Amanda C

Hawley Bennett clinic Day 1 – Stadium

Published on November 16, 2015November 17, 2015 by Amanda C15 Comments

Day 1 of the Hawley Bennett clinic was stadium day. Considering the trouble we had at Greenwood in stadium with Henry getting flat, pulling me past all the distances, and being generally careless, I was really looking forward to getting some assistance from Hawley.

HawleyclinicStadium — the best I could do before I ran out of patience

When I got on Henry and headed into the ring, he felt VERY fresh. He’s typically not a horse that gets very fresh, so as he trotted around at Mach 10, pretending to spook at everything outside of the ring, I was groaning a little on the inside. After a brief warmup Hawley called us into the middle and asked us about our horses, problem areas, and what we wanted to work on. Then she sent us out to do a pole exercise. It was just three poles set close together on the curve of a circle, so it looked deceptively easy, but it’s really not. It immediately highlights any kind of straightness issues you have, or rhythm issues, or pace issues, or bend issues, or if you’re weak with your outside aids. I have no video of the canter poles so you’ll just have to trust me on this one – it’s both awful and fantastic. We did the exercise continuously both ways at the trot and canter, until the horses (ahem, riders) did it right, and it helped Henry settle in and focus. Hawley made sure to emphasize that this exercise is hard for the horses, so you should always reward them by quitting or taking a break when they do it correctly.

Then we moved on to a grid – a bounce, one stride, bounce, adding some jumps before and after, and going through the canter pole exercise in the corner as we went around. It was awesome to have those canter poles in the middle of the “course” because a) they were a great “rhythm check” – if you lost your canter rhythm, the poles did not work out well, b) the poles really helped put the horses back on their haunches going into the turn. I love/hate those stupid poles.

After that we moved on to some course work. The arena was set on a slight slope, so it was good practice to jump things up and down the hill. Henry spent most of the lesson wanting to pull me around, but it was more of a fresh, forward type of pulling than a flat, dragging kind of pulling. If that makes any sense. He was still obedient and listening, just stronger than normal.

I got to watch most of the groups throughout the day, and watching was just as educational as riding. The main points of emphasis were:

shorten your reins (pretty much everyone got told this at least twice, myself included. Let’s all just agree that when in doubt we’ll shorten our reins.)
shoulders back (constant throughout the day)
if it doesn’t work the first time, try something else (ie if it doesn’t ride well off one approach, change your line, don’t keep making the same mistake)
keep your rhythm (the whole point of all the work we did was finding and keeping a good consistent rhythm)
reward the horse when it does something right (ie if he saves your ass, pat him. If he does the exercise right, stop drilling it.)

Quality of canter was huge, as was correct upper body position and straightness.

HBclinicss1

Hawley demanded a good, thinking ride (if you clucked, broke to trot, or forgot your course you were getting off to do push-ups) but I thought she was overall very positive and kind. She said that one of her biggest pet peeves was people making stupid mistakes like going off course, because there’s really no excuse for that. “Competitions are too expensive to make stupid mistakes” – and she’s right. Focus and self-discipline are always good reminders. She was complimentary of my horse and my riding, but I still walked away with a few good things to work on. Overall a very good first day! And I didn’t have to do any push-ups, so that’s a win…

Horse show hangover

Published on November 16, 2015 by Amanda C11 Comments

I have serious horse show hangover this morning, and I didn’t even go to a horse show. The Hawley Bennett clinic was this weekend, and Henry and I both had a great time.

HBclinicnom — Henry’s idea of a great time

He had an even better time yesterday when he realized it was XC day and proceeded to show everyone how he thinks he’s destined for greatness. My arms, shoulders, and abs are very sore this morning… kinda feels like I got hit by a truck, but upper body only. I appreciate the boldness Henry, but it’s time to try a Dr Bristol (anybody got one for sale?).

HBclinicxc1

The weather was perfect, the venue was beautiful, lots of friends came, and I was in a group with my trainer on her green horse, so it was all together a pretty perfect setting. We didn’t do anything big, the emphasis was on technical exercises (including a canter pole exercise from hell that will definitely make it into my regular rotation)… exactly what I was hoping for.

HBclinicstadium1 — a video still (with a bonus finger)

I’m still working on getting the videos and pictures together to write a proper recap, so you’ll have to wait til tomorrow for that.

As for this week, it’s supposed to rain today and tomorrow so I figure now is the perfect time to start my dressage saddle dyeing project. Hopefully I don’t totally destroy it. Here goes nothing!

Review (with video): Noble Outfitters Ringside backpack

Published on November 13, 2015 by Amanda C14 Comments

This is everyone’s favorite kind of post – one where I get to admit I was really wrong and have to eat a little crow. Oh, and there’s some Bobby involved… I still don’t get his appeal but you people seem to like him for some reason. I have to assume it’s because you don’t know him or have to spend time with him on a regular basis. Alas, I digress…

I never really understood the ringside backpack craze. If you’re a catchrider or a trainer, I could see how it would be useful. But the rest of us? I just didn’t see it, and I sure didn’t see it enough to pay $100+ for one (or in the case of this particular one, $89 from Riding Warehouse). Then our team won the Noble Outfitters ringside backpack as part of our prizes from the Adult Team Championship, and I was proven wrong.

