2009 Spring Missouri Fox Trotter Show has come and gone. I've attended the Celebration for the last two years to watch my horses. June 2009 is the first time I've showed at Ava since 2000.  A lot has changed and gotten really better since way back then. That year was the first year for the Reining Competition and I rode Velvet.<p>

Incidentially, Nichole Copple and Velvet won Reserve High Point Youth Versatility with tons of blue ribbons. <P>

Nova and I were entered in the Open Events with all the really cool people..my heros.  Nova is fabulous. We actually placed in all the four events that we entered.  When we were on, we were fabulous.  When we didn't communicate, we still looked great!  <p>

We had trouble with our leads. That's it!  We did great in everything else.  Oh, I forgot.  Nova cantered when the judge called for flat foot walk or fox trot.  I need to translate English to her a little bit better.  Canter...Flat Foot Walk...they sound so much alike!

JR and Jennifer Vaught did great!  They placed 3rd in the Open Versatility.  Diva and Tony did great too.  It was a horse heaven for me to see Diva, Velvet and JR doing so well...and it was heaven to ride Nova!<p>

2009 Spring Missouri Fox Trotter Show has come and gone. I've attended the Celebration for the last two years to watch my horses. June 2009 is the first time I've showed at Ava since 2000.  A lot has changed and gotten really better since way back then. That year was the first year for the Reining Competition and I rode Velvet.

Incidentially, Nichole Copple and Velvet won Reserve High Point Youth Versatility with tons of blue ribbons.

Nova and I were entered in the Open Events with all the really cool people..my heros.  Nova is fabulous. We actually placed in all the four events that we entered.  When we were on, we were fabulous.  When we didn't communicate, we still looked great!  <p>

We had trouble with our leads. That's it!  We did great in everything else.  Oh, I forgot.  Nova cantered when the judge called for flat foot walk or fox trot.  I need to translate English to her a little bit better.  Canter...Flat Foot Walk...they sound so much alike!

JR and Jennifer Vaught did great!  They placed 3rd in the Open Versatility.  Diva and Tony did great too.  It was a horse heaven for me to see Diva, Velvet and JR doing so well...and it was heaven to ride Nova!<p>

2009 Spring Missouri Fox Trotter Show has come and gone. I've attended the Celebration for the last two years to watch my horses. June 2009 is the first time I've showed at Ava since 2000.  A lot has changed and gotten really better since way back then. That year was the first year for the Reining Competition and I rode Velvet.

Incidentially, Nichole Copple and Velvet won Reserve High Point Youth Versatility with tons of blue ribbons.

Nova and I were entered in the Open Events with all the really cool people..my heros.  Nova is fabulous. We actually placed in all the four events that we entered.  When we were on, we were fabulous.  When we didn't communicate, we still looked great!  <p>

We had trouble with our leads. That's it!  We did great in everything else.  Oh, I forgot.  Nova cantered when the judge called for flat foot walk or fox trot.  I need to translate English to her a little bit better.  Canter...Flat Foot Walk...they sound so much alike!

JR and Jennifer Vaught did great!  They placed 3rd in the Open Versatility.  Diva and Tony did great too.  It was a horse heaven for me to see Diva, Velvet and JR doing so well...and it was heaven to ride Nova!<p>

2009 Spring Missouri Fox Trotter Show has come and gone. I've attended the Celebration for the last two years to watch my horses. June 2009 is the first time I've showed at Ava since 2000.  A lot has changed and gotten really better since way back then. That year was the first year for the Reining Competition and I rode Velvet.

Incidentially, Nichole Copple and Velvet won Reserve High Point Youth Versatility with tons of blue ribbons.

Nova and I were entered in the Open Events with all the really cool people..my heros.  Nova is fabulous. We actually placed in all the four events that we entered.  When we were on, we were fabulous.  When we didn't communicate, we still looked great! 

We had trouble with our leads. That's it!  We did great in everything else.  Oh, I forgot.  Nova cantered when the judge called for flat foot walk or fox trot.  I need to translate English to her a little bit better.  Canter...Flat Foot Walk...they sound so much alike!

JR and Jennifer Vaught did great!  They placed 3rd in the Open Versatility.  Diva and Tony did great too.  It was a horse heaven for me to see Diva, Velvet and JR doing so well...and it was heaven to ride Nova!

2009 Spring Missouri Fox Trotter Show has come and gone. I've attended the Celebration for the last two years to watch my horses. June 2009 is the first time I've showed at Ava since 2000.  A lot has changed and gotten really better since way back then. That year was the first year for the Reining Competition and I rode Velvet.

Incidentially, Nichole Copple and Velvet won Reserve High Point Youth Versatility with tons of blue ribbons.

Nova and I were entered in the Open Events with all the really cool people..my heros.  Nova is fabulous. We actually placed in all the four events that we entered.  When we were on, we were fabulous.  When we didn't communicate, we still looked great! 

We had trouble with our leads. That's it!  We did great in everything else.  Oh, I forgot.  Nova cantered when the judge called for flat foot walk or fox trot.  I need to translate English to her a little bit better.  Canter...Flat Foot Walk...they sound so much alike!

