Back In the Show Pen
Coats, gloves, blankets, red noses, and visible breath........it was FREEZING at the horse show this weekend!!
But ya know what? I was not only at a horse show, I was IN the pen!! Crazy times, and stomach flipping a few times. No, I wasn't showing. I'm not anywhere near that point, but I was back in the pen.
I've been kicking around the idea of ring stewarding professionally and Heart of America Horse Association offered me the chance to shadow a highly skilled, respected ring steward and I jumped at the chance. I appreciate the opportunity so much!
I was once again surrounded by the aroma of alfalfa, shavings, hairspray, and Pepi. I breathed in deeply, it was like a trip back in time.
There were palominos, and buckskins, and duns, oh my! There were roans and grays, and paints, and lots of red horses, too!
Freezing, it was FREEZING!!! There was stomping, kicking, head shaking, pinned ears, and sometimes the horses were doing that, too 😉........but mostly there were smiles, everyone was excited about kicking off the season.
There were countless steps taken, hours sitting, thousands of papers, forms, meals of cold food because there was no time to stop, but the food at Lucky J is great, regardless. There were innumerable tales of horse shows past, and talk of upcoming events. There was little sleep, but copious amounts of coffee and hot chocolate in an effort to be warm enough to function. 😁 There might have been a race to get to stand in the one sun spot in the arena.
The music was a cool eclectic mix, and there seemed to constantly be five hats bopping in time to the music.
I was blessed to get to work with such a wonderful, expert team; the ring stewards Bill Wright and Chris Blakey, who were great at sharing tips, and showing me the ropes.
And the judges were amazing! So much fun, and highly regarded! I'd jump at the chance to work with Clint Fullerton and Jan Larsen again!! They were so gracious, allowing me to pick their brains about many different equine related topics. I ab-so-freakin-lutely loved talking with them, and learning from them!!
Thank you Tina Dawson for setting this up!!
March 2023
MaryAnn Ensz
WhyCowgirlsCuss.com
