Boys are good. Still cantering Chewie, both leads, no problems. Took Wednesday off completely, last night Chewie was quite irate he wasn't the horse de jour. He'll get over it. He galloped himself around the pasture, and promptly behaved in the paddock.
Romeo was polite, trotting over the fences, and when I asked him to pick up his trot over it, he complied. Only two of ten were jumps, but he didn't blow rails away, which is good. About another week, and I think his drills will reduce a bit. We'll have a few days a week of hard-work, and one or two of walking & hacking-out. He deserves the break... he's taught me a lot, and, after the June show, he will have earned a mini-vacation.
Now, my nickel's worth on the new USEA Cross-Country rules... I've been reading on the horse fatalities, rider sever injuries, for about the entire season. RFD-TV has been running a short series on Eventing, a sport I want to get the courage for again. I got sucked into it, watching every episode at least twice. I've been reading up on the eventing websites, feeling horrid about the horses that have died, been euthanized, and the riders that have been hospitalized for their falls... (And it's a nickel, because the value of the dollar is horrible and two cents won't buy squat.)
First-Fall used to be 64 penalty points. Updated - First-Fall, Elimination. It's a good move, in my opinion. If, for any reason, rider & horse part company, unintentional dismount, they shouldn't continue in the competition. Instead, they ought to pack up, go home, and practice harder. I can't imagine going "splat" in front of bystanders, under competitive pressure, and saying, "oh, go get my horse, let's try that again". A refusal? Sure thing, I'm going to force him to get over at least once. But not on cross-country. Those bugs need working out at home...
Now, with that information, and a buck, you can go get a hamburger. *wink wink*
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