The School of Life with Horses

Outta Here!!

2008-07-02T20:44:00Z

Well the week is almost at a close and I am just so excited to get the heck out of the office and up to the river I can't hardly stand it!! Sunshine, BBQ and wine here I come!

I am also excited about my new saddle! I have some leathers - irons - and a new bit picked out, I will place an order next week and then I should be good to go. I am working really hard to get my old ones sold and have had a couple of bites but not luck yet - I worry if I consign them i will have to mark them up too much to get what I need to get out of them for them to sell. I already have them pretty low...

I was thinking I would give good old eBay a try next week. Run the autcion over a weekend but have it begin and end during the week.

Am also going to add a bunch of my Western Pleasure blouses to my list of things for sale. I really don't thing I'll need them for a while and when I do of course they will most likely be out-of-style. As I like to say - cash in my pocket is better than show clothes in the closet.

While I was alone this week and organizing things I took some shots of my trailer as pictured below - complete with my little tiny half-ton truck that huals it around all over the Northwest.

Sometimes my family or friends feel sorry for me staying in my horse trailer over the show and will invite me to stay in a hotel with them or in their house. But what most people don't realize is that most serious horse show exhibitors with a LQ Horse Trailer have exceedingly comfortable beds. Mine is more comfy than my bed in the house by far - because if they weren't we'd make them that way in a hurry, a good nights' sleep is important when you're on the road and competing. I always sleep better in my trailer than any hotel or friend's house. I added it up one day and I spent 36 nights in my trailer last year - that's a month! It had better be comfortable.

Found some pretty interesting things in there too, since I noticed them I made a list of interesting things. I know I have some of that stuff from when we used to hold real horse shows - where we had no pluggins and actually had horse shows in the summer when it was hot and where we used to have no tack stalls and tied our horses to the trailer for tacking and untacking. So here it is:

Plastic Martini Shaker
4 plastic coffee cups
Small thermos
4 nice plastic wine glasses
Small stack of coke cups (stollen from a fair vendor when I was a kid to use as practice pattern cups)
Napkins from my wedding
Mini cutting board
1 small knife
Folding sicisors
Small collection of various tools
2 rolls of duct tape - 1 roll of electrical tape
Boot Jack
Shower flip flops
Various electrical cords, outlet splitters and adapters
Bug Spray
Battery powered fan/light combo
Battery powered stereo
Sun Screen
Sunburn Cream
Rubber Gloves
2 First Aid Kits
Propane Stove - single burner
Hand held can opener
Spray greese for ball and hitch
Velcro
Homemade screen door (with the velcro)
Collaspable clothes basket
Rain gear
Cold weather gloves
Hydrogen Prioxide
Various nails and screws
One small pot and one small pan
Paper plates, bowls
Plastic cups
Bottle of reserve Tequilla
Boot Polish
Small sample lotions
Box of Nylon hose
Box of hair nets
Box of bobby pin
Perfume (shower in a bottle!)

Some of my food - the stuff that is non-perishable includes:

Easy Mac
Soup at Hand - Cambells, Tomatoe & Clam Chowder
Mini bags of Popcorn
Bags of Cocoa Mix
Cup O Noodles - Beef & Spicey Thai
Old Granola Bars (horse snacks)
Protein Bars
100 Calorie Cookie Snacks
Stash of water bottles, Diet Pepsi, Squirt & Propell fitness water
Mini warm desserts - Fudge and Carmel (just add water & microwave)
Some random box of instant pasta
Small bottle of Tabasco sauce

Weekend Adventures

2008-07-01T15:56:00Z

Our Youth, The Future is in Their Hands...

So while we were out having fun this weekend - we arrive at one of our favorite fishing spots on the river. I worked on my tan while hubby put a line in the water. We were sharing some adult beverages, having fun - and getting a little friendly. The stereo was cracked up and sun was dialed up. We had jumped in the water to cool off a few times the only thing that could've made it better would've been to have actually caught some fish.

Well to liven things up a bit while we were there a group of kids showed up. A group of high schooler it looked like. I am not sure what they were there for, I think they were bored and had no one been at the beach it may have been the sight of a party that night. They had no food - no swimsuits - for matter no drugs either at least that I could see. They had a bottle of lighter fluid and a lighter with which they greatly entertained themselves for about an hour before they left. They showed a mild liking to the rock music we had going but obvisiously it wasn't enough to keep them around too long - as they left shortly actually saying good bye.

Check out the picture below - I am just so glad these kids were of no relation to me (although they were from the town I grew up in so I should be careful there, as they may have been distant relatives...alot of people in smaller towner are often loosely related). Lighting the water on fire must be pretty fun cause they did it like 3 or 4 times....

Also Saddle Update - I found one that I think I will like, a Beval - Gladstone (so I know its not their top-of-the-line), its been ridden in once, new as of last year, and I picked it up for $650 (includes shipping). So my hope is that is fits and everything is okay - its still far nicer than current saddle and while it may not be a Jaguar - like Sidetracked has said - the Beval will most likely be more suitable to my needs than a Jaguar. But some day I am going to own one of those.... Its a Close Contact with slightly longer flaps, knee pads and knee rolls. This was a trail saddle that the lady used once so its not even broken in yet. Is there a special way to do that?

I am excited - I think I am going to use my old leathers which are nice ones, and buy some cheaper ones to put on my old saddle (as I said I would sell the saddle with leathers) and pick up some new irons as my trainer hates the hinged ones I have now he says they make my toes tip down slightly every single time I post. I was looking at getting the weighted ones - they seem pretty nice? With black pads on them? (seems like black would be less noticeable in the show ring..) I am also keeping the girth off of my old saddle as it is a pertty nice girth - and I have a cover for it so other than the saddle my initail investment will be fairly small.

Monday, Monday

2008-06-30T20:51:00Z

Hi there,

Not much time to devote to a post today, but wanted everyone to know that I was still alive. I am enjoying my horse break, continuing my saddle search and looking forward to the 4th - we'll hit the road camping as usual down at one of our favorite Lake Rosevelt haunts.

Since I fancy myself a desert dweler the climate there usually suits me just fine.

Have heard back from my friend a couple of times - and she is wanting me to call her as she is leaving for her next show and will have little to no computer time. I am very gaurded but will give her a call when I have time to do some talking without interruptions.

It seems like there may have been some stuff going on with her family...after a few emails that surfaced...and she said that she was really focused on her horse. I know all about being focused - I hit the upper edges of 4-H competition as a High Schooler and Golf (yes golf) competition through college, but hey it got me a scholarship. But I was never so focused that I shut down my closets friends so if there was stress concerning her family or hubby I would understand or at least have some clue as to what was happening? What hurt is that she had no trouble talking to others so I guess i will just have to wait and talk with her, before I open my mouth and sound like an big ass. As always i am keeping an open mind and will just see where a conversation takes us - even my hubby says I need to talk to her in person, "it'd be a shame just to blow it off - you were such good friends.." he said - and he's right.

