2011 USDF Regionals

Wow! Where did this year go? Another USDF Regional Championship has come and gone!

Walking through my barn late at night, I say "Hello" to lots of happy equine faces peering out from their cozy stalls. This year, 2 of those horses contested USDF Region 8 championship classes. One is a boarded horse. The other is my husband's "Piper Warrior". Next year, I hope to see at least 3, maybe 4 of the horses on our farm qualify and travel to the Regionals.

For some, competing at the Regionals is an important required finale for the show year, satisfying the goals and objectives of their businesses or their riding careers. For others, it is a dream goal, sometimes achieved, sometimes not. For my own horses, it is something in between. We work throughout the year with the goal of earning qualifying scores in all competitions. Riding and placing well in the Regional Championships is more of the dream goal.

This year, we really only tried to qualify for 1st Level Open and 1st Level Freestyles. (Earning that very nice qualifying score in our 2nd Level debut was not part of the plan!) Training Level was "off limits" according to he who pays Piper's entry fees. In the end, we only qualified for the latter category. However, we still managed to do fairly well (but not great) in Year End Awards at 1st Level Open.

The Regionals this year brought the usual mix of weather. We managed to compete in fair weather all weekend, but bore witness to some monsoon style dressage. (We had our fair share of foul weather rides in April and I truly don't relish going through that again anytime soon.) And this year's competition had a very wide range of scores! Unprecedented high scores were earned by a few of our fellow competitors. Scores in the 80%. Wowwee! Very well done.

Two Freestyles

As done in previous years, I entered my freestyle partner in Saturday's "Freestyles - Level of Choice" class. Or as I call it, the "cocktails & evening entertainment" class. This class is always scheduled during cocktail hour in Ring 1. The spectators will be enjoying their VIP seats, sipping wines, munching on hors d' oeuvres. Some even watch the rides. The following morning, the USDF Freestyle Championship classes take place in the same ring.

Riding in front of an audience does not faze me, nor my horses. So, once Piper got used to seeing 5 judges booths instead of the usual spooking 1, Saturday evening went okay. We earned a fairly good score of 67.167%, enough for 3rd place, and half qualification for next year's championships. However, the next morning, while there were less spectators, there was much more activity at the FEI ring in the distance, distracting Piper to the point where being "on the bit" was not of much interest to him. He wanted to watch what was going on 500 yards away. (Horses. Sigh.) And so, with my equine dance partner popping above the bit whenever headed towards the FEI ring, we earned a 65.667% and 4th place in the USDF Region 8 First Level Freestyle Championships.

Now, Piper's freestyle to "All of Me" and "A-Train" is retired. Next year..... Maybe Queen. Maybe Abba. Not sure yet. Stay tuned.

Selecting A Trainer

Online, in books, and in DVDs, there's a vast array of information from which dressage riders can learn about the art and sport of dressage. However, one dressage topic that seems to be light on suggestions is selection of one's dressage trainer. Maybe this is because it's such a personal and subjective thing.

For the past 6 years, since moving back to the USA after 12 years in England, I have been working and training alone. My husband, who thanks to auditing several European dressage clinics & lessons, attendance at shows, and viewing training videos / DVDs with me, is my primary "eyes on the ground". While he's able to tell me what he observes, he often does not know to ride corrections or make improvements. However, sometimes he comes up with great suggestions and exercises that work well.

So for the past 6 years, I've basically been going it alone without a trainer. With the show results I have enjoyed, I like to think I've done pretty well. But I want to do better. Much better.

Last year, I started looking for a trainer. And with that effort, I began to realize I definitely had selection criteria that were important to me, important for the trainer to meet.

While searching, I found that there are a lot of perfectly qualified dressage trainers in New England, and several within 100 miles of my farm. Some have impeccable competition credentials. Some are USDF Certified. Some are judges. Some actively compete. Some will travel for lessons, coming to Warner. Some do not. Variety is certainly not a problem.

The selection of a trainer can be approached several ways. Word of mouth is a good starting place. Signing up with a best friend's trainer is not unusual. Selecting the trainer who is closest may be another option. Personal economics might make price important. Watching lessons before taking lessons is one method I often recommend. Forums, social networks, blogs, clinics, and shows are all potential sources for making more contacts and learning who's who. Yup. There are lots of approaches.

