Author: Amanda C

Well, you guys helped convince me! We’re going to Chatt Hills at the end of the month!

It’s not very often that an opportunity presents itself so impeccably, and I felt like I would be an idiot NOT to go. No one else had taken those days off at work, I can afford it (PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS STATEMENT AS A CHALLENGE, HORSE GODS) thanks to my endless stream of side gigs, and plenty of people are going, so hauling and places to stay should work out fine. Trainer is one of those organized people that is really good at pulling things together quickly, and that’s exactly what she did. Within a few days of me saying I would go, she had a whole plan worked out and 8 horses going.

The cool thing about this trip, compared to the Great Coconino Adventure of 2016, is that I feel a lot less pressure about it. That trip was both Henry’s move up to Training (with Trainer) and our Novice Three Day. Both of those things were stressful, and with a lot of build-up and planning. This time we’re just going to have fun, jump around a new venue, and get some miles. I feel a lot less stressed about it, and since I’m hauling with other people, won’t have my own vehicle, and am not in charge of accommodations… for someone who is normally a total control freak, it’s a little freeing. I’m feeling very “go with the flow” about the whole thing. However the details unfold, I’m cool with it. I really did NOT think I’d have an opportunity like this this year, so we’re just gonna go have some fun.

I sent in my entries last week, because, well… closing date is already next week! Yeah, we’re only about 3 weeks away from leaving, really. Now I’m trying to get my brain in hardcore “Um, yeah, you should probably start getting your shit together because we’re about to go on a 2 week road trip/horse show spree”. Eep!

Gear wise I have about everything anyone could need, it’s just a matter of 1) remembering what all I need, 2) finding it, 3) making sure it’s all clean, 4) figuring out how the eff to pack all this crap into as little space as possible. I also need to schedule a vet appointment to get Henry a health certificate, maybe move up a farrier appointment, and order whatever extra stuff we might need for the trip (ie Gastrogard, paste electrolytes, etc). It’s like all the crap involved with going to a regular show except on steroids because it’s 2 weeks long, 4 states, and 14 hours away.

I strongly considered having a “Treat Yo’self” on a Motionlite coat, but thought I should probably quit with the not-actually-necessary-or-justifiable money hemorrhages while I was ahead. I did cave and finally order a package of Quick Knot though, so we’ll try that out and see if it saves me some time and fuss. The barn is doing an order of polo shirts, so I’ll probably pick up one of those too. I really wanted to get an extra pair of white breeches, too, but I managed to talk myself out of that. Which is a good thing because this morning I found a pair of whites in the closet that I haven’t even worn yet and completely forgot I had.

Otherwise the purchases will be limited to whatever is required to keep Henry comfortable and happy.

I’m actually stupid excited about this trip, at this point. Horse shows have been kept to such a minimum over the past year, and I’m longing for a little “showcation”. Plus totally brand spanking new-to-us XC!!! I’m hoping it’s as fun as I’m imagining.

But for the next few weeks, if I seem a little… crazier than normal… no one be surprised. Anyone want to come organize and pack for me?

Being on my summer schedule, riding before work, means that my barn time is a little more limited. I have a meeting every day at 8, so I have to be in my chair and ready to work (ie hopefully not still wearing sweaty barn clothes) by then. Yet, it isn’t actually light enough to ride until about 6:15. Plus I have Presto to account for now, too, not just Henry. This has led to some experimentation with how to fit everything in and still get to work on time/manage to get adequate sleep.

For the most part I don’t do a whole lot with Presto on a day to day basis. Most of the time I just bring him into the crossties, groom him, and put him back out. I try to pony him once a week, though, and I’m trying to give him a least a couple of longer tying sessions per week, plus a couple of short groundwork sessions per week. He went a wee bit feral while I was gone to Tennessee and on Tuesday, his first “session” in 8 days, he swore he’d never seen crossties or fly spray in his life. While it only took about 15 minutes to remind him, clearly benign neglect is not the best method for this horse. So, at least 5-6 days a week, he comes out and does something.

All I’ve really had time for this week was a quick grooming, but this morning I decided to set up some pole exercises for Henry in the little arena (because the ground out in the field is already getting too hard for my liking) and figured it was a good opportunity to “school” both boys at once.

