All I want for Christmas is..............

This weeks theme for the bloggers of #ITWBN is "All I want for Christmas is..."

There are loads on my list but for my equine followers here are my top 3 equine must haves on my wish list......

Ardall Pro-Fit Studs

One of my pet hates is studs! When getting ready for the ring it is most definitely the most stressful part of the whole thing. For one you have to leave this task till last as you cant have the poor horse standing on their tip toes on concrete while plaiting and tacking and if you are like me you only remember to put them in when you are dressed and ready to go....the sweaty face from the stress of taping and screwing them in is not a good look! My biggest horror story was the RDS 2010. All set to go and then BANG..no studs in. Rosie is the type of mare who needs a few days to recuperate after visiting the farrier so her shoes were about a week old. Even though we had kept an eye and stuffed the stud holes we still had problems with putting the studs in on the morning of the class. In the end we failed and hoped for the best...not a nice feeling but she went foot perfect thank god! This year at the Dublin Horse Show a few people had mentioned these amazing studs were on demo with the "crowd with the dummy!" so Sandra and I set on our way to find the stand to see what the fuss was about. Ardall gave a demo and you could test them out for yourself. Of course there were people trying their best to find a fault but there is none. They are amazing...with one good tap the studs are in and there is no way of them falling out and the best of all.....no tapping the threads of the shoes! Imagine the time you will save. Sounds ideal...the studs were not on sale at the show but they are on my wish list for the 2014 season...make sure to check them out! If Santa thinks I am worthy of these studs I will do a review and share my thoughts.

Ardall Pro-Fit Stud

Dy'on Leather Blinkers
So as you may have seen last week, Coco and I were in The Irish Field for the Spooky Mare award...we were thrilled, great craic. However saying that Coco can be a spooky mare. I noticed a number of showjumpers sporting new blinkers and I thought what a great idea. When Coco is unsure about a situation I notice she looks back at me. I have searched high and low to find something neat and discreet for her bridle as I dont want her to look like a racehorse with sheepskin blinkers heading in the showjumping/working hunter ring. So I followed in the showjumping league and stuck some vet wrap onto her bridle (not a good look). I am not so sure if it is working to be honest as we havent been out much with it being the end of the season. With that said I came across these beauties on the fab Tailored Equestrian website. They are exactly what I want, stylist but effective. I will definitely be adding these to my list at a great price of €22. If we get them I will most certainly do a review on how we get on with them.

Dy'on Leather Blinkers

Caldene Royal Show Jacket
Last but most certainly not least is a present I want for myself, the Caldene Royal Show Jacket. I have changed Coco's colours for next season to a navy and brown set of numnahs, sheep skin pad and fly veil. I purchased the numnah and fly veil at the RDS and Coco bought the saddle pad from Horse Health with her winnings from the championship at Equifest. I like the look of the colours on her as they go nicely with her dark bay coat. Then to dress myself, I have a perfectly fine navy show jacket but I stumbled on this jacket on equestrianclearance.com and thought perfect this will complete our look for 2014.

So if I get one of the above for Christmas I will be one happy girl with happy horses :-)

Winter warmers!

This weeks theme for #ITWBN is warmth.

In the last few days the temperatures have dramatically dropped with even a sleet shower in Galway City today! That means one thing....time for heavy weight outdoor rugs for our blessed steeds. At Highgrange Stable we are firm believers of our horses & ponies living out as much as possible. We are lucky enough to have enough land and shelter to do so. Even in the height of rain and snow we have been in a position to keep them out, big animals in a small space just aint healthy!

In order to leave them out we have a vast amount of rugs suited to each and every one of the horses. For example, Coco needs a rug made of steel as she loves to shred it to pieces and needs weight as she is clipped during the winter, Flirtini needs the warmest rug possible as she likes to feel sorry for herself even though she is a connie with a big coat and then we have Rosie who is constantly trying to pull a "Houdini" and strip off. With all that said it is fair to say we have tried and tested our fair share of rugs and here are my favourites....

