Monday, August 25, 2008
23 August 08
Well finally I got on one of my horses, yes we had fine weather, cold but fine. Dragged poor old George out of his paddock for an amble round and discovered he'd managed to lose a new front shoe ARH! Well after a few false starts e.g. yelling at Skye who kept disappearing to annoy one of the grazers or going into the stream below, George and I managed to have an amble round. Couldn't do much more than walk as the ground is still incredibly slippery, so we did manage to have a 20 minute walk around till we both had enough and decided best to pack it in. Since Sunday we've now had rain rain rain and this is supposed to continue till Friday. We've entered the Dressage day at McLean's Island on the 14th September, but just not sure if this is going to happen as we really can't ride in the paddocks, Liz's arena is completely flooded again and the roadside is just as bad as our paddocks. Only good thing out of this is we're going to have no problems with grass growth when the warm weather hits, however I can see this in itself is going to cause major problems with Spring Nuttiness!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
16 August - Saturday
Well had some lovely weather on Saturday, however my time was spent mucking out for 5 hours!!! Ponies got their covers off, man were they pleased about that. Was good to see the paddocks had dried out and everything was starting to come away again. However after my marathon effort of mucking out I didn't feel like having an ride on any of my ponies, so off home I went, somewhat sore and tired. Sunday it had rained overnight and the ground was back to being slushy, didn't take much. So went went down and feed the ponies and finished mucking out JimJim's paddock. By this time I was seriously walking hunched over. We've got sleet forecast for Monday so just hoping this is the last of it.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Update 13 August 08
Well we finally got some nice weather on Sunday, unfortuantely the ground is far to slippery to ride so had to feed out and leave the poor boys alone. I can tell you that my knees are starting to seize up with lack of riding! We've had a great week so far, sun sun sun but typically the forecast for the weekend is, wait for it, RAIN! We're down to our last bale of hay, but I must admit the paddocks are starting to grow with Ratbag already feeling the affects, as he's certainly charging around the paddock kicking up his heels so Roly's been going along putting all the divets back in. It will be 6 weeks this weekend I think it is since I rode last, the weather has been horrid, but admittedly its not normally like this, and we had been extremely lucky as we've had an extremely mild winter. On a non horsie side, Shannon competed down in Dunedin last weekend, they only lost 4 of their 14 games and these loses were only by 1 point, talk about unlucky. She's off to Timaru this weekend, then the following weekend she's playing in Chch and then thats it for rep team. Well afraid its not much to report, hopefully I'll have something decent to report in the next couple of weeks.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Old Ponies
Shannons first pony was Star who was dropped off to my sisters friend by the meat man as he was really a lovely little boy just old. The vet thought he was around 30 when we got him and we had him for the next 5 years. He was a fine boned wee pony, around 11hh, Shannon could happily ride him around the paddock and had the occasional road ride with one of ladys from the paddock. If he didn't want to do something he'd throw in a wee buck, wasn't anything much, but she had to learn how to deal with that and also try to stop him taking her back to the gate when he'd had enough. Star was semi retired around 3 years ago, he occasionally had a friends daughter come out for a little ride around, but he enjoyed his semi retirement. He was a funny little man when he was getting hardfed, he'd buck and buck while his head was in the bucket. He got left on the roadside to tidy up the land owners verge, and we often had people stopping with their kids with an apple or two for Star, he was well known in the neighbourhood. Unfortunately as it got harder and harder to keep the weight on, and he just seemed to be struggling more and more with winter we had to make the decision to put him down. He's now buried out at field in Woodend a much more fitting end to this lovely little pony.
