Post by -- SHOW MONGER on Sept 5, 2010 22:48:42 GMT -8
"Spring Series Part Two"
Katy, TX
Issue 3.
Katy, TX
Issue 3.
Ah, Katy. Once again I found myself walking around the familiar show grounds, but this time instead of wearing three coats I had shorts and a tank top on. Can you say hot? At the smoking 100F, I was quite surprised from the drastic change in weather from the last show. As much as I wanted just to sit in my air conditioned hotel room, I dragged myself out in the the heat wearing one of those ridiculous sun hats that everyone seemed to be wearing.
DRESSAGE
$5000 LOWER CLASSIC DRESSAGE
Little miss Kaitlyn McHail seemed to shock the crowd on her horse, Velasco as they pinned first in the lower dressage classic. I was seriously shocked at how soft and supple he was, and the fact Kaitlyn actually came first in a class with just more than her. In second place was Iona Donaldson on Bonnie Prince Charlie, the little black was light and responsive throughout the whole test. Carlee Peters on Neveah had a good third place round, I wonder how Carlee feels being beat by Kaitlyn? Enya Driscoll on American Graffiti were close behind Carlee, coming in with a fourth place ride. Adrianna Hill on her leased horse, Fourth Dimension didn't seem to be up to their usual standards, but managed to come off with a fifth place round. Six place went to Lucy Scullvanger on her lovely mare Miss Amelia Windsor. It seemed like the seventh place winner, Alaska Black didn't seem up to her usual standards. Ladybird Ladybird ridden by Enya Driscoll had a nice round, but just didn't seem to catch the judges eye as they only pinned at eighth. Jayden Ray on Dante Alighieri weren't up to their usual standards either, but then again who would be in this heat? The pair struggled to get around to hit ninth. Contradanza ridden by Crystal Greene would have had a stellar round in training, but with the more advanced movements these two just couldn't keep up. I couldn't help but to laugh as Grace Moselle on MT Arctic Low walked in once more, I thought that after her last test she would have learned better. The two barely picked it up, coming to second to last (I swear Carlee and Blaise both looked very amused). And last, but not least was Winter Van Der Westerhuyzen on BSB Wilkommen Auf Mysterium didn't have a good round at all, the horse just didn't seem to want to perform up to their usual standards today. I wouldn't be too impressed if I had to work in this heat either.
$15000 HIGHER CLASSIC DRESSAGE
Nikoletta Mann on A Perfect Sonnet had a great test, and it definitely showed as they walked out with the blue ribbon and the highest score of the day. Alaska Black seemed to redeem herself on her horse, Chelsea Dagger as the two came in second place. In third place was my favorite stallion, Malach de Zion ridden by Nova. Winter Van Der Westerhuyzen and BSB Wilkommen Auf Mysterium definitely improved in this class, the two stepped their game up and were able to gather up a well deserved fourth place ribbon. Jericho and handsome Gabriel Werth made their way around for a fifth place round. Crystal Greene made an appearance once more, this time riding Conversano Monotonous. Her round on this horse was much more smooth than the class on Contradanza, but a spook at the judges tent just threw the pair off from placing higher. Seventh went to a very unimpressed looking Vince Black on his darling gray mare Adeline. Vince just didn't seem to have it together, tugging and battling with the poor mare who just wasn't impressed by her riders performance, really Vince, dressage just isn't your cup of tea.
$55000 GRAND PRIX DRESSAGE CLASSIC
Do I even need to comment? As I said last show, can someone please buy a grand prix horse and start to give Carlee Peters a run for her money?! We can only see her piaffe and pirouette around the ring so many times with no competition before it starts to become less and less amusing. And really, it's not like she was short on cash when she won this! At least this time she had two horses in there, so it gave us a bit more- we had to wonder if Dekoder or Finesse would win. Still, not as amusing as it would be if we had more than one rider! I knew all along that Dekoder was going to have the higher score, but two points behind him was Finesse. Not that it made much of a difference, Carlee was bound to win either way!
