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These photos and video are from July 10th when the lovely Emily was giving beautiful Violet training in suppleness and softness. And you can see my red miss working hard! But this story is from October 2nd and I am writing on October 7th. Anyway, I got a case of the nerves at the show. During the first course, we were doing pretty good, but for whatever reason, I took a jump from a funky distance and lost my stirrup. I made it over the second jump without the stirrup, but couldn't regain it. So, I stopped the course, got my stirrup and then just finished up the final outside line! I was proud of myself because though I was a doofus on the course and Violet was bringing her best, I didn't get rattled. I just fixed where I'd left off!
Then in the second course, we had to do a roll back and I just didn't turn Violet properly and look with my eyes well enough and we took the one rollback a little wide, but still made it. And then in our final course which was the medals class, we had a doofus moment. The course consisted of a serpentine of jumps, followed by a rollback to a bending line and then an outside line. We did the serpentine of jumps with good energy, pivot, momentum and got every one of our leads, we did the rollback, and then as we were moving toward the bending line, I could feel Violet at three strides out tell me that she was uncertain and she was going to refuse. And all I did was sit up to be ready for her refusal. I didn't use my leg or voice aids at all. She refused and we had to go around and hit the jump again before completing the outside line. And even then I wasn't unhappy because I was proud of myself for being able to read her (even if I didn't correct or encourage her) and I was proud that I didn't get flustered. I just redid the jump and kept going.
So, anyway, we got a third and fourth for the first and third jumping classes, but we got a second in the one where we only had trouble going wide on the Swedish oxer. Then Violet was bright and energetic and soft for her Hunter Under Saddle, so she won that class. And then we took second in equitation! So, I was proud. In her only show of the year, she took 1 first, 2 seconds, 1 third and 1 fourth -- and she was trying to be a good solid show girl! She didn't shy at anything or give anything too much of a look. She brought it with dedication!!! I was so proud of her!