2018 Dressage Season Finale

Championship ribbons/plaque, USDF First Level Rider Performance Award, Percheron News feature in the current edition, and a USDF notification of being preliminary award winners with scores to be finalized this week.

Our dressage season has officially come to an end for the year.  Klein and I got everything accomplished that we set out to do this year both recognized and unrecognized.  Super B got a taste of what shows are all about and made a massive improvement that I could not be happier about.  Overall it was a great, successful year filled with new experiences and more learning (cause we all know that never stops).

Klein ended up as the First Level Reserve Champion for the East Coast Regional Dressage Association.  She was 6th in the Eastern States Dressage and Combined Training Association's First Level Championship.  I would have liked to have finished better than that but that was also less than a week after my fall and my goals quickly readjusted to just being there.  I just wanted to make it to the show and not have to withdraw.  I was still riding in compensation mode for the terrible pain I was still in and it reflected in Klein.  She was great, but I was not as active as a rider as she needed me to be.  Our connection suffered and that's where we lost some points.  I honestly think that the first judge was not really a fan of Klein.  I had some pretty negative comments on the test where the word "lacking" was written repeatedly.  That's fine.  We deserve that, our connection WAS lacking.  Thankfully we did our best work at the recognized shows this year.

I call this look, "peasants."

Still so very thankful I was able to still ride by that show.

As you all know, Klein also participated in several USDF Sport Horse breed shows, one of which was at the infamous Dressage at Devon.  Speaking of USDF, I had set some goals with the All Breeds Program this year and we accomplished them all.  Every single ride and in-hand presentation was a qualifying score for us that went toward year end awards.  It looks like we will be accepting Champion for three different categories with the USDF All Breeds program this year.

Super B made a BIG improvement in her dressage work.  She continues to improve with each ride.  She was 6th in her division with the East Coast Regional Dressage Association.  She would have most likely been Reserve Champion if she hadn't gotten a bit distracted in her first test.  There was a circus going on outside the indoor with trucks driving by within 10 ft of the doors, dogs that were locked in a trailer tack room right out side the indoor were going absolutely INSANE (the prizelist said no dogs allowed too of course), that trailer also had a horse that was screaming its head off every five seconds the ENTIRE time we were there, and there was another horse right outside of the indoor screaming its head off too.  At the end of the first test the judge actually said to me that it wasn't really fair to B that all of that was going on.  I mean, stuff like that happens at shows, she has to get used to it, but it was bad timing that day.

Recent schooling ride.  I just love her.  Just look at her!!

In addition to the circus, people pulling in were being stopped if there was a ride going on in the outdoor.  B has to learn to deal with all the commotion, but if you are going to stop vehicles by one ring, you need to be fair to the other ring and enforce the same rule as well, and that wasn't happening.  Also, why put the Starter Horse division inside?  Put them outside and put Starter Rider inside since they're going to be on more experienced horses.  Such is horse show life.  So with the distraction, B's first test was a 64%, and who can complain about that?  That was her best score yet, so just imagine what she can do without a distraction.  The judge also told me that the rest of the test was very nice.

First championship ribbon!  There will be more where this came from!

Thickest light horse mane ever.  She sure loved being braided though.  She fell asleep in the cross ties while we listened to Pandora and I braided.

The second test she had no issues and scored a 70%, and who can complain about THAT?  A 70%?  A 70...when a few months earlier at her first dressage show I was questioning if I was going to be able to get her IN the ring and keep her in it.  I don't care where she placed after seeing that 70%.  I couldn't have asked for better from her.  She was great overall that day though.  Handled the usual ridiculousness of people not paying attention in a busy warm up ring and hung out on the trailer waiting for Klein to finish up that afternoon.

I mean...just look at her.  What an improvement.

Oh Super B...*le sigh*

In addition to year end USDF awards, I still have to submit my paperwork for my year end ESDCTA awards, which I will do next week.  We should find out by December how we did with those.  I am super proud of my mares.  We worked hard, and our hard work paid off.  I can't wait to see what we can do next year!

One of Those Wear Your Helmet Stories aka I WALKED Out of the ER

A week ago I was about to get on a horse that I am familiar with and have ridden several times in various settings.  This horse has never concerned me in any way.  He has always been a good boy and is a very sweet guy in general.  We all know that things can just happen with horses and last Monday was one of those days for me.

