What a great weekend
The week leading up to my training with my coach Megan Jones was excruciating! I just couldn’t wait to see her again and ride. This clinic was going to be a little different for me as I was also taking Billy’s owner, Lisa, with me to encourage her to progress from pony club grade 3/2 to EA Intro. Her first EA comp will be at CT Boneo Park on Billy in December.
We left home at 6:15am and drove to Fingal to allow plenty of time and Lisa was riding dressage at 9am. We settled Billy in, set up camp and got ready. I’d donated my dressage lesson to Lisa (as a thank you to her for allowing me to ride Billy) so she could train for a full hour with Megan. I was also very jealous, but in a good way! Of course it was raining but Billy is so used to being ridden in the rain with us he didn’t bat an eyelid! Before the lesson commenced, I presented Megan with her ‘Bronze’ ribbon and it was so humbling when she thanked me. I really just couldn’t find the words to tell her how much of a hero she is and what an inspiration she is to me. I have improved so much in the time I have trained with her and so has Billy.
Megan with her bronze ribbon
Lisa rode really well and I videoed her lesson standing with Megan so I could hear what she was saying. It was reassuring to see that Billy does the same things with me that he does with Lisa and confirms we’re very similar riders and we’re consistent! Lisa rode spiralling circles and was working on a lot of transitions and getting Billy moving off her legs. When Lisa was having some trouble getting Billy on to the right canter lead, Megan had her rise on the incorrect diagonal in trot and then ask and he smoothly transitioned every time onto the right lead! What a really neat tip! Billy was fabulous. We also got some really neat tips on how to prepare and warm up for your dressage test and how to present to the judge and not lose your rhythm while you’re presenting, as well as how to enter the arena from A in a straight line. Most experienced riders would already know these things, but it was really cool and exciting to learn something so simple and new. For example, to ride in to the arena at A most of us amateurs would tent to ride out of a circle around the A marker. Megan suggested circling to one side of A and then coming in on a straight line so you miss the A marker and come to the side of it. I’d never thought of that and no one has ever told me that! Simple but brilliant!
After her dressage lesson, Lisa and I spoke with Megan about Billy and she suggested we try him in a ‘happy mouth’ bit with no flash. So we removed the flash and borrowed a bit from the team at Gunnamatta. Billy tends to ‘chomp’ on the French link snaffle we have him in and ‘reefs’ us out of the saddle.
Once we’d made Billy comfortable, we watched the other dressage lessons and I was really trying to concentrate on what Megan was picking up to see if I could note it too. I was show jumping in the afternoon, so after lunch I went and got Billy ready with Lisa assisting and then began to warm him up. The weather had fined up a little but as soon as I was ready to ride, the rain came again. At first he was a little resistant with the new bit but he soon settled. I was riding with one other rider, Pam and we started with warming up in our two and three point seat. I can really feel a difference now with my balance and lower leg being more stable. Some new leather gaiters, sticky bum jods and being really conscious as I ride, has really helped improve with my position.
We then progressed on to trot poles, concentrating on line and pace and position and then Megan moved the poles to a canter stride. Megan wanted us to continue in counter canter if that happened and Billy found this to be hard and the pole striding to be quite long at first, until I helped him balance by just moving my fingers slightly and getting the pace correct. Then he nailed it. What a champ! It was a really nice and smooth feeling. From there we progressed on to a grid of x-poles and an oxer.
I was having some trouble keeping Billy straight on the two fence grid and Megan was helping me correct him by pushing his hindquarters across with my right leg to my left hand and putting my whip in my right hand. I really need to practice this more as I am left-handed and it feels very strange to hold the whip in my right hand. Megan then popped the back oxer up higher and Billy jumped so much better and I managed to keep him straight! It was excellent. Finally we jumped another oxer that was about 80cm. I was really pleased with my lesson. Megan said that Billy is so much fitter and stronger, which was nice to hear! All my hard work is paying off.
