I Did A Thing & Had Some Thoughts

When I made a list of goals for this year, I tried to choose things that would challenge me, but still be achievable. I set as many personal goals as horse goals, because I have a long history of getting nowhere with horses.

you have no idea how hard i had to twist her arm to get this photo
her: it's bad luck to wear the shirt before the race!
me: but we're not gross and sweaty yet JUST PUT IT ON

Then I made the mistake of mentioning to Roxie’s mom that one of my goals was to run a half marathon.

And she’s like “COOL SIGN UP FOR THIS ONE IM DOING ITLL BE FUN”.

So I signed up. Months ago. I told myself I would train, but my running shoes were dead and the one time I tried to run, I ended up limping for a week afterwards, courtesy of said shoes.

Maybe that should have been a sign. Maybe not.

even Zoe thinks it's not a great plan

Regardless, three days before the race, I finally made it to the running store and bought shoes (on sale). The sales’ lady’s face made a pretty priceless expression when I told her I was “getting started” and that my goal race was a half marathon that weekend. But I digress.

So I went. And I did it. And I’m trying to un-jumble my thoughts about it, because apparently the post-race stupids are a real thing.

i also wore a donut like a tutu

1) Emotional awareness. Pre-race, I had about an hour and a half to kill by myself before my distance started. Now remember. This is a fun run. I did not train for it. I had no expectations of “doing well” and was simply out there to meet a goal I’d set for myself. No matter what I did, it was going to be a Personal Best, because I have simply never done this distance before in any capacity.

I spent the entire hour and a half kind of agitated and nervous. “Washing out”, we’d call it in a racehorse. I’d like to think that because I was aware of it, I was more able to make good choices and control it, but the truth was that I was really nervous.

And if I’m that nervous to do something like that on my own, how exactly am I translating that to my horse under saddle?

one of them trained. one of them is a blerch.

2) Conditioning matters. Obviously, I did not train by any understanding of the word. Conditioning and strength building are something I talk about in terms of horse development all the time, but actually feeling the effects myself put it in perspective I think.

I’ve been coasting along this year and not addressing rider fitness. That’s not ok.

this man was having a fabulous time

3) Individual goals are diverse and important--I get annoyed by all the online bashing of “she’s not a real horseperson because we have different end goals with our horses” stuff that goes around. It was real funny to watch that play out over 13.1 miles. Some people walked. Some people sprinted. Some people brought friends. Some people were alone.

THEY ALL FINISHED.

Huh.

all sweaty and grossified

4) Finishing together is awesome. In an event I could not possibly have planned, Roxie’s mom (who ran the full marathon, which started before the half) caught me about a half mile before the finish and then we crossed the finish line together.

We were going stupidly fast because she is a crazy person and I nearly threw up on her and/or the nice man handing out medals, but it was so much more fun to finish with a friend. And know that no matter what, I gave it my best on that day. It wasn't about who went farther or who was better--it was about accomplishing something together.

next let's accomplish buying custom boots together

As an equestrian, I find it very easy and even therapeutic to throw myself into the “horse” side of the equation every day, be that tack, training, planning, or what have you. All that is important, but it doesn’t address the human side, which is a very real problem.

For me, this means that I want to change the way I address sport in my own life--I want to be stronger and fitter and I want to figure out the whole race day mental game aspect. When it’s Zoe and I stepping into the show ring, I want to be a solid partner for her, not just blindly hoping she can carry my lazy ass through.

champion of finishing real slow

Fit to Ride

I'm not a gym junkie. I actually hate working out indoors and I find the very idea of running on a treadmill to be mind-numbingly boring just to contemplate. Or heaven help us all--a track. HATE.

It's also been winter. I've been taking all excuses to not be active and then I've been trying to offset overwhelming stress with food.

As you can imagine, I am not happy with who I am right now.

Nothing will change overnight, but I'm taking steps to get to where I want to be. I went for a run this morning, which puts me at over 10 for the year. It doesn't sound like much, but I don't think I ran that many times in all of 2013. I'm finding ways to eat more vegetables and less processed food.

And hopefully, I'll have the first real ride of 2014 today.

Starting point

All those things are good. It's going to be a long road for me. I actually quite like running and I don't mind pilates. I realize the heart of my problem isn't a lack of desire, but rather the dream-crushing sadness of watching my old red man go downhill.

It's a new year. I'm focusing on the little bay horse who needs me to be fit and strong to give him the best ride possible for all our upcoming adventures.

No more excuses. I'm laying down the miles, even when I don't feel like it and can only sort of breathe.

