I need the name of a good contractor....

Sun Sep 5, 2004

I need to hire someone to do some remodelling, mainly to make the top half of the door to Quzqo's stall bigger, to accommodate his SWELLED HEAD!

RESERVE CHAMPION PLEASURE TYPE HALTER!

Whoooooo!!!

Okay, okay...I'll admit...there was ONE entry in Pleasure Type Mares (a Walkaloosa filly about 8 months old), ONE entry in Pleasure Type Geldings (Quzqo), and then a fat pinto Hunter type Pony from the Pony class, that made up the Showback for Champion. The fat Pony took Champ, and Quzqo took Reserve, which at least means he can beat a weanling! LOL!!!

Done showing for the year (as far as I know) 'til next Spring/summer (good, maybe now I can find someone to go on a friggin' trail ride with me!!!)! We didn't do too horribly yesterday...placing 5th out of 5 in the Pleasure Type Gelding Halter (the show had been invaded by a DOZEN gorgeous "Class A" circuit TWHs, so there were 4 glowing palomino TWHs against one bony little grey Arabian, not fair!!). BUT it was also his first time (as far as I know) in a RIDDEN horse show class, i.e. Green Horse Pleasure! I didn't have time to practice much, got to ride him around the arena twice while everyone else was warming up...worse than driving in rush hour traffic, LOL (didn't help that there was the barn owner's granddaughter (4 yrs old, going on 40) careening around on her horse, not paying any attention to the traffic pattern).

But when our class came up, there were three other "green" horses in there (I know for a fact one is an 8 yr old Off-The-Track TB)(another one was wearing a Kimberwicke...Hmmm), which was perfect. Unlike Tezlu, Quzqo does his best when he's following another horse (Tez would always want to be in front, which is hard to do when you're riding in a circle!) (maybe he was a
NASCAR driver in his previous life, who knows!). Unfortunately the horse we followed, a small palomino QH, was violently spooking at EVERYthing, which got Quzqo worried, thankfully all he did was shy a little at the In-Gate as we came around. He trotted SO nice, lots of speed to him (wonder where THAT came from!), he stopped, changed directions, we had nice transitions between walk and trot, I remembered to post on the correct diagonals. Of course in the line-up, we had to back...LOL! All I managed was a good display of a resistant horse (he was a total snot yesterday, I think he was pissed I put baby oil on his face)...the judge just told me to "work on that", LOL! No shit, lady.

The TB wouldn't back either, but he didn't spook, so maybe that's why he got 3rd. We placed 4th, over the palomino that was spooking every time the announcer said anything on the loudspeakers! Not bad though, considering it was Quzqo's first time in a ridden class!!

Today I totally forgot to put the baby oil on his muzzle, maybe that's why he was in a better mood, or else he was tuckered out from yesterday! But he did better in the Halter, despite being the only entry. He set up for me, didn't doze off, and wasn't as wiggly and belligerant as yesterday (I swear, he kept cocking a hind leg just to annoy me!).

Unfortunately today I spent too much time doing his mane (a LOVELY Continental Braid ala "Palomar Elite", got complements on it too!), and trying to get ON him (don't use Show Sheen/other silicone coat polishes on the SADDLE area of the horse), and having the saddle slip off (I fell on my back once...so technically I've now fallen off the horse, LOL!), by the time I got down to the show arena, the lunch break was over and the arena closed for warm-ups! So I had to just go right into the class...oh goody! Only three entries today (the spooky palomino was not in attendance), and while Quzqo didn't spook, he did quite a bit of swerving and corner-cutting. But, when the judge (an amazingly brusque and Drill Sergeant-like judge lady!!) asked for us to stop and back 5 steps (no more, no less), I miraculously managed to get Quzqo to step back one whole step!! Good Boy!!!!

Apparently the TB wasn't able to back at all, or else the judge was so bedazzled by Quzqo's continental braided mane, but we ended up placing 2nd!! I had to pick my jaw up from the arena floor, LOL!

Quzqo was glad when I was done bugging him, first thing he did when I turned him loose was to drop right into the dirt and GRIND it into both sides of himself and the back, rolling and rolling and rolling, like "to hell with you and your show sheen!!", LOL! Then a big long drink, then GALLOP out to the pasture before sedately walking along out over the horizon. Goofy boy!

I might go back this evening to bring him in & watch the Western classes, if they're still going on. This judge today is really zipping through the classes, but then, there's also fewer horses than yesterday (thankfully those TWH's didn't come back! Else we sure wouldn't have a nice Res Ch
Rosette on our stall door!).