From: Nadine
Dear Jessica,
Firstly I would like to thank you for your consistency in your understanding of horses.....
I am 22 years of age, I have a 4 year old, Thoroughbred /Appaloosa cross), she is 16h/h and in my opinion just incredible. :-) I have done two months lungeing and light riding work (just walking through forests etc..) and she has learnt and executed everything on first try just wonderfully. My mental connection with this horse is of an exceptional, once in a lifetime, nature. My dream is to do Eventing, and I think I finally have the horse to do it with. My question to you is, PLEASE help!!!! I don't know where to start! I don't know who to talk to, or where our training should start, etc....
We are living in Poteau, Oklahoma and don't know of anyone in this area that can help us. Please could you perhaps tell me where we should begin!
Thank you Nadine
Congratulations on your horse and your achievements with her. I know it isn't fair to generalize from just a few examples, but every TBxApp cross I've ever met has exceptionally athletic and intelligent, and it sounds as though your mare follows that pattern. I've heard of a farm where this cross is deliberately bred to create sport horses -- that makes good sense to me!
First of all, YOU HAVE TIME. Your mare is four years old and likely to keep growing for a few more years; this would be a good time to begin some light elementary jumping exercises, so as to prepare her physically and mentally for more serious jumping when she is five.
Eventing is terrific fun.
The United States Combined Training Association (USCTA) can provide you with a lot of helpful information. Write to them at
USCTA, Inc. 525 Old Waterford Road NW Leesburg, VA 20176
There is a USCTA web page at
www.hhhorse.com
and you can e-mail the USCTA at
uscta4u@aol.com
Become a member of the USCTA! Your $55 annual membership fee will get you all sorts of useful things, including a rulebook (AHSA Rules for Combined Training), a subscription to the USCTA News, and a twice-yearly USCTA Omnibus that lists all of the recognized events in the USA. You'll learn an immense amount just by reading all of these materials.
Buy a copy of a wonderful book by Sally O'Connor: "Practical Eventing." This is, IMO, the single most useful item that someone in your situation could own. There's another useful book that you'll be able to buy through the USCTA: it's called "The Starting Box: A Guide to Your First Event", by Barbara Ernst.
While you are doing all of this, visit the American Riding Instructors Association website
aricp@aria.win.net
or write or call the organization:
ARICP P.O. Box 282 Alton Bay, NH 03810-0282
Telephone: 603-875-4000 Fax: 603-875-7771
and look for a certified instructor in or near your area. If you can find someone who is certified in Combined Training, visit that person, watch a lesson or two, and if you enjoy the lessons and the instructor's teaching style, think about getting lessons for yourself. Just be sure that whomever you choose will help and enhance your riding AND your relationship with your mare.
Once you have the USCTA Omnibus, sit down with a map, look at the schedule of events, and plan to go and watch an event in your area. Sometimes local farms have small, unrecognized events for schooling purposes -- watch these too! If the event is at an inconvenient distance, so that you would need to stay overnight, you may be able to find a local rider who needs a groom or assistant and will be glad to take you along for the weekend if you'll help out.
In the meantime, focus on basic dressage. Three good gaits, a horse on the aids, and smooth, prompt transitions are all you will need to do well in the simple dressage tests at the lower levels of eventing. Don't be in a hurry to jump -- get your flatwork in good order first, and give your mare a chance to grow up a little more. When you DO begin jumping, the help of a good instructor will be essential, for your mare's education and safety -- and for your own.
Have fun, and keep in touch!
Jessica
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