Tag Archives for Ike

Fight or Flight? Ike Says, “Run!”

Ike in the shade

So fall has really arrived here in Virginia.  Temperatures are cooler, humidity is lower, and you can hear acorns falling from the trees.  Leaves have a hint of fall colors. The crisp air seems to electrify the atmosphere for the horses and especially for my two. (No shock there.) The boys ramp up their gelding play – biting, kicking, running, and rearing are de rigueur.  As you try to lead them to and from their paddocks, you are either struggling to keep up with Ike’s walk or you try your best not to get run over by Cigar.  Cigar likes to demonstrate his piaffe ability if you make him slow down to walk with you; where was that skill when he was in work??

And riding can also become a bit more challenging when your horse is on edge and ready to make a run for it at any moment.  Five crows sent Ike into a tizzy earlier this week, and the invisible boogey man (or clown) had him ready to save himself yesterday.  He only saves me if I can stay astride.  Thankfully, my ability to keep my ass in the saddle has improved; perhaps it is the memory of the pain from my last fall.

But an amazing thing can happen if I can keep Ike calm and somewhat focused when he gets a bit agitated.  When the adrenaline, cortisol, and noradrenaline start flowing, Ike feels like he grows another 6 inches in the withers as he sits on his hind end and prepares to run.  I relax my seat to sit deeper in the saddle; I exhale and shake my shoulders.  If I give a couple of meaningful and well-timed half halts, I have an upper level quality passage and a real collected trot.  Ike is through, connected, and using his back.  When I ask for a medium trot, Ike can answer. My ability to sit that trot is still in question.

This adrenaline-fueled horse can also perform walk-canter and canter-walk transitions with ease.  Since he is using his back correctly, we have more jump in our canter stride.  The only downside is that sometimes someone doesn’t want to slow down.

So now I ponder how to achieve this fear-motivated, connected feeling during my finals class…anyone have some pet crows that we can borrow next week?

alison

 

 

 

Happy Gotcha Day!

Ike medium trot So Heritage April 2016

Photo by Katherine Turnbull

When I was in my early 20’s and looking for gainful employment, I always hated the question, “Where do you want to be in five years?”  Umm, employed and no longer living in my childhood bedroom?  I never felt like I gave a meaningful answer to that question.  At that age, I hardly knew what I wanted to do the following weekend!

Five years.  1,825 days.  43,800 hours.  It can seem like a very long time, but as I have aged (slightly past 21), it seems that time moves faster and faster.  Five years can go by in the blink of an eye.  It is hard to believe that it was five years ago today that Ike arrived in Virginia.  His baby face is gone as are the pencil neck and narrow shoulders; they have been replaced by very broad shoulders and a stately look that can be quite striking when not riddled with battle wounds or spider bites.  I am hopeful that he is finally done growing taller and longer.

We are now two thirds of the way to our USDF Bronze Medal.  My gangly 3 year old who couldn’t canter without threatening harm to my knees on the fence is now a strapping 8 year old who can canter a 10 meter circle.  We are on the threshold of beginning Third Level work in earnest.  Whhhaaattt?!! Our progress has been more tortoise like than hare, but it is steady and on an upward incline.  And truth be told, I am the weaker link in this partnership, but thankfully Ike is a patient partner and is gracious when I make mistakes.

I thank my lucky stars that I have the privilege of owning and riding such a willing partner.  I am thankful that I have a supportive husband who stands by me on this crazy dressage journey.  This adventure would not be possible without Ms. C’s unwavering support and knowledge. Thank you to everyone who cheers us on when we win and provides moral support when we falter.

Here’s to another anniversary on Ike’s centerline adventures!

alison

Sweaty Pants

Ike Aug 23 2015

“Can someone please turn down the heat?

So it has been hotter than Hades these past few weeks.  I will admit that I do not function at 100% when the heat index is over 100°F.  I am certain that neither does my horse – there is a certain lack of pep in his step when the temperatures soar.  So what is one to do when it is just too hot to put in any strenuous riding?  One goes on vacation!  Spent a week on the shore with family fishing, horseback riding on the beach, and amusing fellow beach goers with my feeble attempts on a standup paddleboard.  If you think riding takes good balance and a strong core, just try standing on a paddleboard while trying to paddle and steer.

