..weather here today! The perfect day to go riding but instead I had to go to emergency because my eye had something stuck init and it just did not want to come out, grrr. So one-eyed me enetered AE and one of those harsh doctor ladies just rushes in to sprinkle some very painful fluid without warning and then brutally bends your eye inside out to pick out a ... t i n y  eyelash that was nailed to the eyelid like a damn needle. ALL that pain for one tiny eyelash?? I had almost prepared myself for being blind on that eye.. but I see so we had to celebrate with outside lunch in the sun!

Horses was looked after but no riding today as no dust was not welcome in eye. So tomorrow they are all up. Here some piccies from of Start, me and Ignacio. I have never seen Ignacio ride ever in a clinic but he did say that one day he would like to ride Start so he was definitely intrigued. I feel Start had no limit and when I said I am aiming to do a GP Ignacio said we could do whatever, like if there was another level up that would also be fine! I have gone though alot with Start but I think he is really coming out of himself now. His movements are overall better quality, I now have a contact and its almost 100% steady with topline. Before he was easily behind the vertical. His hindleg action is much better in all forms, he can now sit properly in canter pirouettes. So all movements has improved, I have improved, he has improved. But my weakness are the tempi-ones, my concience sometimes disappear there and Start is not easy as he can loose hindleg action, hangs in the air and stop pushing forward. So there we are!

Javier's pictures of Start Ignacio Rambla, me and mum!

Brr, its got cold here and we can see snow in the mountains! Yesterdays it was Starts turn to do a clinic with Ignacio Rambla. Start very easily get hot with just little intensity and as I had bodyshaved him the day before he was even more sensitive and very much ON, lovely Start! In the 30 min in the morning and another 30 in the afternoon we got through it all, several times. Ignacio is very intense and teqnical teacher so alot of information and forms in a very short time, a rollercoaster that most of the time makes you and the horse alert, which is great. Of course being me I am not for everything he says. For example when Start get so high in energy that he gets stuck in suspension and ties a knot on himself, my instinct is to stop and level this energy out as it is a state of overambition. Ignacio prefers to ride out of that knot but it doesn't feel like I care for his nerves when I do that. What does feel good is that he is 100% with the rider from start to beginning. His excercises are very efficient to get the horse WITH you, through all excercises. So yes he's a pretty sharp man. I still think he's a better teacher for the horse than the rider, but that's alright. I am a good student and I do what I am told and only when I think he is stressing me negatively I tell him. I learn, take what I like from the teaching and make it my own. All in all I came home with some great exercises and inspiration so now I want to share these clips with you!

We are back from SICAB, loaded with inspiration from PRE beauties, old and new spanish and swedish friends and some new interesting contacts. Javier photos coming up. Came home to a mum-made advent decorated house, in Sweden its tradition to lit up the house with special lighting and it is very cosy. Five up-for-some-action horses were waiting in stable today so they all got their turn in the sunshine - happy horses, exhausted but content horse-mum.

We also had time to update footage and info on some of Horsespre sales horses that will be exciting for some of you...!!

SICAB is good for pausing and thinking about how to set up coming year. There might be a new destiny for a Vikinga horse family member.. I have decided to give Donoso the oportunity to qualify for next years dressage final in SICAB, so now I have said it I'll have to do my best to live up to it! Good to have goals. Next year will also be Start's year I have promised him, he will be first priority competitor. Here we are before SICAB departure last week.

