Versatility.....

I am playing "catch-up" here in my blog since Indy & I have been busy with events. Yes, we have done our usual trail riding that we love the best, but let's start with Sept 11th. Horse Park of NJ - Judged Trail Ride. 2-4 miles with 12-15 obstacles. We went with Tracy & her Standardbred "Walter". We had a lot of fun and the obstacles made both horse & rider think & be very patient. The photo with this post is where we had to rope a "cow'. Easy for me since I know roping from when I was a kid. Easy for Indy since things whipping around his head doesn't bother him. He was a stinker with 2 of the obstacles. One was opening a "gate" that was a rope that led into other obstacles. He didn't like the area where it would lead into and it looked eeeery to me too! The 2nd one was going thru branches & leaves, pick up a nerf gun, and shoot a "coyote". Easy.....but no....the stinker just didn't want to go thru the branches. He wasn't afraid.....just being a stinker. All the others we did well. Tracy & I even got our horses through the pond by the bridge. Walter enjoys riding with Indy and at one point we trotted them fast, together, through the Horse Park.

Last weekend were 2 horse shows. We really aren't big on the riding classes at horse shows since we like to ride like free spirits. You know,.... his head up, big trot and me riding however I please. It was the NJ Bred Standardbred Horse Show and this year all were invited. Indy is a Maryland Bred. In the Halter In-Hand class we earned a 4th out of 8 horses. I was very happy! I knew we would be last in the 2 riding classes, but we had fun doing our Meadowlands Trot around the ring. Indy & I do well with Command Classes, (like "Simon Says") and we earned a 5th out of 7 riders. We hadn't done any riding in a riding ring in a year, and it is quite different then a trail or wide open spaces. CJHA was the next day. Indy really was "right on it" in Showmanship and he knew exactly what I wanted him to do with no effort. A 3rd & a 4th place ribbons were earned.....

So.....we did the horse shows but trail riding is still our favorite. BTW - this weekend is a hunter pace with Ival and her STB "Clover". Let the fun begin that day!