Horseware Rhino Original Turnout - Rosie has this rug for the past 6 - 5 winters and it is like new. I can't praise this rug enough. Mary bought a batch together and they are still as good as new. We never "dry clean" our rugs as we think they loose their proofness and warmth and I think that is why these has lasted so long. If they are dirty a bit of elbow grease and a power hose works perfectly and saves money too. Rosie is a "bucker" with a rug on so she has really tested this rug. A few little alterations have been from her gig acting in the field but the weight and waterproof of the rug is still perfect. The main selling point on this rug is the tail guard which stops the rug from travelling up the horses hind during high winds. These rugs are the upper end of the price scale but reasonably priced in terms of Horseware's price ranges. These rugs are true to size so it is easy to select the right size. Definitely a good buy at €124.95 from thetackroom.ie

Premier Equine Winter Buster - Coco is sporting this rug at the moment. She is the greatest divil for ruining her rugs. She has succeeded to shred numerous Horseware rugs which is an achievement (she has more rugs bought than I have coats for myself). When Sandra and I were at the Olympia last Xmas I came across these rugs and took note knowing I will possibly need to recloth Coco shortly after she has her way with her current rug. So when I returned home I ordered the Winter Buster for her. When I am shopping for a rug the first thing I look at is the rip stop denier of the rug. This illustrates how strong the material is, this rug won me over with a brilliant weight of 1680 denier. It is really heavy with a 450g filling and a detachable hood. Coco is 15.1hh so I ordered the 6ft 3 rug, when it arrived it was HUGE...Jameson (17hh RID) ended up claiming that rug so I reordered a 5ft 9 and it was perfect so bear in mind these are very big fitting. Cinnamon (15.2hh RID) ordered the 6ft and it is swimming on her too. Coco is heading into her 2nd winter with this rug so fingers crossed it survives!! I added to hood on last weekend with the bad rain as she is freshly clipped (I am imagining heading to the field to see a hood on and no rug) These rugs are a little more expensive at £164.99  but keep an eye on their site for 20% off deals (every 2 - 3 weeks). 

So there are my favorite picks for nice warm good quality rugs as we head into the coldest part of the year. So each time the wind and rain starts lashing down on top of the warm cosy office I don't feel so bad for the horses when I know they have one of the above rugs on. (We usually end up double rugging ours as Christmas draws closer....they are spoilt rotten). There is a whole argument on whether horses should live in or out but our horses love being out. When they come in for a feed/clip/riding and you rug them up to get ready to head out they are pushing down the doors so they must be happy to be out with all their buddies in the fresh air! Who likes being on their own in a room at home so why would the horse want to be in a stable all winter on their own? :)

All things horsey and Irish!

My good friend Sinead of Yummy Mummy has started a very cool initiative called 
Into The West Blogger Network  #ITWBN is a community of like minded people who want to share their passions with the world.  The idea of this network is to bring Bloggers together.  It does not matter what your blog is about, it could be about fashion, beauty, cooking, photography, makeup artistry etc, you just have to be Irish, live in Ireland or want to visit the West. So Sinead in her usual inspirational way encouraged me to join the group. Each week there is a theme which each blogger is encouraged to blog about. This weeks theme is "All things Irish".

I know my blog is about retraining Rosie but I think I might give this idea a go. I was rattling my head all morning wondering how can I use "All things Irish" in relation to my blog. It went from looking at Irish bred horses and then bingo I can incorporate one of my favorite things in the world....yes you guessed it.....SHOPPING!!

All my horsey friends know I love shopping and most definitely love to find good quality items at affordable prices. Our emerald isle is full of horses but in terms of retailing I thought it was poorly stocked. This led me to doing most of my shopping online and became addicted to large retailers such as equestrianclearance.com. I felt guilty sending my money outside of the country but I felt the shops at home were way too expensive/limited and it was infact cheaper to ship in from abroad!! But alas, Thetackroom.ie was born! I am a mega fan of Imelda's brilliant store. You are guaranteed top quality products at super prices at Thetackroom.ie  What I like about this store is you know Imelda is an expert on the brands stocked and if they are not in stock she will source them for you in no time (plus she makes a nice cup of tea!). The girls and I are possibly a little hooked on Thetackroom.ie and get a little too excited when new ranges arrive. Here are some of my favorites from A/W 2013:

The jacket is the Caramel Toggi Alden padded jacket €104.95, I had the misfortune of being at the store when the order arrived and modeled each of the jackets and coats from the A/W13 Toggi range. I cannot pick one as they are all fab on...definitely on my wish list. The navy Mountain Horse Chelsea shirt is is ideal for inside this jacket and at a super sale price of €28.97....how could you go wrong. Then we move onto a these gorgeous Coleen Breeches by USG which are very popular this season on the showjumping a bargain busting price of €55.21 and onto the final touch of this outfit...the most pretty scarf I have ever seen....again from Toggi, Pasadena Silk Scarf for €21.95. I can see myself in this outfit (maybe not on the horse though...it is way too pretty for work!). 

Not to forget our trusted steeds in this chilly weather. Grace picked up this super rug (Norton 300gram Heavyweight Outdoor) for Flirtini who is the coldest creature in the yard at a great price of €69.95, grab one quick before they sell out!