HUNTERS
PONY HUNTER CLASSIC
Unfortunately for me, there wasn't any interesting drama happening in the Pony hunter ring for the first time in awhile. It wasn't surprising when Faith Morris on Toy Soldier cleaned up the blue ribbon with a smooth and flawless round. Of course, right behind her as usual was miss Danielle Marks on Kasanova, the two just couldn't seem to catch up with her. I heard a rumor that she has a new pony now, but until I see it with my own eyes I'll believe it. Iona Donaldson on Bonnie Prince Charlie had a good round, and she's really stepping up to the plate- I won't be too surprised when she starts to beat The Pony Princess and the UFF, I'll be one of the people cheering the loudest! Nova Bente on her adorable pony The Unforgiven didn't have a round up to their usual standards, after a stop coming out of the line threw them off from winning what should have been theirs.
PRE CHILDREN'S/ADULT CLASSIC
Danielle Marks on Kasanova seemed to redeem themselves, and she seemed quite pleased to throw in a first place round. Nova Bente and The Unforgiven just weren't having a great day, I don't think the poor pony was too happy about the heat. The two had a good round that settled at second place. In third place was Faith Morris on Toy Soldier, the two were in great form as usual but after missing a flying change behind they just couldn't step up to beat Danielle once again. Everett Carter on The Nostradamus Prophecy didn't have one of their best rounds, the heat really seemed to be bugging both of them. But they managed to pull it together for fourth place. In fifth was Enya Driscoll on Ladybird Ladybird were in to have a good round, until a surprise rail at the third fence knocked them out- I was sad to see that they probably could have snatched that blue from Danielle.
WORKING HUNTER CLASSIC
Winter Van Der Westerhuyzen on BSB Wilkommen Auf Mysterium undoubtably were going to be the winners of this class. The two made it around in almost perfect form, and seemed very happy to walk out of the ring with a blue ribbon. Salem Tansen on Tag You're It were just steps behind them, but their round just wasn't as smooth as it could have been to steal the blue, but accepted second place. Everett Carter on the Nostradamus Prophecy were close behind them at third. His horse just wasn't jumping as well as usual, which definitely threw them out of the placings. Ladybird Ladybird ridden by Enya Driscoll in fourth place, I swore these two were about to give Winter a run for her money until a missed flying lead change knocked them right back down.
OPEN HUNTER CLASSIC
Faith Morris and King Nothing had nothing but a perfect round, as their usual standards go. Even with the ridiculous heat, the two clocked around and managed to snatch up the blue once more. Once again, as much as I hate to say it by some fluke Kaitlyn McHail on Velasco had a great round. But her horse just doesn't jump as nicely as King Nothing, but she seemed happy with her second place. Enya Driscoll on Biloxi Blues had a third place round, poised over her horse in a solid two point as he jumped around. The Great Gatsby ridden by Everett Carter had been doing wonderfully until a rail at the second to last fence threw them out of the placings. Winter Van Der Westerhuyzem on BSB Wilkommen Auf Mysterium really tried their hardest, but a surprise stop just threw them out of the placing. I think the heat definitely effected this pair, but once they get use to it they'll be back on track.
$5000 REGULAR HUNTER CLASSIC
I don't think anyone was surprised when Faith Morris on Carnegie cleaned up the first place ribbon. Can someone please step up in to the higher levels and beat her, she's like the hunter version of Carlee! Hayden Newman on Total Distortion were close behind Faith, the two snatched up second place with a great round- definitely an improvement from last show. Salem Tansen on Alakazam had a good round, but she just didn't seem to be jumping as well as she usually does. Even with that, the pair took third place. Alaska Black made two appearances in this division, a fourth place round on Ladies Man, and fifth on Chelsea Dagger. Both of these rounds were good, but not good enough to beat the pace that had been set early in the division. Faith Morris and King Nothing had a round that shocked everyone, never in my life have I seen this horse stop. Until now, I guess there's a first for everything though. Needless to say the two came in sixth.
