Big Brown

Guys!! I'm officially an eventer again!!! Woot Woot!! And Doozy too!!

holy moly i'm at another horse show --- this time with iconic landmarks like the tunnel lol

I mean, I guess only if you count the itty bitties to be "eventing." Which, well, I do. 

And while it might not be a recognized level (or show), our classes were actually integrated into Fair Hill's Spring International wherein they hosted FEI classes, recognized national divisions, AND a starter trial!

stewarded the FEI dressage warm up rings on friday as a pre-game :)

A few details made this show particularly attractive for us. First up - I was already signed up to volunteer on Friday for the FEI dressage (as I do every year), which meant I could get the lay of the land and walk my courses well in advance.

who recognizes our spicy little pony trailer mate?! doozy has good taste, she immediately recognized him as Good Company <3

The format would also be a bit different bc of the confluence of integrating the starter with the international. Namely -- we'd park in the stabling on the Gallaher entrance (vs the fairgrounds... if you know, you know). And! We'd get to dressage and show jump on the Gallaher side too ---- fancy!!

passed through this tunnel no fewer than 8x throughout the day....

Sure sure, it meant passing through the tunnel underneath the road a whole bunch of times... But, eh, we had our spicy little chili pepper of a pony compatriot with us -- entered in the level above, which meant they rode earlier. 

So I spent legit ages hand walking Doozy around (in a chain shank while wearing gloves bc we are both #learningfromexperiences), meaning we got to familiarize with basically every single riding zone in hand first before having to ride there.

dressage judge commentary summed up as... "disobedient" lol, but actually the mare was a star who just doesn't understand the game yet

I'd like to say it was "worth it" to be able to ride dressage in the iconic international ring from all the 3* & 4* events predating the 5* (which now uses the arenas inside the racecourse on the fairgrounds). Buuuuut, y'all already know. Our dressage is marginally better than "disorderly" at present. Meh. We'll get there. 

First step is to 'get thru.' Which, Doozy did quite well, actually! Like, she definitely knows to stay inside the boards. I count that as a HUGE win!

this game, however... she gets this <3 <3 <3

Another huge win?? My friends at this show. I'm always so full of self doubt, so quick to say, "Ehhh maybe we shouldn't, maybe it's too soon, maybe it'll over-face her...." 

But everyone was so quick to remind me that all the jumping phases are ultimately just one jump at a time. And ya know, at any show, but especially at a starter show, you can stop at any time. 

tanking up after a #JobWellDone

At any moment, if I felt like we were spooling out or melting down... I could just... stop. Which, obvi we all know sorta academically. But it's always nice to have that gentle prod forward from trusted friends. 

So we went forth and jumped our jumps, one jump at a time. And it was good! 

so excited to be a participating member of the squad again!!

I'll have more to share later, obvi, complete with so many pictures and videos lol... But in the meantime, I'm just so pleased with this handsome red mare! 

And for her efforts, we earned a lovely and large brown 8th place ribbon --- suitable for this sweet mare, progeny of the great Big Brown. Feels kinda like a win, not gonna lie! Stay tuned for more soon <3