Monday, July 9:
We started off the week driving Misty and Joe hitched with familiar harnesses to familiar carriages so that we could all get comfortably back into “driving mode”. We walked and trotted lots of circles, diagonals, and other movements in the ring and remembered how to pass each other safely before taking a stroll down the road. Sam started out driving his buddy, Joe, while Kevin drove Hanna around behind Misty. Halfway through, Kevin and Sam swapped.
After the first drive, we took our lunch break right away. Kevin forgot his lunch so he ate Fourth of July cupcakes and Hanna’s cereal…
The afternoon driving started out with a pleasure drive in No-Moe’s wagonette. We hitched in the ring, and then headed out onto the trails almost immediately. There were lots of bugs on the quarter-mile trail and some mud in the woods behind Jacob’s Village, but trusty No-Moe kept on pulling and Sam learned to try to avoid puddles to save No-Moe having to pull the wagonette through deep mud. Kevin acted as our navigator, standing on the uphill side of wagonette on some of the more slanted terrain.
When we returned, it was Dodger’s turn! Kevin had to leave shortly after hitching up, but Sam rode in the cart with Hanna. We are working on teaching Dodger to bend correctly. After a walk down to the cul-de-sac, we unhitched, and Hanna ground-drove Dodger, using the wall as Muffy Seaton suggested earlier in the spring.
Tuesday, July 10:
After a home-cooked egg breakfast, we started the day with our faithful pony pair, Barnum and Bailey. They were excellent, as usual, so Sam and Kevin enjoyed driving a simple cones course with them, as well as a plastic-barrel obstacle course. Meanwhile, Hanna tested out Thor, the new fjord, under saddle in the dressage ring. Hopefully we’ll be driving him tomorrow.
Before lunch, Katelyn showed Sam and Kevin the proper methods of clipping and we are proud to say that every horse at the Carriage Barn is now cleanly shaven! The boys also helped Hanna, who was helping five year-old Olivia and her three year-old sister, Avery, to drive Joe.
The afternoon consisted of more obstacle driving with Misty and another drive on the trails with No-Moe. We discovered the trail along the fence line that ends in a wooded cul de sac and thoroughly enjoyed it!
Kevin had to leave, but after camp, Sam and Hanna ground drove Dodger. We did some bending exercises, then hitched him and drove around in the arena, down the road, and out on the quarter-mile trail. He is doing so well!
Wednesday, July 11:
In the morning, before camp started, Hanna and Sam brought Merlin out to longline in the indoor arena. We worked on getting her more on the bit in both her walk and trot. Kevin arrived part way through and helped us unhitch. Afterwards, we went down the road to get No-Moe and went for another pleasure drive through the woods. This time, though, when we got to Jacob’s Village, we continued onwards out on the real road! Kevin and Sam learned the rules of the road, such as hand signals and the appropriate way to slow oncoming traffic.
The afternoon was slightly more eventful. When we went to get Thor out of his pasture, Ben charged the gate and got loose. However, we had a very nice drive after recapturing Ben with some grain. It was our very first time driving Thor, and everyone really likes him because of his easy-going, honest nature.
Camp ended a bit early today because Hanna had to leave early and Ann had a meeting, but it may have been nice to have a mid-week break as everyone has been getting tired and extremely hot in the humid weather, including the horses.
Thursday, July 12:
We kicked off the day with our pair, Barnum and Bailey. As usual, they were excellent. We even aquired two young passengers who admired our sporting turnout! We harnessed up Dodger next and both Sam and Kevin drove him in addition to Hanna. Dodger was very good for Sam and Kevin, who had never driven him before, and stayed very relaxed. He is really starting to get the idea of bending without quite as much prompting and is really just a good sport all around. We think he thoroughly enjoys his job!
