Last week we discussed involving your vet and farrier to help keep you on track. This week's post is all about competitions!
In addition to making sure you have your qualifications in order, talk with your coach now to plan out your competitions leading up to the event. Not every horse and rider needs the same preparation to be successful. Perhaps you or your horse need more confidence with XC or SJ, or maybe you both are jumping machines whose weakness lies in the dressage and some dressage shows may be beneficial. Maybe you are a nervous competitor who knows they need a few competitions to get in the groove in order to arrive at the classic with confidence, or maybe you and your horse are pros who can always deliver and don't require a heavy showing schedule. The age and experience of the horse and rider at the level you choose to compete at the classic is a significant factor in laying out your fall competitions and schoolings. Your coach can help you tailor your schedule for you and your horse's specific needs and don't underestimate the helpfulness of schoolings (such as Taproom Thursdays).
Lastly, and most importantly, now is the time to start thinking about your conditioning schedule and how it will fit in with your schoolings and competitions. Work with your coach to develop a plan that works best for you and your horse, but a tried and true method is Jimmy Wofford's. A great resource is his book "Training the Three-Day-Event Horse and Rider" and many articles can be found online by searching "Jimmy Wofford conditioning schedule." Have no fear though, next week's post will cover conditioning and provide some helpful tips and sample schedules!
We hope you found this post helpful and look here for more information to be posted in the coming weeks. If you have any specific questions or topics you'd like covered, please let us know in the comments. So far on the list we have icing/aftercare and stud selection.
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