Bravo goes to summer camp
by Robyn
So excuse me for being just a little bit OCD (Stop laughing. Yes, I mean you.) Please temporarily ignore my post about not sweating the changes, and my post about not comparing/despairing because in the last couple of weeks there has been a lot of introspection (ie, ahem, sweating, comparing, and almost despairing).
I’ve accomplished a lot on this horse on my own*. I am quite proud of this fact, but I’m also not deluded that I, the consumate amateur dressage rider, can turn my experience on one Third level horse into the ability to train a horse to Third level without significant help.
We (and when I say “we”, I mean “I”) need help with the changes. Early on, just a few short months ago, the changes were all over the place–there was bucking, there was bolting, there was 3 strides late behind, there was late to the aid, there was justatouch late behind, there was clean, and it all happened in about equal parts. And that was just fine. Unfortunately that has morphed into only three choices–quiet and justatouch late behind, bucking through late behind, and bucking through clean, with the first option increasing in propensity.
Occasional ugliness notwithstanding, Bravo does try to figure out what I want, and then try to please me by doing it. I’m afraid, however, that if I continue down the current path, that it means he will *think* I would like him to change quiet and justatouch late behind and then it will need to be untrained. After some serious discussion with myself (and some advice from Anne) I decided that it might be better to punt and send him where that foundation can be re-laid correctly.
According to Einstein, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. I may be OCD, but I am decidedly not insane. (Stop laughing. Yes, I mean you.) So Bravo is going to spend some time in beautiful Burlington, North Carolina with accomplished trainer and friend–not to mention all-around amusing, entertaining, and possessing really good hair–Patrick Marley. I’ve got no more shows on the horizon until November (which would be Second level anyway), so it seemed like a good time to try to fix some holes, get some good training on my horse, and some more training on me to push us up to the next rung on the dressage ladder.
After all, who doesn’t love summer camp?
*Of course I’m not riding in a vacuum–I get almost monthly lessons and help from my trainer Anne Aloi. However, we’re not in any sort of consistent or full time training situation. With Anne’s help we’ve come a long way, but the downside is she isn’t around locally to help me! If only I could clone her…
