Waterloo - Schooling Day

Saumur loaded like a pro in the unfamiliar slant trailer. Sandy said he looked, figured out where his body needed to be, and was fine.

I drove my truck to work today, loaded with all the equipment plus hay. I bet I am the only VP in the automotive industry that shows up to work in a pickup loaded with hay!

As soon as I got to the stabling area I heard Saumur whinnying for me. He really seems to enjoy being there, he was alert but not nervous at all. I was putting my stuff away while Sandy was schooling Daughtry. What a good boy, the first show and he's handling it like a pro. Now wonder George called him "AARP Approved". He is one of these horses that are just so good natured and take everything in stride.

I walked Saumur on a long rein to the arenas and he was checking things out, not even spooking at the flower decorations (we had some interesting times with decorations before). Our schooling session went really well, mainly we worked on parts of the patterns, not a complete test, because once Saumur thinks he has it figured out he takes over. It was nice when some fellow competitors complimented me on how good Saumur looks and how well he works. One interesting question was: "Are you still going on trailrides with your upper level horse?" Well, this person obviously doesn't read my blog :-)

Key points to remember for tomorrow:
- SLOW down
- Saumur has enough 'go', now we have to make it light
- Finish the half passes, get him straight before the changes
- Relax my back (OK, how often does Sandy have to repeat this??)
- RELAX overall (ha!)

My goal for tomorrow is to do the best I can and not get rattled when things are not going as well as expected. I look at it as schooling for the 'big gig' in Traverse City two weeks from now.