We were the first to arrive this morning at just prior to ten. Within an hour the second mustang arrived, then a few more until by mid afternoon the bulk of the trainers competing here at the Western States Mustang Challenge were here. I led Sandy out to the arena around noon to lunge him, then again a couple hours later when I hopped on and took my first ride on him outside of his 'home' arena. He performed like a star! Of course, he was tired as all get out after two days in the trailer, so we'll see if he holds onto his great attitude tomorrow.
One of the trainers here that I've been exchanging emails with throughout the training process has been Saunya Bolton of Reno, Nevada. She trains Quarter Horses and has qualified and competed at the world show several times, even making it to the top ten on multiple occasions. She's riding a little mare she calls Little Diva. If any of you are in the Reno area and in need of a trainer, look her up, she's a real neat lady.
The weather here is wonderful. In the 80's is what I've heard, and the wind is blowing just enough to keep us cool. After ten minutes of working under saddle, Sandy had only one thing on his mind...and to keep my saddle in one piece I made sure to high tail it back to the tack room before coming out and granting him his wish!
We've received our packets with the in hand and riding course patterns. Friday is our in hand class; Sandy and I are the fifth pair to go through. The pattern consists of walking over poles, trotting into a 'chute' (poles on the ground) and backing out, then backing a bit of a zig zag to the left and another to the right. From there we trot out towards the trailer and load, then unload. After the trailer we trot towards three poles that are set in a U pattern and trot towards them at an angle, crossing two poles then making a turn and coming back to hit the third. It's kind of tight and I'm glad Saunya brought poles for us to practice with. After the poles, we stop and pick up all four feet, make a 360 degree turn to the right and walk to finish.The trailer loading is the only thing I'm really concerned about, but we'll just have to do what ever can be done, right? I'll be back again tomorrow with more photos and updates!
Thank you for your faithful prayers...they've helped to ease my troubled spirit tremendously!
Please say your prayers for Sandy! Ask God to find him the perfect new home so that I don't need to worry about him :)
8 comments:
Lookin good Tracey! ;) Things are going to go great. You and Sandy have worked so hard, and done so well, that this is going to be just one more step- and a good one! ;)
BTW-- (and leave it to me to spot this..lol) Sandy has some damn fine looking hooves there. Nice frogs!
LOL...yes, you would notice that!
I meant to add that Darling took the photos. Obviously, I wasn't taking them of myself, but she got the shot of Saunya as well. Need to give my photographer credit :)
I was going to ask what had you worried. ;D Great photos, I can't wait to hear how everything goes. Good Luck (but I'm sure you won't need it)!
Lookin' good so far Tracey! I hope Sandy was able to get a nice night of rest and is ready to roll this morning. Don't forget to keep breathing. Concentrate on air going in and out. You are going to do great.
Awesome, you should be proud of yourself! So far so good!
Sounds like things are going really well! And Sandy looks like he's handling everything well too. I can't wait to hear how it goes. How lucky that you get to be 5th. You're not one of the first but you don't have to wait long either.
Can you practice trailer loading over and over before the competition?
I can't wait for more updates Tracey!! I'm so anxious and I'm not even participating. Good luck!
Sounds like a good start. It's great you have good weather, keeps the horses mellow and people's spirits good. I loved that Sandy wanted a good roll! ;)
Good luck tomorrow and can't wait to hear your report. So cool you are keeping us updated while you are there. You are dedicated!
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