Murray Eventing GP
Monday was a public holiday so we hit the road with Coolie and the puppies for another competition! This time we were off to Murray for an eventing grand prix for a bit of fun.We headed off early, it's very dark at 6am now!
Walking the course I thought it was going to be very fun. The course was very twisty and it would seriously test our adjustability since there were show jumps all through the course.
I helped KT warm up for her second ever round of 80 and then watched her jump a beautiful clear round! I was so pleased for her.
Then I got Coolie ready and warmed up. He felt amazing and he had springs for legs! He was feisty and on his game but he felt adjustable and confident.
We went in and immediately Coolie got adrenalised, and so did I which was just not the right thing to do. And I made a mistake... I didn't get a good rhythm before the first fence. I think I just totally stopped thinking despite ALL the hard work I have been doing recently to stay in the moment and make good decisions.
Coolie fought me from the start. The first few fences all jumped fine although very much all over the place. Jump 7 was a show jump and he didn't listen to me at all, and got way too deep and we took it out. He hesitated at jump 9, a roll top brush with a small ditch in front of it. Then he was way too distracted and I was not in the moment at jump 10, a tiny trakhener and we had a stop. I was very surprised. We came around again and jumped it with no problems now we were both paying attention.
The rest of the course was a lot better but we never managed to get the rhythm we needed. It was too slow even though it felt way too fast because he was pulling and thinking he knew best. He did feel awesome over the jumps though.
I was disappointed with my round. I had really hoped to do well and was hoping that all our training of rhythm and adjustability would show and we would have a nice smooth round. I certainly learnt a lot though. It wasn't the round I wanted although it was quite fun.
Typically now I am over thinking everything and am disappointed in myself and how I rode. I hate getting stops and we so rarely have any that when we do I really beat myself up.
It was a really tricky event to do, because the SJ was spread though the course so we had to change how we were going depending on the fence type. The course was very tight and windy which also made it challenging to get a good rhythm. But we are more than capable to do it, and not doing as well as I wanted to sucks.
I think overall it was a good experience but something we need more practice at. I also need to stop thinking about trying to place and just focus on riding. I put far too much pressure on myself and then beat myself up when I don't meet my own expectations. Live and learn I guess. On the bright side the old bloke does not feel old! I also think he is finding 95 a bit too easy...
Walking the course I thought it was going to be very fun. The course was very twisty and it would seriously test our adjustability since there were show jumps all through the course.
I helped KT warm up for her second ever round of 80 and then watched her jump a beautiful clear round! I was so pleased for her.
Then I got Coolie ready and warmed up. He felt amazing and he had springs for legs! He was feisty and on his game but he felt adjustable and confident.
We went in and immediately Coolie got adrenalised, and so did I which was just not the right thing to do. And I made a mistake... I didn't get a good rhythm before the first fence. I think I just totally stopped thinking despite ALL the hard work I have been doing recently to stay in the moment and make good decisions.
Coolie fought me from the start. The first few fences all jumped fine although very much all over the place. Jump 7 was a show jump and he didn't listen to me at all, and got way too deep and we took it out. He hesitated at jump 9, a roll top brush with a small ditch in front of it. Then he was way too distracted and I was not in the moment at jump 10, a tiny trakhener and we had a stop. I was very surprised. We came around again and jumped it with no problems now we were both paying attention.
The rest of the course was a lot better but we never managed to get the rhythm we needed. It was too slow even though it felt way too fast because he was pulling and thinking he knew best. He did feel awesome over the jumps though.
I was disappointed with my round. I had really hoped to do well and was hoping that all our training of rhythm and adjustability would show and we would have a nice smooth round. I certainly learnt a lot though. It wasn't the round I wanted although it was quite fun.
Typically now I am over thinking everything and am disappointed in myself and how I rode. I hate getting stops and we so rarely have any that when we do I really beat myself up.
It was a really tricky event to do, because the SJ was spread though the course so we had to change how we were going depending on the fence type. The course was very tight and windy which also made it challenging to get a good rhythm. But we are more than capable to do it, and not doing as well as I wanted to sucks.
I think overall it was a good experience but something we need more practice at. I also need to stop thinking about trying to place and just focus on riding. I put far too much pressure on myself and then beat myself up when I don't meet my own expectations. Live and learn I guess. On the bright side the old bloke does not feel old! I also think he is finding 95 a bit too easy...
Sorry to hear your ride didn’t go as well as you hoped. That definitely sounds like a challenging format! I always get frustrated too when I feel like I made mistakes or didn’t ride as well as I could have. It happens tho and usually helps me be more present the next time.
ReplyDeleteBad days suck, but I think I'll be much more int he zone next time! A bit of distance from the event helps one think more clearly and all!
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