Conformation of the Event Horse: Thoroughbred Edition

I've been mulling this idea over for a while, and I think I now have a pretty cool progression to show as far as Cuna's conformation, how it affects him competitively, and how he's changed while with me. However, because I am an average student of conformation, I thought that I would include a perspective from one of my favorite experts, who also happens to be my favorite photographer, the wonderful EllieA. (All shots by EllieA.)

In order to illustrate how conformation and muscle structure relate to athletic output in performance, I've included a trotting and cantering shot taken the same day as each conformation shot. While Ellie is a smashing photographer who makes us look awesome, I'd say that the pictures were representative of where we were at in our training at the time.






Basic stats:
Hakuna Matata (Cuna)
17 years old
Thoroughbred (OTTB)
Career eventer

MARCH

March 20, 2012

TSB: At this point, I'd had Cuna about a month and in all fairness to him, he'd been out of work all winter and the month he'd spent with me was not terribly intense. I was building confidence over low fences on the flat and he was toting me around. As an out of shape, unbalanced adult ammy, I was not the picture of balanced perfection.

EA: In this photo, Cuna looks like a horse just getting back into regular work. His overall structure is good, if a bit unbalanced front to rear. Ideally, the structure of a performance animal should be balanced, with equal angulation in the front and hindquarters. In layman’s terms, I'd like to see the shoulder angle (from the wither to point of shoulder to the elbow) match the rear angle (from the point of hip to stifle to hock). A horse built this way is generally a more stable athlete, less prone to injuries, and has an easier time with collection.

Cuna is built nicely uphill. He is straighter in the hind end (notice the straight line between stifle and hock), but has a nicely sloping croup. He has a decent shoulder, and is long bodied with a lovely long (some might say giraffe) neck. He is ever-so-slightly over at the knee. You can see the beginnings of muscle development in the shoulders and hindquarter, but his neck and topline aren’t quite there yet. I don’t like how his neck ties into his shoulder/withers in this photo… it looks abrupt and awkwardly set. You can tell he isn’t completely comfortable.

March trot

TSB: I probably never posted this picture before because it's not the most stellar trotting shot ever, but it's how we were working. Loose rein, in an arena, going forward. I was determined to learn everything I could from Cuna, so I neglected fitness work in favor of jumping small things several times a week.

March canter

EA: Much of what I discussed in the conformation shot holds true in motion. At this point, he hasn’t developed the muscle tone and condition to carry himself properly. In the trot photo, he is moving downhill, and not tracking under as well as he does in later photos.. His neck is kind of hanging there awkwardly and his topline appears underdeveloped. He has more reach in front than drive in the rear, and if you were to draw triangles between his front and rear legs, you’d find the rear triangle to be smaller. At the canter, he looks a little better, but you can still see the imbalance and his discomfort at being asked to be light in the front and track up in the rear. This is partially due to structure, and partially due to condition.

MAY

May 20, 2012

TSB: The next set of shots is from May, a mere 60 days later. I have to say, the first thing I notice is just how much I love Cuna's summer coat. He is fit and shiny, with ribs well covered in flesh. Cuna and I had progressed from putzing around the arena 5 days a week to trotting and galloping in the hills for fitness regularly.

EA: The change in muscle tone between this picture and the last one is dramatic. Everything looks “tighter” and more defined. Cuna looks much more comfortable in his own skin, and has a much softer and pleasant expression than the last photo. His shoulder and hindquarters have continued to develop and strengthen. However, his neck and topline are perhaps the most strikingly different part of him. His neck is well muscled—especially along the top—which helps it to tie into his shoulder/withers more smoothly. His topline shows obvious muscling from withers to croup. Even his abdominal muscles are showing definition, and his belly is tighter and more athletic looking. Really, his whole “framework” appears much stronger. All of these improvements will make dressage/flat work much easier and more comfortable for him, because he now has the physical ability to lift his front end and have it be supported through the topline and hindquarters.

May trot

TSB: I was addressing confidence issues over fences, so Cuna was coming off our first cross country schooling together (hot mess) and a two week jumping intensive to address issues raised. We were still a new partnership, but with consistent lessons and five or six days a week under saddle, we were starting to really do well together. Because the root of my issues was jumping, he and I spent lots of time with the sticks and did little-to-no dressage work in the proper sense of the word.

May canter

EA: Cuna is moving in a much better and more attractive frame at the trot. His whole front end looks smooth and efficient, and he is tracking up better in the rear, although not perfectly. He appears a bit stiff in the hocks, which would make sense knowing his age and work level at this point in time. His topline looks lovely, and he appears relaxed, happy, and workmanlike. At the canter, he looks much smoother and lighter in the front. His neck and topline are beautiful, and you can see the muscle development in his chest, also. He is in beautiful condition with a lovely, shiny coat.

