After 2 years with anxiety

After 2 years with anxiety to jump on Giga, I decided that today I had to get over my fear. It was a hesitant start but after a few good jumps the fear was forgotten. I got quite "overconfident" at the end. Typical me :-P I have to thank Janni and Josefine for the help and inspiration! And thanks two Sascha that bothered two raise the jumps :-D

For those who don't know, I was in a serious cross country accident with Giga two years ago. Nothing happened with Giga. But I got a concussion, a fiber rupture, a pressured spine and lot of bruises. I never came up again after this happened and ever since I have been extremely afraid to jump.

What a successful day :-D

I'm just so happy :-D
Again today my two teachers had another fight with the little Icelandic pony. They tried everything, but it kept kicking, biting and rearing. One of the teachers is only used to handle cows and sheep, he got so intimidated and surprised at how strong it was. They gave up completely after 30 min.

Then I asked carefully if I could try with my method. They laughed a little at me but I they gave me a chance.
I took a whip and laid a gentle pressure on its hind legs. As expected, it kicked hysterically as soon as it stopped kicking and stood still I praised it and cuddled it by the throat. This exercise I carried out 10-15 times and finally I was able to put my hand on the leg. When she was comfortable with my hand, I could treat her wounds without the slightest trouble. She stood perfectly still. All this took 10 minutes.

This may sound very magical and unrealistic. But actually there isn't more to it. Positive and negative reinforcement and good timing can do a lot.

A lot of jaws dropped today. And when the teacher praised me it was a huge boost for my confidence.

You should never fight against a horse. It will always beat you pretty much no matter the size. You should rather work with it. Violence and punishment is NEVER the right way!


In this case it was just a poor horse who fought for its life. And if it only has experienced negative things every time it ends up in the stable it is obvious it wants to flee away. I would do the same thing...

Hold my head high

Fortunately, I drove directly to my own horses. It's a joy to have so well-mannered horses. And to be able to ride them so freely as I do right now makes me really happy. No one can tell me how to ride my own horses. I have put extreme much effort to get as far as I am now. And it may well be that I'll never become a great OL dressage rider. But so what? It's far more important that I can hold my head high and feel that what I do is right for me and the horses I handle...

Pictures from today:

Lady Giga

Sir Victor

Terrible day at school!

I've had a terrible day at school. I had to ride a horse that's probably 23 years +, which probably should had been retiret a long time ago. It ran away with me 3 times when I had to drag it into the stable. I have never experienced anything like that. When I finally returned to the stable, it bit me right in the back, so now I've got a big bruise.

The riding lessons didn't go better. It tried to throw me off countless times and the only advice my riding instructor could give was that I should have a harder grab on the reins.

When the lesson was over, my teacher came over to me, he wanted to give me some personal advice. He said:
1. I should sell my Spanish saddle, because it was a piece of crap, and I couldn't ride dressage in it.
2. I have a overly hard hand when I ride horses. Because of my loose reins. (Uhm WTF?)

Why he got so personal on the way I ride my own horses is unknown. But apparently had a sudden urge to tell me all this today.


When I came back to the stable some of my classmates was struggling with an Icelandic pony. It had some nasty wounds on its backlegs and it had to be treated fast. The problem was that the horse has never been handled before.

I went and helped them. I used a whip as an extended arm. Each time it kicked I held the whip on the hindquarters and as soon as it stopped I removed the whip and praised it. After 10 minutes I could lift the leg without getting kicked.

But I didn't get far with my progress because my teacher came and wanted us to immediately treat the leg. He approached the situation very violent and wrong. He commanded me to hold one of it's frontlegs as he treated the backleg. But the poor Icelandic pony was so scared that it reaed high up in the air and almost kicked me in the head.

I was so angry and upset with the whole situation that I had to walk away. Today my teacher disappointed me very much. I thought he was wiser.


I look forward to the day when I finish this education. I'll show all the ignorant people that you can handle horses in a much better way, then the way we are teached today!

GPS Horse

Haha, I really could need a GPS when I'm riding. I always get lost when I'm riding alone!

Lady Giga

Beautiful Giga, the pictures are taken at my school.

I am so proud!

Due to lack of time because of my school, I have two people who are riding Victor and Giga a few times a week. This Thursday chose the rider to Victor she would jump on him. I thought, good luck. If he bothers, he is just so good but it happens rarely.

But it went absolutely fantastic. She rode him bareback. They jumped 70 cm. It's probably the highest he has jumped with a rider on his back. It just shows that the heavy types also can jump. I'm just so proud :-D

And I wish I could do the same with him. But after a severe accident with Giga I have gotten very careful and my balance has never been the same ever since.