Show Time, Again

It seems like all we have been doing lately is going to horse shows.  Saturday was the 4-H District qualifying show for State.  V has decided not to show this, her last year, so we just had E with 3 horses.  She plans on showing Pep at State but that was her plan last year and as you remember she ended up showing Hank at the last minute because Pep got a hoof abscess 3 days before the show.   This year she will have Otoelene and Hank as backups for Pep. 

 Showmanship with Pep went well and E got first place.

 Next came Senior Western Pleasure where they got 2nd.

 Then switching the saddle over to Otoelene and going in Go-As-You-Please.

 It was a big class and they got 6th out of 15.  (I was sort of thinking 2nd or 3rd but Otoelene did brake when they  asked for the pleasure gait in order to scratch her face on her leg and of course the judge was watching)  We also go an official measurement on her, 14.3 1/4, which was about 2 inches taller than I thought she was.

 The saddle got switched back to Pep for Horsemanship where E had to do a pattern, trot-stop-360 to right-lope right lead-stop-side pass to right-lope left lead-stop-back-trot to rail all in a straight line.  She pulled off 1st in that class too.

 Next was trail which didn't go so well.  I've never seen Pep's eyes do big at the obstacles.  She still managed 5th.  

Then it was time for Hank.  E said he did not deserve his Wonder Horse status this time.  She wanted to show him western  so she wouldn't have to change clothes.  She only had to take him in one class to qualify him so she was just running him through the trail class.  I've only ridden Hank in a snaffle for the 3 years we've had him but for western he needed a curb bit.  I'm pretty sure he had been ridden in a tom thumb but he sure hated it at the show.  I changed him to Pep's mylar bit but that didn't help much either.  E managed to get him through the class but it wasn't pretty.  He went from 6th out of 70+ in trail at the state show last year to not even placing in this much simpler class.  Amazing what practice and the right bit can do, or the reverse, just hop on with the wrong bit.
No horse shows on the calender for at least the next two weeks.