All of you western and english riders!!!??

Question

I was just wondering... Tell me what you did on your first horse show or performance? What placement did you get? Did you fall? Did you have fun? Or you can tell me one of your favorite or worst shows or performances. One last question: Did you improve at your last show or performance than your first one?

Answer 1

i lost horibly my first time,but i got better and better and it got funner and funner to the point where me and charlie (my horse) were a perfect teamnd we won alot after we began to gain eachothers trust

Answer 2

When I was little (5 or 6), I had a boot fall off and when I was a little older (8 yrs old), I was showing a grouchy 'ol mare and she went right up to the judge and laid down. I couldn't get her to listen to me and stay on the rail. I soooooo embarrassed!

Answer 3

Yes..I ride both English and Western.  .My first breed show was my favorite...it was held at the Kansas Coliseum, a huge, 4 day show that kicked off the season...early March, snow still outside, me running late as usual, my Mother-in-law in tow to make my entries and get my number.  Now, let me digress just a little.  2 1/2 years earlier a plain little bay filly was born on our place that disappointed most everyone, no color, no white, plain Jane, no one will want to buy her, darn!  I saw something different, I saw a little lady in there, one that just literally floated along the field beside her mother and I begged and begged for her to be mine...my answer?  No need to waste your time on that one, spend your time on a high dollar one (not kidding, those very words)...well, now comes weaning time and all of the fillies go in one pen and the males go in the other, until they could be sorted.  Again, I made my plea, to no avail.  She was passed up by lots of buyers, passed over and ignored by everyone but me.  When she was two, and no one had bought her, it became my job to get her marketable...I started her slow, she didn't trust anyone and I figured if I went slow, I could keep her around longer...well, that just made her better.  She was used for everything from cleaning pastures to bringing in the horses from wheat pasture every day...she learned that just because a herd of horses was running didn't mean that she had to.  She learned to trot that cute little trot that she had for miles until it was part of her...when she walked, I pushed her into walking like she had a reason to be walking, like she had a place to go...yikes, I did digress, didn't I?  Let me be a little briefer from here on....we never had an arena, not an inside one, not an outside one...to get ready for an early March show, I had to ride on the road (snow was too deep in the fields) and when it was too icy to be save, I daydreamed about it. Daydreamed about what I would do if this happened in the class, if that happened, and on and on...it almost just possessed me, I so wanted to say that I was right about her.  Now, back to the show.  Because we had no facilities, she hadn't had a bath since early fall, little manure dingleberries hung from her belly and I had clipped her dirty as it was too cold at home to bathe her.  I'm still rinsing her off and the English classes have begun (after lunch break)...no, I didn't even get to warm her up during break.  This was a huge AQHA amateur class, and they were tough, most of the horses were trailered  there by their trainers, readied by their trainers and the exhibitor got on at the last minute and rode the horse into the ring.  I'm still rinsing her off when I hear them calling for the first English class after the lunch break (no, I didn't get to warm her up during the break, I was picking off dingleberries at the time).  Quickly I throw on her saddle, step into the stall and changed clothes, opps, forgot my number, take off the blouse, pin on the number, put it back on...they were making last call for my class and I was riding through the aisles still zipping up my chaps that my husband had stayed up all night finishing for me.  I looked up and noticed all of the horses were trotting, guess I didn't hear, "enter at a trot" so I picked her up just as we went over the pipe gate...I felt the judges eyes on Rita and THAT TROT!  Look ahead, mind your business, stay out of people's way and don't cause a wreck...over and over in my mind.  walk, trot, canter both ways, line up...back up...sit and wait...gosh, I need to pee, I made it through, I'm so proud of you Rita, thanks for running backwards when I picked up on the reins, sorry you stepped on your tail doing your best for me...Gawd, will they never let us out of here...first place, number..oh c**p! it's me, people are clapping and laughing at me, I don't know where to go or what to do, so I just sat there until they announced second place and followed that one out and got my plague and my check, that meant that I could come back the next day..No one laughed the next day when they called my number, and I knew where to go as well...ROM the first weekend she ever showed, 4 firsts in a row, yes, dreams do come true, as long as one is willing to do the hard work that goes with it.  Once day, I will tell you the rest of the story.  And yes, I never stopped improving, isn't that the point of it all?  P.S.  Worst performance: Many years later, riding a Paint stud at the State Fair, he flat wouldn't forget he was a stud, he was running off with me trying to get to the mare in front of us, I figured that I was already out of the placings so I ran him into the pipe fence, over and undered him with a nice heavy set of harness reins, pulled him up and came out of the cloud of dust and looked around like, "who had that wreck?" and was in the prettiest trot he had ever done, I at least had his attention.  One of the judges saw him and pulled me in...yay, it's over, I'm embarrassed but we didn't kill anyone or breed a mare or anything...when they called my number, the announcer (who was a close family friend) at least waiting until all of the placings were called, then he sang a short version of HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR BOBBI over the loud speaker...

EDIT******Horse Rider:  No need to be sorry, it's obvious that we all like to share, thanks for the opportunity.

