HoofPrint Vaulters

We had an amazing time hosting a development show & clinic this past weekend with clinician Daniel Janes. A huge thank you to everyone who attended/participated, you made it a pleasure to host!
Special thanks to Valeska & my vaulting families who went above & beyond from the food, the raffle baskets, club shirts, last minute score cards, getting sponsors to organizing parking. You were what made the weekend run so smoothly and I can’t thank you enough! ❤️

I have sat down to write something several times for a week…. My emotions just kept getting in the way 😢
The hardest thing is knowing the right time to let go. At the age of 25 I laid my special boy Leo to rest alongside his forever soul mate Bella on a beautiful day last Tuesday. No words describe the presence of Leo and what a fabulous vaulting partner he was for 16 years for so many vaulters.
Miss you forever big guy. I hope you and Bella are grazing in knee deep grass somewhere beautiful. My heart rests easier knowing you are with your special girl 💔

🇬🇧 And just when you thought the horse was only 25%…
let’s ask the real question:

Do we actually see the horse in the other scores too? 🐰

Short answer:
Yes. Very much yes.

Because the horse doesn’t stay politely inside its 25% box.

⸻

🔸 In the Artistic Score (20% – Harmony with the Horse)
Harmony is not just a nice word judges use when they’re in a good mood.

It means:
• Can the horse actually handle what the athlete is doing?
• Does the movement stay fluent?
• Does everything look like one team… or like a negotiation?

If the horse struggles, braces, or simply disagrees…
the artistic score quietly starts to slide.

Because “artistic” without harmony is just… effort.

⸻

🔸 In the Technique Score
Here the horse becomes very honest.
• If the horse breaks the canter → technique drops
• If the rhythm is unstable → technique drops
• If the horse is not supportive → everything suddenly looks harder

And then… the famous moment:

The final dismount.

If the horse:
• slows down
• trots
• or (in rare dramatic cases) stops

Then yes:
• Horse score goes down
• Technique score goes down

Because landing out of a correct, balanced canter…
is kind of the point.

⸻

So no — the horse is not just 25%.

It’s in the artistic.
It’s in the technique.
It’s basically everywhere… quietly influencing everything.

And once again:
when the horse says no,
the scores tend to agree.

🐰

Merry Christmas from the biggest present under the tree!🎄🎅🏻 Meet Freya! ❤️