work than many horses half his age. I am feeling really confident we can do this! And if not, it's been a heck of a ride for Annabel this year! I am so proud of her.

That's it for now- I'll try to write some more later!

2010 Caledar

2010-06-28T18:14:00.001-04:00

July 10-11 Debbie McDonald Developing Clinic
July 23-25 GMHA July
August 6-8 National Championships Week
August 14-16 National Championships Week 2
September 14-19 NEDA CDI
September 28-October 3 Dressage at Devon
October 9- Clinic in MA
October 10- Bearspot Farm Freestyle Competition (to be confirmed)
October 29-31 NEDA Clinic with Steffen Peters
November 11-13 Pfizer Fantasia at Equine Affaire

Allentown CDI

2010-06-01T10:33:00.000-04:00

Another very successful weekend for Liz Austin Dressage! Fizzy won the CDI Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special with scores of 67+% and 65+%. Galant had his second outing at Prix St. Georges and was a superstar with scores nearing 66%. Finally, Annabel Sattler and her wonderful schoolmaster Comtesso had a very successful debut at 4th level earning two scores in the mid-60s thus earning them BOTH of their USDF Silver Medal scores first time out! Wow! On to Prix St. Georges now for this pair.

Other News

Allure, the 5-year-old mare Liz has had in training since last July continues to make super progress and is now schooling her flying changes and learning half-steps. All of the new work is done with very little pressure and a very fun attitude about it it and "Lulu" is taking everything in stride. We are still hoping to show this incredibly talented mare in the FEI 6-Year-Olds next year.

Atticus, the Latvian Warmblood we had for sale, has been sold. Congratulations to Donna C.!

On May 20th, we welcomed a beautiful bay filly sired by Fizzy out of our Balzflug x Dutchboy mare.

2010 Calendar

2010-06-01T10:24:00.001-04:00

Tentative Show and Clinic Schedule

May 27-30 Allentown CDI Competition (Allentown, NJ)
June 12-13 Debbie McDonald Clinic (Gladstone, New Jersey)
June 18-20 GMHA Dressage Competition (Woodstock, VT)

June 26 New England Dutch Breeders Get Together (Imajica- Williston, VT)
July 9-11 Debbie McDonald Clinic (Gladstone, New Jersey)
July 23-25 GMHA Dressage Show (Woodstock, VT)
August 7-8 National Championships (Gladstone, NJ Week 1)
August 14-15 National Championships (Gladstone NJ, Week 2)
August 20-22 Saugerties CDI Competition (Saugerties, NY))
September 14-19 NEDA Competition (Saugerties, NY)
September 28-October 3 Dressage at Devon CDI Competition (Devon, PA)

Wonderful 2nd level schoolmaster for sale

2010-04-15T16:33:00.000-04:00

15.3 hand, 14 year old Latvian gelding for sale. Very safe and fun to ride. Schooled through 2nd level, learning his changes. Simply the best character. $10,000. In Burlington, Vermont.

I Wear My Helmet Every Time, Every Ride

2010-03-31T02:20:00.000-04:00

As many of you know dressage rider Courtney King was injured in a very serious riding accident earlier this month. While her condition continues to improve it has sent a wave of awareness throughout the dressage (and horse) community. For any of you that have ever seen Courtney ride, you know she is absolute poetry on a horse. There are few riders in the world that look as beautiful on a horse as she does or ride with her feel and precision. Needless to say when she had what sounded like a very simple fall after her horse lost his footing, we all god a wake-up call as to how fragile life really is.

I've never been very good about wearing my helmet unless I was on a very green horse but I am PROUD to say I now wear a helmet on EVERY horse I sit on- from the 1000000000% bombproof schoolmaster I have for sale to Fizzy who is extremely reliable. Please- even if you aren't wearing a helmet for "yourself," wear it for those who care about you and love you. What we do is dangerous enough, and the more precautions we can take against having something like what happened to Courtney, the better.

Fizzy 2010 Season

2010-03-27T12:17:00.000-04:00

World Dressage Masters

I really thought I had a great plan for Fizzy coming into this season. We arrived in Florida just before the new year and planned to do our first show (a national show) at the end of January. Then, in the middle of February I would do the Valentine's Day CDI at Jim Brandon, followd by the Palm Beach Derby CDI the beginning of March. That all changed when I received a phone call at the end of January- days before our first national show, inviting us to ride in the World Dressage Masters! Was the timing ideal? No. Fizzy and I hadn't been in the ring together since the pervious September and I always like to start with a national show to give us both a chance to get the kinks out and find our show groove.

Initially, I wanted to decline the invitation, but after speaking with my coach, Michael Barisone and US Technical Advisor Anne Gribbons I decided to give it a shot. One week before the show we did a "test ride" for Anne which was incredibly helpful. Although I had some mistakes, overall it was a super experience and gave me a lot of confidence going into the Masters.

A lot of people asked me if I was nervous about competing against the likes of Steffen Peters and Anky Van Grunsven and Isabell Werth. My answer was always, "No." I had nothing to loose. I know they are in a league far above my own (note I say my own, not my horses!) but what an honor and opportunity to get to compete in the same class as them!

The Masters went incredibly well for Fizzy and me. He was a super boy and I think we held our own quite well in some very good company. Had it not been for a big head toss in the extended walk (which we later attributed to a ulceration from a sharp tooth right under his noseband, poor guy!) we would have scored nearly 68%/. As it was we finished with a 66% and a very respecable 9th place. WOW is all I can say about the experience. I gained so much confidence and honestly was simply so proud of my horse. I've said it before and I will say it always- talent for him is not the problem. He will go as well as I can ride him and I strive every single day to become the best rider I can not just for him, but for all the horses I ride. What an incredible opportunity I have with so many wonderful horses to ride.

The Palm Beach Derby CDI produced for us our highest Grand Prix CDI score to date- a 68.8% earning us a second place behind the superstars Tina Konyot and Calecto V. What a season this has been for us. I am so thankful!

2010 Season Photos

2010-03-27T12:04:00.000-04:00

Galant schooling. February 2010.

Odin and his owner schooling. Fall 2009.

Emily and Colby schooling. March 2010.

Allure schooling. February 2010.

Allure showing off her ribbons!

2010 Winter Season

2010-03-27T10:52:00.013-04:00

The 2010 season has certainly been an exciting one! I brought six horses to Florida with me- five in training- Fizzy of course, Odin (an eight-year-old Fizzy son out of Dos Rios xx, bred by Serendipity Sport Horses), Allure (a five-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare by Rousseau out of a Farrington x Hierarch dam bred by Sonnenberg Farm), Galant (a ten-year-old Hanoverian gelding) and Atticus (a Latvian gelding owned by a client of Lendon Gray). Additionally, my working student brought down her Dutch cross gelding.

All of the horses have made tremendous progress throughout the season. I started riding Galant in October and he's been an absolute delight to ride and train. At 18 hands he is the lightest, most sensitive horse I ride (or have ever ridden for that matter!) and he's been absolutely brillant in learning the Grand Prix work. On my birthday (February 16th) he gave me for the first time 15 one tempis. Everyone that sees us together comments on on an elegant, impressive pair we make and I'm hoping to continue with his training so that we can begin showing Intermediare II and Grand Prix later this season. He has minimal show experience so we've spend some time this winter going to different shows and practicing riding in different venues giving him confidence. He's been simply fantastic and loves to go on adventures!

I originally started riding Fizzy's son Odin with the intent of having him for a few years to ride and compete. I keep up with all of Fizzy's offspring to see how they are doing and as Odin is one of his oldest offspring (from his first foal crop) I always wanted to know how he was progressing. When his Young Rider told me she didn't have much time to ride him I offered to take him on to train while she was busy with work and school. Unfortunately she and her family have decided that having a horse right now really doesn't make sense so the decision has been made to sell Odin. I will continue riding him until he gets sold. He too has made super progress while in Florida and I look forward to marketing him in the next few months. He is VERY sensitive (from his Thoroughbred dam) but tries incredibly hard and is going to make a fabulous partner for someone.

Allure, affectionately called Lulu, belongs to a client from Indiana. She came to me la summer after being in a field for five months doing embryo transfers. She had been lightly started last spring and then given the summer off to be a baby maker! Her owner has made some very interesting stallion choices for her including UB40, Westpoint, Contucci and Freestyle. The goal was to have a number of offspring on the ground before she started her performance career. Last summer she was also bred to Fizzy and we are eagerly awaiting this cross for 2010! Interestingly enough, Lulu's great-grand-father is my Young Rider mount, Hierarch. Small world.

Lulu has been an absolute pleasure to train. At over 17 hands she is still growing and slowly maturing, but she is incredibly balanced for a young horse and has a super presence. She competed in her first ever horse show a few weeks ago at the prestigious Palm Beach Derby no less- taking home 1st, 2nd and 3rd place ribbons at training and first level with scores between 66-71%. She didn't put a foot wrong the whole weekend and the judges absolutely loved her. She is schooling much of the 2nd level work, but I am taking my time to make her strong before putting too much pressure on her. I firmly believe that the more time you take in the basic work the more it pays off later. I think she is going to be an excellent candidate for the 6-Year-Old classes next year and a superb FEI horse beyond that. She already shows a lot of talent for half-steps and has an exceptionally good canter. Best of all however is her work ethic- she's incredibly forward without being silly and a very quick learner. We had the opportunity to work with Steffen Peters in February and he felt she was very talented.

Atticus again came down with his owner this year from Lendon Gray's barn to escape the cold for a few months. However, part way through the season his owner decided she wanted to change disciplines and is now having a BLAST doing reining! As a result, Atticus has been put up for sale and I've been riding him for the last few months. He could not be sweeter and is very enjoyable to ride. We are hoping to find him a new owner shortly.

My working student, Emily, has been with me since last fall. She'd had minimal dressage training when she came with a background in Jumpers. She rode various horses last fall at the farm and decided to bring her own horse, Colby, to Florida for the season. They have both made very good progress and he is turning out to be quite a special horse with three very good paces. Emily will be going home to Connecticut this spring to make some real money (since working students don't usually make that much!) and I wish them continued success and look forward to seeing (and hopefully helping) with their showing debut.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-21T13:51:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone!

Sorry I've been so slow to update the journal- I've had an incredibly busy fall trying to balance a full course load (I'm in my last semester at UVM) with doing seven horses a day! Needless to say I am very much looking forward to the Thanksgiving break from school. After that it's crunch time for my final exams, a little breather for Christmas and then off to Florida.

Fizzy's been doing incredibly well. We had a super show season overall and finished 11th for Horse of the Year standings. Once the new Grand Prix Ranking lists come out we should be listed on the "B" team with a 65% CDI average for Grand Prix. After the NEDA CDI we spent a lot of time doing fitness work in the hay meadows and hardly any time in the ring. November 1st we started doing ring work again in preperation for riding at Equine Affaire with Steffen Peters. Unfortunately, Steffen had the flu and couldn't come so Fizzy and I stayed home but are hoping to work with Steffen if he comes to Florida at all.

The horses are scheduled to leave for Florida just after Christmas- probably the 29th, so we can be there for January 1st. We will be taking six horses in total- Fizzy, Odin (a 7-year-old Fizzy son), Zoom (a 5-year-old Hierarch daughter who my working student has been riding) and three horses in training (a 4-year-old Rousseau daughter, a 9-year-old Hanoverian who should be ready to do the small tour and one other client who brings her horse down- a 16-year-old Latvian gelding who is a wonderful teacher for his owner!).

I can't even begin to express how excited I am at the group of horses we're bringing down. They are all such special guys in their own right and I think we have a nice variety of ages, training levels and personalities. I am so thankful to have such wonderful horses, owners and riders to work with!

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday,

Cheers,

Liz+The Gang

Wonderful Summer

2009-08-28T09:23:00.002-04:00

Fall seems to have arrived in Vermont as of yesterday and although it wasn't the most wonderful summer weather-wise, it certainly was a fantastic one for Fizzy and me! We are currently standing 5th for Grand Prix horse of the year- having earned a multitude of scores in the mid 60s-mid 70s over the course of the last eight months.

