Back in the ring….

It was 8 Months to the day that Rocky last set hoof in a competition arena, following months of vets and physios advice and treatments, and today we were back at Castle Farm, a local, and spookily the very last place we competed (and won!) venue.

I admit to feeling anxious on arrival, after all, we are both slightly out of practice, and with the recent hospital stay for myself with heart related issues, my recent work load and only a handful of schooling sessions for Rocky, it was a little daunting!

I had decided last year to leave the Intro classes as Rocky was out of them, however as a welcome easy comeback I chose to do the Intro C, new for 2016, and Prelim 2, also new for 2016, that way there felt like little pressure if things went a little wrong!

On arrival Rocky was chilled and almost looked asleep, well that was until we approached the warm up where he promptly squealed with delight and I braced myself for a few high jinx, although to be fair, he did keep a lid on it – thankfully!

Warm up was great, although tense, his walk was so bouncy I was convinced Rocky had been learning Piaffe and Passage while he was on his rehab!!!

Our turn arrived and we managed a reasonable test, with his walk his downfall through tension, he was so keen, he just wanted to go! Can’t fault that in a young horse, just have to learn to manage it!

We achieved 63%, mid range in a huge class, not bad for the amount of tension we carried.

A quick break and Prelim 2 was upon us. Well, Rocky was on fire, warming up he was somewhat “forward” shall we say, but again, I am far from wanting to supress that.

In the test, well, tension and “forward” were the theme, the walk was like in the intro – short and with a feeling of “any moment now…” and when we hit canter, well shall we say I didn’t think I would regret selling a jump saddle!!! However, the majority of the test was ok, rhythm improved and tempo settled, just a lack of breaks in the canter! I also admit to having a sever blonde moment and losing 2 marks with an error of course… DOH!!!!

We again were mid range with 62%, not bad considering the blonde rider and lack of breaks!!

So, our return to the competition arena was complete, and on reflection, I was thrilled with Rocky, he did everything asked of him –even if exuberantly-  but mainly he was sound and felt amazing.

So, onwards and upwards I think now :)