Diesel Update | Lesson Recap

In the midst of jugging a tidal wave of assignments and studying for tests, Diesel and I have been making some really good, but slow, progress together. It is extremely frustrating to not see improvement as fast as I used to, but I have to face it, I just won’t improve as fast as when I was in high school riding five days a week. However, it is exciting to be back in the saddle with a goal to work towards.

The First Real Lesson Back: Crossrail Edition

This past Monday I had my first lesson on Diesel since he has been in training and let me tell you, the difference in him is unreal. It is so much easier to focus on the more technical parts of our rides when your horse has some idea of how to do his job without relying on you to hold him every step of the way. At least, it is for me as an amateur. Pros, I give you some major props! Riding young, green horses is hard! It’s sappy, I know, but I got a little teary-eyed when I asked for the canter and he held himself up through the transition rather than falling all into my hand.

The majority of our lesson was spent on the flat, as usual, since that is the most important part of riding! This week, at the trot, we worked on tightening our turns using my outside aids to produce an immediate response rather than letting him bulge his shoulder out to the outside. He has big swooping turns down-pat, but those tighter turns can be a little harder to get when you’re a baby horse. I need to work on using my outside aids more effectively in order to set him up for success all the time. Additionally, I have got to stop hanging on my inside rein when tracking to the left. What a terrible habit! I know my trainer has to be about ready to just rip my arm off as many times as she has to remind me to soften it up. I got a little slack in my year-long break from lessoning, so this is as much of a learning process for me as it is for him. I definitely need a tune up myself!

We also worked on our transitions at the canter by cantering around the arena, asking for a full halt on the diagonal of the arena, and then asking for the opposite lead from the halt. He was a superstar at that exercise – I can really tell how much work my trainer has put into developing his transitions. We definitely still need to work on getting a more immediate halt as it is still hit or miss sometimes. That is mainly due to my fault as I hesitated and didn’t fully commit to the halt. I have to work on that!

Our lesson ended with me getting to pop him over a few crossrails. Believe it or not, it was the first time that I have ever jumped him in the entire time that I have owned him. When I bought him, he was just not far enough along in his training for it to have been a positive experience for him or me. It was definitely worth the wait!

The jumps definitely weren’t anything substantial, but it was a huge step for us as a team. He was such a good nugget for me and packed me around the little course of 12″ crossrails like a pro. I was smiling like a fool the entire time. My baby Dies is growing up! This time we just started out trotting them as I am still learning how to trust him again and am a little rusty over fences. Plus, I definitely don’t have the strength over fences that I had when I rode five days a week so his round jump would have launched me if I had tried to jump him any higher right yet haha! Small steps!

I have to admit, it is hard to not be really critical of myself. After all, I felt like I was riding like a potato the entire ride. You really don’t know how out of shape you are until you jump back into lessons – it really kicked my butt. I can’t help but feel a little disappointed in myself. I feel as though I have taken ten steps back from where I was a year ago, and that is frustrating for me. However, I am trying to stay positive and think of all of the things I have accomplished since started back riding: I got back on my young horse after getting injured after several bad falls. I was able to confidently canter him my second time back on him. I finally got to jump my young horse for the first time in my first lesson back. Finally, I have more confidence on him than I have ever had. That has to be worth something, right? I think so! Progress is progress no matter how small!

If you are feeling down and out about your riding, I challenge you to list out all of the things you have accomplished so far that you are proud of. It really helps you to see that you are making progress even if it feels like you aren’t. It has definitely helped me so far.

Happy riding, everyone! Go out and dominate!

 

My Current Favorites | Early 2018

If there’s one thing I love, it’s trying out new tack and horse-related products. I don’t usually get to splurge on high-end horse products very often due to my unfortunate limited bank account, but when I do get the chance, I go for the stuff I’ve been drooling over for a long time. If you’re looking for your next splurge-worthy list of items, look no further for I have made a list of my current favs!

Galloping Graphics

The search is over – Galloping Graphics is your one-stop shop for everything custom. Not only did Elizabeth do an AMAZING job with my new logo, but her shop carries some great items such as custom stickers, mugs, t-shirts, and beautiful custom graphics. I can’t put into words how much I love my new logo and the items in her shop! They are truly unique!

SmartPak Air + Neoprene Girth

If there is something that I couldn’t live without, it would be this girth. I have one for both of my guys and won’t use anything else as an everyday girth. In fact, Diablo has had used his every day since I got it in 2016. They are so easy to clean with the removable neoprene lining, and both ponies seem to think they are pretty comfortable.