We did a little scouting trip this weekend up to a couple of beach haunts checking things out - saw a couple of really intresting things I caught on digital camera for your viewing pleasure I will try to upload them tonight or tomorrow morning.

Stretchers still seems fine last I spoke to Joe, he was not limping and was enjoying his break too. Pat is gaining weight already with no riding and only light turn-out. Hopefully when we meet again we'll be all refreshed and ready to get competitive.

Happy Riding everyone!

The Saddle Search Continues

2008-06-25T17:40:00Z

Saddles, Saddles and more Saddles....

This is currently dominating my thoughts so I am blogging about it hoping to clear my mind a bit.

Okay well I have visited a few websites and contacted a few people so folks know I am seriously in the market - but have not found anything that is exactly what i am looking for. I have found a few that come close, one that is real close and I may try to buy it later today.

As I have stated before because I am unable to try saddles out in my area - I am forced to shop online only. There is one shop in my area that sells saddle and they do not sell used saddles at all. But I have learn a couple of thing that may be helpful to others. Unfortuately most folks that read my blog already know these things as they live in the land of the east - the land of jumping, hunt seat, dressage and english saddles. I live in the west - the land of the Quarter Horse, western pleasure, reining, working cowhorse, cutting, roping, rodeo, western saddles, and big heavy spurs where cowgirls drink beer and whiskey. Although some now drink wine (like me, dispite the teasing). There is only so much beer and whiskey one can drink.

Back on Track: Here is what I've learned:

There are saddles of good brands that are made well and hold thier value. So I am sticking to those for obvisous reasons and also because if I get one and later decide I don't like it - I "should" be able to turn it around quickly. Of these brands I am most interested in:

Jaguar
Harry Dabbs
Beval
PJ Delgrange
The Forestier Alliance by Lynn Palm - an english saddle specially made for stock horses
Pessoa
Dover Circuit Elite

I found a couple others I would buy but they seem to be too expensive to find used a price that I could even think about affording:

Antares
Luc Childeric
Devoucoux
And really the PJ Delgrange fits in this area, but I like the looks and what I've read about them so much that I am still hoping I can find an affodable one.

I have also discovered that many saddle companies have try out program in which you can try a saddle out and then maybe buy that same saddle you tried out for a discounted price as it is a demo saddle. There are also some used saddle companies that have programs that like - you basically pay for the saddle - they send it to you in the mail, you try it out and if you like it you can keep it - if not send it back and try out a different one. The companies I checked out don't currently have any of the saddles I would like in my size and my price range in stock. Some have a few that are out on trail but nothing in stock right now.

That given I think I could afford a newer Dover Circuit Elite through that program - I don't know by how much they discount the demo saddles but even a little bit would be nice. If I bought a Dover it would have to be new or almost new as it is not as highly regarded as the other saddles on my list - but highly recommended and enjoyed by its users.

I have learned that ideally, need something with a 17 or 17.5 inch seat. I need something with a 14 inch or longer flap. I need something with a regular tree. In some of the brands I mentioned above I have been advised to get a narrow tree as the trees in europe are designed more toward bigger warmbloods and thoroghbreds than my small compact quarter horses.

I know I would like a saddle that makes me feel really "locked in" and secure. I don't want to be in a position in a couple of years where I need to get another new saddle - this one has to last.

eBay has been a great asset - so has tacktrader.com and equine.com

I have learned the different levels and types of saddles each of those brands produce and which ones would be suitable for my use. So I am feeling more confidient in my decision making skills. Now all I have to do is find the right one. On eBay right now there is a used Harry Dabbs I was thinking about getting. There has been a professional repair job done to the knee roll and you can't hardly even tell it was done.

There is also a Beval LTD up for bid later next week that is in great condition - better than the Harry Dabbs. The HD is up today - and is not currently going for much about $515 - $40 to ship. This would fit perfect in my price range, but I worry about it being too "used" for some serious breed showing?...The Bevel is at $400 with a couple of bids already on it so i know it will go up - but its in better shape.

What to do? Is a slightly used Beval or a used Harry Dabbs better than a Demo from Dover? I also found a very slightly used (about 4 rides) Dover Circuit Elite for about $650 - plus shipping - do I just buy that one? Is it better for those saddles to use the try-out program?

There is also a nice Pessoa coming up in 2 days that is currently sitting at $800. Probable won't stay at that price but you never know. As many good things I hear about Pessoa I hear bad things - so I don't know what to think about that brand, I think Sidetracked said she had one and loved it.

What do you think? Should go for the used Harry Dabbs or wait - I can wait that not a problem...yet.

Why Not Go 2 a Horse Show?

2008-06-23T16:03:00Z

Ok - well its Monday following a weekend where I threw a graduation party with the help of my mom and my friend for myself. I was VERY stressfully and I believe it was way more fun for my guests than myself. Drank too much (after most folks had left of course cause I didn't have time to drink while everyone was there). I am dragging a little bit today, but not as bad as I had expected.

I have been thinking about maybe trying to throw in one more show this year - and decided for sure this morning that I wasn't going to do it. Since I have no vacation time I would have leave work on Friday night AGAIN and drive to Montana for 4 hourse and after losing an hour in Mountain Time I would not even have time to ride when I got there. This is all IF my horse is sound enough for a show. Last I spoke to Joe the blame was squarely placed on a stone bruise due to his round pen antics Saturday morning at the Moses Lake show. With fuel costs the way they are - and considering the unusually steep stall fees and post entry fees leveled by the Montana Club - its just not worth it.

And while nothing would make me happier than waking up Saturday morning in the Bitter Root Valley in Montana (one of my most favorite horse show areas ever - I've travel alot in my short life and trust me you will not find a more beautiful place in the month of June) I must decline this year. My budget would be greatly helped by me skipping this show. If I were trying to qualify for World or maybe running for a year-end award, I would make the effort - but not this year with nothing going on and sky high fuel and stall costs. PLUS since I would not want to pay to send my horse on to the next show my trainer is going to (Kalispell, MT) I would have to drive Stretch all the way back to Lewiston ID by myself - turning a 4 hour trip home into a 7 hour trip home.