I cannot praise Thetackroom.ie enough for its super range of products, professionalism and what is important to alot of horsey people now....good prices!The proof is in the pudding with over 6,000 followers on facebook...check it out.

Each Christmas I present Mary with a photo of Rosie and I winning at some show from the past season . As most of you are aware Rosie was struck down with Kissing Spine and had to go to "rehab". This meant no shows for all of 2012. As Christmas was approaching I began to panic as I had no photo to add to the ever growing collection. Then I discovered Art by Suzie through the Thetackroom.ie. I sent a number of head shots to the lovely Suzanne in an effort to keep the Rosie theme going at Xmas and this is what was created:

It captured Rosie to a tee and then the Art by Suzie addiction began with the following bags added to the yard:

 

Bags are priced at a €40 which includes postage and packaging. They are a super buy for organising your bits and pieces and each horse has their own bag, makes packing for shows that bit easier. This year we started a trend at the shows by using them as grooming bags in the ring and would you believe Art by Suzie made it to the main arena at the Supreme Championship at the Dublin Horse Horse 2013.  Check out Suzanne's page Art by Suzie as she has some super gift ideas on her page and its not all horses either. Suzanne is very hands on and is in touch every step of the way. Hurry though as last orders for this Christmas are taken before the 30th of Nov!! This is a growing trend so don't be seen without your Suzie bag for the 2014 season....they also come in handy as doggy bags.....

So that's my blog on "All things Irish". We live in hard times at the moment but remember to buy Irish and look stylish at the same time :) 

All work and no play makes Barbara and Rosie boring girls.....yeah right! :)

So after our winning debut in Corrandulla a mighty session was had as always with the gang! We always take the following day off after a show unless we are back on the road to the next event. Thanks be to God there was nothing on as the winning was well and truly celebrated even if we had thoughts that it could have been beginners luck. One thing to remember with horses is everyday is a school day. This is one reason why I love the sport as you and the horse are constantly learning. My opinion is you are never too good, even the professionals, your only as good as your last day out so you may win today and the following day you are end of the line. Mary has always thought us good sportsmanship which I think is so important and is seriously lacking in the show ring. Whenever you leave the yard that morning you have a job on your mind but the main thing is that everyone comes home safe and sound. Anyhow back to the story......as Rosie and I began to develop in this new game of showing Ian would push us that bit harder each week and when times got tough and you felt like this is never going to happen you would hear a bark across the field "Keep going Love or you will never fit into that dress on Saturday night!" Mr Motivator we should call him because all of a sudden this surge of temper and determination would erupt inside you and you would get over yourself and get on with the job.

Ian putting us through our paces.

Mother hen keeping a close eye.

The week of Ardrahan always signals a big week in showing. Not only is it one of the biggest and a favourite show in the west but signals the Dublin Horse Show entries are soon to close. We were one of the greatest lunatics in the game, we had one show under our belts and away went the big cheque to the RDS for Rosie's entry....but hey it worked...YOLO and all that ha ha. So the blood, sweat and less tears were put in the week leading up to Ardrahan. We had never been to the show other than as a child spectating as this is a pure Showing show with no jumping so we would have never "wasted" our time with Ardrahan. Alas, this year was different, I was dying to see the show. Ian had told us it had loads of classes and held two All Ireland classes so competitors travelled from afar and it would be a super education for Rosie and I. Grace and Macken were also taking an interest in the showing ring so Grace had entered the small working hunter class (jumping class). I was extra excited for this show as there was a Thoroughbred Riding Horse class (which is exactly what Rosie is) so there were some Galway entries for Dublin in the class. This would give us a taste of what was ahead. We were told to get Rosie into as many dog fights as possible before Dublin (I know here we are after sending the entry off with one show done :) ).
One major adjustment in showing is the timing of the classes and ring etiquette. In showjumping if you are first class and it starts at 9am, you are in no rush as there could be 100 entries and could go on for hours but this is completely different in the showing ring. You need to be there well before your class as all competitors must be at the ring on time as there is no late admission into the ring unless you have a very good excuse and a forgiving judge and the judge will possibly dislike you immediately for your ill manners.

So all the homework was done and it was Friday evening with Rosie and Macken scrubbed and bedded for their show the next morning. We were up at the crack of dawn , plaited, loaded up and on the road to Ardrahan. As always there was a drama. We arrived and there was Grace's class at the closing stages....opps we still didn't have a handle on this timing craic just yet! So there was an exchange of words amongst us (of course Grace and I sticking together as thick as thieves) and even Ian was pointing at his watch from the centre of the ring whilst waiting on the judge to ride his mare....not good!

