When Your Horse Knows He Was Awesome...

So, I'm so glad that I decided to take Dargenzio to PHJA because he was GREAT. No lunging required since he was calm & cool, & knew what was going down. Schooling on Friday was great! Dargenzio didn't spook at ANYTHING. He was completely focused on me & what I was asking him to do. Saturday was... okay. Dargenzio was really pulling & on the forehand in warm up, but otherwise, he was being good. He was really making me ride though :p The people who set the course decided they were going to store the extra standards (sideways, at that) in the corner of the arena where it was already scary enough to horses. So, I went in to my first course with intentions of it being our worst. I was wrong, it was our best of our two courses! He was shying at the standards the whole time & didn't want to go to the rail but other than that, he went around the course really well. He rode soft, & we got all of our striding! That is REALLY hard for Dargenzio & I because the course is designed for horses with a normal stride whereas Dargenzio has a freakishly large stride. BUT, we got our 6 strides into the two of the lines(: Our second course was completely the opposite. The first course was great because Dargenzio thought that it wasn't going to be so easy. We go into the second course & he buffs up & is thinking "I'm taking over, sucks for you." That he did. The speed of the whole course just got faster & faster with me continuously saying "WOAH!" We got FOUR strides down the last line... when it was supposed to be a six. Needless to say, 2'3" is obviously too small for the baby boy & he knew it. The next day, we did the jumpers! Warm up was AWESOME. He was riding soft, getting all of our distances & didn't even attempt to take over the ride. We went in the course after watching many people go off course, have refusals, etc. We got around & didn't get to go to jump off because Dargenzio was a little too lazy over one of the verticals. But thats what I wanted. I wanted him to feel relaxed enough so he wasn't overjumping every single jump. I'm proud of my boy & can't wait to get him out more! Already planning on doing a schooling show in June :D

FINALLY Got My Show Pictures!

So, I finalllllllly got my pictures from event rally a few days ago... Right before I leave for another show, of course(; I'm extremely excited for PHJA this weekend considering Dargenzio has been kicking some serious butt in our jumping lessons since we got back from rally. I guess he realized that he was being a complete idiot at rally & decided to prove himself when he got home. He has really started backing himself up before fences & gets that "I can do it!" attitude about four strides out. These are the days that I love with him, but I know that they won't be like this forever so I can just appreciate it for the time being. This horse is REALLY cool when he wants to be & I've been super proud of him lately. So, I hope all goes well at PHJA. After we get back from PHJA, I have a feeling we're going to work on lead changes & I'm ready for them. The commenter on the dressage today at Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event said "Your canter will suck for about six months, during the time you're teaching your horse lead changes." I was thinking to myself, "Oh great, as if I don't already have enough problems with my horse's freakish canter." Oh well, we'll just have to see how it goes. He is also REALLY sitting on his hindend in all of our dressage work & I absolutely love it. Its difficult to ride such an uphill canter, for me, considering Savannah's canter is flat & she never loosens her back to make it comfortable. The excitement just keeps growing for Dargenzio & I, & I hope that we can get out to school cross country a little more so I can take him to another three phase. I was wanting to shoot for the Horse Trial at Poplar, in June, as his first recognized event but I'm not totally positive yet if that would be a good idea. So, we will just have to wait & see(:

Had to buy this photo from PB&J Photography(:

Shows, Impatience & A Need For Speed

I'm impatiently waiting for my professional pictures from Event Rally. They sent me an email saying they were sending them out so *fingers crossed* that they get her soon, since the photographer is only a few hours away, in Florida! Dargenzio & I came home a little bummed from Event Rally after having a pretty bad weekend but today, everything turned up. Our first lesson back (Wednesday) wasn't anything I expected. Dargenzio really felt the need to TEST ME after what happened at the show. He learned very quickly that he doesn't dare test me. He was charging at jumps like a freight train & when I'd ask for a simple canter, he'd lunge into a gallop. Needless to say, we fixed that problem today since that would just cause problems for us, later on in life. My lesson was great, & rainy. I'd ask for a simple canter, I got a simple canter. Jumping came along & he was definitely not charging at the jumps... More like falling over them. I swear this horse changes every single day. We only jumped three different jumps, but did them NUMEROUS times. He is really learning where his feet are over jumps & is really rocking back on his hindend over fences... which feels AWESOME. Today was the first day that he was consistent with rocking back on his hindend & I loved it. Hopefully, he'll be awesome in our next lesson so we can go to PHJA next weekend. I didn't really want to throw another show on him so quickly but I think he'll be fine since we won't be showing during May. Days like today are the days that I really wish my horse was older so we could jump higher but as of right now, I'm more than content with 2'6". So, my show pictures better get here ASAP because I'm not a patient person.

