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mari

Mari, Is it that you can't obtain turkey or that you don't like turkey? The second is forgivable but the first... I'll take issue with. My daughter was in South Sudan with Doctors Without Borders a few years ago, and she was able to procure a turkey from some local farmer to make Thanksgiving dinne...

mari

Happy Thanksgiving!
We don't officially celebrate it here, but we've adopted the custom. We try to make some American dishes (except turkey, cannot with turkey), and we go around the table and say what we're grateful for.

mari

so.much.rain It gives me anxiety. I grew up in an old leaking house, with ceilings that would collapse, and water running down the walls. I never outgrew that anxiety, and it is now nearly 30 years later. The thunder in our province is so loud that the windows rattle in their frames. I revert to a p...

mari

Khall I'm so sorry about Rip, they really do take pieces of us with them when they go. Chisamba - I've met a few half-bionic riders, not a single one has said they regretted it, although the recovery can be a biatch. Good luck to you! So lovely to read all the updates. We're at the start of summer h...

mari

Peeps, I thought this board was nuked. I haven't been able to access it for a few months now, and finally twigged that something might have changed and the access was restricted for other countries. Laurie and her husband opened it up for South Africa again.

Missed you guys! Glad to be back.

mari

Moutaineer wrote:Ha, Junior! Busted! Now she knows you can do it!

Exactly! Now you can be relentless, Exvet, you know it's in there somewhere

mari

I don't know how anybody ever gets to Grand Prix before either they or the horse dies of old age. LOL, that is kind of how I feel right now. Like, we've come so far in the last year and yet we have so much more work to do at second level. :lol: the funny thing about this statement is that when i go...

mari

Chisamba - what a lovely active leg yield! You have inspired me to school these big sweeping ones. I avoid them because they're so hard for us (I know, I know!) We tried a new bit yesterday. My one instructor suggested that we try something a slightly sharper than his current French link full-cheek,...

mari

Omw, I need to find me some padded panties!!! Thanks for that tip, didn't even think about it.

mari

If I can just actually go ride more than once a week, that would be great... Lost my mojo a bit, hoping to get it back. Somehow.

mari

I love your post Chisamba. I have a long list of concessions... Some are due to my natural patience/zen when training, and some are due to my current skill plateau. An example that is always relevant for me is that I can get EITHER a lighter feeling in the bridle OR enough impulsion. Nearly never bo...

mari

Lovely videos StraightForward, thanks for posting them! And your colour-matching game is ON POINT, love it.

mari

A productive but hard work ride today. It was half pass day. The left is pretty decent, but Potters was a bit recalcitrant about doing the hard stuff to the right, and we had some snarky spooks. (He'd rather do the things he finds easy like changes and pirouettes.) I find myself turning into a pret...

mari

I just wanted to post a link of a South African showjumper, Bronwyn Meredith Dos Santos, and her absolutely fabulous horse, Bibisi. They're at the 2025 LONGINES FEI World Cup Jumping Finals currently. The heart and dedication and cost it took to get there, and compete with the best in the world, is ...

mari

Tanga wrote:I love watching you ride, Aleuronix,. Good work. Good exercises.

Samesies! Lovely consistent work.

mari

Chisamba - You both look great, her hocks seem very active. Good luck with your move! I try to train myself (and fail often...) to not think of changes/decisions so much in terms of right and wrong. Roll with it and try to find happiness in that new situation, and if it doesn't feel good and you hav...

mari

Sorry to hear about the disease outbreaks in your area mari. Dealing with such vector borne diseases is so hard especially the ones preventable through vaccination as are the majority we deal with here. AHS is always on our radar for reportable foreign diseases. Thankfully we have dodged that bulle...

mari

I had a great lesson yesterday with Molly at the show grounds. All of Junior's flying changes were clean and in the air. His contact was pretty solid and we really dug in and got him into that right rein honestly. Most importantly I had a forward pony. When we got to the show today, Junior was as c...

mari

Great clinic notes Blob, I love the comment about hand position, specifically.

mari

Thanks Exvet and Moutaineer, thanks for your words and kindness. I know these things rationally, but I'm in a bit of a funk after yesterday I guess. Which is unlike my usual riding mindset so I'm at a loss about how to make it go away :lol: Moutaineer - the impulsion vs. suppleness, you nailed it! W...

mari

Had a show today, first one in ages. 3-1. I thought it went really well except for a big mistake where he broke into the most awful camel trot after the final extended canter. But the scores were terrible. I ended last in class of about 16 people with 57%. I'm very bleak, especially since my instruc...

mari

I realize that Junior's growing in from a body clip winter coat is quite brittle and am hoping that the rubbing isn't due to a ill fit of saddle. Actually today, Junior found his shoulders like he never knew he could reach his forelegs that far forward. He really galloped for me to day and it was g...

mari

Great photos and scores Exvet!

mari

I had a lesson yesterday, we are practicing test riding (3-1). I don't feel great thinking about it, it was pretty ugly riding. I've had Odin for 15 years, and he is totally amazing, and I have become a much better rider and horse-trainer because of him. Both my instructors consider him a proper sch...

mari

I heard there was flooding in Randburg. Are you all ok? Yes, thank goodness. I'm more to the North, in Centurion (closer to Pretoria). Here in Centurion there are lots of low bridges, and they flood, and EVERY SINGLE SEASON people try crossing anyway and get washed downriver. Bonkers. My suburb is ...

mari

I think many of you know I have JRTs and it's for the purpose of rodent control. Well Troy decided to join their pack. Yesterday it was clear when I got home from work (I had all the JRTs with me) that Troy stomped a mouse (to death). Whether he was playing with it (most likely), accidental or out ...