We did our first CDI a few weeks ago (CDI Saugerties) and Fizzy was a trooper in 90+ degree weather. There is much, much, much more in there, but putting in a solid, obedient test is first and foremost for the time being and that we did. We finished 4th in the Grand Prix with a 66.4%(2 percentage points off the leader) and we won the Grand Prix Special on Sunday with a 67%. It's been two years since Fizzy and I have gotten to stand in the winner's circle and have the National Anthem played for us and I must admit- that's something that never gets old!

Our next competition will be the NEDA CDI in two weeks where we will again do the Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special. I can't wait!

Wonderful test at GMHA

2009-06-21T14:09:00.005-04:00

Fizzy and I just returned home from a super successful show at GMHA Dressage Days. We had a really nice Grand Prix test in front of two very good "S" judges. We got a 76.7% with many, many 8s and 9s. I still can't believe it! I mean, I can because I know he is that good and it's my job to ride him to that level, but it was just surreal seeing the score!

I've made a point the last few months of making everything I felt we weren't super strong in stronger. For example, our one tempis are now much straighter, our left trot-half pass is now better than our right one, and our right canter pirouette is now better than our left one! Go figure.

We were supposed to do the Grand Prix Special today but I scratched because rain was forecasted all day. I didn't want to make him go in sloppy footing if he didn't have to and he certainly more than proved himself yesterday. I can't wait for our two shows next month and then the Saugerties CDI!

I also can't wait for our hay meadow to be mowed so we can start riding out there more. He loves working out and we've been going adventuring on the roads across the street from the farm. He is such an amazing guy I am the luckiest girl in the world.

YouTube Video Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrXo8wLSvx8

2009-05-01T11:19:00.003-04:00

Fizzy, Tweakie and I all arrived home safe and sound in the middle of April. Last weekend Fizzy and I did a demo for Everything Equine, Vermont's version of Equine Affair. It was a huge success and Fizzy was a rockstar. More on that later- I should have a video for you guys in the next week or so!

Other than that things are quiet here- I've started teaching some again and have a few horses coming in for full training which will be fun. I also start school in a few weeks (argh!) and will be taking a few classes this summer and fall.

Photo above is from a jumping lesson with Tweakie. Pretty cute!

Dressage at Equestrian Estates

2009-03-29T20:34:00.000-04:00

(Photo: Fizzy and my working student, Michelle ready to go!)

The last time Fizzy and I competed in the Dressage at Equestrian Estates show was five years ago and it was our first show together. We've come a long way since then, but as fate would have it, we got to show for one of the same judge this year, in the Grand Prix, as we rode for in 2004 at 3rd level.

I schooled Fizzy at the show on Friday and he was fantastic. Michael has given me a phenomenal amount of help in the last few months making little adjustments here and there, and making me ask for better and better self carriage. Our warm-up on Saturday was super, Fizzy felt really good and schooled everything very well. As we trotted around the main arena I had to smile- for many reasons, but most of all because a year ago I remember trotting around the ring being terrified at what he was going to do (or more likely not do, like the piaffe!) in the arena. We had a nice entry, straight trot off, and then... well, let's just say the saying, "that's horses" came very much in handy!

For those of you who don't know Fizzy- he is a very bold guy. He is never spooky, and is always my favorite to trail ride or jump, or walk through a stream... you get the picture. I can count the number of times he's ever spooked with me. As we turned left after our first centerline, I heard a noise start behind me, coming from the loud speaker... It was a combination of spanish music and the worst crackling noise I've ever heard come from a speaker. The best way I can describe it is that it sounded like a tent flapping in perfect rhythm. And poor Fizzy was terrified. Our first extended trot, needless to say, didn't happen, as he bolted across the arena with me. Our first trot half pass (which unfortunately has a coefficient of x2) also didn't really happen as he was still spooking and leaping about. I was just laughing through the whole thing and patting him, telling him he was going to be OK. I finally thought I had him back a little after the second trot half-pass, but unfortunately we had another explosion when the loud speaker was directly behind us as we started our second extended trot. Finally they turned the speaker off, and Fizzy started to settle.

I got him back in time to make a nice passage and then we proceeded to do one of the nicest piaffes we've ever done in our life. It got an "8" from all three judges. The rest of the test was uneventful, with highlights in the piaffe and passage work, as well as a super left canter pirouette. I can't even begin to explain how proud I am that Fizzy came "back" for me after being truly terrified. That means so much to me as his rider. At the end of our test he just stared at the loud speaker in disbelief, waiting for it to make the awful noise again!

Although the first third of our test would have scored about a 45%, the last two thirds came out to be well over 70%. We finished with a 62% overall, scoring 63% from two judges and 60% from the other. We had the nicest comments, and all the judges mentioned something in the comments about what a bummer it was that we had our meltdown in the beginning. Did I mention out of nine scores for the piaffe six of the nine piaffe scores were an "8"?

Today Fizzy warmed up even better than yesterday, although he did keep an eye on the speaker as we walked over to our ring! He was super in the test today, scoring again 8s for the piaffe, in addition to his extended walk, the canter pirouettes, and a bunch of other movements. My favorite moment was when we were on the last centerline, a place that he used to HATE, and we were sitting at X, piaffing. I usually don't hear anything when I'm showing because I'm so much in the "zone" but today was just so fun, and I couldn't help but hear the breeze in the trees and the birds by the canal... I just had this incredible feeling of serenity and happiness all at once- like were were exactly where we were supposed to be. We finished with a 72% and won the class. What a good boy!

Welcome Back to White Fences Show

2009-02-22T22:10:00.001-05:00

Very happy to report Fizzy was excellent at his first recognized show since Raleigh. He scored a 70% in the FEI test of choice (we did the Grand Prix) yesterday placing 2nd and we had an even better ride in the Open Grand Prix today winning with a 68%.

Some pictures:

Warming up

Showing:

Fizzy the trickster

2009-01-23T07:50:00.000-05:00

I was just going through all of the hundreds of photos I have taken of Fizzy over the years (to put them on my new site- Liz Austin Dressage, which I will post about later) and thought you all might appreciate seeing some of the many, many tricks he does! He is always into something, and of course, always hungry.

**Sorry the formatting is screwy, I can't figure out how to post multiple pictures well. :-)

Photo Descriptions:

As you can see to the left Fizzy has one of those round balls he can spin and depending on which side he stops the ball on, eat a different flavored treat. Problem: He's learned how to grab the plastic treat-insert, pull it out, and push it against the wall to eat it. "Your horse will enjoy hours and days of fun with this innovative toy." Fizzy's enjoyment time: 5 minutes. :-)

Fizzy drinks everything. He's not a fan of milk products, but anything else he'll try. My favorite is after we've worked if I go and grab a water or gatorade, he'll just stand in the washrack looking at me licking his lips because he knows I'll give it to him. Spoiled!

Do the dew!

Sometimes he'll yawn on command!

I originally hung his Lick-It here, unfortunately he can get his entire mouth around it in one chomp and eat the entire thing in about a minute. To the right you see his collection of empty cocosoya bottles- well abused! When he's mad and wants attention, these are usually his go-to. Either these or his squeaky frog which "ribbits." How many stallions do you know that squeak a toy for attention? "Ribbit-Ribbit!" If this fails, he will either find something naughty to eat (see picture to left- the wood doesn't come two colors...) or bang his door.

My solution to him eating his whole Lick-It in one bite- I hang it outside the bars and every so often open his feed door and give him a little. Notice the outstretched upper lip. He does NOT enjoy this arrangement.

Linedancing with his best friend, Kimmy. His newest trick is that if I kick a soccer ball to me, he kicks it back. This developed into him kicking his polos down the aisle, bellboots, anything I would put in reach he would hit down the aisle. This was very cute and funny until he thought he might punt the jack russell terrier down the aisle. He didn't, but I could see his face and the front foot start to rise. Fizzy: 0 Jack Russell: 1.

Giving his other best friend, Sal, a kiss.

A good result for first show of 2009

2009-01-15T20:11:00.001-05:00

Fizzy and I competed in our first show today of 2009, and I am so happy to report that it went very well!

It was a small schooling show in Wellington, about a half-an-hour drive from our farm in Loxahatchee. I shipped him alone, figuring I could get someone to undo the butt bar and let him off once we got to the show. Unfortunately, there wasn't a soul to be found where we parked, so I ended up unloading him myself- he's such a trooper!

After tacking him up and doing a 10-minute-walk around the ring, I picked him up and just did some easy trot to loosen him and let him relax. He was so obedient and on the aids I couldn't have been happier. Michael came to warm us up, and he was perfect as far as having me practice a few movements without overdoing it.

Fizzy was, for all intents and purposes, wonderful in the test. He stayed with me the whole time, except for when he did some ad-lib one tempis at the end of our line (15,16,17,18,19! oops). A few other mistakes happened, but the piaffe and passage, overall, was very good and he was so happy and relaxed in everything. I am so pleased with him! We ended up getting a 72.3%, which I thought was generous, but I'll take it! For me, just to get back in the ring with Fizzy and have him be my "old" Fizzy again, well that's enough for me.

Michael had some really positive comments after the ride, and I am so grateful for his help. I originally asked him last week to "babysit" me at a horse show, and asked for a few lessons beforehand. He was so kind and came over twice to help me, and was really the deciding factor in me doing the show (I asked, after the first lesson, "So, if you think I should wait a month and do the next show..." to which he replied, "Absolutely not! You're doing that show next week." Thank you for the kick in the pants. :-)

And thank you, FizzyGig for being such a good boy! You are the best, and will have a much deserved hack day tomorrow.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-11T10:57:00.000-05:00

I hope everyone is enjoying a fabulous 2009 so far. I know I am! I'm certainly staying busy- between riding, teaching, running the barn, and oh yeah, did I mention I bought a house! It's beautiful two-story townhome in Wellington- 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath. Just lovely.

Fizzy is doing very well. We have a horse show coming up, and I will let you all know how it goes. It's just a small show, to get our feet wet again. Guess I need to learn the new Grand Prix! Unfortunately, Fizzy is "pregnant." I'm not kidding.

Exhibit A:

He's never been a particularly "hard keeper," but this is ridiculous. I cut his grain down in November seeing that he was getting a bit portly at his new home. I just cut it again, so now he's only eating 5 quarts of grain a day. Most of the Grand Prix horses, espicially breeding stallions, eat at least 7 or 8 quarts a day!

My sales horse, Advokat, is wonderful. He is much better than in the videos I posted a few months ago, and I have five people set to come see him this month! Fingers crossed he finds a new home- he really is just TOO big for his petite Amateur owner. I sure am going to miss him though- he is one of the most beautiful horses I've ever seen!

Tweakie is great, as well. I've been jumping him a little bit which is very fun. He has so much talent for it, and by nature a very good eye for distances. My vet wants me to bring him to his farm to do a jumping school, which I think would be very fun! He is also doing very well in his dressage work, just getting stronger and able to carry more each day. He is such a treat to ride.

In November I got a new sales horse in- a Dutch mare by Jazz out of a Zeoliet dam. She was a broodmare for the last few years, after being lightly started as a three-year-old, so she's just now starting back as a riding horse. She is phenomenal, and I think could really make a big time horse for someone. She is sensitive, forward and incredibly smart. She's quickly becoming one of my favorite rides. She obviously still needs to build more muscle and put on some more weight, but she's really a diamond in the rough I think!

In other news- I have a few new students and horses in training which is always fun. What started as a cute, 5-acre, 6-stall barn farm has turned into 12 stalls- 6 temporary (courtsey of my wonderful boyfriend and Stacey's husband) and 6 permanent. We also have some temporary pastures set up for horses like Tweakie and Stacey's old polo mare- the "well behaved" residents. For everyone else, we have three large fenced pastures, two of which are divided, so we have five permanent turnouts and four temporary.

I am super busy most days now, but am loving every minute of it! My working student comes next week, which I am super excited about! She comes very highly recommended from one of my best friends, and I think we'll have a lot of fun.

I am working on starting a new webpage for my training, sales and clinics, which hopefully will be up and running within the next few months. Keep checking back.

My sales horse...

2008-10-22T13:05:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone!

I hope fall is treating everyone well... I snuck home to Vermont for a few days this past weekend, it was absolutely amazing. I will post some new photos in the next few days. I got to meet the "Fizzy girls" (our two Fizzy fillies from this year!) and got some dynamite pictures of them. They are SO special, and definitely daddie's little girls!