All had to be forgiven and reassess where Grace and Macken would go...ah ha the Small Hunter class. They tacked up and got ready and off went Grace. When she was walking around all we could hear on the ring side was "Ian, Ian, Ian, Ian" we had forgotten Grace had been getting ready for workers and had no idea what to do in the ridden flat classes, all we could do is laugh and as Ian still says it was the most craic he ever had in a show ring with all the laughing and shouting Grace did....ring craft and manners out the window :)

"Ian, Ian, Ian, Ian, Ian....."

So Rosie was up next. It was easy spot the riding horses as they are dressed differently to the hunters. Hunters are plainly dressed with leather browbands (as seen above). In the riding horse section the horse wears a velvet coloured browband with their rider matching their shirt and tie to the horses colours....very girly. This was a huge transition for Grace as she loved her colour coordination particularly pink so you can imagine the rows between Grace and Ian while he tried to wean her off the bright colours! Before the show I trotted into Olympic Saddlery to pick out a coloured browband for the show. I was dying to choose a colour but when I arrived into the shop there wasn't sight nor sound of a coloured browband. Damn....Mary was going to kill me for the lack of organising. I ran into Hickeys picked out purple and gold ribbon, grabbed an old browband and broke up a pair of pearl earrings and made this little beauty....

So I warmed Rosie up and she felt amazing. There were loads in the class so I picked my spot and made sure I was seen at all times by the judge as people get crafty with blocking you off from the judge. After a nice gallop we were pulled in 3rd out of 12. I could not stop smiling. The judge rode her and she went foot perfect (Horsey way to say perfect!) Ian had drilled me to not be shy and ask for feedback if the judge was talking. You know you're not too bad when the judge comes back to you with the horse and they have a smile on their face. She was a fantastic rider and said we had a fantastic job done with her and I said we were entered for Dublin, she was delighted and said best of luck and keep working her towards that. I was thrilled. If I had gone from 3rd to 12th it didn't matter because the feedback was what I wanted to hear. We finished the class in third to 2 big bay horses so may be it was on height as Rosie is small and compact. After another successful ribbon the morning episode was quickly forgotten about and we packed up and went home with smiles on everyones faces. I think we were getting the showing bug. Then reality began to strike....I was beginning to get too tired to have a few sociables (plus a lack of money from a new showing wardrobe). Next stop....Loughrea show.......lord above not one to ever ever ever forget......

All smiles

With the Judge

Another ribbon......friends again :)

STRIP??.....what kind of crazy game is this showing craic!

After our meeting with Ian, we sat down and decided lets make a go at this and bring Rosie to Dublin. Mary contacted Ian and asked for his guidance as we were complete and utter newbies to this showing malark and he agreed. Rosie had developed a nice slow collected canter from her schooling as a showjumper. We learned this was not ideal as Rosie was going to show herself as a hunter. When I write that down it is bananas as I nor anyone who knows her can imagine our pretty little diva galloping across a hunting field and setting herself up to a stone wall on a wet and cold winters morning. Ian advised Rosie needed to extend her stride in all 3 gaits of walk, trot and canter, she obviously had no problems with her galloping after her career on the race track.

As coming from a background of hunting, cross country and jumping I knew very little on proper flatwork. Another point Ian made was to take Rosie up in a contact...my initial thoughts were "of course I am in contact with her....sure I am sitting on her back" not realising a contact with the bit. This was the hardest task of them all. First off a racehorse is trained to run as fast as possible with its nose out in the event of need at a photo finish. Rosie wasn't very "heady" as she was showjumping and had a feeling for the bit. We spent hours which felt like weeks encouraging Rosie to take a contact with the bit. I wasnt long loosing weight between working my hands and squeezing for dear life with my poor legs for 1 - 2 hours straight. Many a tear was shed at the frustration of this exercise. There were days when I would ask Rosie to canter a straight line but instead we would do a half pass the entire length of the field, all on her terms!!!! I would cry and come in out of the field saying I give up and we are not showing this lunatic mare. Mary and Ian stook with us and encouraged us all the way. Then all of sudden one day it fell into place and there was Rosie riding in an outline with a smooth loose canter stride. The feeling of her accepting the bit and dropping her head with her back end raising as she engaged her hind was the most amazing feeling. I has gone from sitting on a 15.2 hh mare to thinking I was on an 18hh dressage horse. Ian had spent hours upon hours with me and finally our hard work was showing. I became consumed with flat work but of course we had many a hiccup along our training route as most horses do. 