To give you an idea of what this show might cost me:

Post Entry Fee Charged by Club: $10.00 Per Day = $20.00

Novice Classes: $15.00 per class (Novice HUS + Horsemenship both days) = $60

Open Classes: $18.00 per class (Green Horse HUS both days)= $36

Amatuer Classes: $18.00 per class (Amateur HUS both days)= $36

Stall: $95 ($7 a bag for shavings I'd use mostly likely 4 bags and no, you can't bring your own) = $123

Fuel: Paying about $90 for a tank of fuel now - $220

Food: $90 (Includes going out to eat once)

AQHA Drug Fee: $3 per horse per judge - $6

RV Hook-Up (with this warm weather I would most likely skip the plug-in but it would cost $25 a night) $0

Trainer: I would pay him mileage one way plus day fees, not sure, but I think it would run me $200

Banding: Since I would not be there in time to do it myself, I would be looking at paying $25

Tack Stall - if I can't park close enough to the barn to tack and untack, I will have to split a tack stall with the only other barn member who is attending the show and my trainer ($95 divided by 3) $31.66

So I would be a good $847.66 poorer by the time I got home.

And that folks is why I am not going....

AQHA, and most of the Quarter Horse clubs in our area are going to have to do some major re-thinking of how they are puuting together their shows if they want to continue having horse shows....why I ask - must a horse show cost that much? Show management says they have to charge that much or they lose money - then how do Open shows that charge a fraction of that make money? Lower judging fees? No association fees?

Tell me where the the money is going and I will tell you how to save money. If horse shows were run like a business instead of a hobby cost would not spiral out of control like that.

On the Hunt for a Good English Saddle

2008-06-18T22:48:00Z

So much I don't know about Hunt Seat...

Since I now have 2 Huntseat Horses - one that might possible be a fairly serious Hunt Seat Horse. I have been told by a fairly big time trainer - Joe's friend Carolyn Rice - that i need a better saddle, one that puts me in the correct position, is balanced and comfortable to ride in. I love shopping!

So I have learned that the following saddles are of good quality and would be good investments. I am looking for such a saddle. A used one, as I cannot afford a new one. One that I could show at fairly high levels with if I wanted, and one that maybe I could jump with a bit and although it may not be perfect for jumping it would work. I have learned I need a darker colored close contact saddle with knee pads and perferrable a squared off back. So here is what I found:

Beval Butet
Luc Childeric
Jaguar XJS
Harry Dabbs
Antares
Tad Coffin (I believe this goes in relation to one of the other brands...)
Devoucoux
Bruno Delgrange
PJ (Also i believe this is a version of one of the other mentioned brands...)
Alliance (Lynn Palm) Forestier
Dover Pro-Circuit Elliete

I have found some of these on eBay - some completely out of my price range ($800 at the most) so seem to in my price range but the auctions aren't over yet so they may not end up in my price range at all.

From the ones I have seen online - I am REALLY liking the Jaguar XJS. It just looks so nice - a far cry from the Colliegente I ride in now. But even the used ones are crazy expensive - so I don't know if I will be able to afford one of those. It looks like getting a Beval might be more realistic for me - there is one I saw on eBay that is slighty damaged on top but doesn't look beyond repair and its right where you sit so no one would see it. Depending on how the price goes I just might pick that up. Anyone have any experience with that brand? Or for that matter any of the ones I have listed?

I will also be selling both of my Colliegent saddles - ones an all purpose and ones a close contact. Both were made and purchased through Millers when it was still around in its true form - when they still made good quality low-cost saddles. I was think about selling them with the leathers and stirrups for $300.00 each. How does that sound?

Update on Stretch - Joe called on Tuesday said that on Monday he was still a little "off" - but completely not druged at all and was much improved. He called just because he was going to get him out that day and if he was still off at all - he was going to Vet him and then call me back with whatever the vet said. I haven't heard anything - which could be good or bad, so I will call either this afternoon or tomorrow morning for news.

Roper and Kaiser

2008-06-18T22:47:00Z

Meet the Dogs!

I don't know if I have every properly introduced my dogs - so here they are.

Kaiser is the German Shepard and technically belongs to my husband, and Roper is the Black Lab and belongs to me. They are both a little over a year old and not quite past the chewing stage.....grrrr.

Roper is pretty calm for a Lab dog and makes a good horse show dog as his favorite past time is sleeping in the trailer with me. He is a little slow on somethings which I find odd for a Lab but I love him anyway. I got him from our neighbor who couldn't make him stay home at all and since they had another dog that didn't have problems running off, they didn't want to put up a fence just to keep one dog in. So we got him and he lives inside our fence just perfectly. He is very sweet and is great inside - just lays down and hangs out with ya. But he whines ALOT. Don't know how he learned that but it gets him no where at our place.

Kaiser is the protector and full of energy and personality and he is VERY VERY smart. He is also super in tune with me and my hubby. Our moods, our patterns of daily life, and just about everything about us. He communicates with us so well its almost kind of creepy sometimes. Like living with Lassie. He is a great dog but can be a little more aggressive towards other dogs than I would prefer - we are working on that, he's made great strides on his walks toward behaving normally. He thinks he needs to protect everyone - a trait I don't mind at all and he is HUGE, no one has ever even looked at me cross wise on our walks when he is along.

Speaking of which whenever I get the chance i will take them with me on my walks or runs around a 2 mile lope of road that goes by our place. They love it and it helps them burn off some of that puppy energy. They also enjoy destroying any and all toys that I buy for them. But we love them alot - I would also like to add that we have a very old Rotty that doesn't get around much anymore but still manages to get up and bark at the pups whenever they go flying by looking like they are having too much fun. Her name is Taz. Don't have any current pics of her but we love them all.

Show Weekend Update

2008-06-18T22:46:00Z

HIGHS and lows of a weekend show...

Well, despite my horse troubles I packed up late until Thursday night - and took an hour or two out of my time to finish up my friend's birthday present - a framed B&W photo of mine (which it seemed like she liked) to fill some empty space on her walls. Put everything that I could in the trailer and truck crashed then woke up early Friday morning to finish packing.

I took my truck and trailer to work with me that morning so I could leave directly from work and jump right on the interstate. This meant I had to leave my dog Roper at home this time, which he was sad about - but he hasn't been feeling all that well anyway so it was good he stayed home with hubby. Getting to the show in a timely manner was important because I'd had delusions of grandeur of putting at least one of my Hunt Seat Horses in the Hunter Under Saddle Futurity. My friend also wanted to do the futurity and I figured that if we both did the futurity - and were the only ones that did it - then both of us would at least win back our entry fee. Futurities are fun to do anyway - a little increased competition with the money - so I didn't think anything of it.

Well, after hauling ass down to the show - 100 miles south from Spokane after work, I made it to the show grounds in time to unpack and unload and get dressed for the futurity, the AQHA classes were over for the day but I had plenty of time to get ready for the futurities. It turned out to be a great success - me and my friend both competed and I won under 2 of the 3 judges!! She won under one judge - we both got our entry money back plus some.