Answer 4

i joined 4h when i was in sixth grade and did ok my first time cause i had been riding western since i was two. i haven't fallen off a horse since i was 7 soo no i did not fall. it was too nerveracking to be considered fun but by the end of the day i could probably say i was having a good time. i was no stellar horseman then so i didn't place at all my first year. but the next year i did so well that i got reserve grand champion (2nd) at the county fair so that was a really good moment for me. i'm a senior now so six years later i'm sooooooo much better than i used to be!!!

Answer 5

Heh.. I rode my 14.1hh Quarter Pony in a Hunter flat class - just walk and trot. I got first place! Wheee! I was so excited! I didn't fall off - though my pony bucked a few times! I was lucky the judge didn't see.. tehehe! It was so much fun - but kinda boring because I wanted to jump the fences in the arena haha!

My worst performance was on my current horse. We were doing a 3-day-event, and it was cross country day. I was in first place with him (our first show too!) and the other previous horses I rode - were fat and lazy - so I was really used to kicking and riding "hard". Well.. my new horse was 4 years old (unraced) throughbred that LOVES his job - especially jumping. Well, we gun out of the start box like no tomorrow, and I inevitably not only fell off, but I was going too fast to steer him, and we missed a fence! :( So, there went my first place.. Oh well! It was a learning experience!

And yes, I improved from my first show, to my last one. :)

Answer 6

well, i have only been to one, (going to another august 10) it was a schooling show, and i did walk/trot pleasure. i got 4th,4th,3rd which was kind of sad because i was up against 10 year olds... lol in the end it was fun though. i have a special board for my rosettes and i cant stop staring at them! i think i have gotten better since my last show. i dont have my own horse yet! try attending a schooling show, and just use one of your barns horses! you can even lease them and take them to c,b,and even a rated shows!

Welcome to the show world! your going to love it!!!!

Answer 7

In my first show I (1997) I did 18" cross-rails and walk-trot, I pinned with a first, third, and sixth.

At my first show I did not fall but at my latest show over the weekend I had my first "horse-show fall" ever.. in 11 years of showing!

I've had a blast at all of my shows whether I placed or not, even at the show that I fell off at because the photographer got a great picture of me flying through the air!

Even though I fell off I improved greatly from my first show to my last. In my first show I rode over 18" jumps and my last show I rode over 3' jumps.

In my first show I rode a dead broke horse and in my last I rode a horse that I had trained myself!

By the question you asked I'm going to guess you;re going to your first show... if you are good luck (: if not then good luck anyways with whatever you're doing, I hope my answer helped!

Answer 8

i ride english and at my 1st show i came 2nd in tack and turn out on a lovely piebald called sam and 4th in the gymkhana on a grumpy pony called beau it was really fun i now do show jumping and have great fun.

Answer 9

Yes i ride both western and english.... I did a dressage show for my first show and  placed 1st. I didnt fall. I had tons of fun but i was really nervous.... My worst show was when i was in a dressage show and blanked on the sequence and then i just let my horse keep trotting in a circle... it was a big mess! I did improve alot after my first couple of shows.

Answer 10

When I was about 8 my aunt  was teaching me how to Barrel Race... I practiced a ton ever since I was little I did everything all out! As fast as I could go was my motto when I raced. I was smaller then most girls my age at that point in my life and the horse I was riding was a big Quarter Horse and Arabian cross, he was about 15.2h but with the prance and dance of an arabian. He was just about the perfect horse except when you were saddling him (pull the cinch and back up because he is doing a back flip) after he the initial back flip or two I would hop on and he was fine. Keep in mind that I was tiny and if this horse wanted to he could take off and I wouldn't be able to do anything.. SO anyway we get to the arena and there was a little kid (well smaller then me) playing around near the alley swinging a piece of water hose. It spooked my horse and he reared up a couple of times but I got him calmed down and off we go into the arena... like I said as fast as we could go. I ran my pattern and the people working the gate saw how he acted before the race and shut the gate so he couldn't run off with me... Well we were used to the gate being open. We turn the third barrel and I open him up (which my mom always dreaded, she thought I was going to fast.) I start pulling him up about halfway to the gate and he was slowing down but he didn't quite get stopped before the gate... All I could think of was "Oh my gosh! Hang On!" which is what I did. About 5 feet from the gate he hits the brakes Throws me completely over his head and over the gate. I was fine just a little embaraced and worried about whether or not my mom was going to continue to let me race. She did and I continued to get better and We always had someone tell the people at the gate not to shut it :)

At my next to last race I won a saddle... I haven't barrel raced in about 2 years due to my horse getting old (a different horse) and life. I am training my new horse and depending on what she excels in she may be my new barrel horse, but I'm not leaning that way... I am leaning more towards a cutting horse or a roping horse.

Through the years  I have had SO much fun and I wish I could do it over again because I wouldn't let the stress get the best of me. But I still had fun.

Good luck at your first show, even though it will be a while a way.

Answer 11

I ride english hunter/jumper and always have...on my first show i went to a schooling show and did the cross rail division, looking back I did horrible but since hunters is only judged on the horse we placed first,first and fourth and got a reserve champ.i had fun but i did let a lot of things get to me like stress and id hav to say that deff effected my preformance so i learned not to let things stress me out and to plan my schedule on times the night before and plan everything i want to work on in the schooling ring...i have yet to fall at a show...hopefully never but that isnt likley to happen lol