Hannah Burnett has been a good friend to Eventing Nation since our beginning. Hannah started 2010 off by guest blogging her spring for Eventing Nation. She finished the year with a win at the Fair Hill CCI3* aboard St. Barths and she was named to the USEF 2011 High Performance B training list. Hannah is riding in Ocala, Florida this winter and has been an important part of the O’Connor Event Team program for several years. Hannah will be returning as a guest blogger for Eventing Nation this spring on her road to, as Lauren Kieffer calls it, ‘the event that shall not be named.’ Thanks for writing this Hannah and thank you for reading.
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From Hannah:
Helllooo again Eventing Nation! I’m fortunate enough to get to share my spring with all of you awesome readers again! I’ll jump right in to the Training Session we just had in Ocala.
I had an intense 3 days of dressage work with Nike (St. Barths) and 1 day with William (Harbour Pilot). Captain Phillips was happy with the progress I’ve made with Nike, with the additional help from Gunnar Ostergaard over the last month as well as lessons with Karen and David. Gunnar has been pounding on my position (something that I’ve really been wanting to fix), to try to get my shoulder over my hip and heel instead of tipping forward and losing the effectiveness of my seat. David clarified by telling me to tuck my tail bone under and pull my hips forward instead of trying to lean back. It’s funny how re-wording something can click with you and make the light bulb flip on. Although it’s something I have to continually work on and struggle with, I’m seeing and feeling a difference.
Mark had me really focusing on the small details of my dressage, not allowing myself to accept a mediocre transition and drilling them no matter how long it takes. He also had me riding both horses longer in the frame and more forward than we worked on last year. I didn’t do anything more than counter-canter and shoulder-in over the 3 days because that was all my horses were ready to give. I’m happy with the progress we made and the direction Mark wants me to go in.
My favorite part of the training session was the work we did with the USOC. These guys work with tons of American Olympic athletes and I was kinda star-struck. We had a fitness evaluation, worked out a fitness plan, and talked to a nutritionist and a sports psychologist. I have terrible work-out and eating habits so it was pretty eye-opening to talk to them. The Sports Psychologist was awesome too and they are all going to be keeping in touch and helping us stay on track. It’s exciting that we are taking our sport more seriously and acting like real athletes rather than just riding during the day and not taking any responsibility otherwise. It’s a very important and big step for Eventing. We obviously need a Change.
The other night I was at a dinner for Canadians and David was talking to them about his expectations for the Pan Ams and Olympics. He was telling them that they have to give people something to believe in. If they don’t believe and you lose, they’ll slaughter you. But, if they believe, you can win or fail and they will stand behind you. THIS is what our country needs!! We have a long way to go but we need to BELIEVE again. We have lost our heart, America! We have to inspire and be inspired. It’s the soul of Eventing and the soul of our country. I believe we can make a comeback. Instead of blaming individuals for mistakes made at the Olympics and World Games etc. we need to look ahead and prepare for what’s coming for us. We don’t need better riders. Our riders need to be better athletes, better thinkers, better inspiration for our Country. We have the USOC behind us, building and guiding us. We need to be positive and excited about our future–all Eventers, not just the ones with the American Flag on the saddle pads. It’s time to take our sport, and most importantly ourselves seriously. If you can’t tell, I’m pumped. Who’s with me?! Until next time–get excited and Go Eventing.
-HSB