So there is was the weekend of our first show, Corrandulla Show. On the Saturday we set out for a quick spin so I could sweat her up to wash her for our big day. We were out the field which we call "the showjumping field" and yes you have guessed it is a field filled with showjumping fences. Rosie was feeling frisky and was winking at all the gelding in the yard. Off we went into the field and it was like all was lost. She dragged me around the field and of course there were tears shed. Ian felt so sorry for me that he sat on Rosie and she decided "Eh hello Ian get off" and lodged her hip up on top of the wing. While all this was unfolding I was standing in horror looking at this fab little mare act the goat and not a bead of sweat on her. Ian fought and fought and eventually she gave in. That is one lesson I have learned with this adventure, the thoroughbred is this most intelligent and stubborn breed you will ever meet. If they have a bee in their bonnet they will put in a good effort to stay in the right (reminds me of myself at times haha). Typically the longer you work a horse the more relaxed they become however with a racehorse it improves fitness and stamina and they can put in a good fight when they think they are right.

I brought Rosie back into the yard thinking how on earth will I get this mare to the show tomorrow. I had to shake it off and get her prepared along with little Coco who I was also competing at the same show. I scubbed and rubbed her as presentation is a huge factor in showing also. As you become more familiar with the game and people will you meet people who love to share their crazy yet effective methods for grooming and then you have the lunatics who think if they tell you what shine spray they use you will beat them next day out and simply reply "ah I used nothing!". As they say "You cant make a silk purse out of a sows ear!" and the reason I say this....no matter how much grooming product your choose to use, it is essential to feed your horse correctly for skin, weight, coat, etc. So whether you use a cheapy such as good oul vinegar or Supreme Products Sparkle, it simply does not matter unless you have a proper animal who is fed correctly. After my 3 years of showing experience I have possibly spent more money on the horses make up than my own!! 

I have the pleasure of a nine to five jobs but at the weekends where most people get a lie in, we get up extra early. Sunday morning approached and as soon as the sun rose we were on the road to the yard. I groomed Coco and we loaded up the showjumpers to hit the road for Corrandulla. We had 5 horses for the first 2 classes. The sun was splitting the rocks, the crowds were rolling in and everyone was in flying form. All the horses went superbly. After I finished up with Coco after her 1m class, I went up to the showing area to collect my number for my jacket. If truth be known this was my first time to even look at a show class. The judging was taking place on class 5 at the time and Rosie was entered into class 27...we had loads of time to chill beforehand. We strolled around the showgrounds and tipped off home to Grange to get Rosie prepped. Rosie was all dolled up and I sat down to a salad sandwich and cup of tea to be awoken to a screaming call from Ian shouting where the hell was I there was only one class left before Rosie.....I nearly choked, coming from showjumping we imagined with 22 classes to go we had years to waste...no sir not in this game...there were no entries some classes. Rosie was thrown into the box and we sped off to the show while I stripped off my jumping gear and dress myself into this hideous tweed attire. Shane was driving and nearly killed the steward on the gate when he stopped us to sell a schedule. Rosie was pulled down off the box and I jumped up. We had a quick trot and then the final call was made for the class. I was a ball of nerves thinking will she half pass the ring and end up in the connemara ring with the stallion parade after her previous performance. Ian's last words were "Hope you dont win because if you do you will expect it everyday and love that dont happen in the showing world!". I looked into the ring to see 8 other horses and thought holy God what do I do in here. In we went and I thought keep your corner and listen to the steward, we did just that. So Rosie was pulled into first place (I didnt realise what was going on so I didn't experience the butterflies I later developed). Next thing I was told to strip....STRIP....excuse me...WTF! I looked around and the other were taking off the saddles not their own clothes...ah ha now I get ya! So I stood the mare up and was told to walk and trot her. I did just that and retacked her. TA DA we won!!I was so thrilled especially after the day we has put in on Saturday and the fact of not having a clue what was on. I was told to wait in the ring for the championship...the what I thought?! We did not win but I didnt expect to as I walked along side these cute little RID foals. I came out of the ring and there stood Mary and Ian like two proud parents with her trophy and grins like the Chesire cat. Lots of photos were taken and the local newspaper took some also...I thought I could get used to this bring on Dublin. We loaded Rosie up into the horse box, we were buzzing and thirsty for a night out (shock horror) but Ian being the trainer wasn't long putting me into my place. He said go enjoy your night but we are back to the arena on Tuesday with no hangover as we have Ardrahan show the coming weekend. My social life was pretty much over......

Operation Transformation

The race began.....not just any horse race but the race towards getting Rosie and I ready and fit for the biggest day of our careers. First things first, feeding. Feeding is a minefield and especially when it comes to a racehorse because they are full of hot blood. If you over do the feeding you can "blow" their heads particularly if they are naturally a tense or anxious character. In this regard we were winning as Rosie is a calm and collective type of mare with over heating her not being an issue. The other factor we had to take into consideration was her stomach and not to upset it through overfeeding or a high concentration of a particular supplement/mineral.

