Welcome to my Equine Affairs Blog!
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I'm a BHS Registered Instructor and BD Trainers Database member.
I'm currently sponsored by RB Equestrian,
BETA Retailer of the Year 2009, Equetech, Leading clothing manufacturers, Equissage,
Jack's essential physiotherapy system and Equine Affairs,
The largest online show directory and personal season planner.
....We hope you enjoy reading a diary and browsing our gallery!
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Monday 25th October 2010....
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"Media, Mentoring and Mischief!"
The highlight of the last few weeks has been riding Jack and finding our way through some of the more advanced movements- we both love working on the canter patterns and it has been good to go back to basics on occasion and ride simple transitions on 20m circles- the feel has been incredible and whilst cooling him off I think back to where we started in the prelim tests and the memories return like echoes- it is so rewarding to share a training programme with a horse, to review whats happened in the last five years and to focus on riding in the moment too. I took Jack to a beautiful yard near Swindon for a lesson with Richard Waygood for a Horse and Hound Feature. The challenge for the photo shoot was to ride bareback and to evaluate whether riders should include work without a saddle into their regular programmes. My verdict is yes! For a start its great fun and it gave me a real sense of closeness to Jack as well as reminding me how much I appreciate his kindness to me and our partnership! Jack m ay be sharp, talented and have a sense of humour but he also has brains, a great work ethic and is open to bribery. He is a horse that I love dearly and I loved the magic I felt when I put the saddle back on and experimented with sitting trot. Richard then let me play around in the school and we managed a sequence of four flying changes on the long side just for the joy of it. I can't wait to read the article in Horse and Hound- it was a special and fun day.
Work wise I have been working with riders to plan competition and training programmes and I do enjoy this as it is a chance to expand the mentoring side of my work as a coach. I have also been enjoying some time with my horses and they in their turn have been full of michief- my arms are not quite long enough to feed them an apple at the same time so I turned my back on Jack for a moment to feed Ginty and he promptly undid his top bolt and wondered off around the livery barn- a great game of hide and seek ensued but I caught him eventually after he had been to say hello to every horse on the yard!
Lots to look forward to in November as the Winter Dressage season draws to a close and then as we reach December 1st the Summer season starts. It always seems a little topsy turvey but meanwhile in New Zealand my mare Chanel is really facing a new summer- her first foal is due in 16 days and I can't wait!
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Monday 11th October 2010....
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"Holding my breath!"
This week has been traumatic as my car was broken into and my notebooks stolen with
all my copy and planning material in. My diary too so I feel a little stranded.
On a happier note the weather has been kind and the horses continue to thrive.
My plans for this week include competing at Bury Farm's weekend of dressage and
trying to anchor myself with cohesive and constructive writing sessions to replace
the panic of where am I supposed to be next! I suppose in one sense its a little
like wiping the slate clean and viewing each task as a new beginning. 2010 has
not been a great year in many ways and so I am going to start afresh.
My fondest thoughts this fortnight are for Jack and Ginty who have remained
cheerful and a special thanks to Phil Pask for the massage and ironing out
of my ribs and spine- now I can breathe again and hopefully stop holding onto
tension!
My best ride has been in arena one where Jack and I managed a
sequence of 3 flying changes on the long side with no loss of balance or confidence
so life is good!
Special mentions also to Charlotte and Danica who had a brilliant time loose
schooling in preparation for her grading and to Jo and Amber for placing 2nd
in a strong show jumping class at the weekend.
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Monday 27th September 2010....
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"Settling In....."