The Herbal Horse’s Healthy Hair Salve

I’m a little obsessed with The Herbal Horse’s products now that I have been using them for the past few weeks. However, their Healthy Hair salve really stood out to me due to its luxurious smell and the results I have had with it.

CWD French Noseband Bridle

This honestly has to be my favorite item that I have ever purchased off of eBay. I got lucky and snagged this gem for $200 – it retails for $500 brand new on CWD’s website. The best part is that it only had five rides on it when I purchased it! It has now become a part of Diesel’s show wardrobe and looks fabulous on him! Plus, the leather is so soft and supple that it feels like butter in your hands. I was really surprised that I actually liked the more narrow noseband as I gravitate towards wider noseband bridles. However, the noseband on this one really shows off Diesel’s features.

 

Saucy Piaffe Ergonomic Fancy Stitched Halter

I definitely splurged a lot on this purchase even though I snagged it while on sale. I have to say, it was definitely worth it though as the halter is just beautiful! Saucy Piaffe is so great that I have been a repeat customer of their’s for quite some time. All of their products are great!

Back On Track Quick Wraps

As a standing wrap girl, I told myself that I would never own a pair of these. But alas, the temptation was too strong after the baby horse decided that taking standing wraps off is fun. They are definitely pricey, but the ease of putting these on and taking them off makes it worth it.

D sporting his brother’s BOT Quick Wraps

Dy’On Rubber Working Reins

I ended up buying these reins spur of the moment off of a Facebook group when I found them for a price I just couldn’t pass up on! These reins are usually pretty pricey, but I managed to snag them brand new for $40. They have flat buffalo leather fronts, which I have found makes them super durable. Plus, the rubber portion of the reins is probably the grippiest rubber I have ever felt on a pair of reins.

 

Back On Track Back Pad

This is one of several BOT products that have made my list. As it turns out, I am an avid fan of BOT. In fact, I own several of their products and use them all the time. I bought BOT’s back pad on a whim for $30 from a Facebook group in an effort to try and avoid forking out the money for one of their coveted mesh sheets. At first, I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to like the pad, but it has quickly become a staple in Diablo’s warm-up routine.

Ogilvy Baby Pads

This is probably no surprise to anyone. I’m a saddle pad hoarder with an affinity for anything that is customizable.

 

 

 

HJ Fox Show: Baby Green Champion

Now that I’ve recovered from a case of the horse show hangover, I think it’s time that I fill y’all in on Dies’s horse show experience this past weekend!

This past weekend Dies and five other horses from the farm trailered into the Conyers International Horse Park for the first show in HJ Fox’s show series. For Dies, this was his first weekend-long show of the year, his second one ever, and his first time at competing at the horse park. With three shows under his belt, Diesel came to this show ready to roll. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my nice camera, so please forgive me for the less than ideal picture quality. I’ve been kicking myself for it!

Our weekend started early Friday afternoon with a pre-show schooling session in the horse park’s covered arena. It was his first time in the covered arena, so naturally, he started off a little tense and on edge. Luckily, my trainer knows just what to do when he gets that way and was able to get his head back in the game with some good ole circles and keeping his feet moving and brain thinking. Once he was able to relax his mind, he really was able to stretch down and give us that floaty movement I love so much. After the flat work was done, she went right in to jumping with him and laid down some really solid courses. He had some great moments and really put in the effort at quite a few of the jumps. I was overall really pleased with how he ended!

DAY 1 | BABY GREEN AND SCHOOLING HUNTER

Since the baby green division was the first division of the day, I was at the barn bright and early in order to have him tacked up and down at the arena to school by 7:00 am. Armed with my handy dandy ringside backpack outfitted with treats, a hard brush, a cooler, and plenty of other goodies, my job as the designated “treat lady” was a-go and I somehow managed to make it to the covered on time. Luckily, we were able to warm up in the covered and stay in the arena when the flat started at 7:45. He flatted decently well, a little on the tense side with a few whinnies, but not bad at all. It definitely wasn’t his best performance to date, but I felt it was solid. He did what she asked of him and managed to hold it together even when he got cut off twice. Despite his good behavior, his ok performance just wasn’t quite good enough to ribbon. However, I was pleased with how well he handled himself, so he got some snuggles and a few treats and was raring to go out and jump.

Unfortunately for us, the show decided to scratch warmups due to class size, so our first course wasn’t what we had hoped. My trainer ended up asking him for the add steps to keep him composed and start his day off right, so of course, he didn’t place in that class as that resulted in a few trot steps and the undesirable step. However, she did end up asking for and nailing the full horse strides for his second course, which ended up looking beautiful. He put in some good effort over the jumps and really handled himself well even with kids running around outside of the ring. He ended up receiving a fourth place ribbon for this course out of 18 horses, so I was over the moon with that!