 

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Hatteras Island beach ride

 

And while I had a fabulous time soaking up the sun while floating in the cool ocean waters, Ike stayed home and had some one-on-one time with Ms. C.  He is not good at keeping our secrets and was obviously rather plow horse–like in his work with her since I received the following message:  “Rode the giant, too heavy in everything!!!!! (yes, there were that many exclamation points.) So we had some ‘enlightening’ right away with no leaning on hands, legs or [in] the movement.”

I am now not the only one paying the price for Ike’s actions during my absence.  During my first lesson after vacation, Ms. C first informed me that because of her work with Ike, that unless you are out for a hack and a relaxing ride, all of her students were now expected to actively ask for uphill balance…no more accepting lack of engagement or plodding around on the forehand.  If we accept that during our training rides, then why wouldn’t our horses believe that it is acceptable in competition.  Train like you are in the competition ring with a judge at C.  Train for excellence and not for mediocrity. I have asked Ike to apologize to everyone, but he is rather unrepentant.  So as his mother, I am truly sorry for Ike’s unapologetic behavior and half-assed work for Ms. C.

Achieving real uphill balance, having hind end engagement, sitting on the hind end, picking up the front end, making the forehand lighter, ending the plow horse movement, getting off the forehand.  Whatever you call it, it still means that you will no longer carry your horse’s oversized head yourself.  He is going to have to shoulder that load. It means that he will no longer bully you with his massive shoulder when resistant to the leg aids.  I understand the concepts, but putting those concepts into practice can be challenging.  It is much easier for me to achieve it with a double bridle, but for the time being, that toy has been taken away.  “You need to be able to do this without the double.”  Aaarrggghhh, but it is soooo much HARDER.  But I knuckled under, tacked up with my snaffle, and worked on lightening Ike’s forehand.  Ms. C provided me with a new visual to help drill in the concept of how to half halt effectively to achieve the desired result– Pretend you are pulling on a pair of wet riding pants when you are sweaty.  Now there is an image to haunt your dreams…

But the funny thing is, that the image worked for me.  My first solo ride after my lesson, I actually felt like Ike was sitting on his hind end more and moving like a real Second Level horse – not just a poser who gets lucky with good scores every now and again.  It is that uphill feeling that we will need to make the transition to Third Level; I’m almost certain that plow horses do not achieve high scores at Third.  So the next time you see me making a funny face while I am riding, you will know what is going through my head – “Must. Get. On. These. Sweaty. Pants.”

alison

The TV Did It

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Ike prior to the latest round of facial injuries

 

When I was in my formative years, I was always injuring myself.  There was rarely a question about how I did it – I fell in the gravel driveway and tore up my knees, I jumped off the handlebars of my friend’s bike and scraped my hands, elbows and knees, I was walking and simply tripped and twisted my ankle.  Poetry in motion.  And if there was a parental question about how I obtained my injury, I would always tell the truth no matter how embarrassing it might be…My brother on the other hand, he was notorious for his bold-faced lies.  How did you slice open your hand? “The T V did it.” (My father did not have to investigate long before he found the pocketknife and bloody Lincoln Log.)  How did you tear your brand new sneaker? “The sweatpants did it.”  (He is taking the truth about that one to his grave.)

Ike falls somewhere in the middle.  Sadly, the big fellow can also be a bit of a klutz. (Ssshhh, I can hear some of you noting that he is just like his mother.)  And while he may not exactly lie about how he injured himself, he is also not always forthcoming with how the injury occurred.  I swear that he shrugs his shoulders when asked what happened to cause the loss of hair/blood/lameness/odd lump.  Sometimes I can tell that the injury was inflicted by his brother.  Other times I can locate the offending bug bite that started the itching and severe loss of mane.  Last weekend I watched him misjudge how far away from the fence he was and bang his head on the fence post.  I feared he’d hit his eye, but thankfully upon removal of the fly mask, he’d only scraped some hide off his face right above his eye.  Most times though, I have no idea what caused the injury and all I can do is triage the damage and pray that we have some hair growth before the next dressage show.

And the cause Ike’s lameness a few weeks ago will forever remain a mystery.  We had a stellar lesson one day, a solid training ride the next, and emerged the next morning clearly limping.  What the?!  We had been working hard to strengthen our countercanter and develop a more powerful collected trot.  I had been doing my best to teach him to reach more in his medium trot while trying to maintain my position in the saddle.  He went from 100% sound to the walking wounded overnight.  You could see him limping even at the walk and the problem was definitely the left front.  No obvious signs of a problem; he only flinched when you touched the bulb of the hoof.  My best guess is that he laid down to sleep and then whacked himself with one of the hinds as he flailed about to get up.  There were no televisions nor any sweatpants to take the blame.

