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Inside Track Eventing

The journey of an amateur rider, and her two wonderful horses, into the world of eventing in Ireland

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Category: Humour

Blog, Humour

Anatomy of a Midweek Routine for a Horse Owner in Winter

Aim to finish work at 5.30. Actually finish work at 6.45 as you inefficiently managed your time throughout the working […]

By NatalieOctober 28, 2020
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๐ŸŒŸ ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ ๐—˜๐—พ๐˜‚๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—ป ๐—•๐—น๐—ผ๐—ด๐—ด๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ฌ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ ๐ŸŒŸ
๐Ÿ‡ฎ๐Ÿ‡ช Dublin, Ireland
๐Ÿง  Honesty, Mental Health & Self Talk

Natalie - Equestrian Blogger๐Ÿด
Ah, to be back at the beach with good friends ๐ŸŒŠ Ah, to be back at the beach with good friends ๐ŸŒŠ๐Ÿฅฐ Although itโ€™s certainly not beach weather anymore! Someone hit the โ€œwinterโ€ button and we are well and truly swapping in the wooly hats, warm jackets and medium weight rugs! Itโ€™s also clipping season ๐Ÿ‘€๐Ÿป October is a busy month for me which means itโ€™s quiet for Paddy! Heโ€™s had an easy few weeks and is having this week off entirely - next week Iโ€™ll do a bit with him to take the edge off and then get him clipped! Iโ€™m then hoping to get going in late October again with the showjumping so we can keep working towards my goal of completing a 1.10 before the end of year ๐Ÿคญ There, I said it! Does that mean I have to do it now?! Hope everyone has a lovely weekend planned ๐Ÿฅฐ
This guy is going SO well lately, putting a big sm This guy is going SO well lately, putting a big smile on my face every time I ride ๐Ÿฅฐ It was an incredibly hard decision to make the move from two horses to one - a decision I laboured over for quite some time before committing - but I know for sure now that it was the right one. I was killing myself and burning the candle at both ends trying to work long hours, see family and friends, spend time with my partner, and make the 40-60 min drive each way to ride two horses 4-5 days a week. God, even writing it makes me feel tired ๐Ÿ˜ด I constantly felt like I was letting something or someone down - and when it came to the horses, I felt like I was never getting the best out of either of them as I couldnโ€™t give them both the time they needed. Focusing on just Paddy has allowed me to improve his way of going, making him more supple, and start working my way towards some of the lofty goals I set for myself a few years ago with him. Im also hoping this will all help keep him sounder for longer! I also feel under less pressure and it isnโ€™t the end of the world if I miss a couple of days riding as I have less catching up to do with one. The cherry on top is the fact that Flash has found a wonderful home where she is being so well cared for and spoiled - itโ€™s all I could have asked for โค๏ธ Itโ€™s not to say I wonโ€™t ever get another, but for the foreseeable (as long as Paddy stays sound), I am so content with trying to reach my goals with my boy. I might have to adapt them to suit his needs but the journey is as much fun as the destination โค๏ธ
Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes - I had Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes - I had a wonderful morning on the beach with my bestie, behind these ears ๐Ÿฅฐ๐ŸŒŠ He wasnโ€™t thrilled about the waves - he did take a lead in and actually enjoyed being in the sea when everything was still, but promptly scarpered back to land when the waves came in, almost depositing me on a few occasions ๐Ÿ˜‚ Thank god for the oh s**t strap that I clung firmly onto ๐Ÿ˜‚ And thanks also to the best farrier ever who was up replacing a lost shoe at 7.30am this morning so I could get to the beach for my birthday! Not all heroes wear capes ๐Ÿฆธโ€โ™‚๏ธ
A lovely (albeit very wet and windy!) few days awa A lovely (albeit very wet and windy!) few days away in West Cork for a pre-birthday celebration ๐Ÿฅฐ Now back in Dublin and giving Paddy a light exercise day in preparation for a birthday beach ride with my bestie tomorrow - my actual birthday ๐Ÿฅณ Last time I was at the beach with Paddy was 2016 and he napped the whole way onto it so Iโ€™m looking forward to seeing how he reacts tomorrow ๐Ÿคฃ
โœจ Off for a little break โœจ Iโ€™m heading away โœจ Off for a little break โœจ Iโ€™m heading away for a couple of days with my other half today and switching off ๐Ÿฅฐ Weโ€™ve both been running at 100 miles an hour the last few months - him working full time in his day job and working weekends as a COVID Vaccinator, and me working long hours on a new product launch at work, and trying to fit riding in too! So we are very much looking forward to a few days away ๐Ÿ˜Œ Itโ€™s also my birthday next week and I refuse to work it ๐Ÿ˜‚ So Iโ€™m off all next week and have some fun things planned to enjoy my time off! Hope you all have a fabulous weekend whatever you get up to ๐Ÿฅฐ
Another lesson brain dump, this time a showjumping Another lesson brain dump, this time a showjumping lesson - feat. an old pic of Paddy looking delicious all clipped out ๐Ÿฅฐ SJ lesson with Taylor Vard this evening - last one we had was in late May, and we spent most of that working on straightness. Making sure Paddy was between my leg and hand, not drifting, not hanging on my inside hand, and was moving off my leg when I asked him to straighten his body. We have been working VERY hard on this at home! Not only putting in the work in our sessions day to day, but also investing in flatwork lessons with @sarahelebert_eventing to really sharpen ourselves up on the flat to improve our jumping. After all, you spend about 75% of your time in a SJ course on the flat ๐Ÿ˜‚ So to say I was thrilled to have positive feedback from Taylor on how much we improved since we last saw him, would be an understatement ๐Ÿฅฐ He was thrilled with the improvement in us both, noting how much straighter and more rideable Paddy was on the flat and to the fence, and gave me such positive feedback on the hard work Iโ€™d done since he last saw us. So pleased to see the hard work starting to pay off ๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿป Key things to remember from todayโ€™s lesson: - More work on the inside track. It highlights lack of straightness and tendencies to drift very quickly. Ride off the track pretty much all the time unless you need the space to turn to a fence. Even babies can do this. - Opening a rein to ask them to move into it is effective - but come back to neutral position with your hand again. Donโ€™t use a constant open rein (or worse, both reins open) as a crutch. Open, straighten, then neutral. - When Paddy is throwing his shapes (i.e bucking ๐Ÿ˜‚), take a marginally lighter seat and get your weight off him. Heโ€™s less likely to buck then and you can still get your leg on. This worked! - When landing after jumping a fence, try to canter on the three quarter line/inside track instead of gravitating to the outside track. - Look where you are bloody going not at the horses head ๐Ÿ™„ I donโ€™t know if you find these useful or insightful - would love to know! But they are so helpful for me to jot everything down in the moment and come back to!
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