State Show Day 3, Final Act

Our last day started at 8:45 in Waldron Arena with Western Pleasure 2nd go.  True to form, Pep trotted in, got 1/2 way around then stopped to poop. 

 Once again, the competition was great.  Usually there is something crazy going on but not this time, everyone was very solid.

 Pep was doing her reining horse impression at the lope.  She looked beautiful, just way too fast.  Had she been able to do sliding stops, faster spins and flying lead changes she would have cleaned up in the reining classes.  As it was, she moved up to 5th in pleasure.  But there were a lot of other switches.  3rd yesterday went to 9th and 10th yesterday moved to 3rd.  Pep managed to beat last years champion that was also high point POA for the east coast.   Since the finals were all about the points, we had to wait until they were posted.  And yes, she made it to the Classic.

 Then it was over to the finals in trail class.

 Pep certainly had her game face on.

She really did a great job especially considering  how poorly most of the ones that went before her did.  We even overheard the judge comment that he had a $60,000 horse that would have trouble with this pattern.  That elicited quite a bit of discussion among us as to either his training ability or true value of the horse if it couldn't do a 4-H trail class.  With Pep unfortunately, that one step out of the box cost her 2 placings.  She ended up 4th out of 45 but was oh so close to 2nd.  Still, this was her highest placing in trail ever.  

 Aunt L had come back to watch day 2 of showing.  Pretty sure they were just reliving the trail class.

 In Horsemanship, E had an exceptional pattern.  I was hopeful for at least 3rd to make the classic but she ended up 4th again.  Still, we couldn't have asked any better from Pep.

The Western Pleasure Classic started about 8 pm.  You would have thought that after 12 hours of showing that Pep would have been just a little tired.  Maybe she thought if she just went faster she would be done sooner.  Whatever the reason, she was in a race, except when she stopped to poop.  6th place

I know E was glad of her decision to not take Brother but Pep her last year.  Pep stayed sound and gave it her all.  It is so sad for me though, this last show.  When I was E's age and had my last show in 4-H I was sad too, but it didn't seem that final.  When you're young there is so much ahead, so much to look forward to.  But now that I'm older, it just makes me sad thinking this was it, the last one.

One last quote from E I forgot yesterday in describing how she feels taking Pep through the Working Western Pattern, "Everyone else seem so calm but with Pep, it's a chaotic whirlwind of nonsense."