Lame?
But after that the show turned kinda ugly as the next day my horse Stretch turned up really lame for my english classes. This was especially sad considering I had to work on Friday and therefore missed all the English classes on that day - it was a split and combined double judged show so Saturday was my only chance to show Stretch English (to date the only thing me and Stretch are real competitive at). I went in one class - he felt kinda funny, then went in a second class and had to go right back out because he was so lame. I have never had a lame horse so I really didn't know what to make of it.

He was still off the second day - but it wasn't beyond a dose of "vitamins". We found no heat or swelling in the leg that he was favoring and I only had one class to go - so I got him out of stall just before the class and rode through a horsemanship pattern with him (it went rather poorly by the way - there were only 3 in the class and I was last and beaten by a reiner that was just there to fill the class up and warm-up his horse).

I really really really hope that this doesn't lead to a big vet bill - nothing would put the brakes on the rest of my showing than one of those. I think and hope that he just had a stone bruise going on - from pretending to be a wild mustang in the round pen Saturday morning - the footing was horrible (very rocky) but he was being so dang goofy on the lunge line in the arena I thought a round pen work out would be good for him as he could work out some of his goofiness in there instead of scaring people in the arena by his leaping, hopping, striking and bucking.

Patty
To top matters off I didn't get a chance to ride Patrick. I thought well, heading to the show after missing half of it might be worth it if I could invest some real time riding Patrick - didn't get to do that either. Joe rode him a ton, which was great but I kinda wanted to hop on for a bit. I did however get the chance to bath him and try out some new whitening products on him. He looked just stunning!! If my camera would've been near by I would've gotten his picture for the blog.

Long still time no see...
But what made me real sad was that my friend from Wyoming was there on a two week visit to see her folks and to visit her horse which Joe has in training. You see I had looked forward for so long to doing this show with her to hang out like old times and she hardly said 3 words to me the whole weekend. It was very strange and I have been over the whole weekend in my mind a dozen times I can't think of anything I did to make her mad. Seriously we talk on the phone while she is home in Wyoming more than we spoke to each other at the show - and I made it a point to seek out opportunities where neither of us were busy so there was times that she could've struck up a conversation with me, but choose not to. There were also times I tried to hang out and talk a little bit and it was kinda like she avoided me. I was crushed.

I mean I know she was up to see her folks and horse show a little - but she'd spent the last two weeks with them straight. I wasn't wanting to hog all of her time, just wanted to hang out for a bit. When she moved to Wyoming we were like best friends so many things in our lives are so similar even when she moved we would call each other and talk for hours - our likes and dislikes and dang near everything is the same. A couple of years ago we meant up at the AQHA world show and had a blast - it was so damn fun! Usually when she comes up for shows or whatever i give her plenty of space and time to spend with her folks but we always find time to hang-out, go shopping or whatever the case may be. But this time if I didn't know any better I'd say she was actively avoiding me.

To look forward to seeing her for like 4 months and then not really even get a chance to talk to her - killed me. Now I know what people are thinking - why didn't you go over and talk to her? Well folks, we were at the darn fairgrounds its not like we were miles apart we both were camping there - she knew where to find me. I didn't want to be the annoying insecure friend - so I just minded my own business and was nice. But it hurt ya know so I didn't and don't really know what to make of it. Maybe she'll email me and explain, she'll be back home today - or maybe she won't and I will have lost one of my best friends ever....I just feel a little sad about the whole thing.

The Girl and the Fire

2008-06-18T22:45:00Z

Why Patrick is Special - Concluded...

A new horse
It was towards the end of Patrick’s 2 year-old year that the girl’s trainer finally traded her out of the mean gelding. With a huge training credit the girl decided she could afford another horse, and she knew just the one she wanted. A friend of hers owned a mare that had been consistently producing excellent winning babies. This mare was by the famous late great Dynamic Deluxe, and she has just had a baby by Infinitive a couple of years ago. Exactly what the girl had been wanting for a long time – and just to make it even better the baby was colt and it was black, the girl’s favorite color in horses. In short the baby was everything the girl had been wanting in a horse.

So a deal was stuck and the girl bought the colt using some money from the girl's savings. The plan being that the girl would futurity both colts one in Western Pleasure the other in Hunter Under Saddle, save the winnings and eventually sell the black colt for a huge profit. The girl named the horse Cole (pictured below) after his coal black color, and because he seemed to be all colt so the name fit well. The girl was excited over having two very nice colts to show in the Spring as it had been a long time since she's had a horse she could compete on – however the excitement was not meant to last.

The fire
The colts were in training that winter while the girl worked away saving money and planning show outfits. During the winter a boy the girl knew from when she was younger passed away and other things in the girl’s life became a struggle. She wanted to go visit her horses as they always made her feel better. After a few failed attempts to visit them she finally had a date scheduled for the weekend. Two days before this date while working she received a call from her friend informing her that there had been a barn fire at her trainer’s place. She didn’t know much only that a lot of horses had died.

The girl’s shoulders fell and she slumped at her desk, as much in sorrow as in disbelief, one thought occurred to her…..Patrick! “Oh no, God please no!!” she prayed as she tried to call her trainer and other friend who lived in Lewiston but couldn’t reach anyone. Finally her trainer answered the phone – but in a voice she could just barely recognize. His first words were controlled and with each following word, what he said became almost like a sob. He said that something terrible had happened, a barn fire, and a bunch of horses died, he began listing the horses that had died.

What we lost in the fire
Infinitive had died (Patrick’s sire and Joe’s favorite all time stud horse)….Grace (the girl’s friends’ horse show horse, who was recently sold to a youth on the west side of the state), Simeon (her other friends horse who was qualified to go to the AQHA World Show), Phil (the girl’s friend Kelly’s horse), Dan (Joe’s nice cowhorse stud – which was going to Kelly’s husband to ride and show next year), a young colt belonging to some folk’s north of the trainer’s barn, a young filly owned by some other friends of the girl…….and the girl’s horse, Cole. Patrick had been one of the few rescued, but that was of little condolence. Everything had been lost all tack, blankets, brushes and anything in or near the barn was gone.

The girl hung up the phone and sat there at her desk for a moment while her co-workers awkwardly glanced at her. She felt her heart sink into her gut and slapped her hands over her mouth to avoid yelling but a sound could still be heard in the office, it sounded like the whine of a small wounded animal – for a moment the girl didn't know it was coming from her.

Grief really is the price we pay for love
She left work for home intending on picking up the trailer and picking up her remaining horse – she didn’t even know if there was a place for them to stay for the night. On her way home she was called by many people, but she can’t remember exactly who, emotion does funny things to memory. She does remember picturing in her mind her little colt, alone, running around in his stall scared and crying out, breathing smoke, then burning….it was more than her mind could handle. She pulled over in the woods between the two HWY's she takes to get home and threw up, fell to her knees, and cried like she hadn’t cried since she was child. She couldn’t breathe, it was like she couldn’t force air back into her lungs, the world spinned and for a moment things went dark.