Uptown Rosie - 24/04/2010

There are sooooo many feeds on the market as every horse person knows. All the major companies have superb marketing skills and all claim to be the best on the market. I can safely say Mary was a "little" addicted to the feeding regime and Rosie tried and tested a vast array of feeds & supplements which were on the market at the time, to name but a few; good old reliable pulp, Blue Chip, Bluegrass Cool and Conditioner, Baileys Outshine, Cool Stance, Chia Seed, Horse First Keep me Sound, Horse First Omega 3 oil, Curragh Carron Oil, Seaquim and good oul cool & cooked. I am positive I have missed loads there but I could never keep up with Mary and that was Mary's thing. I was close to ordering a fork lift to bring Rosie her bucket (slight exaggeration). When the balance was struck and when it was figured what worked for Rosie the results were outstanding. There is a misconception amongst the equestrian world that showing is a  "Feeders" game, who has the fattest horse/pony. This is true in some cases but most definitely was not the case here. Rosie's poor little body was heading towards operation transformation by being pushed to the ultimate level and this required a lot of concentration and strength in order to morph her little racing body into a show horse body. Leading from all this pressure and work the most important thing we used were Electrolytes to ensure Rosie's body could recharge after all the salts lost during sweating from exercise and travelling to shows. 

Rosie after 1 week of high protein feeding

Once Mary embedded Rosie's feeding routine it was my job to get Rosie riding properly. When we began the journey in April, Rosie was a little weak after a hard winter of snow and floods in Galway which was to be expected as she was a light Thoroughbred. To begin her fitness programme we started lightly lunging her in the John Whitaker Lunging System which is widely used in the showjumper sphere. The whole idea before this was to get Rosie's back, quarters and neck to a strong stage before we began to push her with riding she  (nor I) had ever experienced. This went on for 5 weeks and unfortunately exams took priority for me. Grace came to the rescue and took over my place sending me daily updates while I cried (maybe not) in Dublin and day dreamed in Simmonscourt exams halls at the prospect of being there in 3 months time with Team Rosie. The final exam came and off I skipped to The Horse Show House for a cold bulmers waving goodbye to the RDS shouting see you in August.

Week 5 - Rosie's condition after high protein diet and lunging

So I waved a sorry goodbye to Dublin but could not wait to get home to start my adventure with Team Rosie. I decided to be broke and not work in order to give this task my 110% devotion as the last thing I wanted was a job dictating when and what shows I could go to. I lived on beans and toast and did very little shopping (hard to believe with me) for the entire summer....any cash I had went into my RDS wardrobe. While living in Dublin I had the most amazing opportunity of moving in with a friend who is an international dressage rider. Every evening after work we took out the horses. I was in awe of how she got them to concentrate and move. Whilst living with her I had the pleasure of riding her Grand Prix horse and he was out of this world. When I look back now all her hours of trying to teach me and a little mare (not so different looking to Rosie) were really wasted but not all was lost. They say in the horse world if you can take one thing away from someone or somewhere then you have learned something new. In this case I may not have learned a whole lot with flat work but I most certainly learned how to lunge a horse correctly. In my previous life we were told to lunge to get the "hotness" off the horse....I strongly disagree. Lunging is so much more than that and vital for any horse's progression. I fully appreciate that now with current dealings with Rosie which I will touch on again. I must attempt I am obsessed with lunging and find it so therapeutic when your horse is listening and you can see them engaging their hind quarters and strengthening their backs (then you don't feel so bad when you have a sneaky cake or two :P).The second thing I took away from this amazing experience was devotion. Every evening no matter was time it was or how wet it was we were out working each horse because there was an agenda. I rang my friend when we decided to go ahead with Dublin....her advice was to go to a show guru for assistance rather than her in order to learn ringcraft, presentation, etc.

A few of the gang in the yard joined the local riding club. I decided not to join as I was an existing member of the SJI and it was too expensive to join another organisation. I would follow along and watch them school on Friday evenings. One evening I was watching the girls do a dressage lesson at the riding club. Afterwards we spoke with the instructor who led us to our knight in shining armour. Mary gave Ian Delaney a call and he said he would swing by and take a look. The following day in swanned Ian and told me to tack up and give her a trot. Up to the sand arena we went and Rosie went around in true racing style like a mare hitting the starting line. Very politely (which is not a usual case with Ian...(love you Ian)...) Ian said we had a little bit of work to do but we definitely had something to work with "and Love take that f*cking John Whitaker off her...she isnt a showjuming mare anymore!"..... Little did I know how much work (and tears) were ahead of us and was this worth it all for one show????