JUMPERS
LOW JUMPER CLASSIC
Faith Morris on Mi Amor made another appearance, but I was seriously surprised to see the pony go around well and clean- the two (not surprisingly) had the fastest time and were set at first place. Iona Donaldson on Bonnie Prince Charlie had a great, quick second place- they were just seconds off from the UFF, but did manage to beat Danielle (Go Iona!). Salem Tansen on Alakazam came in third, she didn't seem to be her usual self today, but it didn't affect their usual excellent performance. Danielle Marks and Kasanova seemed to be bumped down to fourth place, the mare just didn't want to turn as tight and go around as quick as usual, I think she's trying to tell her rider that she's done packing her ass around. Faith Morris on Toy Soldier were right behind her, they took their time and were clean but had two time faults. Crystal Greene on Contradadanza were doing great until something on the side of the ring spooked the mare, and the two had to circle (which sadly was counted as a refusal). I was really amused by Grace Moselle on MT Arctic Low, calling this horse quiet would be an understatement, he was pretty much dead. No matter how hard she spurred him, he barely wanted to canter around and was making half ass attempts at every fence. Looks like the heat definitely wasn't agreeing with this horse. I still believe it's karma for her riding when she wasn't supposed to be. Grace, honey, what did you say again about this horse being a looker? Sure, he may move cute- but the judges don't seem to have the same thoughts that you do!
CHILDREN'S/ADULT JUMPER CLASSIC
Faith Morris on Carnegie had the time to beat. The big bay seemed to be on it, with Faith steering him around perfectly. Once again, no one was surprised when she walked out with the blue ribbon. Kaitlyn McHail on Velasco were just seconds behind her, but once again it just looked like Kaitlyn didn't have her heart in it. A very frustrated Blaise was standing at the sidelines tugging at his hair the whole time, I don't blame him though, I'd be frustrated if I coached her too. Maybe we'll see her in something bigger than 3'6 soon? And where was miss Marks on her bay mare? She isn't one to not show, I was surprised. Maybe she could have given Faith a run for her money.
MODIFIED JUNIOR/AMATEUR JUMPER CLASSIC
The talented Everett Carter on The Bride Wore Black had a great round, snatching up and winning the huge division. These two were in perfect form, and I'm still waiting on that background check! In second place was Danielle Marks on Warwick actually had... I know, it's hard for me to say, but they had a beautiful round. If it was a medal class, they would have been bound to win. I still have my doubts that we'll ever see this pair with the blue, but I'm still impressed that they weren't galloping around out of control. Natalia Filatov on Artisan's Nanon had another good round, giving them the third place ribbon. The team tried their hardest to get to the blue, but with how close the seconds were they just couldn't beat it. Olympian Blaise Garcia on his mount Freeze Frame seemed to be taking it easy (well, in their standards) today, but happily settled with a fourth place. Miss Amelia Windsor ridden by Lucy Scullvanger had a fifth place finish, the two made their way around well, but not quick enough for the heavy competition. Hayden Newman definitely seems to be having more luck this time around, him and his mount Alabastar Night came in sixth place. Carlee Peters on the other hand didn't seem like she was having a great time around on Nevaeh, the mare definitely wasn't performing at her best. The two managed to scrap up seventh. I was disappointed as Salem Tansen on Innocencio hit a rail and knocked them out of placing any higher than eighth. Faith Morris and King Nothing definitely are having another off round, once again the wonderful chestnut slid to a stop in front of the second to last fence. An off day? I sure hope it's nothing more than that!
5000 GRAND PRIX CLASSIC
Do I even need to tell you who won this class? I think by the way Blaise Garcia walked in to this round, we all knew he was going to win. His mount Clockwork seemed to be in best form today, jumping his way to a first place victory. Following behind him was Alaska Black riding Chelsea Dagger. The two were definitely giving the Olympian a run for his money until the end of the course where a wider turn definitely added on the seconds. Nova Bente riding Malach de Zion were our third place winners, and it was a great round indeed. The poor stallion did seem quite tired, but he still jumped as wonderfully as always! Gabriel Werth on Jericho were close behind Nova by simply millaseconds in fourth, it was such a close class until Vince Black on Adeline had a far from good round. I've never seen that mare hit a rail, and she definitely did. Seriously, Vince- maybe you should move down a division. Hard luck again for Hayden Newman on King Of Spades, who had two rails and a time fault finishing the Grand Prix with a sixth place.