After lunch, it was Thor’s turn. Thor looks so nice in the red wagonette with his mane freshly trimmed (much to Katelyn’s displeasure) and is going to be a great driving horse once we get him back into shape. He is unrattled by anything encountered on the roads or trails and is a joy to drive. When we were finishing up, Hanna’s dad arrived to see what she’s been up to and hitched a ride as well. After successfully turning Thor out without letting Ben loose, we drove Misty and Joe together. We set up and drove two obstacle courses in the ring, one of which required some thinking and preparation for a tight turn to two gates. Sam and Joe took a nice walk down to Jacob’s Village afterwards and Hanna took her dad for a fast-paced drive through the woods, including cantering the hill and exploring one of the connector trails.
After camp ended and after helping out with some of the barn chores, Hanna and Sam helped groom Rosie, the gypsy filly, who needed some attention to her feathers and then ground drove her using the quick-hitch harness and the long-lines. She was distracted by the changing light and shadows in the indoor, but she is ready to be hitched to a carriage. We didn’t stay out long because it had been a long day and Rosie’s attention span (as well as her driver’s) was wearing out.
Friday, July 13:
To wrap up this week of camp we started the morning by harnessing, hitching, and driving Merlin. Sam and Kevin learned a little more about dressage in carriages by getting Merlin moving forward into the bridle. After a long drive, we moved onto Dodger, who was fabulous. After an extended lunch, we took Thor out for a final drive. He seemed more lazy than usual, so we discussed how changing his daily grain might be appropriate as his work load has increased since moving to the Carriage Barn.
Overall it was a very successful week and everyone looks forward to returning next week and/or next year! Thank you Ann and all the horses for driving us around all week!
-Week Two–
Monday, July 16:
We started the “advanced” week of driving with Dana Bright by driving individually in the ring to show her what level everyone was at. Stephen drove his warmblood Monopoly and was the ‘guinea pig’ for the ‘peanut gallery’. Dana used Stephen and Monopoly to demonstrate many things, in particular how to tell if your horse is relaxed and the definition of bending. JanJan drove her Morgan pony, Desi, next and we determined that every horse has a different personality. Desi is our energizer bunny. JanJan worked on getting Desi to stretch down and use the muscles in his back as well as
Sam drove No-Moe hitched to the wagonette and focused on getting No-Moe to use his corner’s and keep the bend the the inside, as well as impulsion. Last to go before lunch was Devin with the Arabian she drives at home, Patrix. Devin is going to remember to use her voice only when necessary so that Patrix can’t ignore her.
During lunch we discussed some of the rules controlling the different divisions in a marathon such as who is allowed to canter versus trot and when.
After lunch, Olivia drove Misty, who she just met. She worked on keeping Misty’s trot slow, and generally getting to know her. Finally, Hanna drove Dodger, asking him to stretch down and get round front to back rather than bending side to side. After camp, the overnighters went food shopping then made some interesting brownies after doing the 9:00 barn check.
Tuesday, July 17:
Before camp started, the overnighters took a pleasure drive with Thor to take a tour of some of the trails and Jacob’s Village. Thor seemed to have a bit more energy than last week, so that was good. When Dana arrived, Olivia and Sam drove Misty and No-Moe to start off the morning’s lessons. They each designed and drove a three-pair cones course which allowed them to use some of the tips they picked up yesterday in order to make the tighter turns. JanJan hitched Desi afterwards and drove a cones course, too. Devin and Stephen were the last to drive before lunch, and they did the same cones course exercise with their horses.
Today’s lunch discussion covered conditioning your horses and the chemistry of exercise-reasons why TPR is important to watch. Dana explained some of the do’s and don’t’s of conditioning and how to create a schedule to work towards your next show.
After lunch, Hanna longlined Dodger to encourage him to stretch even lower and round his back before hitching up. After hitching, Olivia came in with Merlin, and Sam and JanJan hitched the pony pair. Olivia had some trouble initially getting Merlin to cooperate, but Stephen hopped in the cart and Merlin settled in. JanJan and Sam took turns driving the ponies, and Devin hitched a ride with Hanna and Dodger and the whole group went driving! It was an enjoyable way to end the afternoon!
After camp, JanJan drove Desi again to practice what she learned in the morning while the rest of the overnighters rearranged the outdoor arena for tomorrow’s hazard-driving. Just as they were finishing, Kathy came down with her walking horse, Katie and the three girls all took turns riding her and attempting and running walk.
