AUGUST 20-22, 2010; Guthrie, OK

[-- SHOW MONGER]

"Spring Fling"
Guthrie, OK
Issue 1.

Have you ever wished you could see everything that went on at the horse show? Well, fortunately for you, that's my job. I see every little thing that happens in the ring and outside of the ring. Unlike the schooling show held earlier this month, the Spring Fling was definitely a more enjoyable one. It was nice to get out of my truck and not be completely drenched by rain, I personally think the first horse show of the year should have been held here, because unlike the other show it was completely indoors. Everyone seemed to be grinning as they walked around the show grounds, even with the surprisingly warm weather. I guess it's time to break out the sunscreen and tank tops, these summer shows are going to be hot ones.

DRESSAGE

INTRO A&B

I was surprised when this class had very few riders competing in it, but some of the young horses in this class were simply divine. Nova Bente took home the blue ribbon this time, on her simply darling little bay by the name of Switchblade. I think we all knew the moment we saw them trot down the center line that it was going to be a good test. Following close behind her was Emma White riding her three year old, but they didn't seem to have it today, but pulled it together enough in their test to take home second.

TRAINING LEVEL

Who would have thought that we would see miss Kaitlyn McHail in the Dressage ring once again, and taking home a blue ribbon? Trust me, it shocked me too. But then again, that's what happens when you're the only one in your class.

FIRST LEVEL

I don't think anyone was surprised when the blue ribbon was handed to new comer Adrianne Hill on Fourth Dimension. Her mount moved effortlessly as she rode around the arena. Gabriel Werth also had an impressive test on Jericho, and he managed to walk away with a blue ribbon. Emily Stewart wasn't far behind him on her new school master, Wallabee. Her sister, Heather Stewart also made an impressive performance but just didn't have what it took to pin the ribbons.

SECOND LEVEL

By the time the Second level tests came around, I think we were all tired, hot and ready to go home for the day. But the moment Jayden Ray saluted and exited the ring on a stunning chestnut, I think we all changed our minds. I think we all know from the start that Jayden and his mount Dante Alighieri were going to take the blue ribbon. There weren't any that really stuck out with me until the end, I think the whole show ground gathered around the dressage arena to watch Olympian Carlee Peters on a horse named Neveah, the pair would have stolen the blue ribbon from Jayden if they hadn't made a small error during their shoulder in.

THIRD LEVEL

You'd never think that Vince Black and his drool worthy gray mare, Adeline would be a successful pair in the dressage ring- but they seemed to show us otherwise today. The mare was soft and responsive, and Vince sat up there and made her look like a complete dream to ride (which I don't doubt she is!). Another new member to the Crossfire show team seemed to place a step behind him, Selena Landon on another stunning gray called Unexpected Twist. They had flawless transitions, and Selena rode poised with quiet hands and solid seat. It's not often that I say it, but I was surprised that she didn't take the blue ribbon. Nova Bente made another appearance today on one of my favorite horses, Malach De Zoin. Nova walked away with a well earned third place ribbon. Vanessa Saunders and Dreamer had another impressive round, and just barely managed to scrap up the fourth place ribbon.

FOURTH LEVEL

I missed most of the fourth level rounds, but my sources tell me there wasn't anything terribly exciting that happened. I came back just in time with an iced latte in hand to watch Carlee Peters on Dekoder make an outstanding performance. It's easy to see how the older stallion qualified for the Olympics, but personally I liked her other stallion better. The last round took second place, Bryana Kohl on First Impression tried hard to take the blue, but they just didn't have the same grace and ease that Carlee had two rounds earlier.

PRIX ST. GEORGES - GRAND PRIX

Once again I felt trapped as the everyone crowded around to watch Carlee Peters on Finesse. I kid you not, everyone was dead quiet as the pair made their way around. It was definitely a round that had to be watched, as Finesse piaffed effortlessly I think we all knew that no one else stood a chance. Allison Fyfe on Onatello pulled a remarkable second place, after a rough warm up I was shocked to see these two pull it together that well. Elana Thompson just barely pulled up fourth place with Velocity, the pair just didn't seem to be up to their usual standards. But I have to say, that mare is quite the looker, even when she's spooking rather than halting.