When she had regained a moment of control she jumped back in her car and with the help of a phone call from another horse friend made it back home safe. The girl made the trip to the trainer’s place that night and will never forget the smell of the burned barn and horses that night as she drove by it to see her other horse, Patrick. The foundation of the barn glowed a bright orange red – it seared itself into her memory like a brand.

The horses had been put up at the near by Round-Up grounds and were well taken care of – so she did not need to bring Patrick home, but the smell of him, the feeling of his warm body and his breath on her shoulder helped bring her back from the brink of despair. She sat in his stall and cried – his eyes were watery from the smoke and he smelled of the fire but he was otherwise unharmed. He was gentle and quiet in his stall just as Gracie would’ve been – and sniffed and bumped the girl with his nose while she cried and hugged him.

While the girl was there another lady entered the barn spotted Patrick and said “Oh my God you’re alive – thank you!” she ran over to pet him. This lady, as it turns out, was the stall cleaner and helper for the old barn and had taken a liking to Patrick, upon hearing of the fire she was worried sick he had died. She started crying as well.

What followed was one of the darkest times the girl had ever gone through. A horse injured in the fire was put down shortly after the fire bringing the count to nine horses that died in the fire. For a while afterward it seemed as if nothing would go right for the group. The girl was heart broken, not just for her horse but the others as well, she had groomed, lunged, bathed, and ridden almost every horse that had died in the fire and her brain didn’t understand that they were all just gone now. Very little except Patrick could cheer her up, not her friends, not the pills the doctor gave her, not her family or her husband.

Time heals, but sometimes it takes a long time
As the world moved on everyone started to feel better, little highs like seeing the immense generosity of others lifted the girl’s spirits if only for a little bit. As a new barn was built and as horses were replaced and due to the quick enormous efforts of her trainer to erase any trace of the fire, everyone involved began to recover, but it was and still is a slow process.

The girl was angry that no one was at the barn to spot the fire and help the horses – but there was no one to be angry at. She was angry that she was not there to save and protect her colt – but grateful Patrick had survived. She was also angry that she had not insured the colt and had spent so much money on him. The anger is gone from the girl now, replaced with a deep lingering sadness that is no longer tapped unless conversations of the old barn or colt are brought up.

The girl is grateful for her friends, family and her horses, she doesn't know what would've happened without them. Her friends and parents, during that dark time and even Patrick it seemed, formed a protective circle around her and didn't let her fall beyond an arms reach into the depths of depression. She would do anything for those people as they have all done so much for her.

With his mom, his dad, and his half brother now gone Patrick (picture below as a two year-old the summer following the fire) is truly the last of his kind and the girl vowed to give him every chance at a successful future as a show horse and to always give him a home, he had become very special to the girl and she to this day treats him as such.

Of course the story isn't over - you've been reading about it since April here on my blog...

As an interesting side note - most of the Infinitive breedings the year of the fire didn't take and the mares that were pregnant had problems only one healthy Infinitive colt was born, making Patrick is one of a handful of the last Infinitive babies. Maybe it was the smoke or stress but no one is sure but most mares aborted their babies and/or absorbed, and there was one still born the following spring year.

The Girl and Life

2008-06-18T22:43:00Z

Why Patrick is Special Part 3

The girl spent 2 weeks around the colt before she gave it a name – as it turns out his spunky nature reminded her of a big sorrel horse that belonged to a boy who did competed in 4-H with her, the boy also competed on the hunter/jumper circuit – the horse’s name was Patrick. So she named the colt Patrick, it seemed to fit. The girl chose “Bigger Than Infinity” for the colt’s registered name, since he was such a huge colt and since she wanted to give the stallion some credit.

The colt surprised everyone by growing and growing and growing as time passed - it became obvious that he wasn’t going to shed out grey either. He had a good mom that looked after him, didn’t let him get away with much, and taught him her gentle way about life.

The mare’s owner and girl decided not to rebreed the grey mare on her foal heat and to follow up with a breeding the next season. And so then weaning time came around the girl decided to deliver the mare back to her old owner as part of weaning her from the baby which was almost 6 months old at this time – more than ready to be weaned. She could then get a head start on the upcoming breeding season.

Breeding Time
The girl groomed the mare up and loaded her into the trailer. The mare sighed as if relieved that weaning time had finally come and offered no longing calls to the colt. She had done this many times and it was no big deal to her. When the girl arrived at the barn she filled the owner in on the mare’s wormings and vaccinations. The girl immersed her self in small talk so as to not get sad. She tied the mare up to the owner’s trailers and said her good bye while stroking her long forelock, then left for the 2 hour drive home. Feeling sad but looking forward to seeing the mare again in a year.

The Unexpected
A month or so passed and the girl was immersed with working with her colt, who was still growing like a freak, when she received a call at work. The mare’s owner called and left a message for the girl to call back. The girl was concerned as the mare’s owner sounded upset. The girl called back right away when the line was answered at the other end the girl said “Hi there, just returning your call – tell me Gracie is okay…” the answer on the other end was a sobbing “I can’t…I’m so sorry” a long silence followed. The mare’s owner told the girl the mare had coliced the night before, and been rushed to surgery. When she had been opened up the vet had found that the mare’s lower intestines were dead. The mare’s owner’s made the decision to euthanize the mare. Gracie was gone. Poor, poor Gracie...

The girl hung up on the mare’s owner unable to continue speaking, an image of her Gracie in a vet’s operating room, opened up, passing away without anyone to hold her that she trusted was overwhelming her. She sprinted to the bathroom where she called the barn’s owner Debbie and broke down. Debbie held the girl together, told the girl to take a few minutes to cry then “cowgirl up” clean up, finish work, then come out to the barn after work.

Time Heals All Things
The girl finished work that day, but it was a sad time for the girl. She found refuge with her horses and the lovely colt. She knew he did not understand when she told him that his mother would not be coming back, but she felt that it was the right thing to do. The colt was one of the few things that lifted her spirits during that time.

As time went on the pain of Graces memory became less for the girl and the colt continued to grow and show great promise as a show horse. As time passed the colt also added a white mane and tail to his color pallet. The girl thought that perhaps her endless whining about her current show gelding's boring solid sorrel color caused God to grant her all the chrome one could want on Patrick, if not the gray color. The girl hoped the colt would turn out to be a very good mover because there was no way he was going to be missed in the show ring.

Time For School
Soon the girl had done all she could with the colt, she with the help of her mother had taught him to lead, and to have his feet handled. The girl also taught him to move around at a walk-trot and lope and reverse in a round pen. She taught him stop and come to the center of the round pen to meet her, and the girl sacked him out with almost anything she could grab. She had used the lead rope to get him used to the feeling of a girth and gotten him used to being tied up.

