Otter Creek Fall Fest

Well, this last weekend was the Otter Creek Fall Fest. I do not have any pictures yet, but I will put them on as soon as I get them. Todd, one of Lindsay's clients, is going to school for photography and he was taking pictures of all our rides. He said he'd give me CD with all the pictures, so hopefully I'll get that later this week.

Where to begin!! I have so much to talk about. Friday morning I gave Grady a bath and put on his new sheet. I stopped at the tack store on Thurs. and got a sheet for him. The only water proof sheet they had that wasn't outragiously expensive was blue camo... Pretty wild. He looks very sexy in it, but it's a bit "out there" style wise. I'll get pictures of him in it later this week although it will probably be dirty by then. I followed Lindsay to Otter Creek and had a smooth, uneventful drive out. We made a quick stop at Fleet Farm, and I listened to the news and talk radio the whole way out. (No comment... I'm so sick of these politicians, democrats and republicans alike!!) Lindsay and I were the only ones going at that time, so when we got there we set up shop and rode horses. There were supposed to be five of us riding but two people couldn't go due to work and a death in the family, so it was just Lindsay, Taylor, and I. Lindsay was riding one of her client's horses. Grady did pretty well and Taylor came out near the end of my ride and rode Rebel for awhile. We braided and were done at the barn by 6:30. That was unbelievable and very nice.

That evening we scouted out the town for good eats. One lady recomended a place to eat, but when we got there it was a noisy, smokey bar and we left almost right away. We ended up going to a "nicer" restaurant, and the food was ok, but the service sucked. Then we went to the hotel and sat around watching the Amazing Racist videos on YouTube.

I shared a bed with Lindsay... And my gosh is she awful to sleep with! I mean, it's actually pretty funny, but I did not sleep well at all. She is the biggest snuggler I have ever encountered. She literally could not be NOT touching me. She contoured her body to mold around mine no matter what position I was in. She also pushed me to the edge of the bed. I did not sleep hardly at all that night. At one point I was laying on my back and she sat bolt upright, said "what the f*** was that?!!!" and then fell back down, elbowing my stomach as she came down. It WAS pretty funny, but I was really tired the next morning!!

It was cold the next morning, only 28 degrees. I bundled as much as I could! The show was very small, so the atmosphere was very relaxed and pleasent. We didn't feel pressured or stressed the entire time. As a group we only were doing Training and 1st Level tests, so all three of us were done by noon. I did Training 1 and got a 63.9% and Training 4. My Training 4 test had its good moments, but an old junker of a golf cart had been parked next to the arena and it was making some awful sputtering noises which discombobulated Grady quite a bit. I was actually quite happy with him, he could have been alot worse, but our canters were pretty wild. We only got 57%, which was a bummer because I feel that we could have done quite a bit better if the golf cart hadn't been there. Oh well, what can you do? I better get used to it because it wont be the last time it happens.

We had the whole afternoon to blow so we went out for lunch at the local biker bar and then Lydia decided she wanted to go to the "Fall Festival." The "Fall Festival" was supposed to be this fun occasion with hay rides, animals, craft booths, and games. Well, we got there and there were three alpacas, four rabbits, four craft booths, a tiny tractor with a tiny trailer, and a bean bag toss. The place hosting the "Fall Festival" was a place that made homemade old fashioned candy and baked goods, so I'd say that was about 75% of the "Fall Festival." They WERE giving away free samples of homemade candy though, so it wasn't a total waste.

Then we went into town to check out the movies at the theater, but there was nothing good playing so we scrapped that idea. Lindsay saw a pet store with a puppy sale so we simply HAD to stop and pet the puppies. So we did, although I spent alot more time with the birds and rodents.

Then we went back to the hotel. Lindsay napped while Taylor and I fought over the TV chanel. We were at the hotel for a couple hours and when it came time to go back to take care of the horses for the night, Lindsay was refusing to get up. We were trying to wake her up but she kept squeaking and kicking like a horse. Taylor eventually dumped water on her head, which got Lindsay up but she wasn't very happy! Taylor and I thought it was really funny.

We met Todd and Tammy in the lobby and headed back for evening chores. Afterwards we went to Pizza Hut, and Lindsay, Taylor, and I got into a squabble over what kind of pizza we wanted. We are SO mature.

I was in bed at asleep by 9:30 that night. I claimed my portion of the bed and fell asleep BEFORE Lindsay pushed me to the edge, so I slept quite a bit better. Oh, did I mention that Lindsay was sick? Well she was, so she was coughing and blowing her nose constantly. I'm sick now too.

The weather was warmer on sunday, but it was also cloudy. It started to rain mid morning, right before my tests. I didn't have much to do until my tests, so Taylor and I were eating ginger bread pop tarts (my favorite). I was standing by Grady's stall and he decided that HE wanted ginger bread pop tarts. He was reaching as faaar as he could, neck and head and lips outstretched towards my pop tart. I gave him a corner and he seemed to like it. Then he reached out and bopped my arm which caused me to drop my ginger bread pop tart. SO he got the whole thing, and he seemed quite pleased about that.

It was a pretty cold rain, so I decided to scratch my Training 2 test and just do my Training 4 test. I think it was a good idea and I'm glad I did it. Our warm up went well and the test also went well. We got 62.8%, so a qualifying score for next year's regionals. Now I just need 6 more scores over 62% to qualify for 09 regionals!

After our tests we packed up in a whirlwind and headed home. Lindsay had to head out to Temple Farms in Chicago to ride with Conrad Schumacher as soon as she got home, so we left ASAP. The trip home was also relatively uneventful and Grady was happy to be back at Birchbury. When I put him in the pasture the other horses were too far to see, so Grady was walking around calling. He eventually walked back over to me like, "I can't find my friends!!" Me (being the sucker that I am) put on his halter and led him out far enough so that he could see his buddies. When he saw them I took off his halter and he took off at a gallop with one fabulously big buck. He is so adorable!

Late afternoon I hung out with Isis in the barn. I didn't ride because it was still raining. She's so adorable! I pretty much fell asleep sitting on the bottom board of her paddock, and she just stood with her head hanging over mine.

This morning I had a jumping lesson on Sackett and it was really hard. We worked on angled lines and SHARP turns. I feel that I was relatively successful, but it was a very difficult lesson.

Pictures of the show as soon as I get them!!