NObackpackbobby — Bobby is pretty excited about the backpack too, as he demonstrates how well it holds everything in place.

My first impression of the backpack was just how much stuff it could hold. When we got back to our hotel room that first night after winning the ATC and started going through our backpacks, it was like a magic hat. It seemed like the more stuff I pulled out, the more I found hidden within. I didn’t even realize we’d won coolers until I got to the big zippered compartment and went “Oh my god, there’s a cooler in here!”. You know you’ve got serious storage capacity when you can have a giant cooler in your backpack and not even know it.

NObackpack1

There are lots of different compartments in this bag. The first and most obvious one is the front pocket, designed to hold a helmet. I think Noble Outfitters has a superior design to some other companies here because their helmet compartment also has mesh fabric along the sides. If you don’t want to use it as a helmet compartment, it’s still useful for holding other things. Many of the other brands don’t have any fabric on the sides of the helmet compartment, rendering it useless for pretty much anything besides a helmet (or not very secure if you’re like me and keep your hairnets and gloves in your helmet).

On the sides of the outside of the bag there are two mesh pockets on each side – the front ones are a good size for water (or alcohol, for the eventers in the audience) and the smaller ones are perfect for a whip. There’s even a cool little whip holder thingy further up the side of the pack to keep a whip in place so it doesn’t fall out of it’s pocket. Very smart detail.

Behind the helmet compartment there’s a mid-size zippered pocket. I tend to have a rag and/or extra socks in there (or Pop-Tarts) plus it has a little clip to hold your keys in the pocket.

Then there’s the big zippered compartment. The cooler, folded (or wadded, if you’re me) up inside of it only takes up half of the compartment. I can still fit a change of clothes and shoes in there with the cooler. There are also two smaller zippered mesh pockets inside of that big pocket, a good size for a wallet, phone, checkbook, extra hairnets… things like that.

Behind the big zippered compartment is a thinner padded compartment, perfect for a laptop, e-reader, tablet, or anything that’s a bit more delicate.

Finally there’s a small, fleece lined compartment at the very top of the back part of the backpack, meant for sunglasses or a phone. My phone won’t fit in there in it’s giant brick-sized Otterbox case, so I usually just have chapstick and/or sunglasses in there.

Even though the backpack holds a lot, I don’t find it to be overly large or heavy. The straps are well padded and wide, so it’s comfortable to carry, and everything stays put very well. The construction is very good, with quality materials and nice tight, even stitching. I’ve been carrying the backpack with me a lot, both at shows and for every day. The fact that I can walk out of my house in the morning with everything I need for the work day and riding after work, all in one bag, is pretty great.

There are only 2 things I’d change about the backpack if I could:

1) The color scheme. I don’t really love the black and tan. Navy would be awesome, or minimizing/replacing the tan. Of course, that’s just me being really really superficial, because it really doesn’t matter what color it is and it makes the most sense for something like this to be neutral colored (but still, my life needs more navy and less tan).

2) I’d like for the outside helmet pocket to have buckles (thinking a basic plastic side release buckle?) as well as the adjustable straps. I love being able to make the pocket looser or tighter depending on what I have in it, but it’d be just a little bit more convenient if there was a buckle on that strap as well so that if I tighten the straps to hold something in, I could very quickly and easily unbuckle the strap to get the item out, without having to loosen the strap. Just a minor detail, if I’m being really picky.

Overall I’d give the Noble Outfitters Ringside Backpack 4.5 out of 5 stars. For an item that I never thought I wanted, I use it all the time and really love it. I think a lot of riders, not just catchriders or trainers, would get good use out of an item like this.

Tis the season… for A/W collections

Published on November 12, 2015November 12, 2015 by Amanda C32 Comments

There aren’t many things I love more than looking through new collections of riding clothes and tack. Some of it I love, some of it I hate, but still… it’s really fun to look. I’ve been throwing things into a drafted post as I’ve come across them and now that we’re solidly into A/W I figured it was time to post. For the most part a lot of what I saw for A/W didn’t really grab me. It seemed like last year there was a little more color, whereas this year there are more prints. I’m not as into prints. Just can’t jump onboard the leopard print/camo/sailboat/crown/flower train…

Of course, Animo rarely disappoints me and this collection was no exception. The Lakita coat might be my favorite “sparkly” coat I’ve seen so far. I like the seam and crystals on the shoulder area.

and pockets.

The other interesting thing that stood out in Animo’s coat collection was the use of a textured fabric. I still haven’t decided if I like it or not, but it’s interesting none the less.