JR and Jennifer Vaught did great!  They placed 3rd in the Open Versatility.  Diva and Tony did great too.  It was a horse heaven for me to see Diva, Velvet and JR doing so well...and it was heaven to ride Nova!

We let people come and fish in our lake.  We don't fish in our lake, we figure somebody should. 

A nice young fisherman and his girlfriend found us. They are such nice people. We gave them permission to come and fish. The young man was here today when I got home from work.  I asked him where husband Terry was and he was able to tell me whose truck Terry got into and left.  ahaaaa

Then the young man came with me as I walked to the barn to feed Nova and Powder.  This is his story:

"I didn't realize that the pasture for the horses connected with the other side of the lake.  I didn't know that the horses could come over to the lake.  I went around the lake with my tackle box and was fishing away on the far side. The horses appeared close by.  I was scared because I thought the young horse was the foal of the larger horse and maybe she would attack me if I tried to touch the young horse. 

I watched them approach my tackle box.  They nudged it and then the big one gave it a big push and rolled it over. It clattered.  Both horses flew around for a while. I was a little more afraid. They calmed down and came back to the tackle box. Both the horses  took turns kicking my tackle box.  My stuff went flying everywhere!  I didn't know what to do.  Finally, they got tired of kicking my tackle box and went off to eat grass.  I hustled over to my tackle box and spent quite a while picking all the stuff up.

I resumed fishing with my tackle box close besides me.  Shortly, I felt something push me on my back!  I turned around and there were both horses standing right behind me.  I petted the bigger horse.  I tried to fish again, but the bigger horse kept coming close to me. I discovered that I could pet both of them.  I finally had to leave the pasture and fish where they couldn't go.  They wouldn't leave me alone.

What awesome horses they are!"

We had a fox trotter 4 hour Reining and Western Horsemanship Clinic today with Jennifer and Tony Vaught.

After doing lead changes, attempted flying changes, roll backs, leg yields across the arena, stops, backing as well as practicing her flat foot and fox trot, she said enough...and hung up her HAT

Nova and I participated in the Kansas City Regional Fox Trotter Horse Club's spring show on a glorious Saturday.

We entered five events and got ribbons in three.

Nova and I got first in the trail class only because we made the least mistakes. Everyone that participated blew the gate. That's the gate that rider has to open, horse has to go thru and rider has to close the gate.  We did all that, but sadly had to let go of the gate several times when Nova thought the gate wasn't safe enough for me to touch it and scooted away. I was glad that she was thinking about my safety.

We did do the mail box perfectly.  We clomped over the poles...Nova wanted to touch the logs with her hooves to seek out just what they felt like.  We backed thru the three cones fairly well, just touching one...not knocking it down.

Nova went over the bridge in a superior manner and then stopped and backed like the pro she is.

Nova has a wonderful slow and rolling canter. We placed 2nd in Fox Trot Open -Will Canter.

We got third in Western Pleasure.

We were grateful to get the ribbons, grateful to the young handsome judge- Lane Patterson, grateful to all the people that organized the show and the young good looking announcer- Andy Odor.

We were grateful that the day ended with a splendid outing.

Oh wait, the drive home was especially splendid as I was stopped by the police.  I turned into a horse shopping place, Feldman's, and noticed a police car following me with flashing lights.  My rear trailer tack door is hard to get shut and often comes swinging open as I travel down the road.  That's what I thought had happened.  I stopped the truck and leaped out on my way to the door. I noticed that there were two police cars parked behind the trailer.  What the heck!  The policeman - about 14 years old - held up a hand and stopped me.  I tried again to go forward again.  He stopped me again.  I tried to ask him what was wrong, but he was talking on his remote speaker device. 

So, I decided that maybe it wasn't the trailer door that was open. Then I tried to open the rear door of my truck and that made him nervous again.  He kept telling me to get me back into my truck.  How silly was that.  I had to find my purse with the license.  He finally got the point across that I might be dangerous and had to get into my truck.  I flinched back and leaned on my seat.  That was when he asked me if I had any weapons. I got into the truck. 

Finally he told me that my license plate appeared to be expired.  NO WAY!  We marched together to the front of the truck and stared at the 2008 license plate.  "Huh", thought I.

I got back into the truck.  I ask permission to get out of the truck and get my purse on the passenger side floor.  I gave him my driver's license as we were marching back to the driver's side.  Then I had to find my insurance card.  I had all my cards-duplicates for 2006, 2007 and 2008.  We looked at all of them. Finally as he was walking away, I looked in the new place that I now keep the insurance card and sang out that I had the card.  I got out again.

Again he told me to get back in the truck and wait.  This time I obeyed, but I kept the door open. After all, I was going shopping at Feldman's when this was over.

The two police cars pulled away and I went into Feldmans. My "police event" had attracted a lot of attention from fellow Feldman shoppers. They couldn't believe that I had two police cars all that time for an expired plate.  I told them that I had looked dangerous.  We all whooped.

I probably did look dangerous with fly away hair, reddish sunburned face and dirt stained rumpled show clothes. I probably was somewhat dehydrated as I just really didn't want to get back into the truck! I believe that the policeman was a young trainee and that the 2nd police support was the mentor.