But what to look for in the trainer? That is the question! As I got deeper into my search, I found there are several things I seek in a trainer:

• First and foremost, the trainer must have utter respect for the horse and it's nature. (No huggy, kissy, baby talk to my horse, thank you!)
• Before I sign up with a trainer, I need to see the trainer in action with their students or their own horses, either in lessons or at shows. I need to have respect for the work I observe as well as a fair level of agreement with the approach, methods, communications, and demonstrated outcomes.
• The trainer will have had a lot of dressage training themselves and is interested in updating their own knowledge and skillset.
• During the first few lessons, I like to sense there is structure. I need to know what we are working on, what the targets and purpose are. Not just what do to, but why. And I need to be able to envision how that work leads into future training.
• For a long term relationship, the trainer must be willing to get on my horse, match what he sees with how it feels, and come to understand my horse better. And ideally he should be able to ride my horse better than I.
• Price will not necessarily limit me taking a lesson, but will limit the frequency of lessons. However, at the beginning of the relationship, a higher frequency is important to reach a successful level of communication, so price is a factor.
• Finally, this last criteria is surprisingly critical to me. When I train my horses away from the watchful gaze of my trainer, I often hear his voice and guidance in my head. Therefore, his voice and words need to be of a quality which I am happy to have bouncing around in my head for many hours between lessons.

Last summer, I had developed a short list of potential trainers to consider. However, it was through a series of shows that I had several opportunities to observe another dressage rider, someone I did not know anything about, in action. She was not just competing in the same shows as I, but was also handling young horses (I'm currently working two youngsters who were born on my farm), cleaning stalls, and interacting with her clients.

We exchanged polite hellos the second or third time we bumped into each other, as one sometimes does when recognizing a fellow competitor at consecutive shows, and eventually spoke briefly while riding our respective horses around the main competiton arena the evening before a show, she on a young horse, me on Piper.

My initial "Blink" reaction was completely positive. Watching her work with her horses fully supported it. Before winter set in, I contacted her, made an appointment, and trailered Piper 60 miles to her farm for one lesson. Just one. To see how it would go.

It went great. I selected a trainer. She accepted a new student.

This summer, we resumed lessons on a (mostly) weekly basis, weather and other interruptions permitting. It's still a new relationship, but it's progressing really well. Already, I can feel how my riding is evolving and where the guidance will take us. It's all good.

There are no self-help books on how to select a dressage trainer. Instead, each rider has to write their own book.

Back in the Saddle Again

Ever wonder why you ride?
Ever wonder what your life would be like without riding?
Ever imagine what you would be doing instead to fill your time?

Sometimes I wonder these kinds of things. And for one week, I got a taste of what that would be like. And it was not fun at all.

After a week of rest and cuperation, I climbed back up into the saddle. And, oh my, how great it felt!

So, if all goes well --- KNOCK WOOD !!! --- the competition season will now resume for me and the boy, and it will finish off nicely without further incidents. One can hope. Meanwhile.....

....Yippee!

Sidelined by Injury

Yes, the game continues.....

Entries for the Regional Championships are due in this week. However, we are only half qualified for 1st Level Open, 2nd Level Open, and 1st Level Freestyle. So the question is, for which Regional Championships will we complete our qualifications and which do we actually want to contest if we do qualify?

We only have 3 shows left on our calendar. GMHA July's 3 day show is our best chance to complete qualifications. Entries went in early, as usual. The show starts today, July 22nd.

But not for us.

Sidelined By Injury

After a normal weekend, rolling out of bed this past Monday morning was excruciatingly painful. My right leg wanted nothing to do with walking, let alone riding. By Tuesday, the pain was no better and a visit to the Doctor was in order.

After examination, it was decided that I had either torn or strained an adductor muscle (shown in red in the drawing to the left). Pain killers, anti inflammatories, and muscle relaxants were prescribed. Lots of rest. And of course, no riding. If the pain did not subside within a few days, x-rays and / or an MRI would be ordered.

This week, I have to send in entries for the Regional Championships....

Waiting Game

My horse show binder was open and ready. My favorite little Black NEDA Omnibus Book was earmarked and potential classes I might enter were circled. However, until I knew how my new situation was going to play out, I was not going to write any more checks towards non-refundable show entries. I needed to wait. I needed to be patient.

Tuesday and Wednesday were depressing. I was starting to envision a life without riding. Giving the horses away. Selling the farm. Curling up on the couch, eating bon-bons all day, getting massively fat, working my way to a heart attack, and dying. Yup. It was depressing. My pain was not going away.

