Big Ben Hope rocks! He rocked the competition at Galway this weekend, placing 3rd overall. He scored a 29 in dressage, jumped the only double clean stadium in all of the division, and added just time penalties to his xc round. James is very excited about him, and feels like he’s got the talent in all three phases to be a top upper level horse.
Check out photos of him taken from the weekend:
http://www.mccoolphotos.com/_appFile.cfm?pg=riderGallery&riderId=18116
Long time no post! A lot has happened since James’ clinic at the Colorado Horse Park, and since the 3* at Galway Downs. Best to start with a recap of Galway.
Galway CIC3*
James’ dressage and stadium at Galway were great…not the best score on the flat but James felt like GB was relaxed and smooth. We got some great feedback from Wayne Quarells and Loris Henry about the test, and they encouraged James to go for more - bigger changes in his medium and extended movements, more lateral in his shoulder and haunches in. James put that advice to good use at Twin and scored quite well (video to follow shortly). The stadium was amazing. Goose loves the show jump arena, and lights up when he gets to jump the striped poles. We were feeling really confident going into Saturday.
The warm up for xc was going really well, and I felt like GB looked as good as he can look. The boys had one fence in the warm up - a big oxer - that they missed to…GB hesitated to leave the ground and came down on the back rail. This isn’t all together unusual for them; sometimes GB needs a fence like that to wake up a bit. James went out to the box feeling confident after having jumped a few more fences.
I think that the xc round was pretty good, it looked a bit conservative, meaning that James had to help GB get to the base of almost every fence - it certainly didn’t look like GB was dragging him down to jump any of those big ass fences. They had 2 stops on course, both of which were jumps at the top of a hill, with a downhill landing. They sailed through the waters, the angled hedges and all the big tough questions.
After Galway, James was definitely disappointed. I felt like our Olympic dreams were slowly disappearing, and that was sad. We took a good look at GB after the event, and had Dr. Martinelli and the team at California Equine Orthopedics look over him with a fine tooth comb. The docs came up with the conclusion that GB had strained him hamstring, on the right side, probably when he missed to the warm up fence before xc. With Galway also being an FEI show, Gooseberry wasn’t on his normal dose of Hemoflo, Tildren, Asprin and Isoxuprine; all drugs to make his feet feel great so he can run and jump. I think that these factors made for a less than ideal xc run. I’ve said it before, but the stadium jumping is where GB’s adrenaline kicks in, and I think he can block any pain he’s feeling (if he’s feeling it). The xc has always taken a bit of convincing, and when he isn’t feeling 100%, I can’t imagine him - or any horse - wanting to go the extra mile.
GB was treated with Pulsed Electro Magnetic Therapy on his back and hamstring, had his neck and coffin joints injected, and Dr. Martinelli told James that they had done all they could to make him feel great. We decided to try again at Twin Rivers. The plan at the beginning of the year had called for GB to run Twin, either the 3* or the Advanced HT, so we opted for the 3* and off we went!
I saw a big improvement in GB on xc at Twin…he looked like his old self - being careful yet bold around the course. The boys had a glance off at the sunken road D element, although James said he could have ridden a bit tougher to it. I was disappointed, sad, and relieved, all at once. A run out on xc meant that we didn’t have to go Jersey Fresh, it meant that our Olympic quest was officially over. I was and am so sad for James, but I’m also relieved. We can stay home this year, we can work on our show at Copper through May, I don’t have to cancel the one-day, I get to teach lessons, come home everyday, and I have my hubby around.
This journey with Gooseberry has got me thinking about a horses purpose, and I’ve talked about this a lot with James’ mom, and my mom (two of the wisest ladies) quite a bit. Maybe GB isn’t the One, the Olympic horse, the 4* horse, but he is the horse that got James back at the upper levels, back competing, and teaching at the highest levels of the sport. His name is out there because of a little chubby chestnut horse. Because of GB, riders in the sport are seeking out James to help them, teach them, ride their horses. GB is a publicity master. For that I am so grateful to him. There is a distinct possibility that without the Gooseberry, James wouldn’t be riding competitively. Ok, now it’s story time…
The first time James came out to Copper (well, not the first first time, but the first time since we started dating), I was teaching a group jumping lesson. I jokingly told James to join in - go get a horse! My mom offered Goose. He hadn’t jumped a jump in probably a year, and hadn’t been ridden by anyone but my mom in close to 5 years. James got on, in his jeans, and joined in the lesson. He jumped through a few angle lines with one hand on his head, goofing around, arms out to the side, laughing and cantering around on his little orange sports car (maybe more of a crossover model…SUV?). Since that day, GB has been James’ ride, that was in 2009, after a long hiatus from riding. Since The Revisionist passed away, James hadn’t ridden at all, and there was a good chance that he wouldn’t look for another partnership with a horse. I can speak for myself and maybe others who have lost a great horse, when I say that it takes a long time to move on. All the cheesy quotes about a horse and rider belonging together, and reading each others minds, while eye rolling worthy they are, are undeniably true. I’ve never experienced riding a horse at a 4*, but I bet that James and Revi had quite the partnership to be able to do that together. I know that the feeling of that friendship was immense, and to try for that again is a lot. Lucky for us, and lucky for James, Gooseberry was there.
3 years later, I look at a changed horse; an athlete, a Canadian medalist, a lovely creature. I also look at my husband and how far he has come in 3 years with GB’s help, a professional athlete, a Canadian medalist, and yes, a lovely creature. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Yes, the boys are the same creature.
