Our main barn worker retired a couple weeks ago.  Laura is a tough, gruff, wiry lady, the kind you’d expect to see working as bartender at a biker bar or something. She doesn’t take shit from anyone, but at the same time she’s incredibly kind and caring. Originally Laura worked in corporate America, at a big company where she got up every day, put on her suit and heels, and played the 9-5 game. Then one day she looked around at her life, realized how deeply unhappy she was, and walked away from it all to pursue a career that would make her feel happy and fulfilled.

First she worked at the race track, as a hot walker, then a groom. She worked longer hours and more days and made less money, but her heart was happy. Every single day she felt like she was making a difference in the horse’s lives, and every single day she got to enjoy being outside and moving around instead of chained to a desk in a cubicle. I can identify with that part of Laura in a major way, and I admire the courage that it took for her to walk away from stability in favor of something more satisfying.

Eventually Laura made her way to my barn, which is of course where I crossed paths with her. When Henry moved in he was fresh out of rehab for his saucer fracture and required a pretty strict routine for his first month or so. Laura impressed me right away with her dedication to making sure that he was taken care of appropriately. No matter how inconvenient, she did it all to a “T” with no complaints.

It didn’t take long for Henry to become one of Laura’s favorites. She thought his cheeky personality was quite funny, and I was getting texts in the middle of day asking something like “Can Henry have banana?” or “Henry wants some of my Bugles, can he have some?”. She shared all of her snacks with him, but his particular favorite was her extra salty sunflower seeds. Eventually she got to where she would buy two bags at a time, one for herself and one for him.

Laura also knew the behavior of every horse, inside and out. When Henry colicked last winter, she called me and said “Henry is half-heartedly eating his breakfast, and every once in a while he stops to paw. I’m worried he’s colicking.”. And she was right, he was. But she caught it so fast that a little bit of Banamine and a 20 minute walk fixed him right up, and for the next few weeks she soaked his hay every day and gave him alfalfa, “just to be sure“.

Henry isn’t the most maintenance-free horse to take care of. In the summer he really can’t stay out past 10am or he’ll sweat to death, and in the winter he requires close attention be paid to his blanketing needs. Laura had no problem with any of it though, always stopping in the middle of chores to bring him in, or coming back down to the barn late at night to put his blanket on. I never had to worry about whether my horse was too hot or too cold. And she always tossed him extra hay.

If she saw me packing up my trailer to go somewhere, she’d stop what she was doing and help me pack, despite my protests. Before I could even turn around she’d be tossing hay up in the bed of my truck or packing Henry’s grain. That’s just her nature. It didn’t really matter if you needed the help or if she had other things to do… she’s a helper, and she was going to help. And every single time we got back from the show, she was the first one asking me to see pictures and video. She thought Henry was just a blast to watch. But really, that shows you how invested she was in “her” horses, and how much she genuinely cared about them. Laura even asked about Presto all the time, and became deeply invested in his journey too.

Laura’s husband had a stroke a few years back, so pretty much every spare minute she had was spent taking care of him. They lived in a mobile home on the property, and she would buzz back and forth from the barn to the house, making sure everyone was taken care of. That was her job, 24/7. But eventually her husband required more and more care, and she decided to retire and move closer to family so she would have some help. A decision I totally understand and respect, but I miss Laura a lot, just the same, and I think Henry does too. If nothing else, he’s wondering where the heck the nice lady with the sunflower seeds went. I still send her texts and pictures, because I know how much she’s missing the horses, too.

Barn workers in general are overworked, underpaid, and a lot of times very under appreciated. Because of that, good ones can be really hard to come by, yet they have one of the most important roles in our industry. They’re the ones that interact with our horses the most, and they’re the ones that are entrusted with their overall health and well-being. So if you have a good one like Laura, make sure they know how much you appreciate them and everything they do for you and your horse… I guarantee they will be happy to hear it.

Four years ago today I took a crazy leap of faith and bought a plain bay TB named Jerry off of Facebook, sight unseen. I immediately dubbed him NotJerry (because I didn’t like that name and didn’t want it to stick) before hemming and hawing for a while, looking at his pictures, and settling on Henry instead. A friend of mine picked him up in Arkansas and brought him back to Texas with her, so I didn’t meet him until the next day, but I was already a bit more in love than someone should be with a supposed “resale” horse. Clearly that whole resale part never happened.

 

This horse brings me so much joy, and puts laughter into my life every single day. He’s my best buddy, my team mate, my confidant, and my therapist. I trust him implicitly, and I’d like to think he feels the same way about me. Every day when I see that goofy face come greet me at the gate, it makes my heart a little more full. I’ve owned a lot of horses in my lifetime, having spent a long time going from one project to another, but none of them have been as special to me as this one.

