I have already written this once, and lost it in cyberspace when I attempted to spell check it. Once bitten, I am twice shy, so this one is coming to you complete with mistakes!
It is now late August, and I am fully recovered form the surgery I had in May. The summer has been punctuated by the stages of this recovery, by the builders who are revamping my house, and by working on my new book. After the surgery I made a great beginning to this - my head was functioning pretty well, and I was pain free only if I did not move, so an unusual opportunity presented itself. It is much more dificult to sit down and write now that I am riding and teaching and living everyday life more normally. Riding Quite has been interesting, with some good learnings about how to organise myself so that the outer edges of my body (from the armpits down to the sides of the pelvis) are precisely lined up over the outer edges of his long back muscles. Getting this right makes a huge difference to how ridable he is, and the bottom line is that he will not let me get away without having it (sensitive little devil that he is!). But despite the motivation, it is not an easy change to make, especially on my errant right side.
The most exciting thing I have done this summer was to go to Verden in early August. This was the last competition before the World Games for the American dressage squad, and I was there to help Heather Blitz, who I have taught for about the last twelve years. She was there with Arabella, who took her to 5th place in the team trials in the US, and also with her up and coming horse Otto. He can do all the Grand Prix movements, but is not yet ready to string them together in a test.
This was my first experience of coaching from the edge of the warm up arena for an international competition, and I am pleased to say that I felt thoroughly at home. Heather needed more strength from her back, and some revaping of her right side, which is not so strong or precise as her left. This made a huge difference to both horses, and I was very impressed with the way that she managed to take those changes into her tests, and ride them in the face of all of that pressure! That is a sign of a top class rider! Arabella did not make the team, but Heather certainly impressed everyone with her riding skills, her cool head, and her attitude to all the challenges presented by the situation. Otto really turned heads, and he shows every sign of being a remarkable horse who really could take on the world. But two years ago he was a remedial case with a push back that gave Heather a panoramic view of his eyeballs and nostrils... so I think she demands imense respect from us all!
She is now settling into her new life in Denmark, where she expects to be for the next two years, and we are both looking forward to working together in that time.
Meanwhile, I am facing a very busy Autumn, with riding courses and teacher training between now and early October, when I shall need to start preparing myself for my teaching trip to the US later in the month.