Smegal is a little Welshie we purchased from Joe in Otago. He'd actually gone to my sister on trial for her kids but her kids weren't really that interested. We took Smegal on trial and ended up spending a bit of money on him getting his attitude readjusted, he'd been used in a riding school for a time after being broken in and had developed some silly little habits that weren't appropriate around little kids. Smegal didn't like going round and round in circles as this was far to boring but loved jumping, going to the beach and doing anything differnet. Shannon took him to Eyreton Dressage and Jumping day and though he jumped out of the arena she was allowed to carry on and still got a very respectable score. She then did the handy pony where he stole one of the storks of corn out of the barrels and went round the rest of the course munching on it, we did end up with quite a crowd watching him as he was character plus. Unfortunately Shannon didn't last long on him as he was only 12.2hh but she had alot of fun while we had him. He was then sold to a Chch family with two little girls.
We purchased Pinky named Woodbine Champagne who had been SJ by a young rider in the hope she'd be suitable for Shannon but she was far to strong for Shan. She was a lovely mare though, awesome nature, she was in foal at the time, and had a lovely wee filly we called Princess, dam - Woodbine Champagne, Sire - Kahu Warrior. Must say this girl had her daddy's and mums great personality and if she had possibly looked like she might have gone over the 14.2hh mark we would have kept her but she was going to be far to small for what we wanted. She's now living in Eyreton with Jo and all her other ponies and currently being broken in. Pinky was sold to another Kylie in Ohoka and has a great life and is greatly loved, such a nice ending for her as she'd been been used as a broodmare in the last few years and really loved the attention and the riding she got.
Smegal is a little Welshie we purchased from Joe in Otago. He'd actually gone to my sister on trial for her kids but her kids weren't really that interested. We took Smegal on trial and ended up spending a bit of money on him getting his attitude readjusted, he'd been used in a riding school for a time after being broken in and had developed some silly little habits that weren't appropriate around little kids. Smegal didn't like going round and round in circles as this was far to boring but loved jumping, going to the beach and doing anything differnet. Shannon took him to Eyreton Dressage and Jumping day and though he jumped out of the arena she was allowed to carry on and still got a very respectable score. She then did the handy pony where he stole one of the storks of corn out of the barrels and went round the rest of the course munching on it, we did end up with quite a crowd watching him as he was character plus. Unfortunately Shannon didn't last long on him as he was only 12.2hh but she had alot of fun while we had him. He was then sold to a Chch family with two little girls.
We purchased Pinky named Woodbine Champagne who had been SJ by a young rider in the hope she'd be suitable for Shannon but she was far to strong for Shan. She was a lovely mare though, awesome nature, she was in foal at the time, and had a lovely wee filly we called Princess, dam - Woodbine Champagne, Sire - Kahu Warrior. Must say this girl had her daddy's and mums great personality and if she had possibly looked like she might have gone over the 14.2hh mark we would have kept her but she was going to be far to small for what we wanted. She's now living in Eyreton with Jo and all her other ponies and currently being broken in. Pinky was sold to another Kylie in Ohoka and has a great life and is greatly loved, such a nice ending for her as she'd been been used as a broodmare in the last few years and really loved the attention and the riding she got.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
First blog
Run down of the ponies we currently have, so pleased to have gotten down from 6 to 3 but then we went back up to 4 again, oh well thats life.
Bit of a run down on our ponies:
Cheeky which is/was Shannons pony is a 14.2hh approx QuarterhorseXTB mare, she's a solid paint which we purchased for Shannon to do pc and low level dressage/eventing. Shannons a very nervous rider and Cheeky suited her down to the ground as she just doesn't get stressed. Unfortunatley a year and a half into owning Cheeky Shannon has shot up and has had to move onto a 16.2hh horse and due to this we've had to put Cheeky up for sale. Other than an issue with a back problem due to an ill fitting saddle Cheeky has been a dream to own, so will be sad when we eventually part with her, but I know she'll make someone else very happy.
