Monday afternoon I called a friend and offered to go ride with her, and go to a little jackpot that night with her and tune on her horse. I went, had fun, got to run her horse. Then I ended up spending the night..and then staying Tuesday and riding a few more of her horses. Then spent the night again. Wednesday afternoon we went and picked up my horse and my stuff so we could leave for Glen Rose for the Jurassic Classic Thursday morning. Wednesday we didn't ride anything, we left around 11am for Glen Rose. Took us about 3 hours to get here. Got the horses all settled in and then went to sign up..wow what a line. We stood there for a hour and half waiting to sign up..and we got there 30 minutes before the books opened. Go back to the trailer hang out a little while then feed, watch some funny videos on YouTube then go get ready.
Ahh my run, Jet was really running hard down the alley. He sucked up the first barrel and off to the 2nd we go. I rode him all the way across the pen and was turning a great 2nd when he slipped on the backside. There had been a bunch of slips and atleast one go all the way down. But when he slipped I threw my inside foot up by his shoulder so I could get by the barrel. Now we're off to the third. They have the tractors behind panels that have tarps over them behind the 3rd barrel. It seems almost everytime they do this and leave a big opening on each side the first run I make Jet is headed for the opening on the way to the 3rd. So he just kept driftin out going to the 3rd then slipped and kind of stepped off of it. Then I looked up and saw the 2nd barrel laying on the ground. What a heart breaker. I just let him cruise out and ran a 15.207 and a 14.9 won it. EERRR
But I have three more runs so ill get it figured out.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Lake Charles,La
It was much warmer when we got to Lake Charles. We visited with friends and family from the LC area (and they brought yummy food LOL) Went and watched the rodeo since I wouldn't be running till MUCH later. We got there in time to watch the team roping, it was pretty good. Next they had the 4-H/FFA calf scramble. After that they had the adult stick horse barrel race for a 100x hat. It was great, a few tripped, a few fell in the dirt..a couple times. Then the clown act..ahh the dang clown act. Lecile Harris was the clown there. Another guy walked out as a woman opera singer and her pianist was sick so she needed someone to play. They turn the lights off and they go on and on with her singing a few notes..then Lecile playing the piano and pretty much doing everything wrong. By this time i'm kicked back in my chair with my eyes closed waiting for it to end. I notice the lights are coming on but I figure, their big lights, it'll take them awhile to come on..this clown act could still take forever when BOOM. I jumped in my chair which prompted all the guys behind me to laugh... apparently the piano must of blew up with Lecile rocking on it.
It was 10:30 before the rodeo ended, 11:10 before the slack started. I didn't run until 1am. I had a nice bull dogger walk with me across the concrete and stay on the side of me so my horse didn't jump off onto some slick concrete till he took off. Smoked the first barrel once again, then hit the 2nd and I pulled him up due to my saddle slipping to the side.
We left right after I ran at 1:30, we got home sometime around 5:30am, think we went to bed around 6am. I don't think I ever moved till around noon, finally got out of bed around 2pm. Plan on going to a barrel race in Athens Sunday to hopefully win some money so I can go to Alvarado and Fort Worth next weekend.
It was 10:30 before the rodeo ended, 11:10 before the slack started. I didn't run until 1am. I had a nice bull dogger walk with me across the concrete and stay on the side of me so my horse didn't jump off onto some slick concrete till he took off. Smoked the first barrel once again, then hit the 2nd and I pulled him up due to my saddle slipping to the side.
We left right after I ran at 1:30, we got home sometime around 5:30am, think we went to bed around 6am. I don't think I ever moved till around noon, finally got out of bed around 2pm. Plan on going to a barrel race in Athens Sunday to hopefully win some money so I can go to Alvarado and Fort Worth next weekend.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Jackson,Ms rodeo
Ahh it was ssoo COLD there. It wouldn't of been so bad if it would've been just cold. But it was pretty windy too. I think we all froze before we got to run. Jet felt good, had a uneventful warmup although I think he got tired of walking in tiny circles since there was no where else to go near the arena to wait.
They finally call my name, we start towards the alley, make a few hops and we're off. We hit the arena with a blind first barrel flying. He inhales the first and all I can think is WOOO go on! I'm not sure why he didn't move over sooner but he barley got over for the 2nd barrel, dropped his rear end and went to roll back on the backside..when the deep loose dirt got us. He lost his rear end and we drug over the barrel leaving it. Its all over with..no way you could ever place with a down barrel especially not with 200 entered. Ohh but wait were still running barrels! I get 3 strides from the third and just sit there and let my horse drop..and hit the barrel. Whoops. I cruised out, and had a very nice time that would be sitting well right now.. but alas the ground got us.
