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PG Ride N Slide
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The Prince George Reining Horse Association's 7th Annual Ride 'N' Slide is coming up July 7 & 8. This show will be held at the Prince George Agriplex , which recently had the ground redone to better it for reining and other disciplines.
This year's judge is Paige Stroud from Washington. Paige has been a National Reining Horse Association (NRHA) approved judge since 1995, and she comes from a strong equine background, including time showing reining horses and training horses professionally (which she no longer does), and of course living with her husband Doug who still trains reining horses.
The show starts on Friday evening at 5 pm, with beginner patterns for the most new to reining through slightly more advanced beginner patterns to a fun beginner freestyle. Freestyle reining classes are where a rider makes up his own pattern and sets it to music. PGRHA has lowered the time limits according to the number of required maneuvres, so the Beginner Freestyle on Friday evening will be 2 minutes per entry.
Starting at 9 am sharp on Saturday is the Intermediate division. Intermediate patterns are slightly tougher than the Friday evening ones, but still modified (not full NRHA reining patterns). These classes are intended to last the morning, and in the afternoon they have a few NRHA patterns after the modified ones, as well as a 3 minute intermediate freestyle.
Around 6 pm the Saturday evening performance begins. This is the Advanced division, with lots of NRHA patterns and a 4 minute advanced freestyle. The classes are divided by limits (limits on the amount of money the horse or rider has earned) or into professionals, non-professionals and youth. These are the hard stopping, fast spinning, quick lead changing horses that everyone comes to watch!
There is a separate youth class in each division, to give the younger set a chance to rein without competing against the more experienced riders. Prizes in all classes are in abundance, with most featuring a belt buckle for 1st place and other prizes or money to 4th. Last year some classes had 20 riders or more, so you know you've earned it if you go home with a prize!
The PG Ride N Slide is a big show, and lots of fun for both volunteers and competitors alike. There is a Silent Auction held in conjunction with the show, and a group dinner at approximately 5 pm on Saturday night ($12 per person and you get BBQ steak, baked potato, salad and garlic bread!).
Hope to see you there, either spinnin' and slidin' or at least in the stands hootin' and hollerin' for those of us competing!
We welcome your show reports, of events coming or done, to add to this Current Events column. Let's keep our friends and neighbours informed! |
| If you have tips or questions on equipment care, purchases, fit, or anything else to do with equestrian equipment, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com |
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If you are new to Northern B.C. Horse, check out all the previous issues on the Archive page.
Kristi is building a great knowledge base about horses, with the emphasis on our area of the world.
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Western, English, Penning or Trail riding, all equine sports have a voice on Northern B.C. Horse
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Sacking out your two year old
To sack out a young horse does not mean to put fear into him but instead to remove it by watching for his comfort zone and building on it. Most well handled young horses have already seen brushes and maybe sheets or blankets, so for them I'd recommend starting with a light saddle blanket (for a spookier less handled horse you might want to start with a small towel).
Let the colt sniff the blanket and blow on it until he is familiar with the smell and sight of it. Then rub him with it, usually starting on the lower neck and shoulder area - they seem to be less fearful in that area, and you can easily control their movement with the halter shank.
Don't force the colt to stand still, instead it should be his idea to stand his ground. If at first he is very scared by the blanket, find his comfort zone by reading his body signs. If you think he is going to move away when the blanket is a twelve inches from him, move it away from him at thirteen inches. Gradually decrease the distance as he becomes more tolerant, until you are touching him - this allows the colt to realize it is okay to let then scary thing come near him as you will remove it.
Rub the colt all over with the blanket as he becomes more comfortable with it. Start on the neck and shoulder, then add the back, and the sides, then move it up his neck until it is over his head. Do this gently and slowly, not all at once so as to startle him! If nothing bad comes of this blanket being moved around him (including you yelling at him to whoa or jerking on the lead, he'll see those as scary things associated with the blanket if you do that), he will quickly accept it. Rub his whole hindquarter with the blanket, the top of his hip and down the back of his buttocks.
This sacking out process will vary from horse to horse. Some colts will take a week or maybe more to completely comfortable with the blanket, others will be ho-hum and looking for more new stuff immediately. Training colts is a hard thing to keep on a schedule as you have to read the individual horse and adjust your methods accordingly.
Just how can you tell if your colt is accepting what you are doing? There are several common indicators that a horse is relaxed and accepting of what you are doing. One of the first ones is that his head will come down. A colt with his neck stiff and raised, head up and rolling his eye at an object is obviously not comfortable. Once that neck lowers, he is getting more relaxed. You can watch for signs of licking and chewing, both of which seem to signal that the horse is 'digesting the thought' or 'chewing it over', or submitting to you. In any case, once a horse starts to lick or chew, let him stand a minute and think things over. Another indication of the comfort level is the passing of manure or especially urine. A horse stopped to urinate is in a vulnerable position, so if he is okay to do that it may mean he is more relaxed again.
Next week, work on sacking out those legs....
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| If you have tips or questions you'd like to share with other local equestrians, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com |
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Riding two year olds
Riding two year olds, as I talked about last winter, can be done as long as sessions are kept light and easy. I have made a point of not exhausting my two year old and kept things low key for both his body and his mind (in fact, sessions so far have been no more than 15 minutes from start to finish).
Remember that a tired horse is more likely to get hurt, both because the muscles themselves are running out of oxygen and filling with lactic acid, but also because the horse is more likely to make a mistake with serious consequences if he is pushed beyond his mental or physical limits.
Using protective boots is a good way of preventing lower leg injuries. Wraps such as polo wraps or exercise bandages, splint boots and other protective boots can be used to guard the legs from interference from another leg (a common occurrence with an unbalanced, ungainly two year old), and from the excess strain from the added weight of a rider. They can also help to minimize injuries from strains caused by slipping or stumbling.
Picking your work area is very important - try to find a level area with safe fencing (a properly built roundpen is ideal for the first few works). Try to avoid deep or slippery footing as they can place more strain on a horse's tendons. For obvious reasons try to avoid rocks and sticks. The more care you take with the first works, the better, and you will likely be paid off later with a healthy, sound mature horse.
Pay close attention to the two year old's mental and physical state and avoid exhaustion, major stress and overload of confusion. Always give them a way out, and if they can't seem to find it, you may need to break what you are asking down into smaller steps.
I really like what John Lyons says about training horses (and this is especially true with colts). Number one, the handler must not get hurt. Number two, the horse must not get hurt. And number three, perhaps the most important thing for people to remember when training any age of horse, the horse must be quieter at the end of the lesson than he was at the beginning. You need to achieve that goal every time you work your colt in order to keep him happy and learning.
If you have tips or questions you'd like to share with other local equestrians, please mail them to kristi@hiway16.com |
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