It’s been a while since I have updated this blog. I have been busy with work, and I didn’t really have much to say.  It is probably not very interesting to read about how many times I walk, trot, and canter around the arena during lessons.  Show season has kicked off for the summer, so hopefully I will have more entertaining things to post about!

Anyhoo, the holidays were busy and sped right by.  I started reading more, if that’s possible, and am incorporating more fiction reviews on the other blog.  That kept me distracted from the bitter cold of winter, and has me excited about books again.  It’s fun to interview an author after you have just read their book.  It doesn’t work that way with the manga authors.

The ponies are good, and they kept me sane during the winter, too.  I was able to take Blondie to the last two academy shows, and she was so good!  We won the Schooling English Pleasure classes, but bombed on the equitation classes.  That had nothing to do with her, and I have already accepted that it will take many more years of practice before I look as graceful in the saddle as some of these kids who have been riding since they could walk!  We tried the judge’s pattern at the championship show, and though we had a rough spot here and there, Blondie did the pattern correctly.  I was proud of her!  The award banquet was last weekend, and we were the champion schooling English pleasure team (Nyk contributed, too).  Yay us!

Elle is coming along, and I think she is going to be a cool park horse.  She has such a pleasant personality and a big, ground covering trot. She makes her performance debut at Gold Cup, and I am so excited to see how she does.

I am at the River Ridge show this week.  Blondie goes twice today, once with M in the saddle first, and then I show her in the Amateur class this evening.  We rolled in after 7 last night, I helped unload the trailer, and then I headed off to my hotel.  I miss the RV and will be glad when I can just veg in one place again.  If I win the lottery, the first thing I am buying is a motor coach.

OKC

Disclaimer – Sorry, I didn’t proofread this.  If you’d like to point out errors, I’ll fix them later.  thanks

I made it to OKC after getting a later start for the airport than planned, and running into bumper to traffic on the freeway.  It sucked.  We got to the airport with enough time to get through security, hit the restroom, walk to the gate, and sit down for about five minutes.  That’s little more rushed than I like to be, but it all worked out.  I used an epass on my iPhone to get through security and to board, and it was so much faster than a paper ticket that I was shocked.  Totally cool!

I sat across the aisle from Zoe on the plane, the flight was so short that I had enough time to read my Yen Plus magazine and a couple of chapters from Sense and Sensibility and Seamonsters.  It was an uneventful flight on a tiny little plane, where everyone standing up bashed their heads on the overhead bin compartments.  Ouch!  I didn’t do it, but I felt bad for everyone who did.  Especially the lady two rows up who did it twice!

Laurie rented a car, and it wasn’t long after we landed that we were headed for the fairgrounds.  It’s only a short drive from the airport, and once we arrived at the fairgrounds, we had to find out where everyone was.  We are in Barn 4, and they did a great job decorating.  I will post pictures later -  I haven’t had a chance to shoot any yet.  I can’t believe how hectic it’s been since we got here!

We missed Amber’s class, but she placed 2nd in the 10 – 11 Walk/Trot Eq class on Peanut. I rode Nyk in the performance ring so we would have a feel for what it was like.  Gizmo and Kongo went last night, so we watched the evening session and saw some beautiful stallions.  Wish I had about a 100k so I could have a horse that pretty!  Maybe in my next lifetime.  Gizmo was third in his class.

I was exhausted by the time the session ended, and all I wanted to do was go to bed.  There was talk about going out to dinner, but I just couldn’t do it.  I would have fallen aside with my face planted in my dinner plate.  Instead, a couple of us did some power shopping at the grocery store so there would be breakfast food.  The RV was empty of supplies.  Since I was in the first class, and the food court didn’t open until 9, which was when the show started, I was a little freaked out about getting something to eat before I rode.

I didn’t sleep very well, and 6:30 arrived way too fast.  Audie’s class was right after mine, so we both got ready and headed down to the barn.  Did I mention that it is freezing here?  It is colder than it is in Detroit, and since it is so flat, there is a biting wind that just cuts to the bone.  Brrrrr.   So cold!!!!

