Good Vibrations

 Travelling to Quebec and seeing all those lovely horses and riders was inspirational to me and I was excited to get back to riding.  But I also needed to catch up on chores, which included   ordering in my winter hay.  The big 4 string squares can't really be moved by hand. We wrestle them on to the tractor and then put them in place. Every time Ed went by Quaid tried to grab a bite. When he missed he'd give me his sad eyes. Finally Ed stopped so he could taste. 

Quaid: just a nibble

I was able to just jump back into riding and both horses were feeling the fall weather. With Carmen that makes her spicy and jumpy. Quaid is more reactive too but not as committed. With him I've been focussing on adding confidence and riding forward.  It feels like things are improving. 

pretty falling leaves, brisk winds and cool air. 
What could go wrong? 

With Carmen she can get pretty heavy in the hand when she's feeling contrary. It can lead to a tug of war that I definitely don't want.  It's so easy to fall into the trap of taking my legs off and bracing with my hands.  So I was glad to have a lesson yesterday with Jane. It was Carmen's turn anyway but I probably would have chosen her anyway. 

As an aside, I can recognise how lucky I am to have two horses to ride while I worry that I'm not advancing them as fast because I can't afford two lessons a week. Such a first world problem. 

It was a cold and blustery day. Jane has been taking lessons from Janine Little and we are all benefiting from that. Jane started us walking and having me work on keeping the bit moving in her mouth and not locking my hands and giving her something to lean on. I always worry about moving the bit because I think I'm going to end up see-sawing on her mouth. But Jane explained that it's more like a vibration and keeps her from locking on the hand and keeping her neck tight and stiff. 

Sharing this photo because Cordelia LOVES 
Dottie. Dottie is less enamoured, lol

What was neat about doing this that it kept her attention on me and not all the stuff blowing around.  I love having a pivo but it struggled to keep us in the frame. I don't know if the wind was a factor or if it was trying to follow a rider dressed in gray riding a gray horse on a gray day.... 

lots of shots like this or with no horse lol

After we walked Jane had us move right into canter. First off, her canter is so much more balanced now. We then moved into working on counter canter. Carmen broke and switched her lead so Jane had us practice picking up the counter canter on a circle. It was really hard and I struggled to line up my aids. Carmen was adorable, she knew I was asking for the wrong lead so she just fixed it. So that will be homework.  Of course I was to this while keeping the bit mobile and asking her to half-halt and not hold. And also not over-aid. As I said to Jane, my default is always to hold. So this was really good for me to focus on it. 

counter canter- looks a bit wild but it really wasn't 

I also can fall into the trap of trying to ride well by being too strong. It's been a real lesson for me this year (or really all years lol) is that trying harder means riding softer. But honestly it really works.  

We did trot work at the end. I really liked doing the ride this way. Her trot was so loose and soft and just so flexible.  No leaning on the bit or plowing on her shoulders. 

having so much fun

whee, moving towards suspension

It was a great lesson and exactly what we needed. Keeping the bit mobile made a huge difference in our half-halts. They were more effective and lighter.  Jane says that our flying changes are getting closer which is exciting.  I'm really happy with how my riding has progressed this year.  

Canadian Eastern Dressage Championships

 I just got back from going to the championships in Quebec and OMG it was so much fun. I knew I would enjoy myself because 'all the pretty horses' but even I was surprised by how much fun it actually was.  We left early Monday (5 a.m.) and drove for 12 hours to the venue.  Jane was showing her horse and she bought M (a junior competitor) and Ilka (her mom). This gave us 3 drivers to share the load which was great. Jane was showing in the gold show and M qualified for the championship (first level). The trailer was packed tight and so was the truck. The boys traveled really well. 

we'd stop to let them drop their heads and have some water. Darius (paint) and Juno (hannovarian).

