PROMOTION SATURDAY 2015!!!! I'm Now On....

OMG!!!!!!!!!! If this is a dream NOBODY pinch me cause I never want to wake up! The day was finally here and I arrived at the livestock arena around 9:45am and found my team. We signed programs and sat together one last time. I had to remind myself that it was okay to breathe. We waited for what felt like forever then our monitor gave us our papers. We held our fate in our hands but had to wait. I took off my Captain bars for the 2nd year and placed them in my pocket. I sat anxiously with my teammates. I don't think I was breathing very well. Eventually we were told to open our papers. I frantically opened my paper and in the corner of mine was a 72. Everyone frantically began comparing with their friends. Mine matched almost everyone's. Unlike last year this was a good thing! My heartbeat began to race... Could it be??? The whole room hushed to silence as they began listing numbers and mine was finally called..... and told to meet all the way at the Mountain View Room. OMG... COULD... IT....BE???????????? I definitely wasn't breathing because now I was racing up the hill with the majority of my teammates. My feet wouldn't move fast enough but I finally reached the fort. I couldn't even breathe!!! I could hear my heartbeat in my ears. I climbed up the stairs one by one. I paused for a moment at the top, embracing it, held my breath (fearing the same disappointment from last year) and turned the corner. I then saw two black, red, blue, and white flags sitting in the corners and WELCOME TO NIGHTHORSE RANGERS written on the white board. OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'M IN RED DIVISION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I MADE IT!!!!!!!!!!! I burst into happy tears and took a seat. There was a bag of information tied with red, black, and blue ribbons and the first thing I pulled out was a crisp new red bandanna. I sort of stared at it for a little while in shock and disbelief but my hands finally remembered how to work and I took off my blue bandanna one last time and put it on. I started crying even harder, it's real, it's real, it's really real. This is really happening! More girls came in and more tears and squeals of joy were given. Once everyone had arrived (58 girls total) we went over how the year would look and what was expected of us, how things work in Red Division and so on and so forth. I cheered so loud. I remember being in the room across the hall last year listening to them scream and now it was my chance :) I must have taken a dozen pictures already. We were excused and I numbly climbed down the stairs with my red bandanna on my head. My friends and I all started screaming and hugging. We did it!!!! We took more pictures of course. Last year I watched riders come down those honored steps wearing red and now it was me!!! I really lost it here and started bawling. All my hard work over the past two years has finally payed off. I'm in Red Division!!! I still can't believe it. Wow!!! I am so nervous and excited for this new experience. I have my first ride on the 7th and two hours of diagramming. We will diagram Royal Rangers Drill (Flag) and Crimson Rangers Drill (Kaleidoscope) before stock show and maybe be promoted to those teams afterwards. (I really want Royal I'm not gonna lie!) If not then I will remain on Nighthorse and diagram their drill, Dreamcatcher. It's gonna be intense but I'm so ready! I will also find out what horse I'm going to be assigned to ride. I hope I get a somewhat consistent horse so I can develop a connection with them. I can't wait! Ahhhhhhhh! It still doesn't even feel real! Please comment below and tell me your teams!!! I've been dreaming of this moment for 3 years now. I still feel like I shouldn't have a RED BANDANNA!!!!!!! BUT I DO!!!! I was so disappointed last year when I didn't skip AAA but I am so so so so grateful, I learned so much and I am way more prepared for the challenges this year will present me. So to those of you who lateral or didn't get the dream team you wanted, make the best of it! Usually it'll turn out in the end. Then I raced and got to choose my JI horse. I chose Dodger! So I got him to JI for S6 and S4. He was perfect. BEST DAY EVER!!!!!!! NIGHTHORSE RANGERS HERE I COME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Annual Show 2015!!!

What an amazing yet exhausting weekend. On Saturday I checked into the White Barn at about 10am and found my team. We were scheduled to costume at 2:45 but they had us costume at 1 saying they moved our position on the show. So we raced and costumed, line dup and got flags. We waited forever and then they told us to go back inside but stay in costume. They had moved our position back. It was real annoying :/ So we actually lined up this time went into the paddock. Went it walked done. SO MUCH FUN.... not :( Cavalcade is soooo boring. The 7pm show was more fun for me because I was selling programs! I costumed at 6 and checked in at 6:15. I ended up selling 28 programs. The show wasn't very busy so selling was hard. I got my patches and raced to the barn to meet the rest of my teammates. Repeat cavalcade, tidy up, go home. Sunday went about the same, we cleaned the stands at 10, had an all westernaire meeting at 11 and drew for the horse and saddle. A blue ranger won the horse and a tenderfoot won the saddle. Once we were back at the barn my team did presentations. We all got little colorado stampede pins. I had to do my instructors presentations. I only got about three words out before I started sobbing. I'm really gonna miss this team. My instructors also pulled us aside individually to show us our promotion scores. I'm VERY happy with mine and can't wait for move ups :) Then we went and shopped around. I got my team charms, and a teammate bought me a Rock pin and bracelet. Cavalcade went well for Sunday and I removed my costume for the final time. I cried a lot but it was still a pretty good weekend. Honestly boring....I can't wait to preform next year!!!!

