~Malibu Bay Breeze

Life according to the Barbed Wire Babes is always undoubtedly about the horses at RHO.  When we are not riding, we are doing something horse related together like Rodeos and/or Expos or short trips to tack shops and TRACTOR SUPPLY…. Lord, how we love Tractor Supply!  I am still trying to figure out when I made the transition from Saks Fifth Avenue….

Nonetheless, evening trips are what we do best.  After our day at the barn, we usually end up at some eatery or fast-food joint where we can discuss the day’s events and laugh at ourselves.

Every once and awhile we get the brilliant idea to do a road trip…like a spur of the moment, spontaneous, same day road trip. Piling into Sue’s car after a long day’s ride is both grueling and hysterical at the same time. Sue managed to plan the event en route to our western pleasure adventure like a finely trained guide at the United Nations.

.. Just a side track here….Let me explain, however, the circumstances on planned, purposeful trips vs. spontaneous group tours…

Sue depends on plans… if you make them, then you had sure better stick to them or she will wreak havoc in your life… unless of course you’re dead. 

Dead already ….or not quite dead yet but close to it ….is pretty much the only excuse for cancellation  or variation from any and all plans made by or with Sue…

Death trumps changing plans on Sue. So yea, it’s go with the plan or die.

Donna….Donna is ok with changing plans.  As long as Sue agrees and as long as the change in plan has nothing to do with changing the time, place or means of transportation to carry out those set plans….

Sharon… Sharon is ok with changing plans... Just let her know where and when…As long as Bob is home to care for her 127 dogs, occasional stray furry something and the collection of caged pheasants in a pear tree….not to mention scattered children…

Me, on the other hand.  I just go with the flow and frequently change plans, hence the death threats, the scars and the “are you going to show up this time or bail” comments…. OK, I deserve it, I know. 

Keep in mind here; I am the only one who lives 55 mins away.  My crew all lives up in them thar hills of Sussex and are just a shot away from all the hillbilly festivities.

OK... enough of that…

The spontaneous, spur of the moment excursions are always the best… as was the Malibu Rodeo  

http://www.malibududeranch.com/rodeo/index.html

This rodeo is great... the venue is very comfortable.  The area is really pretty and we know most of the vendors and the participants… so it’s like a relaxing, entertaining evening with old friends from the horse industry in our area.

But… the most important part of it all… if you ask Sue… is… the food is good! 

Writing these blogs takes a lot of memory power. In choosing my topics, I find it so easy to pick a specific event or time where we had an exceptionally good time as there have been so many… BUT… if I don’t do this right away, the pieces of the puzzle become a jumble of single instances, so, I depend on my cowgirls to fill in the blanks!  Jogging their memory of events is a challenge.  If you put us all together… you will get the full story!  But, one thing we all and always remember is the food.  If the food sucks, we’re not going back! Collectively, we do remember that the food at this Rodeo was good.  Burgers, hot dogs, lemonade and french fries to die for… we’re in! The plus to that is the food is priced well.  So, going back for second helpings is even better!

The Rodeo was packed.  Parking was an issue.  However, if you ask any of us, parking is ALWAYS an issue. Let’s just say….we do whatever it takes to insure a safe, geographically convenient location for quick entry and exit…no matter what.  Some secrets of our parking obsession will remain that… secrets.  100% of the time, we will always… ALWAYS secure prime real estate when it comes to parking.

 We LOVE cowboys.  Love ‘em.  We don’t care the shape, size, ethnicity, age or otherwise… we just love ‘em.  Of course, IQ is a prerequisite though, along with puberty. .. come on, we do have standards...

 Like a beam of sunlight hailing from the heavens... there he was…. The most outstanding specimen in a cowboy hat we’ve seen in a while… flagging us down to park across the grassy knoll far from the crowds… This particular cowboy sported a huge…. belt buckle as well as arm muscles that could bench-press a Clydesdale…

 but in Donna’s favor… he was of the “darker” persuasion… Just as she loves…

OH MY… LOOK AT HIM… LOOOOOK AT HIM!

