Dexter's New Dressage Arena

Ok, its not new, and its not even really an arena.  Its the same crappy painted cinder blocks placed out in a field.  But we moved it and used my new extra long metric tape measure I got for Christmas, so it is much more accurate.

Originally we used the long side of the pasture as the long sided of the arena.  This positioned the arena so that we would be going towards or away from the barn on the long side.  At the time I was not aware of how super scary that fence was to Dexter and how much he enjoyed trying to take off when pointed towards the barn.  So we used the arena for a while then realized he does much better in a different part of the pasture and it has been left un-used for the last several months.

So about 2 weeks ago my husband agreed to come out and help me re-measure and re-locate the "arena".  He mostly agreed because he's a dork and loves to put math and geometry to practical use, regardless of the reason, I was happy for the help.

We basically turned the whole arena 90 degrees so the short side was on the fence line and the long side was parallel to the barn.  No more barreling down the long side praying for a downward transition.  I didn't realize it at the time but the pasture is only about 65 meters wide so it just fit. 

Yesterday was the first time we were able to ride in it due to weather and mud.  And man what a difference it made.  Its a little silly that I accommodate my horse this way, and many may tell me I should have kept it the way it is and made him get used to it.  And I agree, but I'm a big chicken and don't like falling off, so we will do it this way and no one gets stressed out.

There is one spot in the middle of the arena where the horses like to poo, so its a little wet and slippery but I think we will be ok.  But all his canter work was calm and cool, we were finally able to work on actual movements instead of circling everywhere.   We did serpentines and diagonals and transitions and center line work.  Going straight is so much easier when you have something to guide you.  Well it may not be easier, but it is easier to tell when you are crooked.  I'm super excited to have an arena back, because while I don't practice tests and  movements much its great to have markers to aim for. 

Now if I can just get the pasture ponies to stop knocking over the letters everything would be dandy. 

X Halt... Haaaalt, ok I Halt Salute

When I first started working with Dexter I built myself a shabby dressage ring out in a pasture to get me motivated.  Its basically spray painted cinder blocks at the letters, a fence on one side but otherwise no rails or borders.  The blocks have since been knocked over and moved around by the pasture ponies, but they are relatively in the same spot.


I don't work Dexter in the dressage ring very often, for one, when I got him he wasn't good at balancing and going straight so we did a lot of large circles and serpentines that wouldn't have fit in the ring.  Plus, I put it right next to the corn field not aware of the scary monsters that lived in the field (wind and grasshoppers). So Dexter would leg yield and shoulder in all along the one long side, ready to bolt should anything move before telling him.


Anyway, as I plan on showing next season, and Dexter has found his center, I've decided we need to use the arena more.  After schooling in the arena I decided to run through the new Training Level Test 1 to see how we were doing.  Needless to say, I've found that we may need to focus on some precision work and transitions now that he's got his frame.  Below is the test as written followed by our interpretation:


A Working Trot
X Halt Salute
X Halt, walk, halt, walk, HALT


C Track Left
Somewhere between G & C track left, drift out of the arena and come back in around S
E 20 meter Circle
E 15-20 meter egg-shape

A Circle left 20m, developing left lead canter second half of circle
A circle left 20 meters, canter 2 strides break to see if she's serious, pick canter back up
AFB Working Canter
AFB Trot in the corner followed by hand gallop to B

B-E Half circle 20 M
Just past B track left
Between E & K Working Trot
E ask for trot, V ask for trot, extended trot at K

A 20 meter stretch circle
Stretch at extended trot, slow down and relax the second half of the circle, just in time to pick up the reins.

Between A&F Medium Walk
Between A&F halt (now he halts) then proceed at the walk.
FXH Free Walk
FXH free walk - no problem here :)
H-C Medium Walk
H pick up reins, Dexter pull them back out. Pick them back up and grind teeth to C.

C Working Trot
C Working Trot - good boy!

Same as work to the left, egg shape, hand gallop and all.

A Down Centerline
Overshoot A  Find Centerline
X Halt Salute
X Halt Salute - no problems, he knows hes done :)

Like I said, it was good to do because it magnified what I've been letting him get away with.  Nothing big but we definitely have some work to do.  And it's honestly a lot better that it was.  I rode a test with him when I first got him and I don't think we finished.  I decided it could wait when we cantered right out of the arena on our 20(40-50) meter circle. 

And my thought is, if he was perfect, he'd be boring. :)

Who Do You Trust?

A few weeks back I let a friend of mine ride Dexter, I realized it was the first time I had let anyone else ride him since I got him 10 months ago.  It wasn't intentional, I just board at a barn with only 3 other riders including the owner and they all ride western so they have no real interest in him.  Anyway, it was the owner of the barn who rode him.  She rides and trains horses for western and trail riding.  Her forte is getting them broke and obedient, she doesn't focus on the finer points of carriage, etc.  Which is probably why she doesn't understand why I'm taking lessons when I can "clearly ride" and my horse is "broke".  Anyway, I respect her as a rider and had no issues with letting her ride him, I've been asking her to for a while.  So we threw a western saddle on him, I made sure he wasn't going to do anything funny with it on, and she hopped on.

