"I don't want pretty... "

Sorry for the long delay in updating yall (back in SC, I must use the proper language). Did I mention that moving back to school doesn’t get any easier? So the month of August was a basic whirl wind of activity with a lot of great things happening so I’ll do I quick recap. Just before school started, I heading down to Ocala, Florida and spent a week taking lessons with Jon and Jen Holling. I have ridden with Jon and used him as a coach at many events since meeting him through YR’s back in 2006. This week was especially helpful in gauging where the holes are that need to be filled in before the fall threeday. It was a fun filled week and on a side note I almost died getting struck by lightening, but I’ll try and leave the humorous situation aside. Lesson learned = children either leave your ponies inside if there is a thunderstorm or invest in a waterproof jacket! On another very exciting note, I was given the opportunity to ride a horse named Bijou Noir, owned by Cindy Burke in IA. Cindy graciously gave me the ride after a student of hers had an unfortunate riding accident. Bijou has competed through the preliminary level and is more then talented to take any ambitious rider through the levels. I am really excited to have the opportunity to ride her.

After the week at the Hollings, I finally then arrived back at school and got both ponies settled in at the Gibbes Farm. The next weekend, I took both ponies to a jumper show and both were super!. Murphy jumped multiple clean rounds and won the 3’6” class and 4' class, and Bijou was third in both 3’6” classes. The following weekend, I traveled to Southern Pines, North Carolina, for Five Points Horse Trials. I was really expecting to have a great weekend, but it turned into more of a okay weekend with some lessons learned. I guess the great thing about horses and eventing is that it is a constant learning experience. My horses were both good in the dressage with Murphy on a 38, and Bijou on a 35. There is still always room for improvement, but I was overall pretty happy. Murphy was unusually spooking on xc causing a run out at a skinny that he jumped cleanly back in March, so I was a little frustrating. I also made a poor decision on my part coming out of the water and not being organized to a corner after jumping the one stride out. Live and learn. I guess I would rather make the mistakes now and be able to jump successfully around the CCI** this fall. Anyway the horses jumped very well on Sunday and I am excited that my hard work in the showjumping this summer is paying off.

Jon and I had an interesting conversation when I was in FL about micro managing my life… interesting. He said I do it with my riding so he figured I do it with my personal life as well, hahah so I would love to hear comments on this from all my non barn friends. Today I discovered that I tend to be a bit  of a perfectionist so I tend to panic  when things don’t work out as planned which is what happened at Five Points and a couple of the other competitions this year. So I decided I need to go back to some exercises that make me ride no matter happens. 


Today I had a great jump school on “spotty” and worked on two corners on a bending line and then on an angle. He was great and I feel I need to stop worrying about making it pretty and just get it done… J So the horses are in full work gearing up for Poplar Place next weekend and I am busy with a full course load, gamecock football (yes we are ranked number 13th after our win against UGA, GO COCKS!) and lots of students to teach and ponies to ride… humm life is good! So kick on and don’t make it pretty!