Lisa and I spent the rest of the afternoon watching other lessons and chatting with the riders. When the day finally finished at around 5:30pm, we set up camp in the stables and then went out for dinner with Megan and Alice, who works at Gunnamatta. We had a fantastic dinner. It was just the four of us. We spoke of Megan’s trip to London and Burghley as well as her upcoming wedding and she also mentioned to me how much she loved my novel that she’d taken to read on her London trip. I was really overwhelmed with her very kind and positive feedback. The funny moment of the night was when Alice asked me a question about Antarctica and I said that I get very passionate about things and Megan burst out with, “Nooooooo! Not you, Jenna!”, which made us all crack up!
The next morning we were up at 6am and I fed Billy. Once we’d also had breakfast and packed our things, we then tacked him up and Lisa warmed him up for her show jumping lesson. Megan had Lisa working Billy in the same bit and we both had noticed how much better he was going and he wasn’t pulling us out of the saddle at all. Lisa’s lesson was fantastic to watch and I hovered close to Megan to get some tips as well. Billy was forward and straight. Megan then made the second grid oxer higher and in to an apex fence using poles and Billy’s jumping improved out of sight! He was really basculing and going forward and I was really thrilled for both Lisa and Billy.
Jumping out of the water with Megan's encouragment
After the show jumping lesson we hosed Billy down and he had a big drink of water infused with Recharge and molasses. Then we let him dry off in the warm sun. Lisa and I re-packed the car and then all had lunch in the sun with Megan before I prepared for my cross country lesson. We headed out to the back paddocks that look like a scene from Mordor. Megan had us warming up on a fairly flat-ish section of land and then riding over a small cavaletti. From there we progressed to a series of fences and I found our pace was really nice and relaxed. I was jumping a few fences that appeared bigger that any I had jumped in grade 4 and did them quite well, managing to get some nice straight lines. When Megan asked me to add in a larger fence, my nerves got the better of me a little and my lower leg became unstable. Megan then asked me which fence I’d felt my position fail on and I knew immediately. I was then able to really focus on keeping my body strong to that fence and it felt so much better. I also cantered down the hill for the first time, which was a big achievement.
After we’d nailed these fences we moved to the water jump, which I love. Billy was in and out like a yo-yo and acted as a school-master for Rachel’s young horse who eventually followed. I was very proud of Billy! We jumped both in and out of the water and then Megan put together a short course for us. For me it was come down the hill to a log and palisade, then up the hill to a grade 3 roll top and then down the hill to a wagon wheel fence. I was really nervous about the roll top, but I knew I had to trust Megan and Billy and myself. So off we went and Megan was instructing as I went. As we cantered up the hill to the crest, Megan called out, “Now sit up and leg.” And over we popped like it was nothing! I was so excited! We trotted down the hill and then cantered over the wagon wheel fence. Afterwards, Megan did a little dance saying, “Jenna jumped the roll top!” Ha-ha!
Always looking where I'm going to next
I walked Billy back to the stables and we untacked him, hosed him down and let him have a roll in the stable. After a quick breather he was tacked up again and taken back to the cross country course for Lisa’s lesson. Megan kept Billy’s warm up short and then the girls were riding a course of larger fences. Billy was jumping really well. However, on some of the fences, he wasn’t quite straight and Megan said it was interesting how he did that to me yesterday and then with Lisa today. When Lisa jumped the large log I had chickened out on Megan turned to me and said, “See Jenna, you could have done that!”
The girls then rode in and out of the water and jumped a brush fence using an apex line to a log, on to the roll top, to the larger log once more. Lisa rode fabulously and finally it was time to go home.
I had the best weekend with Megan. I always come home feeling so inspired and confident and I really felt I’d achieved so much from that short time with her. I really wish we could clone her and have a Megan each! I love imagining the possibilities if I could train with her every day!
My next competition is the Kangaroo Ground Adult Riders mid week dressage day on October 25.
Until then,
Happy riding!
Jenna and Billy Sparklepants. Xxoo