I was getting on this horse and he was standing like a statue like he always does when in the blink of an eye he jumped up and bolted.  I wasn't all the way on, more like most of the way on, so I was already behind the motion and didn't have the reins gathered up yet.  It felt like he also may have thrown a little buck in there or maybe it was a small jump over something on the ground.  If I would have been all the way on him correctly I could have rode that gallop out but I just could not right myself and got slammed on the ground about 50 feet later.

I have come off plenty of times, the last time was about five years ago when Klein slipped galloping around a corner and tried so, so, so, so hard to catch herself but just couldn't manage.  We both fell and as I saw the sky as we were falling on our left sides I had the presence of mind to try to roll away as fast as I could because I was afraid she would land on my left leg and break it.  Some of my training from the military actually kicked in and I combat rolled right away from her.  I HEARD my helmet crack that time and had a headache immediately.  Klein was still on the ground, sitting up with her legs folded under her, confused.  I got up and walked over to her, rubbed her forehead and told her to get up so I could see if she was ok.  She appeared to be fine and I got back on and she felt fine at the walk and trot so we cantered a short distance.  I wanted to show her I was ok, she was ok, we were ok, and not have her lose any confidence.

I know that was not the brightest idea, but it was very short and then we walked straight back to the barn where I called a friend to tell them what happened and also called them back to tell them exactly when I was leaving the barn, which way I was driving home, and the time they should get another call from me telling them I made it home.  I also had people on notice to let me know if I said anything odd or backward or seemed confused for any reason and I would go straight to the ER.  In hindsight, the fact I heard my helmet crack and had a headache for three days after should have sent me straight to the ER.  I will never hesitate again no matter if I can walk it off.

I have taken many Forensic Pathology/Death Investigation classes for two of my degrees and I know all too well what a subdural hematoma is.  The fall five years ago was prior to these classes fyi.  I know what it looks like inside of your head, on your brain, and I know what it is capable of doing, to include killing you.  To those of you that don't know, one thing that subdural hematomas are known for is the fact that people will take a blow to the head whether it be a fall, or from an object striking the head, or vice versa, and think they are ok because they have no visible injury and/or are not in pain.  These individuals will not seek immediate attention and will go home and never wake up.

Anyway, back to last Monday.  That was by far the hardest I have ever hit the ground in my entire life.  The worst part is my mom is visiting and saw the entire thing and came running over to me.  She asked me if I was ok because I thankfully did not get knocked out and I told her I didn't know.  It took me a minute to gather my thoughts and at first I couldn't roll over, or sit up.  I had a headache immediately and was waiting for the pain of broken bones to register.  I managed to think to tell my mom to give me my phone and I called the horse's owner, who was at the farm, but not the area we were in, to tell them that the horse was loose and I couldn't get up to go get it. 

I knew I was hurt pretty bad but still not sure how bad. I got up after a minute and started limping in the direction the horse went.  People had caught the horse I went limping out there saying "I have to get back on, I have to get back on!!"  We took the horse to the ring and I was going to get back on until I realized I had no idea what day it was and I couldn't tell anyone the day my parents got here for their visit (which was three days prior).  Later I would find my bridle even had broken, probably because I had the reins in my hand when I hit the ground and that broke the reins and one bit hanger on the Micklem I had on him.  I never noticed any of that...

Not knowing what day it was is something that has never happened to me in my life and I knew we needed to go to the ER.  I could tell you the alphabet (which I ran through to my mom), my address, and how to get back to my house, but the day or month?  No idea.  My poor mom had to drive me home (I had no problem telling her were to turn to get home) where The Other Half took me to the ER since he knew right where it is, and what a coincidence the same one I had to take him to for almost cutting a finger off one day.

Our house is a very short drive from where we were and the ER was in that direction too.  While The Other Half was driving me to the ER he said I slurred a couple words and that my right pupil was bigger than the left. I limped into the ER and while we were in the waiting room the pain through my entire right side started to set in and I really started to get scared that I broke something.  We went back to a room where I had the most unfriendly ER doc ever, I get it she probably deals with a lot of extremely difficult people, but we were being nice! 