Thursday, in comparison, was wonderful. I could walk again! With only a few tweaks of sharp pain. Okay, I was not completely better, but I apparently had NOT torn any of the adductor muscles. Just pulled or strained. I was going to be okay. I was going to get back into the saddle.

Friday was even better. And so show entries went out the door. First Level Championships only, as I predict we will complete our qualifications for those. Second Level is too much of a stretch. Next year, we will shoot for Second and probably Third Level Championships. But then, who knows what next year will bring?

Happy 40th Anniversary GMHA Dressage!

While I miss the fun 40th Anniversary Party at GMHA for exhibitors, members, and supporters, I will sit at home resting my leg for another day, knowing that I will ride again. Very soon.

So, for the next 3 weeks, I will focus on completing our qualifications for 1st Level Open and 1st Level Freestyle. And while doing so, I will be extra careful to warm up my legs before riding, stretch them gently, cool down slowly, and drink plenty of fluids. I really don't want to go through this kind of pain ever again.

Half Qualifications

The season didn't start great.  But at GMHA June Dressage in Vermont, Piper and I had a fairly good show.

To qualify for the United States Dressage Federation (USDF) Regional Championships, 2 qualifying scores must be earned in qualifying classes at 2 different shows under 2 different judge juries. Qualifying scores differ from level to level, and also by rider category: Junior Rider / Young Rider (JR/YR), Adult Amateur (AA), Open / Professional. As a barn owner and ARIA certified riding instructor, I am in the Open category. Professionals are expected to do better in dressage than the under 21's and adult amateurs (even though this is often not the case in reality) and therefore have higher qualifying score targets to meet.

For Training Level, the qualifying score is 68% for Open Riders, 63% for the JR/YR and AA Riders. That's a full 5% difference.
For First Level, the Open qualifying score is 66%. For everyone else, it is 62%. The gap is 4%.
For Second Level, the Open qualifying score is 64% and 61% for everyone else. The gap closes to 3%.
For Third and Fourth Levels, the Open qualifying scores are 62%, 60% for the others. 2% gap.
For the FEI levels, 60% is the qualifying score for all riders for all levels.
The complete Regional Championship rules can be read here.

Last month, at the 3 day long GMHA June Dressage Show in Vermont, we earned our first 2011 qualifying score for First Level Open. The test also earned us the Show High Point Award for KWPN Dutch Warmbloods.

Second Level? Sure, Why Not?

One joy of dressage shows in the USA - or at least in this region - is that riders must send in their entries well in advance of the actual show. The most popular shows fill up very quickly, so entries really need to be mailed in closer to the opening date than the closing date.

For GMHA shows, which are very popular, entries must be posted early. And with that, one must decide whether to only compete well within their current dressage level or to predict their readiness for the next level. I decided to chance it and see what Piper could do at the next level: Second Level.

Piper's lateral work is reliably in the 6 to 7 range. Leg yields, shoulder in, haunches in, and half pass. His reinback, a movement introduced at 2nd Level, was learned a long time ago and is good. And his turns on the haunches, which also debut in the 2nd Level Tests, are pretty good and could earn 7's at Third Level.

However, from a Second Level requirements perspective, his medium work is marginal, but coming along nicely. Whereas 5's were the usual score for his trot and canter lengthenings at 1st Level, now we get 6's and 7's. However, there is a lot more he needs to do, and a lot LESS he needs to do, to earn 7's and 8's in true medium paces at 2nd Level.

Would we be ready for Second Level at GMHA? Maybe. So my entries for GMHA June included Second Level Test 3. (I like the flow of Test 3 compared to the "easier" Test 1 and Test 2 tests. Also, Test 3 is the qualifier test, and when given a choice, I prefer to ride qualifiers.)

As our Second Level debut test got underway, I was feeling pretty confident. There were no goals set, just an experience to get under the belt. But Piper felt good and put in a respectable test, earning a 64% qualifying score! Very unexpected.

Three Half Qualifications

It's July and we are sitting on half qualifications for 1st Level Open, 1st Level Freestyle, and 2nd Level Open. Pretty exciting. The USDF Regional Championships are in September. Qualifications close on August 15. Entries for the Regionals, however, have to be sent in by July 23. Yes. August 15 is the last day to qualify, but entries are due in 3 weeks earlier. Fun, eh?

The game continues....