Show team lesson

So I figured I would just go through a typical show team lesson since I haven’t posted in a while

4:00pm (16:00)

So it takes about a half hour for me to get to my trainers barn and we all arrive there at about 4:30pm (16:30). At this time I usually get changed into my riding clothes then head up to the barn with my mom and I normally drive as I have my permit.

4:30pm (16:30)

This is around the time that I arrive, sometimes earlier. I head into the barn and get my tall boots on then go find my trainer and find out what horse I’m riding. It’s always the Delta but sometimes it may change. I go out to her pasture and if I don’t see her there then I go over to the other little pasture since they are connected as they have a river as their water source. If I don’t see her there then I just have to go under the electric fence and into the neighbors field which she would be there.

Once I catch Delta in the field which it is pretty easy as she just waits for me to come up to her. I bring her into the barn and clip her to the crossties. I brush her, do her hooves then tack up. After I do her girth I usually give her a peppermint. I put my helmet on then put her bridle on after.

5:00pm (17:00)

It always takes us a half hour to get ready. Then we find out if we’re riding outside or at the indoor. Once we find out we lead them out of the barn and get mounted. We usually walk and trot a few laps around the arena while waiting for my trainer. Once the lesson gets started we walk and trot for a while and do it without stirrups then we go and canter. Occasionally we canter without stirrups but it’s very rare.

After we warm up my trainer sets up a little crossrail and we go over that a couple times. We let them walk a little bit while my trainer sets up a course. The jumps are around 2ft as some of the riders don’t jump very high yet. We do a few courses that she makes up and some days we even do some cross country jumps that are on the field, including banks that go into the arena and out of the arena into the field.

6:30pm (18:00)

Usually at this time we just walk them around and they get a couple more peppermints when we’re still riding them after the lesson is over. After they get the peppermints we get off them and bring the horses into the barn. We untack them and if they are sweaty we bring them outside and hose them down. If they aren’t we put the fly masks back on and put them out to the pasture that they are supposed to be in. Delta lives outside so that’s why she goes back out. If they live in the barn then they go to their stall. Delta doesn’t stay in her pasture long anyway. They usually have grain and hay out by the time we’re done. If they don’t then I bring the cart out with me when leading Delta back and I feed all three horses that are there.

7:00pm (19:00)

By this time we are done at the barn. I change out of my tall boots and my mom is usually here by then. I say bye to my trainer then go home and eat dinner. I don’t get home until around 7:30pm (19:30)

This is what usually happens at my show team lesson. We have them every Tuesday and Thursday. There’s only three of us most of the time and sometimes four. Not many people come until IEA starts. Once that starts there’s about 12 of us riding and we switch horses a lot to get used to riding different ones. All pictures are of my little chestnut mare Delta. I just love her so much that I wish she was mine. She’s about 16 years old.