WESTERN
BARREL RACING CLASSIC
Alaska Black seemed to redeem herself in the western ring rather than the English ring, her and her mount SF Dima Dozen had the fastest time. Gabby Moore on Me And My Shadow were just seconds behind them. In third place was Benjamin Hadley on HD Dakota Sunrise, the two just didn't seem to be turning as tightly as they usually do. Brittanie Crummett on Russian Roulette didn't have a bad round by all means, but just weren't as quick as the other three as they came in fourth.
REINING CLASSIC
Benjamin Hadley riding HD Shakin' It Up slid their way to first place (ha ha, funny, I know!), the two definitely seemed to have a better performance in the heat rather than the wind and rain. Gabby Moore on Me And My Shadow were just seconds behind them with some of the fastest spins I've seen in a long time. Alaska Black seemed to fall down the places for the reining, but had a solid course to set them at third place. Tory Walker and his horse Heza Big Boy didn't seem to be performing any better than last show. The horse just wanted to gallop rather than stop, as usual.
TRAIL CLASSIC
Travis Loveland on National Treasure seemed to have the best round, making their way around every obstacle with perfect form. Following close behind was Benjamin Hadley on HD Shakin' It Up, the two definitely upped their performance from last trail class. Heza Big Boy and Tory Walker had a third place course, at least this time the horse was willing to stop. I totally thought Alaska Black was going to win the class, until a small mistake at the gate knocked them back down to fourth.
WESTERN PLEASURE CLASSIC
I was quite surprised by the size of the Western Pleasure class once again, I guess the shock of having more than three people in it hasn't quite sunk in yet. Once again, first place went to Travis Loveland this time he was riding Tender Lovin' Care. Followed closely behind was Brittanie Crummet on Butterfly Effect. All these horses had such smooth and slow gaits. Benjamin Hadley was our third place winner on HD Shakin' It Up. The most versatile horse in the world, The Great Gatsby ridden by Everett Carter came in fourth place. I still can't get over the fact he does the hunters AND western, wow? I think so. Gabby Moore on Splash Of Romance were close in fifth place, followed by Alaska Black on SF Dima Dozen. It was no surprised when Tory Walker and Heza Big Boy came in seventh, the horse really doesn't seem to be showing much improvement.
INDIVIDUAL ROPING CLASSIC
A surprisingly quick time went to Benjamin Hadley on HD Shakin' It Up. The horse really seemed to be enjoying it's job. Alaska Black was right behind him on SF Dima Dozen, the pair almost had the blue but were merely one second off! It still amazes me that she can ride in the high jumpers and do roping (personally, I find western saddles quite uncomfortable, I'm an English girl at heart!). Tory Walker on Indiana Grand were a great pair to watch, but were a bit slower than the other two but pulled off third place. Travis Loveland and Undeniably You seemed to be having some troubles again, but managed to pull it together for fourth place.
TEAM ROPING CLASSIC
Can someone please give these two boys some competition? It wasn't a surprise when Tory Walker on Indiana Grand and Benjamin Hadley on HD Shakin' It Up came out with the blue. It seems like Ben has his eyes on a new cowboy now? I bet Gabe is relieved, but who knows how long this will last!
I think we all can agree that Summer is here and in full power. But I can't really complain, I'm loving the heat (for now at least). I hope all of you are as excited to work on your taans as I am, because that's pretty much all this heat is good for. The air is thick with humidity, and a whole bunch of juicy gossip! While this show didn't have too much action, I can assure you that all the younger kiddies are out of school that there will be so much more awaiting to be shared! I know you all must be bored of all these shows in Katy, but never fear, summer means A rated shows, I'm sure I'll be seeing you all in Florida, New York, and wherever else the show season may bring us. Until next time,
SHOW MONGER[/blockquote]