We were the first ones to arrive.  The facility entrance was at the end of a road in a subdivision and it really felt like it was wrong. But it turned out to be the entrance. 

entrance is top left. The show rings being used were the Enertec, Simons and Equico

Complexe Equestre de Bécancour has 2 indoor rings, 3 outdoor rings, 3 barns plus space for temporary barns, a cafe and campground. It was really well laid out and lovely. The footing for the outdoor rings (never saw the indoor ones) was a fibre sand mix. 

two rings in the big ring

our barn

We rented a RV and boy was that a learning curve. It turns out that they rent these but give zero instructions. We had a few incidents that we had to call for help a few times. The last day I figured out how to empty the gray water tank because no one answered my calls and the water was backing up. (sorry not sorry). 

so many laughs happened in this trailer

When we arrived the hose was leaking where it joined and making a mess. The horse's needed to be dealt with so I took over and called for help. "Hello this is Jane F calling....".  Since it was rented in her name and it made sense. By the end of the week we were joking that I was Jane.  Once we got the water sorted M said 'thank god we brought Teresa!' and I said jokingly 'That is not the last time you will say that!'  Which became a running joke over the week. Final count was 26 in case you were wondering. lol. 

You would think that we'd have been crowded in the camper but we really weren't. It helped that by end of day we were all exhausted.  After eating and laughing over the day's happenings. Lots of silly things happened in that trailer. Including a spontaneous cabaret show by Jane and I to the tune of 'Patricia the Stripper'.  We laughed so hard. In case you're curious: 

sangria at end of day overlooking the rings

I was expecting to see lots of lovely horses and was not disappointed. I met a lot of lovely people as well. When I was walking between the barns I spied a gorgeous Andalusian stallion. I stopped and chatted with his handler but I never got his name or rider. oops. Later I learned he was Esparticus and being ridden by Tina Irwin. So I made sure to find his ride times and watch. He did not disappoint. I was sitting in the shade watching the ride on Saturday and an older gentleman was sitting beside me. We started chatting and I shared that I loved this horse. We talked about Andalusians and how great they are. Tina had a great ride and when she left the ring he said to her 'did you earn a margarita?' I looked at him and he said 'she gets a margarita when she wins'. 

What if she loses? 

She gets two!

Makes sense to me. I laughed. 

I then realised something, Are you the owner? I asked. He smiled and said yes.  Thank god I really liked him. Turns out that he is in his 80's and he hacks this horse out on a regular basis. 

I mean LOOK AT HIM

It was fun to be a groom and general helper. Jane did really well and I'm glad I was there to harass help her in getting ready. I called myself the 'Jane Wrangler'.  People would stop to talk to her and, because she's really nice, she'd talk to them even when she had to get ready. I was also nice but mostly I was very clear she had to go- I put on her jacket, tacked up the horse, got the mounting block ready and walked Juno out to get ready. Hopefully she appreciated it, lol. I also was dragging her past people so we could go see M win the 'best dressed for the jog' prize. We all helped her to dress up in the Nova Scotian Tartan. 

late? Not on my watch! 

I loved watching M and Jane ride. They did so well. M didn't place as well as I thought she should on the first day but did really well on the second day and won the silver medal. We were all so proud. 

Loved the Photo Booth

the stalls had a NS theme as well. Note the Sou'westers!

I think there were like 130 horses there of every type (although a lot of warmbloods as you would expect) and riders too. There were a number of para riders and one was right across from my stall, Natasha James. She is on the national team and was a lovely woman.  I really enjoyed getting to know her. 

As expected, there were vendors there. I bought a saddle pad bag and had it embroidered at another booth for $15. I found showing two horses meant I had to lug like 6 saddle pads. I think that this will be a great help: 

I also bought a pair of Cowgirl Up Green breeches. I've ridden in them three times since getting home and I love them. They have the perfect amount of stretch, support and grip. It also helps that I had to buy a size small. After years of buying large or XL there's no way I wasn't buying a size small! 

