September 28, 2020

A Pony with a Sense of Humor

This pony.

 

We had a jam packed weekend last weekend and I just can't say enough good things about how much heart he showed and how patient he was. First, I drove over to Cincy to pick him up and bring him home, and had a lesson with my GP trainer.

Ah, the rare unmounted picture of us both together, in which our collective vertical challegedness is truly visible

Then we hustled him onto the trailer and went straight to the HHP, where I bathed him immediately. The (literal) second he was dry, we showed in-hand, first at 6pm and then after he had eaten dinner and probably fell asleep, we had to hustle the poor guy back out of his stall on the Dressage side of the complex at 10:30pm for the Get of Sire class, where he and his sisters represented his late sire.


The next morning he turned in a fantastic Dressage test at the Dressage show:

Look at me sitting up and not pulling! Also, new show jacket alert.

And then I walked him back across the complex to the Welsh show where he showed in three English Pleasure classes, was the English Pleasure C/D Champion in a ride-off, then won Ridden Cob and took reserve to a cute Section B with a kid aboard in the Ridden Welsh Championship, both of which require a hand gallop. Historically, he and I haven't been very good at the hand gallop. The poor guy was so tired after all he had done that day, but I managed to get him jazzed up and his tired body and big heart gave me the best hand gallops he's ever done in Ridden Cob.

Feet and hair flying everywhere

And can we talk about the halt he gave me at the end of the hand gallop?

Through it all, he was his happy, patient self. There have been times over the past couple of weeks where I've been sorely tempted to find a way to keep Aeres and lease Connor out just based on the fact that she is so much better suited for Dressage than he is. 

But this weekend reminded me that there are things that are more important than scores, and what Mary told me all those years ago still rings true, that I need a horse with a sense of humor. And that amateurs have to "buy the brain first". And that I'll cheerfully take a hit on my "Gaits" collective score forever if it means keeping this cuddly, happy, ears always up, cheerful, game-for-anything pony in my life. He just makes me smile the entire time I'm with him from beginning to end.

Also very snuggly to friends-that-are-actually-family that are going through tough times and really need some pony therapy <3

I will leave you with my favorite story of the weekend. I was showing some of Lisa's other ponies at 10:15pm on Friday night and needed someone else to get Connor from his stall maybe a quarter mile away at the Dressage end of the show complex. I sent my mom over, but it was pitch black out and she had no idea where his stall was.

"Connor!" she stage whispered in the dark. And I was tickled but not surprised to learn that he nickered when he heard her call his name and that's how she found his stall <3

Mom and pony selfies

We finished the weekend dropping him off in Cincinnati again, and it was never harder to leave him, but also never easier. He's officially never going anywhere, so I'm excited to see just how good he can get with GP trainer.

18 comments:

  1. Sounds like a great outing! Your mom calling to him and him answering made me a little misty-eyed -- so sweet!

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    1. Me too if we're being honest. He's just the best.

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  2. Aww, love this! He's such a good boy! Also that halt is EPIC!

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  3. That story about your mom and connor is so cute!

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    1. I got a little emotional about it, not gonna lie. This pony is just the best.

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  4. Love this. Congrats on the great placings!
    Echos my feelings about Bridget - she may not be the best sport pony out there, but she's always going to be the horse I actually need in my life, so here she stays :)

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    1. Totally, they are worth so much more than the scores they do or do not get.

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  5. Love it!! How cool that you got a show in and had a great outing. Fun to do some breed shows too!

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    1. It really was great, we haven't had a breed show local to me in years!

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  6. All our breed shows were canceled, glad you got to go. Comrade, Roscoe and Ember all keep us laughing. So happy you are sticking with your boy!

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    1. This one was only held because Tulsa got cancelled, but what with this show being basically outdoors + covered arena, we could do it safely. It was so big! People came from as far away as North Carolina, California and Texas. Got lots of compliments and people telling us to host it again in the future.

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  7. How fun! I'm on the planning committee to organize the first ever all-thoroughbred show in my area next year =)
    Is the hand gallop to halt typical for that class, you knew to expect it?

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    1. Yes it is, I'll do a detailed post about it later, but in Ridden Cob you ride a regular rail class with all competitors judged at once, then you all line up and one at a time you do a pre-set pattern that is posted at the in-gate, and it always ends in a hand gallop to a halt. Then you strip your tack with the help of a groom and show them in-hand before putting your tack back on for the pinning. It's so fun! In the UK the judge will even get on your horse in Ridden Cob.

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  8. Wow, big fun weekend! With the BEST pony!

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  9. What a great weekend! I love that story about your mom looking for him. So sweet!

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