2018 Goals: Going Boldly Forth

"Freedom lies in being bold"- Robert Frost

I do not know why I have been procrastinating on writing this post. It's not that I don't have goals- I do. It's not that I am afraid to write them down in case I don't meet them. I am okay not hitting all my 'goals'.

I think that the biggest struggle has been in identifying what I mean by a 'goal'. Last year it seemed pretty simple- I needed to get off property and expose Carmen to new things. This year we will be doing a lot of the same things but for a different purpose.

Shows: 

So far I am aware of 4 shows this year- two Bronze and two Scotia Series (these are at a provincial level and don't require a licence from Equine Canada). There's also a schooling show but it conflicts with one of the Scotia series. Which is really unfortunate- it's not like we have so many.

I am planning to do the four shows. My goal is to show at First Level. I think that Carmen will be better with more to occupy her. However, it will require us to really work on her lengthens.

I am also going to keep my eye out for other shows that might be fun to try.


Lessons & Clinics:
I am itching to start back with Shanea. But I need my ring to thaw first. I want to have a regular schedule so that I can really tackle my riding goals (below). In addition I want to participate in clinics. I find them a good way to stretch myself.  I am definitely planning to do the Johanna Batista clinic. It will be the long weekend in May.

I've already registered for another of the Ultimate Trail Clinics. This one is much closer to me then the one I went to last year so that should be good. I am so excited to do more of this.

I'd love to do another Jacqueline Brooks clinic if that works out.

Fun stuff:
I want to spend a lot of time hacking out. I hope to  join up with Nancy a few times. I'm also on the look out for more trail options as well. Overall I want to hack out on my property at least 4 times a month.

Fun weekends away- at Karen's or Rachael's or somewhere else. That always assumes that they want me.

It might be a crazy idea but I think it might be fun to introduce Carmen to some low level jumping. We shall see about that.

like this only, you know, taller

Those are the 'things' that I want to do. Obviously riding and training are much more then that. I have some specific goals for riding and behaviour.
Riding Goals:

• I want to further improve my seat so that I can stay both relaxed and effective in the saddle. 
• I want to fix my tendency to want to 'coast' and expect her to carry me. Instead I want to be giving her direction so that she doesn't feel abandoned and then make bad decisions. 
• Let go of the rein. This is a hard one given Carmen's ability to duck behind the contact and then spin/bolt. Keeping a short rein keeps her from getting away from me but it's not a good long-term solution. This requires me to trust and ride forward. 
• Increase awareness of my body and it's impact on how she's going. 

Carmen Goals:

• Go forward of the leg. Not fast- forward, reaching from behind. 
• Keep her attention on me and not on all the things that are obviously waiting to kill her
• Develop her trust in me in new situations so that we can have successful shows/clinics etc. 
• NO MORE SPOOKING BETWEEN E AND C. This is huge for us. 
• Develop her push from behind so that she can collect/lengthen

So that's it. Those are my goals. I know that I will add more and there will be things that frustrate me and moments of real joy.

Come on 2018- we're ready.

Carmen: shouldn't you wait for things to thaw a bit? (PC Cindy M)

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