JimJim aka Jimmy the Tulip aka Black Knight is a 16.2hh 13yr old TB gelding that we have on lease from Amy Wilson. JimJim was recommended by friends and Dy who was Shannon's old PC instructor and happens to be Amy's mum, the wise woman! We've got JimJim on lease to see how it all works out before purchasing him as its a big step up for her to go from Cheeky to a full sized hack and Shannon being a nervous rider as it is, we werent' sure how it was all going to go. We understand JimJim has evented, hunted and generally been out and about. Shannons first ride on JimJim was at Dy's and Amy's place and she had a blast with Dy yelling instructions at her, she was jumping (and Shannon hardly ever jumps) within the hour. Next outing was a XC training day held at Ricc/Fen. JimJim behaved perfectly and Shannon was beaming from ear to ear, I however wasn't feeling quite so well, nervous mother syndrome! Petra (Amy's sister) even managed to show Shannon that you can fall off and still laugh about it - GO PETRA! We then got JimJim delivered to home and Shannons next outing was to PC for a Derby Day, this was her first ever time doing a XC course in a big open field on her own. JimJim behaved like the gentleman he is and just ambled along. They managed to score themselves a red ribbon and a silver platter for their efforts that day. The two of them are already firm friends with JimJim refusing to be led up the float by me, but following Shannon up no problems at all.
Ratbag or Short Circuit is 16.2hh has just turned 5 and raced under the name Lepalderat. I purchased Rat off my friend Kaz in late 2006. He's not had a lot of work as Kaz hadn't had him long when I purchased him and even though she'd done a great job to feeding him up, he was still a little weak and has taken some time to really fill out and look like a horse. In 2007 I took Rat out and did a green horse show and a green horse dressage day, he was amazingly behaved at these days, never putting a foot wrong. Due to Dad's illness and subsequent death in 08 we ended up spelling the horses for almost a year, so our next outing wasn't till mid 08 where we chose another green horse show to be our first outing, unfortunately while we were warming up outside the ring he got a fright at a horse galloping up behind and this wasn't helpped by his paddock mate loosing the plot as well. However, I did learn two things, I can bounce and my well behaved boy can buck :) I did manage to get back on and completed 3 of the 7 classes I had entered, however I had managed to injure myself and found my hip must have taken a bashing when I landed. In the classes we presented ourselves for we managed to get a last in best presented, mmm might have been the mud all over the saddle and the side of the horse where he fell over when he took off after we parted company. We got a 4th in best walking and a 3rd in best trotting. Unfortunately my nerves were shattered with horses going everywhere, I think in those 3 classes there were 4 people come off! I called it a day and was just pleased that other than getting a little nervous with the horses playing up in the ring, he managed to hold it together. Spring of 08 is when this boy is really going to start getting some decent work in the hope of having him ready for the next winter dressage series. He's now filled out and starting to get to know what his job is and whats expected of him. So come summer, well be heading on out for as much exposure as possible.
George or Killarney Star is my little old man, he's around 15.1-15.2hh and is 12 or 13 years old. He was raced under the name of Six Pack and is by Varikos. George was purchased from Rebecca Peter's as my old Intermediate Eventer was put down and I didn't have the money or time to really replace him. So for the first 3-4 years of having George we plodded around the paddock and had the occasional ride around the road. It was only about 2-3 years ago I got the itch to do something more, so George started jumping. He loved it, and even though by nature he's very stubborn this never comes out on the course, he might decide he's going straight while I'm trying to get him round a hill, but the minute he see's those flags he's off, funniest thing to ride, he literrally doesn't need me there at all! He's not so keen on dressage, think its a tad to boring for him, but saying that his scores have improved greatly so theres hope for the future. We've also done a Vaughan Jeffries course, which was in June this year, was so much fun, will certainly look at doing more of these and when I can afford them.
Bit of a run down on our ponies:
Cheeky which is/was Shannons pony is a 14.2hh approx QuarterhorseXTB mare, she's a solid paint which we purchased for Shannon to do pc and low level dressage/eventing. Shannons a very nervous rider and Cheeky suited her down to the ground as she just doesn't get stressed. Unfortunatley a year and a half into owning Cheeky Shannon has shot up and has had to move onto a 16.2hh horse and due to this we've had to put Cheeky up for sale. Other than an issue with a back problem due to an ill fitting saddle Cheeky has been a dream to own, so will be sad when we eventually part with her, but I know she'll make someone else very happy.
