The Draft Army

I took mi papi out to a hunt pace yesterday to celebrate the end of the season.  It was the Myopia Hunt's pace and my favorite of the season.  The route is always gorgeous, the jumps are inviting, and we always enjoy ourselves.  Our company consisted of Trainer A on Juice Box the pony, a 10 year old on her opinonated pony, Miss Thang with a junior rider on her first hunt pace, and another teen on her experienced eventing mare that I'm dubbing Saintly Mare.  I love that Saintly Mare.

Miss Thang decided to show off her dressage moves with piaffe, passage, canter pirouettes, and basically anything that didn't involve walking or trotting in a straight line.  The pony carting around the youngster was also prone to bucking and taking off if he thought he could get away with it.  Fortunately that young lady has the guts and seat to handle him and actually had a great day and jumped lots.  She had her first three phase last weekend and has decided she's going to be an eventer.  Judging by how her hunt pace went (and the fact she jumped absolutely anything we let her have a shot at), she's going to clean house in a couple of years.

Theo was . . . well, Theo.  He was assigned last in the line to start because Miss Thang needed to be behind a pony that could be used as an emergency brake system (Juice Box).  The opinionated pony had to go in the middle to keep him happy.  No one considered putting the eventing TB mare at the end, so mi papi ended up last.  He did fine up until we had to spread out to jump.  He was left behind, then trotting after the others to catch up.  The naughty pony bolted and Theo hit his threshold for keeping a lid on his temper.  He's got a big buck when he's upset.  It wasn't dirty and I sat it without even losing a stirrup, but it was unnerving.  I forget sometimes just how strong he is and that I ride him in a D ring snaffle.  After a couple jumps, I announced I wasn't doing any more obstacles because Theo was getting more and more upset with being left behind and he was going to unload me after one of those fences.  Trainer A told me to get out in front, jump stuff, and enjoy myself.

I shrugged and sent Theo out in front with Saintly Mare right behind us to go jump and canter ahead of the group.  He immediately calmed down and gave me a very pleasant feel cantering out to the next field.  He still eyeballs the fences and sucks back a few strides out, but once he understands we're supposed to go over them, he's happy to oblige.  It just takes him a couple seconds to get a good look at them and check for goblins.  Very inexperienced.

Turns out that mi papi actually likes the Saintly Mare and we ended up sharing the lead for the rest of the ride.  We did long sections of trot and canter with them side by side, getting to stretch out and leave the ponies behind.  With Saintly Mare to set the pace, we were able to canter briskly down the road with no kicking and happy, pricked ears.  When he started to fuss because we were getting passed, I put him on the other side of the Saintly Mare and got them close enough our stirrups clinked together.  Worked a charm.  Saintly Mare, being a very experienced cross country horse with many miles at Novice thought this was a lovely stroll and nothing to get excited about.  We finished the ride with Theo giving everyone a lead over a stone wall that is on the Groton House horse trials course and cantering to the finish.

I noticed something odd while I was out with the group.  I'm used to being part of the TB army.  No one asked me Fiona's breed, or Ben's breed, or even Allen's breed.  You could tell from across the show that they were all TBs and that they meant business.  People tend to stand back from the TBs that just ooze energy and athleticism.  Now I have lots of people coming up to me to ask me about Theo's breeding.  They usually guess Friesian cross though some have nailed it with Percheron warmblood cross.  I've also noticed that groups of ladies that have drafts seem to think I'm one of them now.  Where before they would avoid my chestnut TB mare, now they ride right up to me to ask me about mi papi from their own drafty beastie.

I think I've changed teams.  I'm now part of the Draft Army.  I never really noticed it, but the draft types travel in groups, just the like the TBs.