Happy with the talent that he was showing and his size the girl made the decision to so the then frisky colt to the trainer the winter when he turned 2.

To be concluded next time....

The Girl and the Colt

2008-06-16T17:27:00Z

Why Patrick is Special Part 2

The mare meets the gelding...(pictured below)

During the winter the mare spent “open” at the girl’s parents place, she met the girl's new show gelding…..and hated him. The girl thought the mare was just jealous - but the bad relationship between the two continued. When the girl dropped the mare off at her trainer's barn where the Stallion lived (he obviously missed the mare from all the noise he made) the trainer tied the mare up next to the girl's show gelding. The girl had previously warned the trainer that the mare didn't care for the gelding - the trainer dismissed the warning. Upon spotting the gelding the mare tried to kick the crap out of him right through the trainer (who was standing foolishly between the two). After some scuffling the trainer moved the gelding to a different spot agreeing that the mare didn't like the gelding, with all other horses she was fine.

Later the girl learned that the stallion was fairly fond of the mare, not just for obvious reasons either - as it turns out even when they weren't busy the mare and the stallion enjoy each others company.

Pregnant

In a short time the girl heard that the mare was pregnant - HAPPY DAYS! She knew the baby was a winner already! The girl started thinking about names, and asked the vet about color. After checking both stallion and mare papers the vet declared the baby would be either Bay like dad or Grey like Mom. Both were dominate colors and with those odds the vet felt confident. The girl hoped for a gray filly! And took her mare home. The mare got nothing but the best of care from the girl - she was given special grain, vaccinations that the girl learned to give (the mare was not fond of vets either) and all the love she ever wanted.

Rotten Gelding

During the summer the mare sat pregnant – the show gelding turned out to be very rotten. He bucked off the girl and shattered her shoulder blade. Unable to sell him the girl continue to ride and show him and continued to get bucked off until the girl’s trainer finally traded her out of the horse in an attempt to keep her safe. So it seemed that the mare was right and the gelding was bad and in need of kicking.

The Colt
During a very warm Spring following a week of the girl watching the mare and the mare trying her best not be seen giving birth – the mare gave birth to a colt. Spotted by the girl’s dad in the smaller pasture (it was determined that the mare did not want to have the baby in the barn) – to the disappointment of the mare – the whole family was there to watch. The mare gave birth just before midnight and the girl helped clean him up and made sure he got his first meal – then imprinted him with halters, brushes, feet handling, and clippers. The colt was huge! 41 inches at birth! This legs were all crooked from being bunched up inside her – this was the first sign the girl had that the colt was going to be a Hunter Horse. He was gentle and accepting – the girl instantly loved him.

The girl finally went to bed at 3 in the morning, but then after a nap she got up to check on the new colt at 6 in the morning. All was fine out in the smaller pasture but she discovered something that she couldn’t see last night, the colt was sorrel and had SPOTS! Surprised and a bit disappointed she thought she would have better luck next time, as there would surely be other babies. The girl did not want to leave baby that morning so the girl lay down next to the foal on the hay to nap with him resting her head up against his belly. Later when pair woke up they had become friends.

Can you see mommy and daddy in his face? I can.

The Girl and the Mare

2008-06-06T17:37:00Z

The story of Patrick Part I....

Once there was a cowgirl going to college, she didn't want to stop showing her horse or sell him to go to college so she ate Top Roman and cleaned stalls at a local equistrain facility 3 times a week after class in afternoons in order to keep her horse in a covered run (not in the barn) at the facility at a reduced cost. She was a good stall cleaner and rode her horse religously every signle day out there by herself working on things. The facility owners came to like the hardworking dependable girl and let her have full use of the facility even though folks that boarded out in the runs could use the whole thing.

The often shared thier dinner with the girl and encouraged her - they loaded her up with horse stuff they no longer needed and pizza on more than one occasion. When she came back from shows having had beaten local trainers - they rejoiced with her and treated her to beer. The girl loved the barn but the owners soon had to move away, they sold the facility to trainers who didn't want outside boarders. So the owners referred the girl to another barn far up north in the county - trusting the owners she moved her horse to the new barn. She also moved apartments to be closer to the barn and her new job up north.

The girl loved the new barn - it had a good indoor arena, outdoor, track, round pen, wash rack, viewing area with fridge and radio and a hotwalker. It was out in the country and bordered by woods, you could see mountains and hay fields around the place. The owners of the new barn, Debbie and Ken, also quickly grew to like the girl. They soon had her cleaning stalls when she could - feeding and even house sitting on occasion. This was great fun for the girl who would pretend that she owned such a fine facility. The girl and owners became friends and often shared dinner, beer and TV shows together at the end of the day. They even picked the girl up out of a muddle puddle after she broke down after she sold her show gelding and sent him to a little girl in California. It was good times for the girl.

Then one day a gray mare showed up at the barn. The girl like the mare and noticed her owner never visited her. The mare was beautiful - put together well, quiet, and had a beautiful eye and scupted ears with a slight dish face. The girl didn't like mares in general so the barn owners were surprised by it as much as the girl. The girl spent time starring at and watching the mare - soon the barn owners suggested that she start grooming the mare. The girl would groom and love on the mare whenever she came out to visit or ride - the mare returned the girls effection. The mare was quiet and thoughtful and careful in everything that she did which the girl loved.

One day Debbie suggested that the girl buy the mare and breed her. But the girl didn't have the money the mare's owner wanted for her. The girl knew the mare could produced a show horse baby - she just had that look, she could trot really well, and had a nice deep lope. The mares owner had repeatedly tried to get the mare to produce a reining baby and it just never worked out. The babies never really made good reiners.

Later the barn owner made a call to the mare owner that the didn't know about. The mare owner was in a tough time in her life and couldn't afford the boarding bills and yet had no where to put the mare. The barn owner suggested the mare should go to the girl to be bred and the boarding bills would be spared for the time being.

The mare owner contacted the girl and he deal was done - the mare would be hers. The mare's owner merley wanted one more foal from the gray mare. Delighted the girl took the mare to a stallion and waited to her news....but it was not meant to be that year. The mare did not take, so dissapoint and out some money the girl brought the mare to her folks's place. A beautiful friendship developed between the mare and the girl. The mare blossumed, gained weight, gained a shiney coat under the care of the girl and her parents. The next Spring after a vet check and certificate of breeding soundness the mare returned to visit the stallion again.

To be continued...

Bad Ride = Change in Plans?

2008-06-04T15:19:00Z

This is a book - I am sorry I just needed to get this out of my system.