Our first class was a blast, but we didn’t place.  There were 16 horses in it, which is the biggest class I have shown in.  I got caught up in some traffic on the first trot, but we went so long that I was able to get out of the crowd and on the rail by myself.  Nyk was very mannerly, but I couldn’t get him up of his bridle and he would not use his ears.  M said that that really hurt us.  It is so frustrating that he won’t use them at all.  He walked, trotted, and cantered the best ever, but it didn’t count for crap because he had his ears twisted around on the back of his head.

Audie rode Leela, and she finished 6 out of 12.  One of the horses in her class flipped over backward and landed on his rider – both were fine and got back up and finished the class.  I hate seeing stuff like that and was happy no one was hurt.

After hitting a few of the shops that are selling horse stuff, we went to Toby Keith’s for lunch.  It was ok – not a favorite, but not the worst.  The mashed potatoes were wonderful, and the service was great, too.  We hit some touristy places on the back back to the fairgrounds.  We saw some statues of horses and after investigating, discovered that it was a monument to the land rush, and then went downtown to see the memorial for the OKC bombings. They did a great job with that, and I wished that I had thought to bring my real camera, instead of having to rely on my iPhone.

Now I am chilling out, feeling a little tired from a whirlwind day.  I have a driving class tomorrow morning.  I really hope my little pony cheers up and uses his ears!

The awesomeness that is Gizmo

Things have been a little quiet on here on the blog, due to a number of reasons.  The first is that I am just so busy, it’s hard to work up the enthusiasm to write a post after every lesson.  The second is me having to deal with disappointment over how Nyk and I placed at Jubilee.  Yes, I realize that when I got him, it was to help me become a more confident and comfortable rider.  It was to help me improve my abilities, so I could ride Blondie better.  In that, he’s helped me so much.  But that leads to the third reason I haven’t been posting much; I have to decide whether it’s time to sell him and move on to a more complicated horse.

My biggest dilemma is that I have become very attached to the little guy.  He goes out there, does his job with a happy attitude, and tries so hard to please.  I love that about him.  But when I stop and think about that last class at Dayton, when Blondie marched along and finished 3rd in the championship, I am forced to realize that the adrenaline rush just isn’t the same.  I feel buoyed for weeks after taking Blondie to a show, but I don’t feel the same way with Nyk.  It makes me very depressed, because I want to make sure that he is always happy and healthy, and there’s no guarantee if I do sell him.

Anyway, enough of the heavy stuff.  Jubilee was a blast, barring the usual shocks of reality that have a way of intruding on vacations.  While Nyk and I didn’t always place well, I feel that I haven’t ridden or driven him better than at this show.  The driving classes were especially good – I kept him cadenced, collected, and at a nice, easy pleasure trot.  He didn’t help me much because he suddenly decided to not use his ears, but he has made me a much better driver.

The fairgrounds were just stunning, and it’s hard to not be impressed by how well they keep up the buildings and the grounds.  The barns are brick!  Brick!!  The coliseum was fun to show in, and it was also fun to sit back and just watch other classes.  I spent a lot of time just watching, which I haven’t been able to do much at other shows this summer. 

There were a couple of exhibitor parties, but it was nothing like Dayton.  The free food will always win extra points from me, so I was a little disappointed with Jubilee in terms of that.  On the plus side, there were more food booths to grab a quick bite to eat, and the guy who made my breakfast for two of the days is a genius.  Thanks for the buttery, jalapeño goodness you packed into my breakfast wraps!

I’ve only had two lessons since getting back from the show, which turned out to be a good thing as my allergies have been making me very uncomfortable.  I have been tired and just not feeling well for the whole week.  Ugh.  Starting next week I will be riding every day but Saturday in an effort to get geared up for OKC.  M is letting me use Harley on Monday after work so I can work on balance exercises, and we have been doing a lot of no stirrup work during lessons.  I even cantered Blondie with no stirrups!  Something I didn’t thing would ever be possible because she can be such a silly horse. 