Whoa girl….

Sue, in her infinite wisdom and desire to park close… drove up and said… HI, I’m sorry to ask this but do you think we could park by the entrance?? Our friend has a bad knee and can’t walk too well…

Donna… with her leg propped up in the back seat across my lap and in the midst of a hot flash, rolled down the window and through the drool said… HI, I’m sorry; I really can’t walk that far….

LORD what we won’t do for attention…

With a HUGE bright white teeth smile and a tip of the hat said “Sure ladies, follow me and I’ll show you where”

OH HELL YEA..... We followed that swagger right to the front of the line!!!

OK COME ON… it’s not so bad…. How many of you people tell a little white lie now and then??? Plus Donna was in love….yikes... what we do for love.

SO… close to the gate and eyes on the cowboy, we assisted our all but crippled cowgirl out of the car and she continued to hobble into the venue….making a bee line for the french fries…of course, stopping for a photo op and one last look at our tall, dark cowboy!

Sue, in her motherly fashion, climbed to the top of the bleachers first so we could have the support of the back rails and a birds-eye view of the show and the entire row for urban sprawl!!! Equipped with plush, extra-large towels, draped 8 feet over the seats of the bleachers to insure our comfort as well as cleanliness, Sue called our names and assigned our seats….

Oh... the seats….Sue, Donna, Michele and Sharon… Sharon on the end… always…

The crowd filled the seats….. and filled... like a herd of cattle stomping up the metal steps, but we were secured in our perfect seats… until…

 Tell me… why? Why is it that no matter how good the seats are… someone with me will undoubtedly get the largest person in the place RIGHT in front of them?? Usually the case with me, but not this time… tonight it was Sharon’s turn…Sharon, all of 5’3 and about 110 pounds if that

Now, I’m not the kind of person that criticizes, judges or dislikes anyone for their physical appearance, mental state of mind or ethical beliefs. Appearances are only skin deep.  I give everyone the benefit of the doubt… and too each his own.

BUT….this was bad.  I have to say… why... WHY did the LARGEST (width) woman dressed in the scantiest of clothes have to scan the bleachers and choose to make the climb right in front of us?  Better yet, RIGHT in front of Sharon.

 Yea…. Like she was thinking... yea... I’m going to sit in front of HER…..

 Now, that wouldn’t be so bad... but did I say that this day was probably the hottest on record? Sweat dripped from our brows just sitting….

 We all weren’t quite sure if the stench was coming from the arena…or each other…but we quickly found the source….

 Needless to say the day goes down in BWB history as …

  “How was the Rodeo??”

“It Stunk”

COPLEN BOE BOGUET

 

Horseback riding requires skill but what people neglect to understand is that riding also requires inspiration to help improve that skill.

What happens to an adult rider is complacency.  Oftentimes, doing the same thing week after week causes boredom and old, bad habits resurface both with horse and rider.  One of the main components to improving skills is frequent but short lessons to offset the old habits and introduce new, challenging rides for the horse.

Luckily for those of us at RHO, Tom Riley sees our bad habits week after week and is constantly correcting us and keeping us fresh.  Sometimes, however, we still fall back on those habits... Reins too tight, no legs, to far forward in the seat.... all the things every rider hears no matter what the style.

                                                                                 

Riding a cutting horse, however, is a totally different experience.  It’s like sitting in the car of a runaway rollercoaster ... climbing up the tracks of a steep mountain then willingly letting go of the death grip on the seat and surrendering total control of the car as it descends, twists and turns in a wild frenzy. The one and only blessed difference between riding a rollercoaster and a cutting horse is the cutting horse stops with a single command, hopefully the rider does too.