Take One Step At A Time

Rally did not go as planned. Our dressage test was great but Dargenzio wasn't stretching as much as the judge would've liked, which left us with a 35. Show jumping warmup was great & Dargenzio jumped everything perfectly. We went into the arena & all of a sudden, all of these jumps were absolutely terrifying. I fell off at jump 8 :/ The TD let us run cross country the next day. We only made it to jump 3 before retiring. The course was muddy & nasty from the torrential down pour we were having. Either way, I'm happy with Dargenzio but we have a lot to work on. I know he is going to be a wonderful horse one day so there is no rush!

Here We Go...

So, I'm writing this as we're passing through Dothan, headed to Poplar... I have a really good feeling about this weekend & what it has to hold for Dargenzio & I. Other than forgetting buckets & my paddock boots, we're off to a good start. We're hoping to make it there by noon so I can school him & get Savannah settled in. That's her new job, the horse that goes to every show just because... Long car rides are not my forte so I guess I'll just write about our awesome cross country school on Tuesday. Dargenzio has become VERY brave with jumping & he went up to every jump like a pro. He hopped over the Novice ditch the first time, without hesitation, & he even went over the Beginner Novice houses like he's been doing it all of his life. We also conquered the water complexes, banks, & other various jumps. So, I hope everything goes well this weekend so we can get out to more shows!

Flying Changes, Liverpools & Distances!

Dargenzio & I had a fantastic lesson today. Yesterday, he was wild & I was half halting every like two seconds. Today, he was lazy & behind the leg. He changes day by day :p Anyway, I think this was our best lesson yet! We kept it rather simple & started with a simple cross rail, which he almost fell over. & then we did some pole work, which helped me (& Dargenzio) a ton on finding the perfect distance. I've never been very good at feeling my distances but today, they were just coming to me & he was listening the whole time. We also attempted some flying changes in the beginning of our lesson, but we didn't completely succeed. He changed the front but not the back, but we'll get it eventually. Changes are also one of my weak points since Savannah didn't do them. & since he was being so awesome, we decided to pop over the liverpool. Oh I tell you, that thing is the scariest jump in the world. He went over it though, a little over exaggerated the first two times & then it was just whatever. I'm very proud of my boy & cannot wait for event rally next weekend, with these two awesome lessons behind us! We have our week planned out already; Monday - Dressage lesson, Tuesday - XC school at Poplar, Wednesday - Off, Thursday - Dressage at home, & Friday - School dressage at the show! I'm a bit bummed about our dressage test because we are running Tadpole since this is only his second show & first three phase. Our dressage test has no cantering in it, so Dargenzio doesn't get to show the judges his gorgeous canter :/ Oh well, I know he's going to be great anyway!

Its All Going By WAY Too Fast!

AHHHHHHH. I'm going to have a freakout. Its 9 days before we go to Eventing Rally, 6 days before we go cross country schooling & Dargenzio came inside last night with a loose shoe! REALLY? So, we had to cancel our lesson for yesterday & today because he is not rideable with a loose shoe. UGH. Anyway, my awesome farrier will be stopping by first thing tomorrow morning to fix it because he is just the best farrier anyone could ever ask for... & he bends over backwards to fix all of the pulled, lose, shoes & overgrown hooves that we have encountered over the last year. Did I mention how awesome he is? Anyway, my solution for a loose shoe was simple... Vet wrap & duct tape, like you'd do for an abscess(; Thanks to Savannah for puncturing her knee (-__-), I have about 20 rolls of Vet wrap left over so I was able to wrap his hoof last night & this morning. & oh yeah, he's totally styling in that pink zebra duct tape & yellow Vet wrap. I am so NOT ready for rally next weekend... Not riding wise, totally ready for that. But I'm not ready for the (picky, even though they're awesome) Horse Management judges to nit pick at all of my stuff, including my horse. Nothing is labeled, yet I had everything labeled a month before, last year! My horse is going to need to have his ears clipped, along with his muzzle, & legs. And he'll need about three bathes before being clean enough for inspections(; He also has yet to learn how to jog... (Please don't run me over Dargenzio). My next 9 days are going to be very very very hectic! BUUUUT on a good note, I have been in the process of finishing Dargenzio's browband for cross country & might I say, its pretty awesome. If it will stop raining sometime today, I'm going to go fit it to Dargenzio before securing the ends. Here is a sneak peak(; PS, I do take custom orders so if you want to order a lovely browband from me, check us out on FaceBook at www.facebook.com/equinebeadart or email me at equinebeadart@yahoo.com

 

Oh, & I thought this was super funny & its totally Dargenzio in every way...