September 3, 2011 - Show prep

Today I shortened Rory's mane and gave him a bath.  It was too hot and humid for a sheet to keep the dirt off so I took Rory out to graze for a while until he was dry before putting him back out.

I debated using boots for the show because at "real" dressage shows the horses aren't permitted to wear leg protection.  Tomorrow's show is just a local schooling show and leg protection is allowed.  I eventually decided to use the boots because I'd be really mad if he clonked himself hard enough to prevent us going to the cup qualifier.

It's been so long since I have taken a horse to a show that I was feeling a bit discombobulated and unsure of what I needed to do and pack. 

Three years ago my other horse and I finished second in our division at a championship show and won a prize of a Greenhawk cheapie leather halter.  My horse had a nice custom halter so I dropped the prize halter into the show box to have as a spare in case of a broken halter at a show.  I prefer to use leather halters while shipping and hoped I'd be able to crank the halter down tight enough to fit Rory's cob sized head.  Much to my surprise the halter was about the same size as Rory's nylon one.  I pulled the tag out of the garbage and discovered that it was a cob size.  A pretty neat coincidence!