Friday 27 November 2009

So much going on


Thanks to everyone for you comments and best wishes!
There is so much to talk about, I am bursting to bring up the discussions that are close to me now and there are so many!
Listen to this one - Donoso will NOT have a protocol from the judges, no scores, no points, he will be one of the 39 best stallions but that's as accurate as it gets. The judges only marks and give a protocol to the 15 qualified horses and as we were thrown out we are totally without any evaluation whatsoever. I went down to the office with Javier and asked them how this could possibly be, the best judges and the best horses and there is NO evaluation? I said I was totally disillusioned, we make much effort to prepare, bring and pay for the horses to compete - we put our horses there in front of the elite judges and we want them to say; THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL HEAD or THIS IS A BAD LEG etc, and in the most prestigeous competition they don't even take the trouble and time to look properly at our horses? We all go to get a evaluation for ourselves and for the horse, for our breeding, for our understanding and education and all I was shown was that 1 out of the 3 judges wanted Donoso to qualify. I want a serious and professional judge to mark my horse, not one that say - IN or OUT without having visible criterias that supports his decision. In this way noone can question the results, the judges don't have to justify any markings and this is very comfortable. For them.
Photos from today.








Then we saw the Functionality. I am going for one here too. The overall quality of the horses and the quality of the performances were totally disturbing. To see horses 7 years and older, running, some bolting, most with their heads beind the vertical with double bridles and the rider going up and down like on a 3 year old horse (prancing?). I am sorry but this is not good enough. At least ride the horse before the competiton, present him decently. And if he is going to be a Spanish Champion - and the PRE a horse for riding - he has to be able to do something more than circles in trot and canter. Someone wise and influential has to do something here because most of the horses presented were only good for driving and would never be able to do anything in the dressage arena. No hindlegs underneath, no pushing through the topline, no extention in trot and lots of short and high kneeaction that did not cover any ground.
But hey - it is not all doom and gloom! No, no we are enjoying ourselves as never before and today I was riding in the warm up for the Grand Prix, getting inspiration, seeing good moving horses, good riders and havíng professional opinions about my horse and my riding. Juan Matute, Rafael Soto, Juan Antonio Jimenez were there. There are many wonderful people that actually takes the trouble to come up to us to tell us how impressed they are by Donoso, it makes me very happy and I appreciate it alot. One breeder wanted me to ride his horse tomorrow, it is a horse we have for sale, a relative to Donoso, he is a fantastic horse and I am very much looking forward to this tomorrow!

Thursday 26 November 2009

THE DAY




They were 39 and Donoso was last one out, totally cruel to our nerves! But how exciting, loved every minute of it and sucked it in. I had studied previous best results of each one of them and comparing these to Donut's scores he was 14 in morfology and 11 in movements! These are the 39 best PRE stallions! A very glamourous row of horses.
In the trot he tucked in the hindlegs and pushed through a fab trot-lonrun without missing rhytm once, so beautiful and ahhh so exciting! Very few managed to do the longrun in one go, fantastic! There will be a video of that. The horses that qualified was the usual ones that has 'been there done that and got the SICAB t-shirt', I loved especially 2 of them, both of them definitely worthy to have the title 'Champion of Spain'. Judges favoured the big, heavy type, the typical horse for carriage driving, Donoso is the athletic type and he was definitely the most elegant one, what a pity I did not get to ride the test, he would have given them a hard time!

Yesterday - time flies!

Tony practicing with Donut

Donut & small people!

Caroline & Therese - the perfect grooms with handbags that quickly understood the job was to keep track of me and my things.

Yesterdays training














Tuesday 24 November 2009

Happy in Sevilla!


A perfect day, a perfect place, a perfect atmosphere, perfect floor, perfect temperature, perfect company, and the PERFECT horse - just look at him! He is going for it!

Sunday 22 November 2009

Follow us in SICAB here!


He is tuned in turned on, we have only had one week but it will be enough, I have been riding for king and country! We will post photos and give you the inside SICAB info during the week. This is the World Championships for the Pura Raza Española and not only the best horses from Spain participate but also the ones from the rest of the world, it is a international competition and it is big! Logically the spanish champion will be a stallion from a spanish studfarm and not one from a foreign studfarm, we are well aware we will not win, but for us it is important to participate and be judged in Spain. And if they only they let me ride the king of Sweden will shine them all out!

Wednesday 18 November 2009

Mañana is finally here


WE ARE IN! On thursday 26th Donoso VII will represent Sweden in the spanish PRE championships SICAB in Sevilla with all the hotshots!
Here he is listed!

Schedule for competitors;
Wednesday 10.30 Group 10 - stallions 5 & 6 years old, 28 participants
Wednesday 16.30 Group 8 - stallions 4 years old, 32 participants

Thursday 10.00 am; Group 12 - stallions 7 years and older ; Donoso's group - 39 big boys.
15 from each group will be selected to do the 'Functionalidad', the ridden test.
These 45 will be competing for the Champion Title/s.