We were lucky and after a week off from work, Ike came back completely sound.  Amazingly he did not seem to lose any of his fitness or stamina from the down time.  Wish I could say the same for me – a week out of the saddle always leaves me a bit rusty and slow to react with the necessary aids.  We now work with polo wraps, pastern wraps, and bell boots to protect his legs and hooves.  I’m still debating the merits of bubble wrap for turnout.  Keep your fingers crossed that we make it through the second half of our show season!

alison

 

 

Get Smart

 

Ike at the Meadows May 2016

Photo by Melana K.

 

If you are of a certain age, you have probably watched the television show Get Smart starring Don Adams and Barbara Feldon.  Younger generations are probably more familiar with the movie of the same title starring Steve Carrell and Anne Hathaway.  Maxwell Smart’s famous tag line was, “Missed it by that much.”  That line pretty much sums up  our first licensed show last weekend.  It is that wee little bit that costs you dearly.

The weekend did not start off well given that Mother Nature had decided that we needed 15 straight days of rain leading up to the show.  I was so desperate to squeeze a lesson in before we went that I rode in some light rain.  We traveled to the show grounds in the rain, unloaded in the rain, and then sat in the barn listening to it rain even harder.  The covered arena was in use by the breed show, so most of us tacked up and rode in the rain and slop and prayed that Saturday would dawn a clearer day.

My first ride on Saturday was Second Level Test 2 – the qualifier for the USDF Region 1 CBLM Championship.  I needed a 62% to be qualified for the fall.  You only need one score and to be a member of one of the group membership organizations.  We’d been able to get some scores over the minimum at the schooling shows, so I was hopeful that we could get our score at this show to take some pressure off at future shows.  Heads up, watch my face closely as we make our first turn off centerline:

First Attempt at Second Level Test 2

When your horse decided to show his medium canter rather than a medium trot, spook at the judge/scribe/plants/invisible boogey men, and then show his pivoting skills rather than a correct turn on the haunches, you end up with a score of 61.795% – a mere 0.205% away…yep, missed it by that much.  I would have to wait until Sunday to try again.

We also attempted to obtain that magical 60% in Second Level Test 3 that I need in order to try my musical freestyle at a licensed show.  This test has continued to vex us even though we are stronger in all of our Second Level work.  We have yet to ride it without a bobble or two, but I took a deep breath and headed down centerline.  Well, let me tell you, we did manage to ride both canter serpentines without breaking in the countercanter, but we again demonstrated our ability to plant Ike’s hind legs in the turn on the haunches.  Our score?  A 59.5%…sigh, another swing and a miss.  Since we only signed up for this test on Sunday, the coveted 60% will have to wait until June.

Finally, it was time to try Second Level Test 2 again.  This test would be ridden in the covered arena…and guess who never schooled in the covered arena.  We’d just have to hope that Ike would maintain his composure, and let’s admit it, it was fingers crossed that I could maintain mine as well.  Here is the ride:

Second Level Test 2 Dressage at the Meadow

We had the one little bobble in the right lead countercanter, but after a quick prayer, I was able to get Ike back into the right lead so that we could demonstrate our simple change just a few strides later.  Phew!  Overall I was pleased with the ride; I had to just hope that the judge felt the same way.  After a 30 minute wait, the score was finally available online.  Drumroll please!  65.128%!!  We did it!!  Qualified!!  What?!  Ooohmmaahhhggeerrrrd!  What a huge relief.  Finally, we didn’t miss out by a hair or a nose.  There is hope for us yet.  We had many very good movement scores in this test.  I am proud to say that we earned a 6 and a 7 for our turn on the haunches (the secret is to nag at the caboose the entire time).  Our simple changes also were strong.

So now I can breathe a huge sigh of relief.  Don’t worry, I’m sure there will be plenty more misses on our way to the championship and plenty more comedic relief moments as well.  But that is part of the journey.

alison

 

 

The Other Left

Ike Morningside April 2016.jpg

Hello friends!

It has been too long since we have had a heart to heart.  I have had a busy spring, and this weekend will be my first weekend away from home since the championship show last fall.

Mom and I have already done three schooling shows this spring.  Three!  A poor boy can’t catch a break these days.  She is a woman possessed this spring – like she is on a mission and everyone had best stay out of her way.  I tried to get out of her way by busting out of my stall, but she was less than amused at my efforts to thwart the third outing of the year.