Delays = Bad Mood

So I headed down there with plans on riding both horses knowing that its alot to squeeze into 2 hours and just wouldn't you know it it had to be a rainy crapy day (I'm talking down pour not sprinkles - which any cowgirl should be able to ride through) which means in order to ride we had to ride inside, which also means we had to haul to a nearby indoor arena to ride, which meant that it pushed our riding time back like an hour! That irritated me, but then I found out that we would not be meeting Joe at the indoor arena we would be meeting him at the barn - and helping to load horses (adding irritation here) as it pushes our riding time and my eventual bed time out even further. Then I found out that he was not at the barn when we were got there and he had all the saddles in the trailer with him so we couldn't saddle the horses to get them ready to load by the time we got there. More irritation.

Then a snarky thought crossed my mind. I remember my friend Calie mentioning that she couldn't ride with us because her mom and her were doing a 4-H practice that night so they were riding earlier that day. I would be willing to bet that the reason why he was running behind was because he took thier horses over there to ride and left ours for another trip at the barn. Well he showed up to the barn not even 10 minutes after we did (bonus - good hussle Joe ) but when he unloaded Stella and Sport - my friend and her mothers' horse - I knew that is exactly what happened. I hate being right. I don't know all the circumstances so I can't say for sure why he didn't just take those 2 horses to the barn plus our 4 for one trailer load and have them all there but I figure it had to do with him wanting to show my friends' mom a horse to possible buy - because that one was in there too. Showing that horse could've been accomplished another day, in my opinion they live fairly close to Lewiston compared to the 3 of us ladies who are all a good 2.5-3 hours away and can only come down once a week if we carpool.

Bad Mood = Bad Ride

Ok so I freely admitt by the time I rode at 7:40 pm that I was in a bad mood (usually when I go down to ride I ride from 6 to 8 pm and am home and in bed by 10:30 pm). I knew I would not be in bed before midnight, and would have to wake up at 4:30 in the morning to go to work on 3.5 hours of sleep and feel like absolute crap for the next two days. I don't care who you are that just SUCKS.

So after lunging Patrick while Joe rode Stretch around for a bit, I got on Stretch and trotting around "ok" but then he lost his cadience and we struggled with that for the rest of the lesson, and then we worked on the walk because it seems that Stretch is now struggling with everything Western. I could not pay that horse to walk slowly last night and had to invest time actually practicing the walk. Then we worked on neck reining which went okay aside from him speeding up while turning at the trot. Next we worked on loping which was awful, not only did he not pick up his "pleasure" lope for me he really didn't even want to give me one while we worked on it - was running off, not staying collected and farting around with his head. Joe is trying to talk me through all of the this and sometimes it's just too much. There just seems like there is too much I have to do to get him to lope correctly and all the while I have to keep in mind all the other stuff about keeping him slow, keeping his neck down, and on and on - sometimes my mind just shuts down and while I try I am not trying 100%. I get to feeling like "what's the point?" Its hard on me its hard on Stretch....

Well after 10 minutes of these Joe getting sick of it and jumps on Stretch and tunes him up really good. Stretch was surprised at first after having his way with me about actually having to mind and do his job - but is reponsive and shapes up. But I feel bad because I had a hand in getting him in trouble. When Joe gave him back to me he told me to Cowgirl-Up and get the job done, which I did - I got on and gave it 100% and had a better ride, and so maybe needed I to be told that. But i was not impressed with his lope as Joe was riding and knew he was loping the same way with me. All quick in the front in and WAY too much knee.

Bad Ride =Change in plans?

I just overall was real unhappy with my ride and I am now wondering to myself why this should be so tough for Stretch and me. It seems stupid to struggle with this crap so much when he is so good English I know that keeping his western skills up will help his resale value (cause he's not a tall enough horse to be a serious HUS horse) but if he will eventually go to my niece do I need to worry about that? Do I want him going to my niece? I don't want her to have to struggle with something as simple as the "jog" while she learning to ride regardless how good-hearted of a horse he is. I am really kinda wanting to just dump all the western stuff and just go english with him until the end of the year then sell him. It just exhausts me - it makes riding not fun. Other western pleasure horses and even Horsemanship horses do not struggle like Stretch does, it just kill me to see how easy some horses are and how tough it is to make Stretch do things.

Don't know what to do....I am so fustrated!! Another gal in Todd's barn purchased a horse for $8000 to be a pleasure horse and he is turning out to make a great pleasure horse. My parent's purchased Stretch for me to replace my horse that died in the barn fire last year for way more, on Joe's recommendation and he can't even do Western Pleasure (which is supposed to be my thing). I can't change this - it just adds to my fustration ALOT. I am glad we can do some HUS and be competitive with it - but dang it! I wasn't planning on going back to Hunt Seat horses and now that seems like all I got.

Pat needs yet even more time...

Then there is Patrick - I rode him last night to see how far he is coming along. Since he never stopped growing and has a big engine in him he is looking like he sadly just going to be a Hunt Seat horse. I am hoping he is going to be a tough Hunt Seat horse, but the truth is we just really don't know yet because he is still growing is real big and uncoordinated and immature mentally. I had hoped maybe I could show him in this next upcoming show in a Futurity but last nights ride dashed those hopes. He is sooooooo not ready. I had to long trot him into a gallop which was hard to maintain - he really didn't show that he was ready to slow down to a canter after I got him to gallop. He ramdomly stops while galloping which just about sends me up his neck - and his head set is really not there at all. So I can forget showing him - there is way more than two weeks worth of work to do on him.

I would just really like to see more progress in Patrick since he's been in full time training since the fall of his yearling year minus 2 months. I am the biggest fan of waiting for horses to be ready before being shown so I haven't been wanting to push him, but gosh - I have been waiting for awhile...plus I am so ready to start winning again and I am hoping Pat is going to be that horse. I was hoping I could take him to Vegas in the Spring and compete in my first big show - but I am NOT doing that until he has proven to me the he can compete down there. So it seems Vegas is slipping further and further from the picture.

Why no pressure for Pat to do WP? Well....he is special - was raised as a baby at my folks' place and I will accept whatever he is good at and give it a shot. Was hoping with his breeding it would be WP but it turns out that will most likely be Hunter Under Saddle. I did not purchase him specifically to do Western Pleasure I bred him in hopes that he would, there is a little difference.

What to do?

I need to confer with my folks and see what they would like to see happen with Stretch - if they want to keep him for Katerina it would mean a significant finacially committment on their part as he couldn't just sit out in the pasture until she is ready for walk-trot classes. But they should have the choice - after all they bought him.

I need to talk to Joe and discuss my options again after I have gotten a good nights sleep and think about it some more.