That’s not to say that these four years have been easy-peasy. Henry is one of the most challenging horses I have ever had, and it’s taken me a long time to figure him out. He has some baggage that we may never fully overcome, but he shows up to work every day and tries his heart out for me without exception. He’s taught me how to be more tactful, more aware, and how to think outside the box.

He’s taken me on a journey I would have never even dreamed possible and taught me more than I knew I was capable of learning. He has humbled me, yet boosted my confidence at the same time. He is not fancy or flashy or endlessly talented. No one would ever pick him out of a crowd. But that plain brown wrapper is hiding a heart of gold, and that’s the most important thing any horse can possess.

If you had told me four years ago that we’d be where we are today, I would have thought you were smoking something really expensive. Henry has brought me back to eventing and reignited my passion for the sport. He’s carried me over things I never thought I would have the courage to jump. And yesterday in our dressage lesson we did a canter half pass that was good enough to get a “YES! EXCELLENT!” from our trainer. But mostly he’s just been a rock steady presence in my life, flopping that tongue around like a doofus when I’ve had a bad day or looking for just the right bush to spook at when he thinks I’m getting a little too big for my britches. I’ve never had another horse like him, and I can only hope that there are still many more adventures that lie ahead for us.

To Henny! You are one of a kind, bud, and it’s an honor to be your human.

 

Let us discuss!

I grew up in the h/j ring, where ponies were strictly kid’s horses. I can count on one hand the number of times I saw adults on ponies, and usually it was because said pony had been N-A-U-G-H-T-Y at some point, not because the adult actually owned and showed the pony regularly. And if it was in the dreaded 14.3-15.2h range – forget it! No value in a horse that size. These days I don’t know if it’s just that the tide is turning a bit, or if it’s the fact that I’m involved in different sports, but seeing an adult on a pony or hony isn’t a rarity anymore.

While I personally am a bit big for actual ponies, I could totally see myself on something 15h-15.2h. I think it’s great that we’re seeing smaller mounts more regularly for adult riders. After all, how many times have we seen an adult amateur perched atop a giant warmblood that is quite literally way too much horse in every regard?

These days, the quality of the purpose-bred ponies and crosses is so high. Gone are the days of short-legged little demon fluffs who look as if they were made from spare parts and moved like miniature sewing machines. These days the ponies easily rival the warmbloods when it comes to quality gaits and talent.

While the dressage pony/hony breeding has really gotten quite good in this country, the jumper side of things has been slower to grow. I think a lot of people believe that a pony or small horse just couldn’t possibly have the scope and step to rival a horse, but to those people I ask – ever watched the pony jumpers in Europe? Those things can ping around 1.20m like greased lightning, and it’s not at all unheard of for them to make it to 1.30m or 1.40m. Granted, it’s probably slightly more unnerving to approach a bigger fence when said fence is taller than your mount, and some people genuinely do need larger horses. But really, do I have to do anything more than point to Kent Farrington and Creedance to prove the potential positives of a smaller mount?

There has always been a pretty strong, yet niche market for the Connemara in eventing, something they have proven time and time again to excel at. I have to admit, I myself am a big Connemara fan. Someday I’ll own a cross. Preferably buckskin. Not that I’m dreaming or anything (okay, I might be a little obsessed with WH Topgun). They are not always the best movers though, and good ones can be hard to find.

I’ve been thinking about this subject a lot since we saw the pony-sized Usandro in France a few months ago. He is mostly warmblood, and certainly looks just like a warmblood, only shrunken. He gives scope, a good length of step, rideability, and good gaits to his foals. He’s by the horse stallion Sandro Boy, who scored a 10.0 for jumping at his approvals, went on to be a World Cup winner under Marcus Ehning, and sired the Champion of the Holsteiner licensing in Germany this year. His damsire is Welcome Sympatico, who managed compete successfully through 1.55m despite being only 15h. The amount of “jump” in that pedigree is better than most horse stallions in this country. The more I’ve let it ruminate, the more I think he would cross really well with the type of mare base we have in the US and make some really super little horses that could excel at all 3 Olympic disciplines. Spoiler alert – the first three photos in this post are all Usandro offspring in Europe.

What I’ve really been stuck on, though, is how to make a stallion like this appeal to American breeders. The most obvious answer is easy: demand. Riders have to want these horses in order for anyone to produce them. A lot of people seem stuck on the magical 16h minimum requirement. I get that, but there are also plenty of people that could have a lot of success with smaller horses (or ponies), too. How do we encourage that, or get people to take a chance with (and see the value in) a more pint-sized mount? Those are the questions I keep pondering.

