Rides 4 - 26 - 14

Wow so today was fun!!!!! They brought out the other baby pony, Eclipse. She is light brown and a lot bigger than Queen (The black one). She made a bunch of cute whinnies and nickers. It was adorable. The mom's looked so similar it was crazy. So for J1 I got Penny #59. She is a black and white paint. She was perfect for grooming did everything I asked. So then a Red Division Rider comes and says she's taking her to liberty. (Red Liberty goes on Base Team Weekends too) So she said I could have Chey #119. She is a really pretty light brown and white paint. She was absolutely amazing for the ride. OMG. We practiced for Interclub and cuing with spurs. It was seriously our best ride ever. We worked together so well and spaced out amazingly. During the ride we made a line like we would too dismount and we all had to cue with our spurs and reins to get the horses to step sideways. We all had too move as a line. It was really fun. Chey did so well. She has a really nice trot and her lope is a little choppy but makes it really easy to sit and ride. She made me want to gallop around the arena forever. It was an amazing feeling. I really enjoyed that ride. Then I went to the Red Arena to help some of my teammates study for the final. (They were not there last weekend) Then we checked in for White Star. When we were lined up to go get our horses we got all the riders to come make a circle. We all put our hands in and I yelled, "WHO ARE WE!? "White Star!!" WHO ARE WE!? White Star. Then we all went YAY!!!!! We haven't really thought of an ending yet. But it was still nice acting as a team. We didn't ride with Flags today but we all thought we were going to because we still put our flag boots on. I got Sonny #38. Him and I kind of made nice. He did so much better this ride than the last one. We did some warm ups and it was a mess. We finally got it together a little bit and we lined up our drill. I rode 1-2 (First Rider of the 2nd Four). We rode with CP's for the first time today so that was very different. Our quietest member was calling today. Everyone was very supportive and helped her out. I was paired with her so I helped her out quite a bit. We still have issues with our star. We are so focused on guiding that our outside stops. During the star an owner horse bucked out at Sonny and he bucked in response I flew up and landed on the saddle horn/ swell fork with my thigh. It really hurt but I kept riding. Then we also had to ride with our right hand behind our back the whole time. My arm started cramping so bad. It definitely helps you sit up though. It wasn't an awful drill but it is nowhere near show ready. We only have 6 rides left until White Show. 2 rides in May and 4 in June because of Summer Schedule. We have a lot of work to do. Then after the ride I went to the store and bought my new ropes and got some food to eat with my friend. She was showing us tricks with her batons. She is on White Batons. She is really good too. Then was diagramming. We checked in and headed out back to do walk throughs. We first ran it with same positions as the ride, we had a different caller though. My friend in batons. She did fabulous. Calling is very nerve racking, especially the first time. Then after MUCH critiquing we ran it again. We did have many Halt Ho's and re-did several maneuvers. I think it really helped us improve. Then we switched the Line up. Now I was (1-4). We were missing quite a few people. We had 4 fours and 1 CP so a grand total of 17 riders today. So because of that I got to be outside of star, leading into pinwheels, into circle, and out of circle. I definitely like riding in the first or last four best. We did better this time around. Then it was a riders birthday so we had cupcakes and sang to her. We won't be getting our finals back for 2 WEEKS!!!!! I am going to die with agony and suspense. AAAAHHHHH. Overall it was a good day but I am really tired. I also watch Crimson and Royal ride.