Jane's dog, Dottie was our travel companion. She's such a good horse show dog. Even when she's annoyed at me for disturbing her naps or not letting her run after Jane. 

watching Jane warm up 

Having a kitchen really helped a lot. We ate out once for supper and I bought lunch once (poutine because we're in Quebec and you have to).  The last night we were going to eat out but the cafe was closed and there weren't any restaurants open in town. So we went to the grocery store and bought some frozen Chinese and reheated leftovers and made some of the pancake batter. 

perfect last night at the show food

As I said the people were very friendly. No one was like 'I have a fancy horse and am a top level rider'. Everyone was just riding and loving their horses. I made sure to watch some Second level classes and Carmen and I  would have totally been competitive. Well, as long as we could deal with the multiple judges booths and all the activity..... But even thinking that I was not feeling any envy or FOMO. I truly enjoyed all the show. 

We arrived late Monday and left before dawn the next Monday. The time had really flown. The drive home was uneventful (yay) and I got to my house by 8:30 that night.  It was a wonderful experience. I know that this is the first time that Equestrian Canada has held dressage championships in many years. I hope that they continue to do so.  

Placeholder

 Yes I'm still alive. As are the horses. Last weekend I took both to a clinic up at Krista's. I have been wanting to write about it but I've been so busy and my brain has been busy with my takeaways. 

Long story short, Carmen was brilliant. She showed up and worked her butt off.  We had some real breakthroughs with her pushing off her hind leg. 

Since we've been home she's been having a fierce heat and has been a bit fiery. She actually managed to surprise me with a spin/bolt and it's been a long time since that has happened. What was neat was that as she got away I was completely off balance. Instead of scrambling for purchase I stood in the stirrups until I got my balance back and then sat down and turned her into a circle that I rode until her desire to gallop/canter was done. Then we cantered a little more. Then we returned to what the original ask was. 

Quaid did much better at the clinic in the past. We still can't get a reliable canter off site but our trot work was really good and I felt my confidence go forward. 

He did a few dekes but I stayed on and we carried on. I'll probably have more to say on it later. 

But the big news is that next week I'm heading up to the Eastern Dressage Championships. Not as a competitor but as a helper. I'm travelling with Jane and one her students. It will be at Becancour Quebec. It's a lovely facility (based on the website) and we've rented an RV on site. We leave early Monday and will be there for the week. 

I'm really looking forward to the break and seeing some lovely horses/riders. It will be all the fun of showing with none of the stress of showing.  

New Number, Who Dis?

 I had a lesson booked with Quaid right after the saddle fit appointment. I was curious to see if if made a difference but also I was just happy to moving things ahead with him. It was booked for mid afternoon and it was a lovely day. 

I'm not going to lie, it was a hard lesson. I worked my tail off. After it was done I thought it was awful.  Or, more accurately, that I was awful. Then, when I watched the video I realised that the first half was really good, the middle really hard and the end good again. Which is why video is so useful because it's easy to believe something was terrible because it felt hard. 

He usually halts square. 

Jane started with getting me to ask him to step under but not take bigger strides in front. Or go faster. The idea is to have him step under and into a receiving hand. I could feel it working but it was hard. And he found it hard. I'm pretty sure Quaid was thinking 'but WHY can't I just fling my front legs or go faster. You are sooooo picky'. 

Jane has also identified that Quaid is not so keen to step into the right rein. He wants to drop his shoulder and fall in. I'm pretty sure that this is my fault. I'm left handed and it tends to over power the right.  

But I need to not just hold the right rein, and I need to half-halt. But it was going well. Like I could feel things coming together. Then Jane asked us to canter, starting with the right lead. While keeping a flexion to the right.  With this the hamster totally fell off the wheel and things fell right apart. 