The only kinda cool thing I saw at Equiline was these breeches with some tone on tone blocking down the leg. I can’t decide if these would be subtly flattering or just kind of distracting. In my mind’s eye they work.

One Horse always has awesome new designs every season, this time with lots of sweatshirts.

GhoDho’s soon to be released Victoria breech in Rouge is enough to make me wish my chunky thighs could fit into this brand without being grotesque. That color is perfect. I want ADE to make a breech this color!

ADE did come out with a nice purple called Aubergine, though. Sadly I’m not really into purple unless it’s really dark, so my money is safe on this one.

They have a tone on tone snakeskin too, similar to the black tone on tone houndstooth (Probably my favorite breeches that I own… which I guess are technically a print. Which I guess makes my earlier statement hypocritical. Does tone on tone really count as a print?). Not into snakeskin in general, but if you’re going to do a print, these are a pretty classy way of doing it.

Asmar is one of my favorites, and they didn’t disappoint with their fall collection. They love an elbow patch just as much as I do, and have them on just about everything. Elbow patches are always the answer.

Aspen Jacket

I’ve had my eye out for this Horseware Marietta sweater ever since I saw it in the AW catalog early this year at AETA. Because if there’s anyone in the world who needs a big ol’ H-is-for-Henry sweater, it’s me.

Welsh Wear is a corgi-centric brand, which is all I really have to say, right? They just came out with sweaters that have a corgi embroidered on the chest. A corgi. In a bow tie. On the chest. Put that on my Christmas list.

I’ve already talked about Kastel’s merino 1/4 zips (review coming next week!) but they also released some new sunshirt colors, including that awesome forest green, a purple, and deeper shade of blue.

On the tack side of things, PS of Sweden released all of it’s “nose plates” for the Get Set bridle that they released in the summer. Now you can swap the noseband out between padded croc with flash, plain croc with no flash, fancy stitched, and a patent one with two colors of interchangeable padding. I do not need another bridle… I do not need another bridle…

Blog Hop: Top 5 Horse Show Essentials

Published on November 11, 2015 by Amanda C27 Comments

As I was standing in my trailer the other day, caulk in hand, examining the roof for leaks, I glanced down at my trusty little manure bucket cart and thought “You might be the single best purchase I’ve ever made”. Yes, I’m in love with a poop bucket cart. But since I’m ADD I continued to stand there holding my caulk, thinking about all of those essential horse show items that I can’t live without, and wondered what other little gems everyone else might have. Thus why we now find ourselves with a blog hop. So – what are your 5 essential horse show items?

1) The muck bucket cart is obviously a huge essential for me. When I was in h/j land and traveled with a trainer there was always a communal wheelbarrow and muck fork. You don’t really appreciate that until you travel solo or in very small trainer-less groups. There’s no room in a 2h BP for a wheelbarrow, so for the first couple shows of the season I just had my muck bucket and fork. I decided to “splurge” and invest in the cart that I’d seen a few people pulling around and man, it’s a life changer. I can plop bales of hay on it and cart them around, too. No more carrying heavy muck buckets all the way to the manure pile, or carrying bales of hay from the truck, and much easier to fit in the truck or trailer than a wheelbarrow. The cart is worth every penny.

2) Granted, I seem extraordinarily incapable of turning the damn thing on correctly at least half the time, yet I still love my helmet cam. It looks kinda goofy strapped to the front of my helmet, for sure, but I love being able to “re-live” cross country whenever I want. My helmet cam videos are my absolute favorite so I really don’t care how stupid it looks.

3) This one was hard for me as a h/j convert because there are few things I love more in the world than a beautiful show trunk, but good ol’ Stanley with his wheels and retractable handle has proven himself indispensable. He’s the perfect size, he’s rugged, he’s light, he’s easy for one person to move around, and he has all the features I need. I no longer own any of my old beloved wooden trunks (that took two people and a lot of cussing to move). Stanley isn’t beautiful by any means, but he is practical beyond measure.

Stanley 37 in. Mobile Job Box

4) When Uncle Jimmy’s graciously offered to sponsor Team Always be a Unicorn for the Adult Team Championship, one of the things they sent us was a Licky Thing value pack. I’ve never offered any kind of hanging stall treat/toy to any of my horses, and when I put it up in Henry’s stall at AEC I really didn’t expect him to care much about it. I was wrong. He went to town on that thing and really seemed to love it. Now I hang one in his stall at every show (and at home when they’re stuck inside) to help alleviate the boredom, and he goes through about one Licky Thing insert per show. A $7 Licky Thing is a small price to pay for a weekend full of Henry entertainment.

5) You might say lucky socks aren’t an essential item, but I beg to differ. I’ve worn these socks on cross country day at every event this year and have yet to have any jumping penalties. Coincidence? I think not. How could you NOT feel motivated wearing these bad boys? They’re always the very first thing I put into my suitcase when I’m packing.