Start Em Young

The day after Christmas, somehow I managed to get the whole family down to visit Windsor, and then up to visit Prair.  Not only was it a homerun in terms of me seeing both beasts, but the fact that both The Boy and kiddo played along (nicely) was something of a belated Christmas Miracle.

First, we packed up and headed south to see Windsor and give him a hack.  The barn was extremely quiet, and save for one other boarder, we had the place to ourselves - which made it much easier to let Cayla run amok. 

She is currently obsessed with sweeping, so she went straight for the broom and proceeded to "sweep" the aisle for about an hour.

we forgot her gloves, so Dad's had to do..

I enjoyed some quiet horse time and an easy hack (with some pole work) before demanding that we put the kid on the horse and get at least one good picture.  Apparently my definition of "good" now includes poorly focused and blurry, but evidence has been had. 

Windsor saw unsupervised pockets to pick...

Cayla seemed pretty entertained by it and giggled when we walked Windsor forward a few steps, so I my confidence in having her ready for lead line this summer is growing. :)

After that, we headed home again, and worked on projects until we got back in the car for another drive, but this time headed North.

We got to Pair after the sun went down, so picture quality is really epically bad, but she looks great.  She's fat and happy and as furry as I've ever seen her. 

I forget how sweet that mare really is.  She just rested her nose on my shoulder and slowly wuffed soft breaths into my ear and let me love on her.  She was fascinated by the baby and there were several super adorable "kisses" where Prair was reaching down over her stall and Cayla was reaching up to kiss her nose.  God damn my old phone for not capturing that.   But I'll just have to stage it again at some other point.

Not only a badly lit picture, somehow its a bad angle for everyone...

We shared a nice post-holiday meal with my friend and caught up a bit before heading home for the night.  I am so grateful that Prair is getting such good care and in a place where I don't worry about her at all.  My plan is to be up there after the New Year to attempt to flex her and see if she's made any progress in the last few months.

So that's the Holiday update.  Cute gray horse, cute black horse and an adorable barn baby (and husband!)

Hope everyone else enjoyed theirs!

Saddle Shopping.. (redux)

While I theoretically enjoy the process of hunting for, evaluating, and lusting after new tack.  Somehow when that process is turned toward saddles, it becomes some fresh new hell. 

Maybe it's because the price tag is so much larger than with other items. 

Maybe it's because there's more marketing around them than discount mattress stores (sleep on a cloud for free! no interest! fancy space foam will make you feel 20 years younger!).

Maybe it's because most of us sorta need saddles that fit our horses so when we don't have one it's a thorn in our side every... single... ride.

My adventures with saddles have been varied.  I loved my fancy Prestige I ordered for Pia, but it was never perfect for her, and it felt like something off the shelf not the "custom" fit I was sold.

That saddle didn't fit Pair for crap, so we tried again. I stuck with the same fitter (not sure why) but got a Hastilow that really did fit her (and me) exceptionally well. 

When jumping became a real thing for us, I finally coughed up the $$ and got a CWD.  That was an unfortunate process as the saddle didn't fit Prair (or me) at all when it arrived. 

They fixed it (sorta), but when I had it looked at again down at Thermal, I was told it still didn't fit my horse, or me all that well and that the initial measurements were taken completely wrong. 

To CWD's credit, they took my saddle back no questions asked, and ordered me a completely new one and even upgraded the leather to calfskin for my troubles.

The new saddle did actually fit Pair very well and put me in a better balance as well.

But, it's built very specifically for Pair and has never really fit any other horse I've put it on. 

By the time I pad it up so that it's in a decent balance for a horse with a normal back, I'm so far away from everything, I might as well be sitting on one of those Elephant Saddle/basket things that's rigged 4' up in the air

On top of this, about the time CWD was fixed my saddle, our barn seemed to migrate over to Voltaire.  I tend to have a knee jerk reaction away from things I perceive to be trendy, so I wasn't super interested in switching saddles just to switch saddles.  (and have a pretty blue cover..)

But, I've been riding in my trainer's saddle more and more, both on Windsor and some of the horses I was catching lessons on, and I do really like the tack.

It's hard for me to compare apples to apples, since I never rode a Voltaire on Prair so I can't compare how different saddles would feel on the same horse.. but in general, they are pretty easy to sit.