2nd White Rope Practice

Baby

Wow so today was very eventful. So in the morning the baby pony was out. They are debating between Queen and April for her name. The other pony baby was born and it's named Eclipse. Both black girls. So the pony actually let kids touch him. I actually got to as well. He is going to be a great pony. Then I was talking to the wranglers in the back. Then since my class was so late they told me to go get Amigo #54. So I got to go out, catch, and groom/saddle him. I was a little sad that I didn't get to help the kids find their horses but it was worth it for the extra horse time. Amigo and I played ring around the rosie in the pasture. I finally caught him and he was good for grooming. His feet are HUGE! Then once the Tenderfeet rode off we took Amigo and Scarface to the round pen. I got to watch them lunge them around and learned a whole bunch. It was pretty cool getting to do extra stuff like that. Then I watched Varsity at 9. Always amazing. Ropes was absolutely amazing! We learned how to come in and out of the arena like we would at a show. Very fun. Made it feel more like White Ropes. So we did a "Show" like 2 or 3 times. I barely spent any time kneeling because I know so many tricks. So I was constantly up front. Midway through Danielle called me over. She wants me to go buy two 12ft ropes and I am going to learn a double spoke hop. I will have the two ropes going alternate of each other on the sides of me. Then I will hop in the two one foot on each side one after the other. It is really hard but I am glad for the challenge. She wants me to have it show ready by August for White Olympics. I am really excited. It is weird having to start from square one learning toe dances with my left hand. Very weird. We had to do 5 toe dances to leave. Then I went to the silver spur to ride my friends owner horse. I had a bareback pad on but otherwise I was bareback. I was loping around doing really well. I cued him to turn to the left but he darted the other way towards his friend and I kept going. My first real fall!!!! I remembered not to brace myself and rolled into the fall. I hit my head a tiny bit but the arena was kind of soft and I popped right back up. I can truly call myself a rider now that I have fallen off once. It happened pretty fast. I felt myself loose balance then all I saw was dirt. Fun and scary at the same time. Then I watched the T10 ride. They did pretty good. Lots of spacing issues which leads to clumping. Otherwise they seemed pretty good. Then up to the Blue Arena to unsaddle. It was my first time helping unsaddle, and I helped a girl with Lucy, she was just very timid and shy. The I helped a girl with Honey. She wasn't standing still so picking her feet was very difficult. I also helped a girl walk Stormy around to see if she wanted to roll. Then I helped a girl unsaddle Penny and Mona. Overall pretty good. I had to leave before everyone was finished though. I am so sore from ropes. I did a lot of tricks. Overall it was a very eventful exhausting day. Here is a video and some pictures of the baby pony and her mama

Mom - Nelly

The Dream of Every Westernaire

So the Varsity Big Red team is the dream of every Westernaires rider. I took a short video of their practice at ropes last week. Though you might enjoy it

I Am Crazy!

So I have decided that I have officially lost my mind!!! LOL. So I am planning to spend the entire day at Westernaires on Saturday. Not even kidding. I will be going early to help with the morning grooming and staying ALL DAY until the last class of the day and I will help unsaddle. It is going to be so much fun! I literally can spend all day there without a problem at all, even when I only have one class of my own. So I will be there for 11 to 12 hours. I can not wait :) I will actually have my bandanna for Wrangling this week so that will be awesome. I will write on Saturday!!!

We Rode with FLAGS!