She told me to tell her what happened and I did and she goes "well, obviously the horse had to be moving you don't fall off sitting there."  The Other Half started laughing and I said "Uh, you can absolutely fall off from a stand still if a horse does something stupid."  Her reply was "well, that's something you can discuss with your riding friends."  Ok lady, but you started that conversation.  I also brought my helmet with me because often times they will want to see what you were wearing when you hit your head.  She looked at it and goes "What's this???"  I told her it was the helmet I was wearing in case she wanted to see it.  She was like, "I don't need that, you can get rid of that."  Okkkk then.  By the way, that helmet is going in the trash.  The Other Half ordered me a replacement while we were sitting in the waiting room, luckily I have a spare at home, and a One K that I use for shows.

I had a CT scan that was clear of any bleeding or obvious injury and a bunch of x-rays of my right side lower back/hip.  Those were also clear.  The conclusion was a mild concussion and severe bruising of my right side.  She gave me some Tylenol and told me to walk it off.

That evening I hurt really bad.  Moving anything on the right side of my body even a centimeter was excruciating.  I could barely dress/undress myself or even get in and out of bed, let alone a car.  I definitely couldn't stand on my right leg or even put my shoes on without having to sit down.  Getting up off the couch was a dramatic feat too.  This has honestly been the worst pain I have ever been in from anything (surgeries, other injuries, etc...)  The next day I felt like I got dropped off a 20 story building and landed on my right side.  I still managed to go walk, well limp, around downtown Philly that day.  Sitting down for a while was what made it worse so I wanted to keep moving even though that hurt too.

I ended up having a limp for four days.  I have a big numb patch on my right side hip/low back and my skin in that entire area has hurt to the touch so bad that it would make me leap off of whatever I was sitting on if it touched anything.  It STILL hurts to the touch today, a week later, and I still have the big numb area.  I have an area that honestly feels like muscles/tendons were ripped off of bone.  I may go back to the doc and have them x-ray it again because it is still pretty painful.  We have a friend that had a fall off one of his horses and went to the ER where they found nothing on x-rays.  He was still having significant pain a week later, went back and found he had a broken neck and back.  I don't think I have anything that severe but I would not be surprised if there is some kind of hairline fracture somewhere. 

The second day after the fall I got on Klein and Super B.  Klein had another championship show this past weekend so I needed to get rides in and was just hoping I would even be able to ride my tests by that Sunday.  Super B, she needs rides, I probably could have waited a couple more days but, surprisingly (actually that probably is not surprising) riding made me feel a little better.  So if I was going to ride, I figured I'd just stick to my own horses for the rest of the week.

So, what helmet potentially saved my life last week?  A Charles Owen 4Star. 

https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/charles-owen-4star-helmet-10764

The helmet I was wearing that I heard crack five years ago was a Charles Owen Ultralight Euro Skull Cap.  I heard it crack but there were no visible cracks or damage to it.  I threw it away the day that fall happened. 

I filled out Charles Owen's survey for after you take a fall in one of their products.  They use the data as feedback for their designs and to make adjustments as needed with future models.  They also respond with an email that is good for a 20% discount on a new helmet.

As for the horse, he saw something.  I don't know what it was, it was most likely something only horse vision can see but that is NOT like him.  He didn't have a care in the world until that exact moment when he leaped up and bolted.  Something could have bit/stung him for all I know.  It could have been any horse.  He was terrified.  He bolted in the opposite direction of his pasture where all his buddies were too.  He was deathly afraid of something.  I visited him the next day and hugged on him to show him I was ok, and to tell him I was sorry he had such a scare from whatever monster it was that he saw.  I'll be on him this week again.  He's been ridden since I fell and was his usual excellent, sweet self.