There is never enough time to get everything accomplished that I have planned for the day.  Look at this blog.  I haven’t posted in a week, even though it’s been on my to do list for the entire time!  Here’s the quick run down of the horsy events for the past few days -

I rode Blondie in her show bridle a lot last week.  Why?  There was a small academy show on Saturday, and I decided at the last second to take her to it.  I thought it would be good practice to take her some place new.  I was a little nervous about taking her to this particular barn because it can be a little scary, but she was really good!  Maybe she is finally starting to mature?

We had just enough time on Saturday to get around the ring a few times, and then it was show time!  There is a mirror on one wall, and that gave Blondie a little fright, but she was fine after a bit.  She won’t flat walk and we blew all of our canters, but that was ok, because I was able to take her some place new and ride her without her making a big fuss about everything.  Everyone said that her headset was pretty, too. That made me really happy!  And D said that he will try to gait her again this winter since I finally learned how to ride her.  Please, Blondie, be a 5-gaited horse, because then you will be so awesome I will cry.

I decided to hang around this time to play some of the games, instead of rushing home.  The show was small, and I was home by a little after 2 as it was.  I stayed and played Egg & Spoon and Ride A Buck.

Egg & Spoon was embarrassing.  We didn’t even get to walk over to the rail!!  A 5 year old beat us!  Oh, dear me!  That sucked, and we will have to redeem ourselves.  I let the reins get too long and it had a disastrous effect.

Next, Zoe rode Blondie for the bareback equitation class.  They both did great!  Zoe had never ridden her before, and Blondie had never been ridden bareback before.  They were third.  Like the way I had the kid ride her first, to test the waters?  I’m not stupid!  Then Zoe rode her in the first session of Ride a Buck.  They were second. 

Next, it was my turn. I had never ridden bareback before, but seeing how placid Blondie was for Zoe, I wasn’t too worried.  The horse was pretty tired by then.  The class was so much fun, too!  It was weird riding without the saddle, but Blondie has such smooth gaits that it wasn’t scary at all.  The canter threw me a little because I was holding her back, but we ended up being second.  Not bad for never having done it before.  I am going to practice this so I am the Ride a Buck queen!! 

The end of the show was a bit of a bummer, and it stinks that certain people feel the need to ruin things for everyone else.  Sorry for being cryptic, but the people directly effected by this know exactly what I’m referring to.  Hopefully this unpleasantness won’t happen again.  It was mean spirited and uncalled for.  End of story.

Nyk, behaving himself

Here’s a quick run down of our trip down to Dayton.  I always mean to write these posts when I’m actually at the show, but I usually don’t have time.  I’m not quite sure why, because it never seems like I do much at the shows other than worry about falling off of my horses. 

Let’s start off with the Great Dodge’em Car classes.  Yes, that would be both of Blondie’s driving classes.  I have never been in a driving class with more than a few other horses – this one had five.  That’s about my limit, especially in a ring with very short corners.  My horse does not turn on a dime, and these classes were painful.  We looked like crap AND we almost had a collision.  Good thing the old ladies know how to maneuver their ponies around road blocks.  The first class took place in the mud.  It was a sloppy mess.  Not to belabor the point, but we didn’t show very well at driving.  I haven’t driven her all year, and this show probably wasn’t the place to practice.  Better luck next year.

Uneventful direction of the ring

Part of the frustration with the first class was that after one of the horses pulled a shoe, Blondie would not walk.  I had to trot her around while the farrier was trying to nail the shoe back on, and by the time the class started again, Blondie didn’t have anything left for the first class.  That just sucked.  This happened every time she was going to show.  Either a shoe came off or a presentation dragged on longer than it was supposed to, and by the time we entered the ring, she was all worked up over nothing.  That was so frustrating.