And I'm one of them.  Theo blends right in with groups like this.  His magnificent tail, bushy forelock, high headset, and lazy butt behavior in the warmup landed us with a group of ladies on their gorgeous drafts that were sitting off to the side, watching the TBs zip around while waiting their turn.  The earth shakes when these groups pass you on the trails.  Part of me thought I should take off and join the group of draft and draft cross hunt horses that were cantering past us at a pace that I'm becoming increasingly familiar with:  powerful, earth shaking, very dramatic, but not actually going anywhere quickly.

I never, ever thought I'd ride a draft cross.  Now I think I need a shirt.  Proud Member of the Draft Army.

Hunters

I have a friend showing at the National Horse Show in the regular conformation hunters and I've been watching all morning. 

My friend showing in the conformation hunters at the National Horse Show

It triggered an old ache and originally this post was about my secret wish to have a hunter again.  But then I started to think about it and honestly, I've made my peace with it.  Trainer A may have accomplished more than she knows.  I don't have any real desire to sit ringside and wait for my turn for my course.  I want my ride times, my score sheet, to work endlessly to develop my seat and hands so that one day I can grow up and ride the collected and medium gaits.  I want my gallop sets and banks and near death stories to share with friends over beers.  It's weird after so many years to realize that the dream has changed this much.  I don't want my bay hunter anymore.

Don't get me wrong, if I'm at a show with an eq division, I'll enter.  The hunter kid in me can't be completely removed and I think mi papi would rock as a low level eq horse.  He's darn near packer status over fences.  But for the first time, I don't want a hunter of my own.  I want to dressage and jump and occasionally gallop.  It's a very odd feeling, to leave that part of my past behind.

Trainer A beat me up pretty seriously in my last lesson.  I was trotting around and around, trying to get Theo to press into my outside rein and keep my hands out of my lap.  That dirty habit of playing with the bit to get him to tuck his nose in is hard to break.  I was taught that when I was 9 and I swear Trainer A is going to hunt that person down and flay them.  I'm not even aware I'm doing the see saw motion, it's muscle memory.  He braces, I slide the bit.  I went around and around, trying to process all of the stuff thrown at me and feel what I was supposed to feel and listen to the metronome I had clipped to my collar so mi papi didn't start to rush.  I swear I dreamed about my hand position last night after hearing 'shorten your reins and get your hands up!' so many times.  Those lessons are the worst, where they're trying to force you to push past something so you can feel what's right, but they basically have to ride for you.  I've taught those lessons and they're difficult on both sides.

It finally snapped into place and I was suddenly sitting on a trampoline.  His back came up, he dropped into the contact steadily, and his stride grew by about a foot.  Trainer A threw her hands up and said 'there, there, feel that?!'.  I did, and it was awesome.  When we moved into the indoor, I had to recreate it on my own.  That was a heck of a lot harder, especially since mi papi thought he was done and decided to throw a neck curling temper tantrum.  But I did recreate that steady contact with real power on my own.  Not as nice as the one she helped me create, but far better than what we've had in the past.  Theo finally has the strength through his topline and hindquarters to lift and carry himself.  I've finally had my hands beaten into submission enough that I don't block his shoulders while trying to set his head.  We can't maintain it for long, but for a few glorious moments, I was a dressage rider sitting on a dressage horse.  An honest to the gods, powerful enough to almost be scary, dressage horse.

No, I don't miss the hunters anymore.

Eventer

After months of anxiety thinking about whether or not mi papi had an eventer in him, the day of truth arrived.  The bar was set low, but the challenge was very real.

Dressage:

Can't argue with an 81%, even if it is on a walk trot test.  It was a really nice ride and Theo did a good job handling the fact that we were in an indoor with lots of mirrors.


Cross Country:

Yes, we were #40.  But the important part was that we ended the day with a number and not a letter.  I disagree with the jump judge at #5, he didn't stop, But with that many penalties who cares.  It's not worth quibbling so long as they didn't eliminate us.  Theo has never completed a cross country before, so it was a great accomplishment.