We're now on our way to Lake Charles,La to run tonight in slack. number 79 of 81..2nd to last on the ground of course.
They finally call my name, we start towards the alley, make a few hops and we're off. We hit the arena with a blind first barrel flying. He inhales the first and all I can think is WOOO go on! I'm not sure why he didn't move over sooner but he barley got over for the 2nd barrel, dropped his rear end and went to roll back on the backside..when the deep loose dirt got us. He lost his rear end and we drug over the barrel leaving it. Its all over with..no way you could ever place with a down barrel especially not with 200 entered. Ohh but wait were still running barrels! I get 3 strides from the third and just sit there and let my horse drop..and hit the barrel. Whoops. I cruised out, and had a very nice time that would be sitting well right now.. but alas the ground got us.
We're now on our way to Lake Charles,La to run tonight in slack. number 79 of 81..2nd to last on the ground of course.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The story of "Spoon"
In mid 2000 we decided I needed a new horse. The one I had was a GREAT pole horse but a 2-d/3-d barrel horse, and that just wasn't going to cut it at the rodeos. We run across a ad in a local assoc. newsletter and decide to look at the horse at the next barrel race. The lady that owned the horse had Chad Crider run her that night and they ended up 2nd. I rode the horse around after the barrel race and it was love at first ride! But we wanted to run the horse before we bought it. She took it to a local arena for me to run at a little Jackpot and we set the arena record, but the lady wanted me to make another run on her to make sure it was going to work out. We had a assoc. show the next weekend at another arena. I once again climbed on Spoon and out ran everyone by 4 tenths and set another arena record. She was the fastest thing I had ever sat on and by far the wildest thing I had ever run. She would sidepass down the alley till we were almost at the mouth of it, turn and take off wide open. It felt like she never slowed down, she would dive down at the barrels turn back and be gone again. But I hung with her and never got behind her so we bought her.
After we got her we started going to the UPRA rodeos in 2001. It seemed for the first 3 months it didn't matter where we went or who was there we were first or 2nd as long as I sat up there and rode her right, although there was quiet a few down barrels with her style. After that she got hurt in the pasture and we turned her out for a month, then we were back again for a few months. Then she got hurt again, once again we had to turn her out by the time I get back on her it is September and after a few runs she started running up the fence. After spending THOUSANDS at the vet injecting, x-rays, ultrasounds, blocks ect. We took her to Los Colinas vet clinic in Dallas,Tx to have a bone scan done. It revealed that she had calcification over the tendons on her right hock that they could not remove due to it was on the tendons. So she no longer has as much mobility as in her other leg and couldn't reach as far, but that wasn't career ending thankfully! But it also revealed that her heels had been turned under on her front feet and they had were now pressing on her foot causing severe bruising and corns, and breaking the bars in her feet.
We had to drive 65 miles one way every 4 weeks to have her correctivly shoed, and couldn't ride her for 6 months while this was corrected. After we got it corrected it was still in her mind. I then started running her to the left for 3 years off and on. Then my sisters horse got hurt the end of 2005, we tried other horses but mid 2006 she needed something else to ride and I was mainly riding Jet. So she climbed aboard and started winning on her. They ended up winning the saddle for the Real Cowboys assoc. Jrs. that year. She even smoked all of us in the open one time.
We came home from the RCA finals in 06 and turned the horses out at the gate like we always do. Except this time something was diffrent. As soon as we turned her loose she circled the trailer twice in a run and then her and the other horses were off in a run for the house. The only problem with this was they were running towards a closed gate, that had been closed for months. We figured they would stop like they always do but we couldn't see them as it was around midnight and of course dark outside. Then all of a sudden we heard a crash. Spoon had tried to jump the gate at the last second I guess and ended up catching the top rail of it. She hit it so hard she pulled it away from the henges along with pulling the t-post halfway out of the ground that it was chained too. This resulted in strained/stretched tendons but no tears and fluid build up in both front legs. All we could do was treat it and turn her out. After 7 months she was moving around the pasture great, so I started riding her. All would go well until you loped her 3-4 minutes then she would start limping so back to the vet we go. It is now September 07 and the vet decided to split the tendon in her ankle on both front legs due to the fluid was causing her ankles to lock up when getting warm. The end of October we made our first run back. I ran her, along with taking turns with my sister running her in 08. She was 10th in the 1-d of the first go of the Texas NBHA show in July. After doing so well there I entered her in the WBR race in Waco,Tx Memorial day weekend. While warming her up she tripped and took a nose dive with her front right leg out in front of her. When she came back up she was limping. After walking around awhile she seemed fine so I tried to make my run on her, but back up the fence we went. She had strained her tendons in her right leg. So she was once again turned out from September 08 till January 09. She is now being legged up once again, but is mainly just the "pony horse" for Jet and Shorty at the barrel races and ponies Jet at the house.