In other news, I have a wonderful sales horse in my barn right now that I wanted to let you all know about. He is such a joy to ride, and I am having a blast with him. Here's his ad:

1999 Danish Warmblood gelding for sale. "Addi" stands 17 hands and is a beautiful, leggy, modern type. He is a very good mover with three equally impressive gaits. Beautiful lateral work, schooling pirouettes, changes, half-steps. Easy on the bit, comfortable to sit, and fun to ride and train. VERY safe- I've hacked him all over and he is very brave (dogs, cars, children, ATVs, tarps, pressure washing... you get the idea ). Since he is a tall horse, he is best suited for a taller rider. Excellent horse for a junior, young rider or amateur.Walk video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olZRnG0WTsATrot video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpBYL-TEfX4 Canter video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCWKoU8A3Fs Please contact Liz for more info: 561-801-0500.

Cheers!

Liz+Fizzy

P.S. Fizzy is doing great. I've moved him to my friend Stacey's barn in Loxahatchee. Fizzy, of course, tries to go trail riding every day, and we have successfully conquered every direction we can go out of the driveway... i.e. we've turned left out of the driveway and wandered down to the dead-end.... we've wandered right out of the driveway, gotten to the stopsign at the end of the road and gone left (lots more to explore!), right (not quite as exciting as left, but still pretty cool), and straight (which eventually leads to a grass path to a canal... Fizzy's favorite so far). He is the freshest he's been in his work in a long time, and I hope to start doing some conditioning work with him on the trails soon. TWEAKIE, my little prodigy, is fabulous. He is schooling all of the PSG, has a super passage, and has started some piaffe... in addition to doing two ONE-TEMPIS the other day. Can you believe he's just six? I can't wait to get him in the show ring!

Brief Update

2008-08-29T10:45:00.000-04:00

Hello!

I hope you are all enjoying a wonderful summer...

I've gotten numerous e-mails and private comments from you all asking where I am and what I'm doing... So, here's a little update (with photos!) of what's been going on since my last post in May... I've taken some of the questions people have e-mailed me over the last few months and answered them.

How was the Raleigh CDI?- Bummer... Fizzy and I didn't get the qualifying score we needed to get to the Olympic Selection Trials. Fizzy was a little tricky and I wasn't enough on the ball to ride the heck out of the tests like I needed to... We all knew the Olympics this year were a long shot for us... but the road that I've gotten to take the last two years in trying to get there... has been nothing short of the most amazing journey. On to Kentucky and the 2010 World Equestrian Games!

Who are we working with? Since the end of July Fizzy and I have had the honor of working with Robert Dover. Robert "gets" Fizzy probably better than anyone else we've ever worked with, and getting to watch a six time Olympian ride my pride and joy is simply awesome. Robert has given me the greatest lessons, and has really helped me into the mind of the Fizz. I am having the best time, and very much do not want Mr. Dover to retire in October.

What other horses are you riding? Of course I am riding my mini-pride and joy, Tweakie, still... and I also have a very nice stallion in training, in addition to a fabuloussss sale horse. Now that I'm doing more of my own business, I am taking a limited number of horses into training and/or sales horses, which is very exciting. If any of you know someone, or are interested in sending me a horse for training (in Florida though next May... then back to Vermont for the summer/fall!) please send me an E-mail: StarDoozer@aol.com.

Where are you keeping your horses? Fizzy is still at Tuny's, while Tweakie and the other two are out in Loxahatchee at a very nice, quiet barn owned by my friend Stacey. Stacey also has a really cool consignment tackstore in Wellington where she also sells those beautiful stainless steel tack trunks... All of her items are also listed on her eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/Everything-But-the-Horse-LLC. Check it out- there are some amazing deals!

Lesson with Steffen Peters today

2008-05-18T15:38:00.000-04:00

I don't have time to go into much detail right now, but I just wanted to let everyone know Fizzy and I did a lesson with Steffen Peters today. The lesson went super well, and Steffen definitely reinforced the work we've been doing for the last few months on our own. I was most proud of Fizzy for giving me the exact same piaffe, passage and rideability in these two things that we've had at home. I hope Steffen didn't think I was too over-zealous in telling Fizzy what a good boy he was the whole ride, but I can't begin to tell you how much it means to me that Fizzy and I are now on the same page about so many things...

In these last few days (especially yesterday, when I did the canter tour and final center line from the Grand Prix in schooling)... I feel like, finally... finally, I'm becoming less of a tourist and more of a native in the Grand Prix work. The sense of surprise and excitement that comes with the intensity of the work (and how quickly it comes up in a test! :-)) is slowly giving way to a deep appreciation for the "land" that is the Grand Prix ring. I guess I'm not quite a native yet.... but I'm at least a better tourist guide now for poor Fizzy. LOL.

I also felt like a total dork today, when at the end of my lesson I felt this great excitement for the path of training ahead of me... I feel now, more than ever, that Fizzy and I are on a clear, purposeful path to becoming the very best Grand Prix horse and rider combination we can... and as I've always, always said, my favorite part of this all is in the journey... Because the cool thing about riding, is that there are always higher mountains to climb, better sunsets to see, and the incredible feeling that just when you think you know what this journey is all about, your eyes are opened to a whole new world. I don't think that part of the tourist in me will ever go away- the absolute wonderment at these animals that I have the privilege to ride every day. :-) Thanks all you guys.

Lizzy+the incredible Fizzy

May 16th... 11 days since my last post, and....

2008-05-16T18:48:00.000-04:00

Fizzy is still wonderful. :-) Every day, or every other day, we make extended trot across the S-F diagonal (just like in the Grand Prix), make a right turn up the centerline, passage, piaffe at X, passage out... We BOTH have baggage about the final centerline, but now that I actually (for the first time in my life) really have him in the piaffe/passage, I feel confident that this final centerline is a question I can ask of him everyday, and not worry about his answer.

Today his canter wasn't quite as ground covering as it has been, but we did a really nice zig-zag... 4-6-6-6-4. I can't remember the last time we had a miscount in the zig-zag, since he is so much more supple and on my aids now. After schooling for about 1/2 an hour in the covered ring, I took him outside (for a "new venue" effect), and we made one not so great left half pass in the trot, and then one that was just as good as the right one. Sooo excited! We finished with our routine of extended trot, centerline, passage, piaffe, passage, halt. And then a lot of patting. :-)

After our work, we ventured into the polo field so Fizzy could cool out, and then we wandered over to the farm next door.... At which point, Fizzy held his favorite person in the world, Kimmy, hostage in the tackroom until she gave him cookies. (See picture :-)).

Lizzy+Fizzy

My oh my...

2008-05-05T16:52:00.000-04:00

You know what I did today when I got off my horse? I told him, "Thank you." and gave him a kiss on the nose. He was brilliant, again, for what seems like the umpteenth time in a row... actually, it's been just over two weeks now since our string of fabulous rides started. Thanks to, specifically, Dr. Steve Engle (chiropractor), Kate Athanas Wilson (my saddle fitter who's in Port Jervis, New York and flew down to Florida specially to see the Fizz- www.dutchessbridleandsaddle.com ) and Sal Salvetti (Fizzy's massage person, and also one of his favorite people in the entire world. As a side note, Sal left for New England today where he will spend most of the summer, so for all you lucky people up there- Sal's website is: www.salmassage.com Call him. He is amazing).

This past winter season just wasn't meant to be ours. Fizzy was so up and down in his work, and I felt like the whole time something was bothering him... it turns out it was my saddle the whole time... Kate and I had discussed that he had lost some weight, but he was still too wide for the Albion 315 tree size... which was the next narrowest that Albion makes... He was in a 335, but that had become too wide, and we knew he couldn't be in a 315, so Kate went wayyy above and beyond and had a special tree made that was inbetween. Unfortunately, it took a few months for the tree to come in, and while I tried playing with saddles a little, nothing really worked. And as I've found out, Fizzy is very sensitive to the fit of his saddle.

Anyway, long story short, Fizzy basically, among other things, lost his ability to half-pass left. Now for any of you that have seen him- you know how easy his half-pass is, so for him to be stuck about half-pass you know something's going on... He also wanted to be crooked all the time in the piaffe, with flexion right and his hips right... and would get upset if I tried to make him straight... Same thing in passage on a left circle. I thought maybe his joints were bothering him and that was why, but, low and behold, as soon as Dr. Engle adjusted him and forbid me to ride in my saddle until I got it fixed... I not only got my horse back, I got back a horse that was better than ever before.

Riding is such a funny thing, you know. In the last two weeks I feel like I've learned more about riding than I have in the last few years combined. Of course, my great insights have come only because people like my mom, Tuny, Lendon, Klaus, Mr. Schumacher, Oded... have given me the keys to open these doors... but at the end of the day, it is Fizzy who is my very best teacher. Everything he is (I'm talking training, not talent) is a product of my riding. I've found a trot in him now that's unlike anything I've ever sat on... and it's easy. And it's always just two half-halts away whenever I want it. And the lighter I sit and the more I swing the bigger he goes. It's been in there all along, he's just been patiently waiting for me to get my proverbial... ahem... head out of my --- and find it. Same with the canter... Our first canter now is so big and over the back and forward... and he's so excited to do it that I get a little scared to put my leg on. And we... no no no... I, am finally learning how to really ride him in the canter zig zag, and pirouettes, and tempis, and piaffe and passage and shoulder-in... and and and. Did you know you can ride an entire Grand Prix without your horse ever really being on the bit? I sure do... because that's what I've basically made him do more often than not. And now that he's really through, and really coming together and we're finally doing the work more on training and less on talent, you wouldn't believe the expression and innate awesomeness he brings to the table all on his own.

So, to Fizzy:

Thank you for letting me learn from you, and putting up with all my stupid mistakes.

Thank you for not bucking me off when my saddle was pinching the heck out of your withers and we thought you were just being resistant.

Thank you for teaching me how to get more from sitting quieter and allowing you to work.

Thank you for showing me that a lighter contact in a good, following way, will give me a loftier, more expressive, more supple horse (espicially in your passage, that's my favorite!)

Thank you for being so smart that in two days you learned how to trot like a different horse, and in three days, you learned how to carry yourself like a different horse in all three gaits.

Thank you for making a big exhale when I pat you or tell you you're a good boy if you're nervous. This reminds me that as big and strong and brave as you are, reassurance and praise is always the best reward.

Thank you for always getting excited when I go to put your bridle on, and putting the bits in your mouth by yourself. This always makes me feel like you love your job (even if the only reason you do it is because you love the fact bits are the one non-food item you're allowed to put in your mouth without getting in trouble).

And most of all, thank you for making me smile everyday, and keeping the whole barn entertained with all your silly tricks, and most of all thank you for bellowing at the top of your lungs when the words, "Fizzy, do you want a cookie?" are spoken.

Liz

2008-04-02T19:06:00.000-04:00

2008-02-11T18:40:00.000-05:00

I know, I know, I have been terrible at keeping my blog updated. Thank you for all the e-mails, phone calls, text messages, and general questioning about my where-a-bouts these last few months. I will say in advance, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy New Year, and any other major holiday over the last six months I have failed to mention. Mine were all fabulous, and I hope yours were, too.

Fizzy continues to amaze me every day. We had a two week period where he gave me the best work he's ever done. We had an unbelievable, uphill, expressive, knock your socks off canter, a huge, cadenced collected trot, and such a balanced piaffe that I often found myself looking in the mirror saying to myself, "does this look as easy as it feels?" It did. Now the but...

For the last week or so, he's just felt... blah. For all of you that know Fizzy, you know he never feels blah. He isn't excited to go look at the polo mares next door (although my excitement to go look at the polo boys next door still stands!), he is walking like a normal horse and not like I-am-the-best-power-walker-on-earth Fizzy... and he just seems a little dull... Tim Ober came to see him, and the first thing he said was that he didn't seem himself... Too quiet, not cheeky. I had him draw blood and do a lameness exam on him- the good news is I am riding one of the soundest FEI horses out there (Me: "But Tim, you're sure you don't need to inject his hocks? All FEI horses have their hocks injected..." Tim: "Liz, listen, I'd be happy to spend your money, but I'd be hard pressed to find a sounder horse behind out there." Me: (Smile))

I am *hoping* Fizzy's quietness is coming from one of three things: 1) still feeling crappy from his vaccines a few weeks ago (although he's never had a reaction before), 2) change in hay (from beautiful, Kentucky hay to icky Florida hay, boo), or 3) he's pushing his new coat in. I know 3) has made him dull in the past, especially in the fall... but never in the spring... we'll see.