What great timing! The weather seems to have turned and Jack, Ginty and I are all very happy to be "indoors" at Bury Farm. I really appreciate being able to structure my training and have had a lot of fun riding Jack and playing around with lots of different gymnastic suppling exercises- variations on 10m circle placement and leg yield mostly with some counter canter work added to the mix. I have also been hacking which has been an adventure as the sunshine lured me outside and I figured we might enjoy a gentle exploration of the grounds. Hmm I had forgotten I was riding turbo charged event horse who was very keen to play with Bury Farm's xc fences and the natural hedge and ditch boundary. Still we are alive and still talking to each other! I have been recovering from an injury to my QL muscle- I hope readers never have cause to find it as the trigger point massage is rather painful. However it has motivated me to be extra diligent and carry out my stretching routine before every ride so I now have a physio ball, mat and theraband underneath my saddle rack. Previously I was stretching at home but this was not working. One of my stretches needs a small weight and all I had to hand in tin size was custard so I now have a tin of custard in the tack room nestled between numnahs and bandages.
Back to the horsepower and this week I have also welcomed the Equetech Super models Zando and Amber to Bury Farm for a holiday. I have been riding Zando and though tacking up is a challenge as I can barely reach he is lovely to ride. I had a lovely surprise this week when a dear friend contacted me from NZ via Facebook to tell me that Chanel had come back to her from the long term loan placement and is due to foal in November. It is such wonderful news to hear she is well and content. Chanel is a stunning appaloosa mare with a good mix of TB blood and a fantastic jump and some would say stubborn nature but I love her dearly and I left a piece of my heart behind when injury prevented her from coming home to me. Mind you I am not sure how she and Ginty would have got on! I can't wait to meet her foal by a NZ Pony Stallion. I'm already tempted to chat to Robert at Chiltern Equine and see if we can breed a second though that may be greedy and a little unfair on my kind friends who probably already have their hands full!
Chiltern Equine Clinic sponsored the CTR showing Championships and I was very proud of Charlotte and Danica who claimed 2nd place in the youngstock class. Charlotte has worked very hard to produce Danica and I am looking forward to helping her to prepare for the mare grading and futurity. Rachel and Francesca have also has a great time at Carlton hunter trials completing the 2'9" class in style. Go girls!!
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Monday 13th September 2010....
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"All Change...."
After the Summer holiday for the horses at our friends house we packed all their things (only essentials mind) to fill the horsebox for the second time and then we were ready to leave for Bury Farm.
Jack and Ginty received a wonderful welcome from the team and soon made themselves at home. They have stables opposite each other and I think this helped to reassure them. Macha is also on the yard and Ginty raised her from a weanling until she was ready to go out into the world so it was touching to hear her answer Ginty's rather desperate where am I now call. Macha must have said it was ok as she has quickly picked up the routine and once she had been turned out with Jack and found she had her own place and regular meals she even allowed me to take Jack away to ride without screaming. Jack meanwhile seems to be loving the whole atmosphere and sense of horses come first- he has even had a visit from the CEC vets team to welcome him to his new home and tell him he's all better now.
With the horses happy it was then time to assess them as athletes- Ginty has this sussed with regular gallops and figures of 8 in the field and Jack is back in work- I have had some really good training sessions with him and its such a treat to finish teaching and then to ride without worrying about the weather. I have planned a few competitions with him and switched my focus to qualifying for Medium level and Advanced Medium - I am very curious to see how the new qualification system will work and as a friend said now points and consistently good scores are needed its a bit like competing against yourself to get to regionals. We were not selected for the Home International team and there was sadness and a knotty feeling of disappointment but I knew that missing the viewing day and some of the summer shows put us out of the running and I have moved on to thinking about next year and all the things I hope to achieve with Jack this winter.
I have a sense of staring afresh- its a September thing I suppose but I have always loved the Autumn and it represents horse training and exams for me- this time I have only one more exam left to complete, my BHS I exam. I think its time I gave it some serious thought, it is the last one on the ladder after all and I have had my sights set on it since the year I joined the exam pathway and sat my stage one. Its a big thing on my list that I want to tick off. BHS qualifications have been the cornerstone of my career and way back when I was battling my desire to stop the self imposed pressure to sit my BHS II exam, it was James who gave me the motivation to keep going though I didn't thank him at the time! How curious to meet him again a few years and several qualifications later and to be able to share my dressage adventures.
