Persistence

Persistence  sometimes pays off. Jigs and I spent the last two months practicing the rope gate and the pedestal in preparation for the NEECA Versatility.  The result was we now do both well.

We nailed the gate Saturday!  One of the judges noticed a hesitation.  She was right, we did hesitate, but we did it and our scores were as high as they could be with me riding two handed!

No pedestal, bummer.  We were so ready.

Our performance was good enough to win the Novice Division!  Whoo Hooo!

NEECA Versatility 6-14-14

I am really proud of my little red pony!

Judges’ feedback was my scores would have been higher if I neck reined and rode one handed.

This was the first competition where my horsemanship skills were judged. I faired a bit better than I expected.  Yes, we did miss the obstacle with the lead changes.  We got one lead, not the other.  My fault, not Jigs.’ I didn’t pick up the canter quickly enough because I was not committed to cantering at all. I’m just excited that we did canter!

I have two videos of the performance and I can see where we need to work. That’s what I like about Versatility, there is always something new to work on.

So I’m at a crossroad. Should Jigs and I work on neck reining? I’m worried I’ll have to move from my snaffle to a shank bit. Not sure I want to do that. One trainer referred to it as moving to a grown up western bit. Will that change our relationship? Will it be too much pressure on us both?

He clearly enjoys these events. So do I. But do I want to do the really (especially for this old woman) hard stuff to get to another level?

Last night Jigs and I rode down to the water so he could play. He enjoys hacking the trails too.

Maybe, just maybe, we can do both.

Explore posts in the same categories: horses, Living in the moment, Responsible horse ownership, trail riding

Tags: aging, aging gracefully, horse, horse ownership, horse racing, horse training, horseback riding, jigs, responsible horse ownership

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