Been very busy but have had some rest and social time too this weekend - very important! Moli got a new allergy reaction last week, we went through his allergy-history carefully with vet and now we are having a test done because I do not understand what he is sensitive to. But he has been totally fever free one week now so tomorrow I will ride him again, he will be a happy bunny!
Start was too 'furry' so he got a bodyshave and looked smashingly handsome. My clever beautiful horse, he did 8 straight tempi ones straight towards the mirror on centreline on the saturday, easy-peasy he said! And on the snaffle of course, that's what he likes the most. Hagge and Donut had fun in paddock, SO much fun, I feel we have all relaxed and set ourselves up for a new week. Aniara is now recovered and up for starting her new life so now I am making the decition for Donita also..
Tomorrow a new invasion again, hopefully it will be the last day, we had a barbie on the friday for the workers, celebrating it is ALMOST over, I LOVED cleaning the house this weekend.. Tomorrow massage-morning and then I will be perfect for a brand new week that will be finilized with spanish dressage championships, fun fun! Wishing you a good one!
Halagador & Start
     

Here we are sweating away, not complaining at all though, I love it!
Working three boys a day and I am quite satisfied with my work, all five are so different so it is a very colourful and fun gang to work with! Festivo has been resting after TRC so I do him everyday now and then two more, yesterday Molinete and Halagador, today Start & Donoso. Festivo will stand back from competitions now, he has done alot this year, the bronze in EU championships in spring, then standing at stud and now Calificado grading so now he will work on his dressage at home. I am getting Start into competition form, no competiton in August but in September there is the big CDN*** in Toledo which is now my exciting goal with Start. Not sure which ones to do, will decide alittle further on. Now when Donoso has his Calificado status it's not necessary to do anymore championships, it's more interesting to develop his dressage curriculum from now on. Halagador is now doing a super extended trot, he loves to show off his spanish walk and now he is also doing a spectacular spanish trot! And Molinete needs alittle more time to grow into his body before he can enter a championship, he's tall, growing and needs filling out, movements are l o v e l y, we'll see this autumn how he has developed!
A norwegian PRE breeder wanted to use Donoso but no veterinarian was able to help her with insemination. A real pity and I am surprised how the breeding stations/vets won't help a lady that brought her mare all the way from Norway, July is a perfect month to get a mare pregnant in the north of Sweden. Donoso will have PREs and PRE/warmblood offspring in Spain, Sweden and Finland next year and perhaps in Switzerland too but that's not confirmed yet. Halagador and Festivo will have offpspring in Spain, Festivo possibly in Australia also as their breeding season is in October-December.
This is Festivo MR last year when he won Best Movements and qualified for SICAB in Caravaca de la Cruz.
 

How was your day today? We had sun and for a very long time I had the time to sit down and so some simple sunbathing, nice! Then a meeting with the house-people, spanish byrocracy is not famous for being fast but next week I will finally have those keys to our new home! Then comes the installations of water, electricity and telephone, ALOT of cleaning and painting and the purchase of all electrical stuff for the kitchen (anyone that can advice on best brand?) And THEN I can start to enjoy my new views over the Guadarrama mountains..
Start had the afternoon in the paddock, first out was Donoso, did a little great collection work, good boy, as always. And then after chasing Start down the hall, knowing I will get him by the food, I had a seriously good session with him, topline is great now. I do lots of transitions, canter - trot and trot - passage, trot - canter - walk. His register of collective canter to extended canter is big now. I still have to work on collection register in canter to walk. Extended trot is smooth, slow and even, controlled. The quality of flying changes is much better, very big and airy and he does excellent tempi twos on a circle. Now I will focus on the ones. I have to compete Start but I have promised myself that I will do this when I feel strong enough physically so it will be pure joy and not painful experience. I hope that it will be possible soon. Hagge had a day off in the walker, tomorrow he is first out.
Start's view
    

In Spain you have to have a health certificate every time you transport a horse from one province to another. The reason is to control movements of animals, diseases and to charge some money. Today we issued the documents for Festivo MR as we are going to Valencia already tomorrow, he is on on thursday at 16.00 - 17.30 Exciting! For the ones interested to follow the competitions you will probably be able to via Melpi TV    I will be updating on Facebook as usual.

This is Start and I today, my Lusitano gelding that is like a cloud to ride, not totally easy as he is overflexible and he also has 7 gears and a big personality so there is alot to keep up with! Starti can really swing his piaffe and passage but now I am training working trot and basic forms for topline. Ok, I have some serious packing to do, see you in Valencia!
Start