He would canter a couple strides, switch behind, get pissed off and start balking on the front legs.  I was to sit up and keep him going and not pull him to stop. Jane is pretty sure that because I always used to back off then that he thinks this is what gets him to rest.  So even if we didn't canter I was to keep him trotting. So then this happened: 

this is short clip of a much longer sequence. He's thrown his hips at the fence before. This time he managed to break it and then freak himself out. Jane was great, she just spoke in a soothing voice as she put the board back up and gave us time to get our breath back. 

But after that  he had a vendetta against the fence. It was like he was Inigo Montoya and it killed his father. 

yay for being able to include a Princess Bride reference

We would trot a little, then ask for the canter. Even when I asked everything correctly it was a total shit show. 

Quaid: "I hate the world"

 I especially hate this fence! 

Finally I started riding him in off the rail so he couldn't kick at it. It's really hard to ride with a soft seat, sitting up and a quiet hand when your horse is flinging themselves around.  After we got a little canter we went back to the trot and walk and just worked on getting bend and breathing (for me anyway). 

not hating the world so much

I was exhausted.  I realised that Quaid had my number and when Jane wouldn't let the evasions work he ramped up. Jane also said that he needs to understand the right rein/flexion.  So my homework was to keep working on it. 

Since he had my number I needed to change it. I gave myself a talking to. Along the lines that I know how to ride and I can work through this. I do not have to be intimidated by 5 year old tantrums. 

I gave him a day off on Saturday (I actually tested for my Orange belt in karate and passed. It was fun). On Sunday I lunged him in side reins so that he could have contact. There were a few bobbles but he settled in to WTC with them on. Horses definitely know when they are pulling on themselves vs a rider. 

On Monday I worked a lot on him keeping the flexion through walkt-trot-walk transitions on both sides. We did lots of figures (serpentines, bending lines, 10 metre circles), leg yields etc. with the focus on forward. When I felt things were good with the bend and flexion I then cantered him on the left rein. It was easy. We did the whole ring doing circles, going straight, another circle.  Brought him back, changed reins and asked for a right lead. He picked up the lead, gave a huge buck and switched leads. I kept him going down the long side and brought him back to trot before the corner. We regrouped and I asked again.  He picked it right up and we did a circle. He tried to pull the right rein out of my hand and threw a mini tantrum when he couldn't. I kept the rein, asked for him to trot forward (and away from the fence), picked up the canter again and circled again. It was a bit wild and wooly but we did it. I left the canter and worked on other things. 

On Tuesday it was very similar. Left canter was easy. the first time we picked up the right he gave a little buck, cantered a few strides, dropped to trot and got emotional. I just regrouped with him, asked again and we had 3-4 lovely canter circles. Again, I left it after that and we worked on other things. 

Today we repeated the work again. This time when I asked him for right lead I made sure I asked really softly out of a forward trot. He rolled right into it and cantered a few circles. This time I stopped and dismounted. I was so proud of both of us. 

Tomorrow we head off property for a clinic (riding friday and Sunday). I'm going to (to quote Jane) ride the horse I have and see where we are. I get that he gets unnerved away from home. I'm going to do my best to be the calm in the eye of the storm. That is my goal. If we canter that would be great but I'm okay if we don't. 

Cordelia: forget the horses. Just stay and snuggle with me

One Thing at a Time

 With the show done and dusted it was time to get back to work. I have been focussed on riding Quaid forward from the beginning. It's been interesting because I realise how much I was letting him mosey and then slow down when he was worried. The problem with that is it gives him time to think and do things that I don't like (like spin or balk).  Riding him forward and in a steady rhythm makes that far less likely to happen. If I want forward away from home then I need forward firmly established at home. 

I've been paying attention to keeping my elbows from bouncing and a soft seat. A couple rides he's been really spooky about a certain spot in the ring. The bending and riding him forward is working a treat. It's helping my confidence too because every time we work through it successfully I feel more like I know what I'm doing. 

In fairness to Quaid, in one ride he was acting up about a corner and then when I rode him through a neighbourhood cat leapt up hissing! 

