#lindseyaschulz

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Two - three weeks off for art residency across the country- can't wait to get back to this man Tuesday!!

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The posters I had made for my upcoming MFA thesis show on dressage at CalArts.

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I-II at San Juan Capistrano.  salute 

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Finally ordered and received my official photos. 

These are from Region 7 Championships in Burbank where we were reserve champion. 

Love him so much. He works harder than any horse i’ve ever met. 

[schulzdressage]

Finally ordered and received my official photos. 

This is from Region 7 Championships in Burbank where we were reserve champion. 

[schulzdressage]

Finally ordered and received my official photos. 

This is from Region 7 Championships in Burbank where we were reserve champion. 

[schulzdressage]

Finally ordered and received my official photos.

This is from Region 7 Championships in Burbank where we were reserve champion.

[schulzdressage]

Ive been riding for twenty years but in the past three years I've learned more than I ever expected.

I went from riding basically training level on my old trainers horse she imported from Holland that I had to retire, to 3rd and 4th on my first lease. She was the first horse I went up centerline with. She was the perfect horse to get my feet wet with in the ring. She had spark and it always found a way to show, usually trotting around the arena before entering.. But she was solid. dependable. always in the mid 60's. And the 3rd level Markel Champions. 

From her I transitioned to another mare who had been laid up after a really bad suspensory injury. We slowly brought her back into the program and I spent lots of days just walking around on what felt like a very unbalanced glass horse. Then it was walk, and long straight lines of trot. Eventually we got to work, but it was a time that really tested me as a rider. She was an incredible horse but one that I had to really learn an entirely new way of riding. She would get sucked back behind the leg and push against my legs. And in a situation like that, you really just need to relax and be loose and moving, but its natural to kick and hold and push and get tighter and tighter. There were lessons when I would leave feeling so down and in tears because I had hit this wall. I felt like I couldn't even get the basic gaits with her, and questioned my ability as a rider and what I really had left in me. We showed 1st and 2nd level and got high 60's and even a 70%. There were a handful of lessons that I really got to feel her, what she must have been like before the injury. It was those moments that kept me pushing on in those moments that I wasn't sure if I could emotionally or physically finish out that year. As the year progressed, it seemed to get harder and harder for her though. She felt uncomfortable. I did not compete at championships with her. Looking back on that time, it was a very real struggle but something that was absolutely necessary for me as a rider. The things I learned from riding her will be applicable to every horse I ride in the future.

After her, I was incredibly lucky to be given the gift of "the fire-breathing dragon." A 20 year old grand prix horse that catches everyones attention. I had ridden him a few times prior, and was always so nervous to do anything that would possibly mess him up. The first time I was asked to canter him, I had to brace myself against the stirrups to stay in the saddle. He had the most unusual rocky canter that felt like he was trying to push you right off his back every stride. I think we established a trust and bond fairly quickly at home, but one that needed to be tested. We had gone to a few shows, a PSG and then some I-II's, and were showing at Flintridge one weekend. One thing about this horse is his special quirks that need to be tended to. One of those quirks is that he does not do freestyles. He does and he has, but with his owner- they had a routine for awhile. Lunge lunge lunge, Stick her on, hand-trot down to the ring, unclip and go in! Its gotten more manageable and calmer since then but it gets him really riled up. As I was in the warm up at Flintridge, they were doing freestyles in the ring I was about to go in. As soon as that music started, I could feel him grow, and legs were moving in all directions, and my trainer was saying in my ear "dont let him leave left. Hes going to get you. Dont let him take it. Left leg" and he got me. we spun left, and i took right rein. then we spun right, and i took left rein. and we did circles all the way down the warm up. twice. I had to go in the ring with no warm up, and now an insanely tense horse. That was the only time he's really checked-out with me. At home he'll have short moments like all horses do, but hes such a work-a-holic that once we get back to the task, hes great. From that point of learning to trust each other and know my timing with him, we've had such huge leaps forward. I've had to learn grand prix movements but also adjustability. And trusting him to hold his own. It goes back to the previous horse in learning how to relax my leg and just leg it hang down around him, and not holding. If i hold him, he'll get more and more behind my leg, but relies on it, and then when I take it off to aid for something, then he'll break. Learning to actually ride less was the biggest thing. Well, ride more effectively I suppose. Quick aids. Give. Loose. Easy. He is a horse that you sit on him, kick him forward, hold your hands out in front of you, and you feel like youre floating. He carries me, with this elegant and expressive movement that I cant help but smile in awe of his ability. Its just the most magnificent feeling, I couldn't even attempt to describe. His piaffe is perfect, and when I set up the tempis just right, I feel like I can just sit in the center of the saddle and it feels as if were just in canter, its so fluid. I will never have another horse like him. But he's been the best gift. To be able to experience that feeling.. that quality... that pride. You want to ride better, sit taller, and work harder because of it. 

We got reserve champion this year, even though if I hadn't made mistakes Im sure we couldve come in 1st. He's got a heart for this that is unlike most. a 21 year old grand prix horse.. I think even if he had three legs he would be screaming that he could do it. I know theres a timer counting down on us, and it just reminds me how much I need to cherish every ride. He's such a phenomenal horse, and I know I will always be striving for this feeling he's given me.