Weekends come and go so quickly for us.  We spend arduous days at work longing for that Saturday and Sunday barn time.  Our weekends at RHO are spent in countless hours of Cutting and Sorting practice.  The cowgirls at RHO, however, always seem to need variety, challenges and a bit of spice to switch up the monotony of weekly practices.  From lime green traffic cone patterns to barrels, invisible cows and parade formations, we usually keep ourselves amused and look ridiculous to all the others not privy enough to be part of our Cowgirl antics.  Hence, nudging Tom Riley about hosting a cutting horse clinic was part of our plan to spice up the act. He agreed and was more than willing to hold an educational fiesta at the barn, however, with Tom; you have to watch what you ask for!

So as a surprise treat for us, Tom invited his very dear friend and cutting champion, COPLEN BOE BOGUET to host a clinic. 

Boe Guets, or BoBo Guets as they call him, is a NCHA champion with over $200,000.00 worth of winnings and is also a renownd cutting horse trainer. Having said that, we were excited and scared out of our spurs to say the least.

The clinic was held on Sept. 8, 2013.  Meeting Bo was one of the highlights of the year for many of us.  Tom spoke highly of him and we heard many stories of his success and trained horses.

Bo shook hands with each of us and called us by name, addressed with Miss. He had a heavy Louisiana accent...more Cajun than English, and we had to strain to understand him.  By the end of the clinic, however, we got it loud and clear.

Now, what makes a good rider is the ability to ride any horse. What makes an even better

rider is to ride any horse under the guidance and instruction of your trainer.  For me, I went into this clinic knowing full well I didn’t want to cut with Bizzy.  I wanted to cut on my little paint mare, Chill, who would undoubtedly shine above the crowd PLUS, I wasn’t afraid on her and would be more than willing to advance.  That wasn’t Tom’s idea for me this time.  I believe he felt that I would do better with Bizzy, since Chill and I were in the middle of a cold war and neither of us would budge.

So, I climbed on Bizzy (before Mr. Bo could see me struggle on the mounting block).... Sue on Hickory, her new gelding of only one week, Donna on Summer and the rest with their trusty cutting horse machines.

The clinic went smooth and each of us gained knowledge and time in the saddle.  It was fun and arduous at the same time. As our names were called to show our stuff, our hearts were in our throats and white-knuckled the saddle horns.  At least, for me, I took solace in knowing Tom’s watchful eye was on each one of us!

   

   

The clinic was a grand success. I loved him, I loved learning and I took away much more than expected.  Bo is an awesome trainer and teacher. His tips and techniques are unmatched; however, as stated before, adults are difficult learners. Bo’s techniques are different ... almost opposite of what I’ve learned from Tom.  Both work, both are correct and both have the same outcome but perfecting something in an already old, senile and confused mind is a whole ‘nother story. This clinic for me was more than an eye-opener. I felt foolish and totally incompetent, therefore any and all fun was flushed for me.

Judgment time came and he called each one of us. As we sat in a circle around him atop our horses, our hearts pounded.  The second day was a competition.  Each one of us attempted to utilize the skills learned from the day before.  As he announced winners, he also critiqued the rides of what we did and didn’t do.

 Miss Sue took second place!  Talk about a rollercoaster... Hickory tossed her around so much her brains were scrambled BUT... she owned that gelding only ONE week and hung on like a true champ.  (Personally, I thought she should have taken first, but one of Tom Riley’s top horses made some girl look good... so she got it)

He got to me... “Miss Misssshale....I think you did very well.  You need confidence and more time under saddle and you’ll be fine.  I am not too impressed, though, with your horse.” Well, of course after that I stopped listening.  Say what you will about me, but not impressed with my horse??  PPPSHAWWW....  Sho Biz Lady is one of the best cutters in the barn... believe me when I tell ya.... A great horse can make a rider look great... but then, a bad rider can make a great horse look like hell.... which is exactly what I did.  I held her back and did nothing I was supposed to... so how well could she perform?  She knew I wasn’t ready and so did I.  As far as I’m concerned, Bizzy was the best performer there.... because she took care of me and didn’t do anything I didn’t ask.... Putting a cutting horse in the middle of a herd and holding it back frustrates and sometimes angers them.  She did her job, which was to take care of me at this particular time, in this particular forum.