NOVEMBER

November 12, 2012

TSB: As much as we loved our last barn, we moved with our trainer to a new place in a flatter locale at the end of October. We have taken several dressage lessons and worked hard on improving connection and engagement. That said, all of our trails are now flat, so that steady hill work that was a major part of our workload four days a week is no longer a regular thing.

EA: In this photo, Cuna’s condition tells me that he has experienced a change in the type of work he is getting. While he still has fairly even muscle tone, he has lost some of the dramatic muscling on his neck and topline. You can tell this by the way his neck and back tie into his withers, as well as the increase in slope from croup to tail. He seems to have kept similar muscling in the hind end, but perhaps lost some in his shoulder. His abdominal muscles appear even tighter than the last photo, though… this tells me that he has been doing a lot of work involving that area. He still has a pleasant, kind expression and seems like a very happy guy.



TSB: We are constantly improving--I can feel changes in how Cuna and I work together from week to week. It's exciting, and now it's documentable. We do spend more time in the arena now, working on connection (that elusive outside rein) and we've even developed some baby lateral motion. Cuna is not the most supple horse in the world, but the more we work, the better he is.







 
EA: Cuna is noticeably lighter in the front end than in any of the previous shots. At the trot, he shows marked improvement in rear flexibility and drive. He shows lovely engagement and is tracking up in the hind end very well for a horse of his conformation. I would bet you that if the photo was a straight side view, the triangles between his legs would be about even, front to rear. That is great. At the canter, he is using his front end well but doesn’t seem as strong looking as he does in May’s canter photo. At both the trot and canter, he is carrying himself in a decent frame, and looks much more comfortable using his body like this—something that is much changed from the March photos.

WRAP UP

TSB: Working with Cuna has been a fun adventure. I didn't realize just how much he'd changed until I put all these shots side by side. Many thanks to EllieA for her insights!! Also, check out her blog for a post on our last photo session together. Super fun stuff. :-)


EA: It was very interesting to see how different types of work influenced Cuna’s muscle development, quality of gaits, and attitude. Generally, what I noticed in the conformation shots held true in the movement photos. Overall, I feel that the May photos show Cuna at his most fit. However, the November photos present a picture of a more supple horse that has an easier time staying collected and engaged. I am intrigued to continue following their progress!

Not The Blog I Wanted to Write

I wanted to write today about the nice dressage ride Izzy and I had yesterday; about how she's learning to step under herself and we're really making progress; and how the only mystery at the moment is why she stocked up last night after a light walk/trot workout yesterday. Yes, that was the blog I was going to write.

Instead, I went for a ride this morning. It started well--Izzy was responding and I was prepared to build on yesterday. She was just tense in one corner for no particular reason. As I rode her through it to see why, she leaped into the air and bucked, then plunged forward and bucked again. I'm pretty sure I didn't sit up like I should have, but I yelled at her and managed to get her head up and turned in a circle, so we stopped. I regained my stirrups and asked her to go forward gently. I was immediately glad that I had only asked gently, because I could tell in that instant that she was ready to buck again.

Grrr.

It didn't help at this point that there was a massive freaking out draft horse in the arena with us and another one in the round pen. Not their fault, but it wasn't helping my mood.

I decided the best course of action was to hop off and put Izzy on the lunge line. She galloped around like a maniac. My usually-lazy warmblood took off running around me. I didn't even need the whip I was carrying. She ran at least five minutes one way, then we switched directions and she ran the other way. I got back on after that and we tried to work again. Just when I was starting to get her attention, the lady got off the one freaking out draft horse, tied him up in the arena, and brought the other one in to ride.

Instantly, I lost Izzy's focus. I tried asking her to canter, and she tore off. Since she very nearly fell over when bucking, I took my time turning her in a circle so we didn't have a catastrophic wreck. I got her back under control, did two walk/trot transitions, and got off just as one of the draft horses tried to take the arena fence down. (To all the good drafts and draft owners out there: I'm not hating on you. It's just that these two are extremely destructive and strong willed and I can't stand them most of the time. Especially when I'm cranky.)

As I led Izzy out of the arena, she nearly ran over the top of me. Just because. That made me madder than I already was, so I took her to the round pen instead of her pen, took her tack off, and turned her loose. She galloped around like a maniac. I even pulled the (empty) water trough off the rail because she was acting dumb and my cousin had an accident with a horse, a water trough, and a round pen.

