We had a truly wonderful day at Sunrise Equestrian at their last Mini Trial of the season. Ferriana is really starting to figure out how to play the game of eventing, and she definitely seems to enjoy it! We had one of the best dressage tests I've ever done, showjumping was clean and accurate, and cross country was fast and fun!
I love this photo of Ferriana cantering in the warmup. If you look closely, you can see the dressage judge for whom we are about to ride smiling at us!
Full honesty, I very rarely share my dressage score sheets. Dressage is difficult and the perfectionist in me will get me every time if I look too closely at the comments, even after all these years of showing. Normally I will glance through my test scores twice - once to look for good scores and comments, and once to see where the judge felt we could improve. Then I usually throw the test away. If I spend too much time analyzing (when I already know what went well and what needed improvement because I ride the horse and I know how the ride went), the little voice in my mind starts to get overly critical and downright mean.
This test, however, went really well. Ferriana was wonderful, and it was reflected in her scores and comments. Because I'm really proud of this one, I share it here:
And here is the video of her test:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRKR6hfBqq4
Show jumping was a blast. Ferriana sure has hops, and although she's perfectly capable of jumping the standards, she's starting to figure out that she only needs to jump the height of the poles. This makes for more accurate jumping efforts.
There were still a few big leaps, though.
Yeah, when Ferriana over-jumps, that landing is a little hard to ride!
I love these next two photos, you can see it in her face, Ferriana locking on to the next jump and really focusing.
What a gorgeous place to show! Kimberly Hale Photography stood just outside the NE corner of the arena and captured some truly dramatic backgrounds.
Ferriana is definitely a powerful horse, which you can see in these next two photos. "The horse is strong with this one...!"
Cross country went well, too. The course had two trips through the water, the first one we just galloped in and jumped up the bank to get out, and the second time we jumped the combination of chevron, two strides, then over the log into water.
There was some galloping on course between fences, which Ferriana definitely enjoys!
It was fun to feel the idea click in Ferriana's mind - "Oh, we're galloping AND jumping? Awesome, let's do this!" There were a couple things that she clearly remembered from previous trips to these grounds, and she had thought about them, figured them out, and then was easily able to master the questions on course this time.
The ditch, while familiar now, she still enjoys jumping over as though it was quite high.
We had a wonderful time at the show, and I was delighted when so many of the Bit of Honey Crew showed up to cheer for us! Kimberly Hale Photography captured the images, Linda M was able to stop by for a bit before going in to work, Linda R, Sally and Sue came to cheer and offer moral support, Amy videoed and helped with grooming, and possibly my favorite part was my husband, Owen, coming to cheer and video for me, too!
Aside from the good rounds, good friends, and good photos, I was surprised at the end of the day when Kim H. came back from collecting my dressage tests with an armful of goodies. Ferriana had won her division for the day earning her a blue ribbon and some ceramic fabric boots, and she also came in reserve champion for Novice division for the show series. Not to mention the wonderful dressage score and great comments from the judge. I don't compete for the ribbons or the prizes, but it was a pleasant surprise of icing on the day's great cake!
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