Over time I think that these sportponies and honies will continue to gain ground with adult riders. Competitions like the Pony Cup are definitely helping, as is the media attention that a lot of small horses get at competitions. Could a stallion like Usandro find a market here as a sire? Will American riders buy the offspring? And will the prices be enough to actually make it worthwhile to breed them, or will people see a pony and expect it to be cheap? I want to find out.

You know those fences that you look at for years and think “Eff no I am never jumping that stupid thing, it is too big and wide and I don’t want to die”? Ok, I’ve said that about a lot of things. But at Pine Hill there is a Prelim wagon in particular that is pretty much all of my worst nightmares rolled into one. It’s essentially a square table, which I hate. It’s big enough to be like… an actual wagon. I tend to be firmly in the camp of “don’t jump things that could be vehicles or residences for anyone hobbit sized or bigger”. Seems to just be a good life rule, ya know? Right up there with “don’t stick your hand in a fire” and “don’t walk out in front of a bus”. But before we get to that part, let me set the stage for you.

We were out there on Sunday, Henry and two little fresh-OTTB kids. They were adorably (and sometimes hilariously) jumping around the Goldilocks/BN stuff, and I was just kind of there to jump whatever. No need for an intense XC school at the moment, but it’s always good to get out and school a little bit with some kind of frequency. One of the OTTB kids was Trainer’s greenie, who is about 3 weeks into his retraining and was bopping right around with no problem. He’s super quiet and smart and handsome, it’ll be fun to see him come along.

The other belongs to Lofty‘s mom Kathy, who has only had him for a couple weeks but he’s a super bold and willing guy. This one is also quite smart, and looks like he’ll make up to be a cross country machine. He really didn’t even look twice at anything until we got to the little faux trakehner back in the woods, which he took exception to by leaping, like a deer, sideways across it. It was hilarious in the way that only green horses can be, as he was flying through the air to a chorus of shrieking laughter from the peanut gallery (myself included). And if that happens in front of me, I will absolutely Photoshop that picture. Say hello to Blitzen. I love him. (and I have no idea what his actual name is)

So there were those two little green beans, and then Henry and I. I guess Henry was supposed to act as the “big brother” influence but honestly when it came to the whole walking-through-the-woods part, Henry was the spookiest of the bunch. I legit almost went flying off the back of him at one point when he spooked at a bird.

We bopped over a couple little fences to warm up, then Trainer told us to jump Prelim 1 to Prelim 2. We’ve done 1 before, just a big log stack, but I have never been a fan of 2. It’s not as straight-up-NOPE for me as the wagon, but it’s another big square solid table. No one at USEA seems to be on board with my “burn all the tables” idea, so I guess we should get used to jumping them. Plus the fact that we didn’t die over that last huge brush table at Texas Rose has given me a little bit more confidence.

Then we headed to the water and jumped both Training ways through it. I didn’t realize it until we got in, but the recent rains have raised the water level substantially. We got about two strides into the water before it turned into Splash Mountain and a big wave of water came flying all the way up to my head. I was soaked.

I declined to jump the Prelim route through the water. We’ve already done that a couple times before and I had no desire to get any wetter than I already was. For real. I was wiping freezing cold water out of my EYEBALLS.

We kept going around the course to the mound, where the babies jumped a few things. Trainer asked if I wanted to jump the Prelim wagon, which was the only bigger fence in the area. I kinda looked at her, looked at the wagon, had a moment of bravery, and said “sure”. I mean… apparently she thinks I can jump the wagon without dying, the horse feels good today, I’m only halfway shitting myself just thinking about it… this might be as good as conditions ever get. Trainer told me to go check the footing around it first, and I slowly walked over and around it to verify that it was nice and dry, while also trying really hard not to make direct eye contact with that thing. I don’t need to know how big it is. Then I picked up the canter, strapped my balls on extra tight, and away we went.

And we did it! I actually sat up and waited to the base (because it was the only option besides death – amazing how you ride better when there’s no other option) and Henry popped right over like NBD.

I pretty much quit with that and spent the rest of the time enjoying our trail ride through the woods. There was a P combo that we haven’t done and I would like to, but it was down at the crater and the footing was still pretty muddy there. I didn’t think that was wise, so we’ll shelve that one til next time.

I’m mostly still shocked that I finally jumped that stupid wagon – and lived to tell the tale, no less. And it didn’t seem hard. And Henry was ho-hum about it. WTF is even happening? Don’t get me wrong, we are a LONG WAY from even considering jumping around a Prelim for real, if we ever do. We have plenty of issues to iron out at Training. Plenty. And by we I mean me. But it’s pretty fun that we can go out to school and casually jump some of this stuff that is pretty legit and have it not seem like a big deal. It does a lot for the confidence, and makes me love that silly little brown horse even more.