The Goat Rodeos – These were Blondie’s riding classes.  These, though terrifying, were actually quite a bit of fun.  The first class was a limit class, so there were a bunch of other not so perfect horses to keep us company.  It rained a lot in Dayton, and Blondie is afraid of puddles, so it was fun to show in this class, since the first thing she saw when we entered the ring was a huge puddle.  So many of the other horses were making fools of themselves that we didn’t look so out of place.  We had a little problem going the second way, when we almost took out the judge, and I even had to call a time out when the horse in front of us spun out.  Blondie threw her head up, her bit flipped upside down, and the curb chain came off.  I have only been able to call a time out once before, but this was a nice little break while we waited for M to come in and re-attach the chain.  Caught our breath and even relaxed for a few seconds before heading back into the fray.

Where’s the judge?  Let me at ‘em!

The championship class was much better.  Best ride ever on Blondie, I think.  At first, I hate to admit this, she had me a little intimidated, because she was acting like a huge wench.  I was having a hard time keeping her going forward when we were trying to warm up and she kept crow hopping.  D said she was sitting back on her hocks and that she looked really good.  So I guess me feeling like we are out of control makes her look good.  Great.

On the way into the class, I told D to pick a horse and we would go into the ring behind it.  First horse dumped its rider.  Right in front of us!  Then there was a scared horse running around loose.  Oh my!  Not a good start.  D grabbed Blondie and we stopped to regroup for a second, and then I said to hell with it, just get me in the ring!  As we made our approach, he kept telling me to tighten up on the snaffle, more, more, more.  Then I heard ok and we were in the ring.  I bounced for the first rail to make sure I could keep her moving forward, and then the real fun began.  I had to make sure there was always a horse in front or next to her.  She is what M calls a horse magnet.  She isn’t happy unless there is another horse near her.  I am sure several riders are cursing me because we were either breathing down their necks or covering them on the rail.  But guess what? It worked, and the only trouble I had during that class was at the walk.  We ended up third out of seven, which is the best we have done in an ASB championship class.

Nyk was much more reserved, but I didn’t show him very well.  I need to practice driving a lot more, because I have a very hard time changing directions and making it look graceful.  I over bend their heads and it looks awful.  Especially with Blondie, but it happened with Nyk, too.  I couldn’t get him off the bridle and he kept jigging at the walk. 

Veering over to get a better look at the judge

The first riding class wasn’t bad, and we finished right in the middle.  The championship class was really frustrating, because I dropped the curb rein the second way and almost ran over the judge AGAIN!  The poor guy must have started to have anxiety attacks when he saw me approach the ring.  Dang crazy woman can’t control her wild horses!  Argh!  Up until that, the class was going great, and Nyk looked like a million bucks.  Crap!! I let him down.  How do you practice not dropping the reins??

I have to admit that all of the lessons I have been taking paid off, especially during the Goat Rodeo #1.  I lost my stirrup at the canter, but did I care?  No!  I can ride without them now, and I can get them back without much of a fuss.  So, yay!  I didn’t fall off or panic, and just kept showing my horse.

The show itself was a lot of fun.  The show organizers put on a great show, and they kept us fed.  That was a good thing, because Laurie’s truck dumped all of its transmission fluid the first night, and we didn’t have a way to go grocery shopping.  We needn’t have worried, because there was a hospitality tent set up with bagels, cream cheese, yogurt, fruit, OJ, coffee, etc.  The first night, at 2am, we were forced to eat at Denny’s, which usually turns out to be an awful experience.  I didn’t want to eat there again because it sucked so bad.  With the food tent, we didn’t have to.

Happy and content in a crowd of strangers

There were snacks in the afternoon, and dinner parties at night, so we were well fed.  During the day, we either grabbed burritos at Hot Heads or Chipotle, or one day we ventured forth to Waffle House.  That was a trip, because even with a map, we had a hard time finding it. 

Blondie is finished showing for the year, but Nyk still has two more shows.  Now I have to put some of the things I’ve learned riding her into practice with him.  My biggest problem with Nyk is keeping him slow and light on the bridle.  It is so hard with him.