I thought he was going to be bratty and try to go home.  I wasn't prepared for genuine fear when he trotted into the field full of cross country jumps.  It was overwhelming to him, coming over a rise and seeing a very crowded jump field in front of him.  He wanted to go home right now and I could feel his heart beating through the saddle.  While trying to get to #2, he actually spun out from under me and I had to bail.  Since I landed on my feet, it was only 65 penalties and Trainer A gave me a leg up to continue.  By fence 3, he was starting to get the idea.  By fence 5, he was starting to rock and roll.  We ended the ride by jumping the last and cantering through the flags with his ears pricked and my barn mates cheering.

Not our prettiest ride and we sure didn't do well in terms of time, but it was his very first completed cross country.  Last time he wouldn't finish even with a lead.  This time, he did it all on his own.

Stadium:

Theo was so happy to get to stadium.  It's his favorite phase and he marched around like a packer.  He didn't bat an eyelash at anything and it was a calm, organized, pretty round.  I cantered over the last and was so happy we finished with a score on the board.  It was a big achievement for mi papi and a good way to end the season.

For the record, we got second place.  Out of two.

Conclusion:

He actually seemed to enjoy himself once we were going, so I'm willing to give it another shot next year.  A different venue might work better for him, since he was overwhelmed by the crowded jumping field and that's not something that would happen at a lot of places.  It would be worth a try.

I promised him a set of real cross country boots and a new jump bridle if he completed today.  I guess I've got some shopping to do this winter.

Pile of stuff part two

Piles of stuff

"Have you ever noticed that their stuff is shit and your shit is stuff?"
- George Carlin

 So the in-laws arrive tomorrow.  I don't know about anyone else, but this results in frantic cleaning for me.  It's not that we're bad adults, it's just that we have a lot to do that doesn't involve a vacuum.  We also need to have two rooms ready for guests, so that means getting a lot of stuff cleared out.  Doubling the number of adults in a house is a bit of a shift.

I'm on day two of frantic house cleaning.  I want to go to the barn.  Give me aisle sweeping any day of the week.

While going through this, the hubby seems to have noticed my increasing collection of horse stuff.  I have a show this weekend, so the show stuff is running through the wash right now.  Boots, coat, shirt, saddle pad, breeches, they're all out in various stages of preparation.  Theo's scrim and fly sheets are inside so I can clean and pack them away for the winter while his exercise rug and new fleece dress sheet are waiting to be shipped to the barn.  I don't have much space at the barn as a leasor, so a lot of stuff rides around in my car.  Square cooler and irish knit are already in rotation.  Body clipping equipment had to come in out of my car, I needed a screwdriver to take the blades off.

My saddle pad addiction isn't healthy.  My new wither relief half pad from Total Saddle Fit arrived, so my old half pad is kind of floating around with my stuff.  I have a stack of pads that I just washed that need to get put away . . . somewhere.  I just got a new one from PS of Sweden and I have to say, champagne is definitely mi papi's color.  He needs a matching ear veil.  I also have five sets of polos in rotation right now.  All of this stuff regularly comes in the house for washing, making hubby stare.  Oh, and the towels I use for grooming.

The point?  I've got a lot of stuff and I can't seem to stop collecting more.  With a trip to a fancy barn coming up, I'm itching to get a Baker stable blanket to match Theo's Baker rain sheet, Baker turn out sheet, Baker irish knit, and Baker fleece dress sheet.  I also want to get new shipping boots.  I got his new show halter and lead already.  I may need another dressage saddle pad since most of mine are AP.  Should I get another pair of full seat breeches?  Will my black with pink accent full seat breeches be acceptable for a clinic?  Might be safer to get another pair in a more subdued color.

Hubby is starting to protest.  Part of today's work is to get the horse stuff under control.  The summer gear has to move to the loft in the garage and the saddle pad collection needs to get out of the laundry room.  While cleaning out my car in preparation for stuffing all of my winter gear inside, I found all of my ribbons for the year.

