Twinkle Toes and Bareback Riding.....

We went out with a friend last weekend to Blue Barn Equestrian Centre to do a bit of Dressage. Although it was a British Dressage competition there were also unaffiliated sections being held so it was a good chance to get marked by an affiliated judge and I was interested to see what they thought of Roxie. We did two Elementary tests, 45 and 59. There was plenty to do in both tests which helped keep Roxie occupied although she did get a bit tense during her tests which caused us to loose a few marks in certain movements, although I can't blame her too much as every time she has gone in the main indoor arena at Blue Barn over the last two winters she has jumped so I think she may have been a little disappointed that there weren't any jumps in there!

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Despite the tense moments in each test and Roxie deciding that she didn’t need to walk, why bother walking when you can jog?! We was given respectful scores to finish 2nd in the Elementary 45 and in 1st place in the Elementary 59. The last two times we have been out we have done something different, showing at the RoR South East Championship Show earlier this month and dressage last weekend. I have very much enjoyed the showing and dressage and am definitely interested in doing a bit more RoR showing with Roxie next year, she loved it! Please Click Here to view pictures as well as videos of both our tests!

With Diaz gone things are a tad quieter on the yard now and it is allowing me to concentrate on bringing Milli back into work properly and she has now started doing some trot work which is increasing by 2 minutes each time we ride. As Milli is doing her fitness work I’ve been doing a bit of rehab myself which I am finding quite tough! Almost 8 years after my car accident I have finally accepted that i’m never going to be the rider I was before and it’s not a case of a quick fix with the injuries I sustained to my back and pelvis. Because of this I have been doing the majority of my riding on Milli bareback for the last 10 days, which was fine the whole time we were walking but now we are trotting i’m finding it really quite tough! My hip and pelvis area is quite restricted in it’s movement from the breaks so riding bareback is helping me to open up my hips more (plus with Milli being a tad podgy she is rather wide at the moment!). I know it is going to take some time but I can already feel improvements in just the 10 days that I have been riding like this and I felt more even in my seat at Blue Barn on Roxie too.

We have a bit of a quiet weekend coming up with no competitions planned for this weekend, although I’m sure there is plenty yard jobs to keep me busy!! 

SG Equestrian
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