Proud Mom

I was up painfully early today (4 A.M.) and at the barn by 5:30 A.M. to take Promise to her first show. Somehow, we managed to have the bad luck to draw the first ride of the day. And it was bad luck for a young horse's first show... Promise rode alone in the trailer to the show and was alone in the stabling area. It was a one-day show, so the majority of the horses didn't even bother to rent stalls, though the fee was only $10 more than hauling in, and stalls give the horses a place to relax and roll while waiting for scores and for other horses to finish... The other horse in our barn didn't show until 10 A.M.--nearly two hours after us--so his lucky owner got to sleep-in by comparison.

Promise was also alone in the warm-up and in the show-ring. She was anxious, but she didn't call out and she trusted Birthe. She was fine until a gust of wind blew and rattled the doors on the indoor arena--then she decided that it wasn't safe down by "A". She wasn't horrible, though--she just refused to stay on the rail and became a bit distracted. I was encouraged by two things. First, she didn't do anything that was at all dangerous to herself or her rider. (Gotta love a horse that doesn't buck, bolt or spin when frightened!) And second, she calmed again and returned her attention to Birthe as soon as she left the scary area.

I've watched more than a few tests that have gone from bad to worse once a horse has become frightened--tests where you find yourself praying that it would just end soon. That was not the case with Promise. She kept pulling herself together again, and would have nice long sections that were lovely, but then the test would make her go down "there" again. If only she could have shown in a shortened 20 x 40 meter arena and cut off the 20 meters on "that end," then life would have been good, ya know?

She only lacks experience. She's been away from home only once before (except to go to the hospital, and I don't think she thought very much of THAT particular trip), and she's NEVER seen an indoor arena before in her life. That she handled it as well as she did is remarkable. She'll be a trooper with more experience, I'm certain. She acted like she's been riding in a trailer all her life, and didn't seem the slightest bit stressed about that part of the adventure.

She placed 2nd and 4th.

Photo album online here.