I don't know what I love more about this picture: my dog helping or my mismatched socks

What the heck am I going to do with all of those?  I feel bad throwing them out, I worked hard for those, but at the same time I'm not exactly a ten year old decorating her room with horse ribbons anymore.  Hubby already banned horse art from the living room. 

Seriously, how do people manage their horse stuff?  I need an intervention or a twelve step program or a magic bag of holding.  I've always struggled to contain my equipment, no matter what barn I'm at.  Right now I only have my locker which isn't particularly substantial.  I'm already in trouble with two bridles, no idea where that future second saddle is going to go.

I may have to beg and plead with the trainers for space for a trunk at the barn.  For the sake of my marriage.  If I start storing shipping boots in the entryway, I might be sleeping on the couch.  On the plus side, when I get around to buying Theo, I'll already have all of the stuff I need.  I won't have to go through the sticker shock of a purchase followed by the frantic shopping for a blanket wardrobe, a saddle and bridle that fit, and all of the other goodies that come with a new equine partner.  At least, that's what I keep telling the hubby.

Funny thing, telling him that it will all make sense when I have my new horse just makes his eye twitch . . .

How to: Body Clip

Since Theo needed a second round of clipping, I thought this would be the perfect time to try my hand at this how to idea.

Body Clipping!

Body clipping is when you clip the hair off of a horse in order to keep them from overheating while worked.  This is usually for horses that are working in the winter, but some horses with conditions that prohibit shedding are clipped year round.  There are a bunch of different types of clips, all of which are on Google.  The ones I do the most are the hunter clip, the blanket clip, and the trace clip.

Due to Theo's lifestyle (out 24/7) and a sensitivity to cold, Trainer A and I decided on a high trace clip as the one most appropriate for him.  I was leaning toward blanket clip due to his sweaty nature and ridiculous amounts of hair, but he does live out in New Hampshire.  He needs some hair.

Freshly clipped, showing his nice trace clip, and then his shaggy self just a month later

The trace clip leaves hair over the major muscle groups while clipping the bottom half of the neck and the stomach, giving the horse a way to vent the heat that comes with riding.  Good rule of thumb, I never, ever clip the area under the saddle, even with a full body clip.  The area right under the saddle panels is always left hairy to avoid in grown hairs, irritation, and your horse possibly deciding this isn't okay and unloading you. 

What  you need:

Body clippers - Seriously, get a pair of body clippers if you're going to be clipping a horse for winter each year.  Just one or two clipping sessions and you'll agree.  The little ones take forever and doing body clipping tears them up quickly.  Check in consignment shops and buy them used if you can find them, they last forever with a bit of care.  Don't be afraid to get the older, less fancy models.  They still clip like a hot knife through butter if the blades are sharp.

My ancient but amazing body clippers that weigh a freaking ton

Clippers - The smaller, A5 sized ones are fantastic for doing the fiddly bits like between the front legs and the girth area.  Not required, I've clipped a horse completely with body clippers, but it's a lot harder and not all horses will let you use body clippers near their face.

Sharp blades - Dull blades result in a rough job no matter how good you are and take longer.  It's not all that comfy for the horse either.  I sharpen my blades after two body clips, three at most.  I got three clips out of my current blades but I definitely felt a difference at the end of this one.  The clip had more uneven spots.

Extension cord - Very important for your sanity and helping you work at the best angle.

Step stool - Only necessary if you have a tall horse and/or you're planning on clipping the ears and face.

Coolant/Lubricant - Body clippers in particular can get hot and all clippers need oil or lubricant to keep chewing through all of that hair.  Do your horse a favor and make sure to have this on hand.  I use the Cool Lube brand in a spray can, works great.  Does a good job on preventing rust on the blades as well.  Blade wash is also a good idea to get all of the gunk out of your blades.

Chain shank - Some horses lose their marbles around clippers.  Even horses that don't mind them I typically clip off of cross ties in case they spook or I pinch them.

