Our First Horse Trial

On Sunday July 31st Otis and I competed in a horse trial, consisting of three phases, Dressage, Cross Country Jumping, and Stadium Jumping.

When we arrived at  Hilltop Equestrian Center the higher level dressage had already started. It was different to arrive at a show and have people already competing. I am used to arriving at least an hour before anything starts to get ready for the fist classes of a pleasure show. I like the format of the horse trial, where you call a few days before the show and get your ride times, it's nice to know when you need to be ready! After we parked our trailers, Liz and I headed over to the secretary's booth to check in and get our numbers. We were given a list of the cross country jumps in the order that we would go over them, so we headed out to walk the cross country course. My course and Liz's course (she was in a higher level than me) were pretty much in line with each other, so we were able to walk the course together and not get confused. The fist six or seven jumps were in a huge field, and weren't very big, much lower than the 18" maximum height of my division. We walked into the woods to see the rest of the course, there were a couple of logs that looked pretty intimidating, but I reminded myself that they always look smaller once you are up on the horse. After we were through walking the cross country course we headed back to unload the horses. We had quite a bit of time to kill because the dressage times were running about 20 minuets behind, due to the fact that the judge got stuck in traffic. I watched Liz warm up for her dressage test, and then went over the dressage ring to watch her test. Then it was finally time for Otis and I to get ready.

As I was getting dressed and getting Otis saddled, I felt like I was running out of time, like it was going to be my turn soon. So I hurried to get him ready so I could get some time to warm up. As I was getting in the saddle I heard my number called! I started to panic, and then realized that they said I was on deck, which meant that I had another person before me. That still isn't a lot of time, so I put my coat on and headed into the warm up ring. Otis was being really good, considering the amount of horses in the ring. I walked and trotted him a few times in each direction and headed over to the dressage ring. When they rang the bell to signal that the judge was ready for us, we headed down the center line. It was such a neat feeling to be in the ring all by myself. We did our pattern correctly, and Otis was very well behaved. He wasn't as soft as I would have liked, but he was paying attention, and doing what he was asked. I felt very good when we saluted the judge and the end of our test.

Here we are doing our Dressage test

While I was doing my dressage test, I missed Liz's cross country phase, which was a bummer, I really wanted to watch her! I didn't have too much time to get ready for cross country because, although the dressage was running behind, the cross country was running on time. Once I was changed and Otis was tacked up we headed over to the warm up area, so we could jump the warm up jump a few times. Otis was a bit more high strung in this warm up ring as there was a lot more activity. He was still very well behaved, and was listening to me, despite his higher energy. We jumped the warm up jump a few times, he was leaping over it, which caused me to pop out of the saddle. I discovered at a practice session at Liz's house that this is how Otis jumps when he is feeling naughty.. not so fun... I finally got a good jump out of him and headed over to the start box, because it was almost our turn for cross country. The count down started, I took a deep breath and reminded my self to look up, not at the jumps! Away we went. The first jump was a VERY small log, Otis almost refused it, and we kind of walked over it... This wasn't a very good start... Our next jump was a bunch of hay bales lined up, Otis thought about refusing this one as well, but jumped over it. The next jump was a bit bigger, so I talked to Otis to calm him down and to try and get our confidence up. He LEAPED over it, and caused me to loose my balance a bit. At this point I was starting to get nervous too! It is not fun when he jumps like that. Otis sensed my nerves and he started to get more nervous, so things started going downhill from there. We walked over the next jump, LEAPED over the one after that. The next jump was one of the big intimidating logs, so I actually stopped Otis to try and regain our focus (it doesn't count as a refusal unless we back up or do a circle). I asked him to trot towards the jump, all the while talking to him and patting his neck. He jumped over the jump so high and strong that I lost both stirrups and almost fell off! I put my feet back in my stirrups and headed for the next jump, which thankfully, was very small. This is how the rest of the course went, a lot of walking and trying to get us to relax. Towards the end I actually went around two of the jumps because Otis was so wound up, I didn't want to fall, I would rather get two refusals than fall off. We jumped the last jump and headed up the hill, where Dad, Angie, Doug, and Liz were waiting for us. I was less than thrilled with our round, but Liz reminded me that it was our first time, and I should be proud that we finished the course.

Jumping the Hay Bales

While I was untacking Otis from cross country, Liz went up to check the results for dressage, Otis and I were tied for FIRST PLACE!! This was so exciting, and definitely boosted my spirits after our cross country debacle! Liz and I went back up later on to check the cross country scores, there was an E next to my name, eliminated! What?! I thought I had only two refusals for the two jumps that we walked around. Liz I asked to talk to the judges at the jumps that we were unsure of. It turns out that two of the jumps that we walked over, Otis backed up a step before he went over, which counts as a refusal. I was pretty bummed out. I asked if I could do stadium, just for the experience and they said I could.

I had some lunch and then tacked Otis up for stadium. I had quite a bit of time, so I got quite a few practice jumps in, and Otis was no longer leaping the jumps like a deer. I sat and watched a few rounds so that I could make sure I had the course pattern down. Finally it was our turn, we went in, did a warm up circle at the trot, and went for our first jump, a small cross rail. Except for a bit of head throwing, (which was caused by me grabbing his mouth by accident when he was leaping the jumps) Otis was excellent in the stadium phase. We did a clear round and it was SO MUCH FUN!!

Here we are in stadium

We didn't end up with a ribbon because of the elimination in cross country, but that doesn't even matter, it was a great experience, and the most fun I have ever had at a horse show!! We are going to try a two phase (dressage and stadium only) in September, and then Hilltop is having another horse trial in October. We have to work on our bravery in cross country, but I think we have a pretty good foundation. I have definitely fallen in love with eventing, and want to try more!!!