mari

So much rain here. There is a joke going around that 70% of the earth is covered in water, 69% of it is covering Gauteng currently. Our arenas are all uncovered, and if it's too wet we don't get to use them. And of course I have a show in a few weeks :lol: I took advantage of a few minutes of dry-is...

mari

There is a Dorothee Schneider clinic here in mid-February. Here in South Africa we very rarely get international clinicians, so I was super keen to spectate, but they suddenly moved the dates from weekend dates to Monday/Tuesday, and now I can't get leave. Very bummed.

mari

Exvet I had to read your LY exercise quite a few times before I could figure it out :lol: We also have some homework this week. We're working on counter canter a lot at the moment. The single changes are pretty established, but he anticipates a lot, and the more complex CC work is to teach him to re...

mari

Flight - I think I'm going to fall in love with Bear a bit!

mari

I see now I haven't written my goals. Riding: Still on the MORE journey. It has really paid off imo, and the next two months will be very focused on trot lateral work, and a more reliable very collected canter. Myself: I started the FUEL workout series by Caroline Girvan yesterday. I did her IRON se...

mari

Lipsmackerpony88 wrote:Chisamba I hope you are feeling better and I hope you can tell us more about your trip to Ireland soon

Ditto!

mari

I had a really lovely final lesson of the year. We got rained on, and had to stand under a tree for a few minutes to wait for the worst to pass. But fortunately it was just drizzly rain with no lightning. We played a bit with changes on a 20m circle, definitely something we will pick up and refine f...

mari

Flight that is a LOVELY picture! Blob, your clinic notes sound very productive. It's a balance between getting the basics at the level you're in very very good, and pushing for new things. In my (admittedly limited) experience, the messiness of learning new things can weirdly help to elevate the bas...

mari

I have two lessons a week with Stephane Cheret, and obviously Saiph is my primary focus, but I alternate between horses for the second ride, either based on what eye I need, or what horse is going to help me improve myself. So I switch between Fly, Pauletta and Kimba. Of course he says i have too m...

mari

Wonderful photos Moutaineer! Well done Flight, what a lovely jumping pic. I left the house early this morning, drove 40 mins to my lesson, and upon arrival realised I'd forgotten my saddle. It is " no stirrup November: " I don't mind no stirrups, and I love riding in just a bareback pad. ...

mari

Wonderful photos Moutaineer!
Well done Flight, what a lovely jumping pic.

I left the house early this morning, drove 40 mins to my lesson, and upon arrival realised I'd forgotten my saddle.

mari

Don't hate me, but never have I ever had to groom mud off a horse

mari

Ermagerd, we are at an awkward stage where canter half-passes and flying changes are lovely, supple, easy, but the rest... Medium/extended canter is a disaster. He just bulldozes off. Half-halts do not register. The available power in my arms and body cannot do more than it currently does. Trot late...

mari

My broken-record goal is as usual just MORE of everything. Except for power in the canter. We need LESS of that :lol: It is monstrously hot here at the moment, it was just over 30C when I tried to ride yesterday morning, and Odin was like a zombie horse. Just no go whatsoever. This morning's lesson ...

mari

Such great updates! Straightforward - What a stunning photo, magazine-worthy. Tanga - The ones were AWESOME! Well done! Exvet - It's a pity about the scores but it sounds like the overall result is worth it. You should definitely be able to increase engagement without resorting to a tight frame, it'...

mari

Odin and I are carrying on as normal. The sheath is still swollen every day, but looks a lot better after trot/canter work. So we are taking it day by day. He is feeling very full of himself and keen to work, so that is what we are going with. Today we went back to counter canter after months of pla...

mari

Very happy with Joplin yesterday and our first foray into 3 rd level. Could not ask for her to be any better at dealing with hauling and show atmosphere. Wouldn’t mind just a bit of an energy bump from showing but that is just not Joplin. I just need to ride a bit better for better score. 60% with ...

mari

Loving all the updates and videos! Odin is home. Third course of antibiotics are finished, and he's on anti-inflammatories until the end of October. Yesterday the sheath was hot and swollen again, but went right down after working him. I guess the test is going to be what happens when the pills run ...

mari

Mari, wow, I'm sorry. I don't think I've heard of anything like that. One of the horses in the pasture (the woman who was the director of Hoof Dreams) got a little wound on his shoulder that made him very sore, then got cellulitis, and then ended up at Davis with a rare infection that she could hav...

mari

It is terrifying to read about your hurricane experiences, such huge weather just boggles my mind. Odin is still in hospital, and still on antibiotics, but the swelling is down and because of that and the pain meds he's acting like a happy loon, tearing around the enormous vet paddock. I'm going to ...

mari

Odin is in hospital with a very bad sheath infection. Getting litres of antibiotics and painkillers and anti-inflammatories. Being walked and cold-hosed 5 times a day, and is wearing a sling of pressure bandages. I wish I could magic him better.

mari

Have you considered partly covering your existing big arena? I've seen some lovely examples of really large jumping arenas that are covered at one end only.

mari

which school of thought do you belong to, A don't ask until everything is great, the basics are there, et al. Or B, nothing us ever perfect, ask and persist. When Kea was obnoxious about fitting in the flying changes on a diagonal, I took her out on a half mile track and just kept asking until she ...

mari

Woohoo well done Exvet! Great results! I've given my instructor instructions to really drill us in the trot lateral work. Lots of it, lots of sideways, and lots of prompt response to my leg. I just don't have the capacity to do this strict work much by myself at the moment. Today we had a good day, ...

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