Next year, I hope we go to bigger shows.  Both of the Ohio shows were fun, and there were more horses.  We all kind of agreed that we would plan on River Ridge for next year.  I want to ride there.  Though maybe it’s silly to start planning for next year, when this year isn’t even finished yet?

 

DeeDee

Sorry for the lack of updates.  I gathered up my mobile blogging unit and took it to Anime Expo the week before last.  The evening before I left, I rode Blondie, and we worked on canter transitions.  That is something that I still need a lot of help with, and if I am going to try to ride in the adult eq class at Dayton, I need to work in all of the practice that I can.

DeeDee

I rode Blondie again on the Tuesday after my return from LA, this time in a show bridle.  Nothing epic with the lesson, just a solid ride for the first time in a week.  On Thursday I headed to Barn #2, and rode Lucky, again in a show bridle.  This was another great lesson, and again, canter transitions were a highlight, and I got most of the right, so there’s improvement.  My legs were very sore afterward, as I haven’t had a lesson there in almost a month, and S shows no mercy. 

Elvis, keeping the ponies awake

That was it for lessons, because the MAM show was this weekend at the State Fairgrounds.  I discovered, much to my dismay, that I could have taken Nyk, since they changed the schedule around at the last minute.  This kind of upset me, because if I had called them up and asked that they rearrange classes for me, they would have laughed and hung up.  I wonder which trainer they did this for, as I try not to seethe with too much resentment.  I got to see the CP Driving championship, and I think that we could have held our own in it. Huge disappointment for me, but I’ll get over it. Eventually.

I was mesmerized by his suit

I did go to watch the last session, and to pig out at the exhibitor party.  It was a lot of fun!  Elvis was even there!  The food was good, too, even if it was catered chicken, mashed potatoes, salad, and green beans. 

Much to my surprise, the trash that had been accumulating for over the past year was even cleaned up.  That makes no sense, since they are going to flatten the site.  Why spend the money to clean it up?  The place is still a total dump, and is an embarrassment compared to other fairgrounds I have be to. 

Jimmy

Well, I'm back from my first regional Morgan show.  I'll always remember this Gold Cup more for the food and catching the plate on fire in the microwave than for the actual horsie events.  In terms of performance, it was disappointing and has made me think about a lot of things, namely whether or not I want to spend the money to take Nyk to the Grand Nationals.  I never thought we would win there, but I was kind of hoping for middle of the pack results.  We couldn't even do that at a regional show.  This was very disappointing; will hard work make it possible to be more competitive?  I just don't know.

Peanut

I rode down to Springfield in the Party Bus, and I enjoyed staying at the fairgrounds.  It was a lot of fun, and so much more convenient then driving back and forth from a hotel.  The showers weren't bad, there was free WiFi access in the bar, and the food carts, though expensive, were tasty, for the few meals that I was forced to eat at the fairgrounds.  Still, charging 2 bucks for a cup of coffee and 6 for a breakfast burrito is one step shy of criminal.  Glad I remembered to bring a can of coffee, and after scrubbing out the coffee maker on the RV, I was able to make as much as I wanted, for free. 

Gizmo

Our first class, a driving class, got off a rocky start.  My usually solid pony decided he wanted to canter down the entire rail when we entered the arena.  Since we were the last ones in, and the gate was quickly closed, we didn't place very well.  Nope, not well at all.  Dead last was where we ended up, and we stayed there most of the week.  While I admit that I failed my little guy in the first class by not getting him to put on the brakes, I'm not so sure that the rest of our weak performances was due to me - or even the horse.  Yikes.

Gizmo

First riding class was an absolute disaster.  Almost didn't make it into the show ring on time.  I still don't know what the deal was, because Nyk was the only horse from the barn showing that night.  There was nothing else to do but get him ready.  Needless to say, we were racing to the arena just before the class, which meant no warm up.  I have been having a very difficult time getting him off of his bridle, and without a trainer to warm him up, things didn't go so well.  Sigh.  Ok, so there were still a couple of classes left to try to make a comeback, but I will admit that I was beyond fuming after that class.  The paper plate didn't even smoke as much as I was at that point in time.