Lows and Highs

Rosie is not the only mare in my life....there is also the little black mare called "Coco". She is the other apple of my eye whom I bought as a 3 year old with my 21st birthday money all those 5 years ago. Coco was (& still can be) a tough little cookie. My time was divided equally between Rosie, Coco and any other horses who passed through. March 2009, we were jumping some walls out the field and disaster struck. Coco spooked at something and reared up and fell back on top of me....leading to a halved collar bone and severe hemarthrosis in my leg. That put a swift stop to my riding for a considerable amount of time. Coco went into the bad corner and was taken on by some friends to keep this fresh little maggot working while I tried to recover. In the meantime Rosie had well deserved long break for a few months. During my recovery I decided to treat myself to a brand new John Whitaker saddle. Throughout all this time I was studying in UCD. Sitting in Simmoncourt stables finishing my exams with one arm, little did I think the next time I would stand in those stables I would have Rosie in my right hand.

Recovery was extremely slow with me placed in a back brace and mentions of surgery. Each time I went for a checkup the first thing I would ask the consultant is....when can I get back at the horses....never given an answer. As I began to heal I would sit up on Rosie to get myself back to action. She was such a lady and minded me every step of the way as if she knew I was hurt. The first evening I sat up I had my new saddle on and it felt amazing.....it was like going from a little Micra to a Roll Royce! I gave her a trot around and then a gentle canter. Everything felt great. Then Mary stuck in a cross pole, up we went and no problem we popped over it (which was great considering I was holding on with one arm). I asked Grace to sit up on Rosie to give her a few right jumps and up she jumped....down to the jump....BANG.....on the ground....hated the saddle. Then Mary put Rebecca up.....down to the jump....BANG.....on the ground.....hated the saddle. Rosie was only delighted to have the girls riding her properly and felt so happy with life that she was bucking them off (even to this day the poor Whitaker saddle is hated!!!). So all in all Rosie was my road to recovery and each day we took things a step further and went on again to win the winter league in Galway Equestrian Centre. 

This leads the story to 2010 where I was fully recovered and Rosie was in tip top form. Although we had occasionally thrown the idea of the RDS around the table we never fully committed to the idea until a certain project caught our attention. A retired racehorse was the center of media attention as he had been rescued and was aiming to go to the RDS in August 2010 with the help of sponsorship. Highgrange began to follow his story on Facebook and watch his vlogging (Video Blogging I believe it is called). It was so interesting and really heart warming to see this fellow get a second chance at life through the help of these people who were going to invest so much energy and time into. We all became addicted to his story. Each week another update would be published and he would be the topic of discussion over a cup of tea after the riding was done in the yard. He lit a fire our bellies and then there is was....on the 25th April 2010 it was decided....Rosie was on the road to Dublin.

Gallops no more......