Wow so today left me feeling like I had been run over by a train and trampled on by some elephants. A new pitch black baby pony was born at Westernaires. The baby and mama were in the Red Arena when I got there. It was sooo cute and the baby was so tiny! So I got A.C. again for grooming! Great. So this time he was even worse than last time. He wouldn't even let me walk behind him at all. The first time I was close enough that when he did kick out at me he didn't get me hard. So I would go WAY out of the way to stay away from his butt to groom. So I wondered if something was up with him so I asked a wrangler. I was showing her what he did when he cow kicked to the side and got me in the inside back of my thigh. Hard. Sure enough now that I am home I have a big fist sized ugly bruise to show off! It kind  of resembles a horse hoof. Yay!!! So that is REALLY tender and hurts. I didn't really notice it during J1 though. They said A.C is generally just high strung like that. But for the ride we practiced mostly for Interclub and fine tuning some small details. A.C is bouncy! I could not find the sweet spot in the saddle at all so I ended up gripping with my knees more than my thighs. This then equals knees that are completely rubbed down to skin and blood. It stung. During the ride we worked on riding without reins and cuing with our body and legs. A.C does not slow down unless you touch the reins. So then they let us lope without reins. I was like OK here we go. I kicked him to the correct lead and put the reins on my saddle horn. We were flying! It was such an indescribable feeling. Then the horse in front of me darted to the middle. Now remember A.C is on RED TEAM and they go FAST! So he saw the opening and was like OK! So he took off into a full on flat out gallop. I wasn't even panicking! I just went with it and pulled back on the reins to stop. Only that didn't work. I grabbed towards his head with the right rein and pulled his head to my knee. He circled about twice and came to a stop. This all happened in about 10 seconds or less. I can't even tell you how fast my adrenaline was pumping. My legs were shaking so bad after because we had to stand up in our stirrups for like 5 minutes. It helps with foot position, leg strength, and balance. So after, I got my knees quickly patched to protect against my next ride. I was walking like a penguin. For White Star I got Chico #63. So guess what!? WE RODE WITH FLAGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG! I couldn't believe it was actually happening! So once we were all mounted up we made two lines in the middle and got handed our flags. Well even though Chico is in Red Division he decided he wanted nothing to do with the flag and ran to the back of the line. I tried putting him back where I wanted but he just did it again. So I was like fine. But you are getting a flag on you either way. So the practice flags in White Division are full sized and Red or White. So as I came up they gave me a teeny tiny little Red Flag that was about 1/2 to 1/4 the size of the other ones. Joy. It was so tiny it basically wasn't there. I didn't care though. I was riding with a flag!!!! Even if it was tiny. It feels so different. You have to push down a little. They also taught us that dropping your flag is a last resort. If you need too, pull up to clear it out of the flag boot, push it away from the horse, then let go. If you need two hands on the reins put the flag in the crook of your elbow, resting it on your shoulder and use your other hand. Chico was fine once the flag was on him. He did have one take off spaz moment while we were trying to lope in fours but it was controllable. Riding with flags is amazing! I hope I get to ride with a full one next time. Then we handed off our flags to the Flag Dads and set up for our drill. I rode 3-2. Our drill actually wasn't awful and I was 1 away from the outside of propeller. When I dismounted my sides felt like they were being squeezed by snakes because my core was so sore. Not riding for 4 weeks really throws you off. Then was diagramming. We took our final. I felt really good about it. We had to label, create notes, and fill in the heading for 5 diagrams, take a sequence test and do about 60 some questions. I felt really good about it. Also I was not drawn to ride in the Easter Parade so I will not be riding in that. I wore my green bandanna on my belt today. It will stay there now! I got 97 on horse ID! That is amazing! Overall it was a great but really exhausting day. Pictures below!

Chico

My Baby Flag LOL

Uncurling my Flag

Final Exam This Weekend!!!!

So this weekend will be our Final for White Star. I feel really prepared for it. My goal is to get 100% So our instructors emailed us telling us what to study.

Hello riders, below is your call for this Saturday, April 12th

THE FINAL WILL BE TAKEN DURING THE CLASSROOM TIME. 
Don't forget to study. There will be a sequence test and 5 diagrams as well as the questions.

The full drill will be due for FINAL grades as well.

Don't forget your flag boot.

I think the only thing I really need to study is the diagrams. I did not know that there was going to be 5 of them but oh well. I just need to learn the numbering a little better on some of the maneuvers. I know my sequence VERY well so no concerns there. We are also drawing our renters for Easter Parade this Saturday. I will write after my rides to let you know how it all went. Write in 3 days!!!!

1st White Rope Practice!