Voltaire's "calling card" seems to be all about minimizing the structure of the saddle.  It reminds me of high end supercars that minimize weight however they can (thinner glass in the windows.. carbon fiber wherever possible, etc). 

Voltaire looks to minimize bulk however possible.  One specific example of this is that the top flap of their saddle is all one piece of leather.  The knee rolls is the same piece of hide as the flap.. just with stitching to differentiate it.  So there is no overlapping seam or extra bulk. 

That mindset is applied to all aspects of construction, and the result is noticeable.  I am not sure I would have noticed it on Prair, since I'm sure they would have had to build up the panels quite a bit in order to fit her back. 

But, on Windsor, who seems to be shaped like a normal horse, it results in a super close contact both in the seat and leg. 

We played with a few different seat options for me, but settled on their "palm beach" which is their half deep seat (comparable to the CWD SE01).  Then we focused on the panel construction for Windsor.  He's got a decently high wither, and we ended up adding a tad of foam to the very front, and very rear of the panels. 

What surprised me is that even though this seemed like an even "raising" of both ends of the saddle, when I was riding with the shims, the impact was obvious.  I'm not sure how to explain it except that life was easier.  The twist was comfortable, I could sit easily, post easily.. it was just... easy.

oooohhh, ahhhhhh

The rep was super knowledgeable and polite.  She explained their philosophy, construction process and answered any and all questions I had about what we could/should/would do about fit and what are my options for changing said fit if we ever need to (answer, build new panels).

Initially, I had intended to just get info from the Voltaire rep, then let CWD come out as well and compare my options, but I ended up just pulling the trigger on the Voltaire.

I know that impulse decision will surprise exactly none of you.. but here's why I did it:

1) it is always easier to use things that your trainer loves.  This applies to horses, tack, trailers, whatever.  My trainer is great at working with "others" whether it's horses she didn't specifically pick (Prairie) or tack she doesn't use herself.. but there is a certain ease in being in alignment. 

2) they were able to offer me a really, really good deal on my CWD.  Since my saddle was remade, it's technically a 2014, which made it pretty valuable on their trade in chart (chart was based on year and manufacture, not model, seat size, leather, or anything else).  Basically they paid me $400 less than I had paid for my saddle new. 

That brought the "purchase price" of the new saddle down to $1,700.  Not free by any means (lol), but I did opt for Calfskin again.. if I had stuck with Grain leather it would have been only $1,100.. That seems like a pretty good deal for a fancy new French saddle! In fact, I think I *almost* made money! (almost).

I'll be sure to write more when I actually have my saddle and can decide if it's worth the time and money to get it.  But for now I feel good about the decision.

Honestly, I was very happy with my CWD once it was (finally) the correct saddle.  However, even though they really made an effort to correct the issue, they weren't the friendliest to deal with.  I'm sensitive to holding a whole company accountable for the mood or personality of a few employees, but I was sort of dreading my meeting with them to talk about fitting Windsor.  It's hard to nail down why exactly, but I always felt like I was in trouble at school when I was talking with them..  Not a great feeling when you are talking about your favorite piece of tack, and spending a crap-ton of money.

In contrast, the Voltaire rep in our area is really nice, and I never felt like I was being scolded.  This was the first time I had worked with her myself, but in watching the service level my Trainer has gotten over the last couple years, I've been impressed. 

For sure some of that excellent service is due to their efforts to steal market share.

And I'm sure they are authorized to offer a bit more to customers right now than CWD... and while that's not the CWD rep's fault - it does impact my overall experience and satisfaction.

So, stay tuned.  The darn thing isn't really supposed to be delivered until MARCH but maybe the days will tick by faster now that I'm back to a regular riding routine and not just stalking everyone on Insta...

One Ah-Ha At a Time

Continuing on the theme of "this horse is fun" -  This week has also been fun. 

Slightly harder work, but informative.

Tuesday we had a great a flat lesson, and I'm sure we learned stuff, but all I really remember is that toward the end of our canter work, Mr. Still-Wants-to-be-a-Stallion was much more interested in two mares idling around the ring than our (riveting) canter poles.

I don't blame him.  If I was used to going gallopy-gallopy over massive jumps I'd hate me for micromanaging him over poles too.  But right now we have to work on poles.  And that means stud-man has to listen.

He held it together for the most part.  Nothing overly dramatic, but he definitely puffed up like a peacock when we'd go by either of the pretty mares.