I worked on the homework James set for Jack yesterday and as I tried some of the more unfamiliar exercises, I felt a huge sense of achievement when Jack and I completed the patterns. In essence we were riding in canter on the diagonal continuing straight down the centre line and riding round the corner. Simple. Jack however thought "hurray flying changes". The first attempt would have been a good try at riding tempis but the second was more civilised and the power in the canter was awesome. We then played with some working canter pirouettes and transitions within the pace and I think both of us finished that exercise smiling.
CTR Championships - Well Done to Charlotte and Danica for second place in the youngstock class in a very tough competition!
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Monday 30th August 2010....
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"Working in the Rain..."
Positives first my highlight of the fortnight was Jack feeling better and
coming back into work. A few days holiday with Sebastian seems to have done
the trick so Rachel and I took the boys to training with James at Bury Farm.
Both boys were well behaved and I am very pleased with their progress.
A wow moment of the session for me was Jack's execution of the simple
changes in a schooling exercise from James to prepare for E59 success -
we even improved the left to right change.
Work wise its been raining. This means leading schooling to music
sessions in the rain, building grids and showjumping courses in the
rain, offering video analysis and dressage test feedback in the rain
and catching horses you guessed it shivering in the non stop and frankly
by now irritating precipitation. Still on the plus side the weather has
been sufficiently horrid to help me imagine a few months down the
line as I write features about products you should wish for this Christmas.
On a happy note this morning the sun is shining and I have a date with
Jack to film our entry for a Dressage Anywhere Tried and Tested
feature and I have those familiar competition butterflies. Perhaps next
time I will be able to post the video.
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Monday 16th August 2010....
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Coping with Challenges.
One of the things I have learnt as a coach is that competition goals are a brilliant motivator but all training programmes face challenges and when there are two performers involved in the partnership ( horse and rider ) the programme must be open to adaptation and the rider needs to learn to refocus expectations and targets and to manage disappointment. There has been building work this week at the yard I rent and the constant noise and in particular the pressure washer has upset Jack. So much so that he has two bouts of colic this week and this has meant missing the viewing day. I was upset about losing the chance to show the selectors how well Jack is going but I was distraught at finding him uncomfortable and unhappy. Chiltern Equine vets to the rescue, Jack was seen quickly and looked after very well. It was mild spasmodic colic and a dose of painkiller settled him. So now Jack seems back to normal I can move forward literally as I am relocating to Bury Farm for the winter. My wish list for the horses are: to base at a place that has been created for horses with good stabling and turnout paddocks; to be able to access good facilities and training and to be able to hack. Bury Farm ticks these boxes and the chance to compete and to attend clinics on site is a major bonus. Thinking ahead I want to compete at Advanced Medium at a Premier League in 2011. Jack wants a home where he and Ginty can relax and be horses in the 22 hours a day he is not a dressage diva. I want to ride!
My pupils have done very well this fortnight, Emma competed at the Side Saddle Championships and I went to watch her in the DTM class.
Janet placed 10th at Carlton and I was very proud of her for placing 3rd after dressage. Jo has joined the world of xc this week too , completing her first ODE and I have begun training riders for Quadrille so watch this space!
I have added a new dimension to the Solitaire Group, a marketing and pr consultancy as I begin a new role for Equetech as their pr and marketing manager. I am really enjoying this and find the role fits well with my riding and coaching work.
I am also proud to report that I have been appointed as Support Volunteer to the Dressage Regional Foundation Squad for the East. This means I will be assisting David Hamer at training sessions and working with the riders as a mentor as they complete their training reviews and paperwork. I will also be helping David to arrange guest speakers for squad training. Many of the sessions will be at Moulton College- things always seem to come full circle!
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Monday 26th July 2010....
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The Show must go on! I am feeling a lot better this week and have been focussing on arena craft
with Jack putting together different schooling patterns and concentrating on
keeping every movement relaxed, slow and peaceful. I was reminded not to discuss
things with Jack and to ask him with my aids- Jack responds as if by telepathy
when I ride with feel and it is a case of working harder as a rider to do less.
