Shining Stars

Everyone on our Pony Cousins horsey trip was a shining star in how they handled their mounts and rode the trails and arena events. Despite cooler temps and windy weather, the ponies were surprisingly on their best behavior~ except for that Yellow boy, on one particular ride- he was a bad pony and for that he got a timeout and a workout to put him in the right frame of mind. But oh goodness, Saddle Mountain Rider looks great on this handsome golden boy, doesn't she?



Paint Girl will share the tale of her battle to retain her crown as Rodeo Queen. Her little speckled mare galloped her hiney around those barrels and poles.... ironically, this little Pinto mare was originally purchased as a yearling by her previous owners to be a gaming horse, but was never trained to be one~ only to find her true calling later in life, I believe!



Cousin E got to ride Joey, the gentle giant. The first time she brought him to the hitching post, without his corral mates, I got an eye opening regarding the massive size and strength of a draft horse. He was anxious and not happy to be alone (as most rental horses tend to be a bit herd bound.) Joey was pulling on the lead rope as E was trying to tie him, about knocking her down. I suggested we not tie him and just hold him at the post for fear he might pull the whole thing up out of the ground. And then he began to paw impatiently and it was like a dinosaur shaking the earth- after two swipes of his massive hooves and there were ditches next to the hitching post. But he was great under saddle. Saddle Mountain Rider rode him on the trails, too. He was slow and steady and happy to be the caboose of the group.



The Desert Rose has hardly done any arena riding on this little Tennessee Walker/Morgan mare, who is a young 5 years of age. She has been mostly a trail horse, through and through. We didn't know she had the spark in her to tightly turn those barrels the way she did! How did she do in her quest to be rodeo queen? You'll have to check out the Desert Rose's blog in the coming days to find out!



We all adored this P.O.A. mare, Katie. Horse Dreams found the perfect match in her. She was mellow and steady to handle on the ground and on the trails. Her only fault was sneaking up on other horsey's hineys, and she got a warning kick from Yellow which knicked her leg a little, but she was fine. I really loved her spotted coloring, of course! So did My Boy, I swear every time we walked by her his head did a double take!



My auntie, A Cowgirl's Grace has been learning to ride the King, a grand 25 year old Missouri Foxtrotter, also a trail horse deluxe. King is great on the trail but can be impatient to deal with on the ground and is very attached to Little Lady, suffering from pretty severe separation anxiety anytime L.L. was five feet out of his range. This posed some challenges both in the arena and on the trail, which my auntie dealt with amazingly well! She earned some silver spurs for dealing with the King! But isn't he a handsome boy? I just think he looks so regal! Oh, how fitting, since he's the King!



Cousin Jamie got to ride Jordan. Jordan was a rental, and previously had been a huntseat pony and was learning to neck rein. He was a nice pony to ride, and had some arena skills. She gamed him in our rodeo and he was a well-mannered boy and super sweet to work with on the ground. When Jamie was brushing him, he'd nod his head vigorously up and down, almost like a tic. She'd stop, and he'd stop. We could only guess that he was really enjoying that brushing session!



Dusty Devoe and her copper pony, Dusty, looked like a whole new team in the arena this year! All that work with the snaffle bit has paid off, Dusty is finally more broke in the bit and responding well. I am always amazed at how brilliant that pony glows, like a freshly minted copper penny or a shiny red Irish Setter!



Palomino Girl got to ride Okie, her Oklahoma State University 5 year old Quarter Horse gelding, in the gaming events this year. They were competing against Paint Girl/Brandy, and the Desert Rose/Little Lady for the title of rodeo queen. Okie has a nice long stride and a big heart. Here they are practicing the "champagne ride." Palomino Girl is smiling because on this year's trip she is not with foal-er, pregnant- so this year, she actually got to sip some of that champagne!



She Who Rides Many Ponies got to ride Blue. Blue is an older Arabian who appears to have been picked on a bit in the catch pen, due to his many knicks and scars. He was a sweet boy and great on the trails. He tried his best in the arena and I believe at one point I looked over and Betsy was loping him around! He flagged his tail in proud Arabian spirit whenever she rode him!



My Boy was so good on the trails this year. All of the trail riding Paint Girl and I have been doing this spring and summer has really paid off. When Paint Girl's mare got a little nervous on a trail ride and we had to switch up our order, My Boy even led the troops home! He didn't spook or hesitate at anything! Here we are doing the roping event during our trail course challenge. I have never thrown a rope from my horse, just swung it around him from the ground. He didn't flinch.....and I didn't rope the steer head either. As you can see, I was close, though!



So how did My Boy and I do during the rodeo events? This year, to break up the competition and give everyone a chance to compete for crowns no matter what their expertise, skill level, or comfort zone, we divided into walk, trot, and lope categories. My Boy and I participated in the trot category.

Our combined times in pole bending, barrel racing, and the keyhole events were good enough for us to win Rodeo Princess, for the trot group! I was so proud of my spotted boy! But watch out Rodeo Queen 2009! My Boy and I might be moving to that lope category next year. That could be interesting since going fast is not my horse's forte (unless he's running from me in the pasture when I go to catch him) but I think I'm up for the challenge!



P.S. Why isn't this princess wearing her tiara? Well, last year's princess forgot to bring it back, so I believe it's in the mail!