Cookies - It's a boring, drawn out process.  Bring rewards.

Chalk - Crooked lines are terrible and it's not like you can glue the hair back on.  Grab some chalk or, in a pinch, thin strips of duct tape can work to mark out the lines for your clip.

Armor - For yourself.  Don't clip in a fleece sweatshirt and breeches like I often do.  You'll hate your life.  Rain coats with the hood and rain pants up are the best suggestion for keeping the hair off your body, but I usually clip on impulse and pay for the results later.

A horse - Good luck with convincing him to come inside.

 How to body clip:

1.  Set up your space.   Get out all of your tools and set everything up.  Put on your armor.  It takes 1.5 to 2 hours to clip a horse.  If you're clipping in an aisle, try to pick part of the day when traffic is minimal.  It can take forever if you're always stopping to let people by or you have to keep turning your clippers off to answer questions from confused little girls.  What are you doing to poor Theo?!

2.  Groom the horse well.  I prefer to wash the horse the day before since the dirt and oil in a horse's coat dulls the blades and results in a rougher looking finished product, but when it's cold out, a good curry and brush will do the job.  He needs to be completely dry or you'll have a very uneven clip.

3.  Chalk the lines of the clip.  This is important because uneven lines are pretty glaring once you're done.  I've used sidewalk chalk, but artist chalk is nice, too.  If you're doing a hunter clip, put on your favorite saddle pad and draw around the outside.  Don't forget to chalk the face, using your bridle for the line.  Double check the lines on the back legs, it's terrible when a horse's garters are uneven.

4.  Introduce the horse to the clippers.  Body clippers are usually loud, so even a horse that's used to clipping might need to be introduced.  Theo is a dork about clippers, so I have to introduce them every time.  I turn them on, but leave them on the rubber matting and give him a cookie.  Then I pick them up, walk over, and give him a cookie with the clippers at arm's reach.  He gets to inspect the clippers, then he gets another cookie.  After all of this, I'll touch his shoulder with the end so he can get used to the way they vibrate.  He usually jumps a bit, but by that point he's mostly looking for cookies .  He gets one more cookie, then I can finally start clipping him.  He clips ground tied for safety in case something startles him.

5.  With the body clippers, carve out the big swathes of hair to remove.  For a trace clip, that's the bottom of the neck, the shoulders, the belly, and the hip area.  Go against the growth of the hair.  The hair direction changes all over the place, so follow the hair and not the lines you drew.  You'll go back in and neaten it up with the little clippers.  The skin needs to be taut in order to avoid pinching or cutting your horse, use your free hand to keep skin tight and smooth when needed.  Keep an eye on the temp of the clippers, they can get burning hot fast.  Spray them with coolant and make sure the air intake stays clear of hair.  You'll have some lines no matter how careful you are, you can even them out by going over them at a 45 degree angle.  You'll get clip lines no matter what, but a clean horse, sharp blades, and touching them up will get the worst of it.

After step 5.

Note the slightly jagged lines and the shaggy spots on the belly and face.  Close up shot, pretending the old clip is the chalk lines.

That's about how close I get to the lines with the big clippers.

6.  Do the trim work with the smaller clippers.  This is usually between the front legs, between the hind legs, the area around the tail, the face, and the ears.  If you have someone to help, having them pull a front leg forward makes it much easier to trim the hair over the wrinkles in the armpit.  It's very easy to pinch a horse in this area, go slow.  On particularly hairy horses (*cough*Theo*cough*) I do clip the face up to the line of the bridle.  You typically don't with a trace clip, but Theo's head is big enough without the added padding.  Even if I don't clip the whole face, I always clip the underside between the jowls.  I trim the tufts of the ears but don't clean clip them since they need the warmth and they'd look weird clean shaven unless I'm doing the whole face (only with a full body clip). 

