Pink Ribbon Horse Show

September 10-12 was the last show of the season with my little western pony.  We headed up to Meadville, PA for the Pink Ribbon Horse Show.  It really primarily an ASB show, but there are a few Arab classes and then open classes.  It's a lot of fun, they set up the ring in front of the grandstand.  And Saturday evening is the Pink Ribbon night were everyone gets all dressed up.  Plus lots of vendors come in for the show, so it really just a good time.

The class schedule for Dalal was a little goofy.  We had 3 classes Friday.   Tom took him in the Jack Benny first in the morning session.  Then in the afternoon I was up first with the Arab Western Pleasure Open.  We had an okay class.  There was a very persistent fly that kept bothering Dalal, so it wasn't our best performance.  But of well.  We ended up 4th out of 5 in the class.  Then just 2 classes later Tom took Dalal back in the ring for the Open Western Pleasure.  It was a huge class, 16 and two of those were draft horses.  I can honestly say I'm glad I wasn't riding that one!  After that we didn't have anymore classes until Saturday night when Tom took him in the Open Western Pleasure Championship.  Unfortunately it started pouring down rain shortly after the evening session started.  So everything was just very wet!  The horses all made the best of it.  And Tom ended up with a 6th place finish in a big championship class.  Not too bad all things considering.

Luckily the rain stop overnight, but it didn't really dry things up all that much.  So when I headed into the ring Sunday morning for the Arab Western Pleasure Championship things were still very wet.  I actually had to ride about 10 feet off the back rail because it was just a huge puddle.  And Dalal was really not happy about the footing.  He does not like when the wet sand stats hitting his little manly bits.  So we ended up 3rd out of 3 behind Courtney and Donna.  Both really good horses, so honestly I don't know that I could have improved my placing at all.

It ended up being an early end to the show for us, which was nice because it gave me time to stop by Harlansburg on my way home and see Nikki and the C&G crew at the NWPAHA Summer Classic Show.  It was the first time I had a chance to see Nikki since everything happened with Image.  So it was nice to get to see her and catch up a bit.  And then I got roped into helping out by Jody, which was kinda funny.  She was sending me back to the barn to tell the kids to get horses ready.  Meanwhile, I know none of these kids and none of the horses.  Oh well.  The horses all made it up to the ring in plenty of time and it was all good.  I got the chance to see Kelly and Lark in a couple classes.  And I have to say I'm really impressed with how much she's come along with that mare this summer.  Every time I see Kelly and Lark, they look better and better.

Read more...

End of the Season

Well, it looks like the horse show season has finally come to an end. I went with Tom to the Pink Ribbon Horse Show in Meadville the second weekend of the month. I had a lot of fun there, even if we didn't place all that well. The ring was pretty crappy, the footing at the rail was so deep. Dalal did not like going through that stuff, so I was staying about 5 or 6 feet off the rail, and I guess the judge didn't like it. We ended up 4th in both the Arabian Western Pleasure and the Adult Western Equitation. And then we were 5th in the Arabian Western Pleasure Championship. I blew a lead in the championship class and so that put us at the end. Oh well, we had a good time.

Then last weekend we went to Randolph Classic Charity Horse Show. Nikki took Image and KC, and she also brought her friend Kelly, and her horse Lark. Now I love Nikki dearly but I have to say, it's so much more relaxing to show without her! She takes it all so seriously! So Friday we didn't have any classes. Nikki and KC had the Half-Arabian Halter in the evening session, but no performance classes. I went to work Friday and just left early so I could make it there in time for KC's class. They ended up 3 out of 3 in the class. She was pretty pissed though because according to the show rules, you couldn't show in the Open Halter if you showed in Breed Halter class. Tom and I tacked up Dalal and I rode him a bit in the warm-up ring. Tom asked if I was willing to ride without stirrups. He asks me this like it's something that I wouldn't be able to do. Like Bonnie doesn't torture me with things like that all the time, like I don't jump without stirrups. Anyways, Dalal and I had a good ride that evening, made me feel pretty good about the show.

Saturday morning I had the first class, Adult Equitation and Nikki was in my class. We had an okay ride in the class. Only when we went to lope the first direction, I was a little too close to Dr. Holly and Dalal picked up the lope before I asked for it and we got the wrong lead. It was a big class, and it was a good class so that was enough to keep us out of the ribbons. Then in the afternoon we had the Arabian Western Pleasure class. Again it was a good class, Nikki & Image, Emily & Tony, Tom C, Paul C, and then the other Tom with his untrained horse. The untrained horse won the class with Nikki second. It was pretty bad, I don't think the judge really knew what he was looking at. Tom ended up taking Dalal back in for the Arabian Championship that evening. Again the untrained horse won and Nikki was second.

Sunday morning Tom had the first class with the Open Western Pleasure, they had a decent ride and were third behind the untrained horse and Nikki. Then I went back for the Western Equitation Championship. Of course Nikki won and then Shelley and her QH mare were second. Dalal and I ended up third. Then we were 4th in the Ladies Western Pleasure that afternoon. Actually that one really pissed me off. We had a good ride, except right as we were jogging down the far rail some people under this one canopy squirted some baby powder, like they use to get the saddlebreds up and showing. Dalal saw it an shied off the rail. Then the next time around he shied at the same spot. Then when we lined up at the end of the class, one lady brought her mare right next to Dalal. So of course his attention was on the mare all throughout the line up. She ended up second in the class. And I later found out that the people under the canopy were with her barn. Kinda makes me wonder if the powder was an accident or was on purpose to help her place better. Oh well, what can you do.

And so ends the 2009 show season. At least for us. I'm pretty sad that it's over. I know Bonnie didn't like me going to so many shows with Tom, but I really had a good time. It was always a lot of fun. And I really enjoyed hanging out with Tina, the Kims, Mary Lou and Bill. Really was a lot of fun and I'm definitely looking forward to next season. And I'm going to put some time in to really work for it next year. I want to do well, more so than just hoping on for the class and not really practicing at all. Plus I think next year X is going to go out as a hunter pony. As long as I'm going I might as well see if Tom will haul him too. Make X go out an do some work. I'm sure he'll love that!

Read more...