Show Report - 2nd Show of 2015

New headstall... and ribbons!

After the last show, B and I decided to see if there was a show we could haul to before our next Ranch show.  B's new palomino gelding, Heath Ledger, is only 5 and showed his lack of mileage at our first show.  A local open circuit had a show on the 23rd we set our sights on.

We all had a GREAT day!

I decided to take Kevin into the Adult Showmanship class just to see how we are doing with his training.  I worried entirely too much about our outfits and our hair because Showmanship is a class of precision and what I would consider a more "formal" class as far as turnout.  The judge is evaluating your horse's level of cleanliness/presentation, as well as the correctness of the maneuvers and whether or not you create a pleasing overall picture.... This is the class we use spray paint, 200 rubber bands, and 2,000 crystals...

The conundrum comes in when I have switched over to RANCH... ie we don't clip much, we don't do fake tails, we have natural manes, and we wear jeans and cotton shirts.  So what should I do with his growing-out bridle path?  Wear what I would wear for Ranch?  Will I look too casual like we're not serious about it?  Do I use my show halter?  Plain leather halter I used to use for Hunter Showmanship?  Gah!  It's the costume designer in me that worries about these details and I just can't help it.

I ended up going with my show halter and wearing dark starched denim, a tan shirt, brown blazer, tan felt hat, and a vintage scarf. There were only 4 entries. The pattern was not difficult but there was NO PIVOT (WTF?) and there was a back-in-an-arc to the judge that was new to me and required a little schooling before we headed in.  I didn't watch the other handlers and ended up going last.  Everything was good but the back was wonky-bendy and when I stopped him I had to do some big correction to get him lined back up with the judge so I took forever to get him set up. ... and I failed to switch my first quarter, which is a terrible habit of mine because I never practice having someone walk around us.  I assumed I was last so as the placings were called I was in for a surprise.  I didn't get 4th, I didn't get 3rd, a
nd by golly, we WON THE CLASS!  Kevin won his first showmanship class!

Our next class was Ranch Pleasure 19+ and there were only two entries.  We did break gait during the extended trot and he loped a stride or two but came right back to the trot.  I heard the other rider broke gait twice including halting when the 2nd jog was called for.  In Ranch, a downward break of gait is a more serious offense than an upwards break.   We were called for 1st place.

Our last class was Horsemanship. The pattern was decent, with a lead change and an extended trot.  I wasn't sure if I should sit or post the extended trot (I post in Ranch Pleasure) so I sat it, but needed to go a bit into half seat because he really extended more than my disks can take!  We ended up first in the class, rounding off three blues for the day!

Trail at this show is set up in a nearby building and is judged by a different judge.  The building is open for 2 hours and you just go do your pattern when you have time.  They ended up calling the placings while B was getting ready for her reining class. Hearing her name called for 1st a great pep talk! We ended up with 4th and I was happy with that.

The day after the show we took an easy trail ride (having 80 acres to play on is AWESOME) and braved the creek again!  Both boys (and both gals for that matter) were in good moods and enjoyed the easy day.

Enough horsin' around, our next Ranch show is in two weeks!