Two of the shows were at this place that has a lot of high-flying horses and also horses that race around on perfectly good grass and jumped bushes and big logs.  I can’t figure out why they would choose to jump over fences or bushes. That seems like a lot of extra work. Why not just run around them? I could show them fence deconstruction techniques that are rather effective.  Or, here’s a thought, how about not run at all and just eat the grass?  Such silly ponies.  Mom did let me taste some of the grass before and after we worked.  It was very delicious.  I think all shows should offer it to the competitors – a snack bar for horses if you will.  There is a snack bar for the people, and I think since we are doing most of the work that we should have one too.  I shall have to remember to bring this up with show management at each of the shows this year.

I like these little shows since it means that I still get some time in my paddock to play with my brother and I get to sleep at home.  Yes, I get a stall at the away shows, but with my late night visits with my selfie buddy and the fact that the new barn makes scary noises, I don’t sleep as much and get very tired by Sunday.

And I must say that poor Mom needs some directional help.  At the last show, I almost had to change my name and disassociate myself with her.  Mind you, she had Ms. C READING the test and we have ridden Second Level Test 2 many times already so it wasn’t like she didn’t know which way we needed to turn.  I even tried to strongly hint to her that she was trying to turn the wrong way and I tried to go to the left as called for by the test and Ms. C…but the crazy woman insisted that we do a second turn on the haunches to the right.  Umm, Mom, we just went that way, it is time to go LEFT!!  The judge never rang the bell, but politely told Mom that she failed to demonstrate a turn on the haunches to the left.  Mom laughed.  I just hung my head in shame.

Thankfully I have heard through the grapevine that she has now enlisted the help of a 6 year old for some tips on remembering which way is left.  (“The left hand makes the ‘L’ Ali.”)  Hopefully mom has practiced making the “L” so that we don’t have another misstep this weekend.  If you are reading this and will be at the show grounds, remind her to avoid the other left and stick with the correct one.

And, in case you hadn’t heard, I’m 8 years old now.  That’s like 25 in human years so I am waiting for the opportunity to have more of a say in what I do and don’t have to do.  My brother doesn’t have to go places or work hard, so I think it is high time I get to live like him.  When I asked him about approaching Mom with the idea, this was his response:

The boys Apr 2016

“Seriously, why does Mom keep him around? Shouldn’t he have moved out by now?”

 

He thinks he is such a comedian.  I am not amused.  I will just have to figure things out on my own.  Stop by my stall this weekend if you have any tips to share.

Ike

Nani Nani Boo Boo

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The High Stepper prior to his brazen escape

So Ike decided that today was the day that he would not respect the stall guard’s authority. 

I noticed a popped nail while grooming Ike for our ride, and had Mr. D come check it out.  He decided that it needed some attention,  so he went to get his farrier supplies.  I left the stall as well to get some treats from the tack room.  Ike typically stands quietly…but today was not that day.  In the 20 seconds that Ike was left alone, I heard a metallic “Snap!” and then saw a large dark form trot by the tack room…

Ike made it all of 30 feet from the barn before he was distracted by a juicy patch of spring green grass.  My appearance was unwelcome so Ike showed off his Hackney trot and pranced off to the arena which, he would soon realize, would mean the end to his freedom.  Haha, big boy, Mom knows how to close the gate…(but obviously not stall doors.)

Mr. Hot Stuff high stepped his way past all the other horses who had come racing to the fenceline to check out the mayhem.  He stopped to visit with his barn buddy Joe, caused some squealing, and pranced away again as I slowly approached. I am pretty sure he was chanting “Nani, nani, boo, boo” as he tossed his head in my direction.  Mr. HS was yet again distracted by some grass in the corner of the arena.  At this point, I finally caught up to my naughty pony and was able to clip the lead rope to his halter to end the hijinks.

Someone was not happy that I ended his walk about because he was wretched for tacking, tried to bite me when I buckled the girth, and tried to run me over as we headed back to the arena.  Fearing the worst, I swung my leg over for our session.  Luckily Big Man settled down for a very positive workout.  We held our countercanter in both directions with uphill simple changes to the correct lead.  Our 10 meter circles were fluid.  Our shoulder in and travers had steady bend and rhythm.  While I was pleased with our work, I don’t think I will encourage Ike to repeat his freeform warmup.

Tomorrow the stall door will remain closed.

