Final Show of the Season Success

Did I Win?

On Saturday we went to our last (planned) show of the season at our local saddle club. There were quite a few horses there, but turnout for our division was small. In 2 of the classes I was the only competitor, and in 2 there was only 1 other person. I think the largest class we were in had 6 riders. So it is kind of funny to post a picture of Ben wearing all his blue ribbons- but they were won easily just given the size of the show. It's not a picture I'm very proud of, but it is still a fun picture all the same (plus his goofball face makes me smile every time!).

We did end up scratching out of Showmanship. The pattern was very advanced, and I did not feel as though we were prepped for it. Picking up a trot from a halt would've been hard, and then there was backing around a cone. The cones themselves were placed very close together, and Ben's stride is way too long to make a decent pattern out of that at this point in time.  Because in English we do showmanship in the bridle, I didn't want to be in a position where I was yanking on Ben's mouth, all because he wasn't prepared on what to execute.  The good news is that now I have an idea of other things we can work on in hand and will be ready next year should we find ourselves in the show pen again!

In the end we did win High Point for our division, and I think we may have even accumulated enough points to earn a year-end award. It is quite an accomplishment - each show we've been to this year we've either won High Point, or Reserve High Point, or in 1 case, both. I'm very, very proud of our track record.

Almost done...Just.Keep.Trotting!

When tired and not supple, head tilt happens

My favorite: Halting!

It has been a great year of doing something entirely different. Its been a long time since I did this type of showing, and it was really fun! It opened our world up a bit, and gave me a reason to do some new things with Ben, like groundwork prep for showmanship. Overall, it served a great purpose. Last year Ben could barely make it through 2 dressage tests - he lacked endurance in both mind and body. This year it was all about getting out there and getting through the long mornings of showing, doing something he finds relatively easy= walk/trot. Next year, should we do this again, Ben will no longer go into walk/trot classes. No, instead we will do the w/t/c classes, and build the stamina there. Not only would it be poor sportsmanship to continue at walk/trot, it would also serve no purpose for the horse.

Despite the great year, I am POOPED, and I'm kind of glad it is over, at least for a short period of time. I feel like we both need a break - to get out on the trails, maybe start jumping a bit. Ben is going to have the next couple weeks off to just rest and enjoy the summer. And I need to focus a bit on my job, it is crunch time again. Hopefully we'll both come back to it refreshed and ready to do something new :)

And of course I'll be blogging about it!