What a wet summer it’s been. But despite this I’ve been getting lots of training in with my coach Simon Kale for some upcoming events. Simon has been my coach for about three years now. For me, what I love most about Simon is his humorous approach to teaching. There is never a dull moment and it is very hard to get too down about something going wrong because he is always sitting at the end of the arena cracking jokes. Being a level 3 coach Simon has huge experience nationally and internationally and since I have been getting lessons from him I have become a much more competitive, assertive rider.
After Inter-schools a few weeks back I realised areas of my riding needed improvement, this was evident in my show jumping. My horse Positano is a big Warmblood that is sometimes hard to get going. Going from a zippy pony has made me realise how much more I need to think about what my horse is doing around a course because I obviously can’t afford lazy rails in competition. Even though I got some good results, I think the best part of the competition was the amount of helpful advice I received. It was great talking to Andrew Haddad who bred and trained Positano. I think it’s really important to self evaluate after every event and for me I find it helpful to discuss with Simon and my parents how I think I rode and what things I can improve for next time.
Interschools ribbons can be used as hair accessories!
My next one day event was supposed to be at Silver Hills on the 7th and 8th of April but the recent rains washed it out which was really disappointing. However the other day I did some pony club show jumping and equitation rounds for my zone 28 championships which was a lot of fun. It was great to practise some courses and get some clear rounds, particularly because show jumping is my work in progress. My new jumping saddle has finally arrived so I’m very excited! It’s a beautiful Stubben Siegfried, which I’ve been riding in as much as possible, so I get used to it.
In the middle of the holidays I went to a five day camp at Simon’s. Every holidays Simon and his wife Olwyn hold riding camp at their property in Foxground, which is north of Berry on the NSW South Coast. I’ve been attending the camp ever since I started riding with him and there are always about 11 kids, a group of regulars, plus a few more. Riders are spread throughout the bunkhouse, any spare rooms and grooms quarters and we ride in groups, with one hour lessons in jumping and dressage each day. These camps always improve my riding not to mention the fact that they are good fun. Also the camp was good preparation for Canberra one day, which will hopefully be my last preliminary event before moving up to pre novice.
Stop Press: Well I said show jumping was my work in progress! I had a fab dressage and cross country at Canberra. I was really pleased with the way he went especially cross country, clear and on time, the Canberra track is definitely a favourite. But two rails down in the show jumping left me in 11th place at the end of the day. We have stayed with our decision to go pre novice at Camden. I know Positano is very capable and others have told me that it is just a matter of practise until we get our show jumping sorted ... watch this space.
Positano certainly seems to enjoy cross country - here we are at Wallaby Hill earlier this year
