Canton, Georgia
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Eventers, Hunters, and Dressage
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Amanda Amanda is a student of Halliea's, working on becoming a better rider. To help her in her quest, she has just purchased Fire It Up, a stunning bay thoroughbred that can jump and does well in all situations. We are all thrilled that these two are a pair, great things are to come!  Amanda and Alf take a turn around the show ring. "Going into the Intro clinic, I was nervous, but excited. I had ridden Classy in the open before at hunter paces, but never over fences in the open, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The grid work really helped me get settled, and I had to work so hard on getting Classy's short little legs to cover the ground between the fences (one stride) that I didn't have a lot of time to worry about other things. Overall the clinic was a huge success and we all had a lot of fun. After that clinic, I worked really hard in 2008 to overcome the "mental hurdles" in my riding because the clinic solidified my desire to be an eventer. I would shine in lessons, and then get really, really tense at shows. I worried so much about what *could* happen that I wasn't focusing on what *was* happening. But Halliea, always encouraging and with a little pinch of tough love, made sure I got out of the ring to go cross country schooling or just on trail rides so I would get more comfortable with riding in different situations. I had gone from having trouble at shows in the flat classes at the beginning of the year to having a blast doing the low jumpers classes. "  Amanda and Alf in the Stadium phase. |
"But that's the kind of person she is. Halliea takes a lot of time creating great riders, and horses, and is meticulous and patient in her methods. And when those students and their horses excel, she is immensely proud of them. And I'm really proud to be one of her students."  Amanda and Alf at their first show together "Now fast forward to January of 2009... Go With It Farm traveled to Pine Top Farm for its New Years Schooling Horse Trail, a three phase event. This would be my very first 3 phase, even if I was only entered in the "tadpole" division (jumps 2ft - 2ft 3 inches) We all schooled our respective cross country courses on Friday, and I was nervous to start out with, especially riding in the rain, but settled in and felt a lot better by the time we wrapped up. Saturday, the day of the horse trial, dawned gray with more rain on the radar, but eventers just plug along! My dressage score wasn't great because I was so nervous and tense, and when I got to show jumping, I felt even worse; my nerves were really getting to me. But Halliea pulled me aside, and said to me "Listen... you're a GREAT rider... you can go in there and rock this little course. Ok? So go!" And with that, I headed into the ring. CLEAR ROUND! I didnt feel it was my best, but we were clean, and my sprits were lifted. The final phase was cross country... and it was raining, yet again, when I headed out to warm up. Classy was feeling frisky, and I was still a bit nervous. It was made all the worse because I showed up on time for my start time, but they were running about 10 minutes behind... so I had to wait... and wait... Once again, Halliea pulled me aside. "I want you to go into the start box when the starter gives you the 15 second warning... then TROT to the first jump, land cantering and RIDE YOUR BUTT OFF to that coop that gave you trouble yesterday." I knew Halliea would be right there at the coop, but then the rest of the course was mine alone to tackle. We trotted off at the starter's signal, jumped the first fence in fine form, and rode to the coop as prescribed... and over we went with a big "WHOO HOOOO" from Halliea. By the time I got to the 4th fence, I was feeling a lot more relaxed and I was actually having FUN out there, not worrying about anything but finding the next fence. Halliea was waiting for me at the finish line, and as I crossed it I think her face and mine had the same expression; one of joy, pride and excitement. "That was freaking awesome!" Halliea said... and I think if I hadn't been up on Classy, she'd have hugged me. And it was awesome... I was really enjoying myself out there, and I was sad my little course only had 10 fences! Classy and I were ready for more. So in the course of a year, I went from being nervous in a walk-trot class to cantering 'round a small cross country course and enjoying it. As I walked Classy back to the barn, I thought a lot about not only about the past year, but also about the whole 2.5 years that I had been riding with Halliea. She wasn't afraid to tell me "you're a mess, so no jumping for you until we get your basics fixed" when I first started leasing Classy and taking lessons. She wasn't afraid to tell me I was being a wuss and she was disappointed in me for scratching a mini hunter over fences class at a local show. And she wasn't afraid to let her emotions show when I crossed that finish line at Pine Top, and again later, when we finally made it back to Canton and put the horses to bed, when I told her I'd placed 4th in my division; I'm pretty sure her eyes welled up. :)" | |||||
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