I have been rewarded with some moments of magic in the arena and our flying
changes are just that, flying and expressive. In my previous career as a
polocrosse player the changes served a very different purpose and felt much
flatter so it took a session with James for me to understand the difference.
The result is that Jack is now waiting for my aids and they only have to be
very tiny to get a very big and fun result. The best news is that counter
canter is still intact.
I have been coaching at several lovely venues this fortnight and enjoyed
working with riders at Bicester RC and Salcey Forest Ridings as well as
with my regular riders who are preparing for Carlton, The Side Saddle
Championships, Stage 3 exam, RC showjumping and dressage. It is a heady mix.
Yesterday I took some time out to watch the RB Equestrian Derby. I
enjoyed the atmosphere and tension as riders were challenged to the
bank, the devil’s dyke and a clever course that asked questions at
every turn and leap.
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Monday 12th July 2010....
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I am thrilled to report that Jack and I have qualified for the elementary freestyle 2011 semi finals at Patchetts and Rachel and Sebastian placed 3rd at their first ODE at Plum Park, also winning best dressage score.
I would like to welcome my new sponsor Equetech to the Solitaire Team. I am proud to be representing Equetech and I would also like to renew my thanks to RB Equestrian, Equine Affairs, Equissage , Baileys Horse Feeds & Winchfield Equestrian. I couldn't compete without their support!
The Solitaire Horses have settled into the routine at my new private yard, its a delightful and peaceful retreat and ideal training base. I am continuing to train with James Burtwell at Winchfield Equestrian and at his Bury Farm Clinics. My training goals for Jack are to establish our work at advanced medium and to continue in our development towards PSG.
My competition goals are to achieve consistent scores at elementary and medium level before moving up to advanced in 2011. I am attending the viewing day for the 2010 Home International and if selected I would dearly love to better my 2009 result with Sebastian and England Team Ruby and to top the podium.
I am enjoying my work as a coach and instructor and have a full clinic programme in this area and farther afield. I am putting the finishing touches to my UKCC Level Three portfolio, writing a regular dressage roundup column for Chiltern & Thames Rider Magazine and taking part in a T&T feature with Dressage Anywhere for CTR Magazine.
HIGHS & LOWS....
Low points are collecting two horsebox punctures within a week and having to withdraw from Moulton College and Aston LE Walls- I blame QOS Tuffers! I was feeling pretty exhausted on Saturday evening and watched the outtakes show from Question Of Sport to cheer me up. I laughed so much I cried and could hardly breathe- that's when I started to cough and struggle for breath and by Sunday Morning I had lost my voice too. Not quite what I had in mind for this week as Jack is going really well and is ready to party. Off to the Doctors this afternoon but I feel like I have a chest infection.
Highpoints are competing at Patchetts and having a lovely ride in both tests. Sarah my Baileys nutritionist was there to cheer us on and we both agree that No 4 cubes and Stud Balancer are the key to Jack's starch free diet and super topline. James was also at Patchetts competing Smash Hit and that gave me a confidence boost as seeing James reminded me of all the positives to come out of the training session at Bury the Saturday before- to qualify for the semis and to be able to show Frank how much the training bursary has helped me was magic.
I enjoyed my rides at Keysoe too and a real highlight was in the work in arena. I was planning on half passing to the middle when I saw a huge potential crash with riders everywhere, unthinking about anything other than my desire to find space I straightened Jack asked for a change (which was super) and half passed to safety. I was very impressed and Jack was very smug. We then went on to place third in the medium and to confront the Keysoe gremlins so I know there are better tests to come.
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LESSONS & CLINICS WITH ALISON ...
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Solitaire Group Training - Freestyle Design Clinics, Show Jumping & British Horse Society Horse Owner Courses!
NEW CLINICS:
- Pinnerwood, regular dates for Dressage coaching, Quadrille practice and Stable Management training
- Northwood- An Introduction to Freestyle dressage to music 5th September
- Salcey Forest Ridings regular dates for Hoofbeats, Showjumping Training and Stable Management Training.