Or at least he held it together until we were finishing our lesson by putting 4 strides in the 5 stride line. 

Clearly this takes a bigger, open step.  And since we are both "working on our fitness," when this variation comes at the end of a ride, it takes some spur to get it done - actually it takes a lot of spur.

So I established a big step, and poked him in the ribs every. single. step. trying. to. get.... there.

He listened and lifted and went. But I think the combination of a huge, forward step, a crap-ton of spur in his side and then a squealing, pretty mare at the far end was too much.

He shook his head and struck out with his front legs and sorta bounded through the corner like a proud, drunk, frat boy. 

One hefty jerk on my outside rein and some serious inside leg, and he returned to business as usual. 

It was actually nice to test the boundary of his focus/patience/response.  His "expression" wasn't that rude, and he quickly turned his focus back to me.

Thursday we (again) revisited cantering the 5 stride line (this time with small crossrails, WHEE) and I had a good light bulb moment.

I've been focusing so much on being "light" in my hand to avoid scrunching Windsor's neck, that I haven't had much front end management to keep him straight and/or shaped over fences.

A couple of times we got a tad deep to the out fence and I finally figured out how much outside rein I needed to be encourage Windsor to coil up and fall back, rather then just pop out his shoulder.
Oh Right.  That.

Then we moved on to three "high" cavaletti set on a curve through the short end, with a bounce between each one.

omfg, want to make sure I ride like a goober? Set this exercise up.  Jesus...

I was having a (really) hard time getting us forward and uphill - (but not flat) into the first bounce.  Then, in trying to let him figure it out, I was sorta giving him his head and letting him sort it out on his own then regrouping our balance on the out. 

Finally, I found some success when I started sitting a tad deeper on the approach and making myself ride like I didn't have stirrups.  I think that helped me mentally manage his hind end and not get too obsessed with where his front end was.

After a few good reps through to the left we switched and went the other way.

(face palm)

So, this horse is sorta hard to turn to the right. 

And he's really hard to turn right in the air, or in a bounce.

He'd rather pop his shoulder and pour out to the left than stay with you and give to the contact (remember our jumping on a circle last week?).

So the first few reps consisted of me trying to figure out how much support I needed to offer in order to literally keep us in the exercise.  Once we figured that out, I tried to pretty it up a tad. 

Trainer told me to not release quite so much and ask Windsor to keep his shape a bit more. 

This was good advice. 

Once I felt like I had "permission" to manage him a bit more in the bounces, all the sudden things started working.

I mentally thought about riding him more like a Dressage horse (micromanage that shit) and less like a Hunter (don't get in your horse's way) and that was the mental shift I needed.

Instead of trying to get him to the cavaletti and then letting him learn and bumble his own way through, I tried keeping a steady nudge on that inside hind every.single.stride and a "Morse Code" contact that asked him to stay up and back with the energy coming from the hind leg... all the sudden he was light, and balanced, shaped beautifully and kept his balance perfectly on his way out...

WHO KNEW.

So, apparently wherever I got the notion that I need to be borderline absent with my contact over fences on this horse was total BS and not actually useful. 

It's just so easy to get talked into being overly soft (and absent) on such a light, relaxed horse. 

It's nice maybe, but not actually helpful

Yes he's light, and yes I need to be much softer than I ever have been, but Homeboy still needs some boundaries and help in keeping himself balanced.  And straight.  And focused in our work over very tiny speedbumps.

Very productive lesson. 

Saturday was a variation on the same theme.  Big, forward work on the flat asking Windsor to engage and come through - followed by some light work over small fences with my newfound outside rein contact. 

We started on a circle (again) with more success than we had previous, then worked up to a small course.

I tried to establish a big, rolling canter to the fences so that I had a straight, balanced horse.  Those are things I like, but it literally felt like we were clocking around at a pace suitable for Prelim XC. 

SO FAST. OMG

So fast, so big, so much.

But, as long as I had that canter, the distances were there, we straight balanced, all was good.

Blessedly a friend was able to take a couple clips, and I reviewed them after my ride.

Turns out that HUGE ROLLING GALLOP is pretty much just a normal weeny canter.

It looks nice.  But it looks nothing like it felt like. 

Literally nothing.  Thanks brain.  (Amateur brains are the worst...)

Here's my huge forward gallop - judge for yourself.

Remember when I said....