We ended up also entering him into the schooling hunter to get a few more courses under our belt since we ended up not getting to do the warm-up. His good behavior followed him to this division as well and he ended up putting in some really solid rounds. Unfortunately, due to a large number of entries and varying experience levels, neither of his rounds placed. His courses just aren’t quite polished enough to be competitive with the veteran competitors yet, and that is perfectly ok! We ended up not getting to do flat due to conflicting ring schedules, which was perfectly fine with Dies. He got to finish the day with lots of treats, snuggles, hay, and plenty of hand walking field trips. Overall, it was a great day! He rode wonderfully for my trainer and behaved like a gentleman in-hand. Any day with good behavior is a good day!

DAY 2 | BABY GREEN CHAMPION

Like the day before, the day started with an early start time of 6:15 for me, which meant I was out the door at 5:30 this morning. That was not such an easy feat with the dreary weather. Unfortunately for us, it was going to be a very wet and nasty day. Once at the barn, I brushed out all of the shavings from his mane and tail, tacked him up, and threw his waterproof sheet over him and trekked it down to the covered in the pouring rain to make it there on time at 7:00 am. With the rain pounding on the covered arena’s roof, earplugs were a must since Dies has a tendency to get distracted really easily. The only minor bump in the road was that we could only find one earplug, so Dies ended up only being half “deaf”. 😂

Despite the nasty weather and one earplug, Dies came out ready to roll and dominate the flat. You could instantly see the difference in his movement from the day before as he was so much more relaxed and supple. He still wasn’t as relaxed as he can be, but it was a definite improvement from how he has been at shows so far. Since he was more relaxed, my trainer was really able to show off his heavenly floaty trot and get him back on his hocks for the canter. I believe that it was one of his best flat classes at a show so far, and the judge seemed to agree as he won the flat out of 14 horses. I was such a proud mom! As soon as he saw me at the gate, he came right over for his bounty of treats and pats. He knew he was a good boy!

Like the flat, he came out in it to win it over fences. My trainer ended up asking for full horse strides in both of his courses since he won the flat and it definitely paid off. Both of his courses were really, really good. He put in some great efforts to the jumps and was so calm and collected throughout the course. I believe that his two hunter courses are some of the best courses he has ever done as he looked so relaxed and focused. My trainer even commented that at times he felt so round over the jumps that it felt like she was in a 3′ class haha! We were so, so pleased with how he jumped! Once he was finished with his courses, he gots lots of yummy Stud Muffins, pats, and snuggles. We decided that he would be done for the weekend since he was such a good nugget.

After cooling him out and putting him away, I made the walk down to the arena in the pouring rain to find out his placings for both of his courses. I was absolutely over the moon to find out that he had won second place for both of his hunter rounds making him the baby green champion for the day! I actually teared up when I heard – no lie.

This is such a huge milestone for him as it was his first time ever championing in a division! It really goes to show just how much he has improved over fences these last few months. It makes me so happy to see him succeed with my trainer in the irons as you can just see how much confidence she gives him – she always brings out the best in him. I hope that I will be able to give that to him too one day.

He is going to get some well-deserved time off for the next days in order to recoup after such a stellar weekend. After all, it is absolutely exhausting being a good boy! I am hoping that since it is spring break for me, I will be able to sneak in a few flat rides once he recoups! I’m ready to get down to business!

 

 

Oglivy Saddle Pads: Worth the Hype?

I am what you would call a “saddle pad hoarder”. To be exact, I am an Ogilvy saddle pad hoarder. I absolutely adore their line of saddle pads and baby pads, and my tack trunk can attest to that. At the moment, there are six Ogilvy baby pads, one profile pad, and a hunter shaped pad neatly folded inside of my tack trunk. I would definitely have more if my bank account would allow it! 😉

Every time I log onto my computer I see questions surrounding Ogilvy’s line of baby pads and saddle pads. I thought now would be the perfect time to go ahead and write out a thorough review since I have been using their baby pads for quite a while now. I have not ventured into their other specialty pads as I am not a fan of their memory foam additions.