HUNTERS

PONY HUNTER

I wasn't too thrilled at the idea of watching the Pony hunters, I mean you can only watch little girls canter around on their broke to death ponies so many times. But the moment I saw Faith Morris and Danielle Marks warming up in the same arena, I knew shit was about to get interesting. I wondered if we were going to have another USET Pony Final incident all over again, but the moment I watched Danielle trot in to the ring I knew she meant business this time around. Coming out with a blue ribbon in hand, Danielle Marks and Kasanova reminded us that they wouldn't go down without a fight. Following close behind in second place was Faith Morris on her adorable chestnut pony, Toy Soldier. Just when we thought we had seen the end of the Pony Hunters, once again Faith Morris came in to the ring and put in a third place round on a divine little black pony by the name of Mi Amor. Following closely behind in fourth place was Laura Seckler on her new pony, Midnight Frost. Some other mentionable rounds had to be Cassidy Hunter and Shelley Price. I thought Shelley had the blue, but a surprise stop at the second to last fence seemed to knock them out of the ribbons.

BABY GREEN HUNTER

Faith Morris took the blue right away on Toy Soldier once more. The chestnut pony cantered around and snapped up his little knees as tight as he could over every fence. And once again, she also took second place on her other pony, Mi Amour. That pony has an amazing back end, and with Faith in a perfect two point over every fence I couldn't help but to be impressed. I swear, if that pony was a horse it would be doing the grand prix effortlessly. The other rounds seemed to be a bit of a gong show, with many horses spooking and stopping at the same fence. Lauren Wellan pulled up a third place even with a missed lead change, just to show how horrifying the other rounds had been.

PRE-GREEN HUNTER

I was a bit frightened to see Faith Morris on a pony in the 3'3" division. But the moment they jumped in over the first fence, all those fears had disappeared. This girl has way too many nice horses for her own good, I really think she should give one to me. It wasn't a surprise that the two were going to win, especially as Blaise Garcia rode Grace Moselle's fire breathing dragon, I mean, bay mare Time Square in the ring. Unlike Grace, it seems like her boyfriend had a bit more luck and had less of a rodeo performance than she had last horse show. Considering he didn't fall off and take out a jump, I would say he did a better job, even if I was a bit afraid for his life. I use to want to take this horse home in my pocket, but I definitely have changed my mind after seeing these last two shows.

PRE CHILDRENS/ADULT HUNTER

It almost seemed like Danielle Marks was a bit more relaxed during this class, and I have a feeling it has nothing to do with nerves. Perhaps it was because Faith wasn't anywhere in sight? But Danielle had another solid round on Kasanova, I've seen these two go around for years and the mare never fails to her job to the best of her ability. Amanda Carlyle on her pony Divine Touch followed behind Danielle with a red ribbon in hand. Just when I wanted to leave and go get a bottle of water, my favorite horse, Cabano came trotting in to the ring with his new leaser, Hailey Montgomery. Hailey rode him well enough for a fourth place ribbon, but she didn't perform to her usual standards.

CHILDREN'S/ADULT HUNTER

I had no idea who Everett Carter was, but as he rode his horse Nostradamus Prophecy around the ring I was impressed with how well the horse jumped and how easy he made it look. He didn't interfere at all and let the horse just do its job, it's nice to see some of the hunter riders that don't throw themselves on their horses necks. Salem Tansen and her flashy mount, Tag You're It came in second place. It was an almost flawless round until she rode in to the last line and just didn't have enough canter to get down on stride and had to add. Coming in third, and actually last was Megan Derocher on Poison Promise, the two stopped out at the first fence and ruined any other hope of placing higher. I personally don't even think she should have gotten a ribbon considering she didn't even get around the course.

[/color]

WORKING HUNTER

It seemed like after her small error in the first course that Salem Tansen and Tag You're It covered it up for a perfect round that took a well earned first place ribbon home. Everett Carter had another solid round, but just didn't seem to have the same amount of presence and grace that Salem did. Even though the bay didn't seem to be phased by a single fence in the arena, it just wasn't enough to snatch up the blue ribbon once more. Once again, Megan Derocher brought Poison Promise back to the ring and managed to get around the course this time, but needless to say it wasn't a pretty round. Once again she walked out with a third placed ribbon.