I’ve always had a hard time being a casual enthusiast about anything. I either really dislike something or really love something, and if I really love it, I can be a wee bit obsessive. So when USEA announced that they were going to live stream the Annual Convention, I put my on geek glasses (theoretical, of course) and got to planning. The schedule made it such that I really had to pick and choose, and some of those choices were hard. Usually they had several streams going at once, plus they were on Pacific time so I missed some due to the fact that I…. ya know… had to peel myself away to go ride my horse. But on Friday and Saturday I managed to catch several different presentations, and of course I took notes!

First up – Equiratings! USEA will be implementing Equiratings as an assessment tool to help minimize risk of horse falls. Basically every horse will get a rating based on past performances.

EquiRatings 

• already implemented in Ireland, where they saw a 15% decrease in falls at 2* level by removing less than 5% of competitors at highest risk
• ratings will be by horse
• ERQI (EquiRatings Quality Index) scale goes from 0-1
• there will be outliers – horses that are not at risk for fall but have “bugaboo” fences types that cause consistent refusals
• main goal is RISK MANAGEMENT
• think of this is an assessment tool for your horse and it’s current progress
• competitions can carry their own risk ratings
• this is not a qualification – it is a pilot program that will be open to feedback and changes

 

Next was Marilyn Payne going over the major changes to the new 2018 dressage tests, explaining what the new movements are looking for, and giving tips on a few things.

2018 Dressage Tests

• All of A’s you track left, all of B’s you track right
• B’s are harder test
• Included as many mirror image movements as possible
• All free and medium walks are separately scored
• Every halt is a separate score
• Prelim trot work rising or sitting
• Extended free walks to long diagonals
• coefficients taken out of walk scores since there are now separate walk scores
• BN test – don’t have to trot all the way up to the scary judge at C or do 10m half circle from centerline
• N test – 2 loop serpentine, stretch circle in Novice B
• Training A – 10m half circle left, then right. Training B – teardrop shape. “develop a lengthening” – don’t just come blasting out of the corner.
• Change your diagonal at the end of the change of direction.
• Come back to working from lengthening after center line on canter circles.
• Halt/reinback introduced at Mod B
• Prelim A – few changes in movements, Prelim B counter canter loop to X instead of quarter line. Stretch serpentine (like FEI test).
• Halt score – not just about being square, its about the balance going into the transition as well as immobility
• Leg yield – almost completely parallel to the rail with just a slight flexion of the head. Many people overbend the neck/shoulder.

 

After that was an open forum session on the Classic 3Day series.

Classic 3Day 

• needs to be a sample conditioning program on the USEA site
• suggestion about sending an “info packet” to riders when they enter so they have a better idea of what to expect
• Colleen Rutledge: likes using the classic format for developing horses, especially crossbreds, so they start learning how to handle themselves when they begin to feel tired
• how to draw more entries – prizes? event sponsors to offset organizer costs?
• if you want classic format in your area, ask the organizers, tell the area chairs, etc. A lot of organizers won’t take on the additional expense/work unless they think it will draw enough competitors to be worthwhile.

 

AND THEN… on to the Future Event Horse program discussion with FEH judge Robin Walker.

FEH

• We’re seeing better quality horses and more of them
• it’s always clear who takes the time to properly prepare their horses both for the triangle and the free jumping – preparation is KEY to good results
• first year of 4yo FEH was a success, provided a good segue for 4yo’s who were not ready for YEH
• USEA will provide an experienced, professional team to run the horses through the free jump chute (this will be optional whether you want to use them or do it yourself)
• RW thinks the program has outgrown the infrastructure that supports it
• they want to create of system of apprenticeship, seminars, and online testing and continuing education courses for judges.
• judges have to start attending FEI jogs and learn to spot what a 1*, 2*, 3*, and 4* horse looks like – one of the biggest complaints is that judges aren’t taking future potential into consideration enough
• introducing “dealbreakers” to judges – things that should automatically knock a horse down from the top placings
• RW wants to see USEA provide a platform for registration for farms/breeders so that riders and owners are more easily able to find purpose-bred horses in the US

 

Carrying right along from FEH to YEH, there are a lot of big (and IMO good) changes coming to the YEH program.