Nyk – the only picture with his ears up

The rest of the show went a bit more smoothly, though we never did show well.  Nyk's tack was changed, in hopes of making him lighter on the bit.  He wasn't a happy horse during the show, and instead of his usual happy ears, they spent most of the time pinned backwards to his head.  I still don't know what his problem was, but it needs to be figured out before the next show. 

Nyk

Just a word of caution - if a paper plate has "May be Flammable" stamped on the bottom, you can bet your shorts that it will most definitely catch on fire.  In about 10 seconds flat.  So, please use the caution that I didn’t.  Or make sure that you have access to a water source near at hand.  Like I did. 

Nyk and my awesome hat

Here is a quick wrap up of the show last weekend.  While I enjoy showing in the Coliseum, the fairgrounds are an utter dump.  The same trash was strewn about the grounds from the ASHAM show, and as it's the governor's fondest desire to close it down completely so it can sit vacant for the next several years, declining further, I guess it was silly of me to expect that they are actually maintaining the property.

Nyk's classes went without a hitch, but we blew the championship again!  He just gets so strong and forward on the bridle, and I can't keep him from racing around the arena.  I think that if someone warmed him up first, he wouldn't have been so out of control. 

Blondie's practice ride was the usual struggle, as she shied and spooked during her refresher in the arena.  D could get her to stay on the rail, but I could not.  She was especially terrified of blue trash cans this time around.  Sigh.

Audie and Bentley

Our first class was not so pretty, and we were 5th out of 7.  The Show Pleasure Novice class, though, was the best we've had.  She bridled very nicely and behaved herself.  We were 3rd out of 8, and I was thrilled with that. 

The championship class didn't go right from the get-go.  Blondie wouldn't open her mouth when she was being bridled, and she just started getting all pissed off in her stall.  In the ring she was acting like a total wench.  Once we got into the show ring she was spookier than the day before and she resisted at the walk.  Still, we placed, when usually we don't.  I was tired, she was tired, and we were both ready for the show to be over.

Alexis and her borrowed pony

A couple of things were very frustrating this time around.  I warmed up my horses, and I don't think I'm the best qualified to do that.  I wish that the trainers had at least warmed up Blondie so she would have gone along a little easier.  For one class, Blondie and I were left pretty much to our own devices because another rider was in the ring right before us.  I hate that.  Other trainers made sure the horse didn't kill me, but it would have been nice to have one of MY trainers within shouting distance.  I often feel that where Blondie is concerned, she is not the priority, and that makes no sense to me.  She is a reflection of her training, and I believe that she can perform better than she has.  Why am I the only one that feels that way?

This horse show was just brutal in terms of getting anything else done during the show.  The storms yesterday brought the pace of the show to a screeching halt, too, and it took forever for the evening session to wrap up.  Audie was in the last class, so I stayed to watch her go, but I didn’t get back to the hotel until almost eleven.  That is way past my bedtime, and I had to be up, packed, and out of the room by 7:50am.  I am so tired, and I didn’t get to read anything, play Dark Spire on the DSi, or take a nap.  I didn’t even get to eat anywhere more exciting than Pancheros.  It’s going to be a challenge to keep the other blog rolling in reviews because I haven’t had time to read anything!

Me and Nyk

The championship with Nyk went well, but a junior exhibitor edged us out for the win.  Since I used up Nyk’s energy in the earlier class with the roadster gait instead of the road trot, he was one tired little pony.  He tried to give it his all, but he didn’t have a lot left to give.  I don’t know why they had the qualifier and the championship on the same day, in back to back sessions.  The jr eq horse was fresher because it got to go first thing in the morning, while Nyk went later in the afternoon.  Anyway, good first time out for Nyk, though I was disappointed that he didn’t win it all. 