Today as I was cleaning out the truck, I found the 2009 license plate buried under about a year of accumulated stuff. There it WAS! Good GAD.

Dearest friends,

It came over me again-the need to show off.

Larry Whitesell is doing a clinic at Pine Dell Farm this three day weekend.  I came to Pine Dell to ride Nova tonight.  I got to ride with good friends, Hope and Edna.

I had just finished all my ground games and got on.  In walks Dana-a gaited horse trainer who specializes in Paso Finos, and Larry Whitesell. They sat down in the viewing area and watched us.

After I realized that Larry Whitesell was watching me, my show-off tendancies took off.  I really can't help myself.  Thankfully, I didn't ask him what he thought of me and Nova and he didn't volunteer to tell me.  whew!  I still have my dreams intact of doing splendid.

Nova and I spun around that arena doing warm up techniques that Larry teaches.  We proceeded to fox trot and flat foot walk around that arena looking really cool...most of the time.  I thought we were "HOT"!

We did side passing to and from the wall. We cantered diagonally across the arena. We did drop to a trot lead changes. We did our reining horse spin in slow motion. We stopped on a dime and backed beautifully.

Then I got off and set up barrels to jump over.  Oh wait, Nova had not jumped over the barrels during our ground games.  I got off and had her jump on-line. Good thing I didn't jump her over the barrels as she would have launched me into Larry Whitesell's lap. 

After her jumps got good enough that I thought I could ride the jump, I did! I sceamed just a little bit and Hope said she saw a little daylight between me and the saddle.  We did another jumping pass over the barrels and this time it was much smoother.

I have now jumped the big barrels on Nova and lived to tell about it!

In between all this a couple of participants in this weekend's clinic showed up.  They have my name and number so I can refer them to wondrous fox trotters like Nova and wondrous trainers in natural horsemanship!

I chatted with Dana about the Paso Fino breed.  She stated that there are still breeders out there that have kept the wonderful foundation bloodlines and are not breeding for those tight bunched up Paso Finos.  She started with Pasos back in the day before the show horse people started breeding those little tight sewing machine horses. 

We had a fabulous night of showing off.  Nova was a tired little showing-off horse when we got done tonight!  I feel great!

Trail Rides - If you live thru them - trail rides are great.  "My horse and I just trail ride."  I love it when people tell me that.  It's high up there the most dangerous thing you can do with horses!

So, Nova and I are on our 4th trail ride and we are in the almost Ozarks.  It's hilly and rocky, but not quite as hilly or rocky as the real Ozarks.  We've got two unpredictable horse- people and six solid horses and rider combinations.  Caitlyn and Velvet were on the ride along with my former horse, JR.

My goal is to try to stay away from the unpredictable horse and ride combinations and live thru the ride.

We're going along and there was this big thrashing noise behind us and some muttered words.  I tensed all up expecting Nova to get excited.  She didn't get excited.  I got all bracy and tensed up for nothing.  We were on a narrow trail with close by trees and it was difficult to get turned around immediately to see what was going on.

This is a solid well used trail.  Lurking under the trail all this time was a slightly buried plain wire fence.  The last horse had shoes on and managed to hook the fence between his shoe and his hoof.  As the horse was jerking his foot to get it loose, the fence was pulled out of its hiding place.  By the time I got turned around, the horse had pulled off the shoe and got free of the fence.  We were all stunned to see that fence.  We had all just rode over it. It wasn't visible then.  Thank goodness the horse that got caught wasn't one of the freaky horses.  Our experienced rider is in his 70's with an experienced horse.  GAD

I was quite proud of Nova and all the other horses.  That could have been a disaster.  Thank the lucky stars that it happened to the person and horse that could handle it.

We went up hills, down hills and crossed wide creeks.  Nova and I were going along a nice flat place and all of a sudden, I got pitched forward.  I turned around and one of the freaky horse riders told me that Nova had kicked at his horse with both back legs.  I was surprised at this. There was no contact and I didn't even realize that she had kicked.  I told him that I had not heard his horse behind us.  He said that his horse was coming along, stumbled forward and touched Nova's tail.  Amazing, I thought.  Maybe I'm going deaf.

Later, it occured to me to wonder if a two legged back kick is the same as a buck?  Or, it could be a half buck.Since I was nice and relaxed, I stayed nicely in the saddle.

As we were traveling along, someone asked me about my bumper spur.  He wondered if I had put my bumper spurs on backward.  I looked down at my boot and there was my bumper spur pointed out.  I could have helped a horse standing next to me sidepass!

Now this was terribly embarrasing.  I was with people that I highly look up to.  I am riding with a multiple world grandchampion who is in the Hall of Fame - and her husband.  Do you think I wanted them to see my inside out bumper spur?  It turns out I have been riding with my bumper spur on upside down all morning in the arena and on the trail ride.

If you ride with your pretty bumper spur on the outside of your boot, it's fashion.  It makes a statement that you don't need the spur, it's just there for great looks.  I am not a dork.

yeah!