 

I was a mess the entire time.... she immediately cranked his head to his chest (something I've been trying to correct for 10 months).  Was running him in circles swearing he was heaving on the bit.  And cantering him around at more of a hand gallop with his head in the air (the only time it wasn't at his chest).  When she was done she began to tell me all the things I should do to fix him, we won't go into how I felt about that right now.  (Everyone has an opinion and I respect that, but wait until I ask for it.  I don't tell you how to get a better roll-back).  Then said how fun he was to ride.

 

As she was riding I tried my best to keep as quiet as possible but couldn't help yelling out bits of advise here and there.  Who am I to tell her what to do, she has been riding a lot longer than I have and has been in the training business most of the time.  But the fact of the matter is our way of riding and training is completely different. 

 

This got me thinking.... how many people do you truly trust with your horse - someone you know will ride exactly the same as you and won't confuse, stress or un-train them.  In my riding career I've ridden and hacked around with a lot of friends.  But how many would I let take Dexter for a month knowing he would come back the same horse? 

 

Four:  Carol - my old trainer, my current trainer, and Holly and Heather, my friends from childhood.  That's it.

 

Obviously my trainers, because if you can't trust them with your horse, you probably shouldn't be working with them.  Then Holly and Heather, longtime friends and amazing riders.  And being good riders isn't what it's about(like I said my friend that rode Dexter is a good rider... but very different).   Holly and Heather and I ride very much alike, with the same aides, balance and philosophy.  They live in FL and I am in CO so they haven't met Dexter yet, but as kids we used to trade horses all the time.  And apart from the horses personalities it was like riding my own.  In college Holly was training and exercising horses.  When she needed help I'd go out and ride a few for her.  She knew I wouldn't undo anything she had been working on.   And most recently, when relocating from TX to CO, I couldn't get my thoroughbred sold before my move.  I shipped him to FL so they could train and sell him.  I had no worries, in fact I was excited.  I hadn't jumped him much and knew they would put some good training on him. 

 

Holly, Heather and I have been friends long before we started riding together (they've been together slightly longer than I have being as they are twins.)  And maybe that's why I trust them so much, or maybe that's why we've stayed so close.  We are friends because we have the same personality and that's also why we ride so similarly. 

 

Watching my friend ride Dexter the other day made me realize how uniquely tuned in each horse is to their rider, and how special it is to have someone who can share that bond with your horse.  This is why as much as I would love the extra money and the extra training for Dexter I could never lease my horse.  And this is probably why there has been so much discussion as of late as to whether or not the amazing horses that competed in the most recent WEG will perform the same with their new partners. 

 

How many people would you trust with your horse?

 

Dexter - You're a Genious.

Or our new trainer is anyways.   I’ve talked about the importance or a good trainer in a previous blog and am glad that I’ve found one out here in Colorado.  I would ride with Carol forever but seeing as she is in Florida, that just doesn’t seem practical.

My new trainer is smart, fun and always super positive, she makes learning so much fun.  I was working with Dexter by myself for a while and was starting to get frustrated as I had exhausted all my horse knowledge and he still avoided the bit.

So we broke down and started taking lessons (I always enjoyed lessons and had planned on doing so anyways).  And in a few short months he is not only not avoiding the bit, he is seeking the contact.  We learn something new every lesson.  I say we because sometimes we are teaching Dexter and sometimes we are teaching me, and its so fun to see that when I move my seat just a little his whole frame changes.  The connection between horse and rider is so amazing.  It sometimes hard to remember that even with the saddle between you two, they can still feel every weight shift, every pause, every breath.  And they are constantly listening and tuned in.

So I say Dexter is a genius because we’ve had so many special moments where everything clicks and you can tell he gets it… “Oh that’s what you want me to do.”  As I smile and pat him and say “Good boy, you did that perfectly!”  But I know my trainer deserves a lot of the credit, we can’t have “Ah-ha” moments without someone telling us how to get there.  And she’s so great in that she doesn’t get discouraged or upset when it takes us a bit longer.  Theres not “asking harder” just “keep asking” and when he gets it, praise him and reward him.  “Dexter you’re a genius… have cookie!”

So with my super intelligent horse and super confident trainer we have taken Dexter from a horse heavy on the forehand, that avoids the bit and drags himself around at the canter, to a horse reaching for the bit, pushing up in the canter, and for a moment last week, has cadence at the trot.  And the most satisfying part is my trainer has let me do all the work.  She has not ridden or lunged Dexter once, just taught and explained to me what I need to do to get it done, so I know what the aides are and I know how it feels.

It feels Great!  This is why I ride, to feel that connection with the animal and work together to achieve a goal.  I love dressage because it focuses on the harmony and the relationship between horse and rider.  There is no making a horse do anything, you can only ask.  And every time Dexter lets me get on and work with him, I thank him.  And when I see how hard he tries and how satisfied he looks when he knows he got it right, I feel so grateful to have such a willing partner.  And when we have those moments where I figure out how to ask and he figures out the answer, those moments are where I’m awestruck at how amazing the horse and rider partnership really is.  To be able to communicate on that level with an animal of such power…. I have no words.