We’re back from another trip to Stable View, and we actually got to run three phases this time! Definitely a win over the June edition where we didn’t even make it to the first phase thanks to someone jumping out of a parked trailer.

I opted to body clip Presto before we left because he was right on the cusp of needing to be done and I was like “might as well”. Which is just a sign of early-season optimism that quickly fades within the first 30 minutes of clipping. Whatever, I got it done and he did look really good for Stable View with his nice dark clipped “winter” coat. Except he did rub out a large chunk of the bottom half of his mane a couple weeks ago overnight (love that for me) so I had to get real liberal and creative with the braiding wax (shout out to Spot On!) and bands to try to tame it down. I was semi-successful, and the braids looked fine enough. Honestly he is an actual squirrelly nightmare to braid and every time I have to do it I seriously ponder my dedication to competing.

We also got to debut some new stuff, including his new black crystal trim mesh bonnet from If the Bonnet Fits, his glittery bridle and browband from Dark Jewel Designs, our Correct Connect reins, and upgraded Mattes show pad. Details about all that stuff is a post for another day but I think his new dressage outfit is on point.

Presto warmed up well, although I was not most pleased to realize that the 2* horses were already running cross country, which took them galloping right past my dressage ring. Fun times for highly excitable and suggestable young event horses.

All credit to Presto though, he handled it pretty well. He did stick his head up in the halt at C and take a gander, and the canter work going the first direction was tense. I left some points on the table with a couple early transitions and because he was tense I had a harder time showing a clear difference between the lengthen and working canter, and that’s what ultimately kept us out of the 20’s.

Still though, we managed a 30.3 with some decent scores, including 8’s for both of his leg yields and a 7.5 for his stretchy trot serpentine, free walk, and trot lengthening, all of which we’ve been working really hard on. I was pleased with him for that!

I still do a big double take at this horse sometimes when I see show media… like where did our little gawky dorky giramoose kid go? He looks like a whole-ass attractive real boy now, one that people actually come up to in public and tell me he’s beautiful. HOW WEIRD. Don’t worry though, he’s still the same Pesto Pasta Noodle on the inside.

We had stadium a couple hours later, and the course was fairly straightforward.

This was a new ring for him though, he’s never seen it, and there is definitely a lot of atmosphere at Stable View with a show that big. Bleachers on one end, XC jumps on one side, judge’s booths, woods, tents… it’s a lot to see. They also kept the liverpool in at jump 3, which I was delighted about (genuinely, he jumps them great) but I found myself wishing for a little bit of a twistier course. You started out with a bit of a serpentine then just went line line line. I like having the turns to help me rebalance and half halt this gigantic animal.

It rode pretty well, although I let him get just the tiniest hair too flat down the line from 5 to 6, and he had the vertical down at 6a with a front foot. That’s his first rail at Modified, and after he ticked that one he was jumping much more careful, which I was pleased about. He’s getting just a little bit more nonchalant about the height now, so ticking that rail kind of woke him back up a little bit.

Overall I was really happy with that. Definitely not a mistake-free day, but… when is there ever a mistake-free day at a horse show? I have never personally seent it. Presto tried though, and he kept the lid on his enthusiasm pretty well, all things considered. I thought he’d have a much bigger meltdown about my trainer’s horse leaving the trailer (it was his only travel companion and Presto marries every horse he travels with), but he got over it pretty quickly every time. MUCH better behavior than last time. Which is good, because if he’d acted a complete and utter fool like that again, I might have tied him to a tree and driven away.

I kid, I kid.

Probably.

Anyway, a pretty good day 1 was in the books, so now we just had the hard part: the biggest, hardest XC course he’d ever seen. No biggie.