 

Fit: The main difference between Ogilvy’s baby pads and their regular profile pads is the size difference. Of course, their baby pads are smaller and more fitted to the saddle, which I actually prefer. I find that their baby pads aren’t as likely to bunch up under the girth compared to their profile pad due to their shorter length, which is ideal for short flapped saddles like mine. I have noticed that the absence of the billet straps on their baby pads is not a huge deal for me. I haven’t had any of my baby pads slip underneath my saddle during my rides. However, the profile pad I own has slipped despite the presence of the girth strap. I am attributing the slippage to the less than ideal fit of the pad underneath my short flapped CWD. Plus, it could have something to do with the shapes of my guys’ barrels. Overall, in my opinion, I feel that their baby pads have a superior fit to their profile pads as they slip less and fit neater up under shorter flapped saddles.

Diablo with his custom UGA baby pad!

Diesel lunging in an Ogilvy profile pad and the same saddle as above.

Diablo in the same profile pad with the same saddle.

Customization: When it comes to customizability, Ogilvy doesn’t disappoint. With ten body color options, 27 piping colors, and 20 binding colors to choose from, choosing a color combination can be quite the task! There are so many great color combinations to choose from to create the pad of your dreams. Need to add a billet strap to your baby pad? No problem! Want to order saddle pads with a custom logo on it? Consider it done! The range of customization is downright impressive. All you have to do is give their customer service a quick email and your saddle pad dreams will come true! Not to mention, their monogramming is top notch with sturdy stitching and bright thread. I ordered a baby pad with UGA’s distinctive G embroidered on it, and it turned out absolutely beautiful! I get compliments on it all the time, and it has held up beautifully with every wear and wash. Even ordering a pad with their logo on it looks classy enough to take into the jumper ring. Customization is definitely Ogilvy’s strength.

Diesel wearing a burgundy Ogilvy baby pad with my monogram on it.

Diesel showing off a navy Ogilvy baby pad with pink piping and grey binding.

Washing Durability: On their website, Ogilvy states that their saddle pads are stain-resistant and anti-bacterial/anti-fungal. Surprisingly, I have found this to be true! The two white bodied baby pads that I own have definitely not been babied. They have gotten dirt and mud smeared on them, sunscreen spilled on them, and even hoof polish was spilled onto the side of one. Despite the abuse, they both come out of the wash sparkling white and looking brand new. (I will definitely post pictures when I can make it out to the barn to get some!) None of the stains stick! Now that is downright impressive! Every single pad I own gets a good wash in the washing machine once every two weeks to keep them smelling fresh and clean. All of my other saddle pads that are not Ogilvy tend to fade and lose their shape over time. However, despite the frequent washing, all of my Ogilvy pads still look brand new and still hold their shape. Plus, the stitching on all of the pads is holding firm. Ogilvy was right, they are durable!

 

To give you an idea, my saddle has a 2L flap!

 

Shipping Time: Sigh. The one downside of ordering one of their pads directly off of their site is that their shipping time usually ranges from 3-4 weeks. That being said, it really isn’t too terribly long to wait when you consider that they are custom made just for you. However, it is just so hard to wait! If you want a saddle pad for a specific event, I would advise that you order it at least two months in advance. Since they are based out of Canada, shipping into the US can take a little longer than normal.

Ratings: Considering all of the pros and cons of these pads, I would give Ogilvy’s baby pads a 10/10 and their profile pads an 8/10. In my opinion, Ogilvy’s baby pads outperform their profile pads in terms of fit and overall value. They just seem to work better for me and my boys. That isn’t to say that their profile pads won’t suit your horse!

Overall Impressions: If you are considering ordering a saddle pad from Ogilvy, do it! You definitely won’t be disappointed! Personally, I won’t buy any other saddle pads other than Ogilvy since they have worked so well for me! Not only are they stylish and classy, they are also super durable too! They definitely have my seal of approval and are, in my opinion, worth the hype. 🙂

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Despite how much I adore their baby pads, the same love does not follow their line of popular half pads. I am probably in the minority on this, but their half pads don’t impress me whatsoever. I know that they have become super popular, but I have found that they can actually be detrimental to saddle fit when used with a saddle that fits your horse. If you have a custom saddle, please don’t stick one of these memory foam half pads up under it. The thickness of the pad itself will cause your saddle to slide up onto the withers or slide to either side. The memory foam also does next to nothing to cushion your horse’s back. It condenses down so much that all it really does is add bulkiness up under your leg. The bulkiness of the pad itself is just a huge turnoff for me. That being said, if it works for you, great! An opinion is just that, an opinion. 😁 I can’t comment on the gummy half pads as I have never used one or seen one.

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I hope you all found this review to be helpful! If you have any other questions that I did not address in this post, feel free to leave me a comment! I am always glad to lend a hand! Happy riding, everyone!