I could show Stretch to the end of the year in just english - enjoy myself - sell the stupid horsemanship shirt, and put him up for sale this fall (if my parents don't want him). Which is sad because I love him, but I'm feeling like I need to continue to move forward in my show career - after my 8 year lual (subject for another post). I could sell my truck and trailer and combine that with the money from Stretch to purchase a new truck and trailer combo which I badly need. I combo that I could count on to hual me to and from bigger shows - hopefully with Patrick?

In the end I need to have one horse anyway because that is all I really can afford. And to make a long story even longer - I got to bed last night at 1:00 am, woke the heck up at 4:30 am, feel like crap and am in the worst mood....

Kudos to anyone who actaully reads this whole thing - any advice?

It's Story Time

2008-06-03T18:26:00Z

Being Stephanie

I wrote this comment to a blog buddy to make them feel better about a lock-out incident she blogged about. Then decided to make it a post of my own - strange things like this happen to me ALL THE TIME. It's part of being Stephanie.

The other winter I returned home from a late work meeting, hubby was at work like usual. I pulled up and got out to unlock out gate like usual. Because it was VERY cold out, like a negative 10 degrees out, I had all the windows rolled up with my car still purringlike usual.

The strange part was when I went to get back in my car, i touched the door handle of my Ford Focus and I heard the doors LOCK themselves! It was sooo weird (I later found out Ford Focus's are famous for doing this). Well the car keys WITH my house keys where in the locked car that was running.

Luckily I had my cell phone in my coat pocket - but it was going dead, I had just enough juice to call AAA and give them rough directions to my place, a good 40 minutes outside of town, just before my phone goes dead.

Since I wasn't exactly dressed for the weather in my skirt and dress coat and nylons and dress shoes, I immediately tried to find some shelter. I tried the horse trailer which would have had blankets and a heater - but is was LOCKED! I never lock it!! I later found out hubby was trying to do me a favor by locking it up for the winter. Tried walking around to the back of the house through 3 feet of snow, and all that earned me was a locked back door and numb feet.

My neighbors were strangely gone and the one that was home is deaf and asleep and could not hear my knocking even if I tried. There is a fire station a quarter mile from my house but I literally wouldn't have had any feet left by the time I got there.

I decided to check the propane in the BBQ on the deck. THANK GOD there was some. I lit the BBQ and cranked it up on high, grabbed a chair I never put away for the winter and put my feet directly on the BBQ and then when they finally got hot I switched to my hands which had also gone numb.

About the time my eyes started to water and that lump started to build in my throat , a AAA truck show up to unlock my car - still running. The driver immediately sat me in the truck with the heater cranked and even offered to drive me to the hospital - I politely declined and limped back into my warm house.

I ended up with frostbite on 3 of my toes on one foot and 2 on the other. But it could've been much worse - so i am thankful of how things turned out, but it is a prime example of the type of things that happen to me all the time.

Welcome to my world.

A Fun Show Weekend in Monroe, Wa

2008-05-29T21:10:00Z

Show Number 3 - Most fun all year by far!

Monroe was so much fun. It was just me and my friend Kelly Adams from Joe's barn - so it was completely drama free and almost dang near relaxing. Me and Stretch were a bust at WP - but we took a 4th under both judges in HUS - then improved that placing to a 3rd the next HUS day even though there were more horses. I think I will be ditching WP except for small shows and moving forward with horsemanship, HUS and maybe some WR later in the year. Kelly did well in trail the last trail day - the first day Hannah was naughty. Joe took 4th on Hannah in SR WP the second day and a 6th the first day. And I think Kelly picked up some performance halter mare points off her to.

We rode a TON ( I wouldn't be surprised if I spent 8 hours in the saddle each day between showing and practice), ate very well for at least 2 of the days (and drank well too) and we took a field trip to Maggie's ClothesHorseConnection store. Which was very neat to see. The weather was rainy and cold Friday - but then hot, clear and beautiful Sat, Sun and Mon, we even showed outside. Caught a beautiful fireworks show on Sunday night, at the end of the races there at the fairgrounds, as we were going to bed - it was almost like it was meant for us ya know? It was cool. Sometimes at shows really neat things like that happen stuff that sticks in your memory forever - like scoring Toby Keith tickets for $5 a pop at the Region One show last year, that concert was so fun, with all my horse buddies, who could've asked for more?

In my heart I am a trainer hog. But I have been riding with Joe for almost 10 years now and I know he'll always take care of me, I try hard not to take up too much time at shows were there are a lot of other clients. So it was so great to have him almost all to myself all weekend - we rode a more than I ever have at a show, worked on all kinds of stuff - it was a blast!

New Clothes from a Friend

My friend Juli Thorson sent along some clothes with our trainer, Joe Smith, for me to use. When I arrived at around midnight on Thursday night "the guys" (trainers Todd Hovrud and Joe Smith) were already there and when Joe told me about the clothes I have to admitt I was touched and I am not sure why this happens to me but people ESPECIALLY horse people are so kind and generous to me - I was thinking this aloud and Joe told me that I was nice a person and I have a way about me that make people want to be on "my team". I am not sure what he meant but it made me feel good. I just hope that someday I am in a spot where I can repay the favors and also "pay it forward" to others.

Juli's clothes were much nicer than my clothes and although the Hunt Coat was a tad short - the other stuff fit and it was a big confidence booster. The western shirt she sent along will make a nice horsemanship shirt for warmer weather - I think, a trip to Tracy's and I will know for sure. I am also going to see if Tracy can let the sleeves out on the jacket.

During my trip to the Clothes Horse Connection the owner, Maggie, helped me find a good but simple and affordable Horsemanship shirt and I brought it back to the fairgrounds for Joe's approval and a conversatoin over if I need to turn my focus from Western Pleasure to Horsemanship. It was decided sadly that, that was going to be our plan. I love WP and its what I really want to do at the Horse Shows but I have also decided I really like Stretch and if Horsemanship is a class that I can have some success in with him then I am will to give it a try.

Lets Here it for LeadLine with Baby Kat!

My niece joined me on both western days of the show for the LeadLine class. Stretch was wonderful and quiet for her. Once again i would just like to mention that Stretch will some day make the worlds best youth horse ever! A four-year quiet and care enough for a 3 year-old girl!!! Imagaine that!! And he paid attention to her seat - if she started leaning one way he'd way the other way to get under her again. I was so amazed again by this horse! Incase anyone want to know he is by Sudden Inclination out of Summit View Ranch.

Here is some picture of the fearless Katerina! (who by the way was real put off by the fact that Auntie Pony (me) wouldn't let her do the walk-trot class. So plans for lessons were made at the end of the show - when her new trainer "Paige Stroud" working under Carolyn Rice says she's ready for a walk-trot class then Auntie will let her go in one.

(seems the picture upload feature is not working on equisearch - will upload picks later, please check back!)