The good news:
1) He looks amazing. His coat glistens, his tail is big, his feet look amazing and his weight is perfect
2) He is still very interested in learning new tricks... Our latest is picking a bucket up off the floor and making a "basket" into his feed bucket
3) I have one of the best vets in the world looking after him
4) He still looks forward to seeing me everyday, and goes to the arena with a smile on his face, even if he seems a little "dull" in the work.

So that's my update for now... sorry it isn't a little cheerier... Our first show is in two weeks, so hopefully we'll have this figured out by then... Just so you all know I'm being a little overdramatic about this "Fizzy seems dull" thing, I will tell you one of the grooms for one of the top horses in the US came up to me two days ago and said, "you know, you and Fizzy are still my favorite pick for the team. You make it look so easy!"

Cheers,

Liz and Fizzy

NEDA CDI at Saugerties

2007-09-17T14:01:00.000-04:00

Wow! Another fantastic weekend. Fizzy was hot hot hot for whatever reason- he has been really getting hotter the last month, and this weekend was no exception! He was a superstar both days, although we had some mistakes in the Grand Prix and a little excitement in the Freestyle (there was an ad-lib leap at the end), but regardless, he really was a super boy! We earned our first "9" for a piaffe, and from the Hungarian "O" judge no less!

Final Results

Grand Prix (total of 15 competitors)

1st place- Ashley Holzer and Popart- 70.708%
2nd place- Michael Barisone and Neruda- 69.292%
3rd place- George Williams and Rocher- 67.750%
4th place- Elisabeth Austin and Olivier- 67.583%
5th place- Jackie Brooks and Gran Gesto- 66.250%
6th place- Leslie Morse and Tip Top 962- 65.625%
7th place- Karin Offield and Lingh- 64.708%
8th place- Jane Hannigan and Maksymilian- 64.625%

Grand Prix Freestyle (total of 8 competitors)

1st place- Ashley Holzer and Popart- 73.550%
2nd place- Jane Hannigan and Maksymilian- 69.900%
3rd place- George Williams and Rocher- 69.200%
4th place- Elisabeth Austin and Olivier- 68.800%
5th place- Karin Offield and Lingh- 67.950%
6th place- Jackie Brooks and Gran Gesto- 67.250%
7th place- Cindy Ishoy and Proton- 67.100%
8th place- Pierre St. Jacques and Lucky Tiger- 67.00%

CDI Saugerties

2007-08-19T06:49:00.000-04:00

Fizzy and I did our first CDI ever this weekend. On Friday, we were 6th in the Grand Prix with a 63.33%. He was a good boy, but obviously a bit tired and just not up to his usual standard. The self-carriage throughout wasn't really there, so what is usually a 7 or 8 was just a 6 or 7. :-) Still, the winner (Lars Petersen) had a 64%, so we were all very close score wise.
Grand Prix Results:

1st- Lars Petersen- 64%+
2nd- Jane Hannigan- 64%+
3rd- Courtney King- 64%
4th- Bethany Peslar- 63%+
5th- Katherine Bateson- 63%+
6th- Elisabeth Austin- 63.3%

On Saturday, Fizzy was phenomenal in the Freestyle. He was really hot and "up" from the start, but 100% listening to me. Honestly, our Freestyle was the most fun test I've ever ridden. He could not have been more on, and the music fit really well. For the one tempi changes, I'm supposed to make 9 ones on a short diagonal, hold the same lead for the turn, and then 9 more ones. When I came to the ones, I knew I could take some more risk because the ride had gone so well up to that point, so, instead of stopping the ones, I just continued them right around the "turn" from one short diagonal to the next. :-) Fizzy was wonderful.

The end of our ride is an 8m figure eight in passage, right into piaffe, into halt. His piaffe was so rhythmic and on the spot, I couldn't help but smile at how far we've come.

We ended up winning with a 71.5%, with a 75% from Axel Steiner.
Grand Prix Freestyle Results:

1st- Elisabeth Austin- 71.5%
2nd- Lars Petersen- 70%+
3rd- Katherine Bateson- 70%+
4th- Cesar Parra- 68%+
5th- Susie Dutta- 65%+
6th- Jennifer Baumert

Summer/Fall Schedule

2007-08-02T19:47:00.000-04:00

Since everyone keeps asking where Fizzy and I will be next, I figured I'd post a draft of our schedule for the next few months. I have just started doing more clinics and lessons, so if you're interested, please call me directly at (802) 318-8092. Right now, the weekends I'm available for are September 23 (Sunday only), September 28/29.

August 2007

August 11 and 12- Demo with Fizzy for Equus&Equestrian Sport Foundation Benefit Gala on Long Island (EESF has been one of my greatest supporters, and we are getting presented with a scholarship at the benefit weekend)

August 16-19 Centerline Events CDI in Saugerties, NY

August 20-21 Lendon's Youth Dressage Festival (Roving Trainer)

August 26- Hampton Classic dressage demonstration

September 2007

September 1 and 2- Clinic at Taproot Farm in Hinesburg, Vermont (Fizzy and I will also do a demo here)

September 8 and 9- Clinic in Mass September

13-16 NEDA Fall CDI in Saugerties, NY September

Another successful show...

2007-07-22T17:23:00.000-04:00

Fizzy and I just returned home from a weekend of showing at King Oak Dressage Days in Southampton, Massachusetts. We have our sights set on competing in the summer and fall CDIs in Saugerties, New York, so King Oak offered a nice chance to get in the ring one last time in the Grand Prix before heading off to our first CDI in August.

I will preface this all by saying that Fizzy has been breeding heavily for the last three weeks, in addition to having a fairly laid-back riding schedule. June and July are the height of breeding season, and as strong as he is (there's a reason most stallions in Europe either don't breed while they're showing, or don't show while they're breeding!) I still worry about over-taxing his body. Since he's been breeding so much, and since he had such a busy show schedule from February until July (I did seven shows which doubled the number of shows I'd done with him... ever!), and since I decided it was time for a break, we have done very, very little up until this show. We've galloped in the field, we've chased deer, we've worked lightly in the snaffle, and on more than one occasion, we've yelled through the house window, "Hey mom, look!" and proceeded to show off our piaffe on the back lawn. But we have spent very little time in the dressage arena or in the double bridle. And it's been grand.

But, the reality that we do have to show in our first CDI in less than a month, means we should probably get back to work. So, we went to King Oak this weekend with high hopes, a horse and rider more secure in the Grand Prix work than ever, and most importantly, both completely refreshed and ready for a challenge. And wow did Fizzy ever rise to the occasion.

On Saturday we put in a really lovely Grand Prix, with highlights being the piaffe/passage tour (all of them!), the two-tempi changes and the extended gaits. My zig-zag in the canter was fairly terrifyingly placed, and my one tempis we done at about zero miles an hour. He felt a little tired to me, and I would have liked a bit more expression in the trot half-passes, but I was so excited that even a little tired, he still puts down 7s and 8s for piaffe/passage, in the ring, without a whip, and it's easy. :-) But still, very few 6s, mostly 7s and 8s, and a few 9s. I was particularly excited about my 9 for seat and position (don't tell the judges it must have been all that jumping position from galloping in the fields!). We finished on a score of 71.875% (the judges were very close- 71% from one and 72% from the other) to win the Grand Prix stakes class and also took home the FEI High Point for Saturday (in fact, he had the highest score of the whole show for Saturday). I was particularly excited as one judge had given us a 62% in the winter for a Grand Prix Special... because the piaffe was still too forward at that point, and the carriage wasn't confirmed. So to earn a 71% from her was really a good indicator that we're going in the right direction!

Today we showed in our second ever Grand Prix Special. Although the weather was a bit warmer today than yesterday, Fizzy felt more energetic from the start, and put in a super test for me. The trot half passes were better today and were rewarded with 8s. The canter tour overall was about the same; although the one tempis were better on the diagonal, the ones on the centerline were not so well placed by me! Oh well, live and learn. We had some super extended trots which were rewarded with 9s, and again we got a 9 on a halt. Fizzy sure does stand still well. :-) I had a super right canter pirouette which I usually mess up in the ring, so I was pleased to see that get an 8 from one judge. Unfortunately, I started my left pirouette too big (it is usually good for an 8) and ended up way off the centerline... but I'll figure it out. It's all such a learning process. We won again today with a 71.9% (71+% from one judge, 72% from the other), and again won FEI High Point.

For me, there were a few awesome highlights from this show. First, sentimentally, I have been coming to this show for close to fifteen years. From doing the Junior Championships on my pony Warlock, to showing Pie in his first ever dressage show, to showing Hierarch for the first time... I have literally grown up showing at King Oak, so to get to show Fizzy here was a very cool experience.

Second, what really made this show for me was how many people (those who know him and those who don't) told me how happy my horse looked, and how easy we made the Grand Prix look. That, for me, means so much. How many Grand Prix horses do you look at and think, "Wow, I'd love to ride a horse like that, he looks so easy to ride!" For me, not so many horses.. But Fizzy really is as easy to ride as he looks, and I am so glad that people see the joy he has in is work. I hope I can keep it fun and easy for him forever.

One last aside- I love that after our Grand Prix Special today, Fizzy and I went out touring the cross country course (we were "cooling out" but mostly wanted to go exploring) in the woods on a long hack, and he just smiles, and walks in his huge walk as only Fizzy can- forever on a mission somewhere, always walking faster going away from the barn than towards it. Carpe Diem.

Back in Vermont!

2007-06-20T09:52:00.000-04:00

After travelling half-way around the world and from the bottom to the top of the eastern seaboard, I am very happy to report that Fizzy, Tweakie (my youngster!) and I are all home, safe and sound.

A recap of the past 10 months for the Fizz and I:

Late September, 2006- Arrive at Klaus Balkenhol's in Rosendahl, Germany
Late November, 2006- Leave Klaus' and ship to Wellington, Florida
November, 2006-May, 2007- Work for and train with Tuny Page in Wellington (I also got to do a ton of showing, including five shows with Fizzy, three with Ice Cup and one with Sager Deern)
February, 2007- Tweakie arrives from Vermont to join me for the rest of the Florida season
May, 2007- Ride in a clinic with Hubertus Schmidt hosted by Tuny Page
May 30th, 2007- Tweakie, Fizzy and I depart for our final Brentina Cup qualifier in Raleigh, North Carolina
June 2007- Raleigh is a huge success; Fizzy and I win our qualifier with a 72%, earning the comment from Jane Kidd, "This horse is the epitome of the happy athlete. Well done."
June 4th, 2007- Arrive at Lendon Gray's Gleneden Dressage for a week of training prior to the National Championships at Gladstone
June 13th, 2007- Depart for the National Championships, going into the final as the #1 qualifier in the nation (with a 70% average)
June 17th, 2007- Win the Brentina Cup Championship for the second year in a row.
June 18th, 2007- HOME!

And what a ride this has been!

I will write more details later, but I just wanted to let you all know we are finally home, safe and sound, after quite the adventure.

All the best,

Lizzy+Fizzy

Test

2007-06-08T22:13:00.001-04:00

Test test...?

Friends and Family rule Grand Prix classes at Derby...

2007-03-05T10:05:00.000-05:00

So I just have to add that.... how cool is it that also at the Derby this weekend, Tuny won the CDI Grand Prix, Courtney and Idocus (Fizzy's dad!) won the Grand Prix Freestyle, and Michael Barisone and Neruda (both of whom were in Germany at the same time of us) won the Grand Prix Special. I don't think it happens so often that a father wins in the CDI Grand Prix classes, while his son wins in the National Grand Prix... let alone that a trainer wins the CDI Grand Prix and her student wins the national one.

So fun!

Winning our first Grand Prix

2007-03-05T02:21:00.000-05:00

My last entry was on Fizzy's splint and other random musings... so to update everyone on that the splint healed superbly and Fizzy has been working great. We were able to participate in a clinic for Developing Riders with Debbie McDonald two weeks ago which was very good; Debbie is a wonderful instructor and helped me tremendously with the overall connection and carriage. She said that the quality of the movements is very good, and that Fizzy just needs time to continue to grow stronger and develop more collection.