Remember when I said that I "didn't need much" for this horse? 

Bahahahahahahaha

As though that could stop me from talking to my bff's at SmarkPak pretty much every day.

And yes. Even with Christmas right around the corner.. I am just flinging my visa at anywhere I can find someone willing to sell me a leather good.  One of the drawbacks of a decidedly not-horsey family, is that they are unlikely to stumble on to beautiful or random Equestrian Accessories on their own.  So unless I hand over a legit middle school wish list with brand, size and color specifically spelled out, I'm usually on my own for horse-related acquisitions. 

So far I haven't splurged on anything all that sexy, fabulous, or really anything that is super exciting for The Boy to gift for xmas.  (well, okay, maybe the totally unnecessary shirt I bought myself form Callidae, but that's different).

I realized that Mr. Man needed his own set of pillows and standing wraps.  So I got some. 

I had some leftover Personally Preppy monograms (not my favorite source of monos, but that's another post entirely), which I figured could get ironed onto some fresh, fluffy, not yet manure stained pillow wraps, and then for the first time I experimented with having SmartPak embroider some standing wraps. 

They have an option now to have the "tail" of the wrap personalized instead of the Velcro end which is awesome, because as OCD as I am about my wraps, I almost never get them perfectly square and I'd drive myself nuts if there were uneven monograms at different angles on all four legs.

But really, wraps and pillows... not so bad, right?

Well then I started hunting for a girth.  I thought about getting another TSF, but Windsor is built like a normal horse and so far saddles on him haven't had an issue with slippage or shoulder clearance since he lacks the giant-prair-shoulder that caused problems for the mare.

A few rides in, I'm also learning that he sweats like a monster under his girth.  So for the first time I am experimenting with a synthetic "breathable" style. 

"Hi Smartpak? send me more of your stuffs." 

I'm trying the SmartPak Breathable Girth .  I think there's a 65% chance I'll hate it and miss my plain, leather girths, but I'm feeling remarkably open minded.  Mostly I'm  irritated at the extra 45 minutes it takes his armpits to dry out so I'm willing to try anything.  (boys are gross).

Still pretty practical, right?

Well, today I took Prair's fancy Edgewood reins off my bridle because they are so long that the buckle nearly hits my toe when I have my reins shortened to where they are supposed to be...

Aside from the length looking silly, I have visions of me falling off and then my toe getting caught in my reins and that is the stuff nightmares are made of.

So for now I'm riding in my favorite original-Pia reins which I adore, but don't totally match my bridle and definitely won't pass the Hunter Princess test in the show ring.

Feeling inspired by SprinklerBandit's recent post on her bridles, I tried a quick eBay perusal to see if there were any dark CWD raised reins available, and when there weren't, I just bought them outright for more than I ever want to spend on reins.. (but still less than those damn Edgewoods). 

What else have I bought randomly? ... oh yeah. New breeches for me, since some Piper's were on sale and I've never tried them... hopefully all you guys who swear by them are on to something.

And then that brings us back to the Callidae.  I really love the look of their stuff.  And I adore finding new brands that have their own signature style.  The Hunter Ring is so boring.  I love the tradition of it, but I also really like finding subtle ways to have some interesting details.  Right now, Callidae is scratching that itch.  I ordered one of their practice shirts to see how the fit runs and if I like their styling.  But assuming I do, their show shirts will be at the top of my wanty list for show season. 

The "practice shirt" basically a long sleeve with a classy Dickie

Then, because my Visa wasn't totally on fire yet, when I was on Insta I saw them post a really beautiful belt which just so happens to have their signature "C" on the buckle, and for those who know me outside of boggy land, "C" works for me too.

I've been having the hardest time trying to find a belt that I love for my breeches.  I have a weird aversion to fabric belts, and I shy away from anything that's too conspicuous, like the TS quilted belts, or even the Spur belts that have found their way into every arena.  I love the simplicity of this design. 

Basic, clean, but still a tad refined and distinctive.  Fingers crossed I love it as much in person as I do in a well shot Instagram photo...

Going forward, I'll be keeping my eye on this brand.  It's expensive, but the collection is wonderfully curated. I am slightly obsessed with their throw blankets, but I haven't figured out a way to justify that particular splurge yet...

I think that brings us to the end of the unnecessary pre-holiday tack binge..

Well, aside from the small matter of that saddle on order... but again, that's another post entirely.