Oh yessssssss.......It did not just rain...it POURED!!!!!!!! Thankfully, I was at least able to get through Dressage before it let loose!!! We were not so lucky with jumping! Chris was only able to get a couple pics of the jumping because he did not want to destroy my new camera! As much as I wanted photos to use to advertise Kaz on my website, I am thankful that I still have a camera!!
Kaz was just as well behaved at the horse trial, as he was when we went cross country schooling. A complete gentleman and was totally content to just chill out on the trailer when we arrived (standing on the trailer at the show is something we typically must teach new horses). His dressage warm up went very well and he actually produced a super solid dressage test which put him in second place. He was totally focused (something else that does not usually come until they do several shows) and scored several 7's on his trot work. The canter work went as well as could be expected. I did not realize we would be cantering in our test until a few days before the show, when I actually sat down and looked at Intro C. Like I have mentioned, his canter work is going well, but in my opinion, not show ready! On the very up side, he picked up both leads on the first try and did exactly what he could for where he is at in his training. On the down side, they were still slightly sloppy and he scored a 5 on the one and a 6 on the other. I was thrilled with him though! I grinded him this week trying to get him as far along with the transitions as I could before the show, and he produced for me. The first place horse only beat him by one point, so it was exciting to think that if he was a just the slightest bit better with the canter, he would have swept the competition. VERY impressive for a first show with an OTTB.
Warm up went just fine for Show Jumping and he jumped super well over his first course. He did not really look at anything and really rounded over the fences. The only downfall to the show jumping was that he had the last rail down...bummer! Not really though! He was soooooo impressive!
Cross Country went very well also! He was more concerned about the mud puddles than the jumps!!! Again, he barely looked at anything and did everything that I asked of him! Such a good boy! He finished the day in second place....Not bad for his first time =)) That darn rail kept him from winning though!!
I constantly have to remind myself that this horse has only been in full training with me for the last two months. I bought him in June, and before I even started his training, he popped a small splint while out in the field. Although he was never sore, I wanted to minimize any calcification, so we did not do too much at all for about a month. Since July, he has really hit the ground running with his training. He has been incredibly smart with everything! His flatwork is months ahead of where it should be and his jumping is going just as well. By the end of July, he was already starting over fences (anyone out there who knows me, knows that I do not rush my horses.....EVER). He is just that quick with his learning. He competed in the 2 ft division today, but could have easily done the 2'3". Chris and I were talking about hanging onto him to compete for next year, and while I would LOVE to, this is still a business and I need to offer him for resale. If I have him come spring....AWESOME!!! He is going to be a true contender!
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