Following the clinic with Debbie we did an Intermediare II on Saturday, February 24th at the Wellington showgrounds which went well. Although I had some mistakes in the trot and piaffe/passage tour, the canter work was super, and I was really happy with him.

I am so, so excited to announce that we won our first ever Grand Prix on Saturday, March 3rd, with a respectable 66% from German "O" judge Uwe Mechlem. Although I had mistakes in my canter tour (read: 4s for my two tempis, one tempis and extended canter!), our piaffe/passage tour was super, with all 7s and 8s for the piaffe, passage and transitions. We also had 8s for our extended trot work, our trot half-passes and extended walk. At the end of my ride, the judge stood up from his chair, gave me a smile and a thumbs up, and said, "Super horse!"

We also competed in the Intermediare II on Thursday, earning a 67.9% and 2nd overall. And if I had halted at the correct letter at the end ("I," not "G"), we would have won with a 68.4%. :-)

What I am the most happy about is how settled Fizzy is getting in the show ring. I feel like I can really ride him now in the piaffe, and am just a few rides away from really having him in the canter tour, as well. His changes have become 100% straighter in the last week, with the two-tempis espicially improving as I am now using my inside leg more to keep him straighter.

Fizzy's now getting two very much deserved days off, after a busy few weeks. I wanted to save money by trailering him in for the shows and clinic, so he's made eight mini-trips in the last 14 days! Needless to say, he is now a professional at getting groomed and braided at home, shipping in, getting tacked up on the trailer, and going to the show ring.

That's all for now, I will try to write more tomorrow when I have time.

:-) Liz+Fizzy

Ups and Downs...

2007-01-07T12:42:00.000-05:00

Let me preface this entry by saying I am in the best of spirits right now... Wellington is finally almost through this whole EHV-1 outbreak, we haven't had any cases at our farm, I had a wonderful holiday season, and I am looking forward to 2007 with optimism and confidence.

That being said, I am currently nursing Fizzy through a splint, so he has been out of work for the past ten days. He actually popped the splint in quarantine I think (where he did god-knows-what in his stall), but he wasn't sensitive on it, so I didn't worry too much. After a few weeks went by though, it started to get hot, and he was ouchy when I palpated it, although still 100% sound. I called my vet at home who told me that I needed to have it x-rayed and ultrasounded (to make sure it wasn't interfering with his suspensory). At this point I called Tim Ober and basically told him, "Listen, I don't have very much money to do this... but I need to have this checked out!" Tim was fantastic and came out two days later, and much to my relief said the location of the splint was such that it would in no way interfere with his suspensory and told me to just walk him under saddle for two weeks, along with icing the splint three times a day, putting Surpass on it, and wrapping it at night.

We are now on day 10 of our walking, and I am so, so happy to say that Fizzy has remained civil throughout the whole thing. Taking an incredibly fit, incredibly high energy Grand Prix horse and telling him has has to chill for two weeks can be a very tricky task, and aside from a few lapses in good behavior in has stall (the horse must have a 5 foot vertical leap!) he has been amazing through the whole thing. His splint is now 100% not sensitive to touch, which is great, and no longer as hot as it was.

I have to say that I wasn't so disappointed in our "forced" time off. Fizzy had some time off/easy work following the Brentina Cup in June, but since then has been working pretty darn hard, and I think sometimes (most of the time) things happen for a reason. Maybe this little break was a blessing in disguise. In any event, I feel so fortunate that I have such a sound (knock on wood) horse, and if I could have asked for any "injury"- something like a sensitive-splint-with-no-lameness would be it!

Tuny, on the other hand, was not so pleased with our time off! She has been just super about fitting Fizzy and I in every day for a lesson, even with as busy as she is, she still always finds time to give 100% to Fizzy and me. He really was going well right before this all happened, and Tuny was really excited to show Klaus (who arrives mid-January) how nicely Fizzy was going. It is so nice to have people on your team, with a genuine interest in you doing well, isn't it? I couldn't be happier with the support, training and experience I am getting at Tuny's- it has been just delightful.

As far as Fizzy's temperament through all of this, he is not amused. Between his three times a day icings... getting his temperature taken twice a day (because we are still all dealing with the EHV-1 outbreaks in Wellington)... and getting his leg wrapped at night, I basically go in his stall a minimum of six times a day to annoy him. Combine that with the fact that he is only walking under saddle, and only getting 1/2 his feed? Lets just say that I am getting yelled at a lot. For example, after I feed him lunch, about 15 minutes later he starts bellowing at me because he's still hungry, and it's my fault, and I need to feed him more, #%*$$?@*@!! The comical part of all of this, though, is that he is putting his stall-boredom-breaker-roller-feed ball to good use- I hear him all the time in there, rolling it around to get out a tiny handful of Nutrena's XTN (which has made his coat AMAZING, by the way!), then rolling it some more, and beating it up when it's out of food. My little diva.

Working at Tuny's has been great, and I have gotten to ride some wonderful horses. My day usually goes something like this:

7:00am- Dump water buckets, scrub, refill, put on Wild One's magnetic blanket
7:30am- Help finish with stalls
8:00am- Help with grooming and tacking up
8:15am- Get on and walk first horse for Tuny (usually Wild One, or VV as he is known in the stable)
8:45am-10:30 Get on other horses and walk for Tuny (or work myself, depending on the day, Tuny's schedule, etc)
11:00 Ride Reno (Our resident hunter who is coming-five and has been deemed my project horse, so I have a lovely time riding around playing hunter rider for 45minutes!)
Between 11:30 and 12:00- Feed Lunch
In the afternoon's we turnout for a few hours, and then feed dinner around 4pm. We usually leave the barn by 5pm, depending on the day.

Tuny has five horses total-

Wild One, or VV ("Double V") is her main horse, and the one she took to the 2006 World Cup Finals. VV is just the sweetest horse ever, and has a great "Teddy Bear" face. He is very aware of how special he is, and basically runs my life. In turnout, when he gets bored, he goes to the fence and puts his leg up, threatening to stand on the lower wooden rail. This means if I'm not out there soon, he is going to start redecorating his field, and I better get out there. In addition, there better be hay in his stall upon his arrival, as well as full water buckets (for dunking, of course!). He does not enjoy having his belly brushed, and small towels for grooming are the devil. He must do his stretches in the morning while having his feet picked out, and this includes stretching his hind legs alllll the way out and groaning. He is such a character, I just love him. Also, candy-canes are much appreciated.

Ice Cup (also known as Cupcake as my fellow worker, Carrie, has deemed him!) is a six-year-old Danish horse by Blue Hors Future Cup (by Florestan) out of a Romancier mare. "Icy" as I call him is the horse I ride the most, and he is really something special. He has three super paces, and is very balanced for such a tall young man. He is a bit of a goof personality wise, and has recently taken to a game I like to refer to as "GET 'EM DRESSED GET 'EM OUT." This is a game in which I race against Icy's interior time clock to get all of his boots on, plus bell boots, and get him out in the field before he starts removing items himself. Yesterday, I was putting on his last bell boot, and he promptly removed the first one, holding it in his mouth and grinning at me. He has really matured riding-wise in the time that I've been here, and Tuny and I joke about seeing glimpses of his "inner Ferarri" as I call it- you know those moments where the self-carriage just happens, and you feel the Grand Prix horse. So fun. He is my favorite, but don't tell Wild One. :-)

Our resident girly girl is Mary (her show name is Sager Deern or something, not sure how to spell it) is also a six-year-old, by Sandro Hit out of an Inschallah mare. Mary is probably all 0f 16 hands, but has not problem capturing her inner Ferarri seven days a week. She is so mature, and always ready to work. She is an excellent student, and is all business under saddle. She already makes very easy flying changes both directions, lovely trot and canter half-passes, and has started half-steps. She is a blast to ride, and has a go-button that never quits. She is very confident and never spooky, and if she were a person, would be the little girl sitting in the front of the class with her hand up all the time because she knows all the answers. She is also the object of Fizzy's affection, and gets googily eyes from him all the time from across the aisle. She pretends she doesn't like it, but we all know she's secretly in love. :-)

Lareno, or Reno as we call him, is our dressage-horse-turned-hunter. He is a very laid back guy, and told Tuny soon after she got him that he'd prefer a life which includes jumping. He is a beautiful mover and very, very sweet horse, but he just would prefer to jump than do dressage. I really admire that Tuny listened to him, instead of forcing him into a career that he didn't like (listen up, parents!). So Reno and I work in the ring, or in the field and practice cutting daises... having a perfectly rhythmical canter and walking as only a good hunter can walk (which makes us dressage riders crazy!). He is learning his changes, and is, like Mary, an excellent student.

Tuny's fifth horse is Mocha, a teenaged pony for her daughter to ride. "Smokin' Mokes" as he is sometimes endearingly referred to is the strangest colored pony I've ever seen, and was very appropriately campaigned in the hunters in his younger years under the name Mocha Latte. He is adorable in every sense of the word, and Charlotte (Tuny's daughter) and I take him out for walks and rides, and just generally enjoy each other's company. Charlotte and I did write a song the other day (because singing on a trail ride is fun!) which went, (Editor's note: Mocha has foundered a few times, so is no longer allowed to eat grass) "My name is Mochie and my coat is kinda smokey. We went for a walk and we had a little talk. I said please Liz and Charlotte, give me some grass, and they said no way Mochie, that stuff's bad for your.... tummy ." Ah, the joys of rhyming with a six-year-old. After completing our song, she went into a freestyle about sugar cookies which went something like, "Sugar sugar sugar, no sugar cookies cookies for Mocha." I told Tuny she might have a little rapper on her hands. :-)

That's it for me... Hope you're all warm and enjoying 2007!

Merry Christmas!

2006-12-26T06:46:00.000-05:00

Saderiffic (Not horse related-- skip this one if you'd like :-))

2006-12-07T21:24:00.000-05:00

There are some people in life that others just gravitate towards. Maybe it's because they're extra nice, or extra interesting or extra fun to be around. These are the people that don't need to make plans on a Saturday night, because they already have a dozen people who want to hang out with them. They don't need to work at being cool-- they just are. This, in a nutshell, is my dog.

I found Sadie at a rescue shelter in New York. After seeing the CUTEST Cattle Dog/Boxer mix on petfinder.com, I decided that I had to have a puppy, and more specifically THAT puppy, immediately. So with one of my best friends and her dog in tow, I loaded up my car and we took off on a two hour drive to Leftofmiddleofnowhere New York to pick up my dream dog.

Except she had crooked legs. And was extremely overweight. And was food aggressive. And was dog aggressive. Did I mention she was three months old? Yea. Scratch that plan. As we left to go get in the car, I said to Betsy, "I wish they had other dogs to look at." She urged me to go back in to see what else they might have or know of, because hey, you never know.

The woman told me that they did indeed have more puppies, but they really weren't ready to be adopted out yet because they hadn't been assessed by the shelter (because clearly my Cattle Dog/Boxer had been pegged perfectly by her description on petfinder- "a real love bug!"). The woman told me she would just this one time show me the puppies "out back." As she turned the handle on the door to the small building, an eruption of noise came from within. There was whining, there was crying, there was barking, there was howling, and as my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I realized that there were puppies in every possible space, corner, cage. And they all wanted me to take them home.

Now, I've never gotten to go horse shopping before. All the horses I've gotten have been by default, not because I chose them. So naturally the prospect of choosing my own dog was exciting, and not a decision I wanted to jump into. So I took my time looking over the room, reminding myself that I did not have to had a dog that day... that there are plenty of dogs in the world who needs homes... And then I saw her. Quietly standing with her paws at the top of the wire fence, smushed between four barking, squealing, Labrador retriever puppies, was my Sadie.

Of course, she stood out to me because she had a white stripe down her face and four white paws. I am a sucker for chrome after all. But when my eyes met hers, I didn't see the other dogs in the room. I wanted to choose a few dogs to bring back into the house and assess, but I couldn't. I only wanted her.

The woman from the shelter suggested we take her back into the house to let her run around, and do the same sort of assessment we had done with the first puppy. Sadie (named later) passed all of my tests, and did not appear to be at all aggressive or protective. I was still worried at this point though- about making the wrong decision. Maybe I should look at other dogs, I thought. Maybe I should take some more time. And then, as if on cue, Sadie bounced over to me, sat at my feet, starred up at me and smiled.

The whole ride home there was thumping in the back seat. Her tail never did stop wagging that day.

