DIY Ammies - buying a more serious jumper - what's your story?

[gertie06]

@Justice

I’ve never heard anyone say that they wish they hadn’t bought such a nice horse.

Bravo! Love this quote.

[Xctrygirl]

Just because today marks 4 years with my guy I wanted to point out a couple things.

1. I was 46 when I bought him, he was coming 11. I’m 50 now and he is coming 15.

2. It was obviously pre-covid and I got him for $22k, WITH all airfare, vetting, purchase price, quarantine, blankets and paid an additional $3k for his saddle that we both adore.

3. My goal then was to do 1.20 well (or at least better than I had done it). We’ve gone through 1.35m now and hope to maybe get a 1.40m under our belt before he realizes how old his body is. (Good thing he doesn’t know that yet!! *KNOCK WOOD)

4. I have a pile of ribbons from my time with him that I stare at from time to time and wonder why it took me so long to shift the focus from creating lovely young horses, to creating myself as a stronger, more capable rider. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE my RRP winning ribbon, but winning a 1.30 speed class in Ky against some GP riders carries equal weight. (And helps me reaffirm my absolute love of competing at the horse park )

5. If you can do this thing, buy yourself something to go out and have fun on, I think we all should do it at least once. And it doesn’t matter what your goals are, but it’s nice to show up on a known quantity for a bit and strut into the ring knowing you’re in contention rather than wondering what the heck might happen in there.

Em

[Feliz]

@Justice

sometimes it’s about more than what you need. Sometimes, in your 40s, it’s about what you want

Aren’t all horses a want instead of a need?

I love that - “no-one regrets buying a nice horse” so true, and also why I haven’t sold my wonderful horse, despite being asked numerous times over the years. He’s truly irreplaceable to me.

@anon40672407

Now, you should be on horses that don’t need to be brought along for 5 years. 2, maybe. Not 5.

Gad, this is a brutal post. I don’t mean it in the brutal way – just think it’s an important realization that many people don’t get to until they’ve wasted their 40s.

That’s exactly the realisation I’ve come to - there’s only so much time.

@Xctrygirl

If you can do this thing, buy yourself something to go out and have fun on, I think we all should do it at least once. And it doesn’t matter what your goals are, but it’s nice to show up on a known quantity for a bit and strut into the ring knowing you’re in contention rather than wondering what the heck might happen in there.

You’re journey with your guy has been wonderful to follow. And yes soooooo much to your last point!

[Justice]

@Feliz

Aren’t all horses a want instead of a need?

No. And please refrain from sharing this ridiculous idea with Mr. Justice.

[Jenerationx]

@Justice

No. And please refrain from sharing this ridiculous idea with Mr. Justice.

If I could afford one right now, I’d probably “need” 2.

[Feliz]

Update for all you curious people – I went and rode her. It has been an …. educational experience.

Firstly, it has cemented my desire to get a quality horse that has been well produced. It was such a pleasure to ride a willing horse that has been trained well and finds the work easy. She’s still a little green for her age but was so generous with my ammie mistakes (and whooo boy I made a few!)

Secondly, it has really shown up that I have sooooooo much to work on. My trainer has reviewed the videos and said that she’s a great horse and will be a stretch for me – but if I want to jump a bit bigger then I’m going to have to push myself and work really hard.

Watching the videos of the second ride on a tv, not just my phone, has been pretty sobering. My wonderful horse is pretty quirky and I’ve just worked around that – which has been great, but it’s allowed some pretty bad/weird habits to creep in. Plus he’s allowed me to be a bit casual overall and all of this really showed up on a different horse.

Anyway, I’ve had to think very hard about this – do I really like her because she’s a huge step up in terms of horse power? Because I’m being offered her a very fair price? Because of her great breeding and training? If I took all those factors away is she still a horse that I want to own?

The answer seems to be yes. I tacked her up myself for the second ride and found out she likes butt skritches, then cooled her off for a 10min trail ride after jumping and she was very sensible. I’m sure, like any new horse, that it will not be plain sailing, but she seems to have a great brain so I’m crossing my fingers like mad and will be booking in a vet check. Wish us luck!

[BlueMoonJumper]

Exciting!!! Fingers crossed. Please update us again post-vetting!

[Xctrygirl]

So cool!!! Fingers crossed for your vet check.

Em

[Pokerface]

Awesome! If I’ve learned anything from bringing along young horses, it’s that you never really are as solid of a rider as you think you are . I don’t mean that harshly, but just that if you only ride 1-2 horses (as most of us do), you get really good at riding those 1-2 horses, no matter how well we ride one horse, we generally have to re-learn on the next.

[Justice]

Yay! We all have stuff to work on, if we didn’t our trainers would have no jobs lol. But, the things you learn from riding a really talented young one trying to bring it along correctly are completely different from what you learn riding one with baggage. She will make you a better, more correct rider. Enjoy!

[Xctrygirl]

UPDATE??? Vetting???

Em

[Jenerationx]

I hope the vetting goes well!