So I brought Henry into the crossties, then went and got Presto and tied him in the aisle while I groomed Henry and tacked up. It’s good for Presto to have to come in the barn and then be ignored. It ain’t always about him. Then I took both of them out to the arena. I tied Presto over to the side and left Henry with him while I set up my poles, then went and retrieved Henry, got on, and left Presto tied to his spot while we rode around him.

Presto was not really thrilled about this.

There was some pacing, and there was some pawing, but for the most part I think his time on the Tree of Knowledge a couple weeks ago kind of took a lot of the wind out of his protest sails. He wasn’t happy about it, but he seemed to know that he was stuck there no matter what. Henry and I rode around, blissfully ignoring him, and steadily working our way closer and closer to him. Eventually we were cantering right past him. We jumped the little vertical a few times, the first time of which caused Presto to prop a leg on each corner and stare at Henry like he’d sprouted another head. After that it was old hat.

I only rode for about 30 minutes, then hopped off and left Henry standing in the middle while I went to retrieve Presto from the rail and do a little bit of in-hand work with moving his body and feet. I wanted to make sure his attention was back on me.

Then we went back into the barn and I again tied Presto in the aisle and ignored him while I untacked Henry and took him over for a bath. Once Henry was squared away in front of the fan, I went over and groomed Presto. He gets attention when I decide he gets attention, and for now he’s #2 on this hierarchy. Poor kid, having to learn that the world doesn’t revolve around him. Life is hard.

I liked how today went, and I felt like I was able to “work” both of them at the same time, really optimizing the little bit of time that I have in the mornings. I wasn’t rushing through either one of them to make sure I could get to the other, and I got everything done with each of them that I wanted to get done. This little arrangement might happen more often.

It sure is fun to start the day with my boys.

Of all the things that equestrians are kind of “renowned” for, the one I’ve always been most guilty of is the messy car. On any given day there may or may not be a passenger seat available (usually not), and you may as well forget about the backseat entirely. If anyone ever peers into my windows they would probably assume that I’m homeless (and/or a serial killer), given that it usually contains a tent, a sleeping bag, a full set of linens/blanket/2 pillows, chairs, toilet paper, a wide variety of clothing, and a really weird assortment of tarps, tapes, rope, knives, scissors, and tack.

I’ve always felt relatively unapologetic about this. Like… I know that I technically should  be embarrassed by it, but I’m not. My vehicles are always a mess, much like me and my life. Kinda makes sense. Part of the package.

Plus it seems like every time I clean my truck out, I can’t find a damn thing. Or the one thing I needed, I took out. Like last time I went to a show, thinking I had my BOT dressage pad, but then I remembered that I took it out and stored it in the guest bedroom because I’m “supposed to”. I ended up having to go buy a new white pad at the show. So, ya know, being a walking disaster/hoarder sometimes has it’s benefits. I surrendered to my messiness a long time ago.

The only thing that’s changed about having a truck is that I now have another area to store crap… the kind of crap that I would never want to put inside of a car. The only problem is that the truck bed is kind of a black hole in my life, and I tend to completely forget it exists until I’m trying to set up my trunk tent. Then I’m like “geez, wtf is all this crap back here”? Because that’s typical.

Like those winter blankets that have been back there for a month. I should PROBABLY take those out and wash them. This post has actually prompted me to set a reminder on my phone for tonight so that I remember to go out and get them.

The rest of that crap is the spare tire for my trailer (which I usually keep IN the trailer when I’m not hauling, but forgot to put back in like 3 trips ago) and rubber mats. Don’t even ask. At least I took all of the broken jump standards and metal dressage letters out, finally, after like 6 months of toting them around. I’m telling you, I forget the bed of the truck is a thing that exists. Kinda like how I forget that the backseat isn’t technically supposed to be the backcloset.

I know I should be, but… I’m not sorry. And don’t even ask me to go through my purse right now. You think the truck is bad.

One of the most fun things about getting to witness Sadie’s broodmare career is being able to compare and contrast all of her foals. It’s hard to get an idea of what a mare really produces until she has several foals on the ground, so by the time the third one comes along, you finally start to see a real pattern.

Some mares consistently throw certain traits, like specific parts of their conformation or movement. Some mares, like Michelle’s other mare Laken, seem to just throw carbon copies of themselves no matter what stallion they’re bred to. And then some mares, like Sadie, seem to throw foals that look a whole lot like their sires, no matter how different they are.