As you know from my previous entries, Sadie has become quite the world traveler these last few months. And I feel like a proud parent when I say that she is well liked by everyone. At a year old, she is better behaved than most of the older dogs, and without fail everyone that meets her tells me, "Oh, you got a good one. This is a good dog. If you ever need anyone to watch her..."

Sadie has always been well socialized. She has always looked like she might have a little Pitt in her (along with god knows what else), so I have been anal about making sure she gets along with everyone. Apparently my socialization theory has worked well for her, because upon arriving at Tuny's, she seemingly instantly became friends with everyone.

She has friends that are Jack Russells, and Corgis, and fancy schamancy toy dogs and Mutts. She loves Labs and Beagles and everything in between. She is friends with everyone and enemies with no one, and is the first to say "Hey, lets play instead!" if two dogs look like they are going to get out of line. She is my little peacemaker, my watcher (she always keeps an eye on me when I do turnouts, just in case I get lost), my foot warmer and pillow stealer. The three of us- Fizzy, Sadie, and me, have made quite the trio. From plane rides to van rides to horse shows, we've gone everywhere together. I doubt that she and Fizzy will ever be friends, but we'll always, always, be family.

Back in the USA! And fun in the sun :-)

2006-12-05T22:27:00.000-05:00

December 5th, 2006

Hello from Wellington, Florida!

Thank you for all of the messages and e-mails about my blog. I really appreciate the interest and support! I was originally only going to keep a blog for my experiences in Germany, but a number of people have urged me to continue, so here we go!

Fizzy and I had a uneventful and nice flight from Amsterdam to Miami. The flight ended up being a little longer because of the jetstream- about 8 hours total. Fizzy was great- we shipped him in a single stall this time (instead of a stall-and-a-half) and, despite my attempts to keep him separate from the other horses with a head divider and hay net, he learned that if he moved the haynet to the side and cocked his head the right way, that he could visit his neighbors. After a few initial squeals and bounces he was quite content sniffing noses, licking, smooching and generally bothering his fellow passengers.

When we left in September for Europe, the pilots invited me to sit with them during takeoff. This was, of course, a fascinating experience, but I've always been a bigger fan of landing (for obvious reasons!), so when the pilots on the return trip invited me to sit in the cockpit for the landing, I immediately said yes. Strapping myself into my seat, I prepared for the landing- literally and figuratively. I have seen some beautiful sunsets in my life, but few compare to the sun setting over Miami that night. I'd never been to Miami before, but it didn't matter. I was coming home.

Upon arriving, Fizzy was immediately whisked away to quarantine, where he had to stay for two days in order to return to the states (required for all horses entering or re-entering the US). For breeding horses, if their stay is over 59 days, they have to do an extended (2-4 week) quarantine. For this reason, I made sure Fizzy only stayed for 55 days.

Since I was meeting my ride (Craig Bernstein, Tuny's groom) at the quarantine anyway, I smiled very nicely at the guys unloading the horses, and they let me unload Fizzy. Everyone oohed and aahhed over how big and pretty he was, and I told them that they had to take extra special care of him. So, with my heart in my throat, I left the horse who I had fed, ridden, brushed and generally gushed over for the last two months (and had for the last ten years!) go off in the hands of perfect strangers. Craig told me, "It's OK, he'll be fine. And if he's not, there's nothing you can do about it anyway." Can you say panic!

Fizzy did, indeed, come out of quarantine alive and well. While the other horses had lost weight, he still looked as fat and bright-eyed as ever, albeit crusted in dried sweat (Miami's hot!) and dirt. He is, and always has been, one of those horses who has this unexplainable presence, and even looking like a dirty mess, the shipper still commented on what a beautiful creature he was. When I look at him, I see my big, goofy horse who only has eyes for carrots (and ponies), who presses his shoulder up against the bar if you say, "Fizzy, are you itchy?" who hates to have his tail brushed and who insists that, no matter what time you come to feed him, that you're late. Sometimes I think his personality is bigger than he is :-).

Now for those of you that have been reading my journal throughout our Germany trip know that Fizzy worked hard in Germany. His days off were few and far between, and he (we) did a lot of growing up. Although this had been great in many ways, I felt like we were both a little burned out upon our arrival in Florida- between the stresses of training in a new system, showing, shipping... flying over oceans... you get the drift... we were both a little drained.

So how did we deal with this? Did we do a few light days? Nope. Did we do stretching and basic work? Not exactly. We did what seemed like the most logical and fun thing to do- we went and rode in the polo field. No no, let me rephrase that. We went and tore up the polo field (figuratively, not literally). I was initially going to start him in the ring to make sure he was going to behave, but then I scratched that plan. Neither one of us wanted to ride in a 20m by 60m rectangle. And so we went out and played in the polo field. We did our best hunter hack trot, we did auto changes, and after a little begging on Fizzy's part, we went for a gallop. I figured if he felt up to it, who was I to stop him. He didn't have any desire to be out of control, he just wanted to run.

As we went around the field, he found his pace, and just like a racehorse, began to breathe in rhythm with his stride. In my half-seat, I just grinned, closed my eyes and breathed along with him. Fizzy really is the most fabulous horse to gallop on because he goes in perfect balance, and you have this big neck out in front of you that gives a sense of security that only a stallion neck can. It was fun to ride for no particular reason at all. Not because I needed to get my count better for my tempis, or because I had to find a better rhythm for the passage. But simply to ride- because sometimes it's more fun to have four legs than two. As we walked back to the barn, exhilarated from our jaunt in the field, I said to him, "I'm glad that you're my friend again." Sometimes, as riders, we get caught up in making ourselves better, or making our horses better, or achieving certain goals. It is important that, in this effort, we don't lose sight of the partnership that good riding is based upon.

I will start to post more regularly again now, with more in-depth posts about my lessons with Tuny, but I will say that we've been here for just over two weeks, and it's been fabulous. I learned so much at Klaus', and the first week back (in the states) was a great week for Fizzy and I to take a deep breath and begin to take in all that we had learned. Now that we've done that, I can honestly say that he feels great, and Tuny is so helpful in keeping us on the right track- she really does have a phenomenal ability for explaining things and presenting things in a way that everything seems so clear, and so far her teaching style has worked superbly for Gigs and me.

That's all for now-- e-mail me with questions, and for heaven's sake, if you're in the Wellington area, come visit!

Photo from our show in Germany

2006-11-20T02:53:00.000-05:00

Showing

2006-11-03T06:55:00.000-05:00

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.

The days that make you go "Hmmm..."

2006-10-18T16:55:00.000-04:00

October 12th 2006

Today we had a great lesson with Klaus. We rode through part of the short version of the Grand Prix. I didn’t know where I was going as it was a surprise that I would go through it, but I was really pleased that we did it without a mistake! Even got the nine two-tempis and fifteen one tempis first try. I think this is due in part to him being more through overall, but especially at the canter. I know we can make the trot tour and piaffe/passage tour without mistakes very consistently, but the tempis and pirouettes aren’t as consistent. This will just take time. Today, the pirouettes were a bit large, but with the right balance- I just need to work on making them smaller.

October 16th 2006

“The Bad Ride”

The last few days, for whatever reason, Fizzy has been a little tricky. For example, today, he got all excited because someone was lunging a snorting mare in the round pen next to the ring. Fizzy didn’t really do anything naughty, but he definitely was not as good as he has been. Klaus told me to just focus on the basic work, and work on really trying to keep him more focused. But, at the end of my ride I just felt like I had not done as good of a job as I could have. For example, Klaus would ask me to tap him and I would tap him too far to the side and not enough on the croup (like Klaus had asked me to). Just silly stuff that I should know better. :-/

I think there is a lot of truth to the statement, “you’re your own worst critic.” I feel that we have had such exponential improvement since we’ve been here and I have learned so much, that to have one even just so-so ride is a disappointment. Horses, just like people have good days, bad days, or so-so days. I think that although Fizzy was a little set off by the lunging horse, I did not handle it as well as I could have- so it was like we both had a so-so day. This afternoon he was better, but Klaus still had to remind me of a few things which need to become habit for me. When I make stupid mistakes it is not fair to the horse, and I am harder on myself about it than anyone else is.

When it all comes down to it, we are all human, and we all make mistakes. The crucial part of making a mistake is not the mistake itself, but in fact, what you do about it afterwards. I have been thinking all day about my ride, and what I can do tomorrow to have a better one. These last few days my confidence in my ability has been somewhat shaken, and I need to get that back. I know that I can do this, that we, can do this, and from now on I need to really work on not doubting that.

October 17th, 2006

Much better today! Even with lots of activity- horses coming, going, lunging, etc., Fizzy was super. He felt better through than before, especially in the canter. We are still weak in the right canter pirouette, but really everything else feels good. His trot and canter half-passes are so expressive and fun- today after our trot zig-zag I giggled and smiled at Klaus- I never feel like I need to “push” him sideways- he just sort of floats from side to side. His passage was good today, as well. I need to work on getting more expression in both the piaffe and passage, but I think that will come with time. This is without a doubt the most piaffe/passage I have ever done with him consecutively, so it doesn’t surprise me that he is maybe a little tired sometimes. Time is really starting to become my favorite word.

I was thinking today, as we were schooling the right canter pirouette that I can’t wait for him to get stronger. I think about where we were a year ago, and how far he has come, and how wonderful it is that the stronger he gets, the better (and easier) everything will become. Along those same lines, the better I get, the better he will be and the easier it will be for me to communicate to him what I want. Exciting, this dressage stuff, isn’t it?

I’ve gotten a couple of e-mails asking me questions about my management program for him, so I will try to answer some of those questions.—

On the “health” side of things, his legs look great- clean and tight, and I made Michael feel his back to make sure it wasn’t sore and the comment was, “Man this horse has a strong back!” He is such a sound and strong horse by nature, but I still get paranoid and check his legs at least once a day, as well as ice his legs after a hard workout (and wrapping with standing wraps overnight if I think it will help, or make me feel like I’m helping, haha). I would rather be doing things like icing him or wrapping him as a preventative than a treatment! I usually use polos when I know I am going to work him harder, and DSB boots when we are doing lighter work or hacking. He also usually goes in bell boots, although he has never clipped himself, overreached or pulled a shoe, I just like to be safe!

At home in Vermont, he used to go out in the indoor for turnout for 2-4 hours a day in the morning, depending on the arena schedule, what time exactly he was turned out, etc. Here I don’t turn him out, but have been riding him twice a day lately, with our harder workout in the morning, and the afternoon for stretching mostly. I also often take him for handwalks and out grazing in the afternoon/evening.

Someone asked about supplements, and I have to say right now he’s not getting anything except Adequan and Legend. At home he was getting a daily wormer and TNS (Total Nutrional Supplement- a supplement from Dr. Benson’s- great stuff), as well as HylaSport and Quench electrolytes from HorseTech. The HylaSport, I think, is the best joint product on the market, and my mom is bringing me more when she comes next week. Also, the Quench electrolyte is my favorite because it doesn’t have all of the sugar and additives of some of the others.

Well, that’s it for me! I will write again later in the week.

Germany Update!

2006-10-11T15:52:00.000-04:00

Sunday, October 1st

No work for Fizzy (or any of the horses) today. I took him for a ½ hour hand-walk around the whole property and on the track around the perimeter. Klaus leaves tonight to do some teaching in England, so we are on our own for the next few days. It’s funny, I am so used to riding on my own usually, but I am enjoying my rides with Klaus so much, I am sad I will miss a few lessons. J Hopefully we will be better when he comes back!

Monday, October 2nd

Today I asked Michael Barisone, who is also here training, to help me a little with Fizzy. He said he had similar issues in the tempi changes with his horse, in that the horse gets almost too big in the changes, and becomes somewhat unbalanced. He helped me a lot to make Fizzy’s changes more through, but what I was most excited about was that from my work with Klaus just in a week, our changes are already much straighter! If I get my count right in a test we almost always get a “7” on the two tempis and one tempis, but I know if they were a little straighter and more through he has the potential for an “8” or “9.”

One of the problems I ran into today was that I was having a lot of mistakes in the changes, especially at the end of the left-right diagonal- he was adding in a change back to the left lead at the end. I though about this after, and yes, we haven’t done the tempis much lately, so I was a little rusty, but most importantly, I need to keep my seat in such a way that I don’t let these silly mistakes happen. I know if we have a problem it comes from me, so I need to make sure I am riding always in a correct position, and not confusing him. Tomorrow I will be better!