Also a private lesson clinic starts on Tuesday this week. Please contact me if you would like a lesson
using the full size school at Salcey
- Bicester RC have more showjumping clinics and a Freestyle Taster session booked for Bicester RC members
- You Tube Link: http://www.youtube.com/user/SolitaireDTM#p/a/u/0/5ZqkxO6Ziy4
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Equine Affairs members and Chiltern & Thames Rider Magazine Club
members are eligible for a discount on freestyle design sessions. Please contact Alison for
more information. alison.kenward@solitaire-group.co.uk 0777 207 5118
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Alison works as a freelance instructor coaching people for competitions,
preparing students for exams and helping people build partnerships with
their horse so they can have fun!
Alison began studying for her Preliminary Teacher's Certificate in 1994
with Michelle Carman at Greenacres in Puxley and went on to gain work
experience as an Instructor with Grafton, Pytchley, Northampton and later
Taupo(NZ) Pony Clubs teaching all age ranges. Alison is a regular
instructor at mini, junior and senior PC camps. Alison later trained
at Brampton Stables and The Gleneagles Equestrian Centre passing her
AI, II and in 2005 her BHS I Stable Managers exam.
Alison enjoys competition coaching and has worked extensively with
Junior
riders including travelling as assistant coach with the NZ Junior
Polocrosse team to Western Australia in 2000. (Alison is a qualified
UKPA and PC Polocrosse umpire and coach) Alison coached the Bay of
Plenty provincial Gymkhana team at the North Island Championships
and prepared riders for the North Island Horse Trials and SJ Champs
in 2000/01 Back home , Alison has prepared teams for the UK PC
polocrosse championships and prepared riders for affiliated dressage
to area level.
Alison is now a BHS II SM Registered Instructor and BD Trainers Database member.
Sponsored by RB Equestrian, BETA Retailer of the Year 2009,
Equetech, Leading clothing manufacturers, Equissage, Jack's essential
physiotherapy system and Equine Affairs, The largest online show directory
and personal season planner.
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Please contact Alison for more information: Tel: 0777 207 5118
or Email: alison.kenward@solitaire-group.co.uk
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Alison has been working with Equine Affairs for many seasons and enjoys
the ease and structure of using the system to plan events, clinics and
the horses diaries. Equine Affairs have supported Alisons freestyle
clinics and have also offered
crucial technical and design support with the creation and launch of the
Solitaire Group Brand.
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RB Equestrian
have supported the Solitaire Team through several
seasons and made sure the horses tack fitted to enable them to
perform and continue to enjoy their work in comfort. The horses
have also been clothed, fed and bathed with products from the RB
Equestrian superstore. The support from Ros, Ted and Kathryn has
made such a difference to the whole Solitaire
Team and we are proud to be part of the RB Family.
RB can source everything for horse and rider. Solitaire would not
function without them.
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Equissage were the first company to support Solitaire and helped
Alison produce Jack for his debut at the Winter National
Dressage Championships in 2008.
Jack is very attached to his Equissage pad- a pink one in support
of Breast Cancer Research.
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Equetech has a recently joined the Solitaire Team and Alison
is now the proud owner of an Equetech competition outfit.
Alison has discovered the secret to stress free rider wardrobe
is to work with Equetech Director Liz Hayman to choose an outfit.
Alison is now counting the days until her new bespoke show jacket
arrives and is planning to replace all of her
work and competition breeches with Equetech designs.
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Baileys Horse Feeds power the Solitaire horses and support
Solitaire Freestyle clinics. Jack has returned to form with
an incredible top line developing thanks to No4 and Stud Balancer
and McGinty’s dream is eating up No 17 to look the best
shape of her career aged 22.
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Alison writes for
CTR Magazine and created the
Dressage Roundup Column. Solitaire Freestyle also
sponsors the CTR Dressage to Music Championship
classes and supports the CTR Premier Club.
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