♣Ambitious♣

So, I went for a run last night, and my phone was near dead, so I opted to use my iPod instead for music. One thing led to another, and I started looking through my gallery, digging up some old photos and videos (some of which I posted early on with this blog), including some from my first show season. Let's just say I've always been bitter about having to ride a horse before noon. Short, cold, tired, AND bitter Twix w/ her old owner Baby in her short stirrup mode Still short stirrup, but looking real good Sometimes Duke went fast I also used to take pictures during lesson weekends, too. Two full days at the barn every other week (sometimes  every  week) from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays and noon to 4pm on Sundays. I'm a barn rat at heart, and I hate being an adult and having to do adult things because I get minimal barn time. Chess/Chester/Chesapeake Fish/Fisher/Fish Face Splash (he had no nicknames :/) Todd/Toddy/Toddster/Mr Todd Th...

So after yesterday's disgustingly-sad-with-cliché-inspiring-last-paragraph post, it's time to pat myself on the back for the times that I've managed to kick ass and take names. Beckz from I Will Jump Sweet Jumps (arguably the sickest blog title) came up with this awesome blog hop. In chronological order . . . The start of my 2013 show season, when I showed Duke in long stirrup and pleasure pony. He was losing it, but guess 👏 who 👏 kept 👏 it 👏 together 👏. Course when I thought he was finally chilled out during the combination hack, he ended up booking it through the line and took a daring distance to the second fence. I stayed on, though. Props to Duke for his athleticism. There was also that time I bombed my way through the o/f classes only to win the flat because you can't have a refusal when there are no fences to jump. After a rough season, Baby & I finally qualified for the medal final and made it over everything, then switched...

So far, I've had two "show seasons" where the goal was to do a lot, but then that just didn't happen. The first was the same year that I started this blog. I had planned to do another full summer on my local circuit, but I think that was the year Miss S's daughter got married or something like that. Whatever happened, she was out of  town during most of the shows, so I only went to two rated shows and one schooling show. It was a solid year. That was the summer I switched off of Duke, did my first course at a show, last year of long stirrup, and (point wise) got champion at that one schooling show . . . but they weren't giving out champion/reserve ribbons for each division. Blame Dinkleberg for all your problems Anyway, so why am I talking about this? Well, I found some new pictures from this show . I used to think this was the epitome of high fashion: graphic tees & skinny jeans. Also, those are rain boots. For a while I refused to get rea...

Or at least keeled over in pain. However long ago, my Thursday lesson with Miss S got moved to a sunny, humid, Saturday morning. Did I mention it was humid? Oh yes, the joys of living on the Eastern Shore include feeling like you're standing in a pot of boiling mist every time you step out of your house. It had rained on Thursday and Friday, and the big arena was too soaked and grassy to ride in, so the lesson took place in the smaller of the outdoor rings. The schedule change also meant that all but two riders out of my normal lesson group had to skip this lesson. So, it was just me, Cas, and Miss S on a friend's horse. Ever since my last lesson, I had been dying to ride bareback. I don't really know why I had such a strong desire to do so. I love bareback and all, but an entire lesson with walk, trot, canter, and jumping was just short of suicide for my legs. Despite having thought about the pain I would have to endure, I left my saddle in the tackroom anyway. I made ...

I just started this blog and I'm already slacking big time. Tisk tisk! Anyway, I had a show back on the weekend of July 20th, so I have a long spiel about that. I'm just copying and pasting from a horse forum that I post on. No need to type that long description again. I had a show this past weekend, and overall it was pretty good, er I mean GREAT! Everything went so smoothly this time as compared to last. There wasn't as much rushing. I was planning on riding Duke in long stirrup only for both days. I schooled him Saturday morning and he was a gem. A younger girl was going to ride Baby, so my trainer had me school Baby as well. I never noticed how different two horses can feel. Baby and Duke are two very different horses (13.3 crossbred pony vs. 15.2 HUS/WP Paint), but I was thrown a curve ball when I got on Baby. I've been riding Duke since January, but I just felt way better on Baby and figured I'd ask the trainer if I could ride her instead of Duke...