“Your Horse”

Ike with new browband March 2016

I had an epiphany the other day.  No, it wasn’t about my riding skills or some huge life lesson.  Nothing that profound or life changing.  What I realized is that when the first words out of Ms. C’s mouth are “Your horse” or “Your horses,” the words that follow are usually not, “is an angel” or “are a pleasure to have around the barn.”  No, the words that follow usually are more along the lines of, “ran me over” or “tried to kill me.”  This must be what it feels like when a parent has a conference with their child’s teacher.

And here lately, my boys seem to be very busy since I hear that phrase usually a few times a week.  Since it is so common, I thought I’d share some of the stories with you…

“Your horse….is icky.”  It is no secret that Cigar is a wee bit of a pig boy; he has been this way from the first day I owned him.  He gleefully wallows in any puddle or mud slick and will try to bite me or run away when I attempt to remove the filth.  Unfortunately for me, he has now lead Ike down the path of muddy ickiness.  And I have discovered that if your unclipped horse sweats profusely on the abnormally warm day in March, the sweat combines with the winter’s worth of crud to create a sticky paste that doesn’t want to rinse off.  You can create little spikes of hair to make your horse look like a punk rock band member. Since it won’t rinse away, the next time to see your horse, the hair is matted together and nearly impossible to brush.  At this point all you can do is hope that it rains and that your horse stands out in the downpour for a few hours.

“Your horse….looks like a plow horse.”  I suppose that I must raise my hand and claim responsibility here although I’d like to think that Ike must bear some of the burden for this as well.  We hear this when we are trudging around the ring on the forehand rather than engaging Ike’s rear end for more power.  Sure, just half halt and all will be right in the world.  Wrong.  If I was a stronger person, a subtle half halt might do it, but on plow horse days, I sometimes have to resort to some louder tugging and a few jabs with my spurs to get the young man’s attention.  (Yes, I heard you gasp in horror.)  Once I fuss, Ike usually will comply and we can then move along more like the Second Level pair we aspire to be.  And once Ike is engaged, it is amazing how much easier walk to canter transitions are and how much more of a push I can get for a medium trot.

“Your horses….tore down the hot wire.”  My boys are bound and determined to live together.  They check the status of the hot wire on a daily basis.  I can hear them asking each other, “Did someone forget to turn it on today?”  Deconstruction commences as soon as they realize the power is off.  I have reiterated to them that I do not agree with this course of action since I cannot afford to build a new wing onto Ms. C’s home for the vet to use.  My admonitions seem to have little effect on their daily activities.

“Your horse….looked like a rodeo bronco.”  Thankfully, Ike rarely shows off his rodeo skills while under saddle.  If you have followed us for a few years, you know that it did not end well for me the one and only time he bucked while I was astride…I showed off my gymnastic skills with a single front flip, but unfortunately I did not stick the landing.  Routinely while stretching his legs in his paddock, Ike can be seen happily kicking up his hind legs.  I cringe in horror as I play out the worst scenarios in my mind that involve strained muscles, torn ligaments and fractured bones.  Any attempts to explain to him why this is not appropriate behavior fall on deaf ears.

“Your horse…is very tall.” I usually hear this either after Ike has spent the day rearing while playing with his brother or after Ms. C has ridden him.  I suppose that I am now so accustomed to his burgeoning girth that I no longer give it much thought, except when it is time to replace tack since most standard items won’t fit.  Not everyone carries 18 inch browbands or blankets for big and tall boys; this reminds me of when my mother would shop for my brother in the “husky” boy’s section at Sears…clothing with a little something extra.

“Your horse….is crooked.”  Yet another time that I must share some, if not all, of the blame.  It is most noticeable with our right lead canter.  I know all about positioning my horse in a slight shoulder fore position, but just because I know about it doesn’t mean that I can tell if I have achieved the correct position. Usually we fail and Ike carries his hind end to the inside as we canter down the long side of the arena.  Any judge who is paying attention will comment, “haunches in down long side,” but I am usually so focused on maintaining the correct rein length and praying that I can slow down the freight train at the appropriate point that I cannot spare a thought on where Ike’s haunches are.  We are diligently working on it in our lessons.  In my defense it is hard to know what is going on behind me when there is so much of it back there.

My horses might be a handful, but they are mine. They make me laugh and smile and bring joy to my life.  I hope your horses do the same for you.

Alison

Memories

Ike selfie Oct 2015

The end of the year finds me clearing out old emails and organizing my paper files to make room for the upcoming year’s correspondence.  As I was working my way into my older emails, I came across an email from July 14, 2011 when I was horse shopping.