Ticket Turn In 10/22

Ticket turn in went well, my total was 32. This officially marked one year of beginning to learn texas skip.

Last Colorado Stampede Ride!

Today was amazing!!!!! I got Hunter #23 for the ride. He was actually very well behaved! We talked in the middle forever about ticket sales and calculating the cost of maintaing the horses. We are 3rd in White Division though. Then they said get out on the rail in 8s. I booked it to the rail and guess what! We were playing CATCH UP!!!!!!!! When they told my group to go I let Hunter fly! Oh my lord were we hauling! It's the fastest I've ever gone. He was full on galloping, it was sooooooo much fun! Then we gave the horses a rest and set up for Freeze Tag! The officers were it :) I tagged a bunch of people but it was hard to catch some of them. Then one of my teammates was hunched in the middle, I immediately called a Halt Ho. A horse had rammed into her knee. I walked over and steered her horse to the gate, dismounted and helped her down. I walked her horse and mine on the ground to cool them out while everyone else rode. She seems like she will be okay. I can't believe that I just rode probably my last ride ever in White Division! AHHH! Then I raced and got Betty for JI!!!!! I was super excited she was so fun to ride. She is like a Cheyenne and Jericho mix. SO smooth. It was a good day. Cavalcade was at 5 but was unable to attend so I left at 10.

Last Specialties Before Annual

Wow.... where do I begin?? I got to Westernaires at about 6:30 so I could JI for my friend on T9. I got Rolo! I was excited because he is such a gorgeous horse and I enjoy riding him. The class went well, I forget how stubborn some of the horses can be without spurs. Then I raced to JI for T2 and I got TomCat! I finally was able to give him his bright orange halter, he looks so good! That class went well but was pretty slow. I had a break before batons at 11. It was super boring. We greeted the new girls and played some games while Red division worked for annual. After that I had a LONG wait until Liberty at 3. It conflicted with Ropes so I was a little sad but it was my FIRST WHITE LIBERTY RIDE! I was so excited especially because I had Lacey! Oh my lord I fell in love. She was amazing, her gaits were good, her wire response was incredible, and her jumping was fabulous! I took off my bridle almost immediately. I got complimented multiple times on my lifting :) So I was off to a good start. We made a line and did a wave while lifting so that was pretty fun. Then we did a jump in fours going up the center. We would split at the rail and did another jump down the sides. Lacey never dodged unless a horse stalled in front of her. When we split Lacey would take off and charge the side jump which was super fun!!!! I was so tired after, we got a lot more jumping in because we went a lot faster. Then for vaulting my partner and I had star. We welcomed thirteen new girls and showed them the drill. I held my tricks better then I have in a long time and trotted most of propeller with no hands. It was a pretty good ride! Then I unsaddled and went home.

Friday Night Grooming

I went and helped test T1 and T9 my kids did really well, it was a good night.

Liberty Move Ups!

JUST GOT THE CALL!!!!! I'M NOW A MEMBER OF WHITE LIBERTY 3!!!!!!!!

WL1 - Royal Rangers
WL2 - Crimson Rangers
WL3 - Nighthorse (Occasionally Blue Rangers will add in for size)
WL4 - White Division

So they moved all AAA riders to WL3 because Nighthorse is most likely in our future!!!!

Guess the Horse #34

Congrats to 2nd Lieutenant Legionnaires 2015 for winning the last riddle. The answer was Quixote #56.

- sorry I forgot to get a picture

Your next riddle is I am a Gray 11 year old gelding. I can be kind of slow but I do ride in Crimson right now. My number is between 45 - 50. Who am I?

Equitation Testing - AAA

Yesterday was my equitation testing for Colorado Stampede. I got Ringo! I was super excited because I hadn't ridden him since my Tenderfoot Interclub. The improvement was obvious. He did really good. I got the pink horse flag for testing. Ringo has a good trot but not great and he does weird lead changes but otherwise he was perfect and I felt really good about my test. Then I rode TomCat again for JI and it went well. I raced to stall card decoration and my design won!!!! I tried to make mine look like Rock and it totally failed. The rest looked good. I also signed up to JI at 12 but I forgot it was the boys team :( it was interesting. I got Banjo and that horse has the weirdest gaits alive. But the class overall went well. I watched Crimson and Royal then went home. Only one ride left with Stampede :( Liberty move ups should go out this week so stay tuned!!!!