Clover Ledge Farm

Ten days after the April 22 dressage show at HBF, we were back for their second show! It felt like a lot of showing after a winter off, but it also was good to test where we were so early on. Plus, these shows are so laid back and ho-hum for us, since it is our lesson barn, it is always good to practice tests in the ring where we lesson! We had run through First 2 earlier that week in our lesson and Beth really liked how I rode that test better than First 1. This was especially true in the canter work, as you lengthen the stride and then circle 15 m. in First 1 but you do the opposite in First 2. For where we are right now, cantering the 15 m. circle and THEN asking for the lengthening seems to help Ellie balance and develop her medium canter much more than how it is asked for in First 1. I know we are not ready quite yet for the canter loops of First 3, but to me it didn't matter which of the other First level tests we rode. So as Beth is the show secretary haha, she just had me r...

Our third attempt at First level was at the August "team" show at HBF. This is always a fun show because not only do we get to ride and be scored on our tests, we are also put into teams ahead of time for an overall team score as well. Complete with neck sashes and a white polo awards ceremony, this is always a highlight of summer showing! Ellie and I had some serious growing pains with First Level in 2020, which is probably fitting in the Year of the Dumpster Fire that was 2020 haha. However, it gave me space to figure things out, with the help of Beth of course, and just sticking with First 1 and showing at HBF. This August show was a clear step in the right direction and helped me to remember that progress is not linear just because you want it to be. Training an opinionated young horse teaches much more than just horsemanship.  Our first ride was a 61.2069% with our typical unbalanced bobbles in the canter and difficulty with submission. Our reride was a bit better with a...

We headed back to our lesson barn in July for another go at First Level. This was a little different, as Beth decided to try a Thursday show. This meant it was a super relaxed day with a bit few entries than normal. At this point, we were still struggling with Ellie's canter, to help her find her balance by slowing down the canter. This was a huge work in progress in 2020, so this show we still had comments related to her balance in the canter. However, we also scored a few 7s and an 8 on our trot, free walk, and center lines which was great. We ended up with a pair of 61% which was incredibly accurate for that point in time in a small class of five.  First 1 the first time = 61.8966% 3rd First 1 the reride = 61.5517% 4th This was also about the time I finally admitted to myself that my Stubben Juventus just wasn't working well. Yes, it fit Ellie perfectly, but it really didn't fit me. It tipped me forward and I just couldn't be effective in the saddle. I started a supe...

Ellie and I had a late start to starting up dressage lessons in the spring of 2020, which was fine with me since I appreciated the opportunity to get out for lessons at all! So many of our issues at the time stemmed from connection (a lack thereof) and Ellie blowing off my seat/half halts. It was nice to look at 2020 as an opportunity to really buckle down on training and not worry about showing rated or pushing ourselves to really get solid at First level. Beth (my instructor) wanted us to tackle First level in the competition ring, even though we still had plenty of bobbles and Ellie did not always want to work as a team haha. But the pressure was off due to COVID which was actually just what we needed. We tackled First Level in the middle of June 2020. We ended up only doing dressage tests/shows at Hidden Brook Farm, where we take lessons, which was perfect. And we only did First 1 last year because we were NOT ready to do much else haha. It was a huge growing year. Our debut at Fir...

Having tried Training 3 just the weekend before , I signed up to ride T3 twice at this Esprit show for a little extra practice. I didn't know if we would have any more opportunities to enter a dressage show again this year (spoiler alert: I did enter one more after this), and I really wanted to get a few more solid T3 tests under our belt before 2020, where the plan is to move up to First. It was perfectly timed where I rode my first test at 9:15, then another rider did T3, and then I went back in for my re-ride.  I was only gone five hours from the time I left my farm until when I returned, and the show was just over an hour away.  THAT is the best kind of show haha! I thought both tests went even smoother and Ellie was much more rideable from the beginning than the weekend before.   I tried to ride both tests accurately and was rewarded with an 8 on our serpentines!  For some reason, the geometry of the trot serpentines was tough for me when we firs...

Ellie and I had a super fun show at our lesson barn on August 18.  This is one of my favorite shows, as we are put on teams and there is an awards ceremony at the end.  Any time we can do a fun awards ceremony with neck ribbons and white polo wraps, I am in!   And even better?  I was on a team with two of my favorite people and their Morgans!  WHOO!  "Team 4 Kennebecs" consisted of Ellie (with me), Jester (with Margaret), and Echo and Rugby (with Kathleen), who are all related Kennebec Morgans! Ellie with her "uncle" Jester haha I chose to ride Training 2 and Training 3.  This was our first time riding Training 3 in a show other than the dressage rally at the end of June.  But because this was a show at our lesson barn, both Ellie and I were quite relaxed.  I mean really, a show at HBF is like having a lesson in clean, fancy show clothes.   Both tests went quite well, though I will say that our first test was a bit...

Ellie and I did a show at our lesson barn this past weekend instead of taking a lesson.  I would have done a lesson on Saturday before the show, but my instructor went to NEDA Spring with her eldest daughter, who was able to get her last Grand Prix score for her USDF Gold Medal!!!  So that is a good reason to not be able to lesson haha. I admit I was a little bummed about our low scores at the SMDA show two weeks prior.  I know a score of 6 (60%) is called satisfactory , but I really thought our performance was better than a low 60%. I was determined to ride well and even though Beth was not there, I had her youngest daughter as my back up if the wheels fell off the bus LOL!  She was already in the warmup and at the show ring with her actual students, so it was nice to have her there to remind me to breathe and not hang on the left rein!  ;-) Ellie unloaded and was totally calm.  Honestly, she loves her lesson barn and knows it is her second hom...

The third and final show at my lesson barn was this past Sunday!  It was also a fundraiser for the Western Maine Dressage Association and a "team" show, which meant we were organized into teams for an awards ceremony at the end of the day.  Each test was awarded 1-7th like usual, but then the team scores were averaged for a champion and reserve champion in each division.  There were four types of teams: same test levels, same rider designation (AA, open, or jr/yr), mixed bag of nuts (any levels/designations), and free range (freestyle tests only).  I paired up with two other riders from my lesson barn who were also doing Training level tests. Yup, that's right, I put on my big girl pants and rode our first Training level 1 test!  Whoo!  The plan had been to ride Intro B as a warm up and then Training 1.  Now looking back, I kinda wish we had done a Training 1 and a Training 1 reride, which is something that is becoming more popular at shows here in t...