Happy Birthday Klein Mare

5 year old Klein, who clearly knows she rules the world.

Today is Klein's 15th birthday.  While she is like a fine wine, I need her to hit the pause button and become immortal. 

Jumping her earliest jumps as a 5 year old.  This photo in particular got me an offer for $25,000 for her.  Obviously she never has been and never will be for sale, so there was no chance for that person who made the offer. 

 Second time schooling 3'9".

Galloping through the desert on xc. 

One of the first pictures I saw of her.  These were in her online sale ad.  She is 2 here. 

2 year old Klein during her first days in Hawaii. 

This was taken the day I picked her up from the port in Honolulu!

She is still going strong at 15, working on Second Level dressage, starting to school Third Level movements, and schooling 3'9" fences.  How long will it be until she starts to tell me it's time to back off?  I have no idea, but I am always listening.  I have always told her if she ever doesn't want to do what we do now, just let me know.  She has nothing to prove to anyone, she doesn't owe me or anyone ANYTHING.

So, she's 15 now, what is her maintenance?  Careful conditioning.  I'm serious.  She's not on anything, she did get Adequan early this year as a preventative but she has never had any joint injections and she's not on any daily supplements for joints and she looks great.  I will give her another round of Adequan later this year as a preventative.

People were extremely negative years ago when Klein started all of this jumping stuff.  They told me I was going to break her or she wouldn't last long, etc...  I always have carefully conditioned her and here were are, still going strong.  Klein is an alien.  I have been convinced for a long time now, she isn't from this planet. 

Some more pictures from over the years:

What's at the end of the rainbow, a perfect unicorn of course. 

Story of our lives. 

Flying. 

This beach was across the street from our barn in Hawaii.  We went there a few times a week.  She was three here. 

Owning the hell out of her stadium round at a horse trial.

The true definition of a Heart Horse in every sense of the word.

Nina Thompson Dressage Freestyle Clinic

This weekend was the dressage musical freestyle clinic I was really looking forward to.  There was an evening seminar session then a riding session the following day.  I have a general idea about what musical freestyles are and the more I see them at rated shows the more I have wanted to do one.  95% of my rides I have Pandora on and there are always songs that seem to match their gaits or that I think would be fun to do a freestyle too so I make a list or download them to make sure I don't forget about them.

I have just never been sure of where to start with putting a musical freestyle together so when I saw this clinic was coming to town I registered immediately with Klein.  The seminar was really a necessary part of the clinic.  Nina broke down the basics of how you get your horse's baseline BPMs (beats per minute) in all gaits, what tools to use, what the range of BPMs are, etc...  She also had different video examples that she made to show us songs that did and did not work for a particular horse.  While some beats may work for a gait, the song may actually make the horse look slower than it is or heavier, or the reverse can happen.  It was very interesting.

In the seminar she also went over how she picks songs, what judges are looking for as far as artistic scoring, and choreography strategy.  I learned a lot!

The second day she told us to have a different color polo wrap on one front leg for our rides.  This helps with visibility when watching the horse to determine BPMs as well as watching it move to certain music.  She sent us all a questionnaire prior to the clinic and asked what level we are riding, our horse's strengths and weaknesses, what is more important: having fun or scoring high, what type of music we had in mind, and did we have a preference for lyrics or instrumental music.

As far as scoring and music I said that I am more interested in having fun with a musical freestyle.  Of course I don't want to go in there and not do well, but if it is between having songs I love or having songs I think the judge would love, I'm going with what I want to ride to.  Nina can work with pretty much any preferences when it comes to songs.  She has a database with hundreds of songs so she can flip through them and find whatever you are looking for, and if she doesn't have it she can get it.

She said that the majority of judges seem to prefer instrumental music so a compromise she uses is, if someone is more concerned about score, popular songs that have been covered by something like a violin group.  Or she will find the instrumental version of the exact song.  She can also work with music and adjust the speed of it if it is slightly off.  Too much adjustment can distort it a little bit though and actually make the horse appear a little heavier.  She showed us examples in the seminar.

The choreography strategy was also very interesting.  I keep forgetting that the judge won't have a list of movements you are going to do for your test.  There are required movements for each level, but they don't have the actual chronology of them like they do with a regular test.  This allows for a lot more freedom.

The second day she started with watching Klein do different movements in all three gaits and matching them with a metronome to get her BPM. 

Then we started trying different songs with the different gaits.  It was fun to listen and feel Klein match up with the music.  We found Macklemore songs that match all of her gaits.  Cake By The Ocean went nicely with her working trot too.  There is also one song I really want to use that we tried and will coincidentally work perfectly with her working canter too, it's called The Man by The Killers and if you read the lyrics and just replace "Man" with "Mare" it's 110% Klein mare.

I know the score like the back of my hand

Them other boys, I don't give a damn

They kiss on the ring, I carry the crown

Nothing can break, nothing can break me down

Don't need no advice, I got a plan

I know the direction, the lay of the land

I know the score like the back of my hand

Them other boys, I don't give a damn

I'm the man, come round

Nothing can break, nothing can break me down

I'm the man, come round and

Nothing can break, you can't break me down

I got gas in the tank

I got money in the bank

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

I got skin in the game

I got a household name

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

When it comes to Friday, I always earn

But don't try to teach me, I got nothing to learn

'Cause baby I'm gifted

You see what I mean?

USDA certified lean

I'm the man, come round

Nothing can break, you can't break me down

I got gas in the tank

I got money in the bank

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

I got skin in the game

I don't feel no pain

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

Who's the man? Who's the man?

I'm the man, I'm the man

Who's the man with the plan?

I'm the man

Who's the man? Who's the man?

I'm the man, I'm the man

Who's the man with the plan?

I'm the man

I'm the man

I'm the man

I got gas in the tank

I got money in the bank

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

I got skin in the game

Headed to the hall of fame

I got news for you baby, you're looking at the man

Right hand to God

First in command

My testimony, but I take the stand

Who's the man? Who's the man?

I'm the man, I'm the man

Who's the man with the plan?

I'm the man

Who's the man? Who's the man?

I'm the man, I'm the man

Who's the man with the plan?

I'm the man

I don't give a damn

I'm the man

Overall, it was very interesting, and very fun and I am going to continue working with Nina to put together a musical freestyle that we will use this fall at rated shows.  I am looking forward to working with her more and learning more.

12 Years Later, Here We Are

May 30th marked 12 years with Klein.  Each year I do a post, and each year it pretty much says the same, because every year it is still true and it always will be.  12 years later, I am still in awe of her every single day.  She really is like a fine wine.  There is no way I can every thank her or repay her for everything she has done and continues to do.  The places we have been, the things we have accomplished, the memories we have made, the things we have learned together, the things she has taught me about myself.  All of it is priceless and irreplaceable.  I honestly don't know where I would be, or who I would be without her.  She is truly one of a kind and everything that makes a Heart Horse.  She is my Horse of  Lifetime, OG, BAMF horse and I am grateful every minute of every day for her.