OPEN HUNTER

Everett Carter had another blue ribbon on his hands again. His horse, The Great Gatsby are quite the pair. The stallion had a ton of chrome, and moves effortlessly. I could tell from the moment that he picked up canter that these two were going to be quite the pair to beat, and I wouldn't doubt that they're going to hold their own this season. I wouldn't mind taking his horse home in my pocket either, or seeing him without a helmet on, because he looks pretty fine from where I was sitting. Faith Morris made another appearance on a horse that I haven't seen before named King Nothing. I won't lie, I couldn't actually take her seriously on that horse until I saw him jump. I seriously wish my horse jumped like that, and it wasn't a shock when they came in second place. Following closely after Faith in third place was our favorite should-have-been-maclay-winner-but-failed, Kaitlyn McHail on Velasco. As much as I hate to admit it, she looked great as they cantered around and her horse jumped effortlessly. I hear she's riding with Blaise Garcia now, so we'll see how long she lasts, maybe, just maybe she will actually get out of the 3'6 ring? I was disappointed by the performance from Danielle Marks on her stunning bay September Lost. She just didn't seem to be able to get it together with a couple of bad distances, it wasn't her best trip around needless to say.

REGULAR HUNTER

Faith Morris on King Nothing managed to leave me speechless once again. She had an almost flawless round that definitely deserved the blue ribbon that she received. Salem Tansen on Alakazam had a beautiful round, but a deep distance to an oxer seemed to cost them the blue ribbon. Faith Morris made another appearance in the Regular hunter class, this time she was riding a big bay named Carnegie. Her ride on King Nothing definitely had been a more memorable round, but it still seemed like people watching couldn't take their eyes off this pair. Sasha Cuttinghan and her Hanoverian gelding, Maestro fought hard for a fourth place win.

JUMPERS

WELCOME JUMPER

I'd really like it if horse shows would start at like ten rather than eight, because I was at the show bright and early at seven ready to hear any before show drama. Unfortunately, nothing really happened, but I knew the day would be full of drama. The Welcome Jumper was never really my favorite class to watch, but the moment I saw Faith Morris and a very distraught Danielle Marks riding around I knew it was going to be worth it. Once again Faith Morris came out on top on Toy Soldier. Danielle Marks seemed to be a bit on auto piloted once more, sitting there tense and rigid. Lucky for her, Kasanova clocked around like the saint she is. Faith Morris probably would have placed above Danielle Marks with Mi Amour, but a surprise rail at the last fence knocked her down to third.

[/color]

LOW JUMPER

Danielle Marks managed to get her shit together with her little pony Kasanova, the two got a fast time and walked out with a blue ribbon. But then, it wasn't a surprise with the only other person in her division being Blaise Garcia riding Time Square. Our favorite Olympian seemed to be having a bit of an easier ride from the fire breathing mare, but it still wasn't one of the mares better rounds. I was surprised when Shelley Price pulled out of the jumper class, I think she would have given miss Marks a ride for her money.

[/color]

CHILDREN'S/ADULT JUMPER

By the time the C/A jumpers were starting quite a few people had actually packed up their horses and gone home because of the heat. I was quite tempted to go home myself, but I knew that it was bound to get exciting once more when the jumps got higher. Kaitlyn McHail on Velasco clocked around for a first place, followed by Danielle Marks who put in a better performance on September Lost, but it still wasn't good enough.

[/color]

JUNIOR/AMATEUR JUMPER

Everett Carter had another mentionable round on a horse named The Bride Wore Black, and he just barely scraped first place by a couple of seconds. I have no idea where this kid came from, but holy crap, can he ever ride! I'm seriously considering getting one of my sources to do a background check, because no one has ever seen him on the circuit before and riders like him just don't fall out of the sky. Kaitlyn McHail seemed to get her game up at the new competition, but with a wide turn to the last fence she just didn't cut off the seconds she needed to take home the blue ribbon. We were all holding our breath when Danielle Marks was doing her round, but a rail early in the class prevented her from taking home anything higher than a third. Julia White managed a fourth place, it was a good round but with two rails down you can't expect to place any higher.

[/color]

MODIFIED JUMPER

Olympian Blaise Garcia had a bit of a difficult warm up on the energetic mare by the name of Amityville. But the two managed to get around on top form, putting Blaise on top once more with a blue ribbon. Everett Carter and The Bride Wore Black were right behind him in second place, who once again had another great round. Little Danielle Marks was galloping around on a big gray by the name of Warwick. Seriously, honey, if Grace is screaming at you to slow down then you really should listen before you break your neck. Salem Tansen was having a great round until the fifth fence was in a tricky triple combination and she had a rail coming out.