I know some of you are sick of hearing "wear your helmet" because no matter how many horror stories you hear, it won't make a difference.  It's a personal decision, I get it. But I'm going to say it again.  Wear your helmet.  Wear it.  Every ride, every time.  It doesn't matter if the ride is 2 seconds, 2 minutes, 20 minutes, or 2 hours.  It doesn't matter if you're jumping or trail riding or taking a leadline lesson.  WEAR IT.  I know you can still get severely injured even with one on, but there are also so many scenarios that can/will end MUCH better if the rider had a helmet on.  A helmet could make all the difference in the world between you walking out of the ER or being a slobbering vegetable.  I had a helmet on and didn't know what day it was, imagine what would have happened to me if I wasn't wearing one?  I would NOT have walked (limped) out of the ER the same day.  I may not even be writing this post right now.  I wouldn't have been back on my horses in two days, and I wouldn't have made it to the next championship show (we made it, post soon).  Most importantly, I wouldn't have been able to enjoy the time I had with my parents while they were here.  Oh and let's not forget the poor Other Half would have definitely been on full barn chore duty for more than just a day. 

See, we made it!

Dressage at Devon - Dressage Sport Horse Breed Show - Part 2

The next morning we were both trying to prop ourselves up with caffeine as we made the drive back.  Traffic wasn't terrible, but I guarantee you if I had brought Klein that morning, it would have been.

Klein was braided when we got there and I immediately got her out for a walk.  I felt like such a bad horse mom that she even had to stay in that stall for one night.  I must have apologized ten times to her.  She was still unimpressed by the busy atmosphere that morning complete with babies and other young horses in the warm up for the breed show going insane.  One handler was dragged around by a naughty baby and ended up leaving in an ambulance the day prior.  Breed shows are crazy.  Too many baby brains in one new place.

I handed Klein off to The Other Half and tried to tell him where to take Klein but he cut me off and said "I know, I saw where you were" and walked off in the opposite direction from where I was.  I went to change and when I came back I learned that he got yelled at twice by two different officials for walking Klein through the vendor village.  Yeah, I definitely did NOT walk her through there, which is why I was trying to tell him where to go.  At least the second one was trying to laugh and make jokes about it.  That was nice of her, she probably felt sorry for him and could tell he wasn't there with a barn half full of horses, only that he was handed a horse and told to walk.

After that I did some final spot touch ups, put Klein's bridle on her and went to the warm-up.  I practiced setting her up and trotted her around to warm her up and get her in that mindset, then waited for our turn.

In the warm-up, and unimpressed with the circus around her.

In we went.  I wasn't nervous because to me, it was low threat.  I knew we weren't going to do well up against nothing but fancy warmbloods at the prestigious Devon, but I still took turnout very seriously and proudly presented my Horse of a Lifetime.

The judge wasn't really a fan but we didn't completely bomb it.  Some of the breed show judges think Klein is the coolest thing ever and think it's great to see something different, others are like, why is this here?  This judge actually wrote "not a horse for dressage."  I laughed, and as expected our score reflected that comment (64%), but it was a qualifying score for All Breeds, so mission accomplished!  Not only did I present a Percheron at the Devon breed show, we accomplished what we set out to do.  We also placed 9th, which meant we got a DEVON ribbon.

It even matches her!

I know, it's a $2 thing, well maybe $4 since it's a Devon ribbon and it's pretty well put together compared to run of the mill ribbons, but that ribbon does have significance to me.  It is a symbol of a goal accomplished in order to achieve a bigger goal, and what I am pretty sure was a first for Devon too, a full Percheron in the Dixon Oval.

Special thanks to The Other Half.  I am always thankful for him, but some shows are more stressful than others and it wears on me sometimes and he has to be around and deal with it.  Though Devon was somewhat simple, there were plenty of logistical obstacles that made us both count down the minutes until we were on our way home with Klein.

As an added bonus I also stopped by to say hi to Lainey Ashker, one of my favorite upper level riders.  We still use tools that she taught us in a lesson every single ride.  I knew she was competing and we actually ran into her and her mom while they were out walking her horse that morning.  After we were done we went to where she was stabled and talked with her for a bit.  She is always such a cool person to talk with in addition to being an upper level bad ass.  She thought it was great that Klein and I were there and she ended up having a great weekend with her guy as well.  You can read about that here, Ringside Chat:  Eventer Laine Ashker is Dancing at Dressage at Devon, and here Monday Video from Tredstep Ireland:  Lainey Ashker Dances at Devon.