Tuesday, October 3rd

Well today was completely different from yesterday. I don’t think I made one mistake in the changes, and they were more through much earlier in the ride. I have trouble sometimes in the snaffle keeping him round enough- especially in the right-left change he comes up in the neck and dives down. Michael explained it really well by telling me to think about pushing Fizzy’s neck out in front of me, but in a round way, and keeping him more with my seat and less with my hand. And he also reminded me to stay a little more back with my seat. This made all the difference, and we had some really super changes today. Michael and Belli also helped me with my passage a little, and again, by staying a little more back on my seat, he came better with the hind leg and the whole thing became more expressive.

Every day I have been riding Winzi (previously Vinci in my journals because I didn’t take into account the fact that “W” sounds like “V” in German :-)), Eden, Robin, Dautre Fois and Troy. I have been learning a lot since they are all at different stages. It is hard to say who my favorite is because they are all so different! They range in age from four (Eden) to eleven or so (Robin) and from training/first level to just below Grand Prix. I am so happy to get to do some more riding than just Fizzy because I think it is important to be able to ride lots of different horses and adjust to them. For example, Eden is very sensitive in a really nice way, but can sometimes be a little strong in the hand. Robin, on the other hand, is so light in the hand, but starts out sometimes a little stickier to the leg. They all though have such unbelievable temperaments, and really enjoy their work.

Wednesday, October 4th

I know I always talk about Fizzy first, but I wanted to share that Robin and I did a super line of two tempis today! He can be a little sensitive about the changes and I have just done singles so far, but today he felt really good so we tried the tempis and he was super! I also found his, “fancy” trot- he has an outstanding extension, but sometimes I feel like I ride his collected trot too flat. Today I figured out how to bring more expression into the collected trot, and he was just lovely. He is really beginning to grow on me :-) And little Eden (well, 16.2 hand Eden) was wonderful again, as always! I told Klaus a few days ago that perhaps Eden would like to go to Florida for vacation when Klaus comes in January :-).

Now, on to Fizzy! Today we just did a light day- Klaus is home tomorrow so hopefully he can see him go a bit. Fizzy has felt great the last few days, so I figured Wednesday a light day, then Thursday, Friday, Saturday a bit harder work, then Sunday off. I think we may do a few shows in the not-too-distant future, and I am really excited that I’ve now had that feeling of really good tempis- hopefully I can keep them for the show ring! I know he can do everything from the Grand Prix, now I just need to keep making him stronger and more fit.

Germany Update- October 11th, 2006

Hello Everyone!

I have actually been doing things at night now, like watching movies, going to dinner, watching Balkenhol home videos, etc., so I haven’t been as diligent about writing. Sorry about that! Fizzy is doing very well, and I am hoping to show him soon. He had Sunday off, like usual, and had a light day on Monday as he had his feet done.

My lessons with Klaus have been so fantastic, and I feel like I am learning so much. I also try to watch as much as I can, especially Klaus (for obvious reasons) and Belli (since she has been working with him for so long, obviously). They are both such quiet, effective riders, most of the time it is difficult to even see their aids! Of course, that is what dressage is all about, but it can be a little tricky when you are trying to learn how they are using their aids.

So far I think the most important lesson I have learned is about letting the horse work for himself. I am lucky in that Fizzy has a super “Go” button, but sometimes, for example in the canter pirouettes, I push too much, and make things more difficult than they should be. On Monday we schooled the canter pirouettes just a little, and they were so much easier than they have been in the past (before coming to Germany). I think it is because I am learning to push less, and allow more. It is an incredible feeling.

But the MOST incredible feeling I have had since I’ve been here was today, in a trot half-pass. Fizzy is very good at half-pass anyway, but sometimes I think I get too strong in asking for the bend. “Forceful” is the wrong word to use, because I don’t think I could ever force Fizzy to do anything, but you know how you almost push for something too hard, that you get in the way? Well, today in our trot zig-zag, he made a lovely half-pass left, a nice change of bend, and then a nice half-pass right. I have been making sure after a half-halt I always become soft (obviously so) with the rein, and give my hands forward so that I give Fizzy room to “grow” in front. It was the most “ah-ha!” moment I’ve ever had when, after giving both reins in the half-pass, I gave a little extra as we approached the wall, and completely maintained the bend (from the Grand Prix half-pass) on my seat. It was so easy, with no pressure or pushing, and was just the most glorious feeling.

I know that we have a long, long way to go before we are confident totally in the Grand Prix work, but I am gaining so much confidence from Klaus’ way of teaching. He never gets angry or impatient (at least not yet!), and he always tells me, “you have time, easy, take your time.” He really has opened my eyes to a whole new way of thinking, where with Fizzy, and I would think most really talented horses, that it’s like you’re just allowing them to work- and the less you do, and quieter you are, the more possible you make it for them to be expressive and supple. Of course this makes sense, but so often you feel like you need to struggle to get to a certain spot. With Klaus’ teaching, there is no struggle. There is no point where you think, “I will never get this.” Every day I feel like I improve a little bit, and things that were previously hard aren’t anymore.

For today (Wednesday) my big news is that my new Albion Platinum Ultima came, from Kate Athenas-Wilson at Dutchess Bridle and Saddle. It is a BEAUTIFUL saddle, and feels amazing on Fizzy. I already felt better swing in his trot today in the warm-up, the same feeling I had when I tried the tester a few weeks ago. I can’t wait to see if it makes a difference for us- I hope he likes it!

Germany- Week One

2006-09-30T14:18:00.000-04:00

***Sorry if I spelled any names, words, etc. incorrectly. :-)***

Monday, September 25th

Fizzy and I had an uneventful night at the “Animal Hotel” in Schipol. I convinced the very cute guy on duty to give me a tour of the place, and he showed me the dogs and cats that were either coming or going, including two cats destined for Australia, and two German Shepard puppies heading to Tennessee. He said Amsterdam is the major animal transport hub, and he said the coolest thing he ever saw (of course, this is the kind of question I ask, lol) was when the Vancouver Zoo had a BALUGA shipped all the way from Singapore! I was impressed.

The shipping company arrived to pick Fizzy up right on schedule- around 7:30am. Tees, from Guido Klatte’s company would be shipping us, and Fizzy got to ride in a beautiful 10-horse slant load. He loaded right on- which surprised me a little- he had spent 6 hours on our trailer, loaded onto another trailer the next morning, loaded onto a transport box, and then the next morning loaded onto another trailer! Horses truly are amazing- the things they do for us!

We ended up leaving Schipol around 10:30am (after paperwork, having a vet check the horses over, and having breakfast), and arrived at the Balkenhol’s just after 1pm. I had only ever seen pictures of Klaus’ place, but it is more beautiful than the photos suggest. Klaus wasn’t there when we arrived, so Anabel, Klaus’ daughter, showed me Fizzy’s stall and where I will be staying for the next few months. After I made sure Fizzy was happy and healthy, I left for my room to take on the daunting task of unpacking. J I am so pleased with how well Fizzy traveled- he lost no weight from the trip, and doesn’t seemed stressed in the least. He used to be a bit of a nervous shipper, but I think because I was with him for so much of the time, he was happier. Not to mention the fact that the horse must have eaten 10lbs of carrots! Well… Almost.

Tuesday, September 26th

Today I rode Fizzy for the first time. We just did loosening exercises in the snaffle- I want to make sure I give him enough time to recover from the trip before asking him for too much. It is warmer here than it was at home, so I want to make sure he adjusts to that, too. That being said, he feels really loose and supple for having had such a long trip. He was a little strong in the hand, but he often is in a new place because he’s excited.

I got to ride two horses for the Balkenhol’s today, as well. Their Berieter, Steffen, is in Australia for two weeks giving some sort of clinic, so they need some extra help riding. First, I rode Eden, a four year old by Ehenrusch II I believe. He is very nicely trained so far, and really good in his rhythm for a four-year-old. I rode him in a long frame, and Steffen said I could actually close him a little more and ask for a little more collection. He is not quite as balanced at the canter, but still very good. He is also extremely comfortable to ride, and has just the sweetest temperament. Don't tell Tweakie and Violet I have another four-year-old love! :-)

Next I rode Robin- an 11-year-old gelding by Rubenstein. Robin is the first horse I’ve ridden that I actually think might be 18 hands. People always tell you horses are bigger than they are, but Robin truly is enormous. Steffen said he needs to work on becoming more supple, but that if you get him he has super piaffe/passage. He said the trickiest part about him was the flying changes, and that he was quite sensitive. He was a blast to ride, and gave me a really nicely uphill feeling in the collected canter. He is so light on his feet and light in the hand for such a big horse, and very responsive to the half-halts. I tried a few changes, and he was actually late to my aid for the first one, so I gave him a little kick, which he did not enjoy. The next change he came a little up with the croup. Lord knows I have ridden enough horses that can be tricky in the changes, so I did what I knew worked best in the past for me- the changes on a serpentine. This worked well for me and Robin, and I just did the single changes for today. Steffen said he does everything from the Grand Prix except the one-time changes, but I don’t think it is fair for me to get on these horses and ask them to do everything they know- I’m not familiar with how they are ridden, and I feel that I should give them a chance to get used to me before I ask them for things.

Wednesday, September 27th

Today I woke up with such a smile on my face. I still can’t believe that I am here. Fizzy is in the stall that Kingston usually goes in. I am getting to ride today with the US Team coach. As I said in my e-mail to my mom last night, “It’s OK, you don’t need to pinch me, I already pinched myself!” This is such an unbelievable opportunity, and I am far beyond grateful to the individuals and organizations that helped to get me here (espicially the Dressage Foundation who really made it possible at the end!). If you get to do something like this once in your life… Wow, I just still can’t believe it. And all with my Fizzzyyyyy-Gigs. :-)

I know people will always talk, and say maybe “Oh, she is rubbing it in our face that she gets to go to Germany”- but that is never my intention. I feel so lucky and fortunate to be here, and I only wish I can share my experience with other people. I hope everyone can someday have a dream like this come true. I mean, who am I? I am not so different from everyone else. I trained my horse up as well as I could, and I worked hard to find sponsorship. I did not have this handed to me, and believe me, I have insecurities, doubts and worries like everyone else!

I got to ride a few more horses today. I started again with my buddy Eden who was very good again- a little stronger at first than yesterday, but I also rode him inside yesterday, and out today. What I love about him is that he is so sensible for a four-year-old. He just does whatever you ask and is so sweet. I tried to work him a little lighter than yesterday- yesterday I think I was on him a bit too long. I hope I can perhaps ride him again tomorrow, he is such a sweetie pie!

I also rode Robin again today. I learned yesterday from my ride that he warms up best with walking, and then just a little trot, then canter. He is so cute when you let him stretch in the canter he shakes his head a little and is fresh and fun. He is never naughty, but clearly enjoys his stretching time. :-) I worked a little more on lateral movements today, and I got a really lovely collected trot from him. The canter is so much fun to ride, and he makes me feel like a little princess up there because he is so big and comfy! He really loves his work, and is a very funny guy. I like him a lot.

I had my first little lesson with Klaus today on Fizzy, which was fun. I told Klaus that Fizzy has been a little tired, I think because he is growing his new winter coat, and Klaus said OK, between that and the trip we will just do a little with him. What I took away from my ride was to do more walk breaks (I stretch him a lot in the trot during our ride, but not always a lot of walk breaks, so that was helpful), to make sure my aids are really going through (No… It’s not ME who lets Fizzy sit on the reins sometimes :-) ), and to make sure my half-halts are working.

A big treat was getting to ride a sweet mare named Vinci after Klaus had ridden her. It was so cute, with Klaus, he tapped her lightly with the whip and she gave a little buck, and he just smiled and laughed. I like that. I like how happy all the horses are, and how much the Balkenhol’s like them. Sometimes you see riders ride, and they never smile, and it seems as if they almost don’t like riding. Here it is so relaxed, and the horses are all so happy and well cared for. It is not the kind of barn with chandeliers and all the accessories, but it is built and run with the best interest of the horse in mind, which is so refreshing and wonderful to see.