[/color]

MODIFIED SPEED JUMPER

The Modified seemed to be the biggest class of the day, it had more competitors than the Grand Prix. Faith Morris on King Nothing pulled up an impressive first, even after the jump off. The second place winner caught me by surprise, I never thought I'd see Carlee Peters riding in the jumper ring. Neveah seemed to be jumping great, I can definitely see a grand prix horse in the making. The Olympic duo Freeze Frame and Blaise Garcia seemed to sit at a comfortable third place. With the tough competition, Everett Carter and The Bride Wore Black pulled up a fourth place. Salem Tansen and Inocencio seemed to be having an off day, but nevertheless came in fifth place. After a great round on Amityville earlier, I was sad to see when Blaise Garcia just managed to scrape a sixth place on the mare.

[/color]

OPEN JUMPER

Even before the first rider went in to the ring, I was already on my toes. Vince Black on Adeline pulled an impressive first place. Adeline is a classy jumper who snaps her knees up and clears everything with room to spare. Blaise Garcia riding Clockwork were given a run for their money, and pulled out a second place ribbon. I was almost sure that he was going to have a rail, but his horse jumped up even higher and powered over it with ease. For her first time in the Open Jumper (or that I've seen at least) Selena Landon had an amazing round on Unexpected Twist. She had some hard competition, and her horse is an amazing jumper. I'm half tempted to steal this horse, such a cute mover and a great jumper! Gabriel Werth on Jericho didn't have one of their best rounds, but by the end it looked like he seemed to have it back together for fourth place. I was sorely disappointed when Nova Bente and Malach De Zion had a rail and a time fault that put them in to sixth place. Of course, Vince didn't seem to let Nova hear the end of the fact he placed higher.

[/color]

GRAND PRIX

I don't think anyone was too surprised when Blaise Garcia and Clockwork had a fast, clear round which left him with cash in his pocket. Not that he really needs anymore cash though, I've heard that he's loaded, which I don't doubt considering he got bronze in the Olympics. After the rail in the Open jumper, Nova Bente and Malach De Zion seemed to really pick it up. Their round was simply amazing, everyone was on their toes as they pair came around the to the last jump. She was seriously close to having that blue ribbon, off by a single second. Gabriel Werth and Jericho once again had a mediocer performance, but were solid enough to sit in third place. I think Vince's earlier victory in the Open Jumper got in to his head, after two rails and time faults it made it quite evident that he thought he was going to be able to get off easy this time around. Vince Black and Adeline pulled up a fourth place. I wonder who's laughing now, Vince?

[/color]

WESTERN

It seems like the Western doesn't quite have as much going on as the other divisions had. It was a quick and easy day for me, which was nice compared to the long three days I had beforehand. Benjamin Hadley had a quick and effortless run on his seasoned rodeo horse HD Dakota Sunrise. And only seconds behind him came Brittanie Crummet on her gorgeous paint, Russian Roulette.

REINING/TRAIL/2,500 BARREL RACE

All three of these classes were won by Benjamin Hadley on his horse HD Shakin' It Up. I couldn't help but to notice the handsome cowboy eying up Gabriel Werth the whole horse show. I mean, I don't blame him, we all do- but Gabe didn't seem to be too impressed by it.

WESTERN PLEASURE

Never in my life have I seen a horse versatile enough to compete in both the hunters and western pleasure. I almost fell out of my seat when I saw Everett Carter on The Great Gatsby jogging around the ring and pulling up an impressive first place. Benjamin Hadley came behind him on HD Shakin' It Up, both riders seemed quite pleased with their horses.

INDIVIDUAL & TEAM ROPING

Crossfire Farms new Western trainer Travis Loveland seemed to be making an appearance on his horse Undeniably You. Him and his roping partner, Tory Walker didn't seem to hang around the show very long. After Tory Walker won in the individual roping class, the two were long gone before anyone could even congratulate them.

I hope to see you all next show. Hope, ha! Who am I kidding? I will be seeing you all at the next horse show. I see and hear every single little thing that happens, keep that in mind when you're chatting by the warm up ring. Until next time my gossip hungry friends,

[/size] [/center]

SHOW MONGER[/blockquote]

[nova]

Hah, Switchblade? Simply darling? You're far too kind and naive, Show Monger. You can have him if you really love him! He's going for a great price, FREE! Haha.