48 SIDELINES JANUARY 2012
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Juniorside
Reaching New Heights
rest of the lesson. He knew I was serious and behaved perfectly.
After several perfect courses of 3’-3’3”, Toni had us jump the
gymnastic. The last jump began at just 3’3”, but at the end it was
a 4’ oxer! I had never jumped that high before and I was over the
moon. Nick was super proud of himself, practically prancing the
entire way back to the barn. I couldn’t wait to get home and tell
my mom of my success. But on my way home, she called me to
let me know she was on her way to the emergency room with my
brother, he had broken his wrist in his football game. However,
Toni had emailed the video of me jumping 4’ to my mom, which
entertained her during the fve hour wait in the emergency room.
I had my frst taste of jumping big fences, and it was such
a great feeling. I am now working with a new goal in mind, to
become good enough to jump a course of 4’. Unfortunately, I still
have a long way to go. There is a big difference between jumping
a 4’ oxer at the end of a gymnastic and an entire course at that
height. I defnitely need to work on fnding better distances. Every
now and then, I get to a long distance and squeeze Nick as hard
as I can; of course he launches over the jump (nearly clearing the
standards) and lands with a buck. Even with so much to improve,
jumping courses of 4’ seems more attainable. Nick and I fnally
clicked, and I had so much fun jumping this spirited “old” horse.
By Lauren Corey
I recently began leasing Nick, the gorgeous bay
Warmblood that I can call my own for the next few months.
I found him when I went to visit my horse, Petey, who was
spending several months relaxing in a feld before I began
the quest to fnd him a new partner. I rode Nick in a clinic
with Mattias Ekeroth and fell in love (with Nick, although
Mattias was also very nice!) Nick is an older horse, and has
so much experience.
When the trailer pulled up to McIntosh Stables, my show
barn in Northern California, I couldn’t wait to take Nick to his
stall and get him settled in to his new home. As I walked
him in, several people from neighboring barns commented
on what a handsome horse I had and how lucky I was to
have him. I certainly have to agree, Nick got blessed with
good looks.
Like Magic
A few days later, when I had my frst lesson on Nick, I
was expecting the same lazy horse that I rode in the clinic. I
was pleasantly surprised when we picked up a nice forward
trot and Nick held himself in a frame. At the walk, Nick
was looking at everything and trying to spook, but once I
got his attention on me, it was like magic. I also fgured out
that Nick responds to voice commands. When we canter
around, I can say “whoa” and he will collect to a perfectly
square halt. And from either the halt or the walk, I need
merely to kiss twice and he will pick up the canter. I had
fun experimenting with him on the fat and fguring out the
best way to ride him.
Jumping was a different matter altogether. For my frst
jumping lesson, I was super confdent since we were so
successful in the clinic. The fat part was perfect, but once
we started our course, it was like I was riding a different
horse. He was so excited, I thought there was no way he
could be 15 years old! If the distance was even slightly
long, he would launch a good foot over the small 2’6” fence
and land bucking.
This happened for almost every fence, with the exception
of the oxer where he bucked while going over it. I was
expecting a calm, easygoing horse, but was thrilled with
Nick’s spunk. I love the more challenging rides; it is just so
much more rewarding to have a good round on a diffcult
horse than to have a good round on an easy horse. It is
also exhilarating to feel the power of the animal underneath
me and realize what a force of nature they can be.
A New High
My next few lessons were more of the same, and I was
beginning to feel discouraged. But when my main trainers,
Toni and Colin McIntosh, returned from the shows for a
week at home, Toni gave me a private lesson. I was a
little apprehensive at frst because I didn’t want to mess up
in front of Toni, but she helped me get Nick to listen to me
more. We often struggle to pick up the canter from the trot,
but Toni made me get after him right away for not giving
me a quick canter departure, and that set the tone for the
Lauren is looking forward to big fences with Nick
Photo by Linda Corey
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