My Winner

Pik's Promise (Pik's Pride x Top of Class x Der Radetzky) went to her second show this past weekend. Is was a radically different experience than her first show because we set her up for success. Amazing how that works, isn't it? She trailered there with 3 friends, was in a warm-up ring full of horses, surrounded by horses who lived on the property that were looking on while they contentedly sunned themselves and/or ate their lunch (she's used to that at home), and the show ring was immediately adjacent to the warm-up, so she didn't feel like she was leaving anybody. Simple.

She was relaxed and confident, except the large letters had her a bit "curious" at first--not spooky, but she did want to take a closer look. She was a very good girl in the ring, if a bit tired from the trailer ride and a longer warm-up than we needed. We've still got a learning curve there. But I was VERY pleased with her, and with her rider. Promise has a great mind, and she's going to be a solid performer. And after two shows, I can confidently say that I will be very comfortable riding and showing her when I get my turn--but I remain committed to leaving her in professional hands for this all-important year.

(Besides, I'm having a wonderful time riding Facet. He feels younger than ever, and he's teaching me a lot. He's a devil for the details. The smallest things--a shoulder an inch too far back, for example--make a BIG difference to him and how he goes for me. I've got his trot figured out now, in that I can sit it just fine. Now I'm working on getting it nicely forward, and I'm working on getting crisp transitions between gaits, plus keeping the jump in the canter. I still don't feel like I'm anywhere close to where I'd want to show him, even at First Level (and really, I want to wait until we're doing Second Level work), but I'm learning more and more about my own body and my own riding every day that I ride him and I feel like I'm making lots of progress. That seems so funny to say... I'm not ready to show First Level with him yet, but I'm making lots of progress, when I was schooling Second with Quila in mid-March. How can I be riding so much better/stronger now when I'm performing at a lower level??? Well, when Quila is fit again, she's not going to know what hit her, because I'm going to be more correct, and as a result, she's going to have to be, too (and I won't need her to cheat for me anymore--I had no idea how "good" to me she was and how much she fudged for me because she knew what I wanted).

She's trotting again, we'll canter this week. I can hardly wait to get her all the way back, but will take my time... no sense in taking any steps backward. But the true measure of progress for me has always been whether or not I can take what I learn and translate it into performance with her.