I put my tack away. I wandered around. She finally more or less settled down, so I went and caught her. She was completely soaked in sweat, so I tied her up and thought, "Huh. Here we have a teachable moment." I mean, she's hot, sweaty, and tired. She stocked up last night, so cold hosing is in order regardless. Besides, I was sure she was tired enough to stand still.

Again, I was wrong. She had a royal fit when I started spraying her (lightly) with the hose. However, she was securely tied, she knows better than to pull back, and I was in a mood. I sprayed her until she stood still and gave up. When she was thoroughly rinsed and hosed, I left her tied (good practice!) while I went to find a sweat scraper. (Apparently, mine has wandered off.) She more or less stood, but by the time I found one, the arena was empty of riders.

I know an opportunity when I see it. I had already figured out that this mess was most likely caused by having a weekend off, followed by light work and no turnout. Someone's mare is in good shape, has engaged the TB side of her brain, and she had no way to express it. Sigh. The trials of horses.

Anyways. I seized my opportunity and turned Izzy loose in the arena. She galloped off. I watched her run around like a maniac for five or ten minutes, then thought, "Well, I might as well get the other girl." I put my old TB mare out with her, thinking that she'd just run Izzy into the ground like she normally does. Instead, Cassie (the TB) galloped merrily around for a while, but apparently wasn't in a hard running mood. They played for at least 20 minutes, but Cassie decided she wanted to be done, so I caught her and tied her outside the arena. That lured Izzy over long enough to catch her, and then I was able to take them both home.

Leave it to Izzy to turn a 40 minute ride into a two and a half hour meltdown.

Lesson learned: when turnout is scarce, institute an arena turnout schedule for Izzy so she has some time to relax and be a horse. I'll have to work out something more concrete for her.

The New Fitness Challenge

As I may have mentioned before, Izzy did lack a bit of "spunk", as Cathy put it, in our lesson. I credited it to having worked pretty hard for six days that week. I was in a hurry when I was out on Sunday, so I didn't have time to get Izzy out to do anything. Apparently, while I was gone, the mares got turned out in sets (first time this year!!), but Miss Izzy did not. The reason? She's a psycho alpha who tends to go after other horses and Cathy can't trust her with anyone. Trust me. We tried this last year. Sigh...

As a result, Izzy had a conniption yesterday when I went to get her out. She pranced and nearly reared when I was just leading her over to take off her blanket. Usually, I turn her out in the arena to run and she just meanders around unless I chase her. Not so today. She took off bucking immediately. I went to get my old mare (Izzy's mother and the only horse more dominant than she is), and Izzy freaked out. When I brought Cassie back, Izzy was so excited to have a friend to play with that I couldn't get her away from the gate to actually let Cassie in without unsettling Cassie. Ugh. Mares.

Eventually, I got both girls out together and they ran like idiots for quite a long time. Remember, Izzy has been worked 5-6 days a week all winter long. I think Cassie has worked 3 times, none of them hard. When I went to put the girls away, Cassie hadn't even broken a sweat and her amazing recovery time meant that she was barely breathing hard. Izzy, on the other hand, was almost completely drenched with sweat. Her shoulders and neck were dripping and she was sweating around her eyes. And puffing. I walked her, groomed her, and tacked her up, and she was still puffing.

It's ridiculous. I know Cassie has a ridiculously fast recovery time, but she hasn't even worked. That's probably why she always did so well on cross country, despite our lack of schooling and conditioning opportunities. She has incredible endurance and recovers faster than most people can blink, especially when fit. Izzy looks like a different sort of challenge. I'm not going to be able to take any shortcuts with her, fitness wise. Yes, part of it was a warm sunny day and Izzy's winter coat, but Cassie has a thicker coat than Izzy does.

So now we know.

In other news, it was fascinating to see my girls together. Cassie is very compact for a thoroughbred. She has some nice hock action, but very little overstep, tends to be high-headed, and is wicked fast. (Did I mention she ran 58 races and is sound to this day?) Izzy is like Cassie on steroids. Izzy has a natural overstep, gorgeous suspension, but is longer and leaner than Cassie. I really should have taken pictures. Sorry... maybe this afternoon. Izzy looks really fast, but I still think mommy would beat her in a footrace.

I did ride them both yesterday. I figure it's time to take advantage of having little-to-no job. Ride! Izzy was tired and fine. Cassie was wired. It's weird to me that with 1 year of training, Izzy is probably farther along in dressage than Cassie will ever be. It's about what comes naturally to them, I guess. Cassie loves speed, endurance, and jumping. Izzy hasn't quite figured those out yet.