I could feel his soul leave his body. 

Cat: hissssss! how dare you interrupt my hunt! I will end you! 

Quaid: AARGHHHH! *leaps sideways*

Me: WTF?! 

Quaid: I TOLD YOU there was a predator there. 

Me: it was just a harmless house cat. 

Quaid: harmless? HARMLESS?! It was a cougar. My mom warned me about those out in the prairie. 

Me:there are no cougars here on the east coast (immediately a number of FB users chime in with the story of their brother's cousin's friend's run in with one in 2020)

Me: anyway..... that was just a 10 pound cat. 

Cordelia snoozing outside the ring noticing nothing: zzzzzzzzz 

Honestly, the whole thing reminded me of the incident years ago with Irish. 

I feel like I'm digressing off of the main topic here. Sorry. 

One of the things on my list when I got home was to have his saddle checked. Now I know it's not the sole answer but I felt like it might be contributing. The fitter came out today and he's definitely changed his shape. She had to swap out the gullet for a larger one and adjust the stuffing. As soon as I sat in the saddle I could feel the change. I didn't feel like I was fighting for my position. I did a little ride to make sure it was fine and then got off.  

I'm glad that I removed any discomfort that he might have been feeling. That leaves it open to tackle the training part. Tomorrow I have a lesson and we'll see if it makes any difference. Even if it doesn't, it still needed to be done. We may have 99 problems but saddle fit ain't one (anymore). 

He sure is filling out nice

Show Take Aways

Square halt! 

Now that I've done the recap of the shows for both horses I wanted to share my learnings from the weekend.  One of the reasons that I enjoy showing is that it helps me to figure out what is solid and what is not. I don't know that I would know that Quaid has trouble traveling and working in new places if I hadn't showed him. 

I thought it would be good to start by looking at the goals I set for the show: 

Carmen: 

halt at C, right before our rein back. Look at those 
relaxed and listening ears

• keep her stepping under and into a recieving hand- not so much on day one but definitely on day 2. 
• straightness and rhythm- Usually I struggle for her to not throw her haunches in on the long side, especially at the canter. I made sure I rode her straight and, other than a few bobbles (that I corrected). And, while she might have been a bit behind the leg on Saturday, her rhythm stayed pretty steady. 
• warm up to get her supple and on the aids- thank you Jane! We had some of our best warm ups. I felt her with me from beginning to end and, other than the spooking at P on Sunday she still stayed with me. What was nice was that even with the spooking we just got back on track. 

there was a time when she would not go by that window without losing it.
 I've had previous blog posts at how this window resulted in her being
'that' horse in the warm up

Carmen has become a great horse to take places and do the thing. More than one person told me how they loved my 'sweet mare'. To which I smiled and said isn't she lovely? The comments from the judge were about her being willing and how we were a lovely pair (except for the spooking lol). 

Quaid: 

riding forward on a circle

• ride him forward- still a work in progress. I can do it with Jane 'riding' me (lol) but on my own when I feel him tense up I stop pushing him in the hopes that it will prevent a blow up. I clearly need far more on this. That said, I did ride him forward in the warm ups and, in my last test, I pushed him and didn't let him decide where we were going. On our last test on Sunday he did not want to turn up the centre line (away from the ingate) I sat up and kicked him forward. I also did not settle for him halting before X but pushed him up because at this point it was not about the test, it was about the schooling. 
• be proactive and give him clear direction - I think I did better this time but there's still a lot of room for improvement. 
• use the warm up to get him focused and relaxed- I did but I also chickened out about cantering so I need to sort that. 
• make sure I have him in the outside rein- definitely better. Maybe too much (especially with my left rein). But I definitely had it in my brain and it helped with us being more accurate in our test geometry. 
• if things go wrong, regroup and carry on- I'm happy with how I did this with both horses but especially Quaid. Things would go bad but I was able to regroup and keep going.  You can't always control what the horse does but you can control your reactions.  

