jeudi 30 janvier 2025

Bravado

Bravado
Artist Resin Custom (paintjob by Sheila Bishop) on "Maxxixe de Barrios". Painted in 2024 and sculpted by Morgen Kilbourn.. 
Colour: Bay, Varnish Roan Pattern // Breed: Paso Fino x POA
Gender: Stallion.

mardi 28 janvier 2025

My entry for the Art of the Horse (by Stone company)

After much hesitation, I've decided to enter this year Art of the Horse competition held by the Stone company. As I am a traditional artist, I decided to enter a drawing (watercolor).

Eunoia - represent the bond between us even in our darkest hours. In 2020, Amira (my mare) was battling for her chance to life, from vet clinic to vet clinic. It was a long path but hope was never lost. I had trust and we won our fight.

It's a drawing that I've previously made to represent a feeling that could match by this year thema...

 
The bond between us was really important at that time and I hope this drawing have it's chance to goes straight to the judge's heart.

I am, truly, forever gratefull Amira is still here, even as a lawnmower!



mardi 21 janvier 2025

All you need to know about Kalinka (2/2)

To speak about what followed the first year with Kalinka, I need to open a bracket (

Around 2019, I met Eva. She's got her (horse) riding instructor degree and was at that moment, willing to find people to gave them riding classes. As she was a long date, close friend of my BF it was obvious we'll have to met..., she gave me a few advice with Amira and rode her. Even if we didn't really knew each other, we became friends (not close friends, but good friends) pretty quickly.

Here's a picture I took of her and Amira

Here's a picture she took of me and Amira

A few time after, I moved location and I regretted we couldn't have more lesson together, but well that's life. I was happy to have met her and we didn't lost contact.
  ) I close the bracket

We are in spring 2024 and I'm about to have my knabstrupper back with me, with a unfinished training (Kalinka was still missing proper canter) and the need of a strong supervisory to enjoy my dream horse in secure. It's why, in the (very) few options I got, Eva came back in my mind like an evidence.
So I contacted her, explaining my problem and she said she was willing to help. WHAT A RELIEF. The dream was back on tracks!
 
In may 2024 Kalinka moved stables, to get at Eva's place. Still far from me, but closer from Sabrina's place. And it's best than having her in a stable near me, were I don't know the professionals.

She started working on Kalinka, in order to know her and estimate the challenge, things clicked between them, she loved the mare. She even said she was really (really) willing to show her in dressage competition.
July 2024 we enter Kalinka du Granit Rose in a dressage competition in a nearby barn, for us, it's the fire test đŸ”„... we both agreed that if she pass it, she'll pass everything. It was the perfect occasion to test:
 
-If she'll travel good with someone else than a professional transporter and in a small van.
-If she'll behave well in a place she didn't know.
-If she'll behave well with horses she didn't know and on a crowded ring.
-If she'll be zen and not stressed in the whole thing (cold-minded).
-If she'll be appreciated by the judges, despite her unusual color.

Oh yes, we were excited to see what will happend! And I was excited at the idea that if she passes all this, she definely was more trustable that I though she was in regard of the catastrophic experience Sabrina has with her.

Kalinka definely was stellar on the transport, she didn't hesitated to hop on the van and patiently waited until she was unloaded in the unknown. She was not stressed at all about that new place, and was easy to handle to the warm-up ring. Even if she wasn't ready on canter, we saw she could do well.
 
First time ever in such circomstances and see how she goes...


Then it was her time to show, and she showed her best! Like she's done that her whole life.
 

Of course, the canter was problematic and she lost a lot of points with it, but we were so proud!
 


Video on instagram with some music on...
Vidéo on youtube without music (sorry)



She got an encouraging note from the judges, everyone was happy about that day and she confirmed her good-minded attitude. It was truly my first relief about our future together.


Past that point, we started to built our relationship, I took riding lesson with Eva and really started to feel what will be our difficulties on saddle and what we needed to work together...


If Excalibur was definely too much cold-blooded for me (what a pain), Kalinka is probably a little bit too much hot-blooded for me. Amira was just the perfect in between, she was cold-minded with just what you need of blood to deliver the goods - it's just SO HARD to replace the perfect match for you, let me tell you that!

So well, I worked (still works on that) on getting more confidence and get used to that new way of riding (once again) and at least, I enjoyed it (still enjoy it).

What helped me the best were our hacking (trail walks outside)... I just discovered a good mare that you can trust, with a sure foot and that is not impressed easily.

In the end, the most problematic part is probably the aggressive/dangerous behavior she can show (rarely) in some very specific circumstances and that's why as she's more difficult on hand than ridden, I concentrate on relating the ridden part for now.
But mostly, she's a doll and we are off a good start together - thank to Eva for that part of the job!