Anyway, back to Vinci! She is six, but had two foals, so she is like riding a four-year-old. She is very forward thinking, and really fun. I practiced my half-halts, and if she didn’t listen, I did a full halt. She is like a couch to sit on, and really just sweet. I did a little canter, and she totally lost all steering, while remaining mostly on the bit. It was hysterical. We did an impromptu canter loop from First-4. I just laughed. She thought it was pretty funny, too.

There is more, but I need to go to bed! I am such a genius, I brought an outlet converter for my laptop, and proceeded to immediately try to use it for my hair dryer. After my hairdryer sparked and died, I read the pamphlet for the converter: “Under NO circumstances should this device be used with a blow dryer, hot iron or curling iron.” I read a little further, and saw there was an extra spark plug, which I was sure I had lost. Tonight, finally, I read all the directions, ready to go on a fuse hunt in the bathroom (where I had originally opened the packaging), when I saw the extra fuse was in a compartment in the converter. Needless to say, my computer is now plugged in and charging.

More tomorrow. P.S. Sadie is being PERFECT. She is only a year-old, but listens like a big dog, and everyone likes her. She is sleeping at my feet right now. :-) There is a track around the whole property which I can’t wait to take Fizzy on, and I am hoping she will come with me!

I ride Fizzy tomorrow for Klaus at 8:45. I will ride better half-halts and with more short walk breaks.

Thursday. September 28th

Today was a really exciting day because Klaus sat on Fizzy for the first time. I warmed Fizzy up better than yesterday, thinking more on the hind leg from the start, and he was immediately listening to my half-halts better. He felt fresher today, as well. I did just a little walk, trot, canter, and then Klaus asked to get on. Fizzy was flipping his neck and playing stallion a bit with me which I just laughed about- I like it because it means he is feeling good, and Klaus asked me, “Is he ever crazy?” I told him no- which coincidentally is one of my favorite things about Fizzy- he can put his neck straight in the air to watch a horse a mile away, and you feel as if he would just implode, but he never does. He is so sane that way.

Klaus worked on making Fizzy sharper to the hand and leg, and on the balance overall. He did some super piaffe/passage work- not for too long, but enough to see how he was. He also did some lovely canter half-passes, and thinking canter pirouette on a circle. Klaus then had me get back on, and I found Fizzy’s back to be better up and the half-halt to be working better. I would still like him a little fresher to my leg, but I think he is still feeling perhaps a little under the weather from the long trip and from his winter coat growing in- usually he is so quick to the leg and he has been just a little slow lately.

I got a very good feeling in the canter, and Klaus reminded me to come a little bit back with my upper body when I rode the half-halt. He also said that when he gets strong to tap lightly with the whip to remind the hind legs to keep working, which in turn made him lighter in the hand. I was really happy with my lesson overall, and am looking forward to tomorrow!

Today I also rode four other horses, and took Fizzy for a hack around the track this afternoon which he loved. He was bucking and squealing in his stall, so I thought it best if I took him out again. I guess he is starting to feel like himself! Tomorrow hopefully I will have another lesson, or perhaps just ride on my own, I’m not sure. Since I am not used to lessons every day, it might be nice to have a day to myself to just school and try to get my half-halts right, and Fizzy sitting on his bum!

Friday September 29th

I am happy to report another really good ride on Fizzy today. I understand pretty well what Klaus is looking for- I know this because when I feel something and have an “ah-ha!” moment, Klaus usually says good or “Ja vol” at that moment. I like that. :-) Starting Fizzy in a slower trot is helpful for me, because it keeps him a little more off the forehand and more in balance. Usually I just let him do as he pleases in the beginning- not that he’s rushing on his own, but it’s more of a training/first level balance. What Klaus has me do is just a little bit slower and almost thinking passage.

Today we worked on getting more expression in the trot, a little bit the piaffe/passage, and a little bit half-pass and tempi changes in the canter. In the trot, again, Klaus had me think of more expression and as he said, “bigger rhythm” (more cadence and lift). Fizzy was very good about this, and also is getting better on the half-halt. Thanks to Mr. Schumacher I know what Klaus is looking for with the half-halt and then immediately uberstreichen (give the rein so they can maintain self carriage). Fizzy’s passage was very nice today, as well, and we worked a bit on the move off from walk to passage. Klaus always stresses that short walk breaks are necessary during the ride to keep the horses fresh and allow the muscles to relax. Usually at home I only do two or three walk breaks during a ride (between the warm-up and work phase, and once or twice during the work itself). Here we do many more.

Every day Fizzy feels a little fresher. I usually do not ride him with a whip, but I have just been carrying one, and if he gets a little strong, a tap-tap to remind him of his hind legs :-). This makes him, in most cases (if I am sitting well) immediately light in the hand. It is so hard as a rider to not deal with the problem you feel immediately (“He is strong in my hand, so I must supple him to make him lighter with my hand”) and deal with the root of the problem (“To make him supple, first I need the attention of the hind leg”).

We also worked the tempis for the first time today. Fizzy was very good, although Klaus said I needed to be more clear with my aids at times. He also stressed doing the tempis on different lines- for example, begin on the diagonal line, and then move toward the centerline. Fizzy came a bit too strong and above the bit at times, so Klaus had me school the tempis, and especially the one tempis on short diagonals. This was helpful because Fizzy couldn’t get away from me so much.

Saturday, September 30th

Today we didn’t work Fizzy very hard- Klaus said it is important to listen to the horses and not overwork them. Fizzy has been a really good boy, and after such a long trip and everything, it was probably best that we didn’t do too much today. We did school the tempi changes a bit again (at my request), and a funny thing happened. Because Fizzy is listening so much better to the half-halt, my changes are getting better. Klaus said, if he gets too strong to halt him, and then go for the change again. I used to do this at home, but because he didn’t respect my hand and seat as well, it didn’t make much difference- sort of like a halt was the right idea, but it didn’t work so well because I wasn’t definite enough in my aids. Well today, doing the halt worked extremely well, and I got really through changes both directions, and even in the tempis. In the double it’s fine, but I can’t keep him as well in the snaffle. Today, we did the tempis in the snaffle the best we’ve ever had. And light in the hand and from the seat.

After we schooled the tempis it started to rain, so we went inside to school just a tiny bit of piaffe/passage. Fizzy was very good, and his piaffe is so easy I just sit there and come a little stronger with my back and put my leg a little back. He feels totally confident in the piaffe now, mostly because I am bringing him in a better balance. The passage was also good- Klaus helped me a little from the ground to get more expression. I was having trouble keeping him supple enough in the neck, so we made a walk and tried again.

The best part of all of this so far that it is through such quiet work that my horse is getting better. You know, sometimes you work with a trainer, and they hammer the extended trot and push the horses to the maximum. Klaus has with me just worked on the balance, and on making Fizzy physically stronger. And Fizzy never feels overworked or tired after our rides, which is important to me- he is the kind of horse that will never quit, and I don’t ever want to push him to the point where he feels overworked or burned out.

Overall, my first week here has been more amazing than I ever could have anticipated. I have had so much fun getting to watch everyone ride, and my favorites are Michael (Barisone's) horse Neruda and Belli's mare Easy. They are both doing the Grand Prix, so I try to watch and learn as much as I can every day.

Greetings from the Amsterdam/Schipol horse quarantine!

2006-09-24T21:19:00.000-04:00

Well, we're almost to Germany! It's about 4am here, and I'm writing from the Amsterdam/Schipol airport- we're currently in the quarantine facility, awaiting the vet who doesn't arrive until 7am (aka I'm bunking with the horses tonight, if I can ever fall asleep!). All is well, and we just have one more short trip to Klaus', but the two longest parts (from Vermont to the airport and the actual flight) are over. And boy am I relieved!

Our trip started out yesterday around 2:30pm, when my mom, Fizzy, Sadie (my dog), Cupcake (my mom's dog) and myself all left from our farm in Vermont for Kennedy Airport. Fizzy shipped down like a champ and then stayed overnight last night in quarantine at the airport. We didn't get to our hotel until around 11:30pm, so we had a quick dinner and then went to bed.

Our flight for Germany left this morning just before 11am, actually slightly earlier than scheduled, which was nice! My good friend, Jessica Rattner, who works for Anne Gribbons came to see us off (on her day off, no less- getting up before 6am to come have breakfast!). She took LOTS of pictures and I will post them when I can.

From the quarantine barn at JFK we loaded all my equipment and Sadie into one of the beautiful Dutta Corp. trucks. There was also another horse, Crusader, who was shipping with us to Germany, so we loaded him and Fizzy up last and drove them over to the tarmac. The horses shipped over to the plane facing backwards (it was a four horse head to head), so that all we had to do was back the trailer up to the transport box, and then the ramps lined up in such a way that it was a straight shot straight from the trailer to the transport box.

Fizzy was a little excited about being shipped next to Crusader at first, but settled right down. I was a little worried about how the horses would be loading into the transport box, but they were both super. Fizzy had never done it before, but he was a very good boy and just said, "Ok, Lizzy, if you say so!" The rule with the horses is "last on, first off" the plane, so our wait wasn't very long. The horses loaded into the nose of the plane (called a "front loader") and they even let me ride in the box when they put it on! Fizzy was very brave, and only got a little nervous when the box was on the rollers being pushed into the plane (think rumble strip times five!).

Once we were all loaded, Fizzy and I got to watch them lower the nose of the plane and close us in, which was very cool! I waited as long as I could and sort of hoped the crew would just forget about me and let me stay in the box for take-off, but they came and got me. :-) The takeoff was what I was most worried about, especially since I couldn't be down there with him... So reluctantly, I climbed up the stairs and took a seat right behind the pilot, where I could see everything! There must be over 100 controllers/switches in the cockpit, it was amazing. The pilots were so nice, and also had their families on board (they had come over for Rosh Hashana).
After takeoff and the plane leveled out, I could go down to check on "the boys" and Sadie. Everyone seemed content and quiet, so I was happy.

Now let me tell you, if you ever fly on a cargo flight, you're never going to want to fly any other way ever again! There were seven of us total on the flight, the three pilots (or co-pilots, not sure of their actual "titles") two of their wives, and two kids. Not only were the seats first-class worthy, but there were also BEDS to sleep on! It was fabulous. So, I basically spent my seven hour flight either dozing, reading, eating, or checking on/watering the horses. I was in heaven. :-)

Both Crusader and Fizzy drank well on the flight, and were generally sociable and happy. I totally fell in love with Crusader, he is just the sweetest guy and was completely placid about the whole thing. Fizzy was his usual bossy self, and there was lots of loud bellowing if I went in Crusader's side of the box (there was a head partition, so he couldn't see me) to give him carrots or water. He's more possessive than a boyfriend sometimes, I swear!

Perhaps the most comical part of the trip was the fact that I inevitably got soaked every time I tried to give Fizzy water. Now, I will credit him with being the most thankful horse ever, don't get me wrong. Whenever I give him something that he likes to eat, or if he wants something, he will lick me. Unfortunately, in the tiny horse transport box, I couldn't avoid this display of affection, and so as soon as he would finish drinking, I not only got drenched with the mouth full of water they always seem to keep especially for you, but I also got kissed on my shoulder, neck and cheeks before I could get out of the box. The other passengers up top must have thought I was the least coordinated groom ever, since I always seemed to return to my seat much wetter than I had left it!

The flight was over in no time, and we landed safely at the Amsterdam/Schipol airport around 6pm (or, midnight in Holland, with the time change). Fizzy was just as quiet getting off the box as he had been getting on, except this time he got to go into a nice big, deeply bedded stall. He is stabled right next to Crusader, who has clearly become his new best friend. There are just bars between them, so there has been lots of sniffing, licking and general excitement over his new found friend. I am so proud of him for being such a good boy about all of this so far!

And so here I am, sitting in quarantine, borrowing a computer in the KLM Animal Cargo office writing to you all! I must say, the guy on duty is awfully handsome, so I am entertained. :-) I have been periodically checking on the horses who are very happy and quiet, so Sadie and I are just sitting, waiting.

The vet will be here around 7am to check the horses over and give us the OK to leave, and I'm hoping to be at Klaus' by early afternoon. I'm not sure when I'll be able to write again, but hopefully soon! My plan is to hopefully hack Fizzy under saddle tomorrow lightly, depending on how he feels. If he's quiet, I'll just hand walk him, but I have a feeling he's going to want to get some energy out!