February 2011

I was reminded to blog today on facebook by another haffy lover starting a new blog tracking her progress with Evers Navarone. So check out her blog! http://haffyholic.blogspot.com/

Niels is being awesome lately. Brilliant to ride, it's warmed up and I think he's liking the weather!

Just a quick update because I'm super busy! He's got canter walk canter now, and he knows what I want him to do, just need to practice practice practice. Leg yields have got so much better recently, now we don't have a change of pace half way through and he's starting to actually step under. :D Clever little boy.

Just starting on the youngster again, taking it slowly to start with so we're going for a potter around the field this weekend. After 3 months off she was perfectly fine with me getting back on again, not a spot of bother. What a cracker I've got! Very exciting. :D

January 2011

Niels is doing great lately. Just wish I had time to get out there competiting! Easy rosettes since nobody else can be bothered in this weather. haha

He can now easily do a 10m circle in canter, counter canter is coming, but only when he feels like it. He gets pretty frustrated and panicky when he knows that's what we're going to work on, so I have to sneak it in!

We've got nice and straight leg yields, and without a joggy trot too, staying nice and balanced. Now he's finding it easy in trot, I'll start working on it in canter too.

Not much else to report. Opal's got just over a month left of her holiday, so I'm starting to ask a bit more of her on the ground. Trotting poles have been introduced (Boy can she pick her feet up!) and every couple of weeks I've been lunging her in the pessoa, I'll increase that to once a week I think, she goes really nicely in that.

I'll have some more videos soon!

x

The Haflinger Show was Cancelled :(

The Winter Haflinger Show was cancelled because the weather made it quite dangerous for people to get there. There were people travelling from Scotland and places, so it just wasn't worth the risk. They're planning a spring one though, should be exciting.

Opal's growing! We measured her today and she's grown about 1/2" since she was measured for her passport in the summer. She now stands at 14.1 hh, and she's certainly filling out! (As am I!)



She's such a little character.

On an average week she might get lunged once, free lunged once (maybe more than that depending on the weather) and a proper handling session once(other than the basic ones I do as part of her usual routine). The handling sessions consist of her trotting calmly beside me, getting her to trot more flashy next to me, immediate transitions up to and down to trot, walk and halt, square halts, clockwise circles in trot and walk (got it down to a 10m circle now! This is me on her left side), walking backwards fluidly, side passing in walk, turn on the forehand and quarter walk pirouettes! None too shabby for a 3 year old, with just a schooling whip, headcollar and lead rope.
I can't wait to get on board, she's so intelligent! I lunged her today and she picked up canter on both reins on the correct leg. Proud.

Niels was amazing to ride today! I had that buzzy feeling after I'd ridden and everything. He'd been in his stable for a couple of hours, and I got on at about 5:45, and only rode for 1/2 an hour. Usually it takes that 1/2 an hour to settle him, get him to concentrate and actually listen to me. Today it was more like 15 minutes, and he was more uphill at the end of the session than he's ever been before. It started with some noises outside exciting him, then once he was in that flashy trot there was no stopping him! I think he liked it, released some endorphins or something, because he just kept giving more and more! We did a canter on each rein too, (he's much easier to sit to when he's going like that!) and then stretched in trot and cooled off. Again, proud mama. I can't wait until I can get back out competing, I want to see what scores that can give us!
Here's some of Niels in the snow too:



I'll try not to leave it so long between updates in future and hopefully get some photos and videos of their progress.

Winter Breed Show

There's another Haflinger show coming up! Full of furry haflingers this time, and quite a bit colder... Niels and Opal are both going. Opal's just entered in the Youngstock class, and it'll be her last youngstock class. *violins* Niels is doing two elementary classes (open and restricted sections) and one preliminary with my younger brother.

Opal's put on tonnes of weight, the grass in my area is clearly just ridiculously good. Doesn't help that I can't really exercise her like I need to! Nevermind, she's a growing girl!

Niels is going good. His simple changes are more hit than miss now, been building up counter canter, collected canter and working on laterals in trot. He can now do shoulder ins and travers down the whole length of the school, and straight/parallel leg yields are nice and basic for him too now. :) Oh and I tricked him the other day, and he did travers on a circle. I swear he's having me on sometimes! Started using poles recently, I never bothered before because he's a bit of a clutz and I tend to fear for my life! It's teaching how to flick out his toes in trot though, maybe eventually we'll be able to incorporate that into a respectable medium trot?

Can't wait to get started on Opal. Plans, plans, plans!

I'll take lots of photos at the breed show, and maybe buy some pro ones too. :)

Long Time No Blog!

Been pretty busy. Niels is in a real 'willing to learn' phase, so I took full advantage of it and over the summer we've got ready to do our first elementary tests together! Not expecting to do amazingly well, and I don't know how he'll react to being asked to do more complicated things in a different environment... Usually it improves him, but we shall see.

I ran through the tests at the weekend, and here they are:





Medium trot and free walk are still pretty much non-existent, and walk to canter is hit and miss. :/ I'll try not to over analyse, makes for a very boring post!

I clipped Niels naked at the weekend too. He had an immense woolly coat, so now he must feel a lot better!

Opal went to a Trailblazers qualifier last weekend (even though she'll be too old for the actual championship...) and she came second! :D Very proud of my baby girl, she behaved herself so well.

4th on 68.93%!

At Allens Hill, Pinvin. 68.93% and we came 4th amongst some really stiff competition. Still can't believe we even placed!
Six 8s! Lost most of our marks this time on the transitions, and that last centre line where Niels thought we were doing leg yielding. :/
lol @ me gathering my reins after the (attempt at) free walk! Couldn't work out which rein was which! Bloody plait fell out after 5 minutes by the way...

We qualified for the Championships at that venue on bank holiday monday (next Monday)!

We're now moving on up to competing at Elementary! :D

I have photos!

These two are from the Novice Ridden 21 and under showing class I did with Niels at the Haflinger Show this year:


(Bit too uphill for showing. haha But he's not a showing pony!)



This is Niels with his 1st First Place rosette from Solihull Riding Club a few weeks ago:



This was Sunday at Swallowfield Equestrian Centre, where we came 4th in the Novice dressage section:




(I love this one. If it was more abstract you'd think he was 16.2hh. :P)



In other news: We're going to get Opal tomorrow!