I have finally finished a halter for a very patient customer! Remember that foal slip halter I made a while back? Well, this is the matching one for his momma!
This is definitely the best halter I have made to date. The stitching and the rolled throatlatch turned out just how I wanted them to. Overall, I am very pleased! I hope the new owner likes it as much as I do!
I just have to find out if she wants a working buckle for the leadrope or a realistic looking one. For some reason, they don't make small gold working buckles? I can find silver lots of places, but haven't come across gold yet!
After a bunch of pictures of LaBelle, you have to see some videos.
You saw the first video of LaBelle here, from the Kentucky Horse Park!
Here are a few more:
One of LaBelle and I just training:
Here is our Training Level ride at the 2005 Regional Championships:
And the award ceremony after we won the class:
The best part of the award ceremony was the victory lap! At the time I was training with Roberta Williams, so our theme song was 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun' because it was always just us three girls! So after realize I had won the class, we had them play that song for our victory lap and it turned out perfectly!
Hopefully you enjoy the videos as much as I do :)!
I cannot believe I haven't formally introduced LaBelle! It is going to be a long story. Feel free to just look at all the pictures ;).
When I was 11 years old I was at a dressage show with Chauncey (the thoroughbred you saw here). A lady came up to me and told me I would look perfect on her mare. At the time I was looking for a new horse, so my god parents and I drove 6 hours to see this horse we didn't know much about.
When I first saw her out in the field, I knew I had to have her. She was big, about 16.3 and all muscle, but completely beautiful. After riding her about six different times, LaBelle was mine.
That was the end of 2004. We trained all winter and started showing in the spring of 2005. We started at training level at our first show. We won all four classes we were in, and ended up winning overall champion for training level! I couldn't have been happier.
Throughout 2005 we went to a ton of shows and won every single class we were in. She was unbeatable. Since things were going so well, I decided to show at the Regional Championships for the first time.
Our championship classes were Training Level, First Level, and Dressage Seat Equitation. Although we placed third for the first time at First Level, we managed to win Training Level and our Equitation class! Winning the Training Level Championships, out of 36 horses, was one of our biggest accomplishments. Overall, regionals was such a success!
At the end of 2005, LaBelle and I were ranked 2nd in the nation for First Level, 21 years and younger! How cool is that? She also won (three consecutive years) the Good Morning Memorial award, which goes to the best mare that competes in central Ohio. Also, there was an article written about us in Dressage Today, a national magazine.
2006 and 2007 were filled with a lot of shows and a lot of wins. We placed second (our second time not winning) at the 2006 Regionals in First Level. It was completely my fault; I went off course! Oopsies!
At the beginning of 2007, I was offered a very nice horse. Icon was super talented and was going to be my horse to compete in Juniors with. I couldn't keep up with two horses and high school, so I had to sell LaBelle after 3 years of owning her. Not only was she my partner-in-crime at shows, we had such an amazing relationship. We grew up together and I felt like we were one. She was so gorgeous, more beautiful than any other horse I have ever seen. She was so intelligent; if you told her something once, she would never forget it (She was the ground tying champion. I could leave her in the middle of the isle with no halter, bridle or anything, go clean my tack, go to the bathroom, do whatever I wanted, and she would just stand there until I asked her to move). She was definitely the best horse I will ever own, and I miss her to death. But, she lives a WONDERFUL, spoiled rotten life in Indiana! I couldn't have picked a better home for her. In the end, she definitely deserves her new home, especially while I am in college. But, that doesn't make me miss her any less.
Tomorrow I will post a bunch of videos of her, just because she is gorgeous :).
Remember when I went to a horse show at the beginning of the year? I have a few more posts that go along with it! This post has been a long time in the making, but here it is (finally!):
English Equitation is a common class at many horse shows. It isn't seen too much in the model world, but it would be a very easy to setup! Here is the stock type version that is used at most open shows.
From the AQHA rulebook, Equitation is described as follows:
“Hunt seat equitation on the flat is an evaluation based on the ability of a rider to perform various maneuvers in harmony with his/her horse. The communication between horse and rider through subtle cues and aids should not be obvious. Equitation is judged on the rider and his/her effect on the horse. Hunt seat equitation on the flat provides a base for a natural progression to over fence classes. The poll should be level with, or slightly above the withers, to allow proper impulsion behind. The head should not be carried behind the vertical, giving the appearance of intimidation, or be excessively nosed out, giving a resistant appearance.”
Considering Equitation classes are waited heavely on the rider, it is crucial to have a doll in your set up! But other than that, all you need is a few cones and possibly a judge! Along with some english tack and a horse, of course!
To begin with, every Equitation class has a pattern. Like showmanship, the pattern is posted ahead of time to give the exhibitors a chance to memorize it. The one from the show looked like this:
To start the class, riders line their horses up ‘tails to the rail’. In a way, equitation is very similar to showmanship. Once everyone is in the arena and ready to go, the judge nods to signal the first rider to start the pattern. Then the rider waiting at the cone can start their pattern.
For this pattern, the rider started by sitting the trot from cone A to cone B.
Then at cone B, the horse should pick up the lead lead and canter a circle.
Once the circle is complete, the horse should drop to a trot and the rider should post on the right diagonal.
Next, halt at cone C and back up.
After the rein back, the rider looks at the judge, who then dismisses her with a nod.
Once all the patterns are complete, the rest of the class is treated like normal english pleasure. Everyone walks, trots, and canters on the rail. They may only go one direction or both.
Here is a video of a few of the better patterns:
Patterns may vary greatly from show to show. This is a very common type of pattern, usually used at open shows. At higher levels, patterns might include leg yeilds, flying changes, serpentines, etc.
