The Competition is Over

The Competition is Over

The competition is over.  Scratch and I managed to pull out a 4th place finish despite a few problems.  The top three finishers were all professional horse trainers who make a living training horses.  Scratch was my first.

There were four phases of the competition.  We had to negotiate an obstacle course from the ground, then under saddle.  We performed a freestyle routine, where I rode bridle-less and blindfolded.  The final phase was to take an untrained colt and gentle it.  We had three one hour sessions and were judged on how well we hooked up.

There were many stories to tell from the experience and I hope to share them with you on the upcoming podcasts.  The best one is, that at the end of the event the horses were auctioned off.  Not every trainer chose to sell their horse.  We had to.  We own a half an acre with two Quarter Horses.  There just isn’t room.  The man who bought Scratch manages a 40,000 acre cattle ranch nearby and hired me to continue Scratch’s training and invited me to the ranch so Scratch can continue his education.  It looks like Scratch will spend the rest of his life working cows.  I really appreciate the vote of confidence the ranch manager gave me too!

Anyway, here are two of the videos we shot of the event.  There is more if you want at my YouTube channel.  I hope you enjoy them.  Feel free to comment.