We had our second horse show on June 14th and I'm happy to report that B was cool as a cucumber. Within a few minutes of being off-loaded he was happily munching grass and enjoying the warm, breezy summer air. We arrived just before lunch time so he a chance to hand walk around the ring. I even ran beside him straight up centerline and didn't pass out immediately following. It's like running beside a smart car, only faster and more powerful. There were a couple other youngsters in the ring that weren't as well behaved as B (wow, can you believe I just said that about my 4-year-old? ha), but it was yet another good experience for him to learn that just because one horse spazzes out doesn't mean he must spazz out. Good pony.
My trainer was able to make it for our first test and she made sure there was no slacking in the warm-up. Unfortunately, the transfer from the firm footing of the indoor arena to the deep sand in the outdoor would quickly proved too much for my baby cake. The moment B stepped from the grass into the big arena it felt like we were battling quicksand. During the test, he would relax and soften into my hand only to then trip. Poor B. Although, much sympathy was lost during the first canter tour when he broke. I was so unaccustomed to this behavior that I barely knew how to react. He lost the canter near our transition point so I decided just to ride it out. I thought it must have been a freak incident, so I wasn't worried about the second canter transition. Ask and you shall receive, right? Ya...not so much. I brought my leg back to politely ask for the canter. Nothing. I squeezed with both legs. Nothing. Mind you, we are now about halfway down the long wall when we are supposed to circle at A-abort mission. I decided to take the -2 and fix this problem. I asked a second time and he picked it up. Oy vay. All I could think was, ah geeze, here my coach has made a special effort to come see me and it's a bloody disaster. We saluted and left the ring with a smile, but I wasn't quite sure what to make of it.
I met my coach at the other end. I immediately said, well that was a disaster. And, here's a perfect example of why everyone should have a quality, experienced coach. Her response? Not really. Arrrrhh? She said, he simply had difficulty with the deep footing. He's just 4 and 18 plus hands. He needs to build strength. The real relief came when she said that my decision to throw in the circle was the best decision I could've made at that moment. Whew. She reminded me, it's a schooling show. You're here to school. Awww perspective. I later watched the video and realized it didn't look half as bad as it felt. Once again, whew! We walked away with a much deserved 58%. The judge's comment was what I'll take away from the test though, "Once he gains strength, he'll be a star!" I couldn't agree with you more Nancy. ;0)
Our second test was much improved as I knew what I was up against. Only one trip and no breaks. We has a little "discussion" during our initial trot around the ring that involved a couple half bucks in, but luckily I won that one. We rounded that test off with a 63.6% and a third place. Not too shabby considering.
We spent all this week riding outside, up and down hills and around the driveway when the footing was too wet. It's a fun time in his training. He knows his ABCs, now it's time to put them to use. Next Sunday is our first licensed show-Materiale and Suitability. Not much will change training wise this week. A lesson tomorrow then lots of hill work again.
What lesson did I learn in our latest adventures? You can't put a price on a great coach.
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