Shots of the face and tail area after going over them with the small clippers.  Black bay is a pain for photos, but you should be able to see the line down his face, his still fuzzy ears, and the even garters at the tops of his back legs (at least when he's standing square).

Because I keep Theo's tail trimmed, I did that today, too.  Makes his butt look bigger.

7.  Even out your lines from the body clippers.  It's hard to do detailed work with the heavy beasts.  If your horse is really hairy, you'll have trouble making your lines even due to the hair hanging down from the unclipped parts.  Flip your clippers over to run along the line and make it straight.  This gives it a bit of a tapered look and keeps the woolly mammoth impression to a minimum.

8.  Give your horse a good brushing and another cookie for being so patient!

Can you believe all of that is from one month?  Ridiculous.


Tricks to remember:

• Keep a close eye on the heat of your clippers.  I can't even count the number of times I've seen people struggling to hold their clippers because they've gotten so hot, but they keep clipping.  Guess what, their horses don't clip well.  Because clipping is painful with blades that hot.  If they're uncomfortable to hold, they're probably painful for your horse and you need to take a break.  Keep the blades lubricated and check the air intake for hair if they're heating up quickly.
• Lighting is key.  If you can clip outside on a sunny day, do it.  
• Better to clip multiple times then to wait.  Theo will probably get clipped three times this fall/winter (September, October, November).  That keeps him comfy even though more hair is coming in.  He doesn't shed well, so he'll probably get clipped again in April with a full body clip.
• I firmly believe any horse can learn to be clipped while ground tied.  It just takes forever for some horses.  Don't wait until fall to introduce the clippers.  Make it a ho hum every day sort of thing.  Turn on the clippers, run the end over the body, give them a cookie, put them away every day for a month.  If that's too much, start with just turning the clippers on and have them running in the background while you groom.  They'll start enjoying the sound of the clippers if it means a cookie and nothing else.  It takes dedication and time.
• Clip at least a week before your show so your horse's hair has time to settle down and so you can touch up little spots you missed.  All horses look a bit like shorn sheep right after a clip.  Some shine products can help with the dull effect from the cut hair, just avoid the saddle area.
• Keep spare blades on hand for the times when your blades start to quit but you're only half way through the horse.  It also lets you rotate which ones you send off to be sharpened so you always have some on hand.

Happy clipping!

Overdrive

It's funny how this happens.  I've been lollygagging most of this year, just getting back into the swing of things with horses and riding.  Then, all of a sudden, fall arrives and things get crazy.

October 25th is my schooling three phase and my first attempt at taking Theo cross country.  Yikes.

November 1st is a hunter pace with Theo and hopefully a chance to get us both used to cantering/galloping in the open.  Yikes.

November 6th - 8th is now a clinic with Mary Wanless to work on biomechanics.  It's a seriously fancy clinic at Cutler Farm.  Where Heather Blitz is based.  Double Yikes.

Oh, and my mother-in-law is visiting in the middle of that somewhere.  I don't know how much of me she'll actually see.

So I'm planning on eating a lot of ramen for awhile.  Multi-day clinics are not cheap business.  Especially with stabling and hotel fees.  On the plus side, Theo is fed and his stall is mucked for me while they feed me all of my meals.  It should be such a change from my small barn.  The most exciting bit is traveling with Dorkzilla and his owner!  They're going to the same clinic so we're going to buddy up.  Carpooling is definitely the way to go.

I'm super excited to spend three days focusing on being a dressage rider and hanging out with my dressage friend at a dressage barn.  I think that's the boost I'm going to need going into the winter.  Trainer A believes in No Stirrup November, but she also supports Dressage December, so that's something to look forward to.  I need to get my hands and body under control if we're going to get that shoulder in right straightened out!

By the time this little surge is over, I think Theo and I will be ready to head into winter hibernation.  We're already having to bust out the coolers for after our rides.  I have to clip him again today to manage the new level of fuzz growing in.  It's never fun to spend an hour getting your horse cool and dry after a ride.