I’m waiting for you Mr. Guets... LOL!

 Photos courtesy of Brett's Fire Photos

To see more click:  Cutting Horse Clinic

Horse Expo

It's always me. Something crazy usually happens.  I just can't figure out why I get myself into the predicaments that I do.
Walking….Walking is difficult for me ... In flats.
Boots and spurs are a totally different thing.
Carrying a mounting block and leading your horse to the arena in mud ... In boots and spurs that extent two inches out ... Is a challenge.
Seriously, I didn't want to carry the mounting block all the way to the arena... So... Let me just open the gate... Lead my horse through ... Close the gate and just turn around and put this godforsaken mounting block down in a strategic place where it won't be in the way.
Turn around... Spurs caught together... One step forward and flat down ... Knees and hands in the mud... Reins also in hand....
No... It wasn't a graceful fall... It was a downright splat in the mud. Thank God no one was around. My Chill mare stood above me with a priceless look on her face...saying... "Really"???  Her gentle nose sniffed my head as if also to say... "Get up you idiot... Before anyone sees you"
Too late. Yea... Way too late.
Norm's sneering grin peeked over the top of the fence... "I give that one an 8. Would have been a 10 if you face-planted" ….. Oh my... You saw that???   Ahhhh … yup.

Anyway… another adventure…another Expo.  Massachusetts.  Sharon wasn’t along for this one.  Just Donna, Sue and me.  An early morning trip to the Northeast Territory.  I, for one, just found out New England is a region, not a state.  Imagine! The planning was so much fun. Sue is technology challenged.  Not so bad, but her hearing and texting leave a lot to be desired.  It is usually entertaining, to say the least. The issue at hand was who was going to sleep alone... and who would share a bed… three’s company, I suppose.  I didn’t mind sleeping on a cot.  In fact, I welcomed it. This way, we’d all be comfortable and no one had to share.

Although, after Sue’s text…. I really wouldn’t want to share…

 

I knew this would be a good trip.

  











So we piled into Sue’s car and across the bridges we went.   Our trip was uneventful, smooth and relaxing. The check in to our favorite hotel, a Hampton Inn sported free breakfast and the best pillows ever.

Sue’s bed bug check passed.  We dropped our stuff and off to the Expo.  It was cold, but who cared.  Of course, Sue navigated the parking lot and got us to the closest spot available (We won’t say HOW)

 Off we went checkbooks in hand and boots on the ground running.

 The highlight of it all was meeting Stacy Westfall and Guy McLean! Being  able to watch them ride in person is truly a wonderful thing! 

 One of the most honest and nicest trainers of all is Guy.  His philosophy on life truly reflects on his horses and the way they respond.  If you ever get a chance, he’s the one to see!

I needed to find BLING.  Not bling for me, this wannabe cowgirl sure can’t sport any sparkle just yet… but BLING for my horse. Flashy, gaudy and purple.  Elegant yet tacky…. I needed a new bridle and breastplate with tons of purple crystals and lots of shine…

Of course neither Donna nor Sue would let me do it.  I couldn’t help but think about the look on Tom Riley’s face when I adorned my precious cutting horse with glitz straight out of   Barrel Horse World! How funny would that be?  Plus, I really do love the flash but there was no way I was getting to the cash register with anything that could be seen from across the store! I found a nice, simple crystal bridle and breastplate they allowed me to buy... and best thing was it was TOTALLY on sale for a steal!  Circle Y glamor for less… Gotta love Expos!  If Sue hit one more “vests on sale” clothing racks, I think I would have had to bury her in the 40 she purchased!  Donna found her reins and we all bought those little wooly gloves with the beads on the palms to secure reins in 20 degree weather…

Needless to say, we made memories, had fun and Sue certainly brought back way too many vests to count.