So the two mares were off loaded from the horse box....respectfully named "Rosie" and "McCloud". Grace and I being eager beavers as we always were in our pony days were dying to get the girls to work but to be fair we gave them the day and night to settle in. In our little yard we have a new block of stables and a more mature set of stable called "The Barn Stables". When the ladies arrived the new block was full and they were sent to the Barn stables with Rosie being in the last stable (that didn't last long).
Then the fun began, the following morning we ran to stables to pull out and test the new purchases. Off we went to the sand arena where Grace was galloping non stop around the ring and I was at the other end on a bucking bronco......what had we done! The girls were wondering when the hell were they heading to the gallops. Being stubborn and determined and after picking ourselves up off the the ground (only a small number of times ;)) we decided the girls were ready for the showing jumping arena (or were they??)
Galway Equestrian Centre were holding their normal winter league and being next door neighbours we trotted off up the road with our new rides. Into the warm up ring we went where I noticed Rosie was quite the mover as she thought a half pass across the ring in front of jumps and horses was way more fun than passing the PA speaker whilst screeching at McCloud. So the main event, to bring the racehorse who had just come home from a race in the UK into a colourful set of fences....times like this when you reflect on situations you question your sanity. In we went, judge announced our names and gave the bell to begin a course of 14 show jumps.....was quite the round giving Rosie possibly gave 20 bucks to finish the class while I cried. Of course she went clear as there was no way she was going to touch these monsters I was facing her into!!!! After that experience and a good hard think.....what was one to do.....what any sane horse person would do......lets do it again! Rosie and I argued and fought for the entire league while Grace and McCloud galloped around their course in record timings. Then along came the league final where the girls were turned out to the highest standard. Grace returned to her usual glory winning best turned out of the league and my God Rosie decided she actually liked this showjumping craic and won her class....maybe this retraining was going to work.
Although Rosie was a lovely young age of 4, we had to keep reminding ourselves that this was a racehorse and racing since a 2 year old. For example, on a Monday she would be a sweet little pea working so hard to impress and jump the top of the wings over a little cross pole whereas on a Tuesday it could be oh wait I never saw a pole before and I am a racehorse this should be a hurdle so I am going to dump you on the ground when I land. To count how many times Rosie successfully left me on the floor from bucking would be a hard exercise to complete but we persisted until we finally got to know one another and then it was love. McCloud was of exceptional racing pedigree and a super jumper but her heart lay with racing so after a long hard battle Grace decided it was time McCloud moved on to do what she loved. Rosie slowly forgot she was a racehorse and we went on to do cross country, charity rides (she may have thought we were on a gallop at times) and loads of showjumping. Many a success and rosette she won in the jumping world and she had the sweetest nature and temperament you could ask for. As Rosie proved her place in the yard she came second in command to the Queen (Mary's hunter Lydie) and was given her own personal stable in the new block right beside the tack room where she could hear all the chatting and feeding going on.
August 2009 came along and that means one thing in the horse calendar.....Dublin Horse Show. I was never a showing fan simply for the fact I hadn't the first clue about it. When I passed Ring 1 & 2 I always thought what a waste of arenas. However, that soon changed. On a the Saturday afternoon I was passing Ring 1 where I heard famous names over the PA such as Beef or Salmon, Moscow Flyer, Hardy Eustace and Brave Inca. The crowd was enormous so I managed to squeeze my way in and have a look. There were 30 exracehorses in the ring all dolled up and now known as Riding Horses. I watched with amazement and awe, of course thinking of Rosie all the time. The majority of them were hot and anxious with the atmosphere. As I watched the class I thought Rosie would be such a saint in there. Back home to Galway I went, showed Mary the pictures of the class and we both said it.....will we bring Rosie to Dublin?????

To buy or not to buy.....that was the question!!

I have juggled the idea of a blog around in my head for a number of months but thought it was too much effort and time with work, exams and of course horses but here I am finally putting pen to paper!  They say life experiences is what makes a person and I am a firm believer of this from meeting a pretty little blonde called "Uptown Rosie".

Grace and I became the best of friends at the age of 3 whilst playing at a neighbour's sand pit which separated our two houses on the outskirts of Galway City. From there we became thick as thieves and lived (and still do!) in one another's pockets. Grace always had a love of ponies falling from her idol of a mother Mary. I was in awe of her to think someone so tiny could go to these big shows jumping huge obstacles while my sisters and I ran around the shows looking at dogs and buying sweets. Many an occasion I went with shaking knees to the yard to watch but never touch graces ponies. Alas at the age of 12, Mary arranged for Graces 13th birthday to be with the ponies and bang I finally fell in love. My horsey upbringing was a very bright and colouful affair where I have met some true friends I will never ever forget and now consider family. The times we shared would create a whole other blog / movie  but that's not the plan with this blog. As time went on we all went our separate ways and in 2007 Highgrange Stables was born, a new project and most importantly our new home.

Kieran one of our very good friends rang one morning to say he was in a new yard with some mares for sale. Mary being Mary couldn't resist and out came her famous words "we will go for a look!". One very cold & frosty November morning, way back during the"boom" times of 2007, we hit the road to Oranmore to have a "quick look" at some racehorses whom had come to the market for sale. We pulled into this gorgeous little racing yard tucked away in the wilds of Oranmore. We met the owner and he led the way to a field at the end of a racing gallop. There stood a pretty little chestnut mare with the perfect white blaze, three white legs and a highlighted mane and tail, a picture.

He caught her in from the field along with another bay mare and took them to the stables for tacking up. I sat up on the chestnut and knew straight away she was something special. I went into a ring and rode around giving her a few pops over a hurdle fence....she was a dream. I sat up on the other mare and I was as quick to get off as I was to get on....we had zero chemistry. Grace braved the moment and tried the bay and they fell in love. So decision time, here we were standing in a racing yard with only knowledge of showjumping and hunting......to buy or not to buy......that was the question. We left and said lets think about this, half of us said no these are trained and fully raced racehorses we know nothing about and then the other half was saying they are so pretty we might retrain them to showjumpers for the craic.....conclusion: buy them! The following day we set sail with the horse box and shipped Uptown Rosie and Ms McCloud to their new homes at Highgrange Stables....but it was not all plain sailing.