Me: 

• stay out of my head and remember that I actually do know how to ride. Repeat my mantras. I had momentary lapses of confidence. Especially with Quaid but I'm happy with how I did with this. I am a classic overthinker and can get lost in my head. I managed to not do this (at least while mounted, lol).  In the warm up with Quaid on Friday I was so close to getting off but thanks to Jane I rode through. She told me that she would not have asked me to stay on if she thought I couldn't do it. I knew if I could get you to listen and follow me you would be fine. And you were. 
• sit up and keep my seat in the saddle. - Yay me. I did not curl up and ride defensively. When I watch my videos I sat up for the majority of the time. And when I did lean forward I fixed it. 
• keep the outside rein, for the love of god. - yup. Although I still can do more, especially with Carmen to get her truly through. 
• Breathe during the tests- Yes! I did. I made sure that breathed out as we were going around which helped keep me oxygenated. 
• have fun - I for sure had fun. The group at these shows are a great bunch of people. This year the organisers held a pizza reception on Saturday and it was lovely to sit and chat with everyone. I always get to spend time with Paula too which is fun. 

Other thoughts: 

One win for this show with Quaid was that I was able to get  half-decent trot work with him.  Which was a real struggle in June. I am questioning if the saddle fit is playing a role. I know that there is a definite training component but I wonder if the saddle is behind some of the recent canter issues. Either way, I've arranged for the fitter to come out next week so I can at least rule it out.  He was fitted in may but he has definitely changed in shape over the past few months. 

when did he get so chonky?

back in April

Assuming that the saddle is adjusted (or fine), there is still a training issue I need to figure out. It will require me to travel any more and also put on my big girl panties and ride him through his issues. Given that Carmen was way more scary this should be doable. I think that because he was so easy going at home I didn't realise that he didn't understand that him following direction was a non-negotiable. He was good because he was good. Not that he understood that he had to be good. 

Bottom line is that it is just miles and experience and, if I handle it properly, he'll figure it out. There was a lot he was really good about this show: 

• Carmen leaving. He would call but there wasn't too much kicking
• he ate his grain and hay and drank his water
• when I'd take him out to graze he was relaxed and happy. 
• he loaded and unloaded easily

please insert cookie

Like I said above, Carmen has become a great traveller. She chills in her stall and is pretty relaxed when being ridden. Now I need to ask for more. It's not enough that she go and be relaxed. Now we need to show what she's capable of. I really enjoy riding her these days and never worry about being lawn darted. I mean, she's Carmen so it's not like she doesn't challenge me but she's safe and fun.  Which is cool when I used to think that it was a good ride if she only bolted a few times. 

I can't believe it's September already! The timing of the show is great for gearing up my goals for the fall. And it's without the pressure of being 'ready' for a show so that helps a lot.  I'm really hoping that the drought ends soon so we can look at hacking out more. 

Riding Forward to Redemption Part 2: Carmen's Show Report

 Carmen would like you all to know that she also was at the show and that the little twerp does not get to hog all the attention.  (Sorry Quaid, Carmen made me type that). 

Carnen and I showed second level and, while it seems like we have been at this level forever, we at least were showing tests 2 & 3 (instead of 1 & 2). That is because we were finally able to do a counter canter serpentine. I was looking forward to riding the new test and having fun with her. 

Our ride on Friday was really good and I was quite happy with how relaxed and focussed she was in the ring. There were zero spooks at any flowers, banners or invisible gremlins. 

Our rides on Saturday were at 3:00 and 3:30. I was a bit tired by the afternoon and I did not want any emotions from my morning ride on Quaid to interfere. 

square halt. 