Wednesday, July 18:
All campers dressed in yellow Carriage Barn tee-shirts today to surprise our wonderful guest clinician, inspired by Ann. We spent the morning driving two hazards, constructed (beautifully) by the overnighters last night, in two groups of three. The first group to drive was Stephen and Monopoly, Devin and Patrix, and JanJan and Desi. Everyone drove both hazards a few times with a slow, balanced trot to reinforce the basic principles of obstacle driving before trying to beat the clock. The weather was less than cooperative, but it was almost a good thing because you can’t count on the weather to cooperate on competition day - our horses have to learn to drive in any condition. In the downtime, Dana brought up some of the rules pertaining to Section E such as how long you are allowed to stay in a single hazard and how to correct an error on course and the resulting penalties. The second group drove the same hazards, but JanJan, Devin, and Stephen reset the gates in a new order. It was a ring full of haflingers, hard at work! (Hanna and Merlin, Sam and No-Moe, and Olivia and Misty)
After lunch, Hanna longlined Rosie, the three year-old Gypsy, with Sam and Olivia and Dana talked about how to approach a young horse’s training. JanJan, Devin, and Stephen drove the dressage tests for their upcoming shows with their horses afterwards so that Dana could give them some things to focus on when they train at home.
Hanna had to go home for an appointment, but thankfully she came back later on and the overnighters went for a late-night trip to Wal-mart. We bought supplies for Friday’s games and, upon return, spray-painted helmets (not our own!) for Dana’s morning surprise, which will hopefully be more shocking than today’s.
|
Thursday, July 19:
We kicked off the day with JanJan, Steven and Devin driving their horses. They drove a working class, and then a reinsmanship class. Dana, Hanna, Sam, and Olivia evaluated them. Hanna, Sam, and Olivia drove next, repeating the same activities. After the second trio put their horses away, we all went up to the house for lunch.
After lunch and a very long story-time by Dana and Ann, we all went to see Dana’s horses who were staying on Natasha Grigg’s farm, only twelve miles away. It was an exciting opportunity to see an advanced pair and the equipment Dana chooses to use as well as the training that keeps them at the advanced level. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay long because it was raining and the arena was outdoors. We all headed out to pizza after we got back from the barn. When we got back from pizza, we made plans for the upcoming games tomorrow. We then played some games of our own inside the house after a quick barn check.
Friday, July 20:
To wrap up our wonderful week of camp, we practiced driving cones once again this morning. This time, it was a pick your own route course in the outdoor ring and everyone drove together! It was nice having the large ring, because we had Stephen and Monopoly, Devin and Patrix, Sam and No-Moe, Olivia and Misty, JanJan and Desi, and Hanna and Dodger all at once. Dana discussed strategies for this type of class, including the matter of the horses’s size versus speed and how that should affect the driver’s route. When we thought back to our cones courses on Tuesday, we were all very pleased with the progress we’ve made on keeping our horses balanced.
We went for a hack on the trails with Dana on the back of Sam’s wagonette and had a great time! After unhitching, everyone helped set up the afternoon’s games and many hands made light work. Lunch was brief, as everyone was excited for the afternoon and spectators were arriving!
We made three teams: Hanna and JanJan with Desi, Sam and Olivia with the pony pair, and Stephen and Devin with Merlin. The “games” were a series of obstacles including inflated balls that had to be knocked off barrels with a pool noodle, a rubber ducky that had to be taken out of the mailbox and tossed through the basketball hoop, and a line of chairs that the navigator had to get onto, walk across, and get back onto the carriage without touching the ground. In all, there were five games that could be completed in any order and the entire course was timed. We created the course and had to create our own rules. Everyone realized that it’s not just as easy as it may seem to write a rulebook! The navigators had to communicate with the drivers in order to stop in the right place, or slow down for an obstacle, etc. Then the navigators and driver switched! Our parents and the barn staff composed a wonderful audience that doubled as ring crew and everyone had a blast that summed up a great week! We’d like to thank Dana for all of the expertise she shared with us, and look forward to seeing each other in the warm-up ring! |
 |
|
