Louise Curran’s latest blog… Keep doing the things you love!
By Admin on Friday, May 13th, 2016 in Blog. No Comments
Louise and her boys
Photo credit: C & C Photography
In my last blog, I wrote about my goals for 2016. Now it’s reality time – time to look at how we’re progressing so far.
Well, we’re sort of on track although we had a big hiccup at Dressage with the Stars in early March.
The plan was for Gandalf and I to do so well in the PSG that we would qualify to ride the Inter 1 freestyle in the PSG cup. Gandalf was on track and working beautifully, my mind was right where it needed to be but…… my not so young body had other ideas!
On the day before the test at DWTS I managed to do something horribly painful to my back. At the time we had no idea what it was but it caused all the muscles in my back to go into spasm and be excruciatingly painful. It was a little better when I was in the saddle (or was that just me deluding myself that I could still ride?) so I soldiered on.
Long story short – Gandalf and I did the test, my back seized up half way through, the scores for the first half were great, those for the second half were woeful, we posted a respectable score which was something of a miracle considering the circumstances and headed home to find out what was wrong with my back.
It turned out it was a small muscle tear that I exacerbated just before the competition, hence the dramatic reaction and horrible spasms.
However, to reach this conclusion, I’ve been X-rayed, MRI’d and ultra-sounded and apart from diagnosing the problem, we found out that my back is – surprise, surprise! – no longer 21 years old! And, of course, it has all the usual deterioration you’d expect for someone my age. I used to be very aware of this before I started using Rosehip Vital – in fact that’s the reason I decided to give it a try – but I have to admit, since I’ve been using it, I’d pretty much forgotten how much everything used to hurt!
I’ve had some very funny conversations with health professionals. Things like “you must be experiencing a lot of lower back pain”………” “Ummm, well, no, not any more….”; and “the shooting pains you’ll be experiencing in your hips and legs……” Ummmmm, no, I don’t have those – at least not any more…..” and so it went on.
I’ve now given brochures on the human Rosehip Vital to two doctors, one radiologist, the person who did the MRI and a physiotherapist – all of whom were fascinated when I explained that this was the reason why I could have a dodgy spine and still do the things I love to do.
It’s nice to see that the word is spreading. When I first started as an ambassador for this amazing product the main question I was asked was “what is this stuff – I’ve heard a bit about it but what does it do?”. Now the two main questions I’m asked are “Is it as good as everyone says it is?” (the answer to that one is really easy!) and “Where can I buy it?”.
After the drama at Dressage with the Stars, I’m back into it and competing again with gusto. Gandalf and I did our first Intermediate 1 test last weekend and, as a result, have our first qualifying score on the board for the Nationals in Sydney in October. We’re back on track!
As always, we had fun and all the photos I’ve seen from the competition show me smiling like a Cheshire Cat. I do actually concentrate when I’m riding and I have no idea at the time that I’m grinning but every outing with this beautiful horse is a gift and our partnership just keeps getting stronger.
Louise and Cil Dara Gandalf
Photo credit: C & C Photography
Our first Inter 1 test was perfectly acceptable for a first try with lots to work on and plenty more to polish. One of the things I love about dressage is that I’m constantly learning and mistakes are perhaps the most valuable part of that. They’re not comfortable at the time but they’re absolutely necessary to continue pushing the edges and developing the skill.
However, if you’d spoken to me after that test you may not have found me quite so philosophical! Everything was progressing well, we got toward the end of the test, we’d mastered everything up to that point and then came the line of seven two tempi changes.
These are Gandalf’s party trick. He can do countless twos in a straight line, on a curved line, even in a circle. The twos are where we shine. Until that test……. I got complacent. After riding every step of the test to that point, I failed to ride the twos with purpose, instead just assuming that they’d be fine. Which left poor Gandalf completely in the lurch and, eager to please as always, he did what he thought was helpful. Instead of a perfect line of seven twos we had two twos, a couple of ones (which we’ve been working on and were very nice as one tempis go but they’re not supposed to be in the Inter 1 test), then a three and finally another couple of twos.
I think I’ve almost stopped cursing myself but I still cringe when I think of it! However, it’s a great learning experience. In the rest of my dressage career, if I do a dodgy line of twos it will never be because I take it for granted and stop riding!
I’m competing again in a couple of weeks’ time with another Inter 1 test with Gandalf; Fred, the dorky youngster, will continue to work away at the baby levels. We’ll be working hard on the things that need improvement and on acquiring the discipline in the movements that will lead to polish.
One thing I know for certain – I’ll be riding every single step of those two times changes!
Louise and Cil Dara Gandalf