Please cross your fingers for him, we look forward to seeing you all there!
You can also follow on webtv here

Tuesday 17 November 2009

TOMORROW...


...We WILL know if 'Donoso' is going to represent Sweden or not. Yesterday we were biting our nails, all gone. We did decide yes and sent off the inscription and the board comittee will let us know, tomorrow, puh. We realize we are a 'little' late, (so nothing new there) but how can they refuse when we came all the way from Sweden?!

Sunday 15 November 2009

..that is (still) the question..






Well, we are still thinking but tomorrow we will decide if 'Donoso' is going to SICAB to represent Sweden or not. He is so handsome and I am not just saying that because I love him, and I am definitely not selling him, but just look at his profile here, this is not a pretty horse, it is a beautiful horse. You can see his outline well with this backround, we did them this evening. And at the swedish championships he only got a 6 for his absolutely wonderful head and neck, I am sure he can get better scores here and also for movement as they did not come out to his advantage with me as a nervous wreck and running like a silly mum being scared he would trip and hurt his cross ligament-bleeding in patella. And there is also the vets advice and that is to take it easy peasy until end of this year. He feels and looks good and has never been lame but this is still the expert advice. For us SICAB is a fun event, we normally go 2 days to meet friends, study the horses, the judges etc. But for the horses it is hard work and quite stressful. We have to arrive one day before (monday) and we have to be there, no matter what the result, until the following monday, no horse can leave before and that's the way it is. This year they have again instigated the 'wheel', the horses go around and the judges pick some that are out, left are 15 in each group. Just like that. So after having paid a huge amount of Euros, dragged the horse there, left other animals behind, got a hotel etc, etc some horses don't even get a chance to trot! Do not agree with this system. Possibly for this reason there are also less participants this year.

Saturday 14 November 2009

Donoso VII National Swedish Championships 2009

Never posted it here so here it is, he won the championship and got two titles;
CAMPEÓN DE LA RAZA
CAMPEÓN DE FUNCIONALIDAD

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yC-Y2kGXPgE

Start summer 2009


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-R_Myf8vyvE

Monday 9 November 2009

2920 Km..





..Is the distance from Swedish home to Spanish home. For the third time, this time not alone but with the  friend Eskil, dad Jan Sandberg made the heroic journey of 2920 Km to bring me my car, and trailer. This car will survive! The other two did not..

Wednesday 4 November 2009

HIERRO and PHILOSOPHY




Our brand; the V stands for VIKINGA and the crown is a symbol for a queen and for Sweden. We named our first born and bred buckskin PRE filly REINA VIKINGA (viking-queen) and the brand is really symbol of her. Indirect VIKINGA refers to me as this a spanish nickname of mine. I guess Spaniards see me like a swedish 'conquistadora', invading horse-Spain with my strong character having lots of equestrian opinions. Quite right to I think, I respect their opinions and they respect mine. Many times we agree, others' we don't but that is ok for me. You take what suits you from the different ways/cultures, mix it with what you have and make it your own. Like this I think we develop a healthy personal way of being/expressing ourselves and this can only be wholesome. Some time ago I was asked to give a course in 'my way' to handle horses, and the participants was going to be people with different horse experience and a herd of wild Asturcons, a pony like hard-headed race in north of Spain. The course was for two days and we studied the natural ways of the horses and learned the basics of handle a horse from the beginning. I taught my way of interacting/handling and people practiced this. The course was warmly appreciated however I came to the conclusion that my teaching philosophy (I am a trained Waldorf/ Steiner teacher) is; My way works for me. I, as a teacher, want to help students to find their tools to be able to develop their ways. So I structured the next course with this in mind and I found this was definitely 'my way'. I don't believe in a teaching that try to impose their teachings, values and conclusions, it takes away freedom from the individuals to develop belief in their own capacities and creativity. Conclusion; The 'conquistadores' certainly won't be able to conquer me because I am a 'Vikinga'!

Monday 2 November 2009

Feeling & To be or not to be..


'Starti' eller 'Start-Smart', that is his swedish nickname, was not so fortunate when he was given his name.. I am quite happy with my posture here, for once. To be painfully pedantic and self-critical is helpful, but not always comfortable. I love perfect, it is like a drug! I train my horses alone most of the time and it is essential to have a mirror and a videocamera. In Sweden I get some valuable help from Elisabet Lundholm, that was swedish national team coach, a fantastic trainer and a very good person. I have trainer here in Spain too, he has been a national team rider and he is a perfectionist, quite rare trait for the spaniards.. He sees the feeling I ride with and and the horse's feeling too, which is the key for me. 'Start' is a extremely sensitive horse with a fiery bullfighters temperament which is not the most easy combination to ride. I feel very greatful to have horses of this much quality, I have worked hard for them but I know that to have your dreams come through is being very fortunate and a bit lucky too. Knowing the happiness my horses bring to me gives me the inspiration to help others find their perfect horse. I use my feeling for this too.


Now, the question is; shall 'Donut' participate in spanish championship, SICAB. Tomorrow I will decide. There is alot of politics and issues to be considered..