It had pretty much been decided that I was headed to Florida to horse shop.  I was receiving emails from Bianca who was sharing details of the horses she had available that 1) were in my price range and 2) were rideable for someone with my skill set.

This particular email gave details about Ike.  The email read:

“So here is the video of the 3 year old gelding. This one is very special, only 3 years old he is solid at training level and just so rideable. Super sweet natured and just wants to learn and please his rider. This boy will go very far as a dressage horse as he develops more muscle. He is extremely safe and sane, non spooky and just a gem to handle. He loves people, loads easily, clips etc. All in all a wonderful horse!”

Here is the link to his video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsWTfVKnTe8

I smiled as I read this because it was a pretty spot on description of the horse that ended up as part of the family.  I watched this old video and it made me smile.  While he looks quite solid with Bianca riding him, I like to think that he has shown progress in these subsequent years with me as his primary rider.  He is at least more muscled than he was as a three year old.

November 2015

I sometimes wonder where the other horses landed since my budget only allowed one to come home.  I hope their owners are as happy with their equine partner as I am.  Fingers are crossed that Bianca was right and that there is still more to achieve with our dressage aspirations!

alison

 

 

 

 

The Mile Long To Do List

Ike Dec 11 2015

Where has the time gone?  It is hard to believe that it has already been three weeks since the musical freestyle clinic, and that there are only two weeks until Christmas.  This is the time of year that my riding schedule goes from five or six days per week down to three days, four if I am lucky.  Many factors play into this schedule shift, and while it drives me crazy, I don’t think Ike cares that he is now a part time worker.

First of all, the sun’s earlier departure from the sky really wrecks havoc with my ability to ride after work.  Most days I can get to the barn with enough time to ride 30-40 minutes.  However, the angle of the setting sun means that half my ride is spent riding into the blinding glare.  Ike usually has a moment of pause as well as we turn.  We both squint and I pray that no wildlife decides to pop out and say “Boo!” during this momentary blindness.

One of our dogs has been in desperate need of some obedience work, so I took advantage of the slow down in riding to sign up for a 6 week Canine Good Citizen Class.  We practice as best we can with our two other dogs “helping,” but there has been progress.  Two more classes to go and it looks like he just might pass, shocking as that is to myself and everyone who knows Brownie.

My work schedule right now has also gone from a steady 55 mph to the white knuckle 100 mph with deadlines of yesterday.  I suppose if work had to get busy this is a better time than May or June when show season and riding is in full swing.  Since this also involves more time on the dreaded Interstate 95 in the Washington DC area, perhaps it is best that I am not riding as much.  The more I am on this god-forsaken road, the less I am tolerant of poor driving displays by other commuters.  Needless to say that I am a bit stressed upon arriving at my exit.  PSA:  I believe that turn signals are STANDARD EQUIPMENT on most automobiles and trucks, yet the use of this piece of equipment seems to have declined.  If we look hard enough, I’m sure there is a direct correlation to the increased use of cell phones while driving.

In lieu of riding on high stress days, I find that just spending time with the boys is enough to return my blood pressure to normal levels.  Grooming is an excellent moving meditation.  When that is done, this happens:

Brotherly Love

And, lest I forget, December is also when the holidays and all the things that accompany them invade my to do list and probably everyone else’s as well.  Shopping, wrapping, more wrapping, finding Christmas cards, completing Christmas cards, baking, decorating, cooking, eating, regretting all that you ate, post office visits, family visits, visits with friends and the occasional party or two.  Most of the necessary stuff is done and now it is on to the baking and cookie decorating.  Ike’s favorite fan club will be here next weekend for an afternoon of cookie fun!

And, while I am not riding as much, I do find that when I do find the time, it is with much more purpose and focus.  I already have an eye on next year and what we want to accomplish.  I’ve set a lofty goal of achieving at least one score in the 70th percentile range for Second Level.  I know it won’t be easy, but I am hoping that the effort to achieve that will pay off later when we move upwards to Third Level.  <===Do you see that???  I actually mentioned Third Level?!  I’d love to think that we will give Third Level a go by then end of 2016 as well.  Guess we need to start thinking about flying changes on command and not as you please (Ike’s favorite way right now).

Stay sane my friends, the relative peace of January is right around the corner.  Fingers crossed that the weather is cooperative so we can continue to enjoy some saddle time!

alison