Hot Damn

Just as I was nearly convinced that Wassachusetts and I were destined to part ways,  things started to come back together again.  After a ride or two with my trainer's daughter, Wassachusetts started to become more confident in his approach to jumping and I started to dig deep and have more faith in my abilities as a rider - a GOOD rider - and began to trust Wassachusetts again.

On Sunday, we hopped a ride with a fellow boarder and headed to our first show since the spring.  Maybe it was the our renewed relationship with one another or maybe it was the ungodly heat and humidity, but neither Wassachusetts nor I were in the least bit nervous when we got to the show grounds.  I'm the first to admit that I am an anxious, high-strung type of person and Wassachusetts is...well, a young, sometimes feisty, off the track thoroughbred.  'Nuff said.

But this time around, you would have thought we were a seasoned horse show team.  The loud speaker, slamming Port-O-Potty doors and general horse show hubbub never phased us a bit.  My pulse stayed steady as we waited on deck to enter the ring and my heart didn't race when we approached our first fence.

After our first over fences class, the 90 plus degree weather got to me.  Bundled up in tall leather boots, a long-sleeved shirt that buttons at the neck, a show jacked and breeches made my body sweat like a 500 pound fat man in a sauna.  We sought shelter under some scraggly trees, but it was too late.  Sweat dripped from the tip of my nose and drizzled down my back.  Then, I started to get dizzy.

"Oh, great," I thought to myself.  "I'll be 'that girl who passed out at the horse show.' "  And who wants to be her?  Not me!

I took my helmet off to seek some relief and, in typical fashion, fellow boarders helped by carrying cold cups of water to those of us who were showing and holding horses or jackets in an effort to help us keep cool.  The horses were offered a bucked of water, which they gratefully slurped from to satiate their own thirst.  After what seemed like an eternity, each of us filtered back to the main ring to finish our second over fences class and then, at long last, completed the division with the under saddle class.

Wassachusetts was soft in the bridle and responsive to my aids in his over fences classes and wonderful in the hack. We left that day with a pink and a white ribbon (a very nice color combination, according to my excited 7-year old daughter, who promptly squirreled her prizes away).  Better than any prize was the feeling that Wassachusetts and I have conquered a difficult period in our training together and had a better than satisfactory day at a very hot horse show.