Beth (boarder) hauled her mare Jorga to the event...they had a late start on day one, but ended up with several blues and other top honors for their efforts...not too bad for limited saddle time in preparation!
Rhonda (boarder) hauled her young gelding, Houdini, on Saturday. This was his very first show, although you would have never guessed it....Houdini handled himself with great presence and the judge rewarded them with many top honors....I believe they took blue in more than half of the classes they entered! Considering that this time last year Rhonda was nursing a broken ankle from an unfortunate tumble off of this big guy, they've come a long way and I know she is very proud of their accomplishments.....as she should be!
Last, but not least......Martin. If you read my blog, you'll recall that Martin came back to us after his owner went off to college....I've spent a considerable amount of time getting him sound over the past couple months.....daily treatments have resolved his thrush and repaired his sheered heals...the vet gave him a clean bill of health, so we were finally able to tack his shoes back on as well....we are using Natural Balance Horse Shoes, as he has some arthritis developing in his front right pastern joint. These shoes offer assistance in the breakover motion, thus reducing the pressure on the joint. He sound for now, but as his arthritis progresses he may need surgery to fuse the joint to prevent chronic pain and inflammation.....the prognosis is good, considering it is a non-motion joint and the procedure effectively alleviates the problem completely.....But enough about his feet, let's talk about the show! Day 1 was a disaster....I am not exaggerating.....wish I could continue the good news after the success stories above, but it's just not the way it goes sometimes....I learned this weekend that martin is extremely ring sour...at home he is the perfect gentleman....cool, calm, collected and an absolute joy to ride....in the show pen, however, I was in for a rude awakening! Martin was dead set on anticipating the announcer's every command...he was nervous and anxious and generally naughty all day....a BIG disappointment is about the only way to describe it I guess...
Day 2 was a little more pleasant. Aside from the fact he was exhausted from day 1, I strategically placed myself in the arena where the least amount of "Martin-eating" monsters were apt to get him...I also sang the ABCs through every class so that the sound of the announcer was not as prominent to him....all techniques in action helped us pull out several blues and a division championship at the end of the day......he definitely made me work for it though.....thinking he may not be so not on the idea of showing anymore....considering placing him in a lesson barn....the consistent exercise at his age (19) is desirable, and a job out of the show pen is probably exactly what he would ask for if he could talk! Hmmmmmmm....decisions, decision.....
On the brighter side, the Little Brat directed Bo through her trail class...these angled poles were challenging, but she handled them well....
A small amount of assistance was necessary as she approached the cones....Bo wanted to turn around and go back to the trailer, but we got his straightened back out and on course....
Last obstacle was poles followed by a 1/4 turn in the box....piece of cake! Good enough for a second place.....
The next class was Pleasure....as seen in the image below, Bo gave her a little bit of a fight to stay on the rail....he tried to pull the reins out of her hands and head to the middle (the middle where they go at the end to await the results)....she held him to task though....4th place out of 4 was a disappointment to her, but she knew she could try to make up for it in the next class....
Her final class was Horsemanship/Equitation....this class is judged on the rider....Bo could be difficult if he wanted to, but the Little Brat was determined to give it er best....chin up, heels down, she turned it on!
....and she did it! A blue for her efforts....even Bo was pleased.
She ended up with the Reserve Division Championship!
All in all it was a good weekend....the turnout was decent considering the economy, and the exhibitors as well as the show staff were fabulous, as usual....the next show is in August, and we hope you can make it!
Happy Trails,
Leah
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