So details on my show experience…where to start.
Fair warning this is going to be a loooong post
Sunday, I wanted to be at the barn by 1Pm at the latest, but I also wanted to get my web cam set up on the laptop, I had plans to see my Styles and the cam was necessary, he was online by 12:30 but things got difficult so I wasn’t out of the house until almost 2PM, the show wasn’t until Monday but I wanted to have the pony washed, braided, wrapped and the trailer packed by 4PMish, needless to say that didn’t happen.
We started loading the Pony at maybe 5:30-6PM, she turned into a dork, she loads beautifully, alone or with one of her brothers, not today! She was in once but Jess didn’t get the trailer door shut so she flew out backwards, I banged my hand on something resulting in a sliced open middle finger, a very purple ring finger and a blood blister on the tip of my pinky, not phased I wrapped my cut up and loaded the Pony up. Driving to Fargo was uneventful, but we arrived at the show grounds to the biggest clusterFrick known to man, trucks and trailers everywhere, no parking attendants, no stable hands, no body to tell me what barn I was even in, I parked in a clear area and walked to the barns, finding I was in the last one, so I moved the truck closer and began unloading, only to discover I had no tack stall, I signed up for a tack stall, there were no empty stalls next to mine, whatever*grumble* I snagged a open stall on the other side of the barn. Then there were random shouts of “blue truck, blue truck, you need to move” I said yep gimme a sec, tossed Nysa hay bag at the Slave and went to move my truck, I pulled around the corner to discover another trailer in my way *sigh* I went around the block as it were and found another place to park that was relatively close to the barn and went to finish up my un-packng, three seconds later I was approached by a short, angry woman yelling that “you and I need to come to an understanding or next time you’ll be parking across the highway and you can show from there, I am the barn manager, I’m in charge of parking and when I say move you MOVE! I asked you to move and you told me to wait and then on your way by you shunned me! Now you are parked on the cattle side of the road, that side is for livestock, you can’t park there, I’m the parking manager and we need to come to an understanding or you can park across the highway and try to show from there (yes she said those words twice) I told her I hadn’t spoken to a single person sense arriving and no one had spoken to me either and how should I know what was right and what was wrong? She acted like it was just common knowledge, I said I was done unloading and needed a place to park for the night she said “what about right there, that’s fine” *gesturing wildly at the end of the barn area* fine, I’ll park “there” *gestures vaguely* After that(and a bit of crying) we got to the motel, I went to check in only to find that somehow my request for a pet wasn’t met, she looked at me and said “yes we allow pets, but only in smoking rooms” I said that was fine, she says “we have no smoking rooms available” (more tears on my part) we got things sorted, but I didn’t have internet and I never got supper.
Monday, a new day, a chance to make things better, my fingers were sore but I still felt hopeful. After feeding the pony, feeding Slave and I, then checking on our ride times I felt ready to face the show day, and did we ever face it!
Class 1, Prix Caprilli(dressage with ground poles) we took 1st, our score was 69.2%, we got marks of sixes, sevens , and one 8! Go pony!
Class 2, Training level Test 1, we took 1st, our score was 60.8% with marks of fives, sixes and sevens
Class 3, Training Level Test 2, we took 1st, our score was 68.5%, with marks of all sixes and sevens!
Based on our good Prix Caprill score we got intro dressage champion!
Class 4, Hunter EQ(judged on my riding) I got a 6th, my two point(aka jumping position{moon the judge}) was crappy :/
Class 5, Hunter under saddle (judged on Pony’s way of going) she took 5th, we could have done better but I got a wrong lead, oops.
Class 6, EQ over fences, I got 3rd, I also crunched my finger on a bad landing, but I must have impressed the judge with my riding?? I was surprised.
Class 7, Hunter over fences, she got 1st, I was amazed at that, she’s not really a hunter, more of a jumper but the judge liked us.
After all that we put the pony away and went to the hospital, a few x-rays later it was confirmed I had a broken pinky, so I got drugged and we went to dinner, nothing was going to keep us from some Famous Dave’s
Tuesday, I had slept good due to the drugs, they made the world go all yellow and groovy :D
Hannah and her mom(and Grandma and cousin Tori too) had shown up while I was getting Slave from the motel, they were impressed with my ribbon haul and shocked to see my finger, I assured them I wasn’t upset about it and not in pain. We got Hannah up and going and I coached her on her show day, the results being…
Class 1, Prix Caprilli, they got 2nd, with a score of about 66%
Class 2, Into Dressage Test A, they got 4th, with a score of about 65%
Class 3, Intro Dressage Test B, no ribbon, but a score of about 62%
Last show her dressage scores were in the 52-55% range so she’s made some marked improvements! Also the winning score in test B was over 70% time for that competitor to move onto a higher level I’m thinking.
Class 4, Hunter EQ walk/trot, no ribbon, Hanna has very weak legs and they called for two point in walk and in trot (the judge on my day didn’t) but she tried and wasn’t upset with not winning.
Class 5, Hunter Under Saddle Walk/Trot, Nysa took 3rd, I was honestly more impressed with that third than her second in Prix Caprilli, Prix had only 4 riders, the HUS class had like 10, she beat out 7 people (horses) for her 3rd.
All in all a successful show for both of us, the success of it being attributed to my injury by the Slave, she’s offered to injure something else for me next show season. Sadly I have no pics to post yet, Lunar took a ton but she won’t share (I’m an artist! I must process them) and my camera never left it’s bag…once I get my mitts on some you can bet I’m making a HUGE show pics post J
Now I’m going to relax, drugs have been taken and the world is getting all happy, the world loves me, I love the world, I wish I could visit it all..
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