I am more excited about the classes today.  We were in a huge rush to get Blondie ready because there were five of the kids from the barn in the showmanship class, and it took a lot of effort to get all of the horses ready.  There was supposed to be a five minute break before the performance classes started, but they didn’t follow the schedule.  M was just freaking out that we were going to miss the class.  I wasn’t really all that stressed about it; Blondie works better with a very short warm up, and I thought it would be best to just trot into the class.

Blondie

Because the warm up ring, which is outside, was underwater, they were allowing a 2 minute warm up in the ring before they called the class.  I should have just stayed outside until it was time for the class to start, but I trotted in to get her around the ring.  She got a little goofy, and I just wanted the class to begin before she started blowing off her feet.  Finally, it started, and I learned more about my horse during that five minute class than I learned about her in the last four years.

I was having a problem at the far end, with her spinning around and getting light on her feet.  M was on the other end, and she told me to loosen the curb rein.  Then it dawned on me; every time I have had trouble with the mare in the show ring, I was hanging on the curb rein and pissing her off.  I let off on it, and she was good for the rest of the class.  Still a little spooky and she still wouldn’t go near the rails, but she didn’t get ignorant.  We didn’t place very high because she spun around in front of the judge, but I hoped that I had learned from my mistakes and we’d have a better showing later in the day.

Getting ready for the class

During the class, I also tried to stay behind a horse, because Blondie works better when there is a horse ahead of her.  I tried to park behind one of the trainers, but her horse was faster than Blondie.  Then I almost ran up Big Bob’s butt when we transitioned to a walk.  I wasn’t finishing rails, which was leaving too much time at the walk, which Blondie doesn’t like to do.  I cataloged these errors in judgment, talked to the trainers, and worked out a plan of attack for the next class.

In the afternoon session, we tried again.  I felt much more confident, because I understood that I was making Blondie do most of the stupid stuff she has been doing.  I let up on the curb rein, took and gave, took and gave on the snaffle rein, and tried to only adjust my reins on the corners, setting her up for a nice show pass.  I tried to keep my fingers light and not clamp down on the reins.  I finished every rail, even if it meant not walking.  Both D and M said the spinning around was worse than not walking.  Most of the trouble I have is at the walk.  When Blondie is moving at speed, she stays pretty solid.  It’s that walk that kills us.  So I tried to set it up so we did it as little as possible.

We had a good class, and we placed in the middle.  Last year we were last.  I learned that my mare gets pissed when you pop her in the mouth with her curb bit, and she doesn’t forgive you for it.  I have to keep my hands still, still, still or she fights the bridle.  She is actually easier to get her head set than Nyk, but you can’t bump her mouth once you have it where you want it.  It has taken me four years to figure this out.  Or it has taken me four years to ride well enough to do it.  Now D said that he is going to soup her up a notch, because she is more of a country pleasure horse now than a show pleasure horse.  Hopefully we will be more competitive for the next show.

The name the of the game this afternoon was rain, rain, rain.  It just poured at around 1pm, then it was touch and go after that.  It rained so much that the classes were warming up in the arena because it was too muddy in the warm up ring, and nobody wanted shoes pulled off.  Needless to say, I haven’t been able to make much use of my camera, either.

There was much drama and heartbreak this today for the kids.  Sarah was excused from her class because Wild Child started acting up when she asked for the canter, hopping and being a bad, bad girl.  It’s not anything that Sarah couldn’t handle, but the judge didn’t know that, and so she was excused from the class.  It turns out that the mare’s curb bit was too tight; no wonder she was so pissed off.  Sarah rode her again in the afternoon, and other than an occasional bobble, things were good. 

Nyk’s second class was late in the afternoon session.  We had a brief warm-up, and then it was into the ring.  This was a great class, because I learned something new.  I discovered the true meaning of road trot.  It does not mean kick up as fast as you possibly can.  No, sir!  It means a noticeable difference in speed.  Nyk and I were at warp speed, but we still managed to win the class.  Yay!