Dressage at Devon - Dressage Sport Horse Breed Show - Part 1

We did it, we competed at Dressage at Devon in some capacity.  It was an adventure to say the least and The Other Half wins Horse Hubby of the year for helping me survive the logistical nightmare that is Devon.  It is honestly an adventure I don't care to repeat.

Klein qualified for the 2018 USDF Breeders Championship East Coast Series Final, so, we went.  I entered her fully understanding that our competition would be VERY fancy, VERY expensive warmbloods.  That was fine, we were going just for the experience and to gather our last qualifying score for the All Breeds Dressage Sport Horse Breeding division year end awards.

Devon is on the opposite side of Philly from where we are.  While in theory it takes an hour from our house to get there, traffic would definitely extend that time by some amount and there is no way to tell just how much.  I also knew that the trailer parking lot was not on site and was at least 8 miles away.  You cannot park a trailer anywhere near that place unless you are loading/unloading.  If you are there just for the day, you have to have a stall reserved.

Unloading.

My class was at 9:30am, so I decided the best way to do it was to take Klein over the evening before, park the trailer, and then The Other Half and I would just go home and be back early the next morning.  After a somewhat painful drive over due to Google Maps taking me through a bunch of twisty, turny, hilly, tiny roads through neighborhoods, we get to Devon to find that the stalls are SMALL.  I guess I understand that because Devon is packed into the area that it is in so space is limited, but is Dressage at Devon not full of big warmbloods?  Story of our life.  Every show we travel to that requires us to get a stall, it's rarely adequate size for Klein.

While I was checking in they gave me a map to the trailer parking area and said "do you have a big trailer?"  I said "I don't know?  Is 30 feet big?"  That honestly isn't a big trailer, it is common to see much bigger rigs at shows reguarly.  I would call my trailer a medium.  But the lady said "Oh yeah, that's too big, you can't go this way, or this way, or down this street, or this street, or this street, or this street, it won't fit."  Great.  I'm in an area I am not familiar with and just got told about all these streets that surround it that my trailer won't fit down either because the roads are tiny or it requires you to go under VERY low railroad bridges that would cut the top off a trailer like a can opener. I decided I would just look for main routes and stick to those.  I thought I had it figured out until Google Maps ended up taking me on a 14 mile drive to a service plaza on the PA Turnpike, where I was looking through the fence at the trailer parking lot.

Let me tell you guys how close I was to going back, loading Klein up and going home.  The Other Half went into the store at the service plaza and bought me snacks, threw them in my window and said get going to the trailer lot.  He was NOT about to let me ruin this.  FYI, I drive my truck and trailer, he followed in his car so that we could just leave the truck and trailer.  His car was able to go the way that takes FIVE MINUTES to get to the trailer lot.  He didn't go on a 14 mile scenic route to the wrong place.  After the drive there and that, I was about to be done with all of it, but I made it that far...I went ahead and made the next 8 mile loop to the real entrance for the trailer parking. 

The Other Half drove us back to the showground to check on Klein and look around and I was kind of pissed when it took us five minutes in a car.  Again, we made it this far...no turning back now.  We walked around and checked everything out when a lady stopped us to show us this awesome leather conditioner/waterproofer.  I peeked my head over the display into their booth where a nice Aussie man was sitting with a drink in his hand and he asked me "You want a margarita?"  Talk about perfect timing.  Do I????  Can I have six please?  He made us some awesome margaritas and we hung out there for a while before I headed back to Klein's stall to meet with the braider and take Klein for a walk.

Yes, I paid a braider, braiding is not my favorite thing to do.  My braids aren't as good as the pros, but they'll get by at a recognized show no problem.  Also, that whole risk of getting stuck in traffic was a big factor and not a risk I wanted to take.  I'd rather just have her braided that morning by someone that was already on site.

We took Klein for a walk around the grounds and she was unimpressed with everything as usual.  We walked by the Aussie's booth again and he asked if he could share his apple with her.  Klein was more than happy to help him out with that.  Then we had to put one of their hats on her for a pic: 

 Klein with Mick, owner of Outback Survival Gear and awesome bartender.

Watching some of the CDI horses schooling.

 The Other Half taking Klein for a walk around the grounds.

After that we tucked Klein in and headed home for the night...