JimJim aka Jimmy the Tulip aka Black Knight is a 16.2hh 13yr old TB gelding that we have on lease from Amy Wilson. JimJim was recommended by friends and Dy who was Shannon's old PC instructor and happens to be Amy's mum, the wise woman! We've got JimJim on lease to see how it all works out before purchasing him as its a big step up for her to go from Cheeky to a full sized hack and Shannon being a nervous rider as it is, we werent' sure how it was all going to go. We understand JimJim has evented, hunted and generally been out and about. Shannons first ride on JimJim was at Dy's and Amy's place and she had a blast with Dy yelling instructions at her, she was jumping (and Shannon hardly ever jumps) within the hour. Next outing was a XC training day held at Ricc/Fen. JimJim behaved perfectly and Shannon was beaming from ear to ear, I however wasn't feeling quite so well, nervous mother syndrome! Petra (Amy's sister) even managed to show Shannon that you can fall off and still laugh about it - GO PETRA! We then got JimJim delivered to home and Shannons next outing was to PC for a Derby Day, this was her first ever time doing a XC course in a big open field on her own. JimJim behaved like the gentleman he is and just ambled along. They managed to score themselves a red ribbon and a silver platter for their efforts that day. The two of them are already firm friends with JimJim refusing to be led up the float by me, but following Shannon up no problems at all.
Ratbag or Short Circuit is 16.2hh has just turned 5 and raced under the name Lepalderat. I purchased Rat off my friend Kaz in late 2006. He's not had a lot of work as Kaz hadn't had him long when I purchased him and even though she'd done a great job to feeding him up, he was still a little weak and has taken some time to really fill out and look like a horse. In 2007 I took Rat out and did a green horse show and a green horse dressage day, he was amazingly behaved at these days, never putting a foot wrong. Due to Dad's illness and subsequent death in 08 we ended up spelling the horses for almost a year, so our next outing wasn't till mid 08 where we chose another green horse show to be our first outing, unfortunately while we were warming up outside the ring he got a fright at a horse galloping up behind and this wasn't helpped by his paddock mate loosing the plot as well. However, I did learn two things, I can bounce and my well behaved boy can buck :) I did manage to get back on and completed 3 of the 7 classes I had entered, however I had managed to injure myself and found my hip must have taken a bashing when I landed. In the classes we presented ourselves for we managed to get a last in best presented, mmm might have been the mud all over the saddle and the side of the horse where he fell over when he took off after we parted company. We got a 4th in best walking and a 3rd in best trotting. Unfortunately my nerves were shattered with horses going everywhere, I think in those 3 classes there were 4 people come off! I called it a day and was just pleased that other than getting a little nervous with the horses playing up in the ring, he managed to hold it together. Spring of 08 is when this boy is really going to start getting some decent work in the hope of having him ready for the next winter dressage series. He's now filled out and starting to get to know what his job is and whats expected of him. So come summer, well be heading on out for as much exposure as possible.
George or Killarney Star is my little old man, he's around 15.1-15.2hh and is 12 or 13 years old. He was raced under the name of Six Pack and is by Varikos. George was purchased from Rebecca Peter's as my old Intermediate Eventer was put down and I didn't have the money or time to really replace him. So for the first 3-4 years of having George we plodded around the paddock and had the occasional ride around the road. It was only about 2-3 years ago I got the itch to do something more, so George started jumping. He loved it, and even though by nature he's very stubborn this never comes out on the course, he might decide he's going straight while I'm trying to get him round a hill, but the minute he see's those flags he's off, funniest thing to ride, he literrally doesn't need me there at all! He's not so keen on dressage, think its a tad to boring for him, but saying that his scores have improved greatly so theres hope for the future. We've also done a Vaughan Jeffries course, which was in June this year, was so much fun, will certainly look at doing more of these and when I can afford them.
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