Young Event Horse

• common request – make the judging shorter. There is a new revised scoresheet and they have simplified the judging.
• Simplify qualifiers to make them easier to run – conformation will only be judged at championships (qualifiers will be 70% jumping, 30% dressage), no halt in qualifying test
• Option fences at championships – one SJ, one XC – a higher or more technical fence to give the rider the option to show off a horse with more power/scope or rideability. You will not be penalized for choosing not jumping it, but if you jump it and it goes badly, it can affect the score.
• 4yo and 5yo qualifying tests are almost identical except for lengthenings and size of circles, so it’s easier for riders to remember
• USEA ultimately wants to develop an American young horse system that goes from FEH to YEH to a 6yo 1* and 7yo 2* program, just like the European model.
• Finals will be held over 2 consecutive days at each coast, total of four days back to back, thur/fri at Fair Hill, Sat/Sun at Fresno
• Courses will be as identical as possible on each coast (Fresno chosen because it is more similar to FH)
• Criteria and scale for judging – under 5, not an event horse, 5’s BN/N potential, 6’s T potential, low 7’s Prelim potential, high 7’s Int, 8-9 Adv 3* 4*

 

The adult rider one was a bit of a snooze for me until Bunnie and Boyd showed up to speak and answer questions, although I was greatly amused at the exponential increase in girlish GIGGLING from the audience as soon as Boyd took the floor.

Adult Rider

• USEA is looking to do a 3 year cycle for AEC’s with 2 years east of the Mississippi and then one year west of the Mississippi
• 2017 – 3 shows offering Modified, 2018 – 17 shows offering Modified. This division will line up with new FEI 2019 1* specs, so it’s expected to grow over the next two years.

Bunnie:

• Clinics are fun and great, but if you have limited funds, put your money into having a great trainer that can give you a very solid foundation.
• The best horses when you’re at the lower level are the ones that can tolerate your mistakes, find a kind horse, not a world-beater.

Boyd:

• being nervous is healthy
• Lots of people’s idea of a hobby is sitting on the couch drinking beer and watching NASCAR. We feel a lot more pressure than they do, but remember that the pressure is a privilege – take a deep breath and enjoy the moment.
• think through the course, but don’t let it consume you. Concentrate but don’t overthink it.
• believe in the work you’ve done at home
• to be a great XC rider you have to have the ability to react well when things go wrong – accept that it’s not going to be perfect and instead focus on how to recover quickly and  move past it
• if you make the warm-up too perfect, things go wrong on course – so in the warmup get some smaller fences out of rhythm, practice the more forward distance, but also challenge yourself to turn in the air or angle fences or try for a less perfect distance. Get the horse and rider focused on the challenges.
• You can improve a horse, but you can’t change him.
• It’s not just the result you’re after. Winning is fun but if you want to improve, be self-critical of your own riding. Compare videos of your riding to the top riders to find things you can do better.
• Cross country is all about confidence, and confidence comes from training.

 

Then I flipped over to the second half of a presentation by an Adequan guy, which was really really really awkward to watch. I was cringing by the end. Mostly it was just a presentation about why Adequan is amazing, which is fine, but when presented with specific questions there was a lot of dodging.

Constructing a Wellness Program for the Aging Horse 

• Good decisions and good management are the best way to keep horses sound
• Adequan dosage – one injection every 4 days for 7 doses has shown to have the most benefit.
• Really hesitant to answer question about how often to do the 7 dose protocol and never gave an actual answer or range. Basically said it depends on the horse, what the issue is, how much damage there is, and how you manage the horse. Someone kept pressing and asked “once a year?” and he said “maybe”, finally ended up saying that he knows some Advanced horses do once a quarter, then admitted they need to do more research in that regard.

 

I watched parts of the presentation from the Charles Owen guy about the differences in injuries by gender while I was waiting for another feed to start but it was so sciencey that honestly most of it went way the heck over my head. The main takeaway was that brain and neck injuries can be more severe for women, and women take longer to recover from them. Here’s a bunch of slides with charts and stuff.

How Rider Injuries Differ by Gender

 

The Rule Change Open Forum was a must-watch of course, although nothing really earth shattering is coming for eventing, and my feed kept dropping out so I missed parts of the explanations and some Q & A.

Rule Changes

• Bits out of rule book and into annex to allow for faster changes and updates
• nose nets will be allowed with signed letter from vet
• allowing brown helmets Dec 1 2018
• glue on shoes legal
• specifically naming the cross country controller under personnel, with criteria for that job
• when measuring a spread fence – including specific verbiage to measure the spread where it is intended for the horse to jump
• qualifications for dressage penalties changes to 45pp, since FEI coefficient is gone
• Safe Sport Initiative

 

Overall I really LOVED having the live stream. I always want to attend the convention but it’s not cheap and it’s hard to get days off of work this time of year. Being able to log in and watch any/all of it was fantastic.