When I rode both tests I thought they were really good. And honestly they weren't bad but I was a bit disappointed in my scores. Fortunately, a friend videoed both rides and in looking at them I could see that the judging was actually quite fair. Because to be honest, Carmen was definitely behind the leg. I had mistaken quiet for good. And it's not like they were horrible. They were not. And 3 years ago I would have been thrilled. But they lack oomph. Carmen was giving me exactly what I asked for. 

Test 2-2: Our score was 62.05. Our travers and turn on the haunches were our weak points for sure. As were our medium trots and canters. But our canters were straight instead of her haunches to the inside and our simple changes received 6.5s and 7s. Our counter canters netted us a 6.5 and 7 as well. They felt nice and controlled and not wild. Carmen listened to my half-halts. The final comments were: "lovely pair. Would like to see more thoroughness and  engagement to support balance. 

Of course I didn't know any of this before I rode my next test so I rode it much the same.  And, while there wasn't really time to dismount and check my test before I had to ride my next one I find it a double edged sword. In the past it's caused me to ride harder but not better. So my preference is to ride and then, when I have time to digest the tests, look at them.  Anyway, our score for the first time riding 2-3 was 60.95 which was not terrible. It was a mix of 6/6.5 and 7s with 4s for the turn on the haunches and our travers left. Again, when I was done the ride I was really happy by how it went. We rode the counter canter serpentine without breaking or flying around and our free walk actually got a 7. The judge's comment "willing horse. Would like to see more engagement and balance throughout. 

Overall, it was a good day for Carmen even with the lacklustre scores. There was zero drama and she gave me exactly what I asked for. How could I complain? 

I did talk to Jane about it and she definitely had a plan for us on Sunday. In our warm up she was riding me hard to half-halt and ride her hind end under. I was not allowed to hold and I needed to keep my seat soft. And, by god, I was to ride her forward into a receiving hand. She helped me to understand the angle needed for haunches in (spoiler alert, it was way more than I thought). It was great. 

And it showed in our test. There was a lot more energy and 'throughness'.  Our scores were better this time and my final score would have been a lot higher but Carmen suddenly decided that P was suspicious and so she started reacting to it. Sigh. It is the price I pay with the increased energy, she becomes more reactive. What is good is how we regroup and carry on as opposed to melting down completely. Our ToH netted us a 6 and 7 as opposed to 5 & 6. Our canter lengthen going by P was modest because she didn't want to go and then gave a spook, resulting in a 4. Our final score of 62.82 did not change much compared to Saturday but it was definitely better in parts and more forward. The judge's comment was " well matched pair. Some tension and spooking today. Would like to see more relaxation". Me too. 

So there was one more test to go and then I could relax start to pack up to go home. This test was the best of the 4 (with one notable exception that I'll explain). I came in with the goal of riding forward and staying balanced. And we did. Our SI/HIs were all 7's. Our ToH got a  6.5 and 7, again way better than a 4! While our trot lengthens had the usual 6 and 'cover more ground' comment one of my canter lengthens got an honest to god 7 with the comment 'Bold!'. And it was I sat up, had the outside rein and said 'LET'S GO!'. And our transition back to a collected canter also go a 7. The other canter lengthen went from a 6 to 4 because of the spooking. And our counter canter serpentine was problematic because of Carmen's thoughts about P. In the first one she did a lovely flying change. Alas, it was not correct. In the second she broke twice. But what was good was that I simply regrouped, fixed the canter and carried on. I didn't lose my marbles over it. 

Our final score was 63. 81 so 3 percentage points higher than Saturday. With the comment "fairly consistent trot tour. would like to see more balance in canter." 

I was happy with Sunday and was pleased when I collected my score sheets to see improvements in the moves. The spooking is something that Carmen and I continue to work on. It is so much better but when she gets amped she gets more reactive so that is something we will work on. What I love is how willing she is and how safe she feels (yes even with the spooks). She understands her job and while she sometimes wants to negotiate some of her job description she does her best. What is cool is that she knows as well that she's been magnificent and seems to be quite proud of herself.