After we got her we started going to the UPRA rodeos in 2001. It seemed for the first 3 months it didn't matter where we went or who was there we were first or 2nd as long as I sat up there and rode her right, although there was quiet a few down barrels with her style. After that she got hurt in the pasture and we turned her out for a month, then we were back again for a few months. Then she got hurt again, once again we had to turn her out by the time I get back on her it is September and after a few runs she started running up the fence. After spending THOUSANDS at the vet injecting, x-rays, ultrasounds, blocks ect. We took her to Los Colinas vet clinic in Dallas,Tx to have a bone scan done. It revealed that she had calcification over the tendons on her right hock that they could not remove due to it was on the tendons. So she no longer has as much mobility as in her other leg and couldn't reach as far, but that wasn't career ending thankfully! But it also revealed that her heels had been turned under on her front feet and they had were now pressing on her foot causing severe bruising and corns, and breaking the bars in her feet.
We had to drive 65 miles one way every 4 weeks to have her correctivly shoed, and couldn't ride her for 6 months while this was corrected. After we got it corrected it was still in her mind. I then started running her to the left for 3 years off and on. Then my sisters horse got hurt the end of 2005, we tried other horses but mid 2006 she needed something else to ride and I was mainly riding Jet. So she climbed aboard and started winning on her. They ended up winning the saddle for the Real Cowboys assoc. Jrs. that year. She even smoked all of us in the open one time.
We came home from the RCA finals in 06 and turned the horses out at the gate like we always do. Except this time something was diffrent. As soon as we turned her loose she circled the trailer twice in a run and then her and the other horses were off in a run for the house. The only problem with this was they were running towards a closed gate, that had been closed for months. We figured they would stop like they always do but we couldn't see them as it was around midnight and of course dark outside. Then all of a sudden we heard a crash. Spoon had tried to jump the gate at the last second I guess and ended up catching the top rail of it. She hit it so hard she pulled it away from the henges along with pulling the t-post halfway out of the ground that it was chained too. This resulted in strained/stretched tendons but no tears and fluid build up in both front legs. All we could do was treat it and turn her out. After 7 months she was moving around the pasture great, so I started riding her. All would go well until you loped her 3-4 minutes then she would start limping so back to the vet we go. It is now September 07 and the vet decided to split the tendon in her ankle on both front legs due to the fluid was causing her ankles to lock up when getting warm. The end of October we made our first run back. I ran her, along with taking turns with my sister running her in 08. She was 10th in the 1-d of the first go of the Texas NBHA show in July. After doing so well there I entered her in the WBR race in Waco,Tx Memorial day weekend. While warming her up she tripped and took a nose dive with her front right leg out in front of her. When she came back up she was limping. After walking around awhile she seemed fine so I tried to make my run on her, but back up the fence we went. She had strained her tendons in her right leg. So she was once again turned out from September 08 till January 09. She is now being legged up once again, but is mainly just the "pony horse" for Jet and Shorty at the barrel races and ponies Jet at the house.
On the road again
And we're off!
We left about 30 minutes ago, horses in tow trailer packed and ready. On our way to Jackson,Ms to run tonight then stay at the WONDERFUL BHW BB's RunToWyn's house after my run tonight. Then we'll leave and venture over to Lake Charles,La to run LATE tomorrow night in slack there. First two pro rodeos of the year! Hopefully we'll start of with a bang this year instead of downed barrels and one or two out like last year.
We left about 30 minutes ago, horses in tow trailer packed and ready. On our way to Jackson,Ms to run tonight then stay at the WONDERFUL BHW BB's RunToWyn's house after my run tonight. Then we'll leave and venture over to Lake Charles,La to run LATE tomorrow night in slack there. First two pro rodeos of the year! Hopefully we'll start of with a bang this year instead of downed barrels and one or two out like last year.
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