Wow! Ropes was so fun on Saturday! So I came early to the morning grooming to act as wrangler. It was so fun! I helped a ton of kids find their horses in the pasture. Belle, Rock, Casper, and Strawberry just to name a few. Strawberry was being a total turd and kept running away. We finally cornered him. Then I helped with grooming. All the horses were acting weird. Riata and Rascal both spooked and broke their ropes. Must be the changing weather. Then when the Tenderfeet were up I helped adjust some stirrups. Then I watched the T1 ride. They did pretty good for Tenderfeet. Spacing and clumping are the only things they need to work on. I then watched Red Team ride at 9 with flags! It is soooooo cool to watch Red Team in person. I got chills. Then I went to the store and bought my green wrangler bandanna. I will wear it on my belt from now on :) I saw both blue and white batons. Then I watched Nighthorse Rangers do their walk throughs. Ropes finally started at 12. I checked in and found out we have costuming at 1!!!! OMG! So we introduced ourselves. Then we did the flat loop routine like 4 times. Then Danielle told the older White ropes to come teach us newbies some specialties. Then she said except you don't really need to help her. (Pointing to me) she has been doing specialties for a few months. Specialties are tricks other than the flat loop routine. So I practiced on my own for a little bit. Then Danielle came and showed me 3 new tricks with the butterfly. They are really hard but so much fun! 1 you change hand through the butterfly, you accordion the butterfly up your arm, and the last one is the lazy butterfly where you keep it in place making a vertical circle in front of you. Though while I was practicing I can't slipped out of my mouth. Oops so I had to run my very first lap. Overall it was an amazing practice. Then too the sewing room for costuming. We got fitted to our vests and cuffs. The vests are metallic green with a metallic purple trim and a black back. They are actually quite comfortable. Then our cuffs. One is metallic green and one is metallic purple. Finally was our green sequin headbands. It was awesome. That was my day! I was there till almost 2. White Ropes is amazing!

White Ropes Call!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just got my first White Ropes call!!!!! AHHHH!!!!! I am so nervous and excited. It's actually happening! Here was my call

I just wanted to follow up with an email on the practice time and welcome all of you again to White Ropes!!

Practice at 12:00 this Saturday

Please let me know if you will not be there and the reason why

Come with you ropes and be ready to practice

So I will be posting later during the week most likely. Probably not right away on Saturday but I thought I would post about it. Can't wait!

Interclub Info - 2014

So I figured since Interclub is coming up again in about 2 months I would post about it. So Interclub is on June 8th this year. Typically T1, T9, and J1 have to come at 6:30 am to show groom and show bridle. We also ride the horses down to the show arena and tie them in order at the trailers. Then all other riders show up around 8 am. You check in and get your number and what class you are riding in. Classes are organized by age starting with the youngest and ending with the oldest. All the riders who place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in their class get to stay and ride again in the Championship round at the end of the day. Teams usually have a potluck with food and water because we are there ALL DAY. Junior Grand Entry starts the day off with a short performance and a serpentine line. About halfway through the competition 1st year Red Division riders (Nighthorse Rangers) preform their drill. Very fun to watch. Tenderfeet and Juniors ride together and that is a little unfair. Juniors have spurs which does give us an advantage BUT the overall winner of the entire show last year was a owner Tenderfoot rider from T1. Last year I show groomed Patches and rode Ringo in my class. I was the last class of the day before the championship so it was a lot of waiting. I did not place but it was still tons of fun. If you are one of the teams that grooms in the morning. It is a good idea to wear your practice uniform and different cowboy boots if you have them. That way your show clothes are clean for your class. There will be wranglers there because most Tenderfeet have never show bridled before. I know I hadn't so I had a wrangler help me. It is really easy and don't be afraid to ask for help. You get a extra long time to groom because the horses have to be really clean. Mane and tail brushed... Everything. Overall it is a great opportunity for Tenderfeet to get a chance to preform and get used to being in a show. The Rodeo arena seems HUGE compared to our usual arenas. Spacing is very important and staying in control. Then my team last year (T1) had to stay and unsaddle at the end of the day. I got to the trailers late and they had enough riders to groom the horses so I got to go home. Seriously not kidding on the water! I did not drink enough last year. There will be lectures this month where the Tenderfeet will get more information. Hope this helps! Comment if you have questions! I am more than happy to answer them.