I thought that her first foal Merlin, by Mezcalero, looked the most like her, but then again Sadie and Mezcalero had a lot of similar traits. They’re both big stout horses with relatively similar conformation. Over time, Merlin started looking more and more like Mezcalero, just with Sadie’s trademark giant floppy ears (one thing that she does seem intent on passing on). Presto, of course, looks a whole heck of lot like his sire, Mighty Magic. I see bits and pieces of Sadie in him, too, but overall his phenotype is much more similar to that of Mighty Magic.

And then this year’s colt, Manny (formerly known as Maddy) looks like a little carbon copy of his sire Diarado. The little pony-esque head, cresty neck, and more short-coupled frame… he’s about the polar opposite of long, rangy, TB-looking Presto. It’s kind of amazing that they came out of the same mare.

I’m ready to say, after foal #3 by 3 pretty different stallions, that Sadie is the type of mare who really allows the sire to shine through in her foals. As far as looks go, she lets the sire “stamp” them.

What she’s definitely given to all of them, though, is temperament. They’ve all been very people-oriented, friendly, bold, laid-back, and smart – right from birth. They aren’t the kind of foals that spook at anything, hide behind their mothers, or give people the hairy people. They’re lap ponies, pretty sure of themselves and plenty curious about what you’re doing. Really, they’re born amateur horses.

I hope that whoever the lucky person is that buys Manny will keep in touch as he grows up, so we can keep making these kinds of observations over time. It will be really interesting to see how they compare once they’re under saddle and in work. Will they take more after their sires under saddle, or will Sadie’s temperament have more influence over that side of things? Time will tell.

And yes, Sadie was bred back to Diarado so Michelle can try to get an actual filly this time. Sadie seems pretty hell bent on making colts, though, so we’ll see. Pregnancy check next week!

 

Yeah I know, I’ve been back from Tennessee for like 12 hours. This is unrelated, I swear. I was texting Trainer last night, asking about maybe doing a CT at a local show here in July, and she said “I’ll be at Chatt that weekend.”. First reaction:

Then, within all of 60 seconds…

I asked if she had room for one more in her trailer (because I’m definitely not hauling mine that far), and she said yes. So then I checked my calendar, and those two weeks/weekends are actually still free.  I went and looked at entry fees and stabling fees and all that. Between all the side gigs I’ve been picking up lately, I can actually swing it.

An idea was born.

To be honest, I’ve spent the last couple months kind of pining over the Coconino experience of summer 2016. That was the most fun I’ve ever had at horse shows, and it was really fun to just get away and totally immerse myself in showing. Going somewhere totally new, somewhere we’ve never been, showing 2 weeks back to back… I learned a lot, and it was so confidence-building and refreshing for both of us. Sometimes I just don’t get very excited about showing around here, because I don’t love going to the same venues over and over. Been there, seen that. Need new stimuli.

I checked out some of the past courses online, at My Course Walk and watching youtube helmet cam videos. It looks very fair, but not overly easy. Everyone that I asked had rave reviews about the footing and the stabling. The fees are a little on the more expensive side for an event, but nothing crazy.

My only real concern is the weather. I know it won’t be as hot there as it is here, but it will probably be more humid. Really, I’m betting that our mid-June show here is hotter than these two shows would be at Chatt. And if it’s too hot or he seems to be struggling with the heat, I can always just slow down and take the time faults. XC speeds are only listed at 450mpm though, which is generally right at his comfortable cruising speed.

The thought of having 2 weeks of showing in a totally new-to-us venue is the real draw. We rarely get that opportunity in eventing, to have another show right after the lessons of the first one are still very fresh and ready to be built upon. And, well, I’m rarely in the right place at the right time financially to afford to up and run off to another state for 2 weeks. So if everything falls into place with this, it’s hard to say no.

I’m checking PTO days at work today to make sure no one else has already taken those days off, but that’s really the last hurdle to clear. If we’re all good there, then… I can’t think of a reason NOT to go. Just the thought of it puts a lot of wind back into my sails, honestly. My enthusiasm has waned a bit lately, especially now with summer setting in.

Do you guys ever take a couple weeks to go show somewhere new? Should we go for it? Anyone been to Chatt?