Our  first real canter archieved! (january 2025)

I cannot wait to see what the future will brings us... I'm happy to have bet on the dream pony so far!

 


(bonus post with Kalinka second dressage competition coming soon 👀 )

lundi 13 janvier 2025

All you need to know about Kalinka (1/2)

 In my previous post, I explained how I was able to purchase my dream horse.

To be honest, I've never wanted a second horse, I was happy with Amira and our accomplishements. But life had other plan, and even if I'm more than glad that she's still with me, I did not wanted to surrender on horse riding at all.


-I choose Amira because she was an immediate crush, it was not planned at all. We have the best love story!
-I choose Excalibur on precise criterias, with all the rationality I could put into it and still got some bad surprises. It didn't worked for us.
-I choose Kalinka because she is THE dream horse, nothing more.

But will it works for us?

Well, at least, let me introduce her a bit...

Kalinka du Granite Rose is a purebred knabstrupper mare, she's out of a roan knabstrupper dam and a few spot knabstrupper sire. They both are dressage oriented, wich is fine for me because I'm more a dressage rider. She's the first knabstrupper foal of her breeder. She sports my favorite color variation: leopard. 

And the difficulties that followed...

After I bought her, she was sent at Sabrina's place to be educated/trained and then broke (I don't like that english term), in order to be a good pony for me. I trust Sabrina's work with all my heart, and for me, there's no better horse trainer for such a job!

When we first met her, she was too fat and was looking like a pony, so one of our first goal was to reshape her to looks like the sporthorse she's supposed to be. As she was still a young filly of barely 3 years old, things were planned slowly, as well builded as she already was, it's important to respect the growth of a horse.

Sabrina always start with solid ground work on a horse, and it was more complicated than she expected. Kalinka truly shown a bad temper and was not really willing. She understood perfectly what was asked - she's a very clever girl - but didn't wanted to learn or give anything. That mare tried to gain the upper hand instead. 

I came in july 2023 to see her progress.Sabrina was struggling with her since she started basic education on. She took the mare in the ring for a lunge and she escaped during the session. We had to push her for hours, until she got tired enough to be kept again and cooperate. Every work session was difficult from the start. This one was a good example.


But the worst was coming. It happened that she had a lot to learn, she was difficult for everything, including everyday handling like farrier or vet... everything that could bother her even a little, was a problem. She was shooting in reply to constraint.

Success with this girl wasn't garanteed at this stage, and I went though a lot of doubts, Sabrina felt powerless and unsafe in front of that dangerous and stubborn mare, but never gave up. Then very few positive reply by very few positive reply, the mare progressed in a good way.

Until...

It was time for the main dish, how would she be under saddle?
Well, I'm not going to say it was easy, but it was a little bit easier. Wich is usual when the horse is well started on ground. And also a relief.


After months of hard work on Sabrina's behalf, it was finally time for me to try her on the saddle. November 2023 came, I bet Sabrina was stressed, as she had put lots of time and effort for this specific moment of truth.
But everything went just... fine. I loved my first knabstrupper ride!

I truly enjoyed how you feel with Kalina, she's so comfortable and I felt good and in confidence (wich is, I have to admit a feeling I got everytime I saw her before that day, despite her habit of beeing nasty).

Winter came, the mare still needed training, especially the canter wich was not earned, so she stayed at Sabrina's place. Everything was slowed by the weather, not a problem, she had time to grow and enjoy the fields.

By spring, things were going okay, and I got my next rides with her in april 2024.
I spend a week at Sabrina's place, learning to know my mare best. I was really thrilled by the horse I discovered. She was looking so good and also behaving okay with me.
Sabrina gave me lesson, as always, she was the best to put me in confidence and have the best out of the horse.


She's a cloud under saddle, that how I can describe it.

Kalinka also got introduced to the fact that's she's owned by an artist and discovered she might be asked out of usual things. She did well. She's well-minded despite her character, wich a good (important) point.

But... things weren't going that easy with Sabrina. Her and the mare, they weren't having a good relationship since the beginning and it didn't improved much, and she finally gave up on going further with her (in order to not waste what was already earned).
Not a problem, I understood fully - it's a fact that me and her, we don't have the same taste in horses and she have been though a lot already.

She said to me to be really cautious as the mare was still having dangerous behaviors, especially on foot, and not to have her home without a strong supervisory. So I needed someone else to finish the training job and help me with the next steps of owning my dream horse...

 (to be continued)



With this first year, we earned our Queens of PITA crown, what an award!
Thank you Sabrina for all your patience with us 💕

samedi 11 janvier 2025

The Pink Granite Coast

The pink granite coast got it's name from the pinkish color of the cliffs...