Bexley Heath Easter Show

Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but March really was a very quiet month in the Jive Pony camp. We've just been slogging away with training and working the horses, teaching our vaulting group, and getting ready for our first show. We did have an interesting corporate day teaching a group of hairdressers, but as yet haven't got any photos - as soon as I get some I'll tell you more about it.

But... Our 2010 season is underway! We had our first show this weekend, and it was really great to get back into it. Rebecca, Ronan, Tim, Tinker and I set off on Saturday afternoon for Bexley Heath in Kent for an Oakleigh run show. We were really looking forward to seeing everyone again, as our last show for Charlie and Emma was back in August at the Danson Summer Show. We arrived in good time and set up with no problems. We'd turned the boys out in the arena whilst setting up, which we usually do as it keeps them out of the way and lets them get used to the space. However, the ground was still quite wet and muddy, and by the time I came to get Tinker back in he'd done his best hippopotamus impression and had covered as much of himself as possible in lovely black mud. And he'd only had a bath that afternoon! The rest of the evening went without a hitch - apart from the case of the exploding herrings. An unopened tin of them accidentally got left under the grill, and as we were eating supper - BANG! The mess and smell was unbelievable!! The herrings wern't the only explosion of the night either, Becca was suffering from a very large, very angry ulcer on the roof of her mouth, which was causing her lots of pain. So... self surgery! She heated up a pin and POP! It was almost comparable to the herrings!! Hats off to Becca, there's no way I'd have been brave enough to do that to myself. But it did the job and she didn't have any more grief from it!

Sunday dawned grey and miserable, and we were fully expecting it to rain all day. However, apart from a bit of drizzle here and there it really wasn't too bad. It was very very windy though, and quite cold - not ideal when you're standing on the back of a horse trying to take your clothes off! Not only was it our first show but it was the first outing for our new costume - think Grease/cheerleader! Although we're both going to be wearing the costume for the duo shows, it was just me wearing it for the first time this weekend, and despite some initial trepidations it actually worked really well! The only thing wrong with it was that the collar is round neck, meaning I couldn't keep any 'titbits' for Tinker in their usual place (my bra!) - but we worked around it and will do some alterations for the next show. The second show also went really well, although it took Ronan a while to get up to speed! After the first section of the show I'm not sure who was more out of breath - Becca from vaulting or me from chasing Ronan round and round!

Monday's shows also both went really well, the weather was slightly brighter although the wind was soooo cold - early April is a bit to soon to go running around in a leotard! Tim had an unexpected change of costume when in between our shows he was abducted from our tent and press ganged into becoming a medical porter for the Officers of the Confederate State! We went to watch him doing his bit and although he was very good his medical expertise wasn't - the poor soldier he was treating died! The little video below (shot by Tilly Spielberg) shows Tim doing what he does best - being a naughty glamourous assistant!

All in all we had a lovely weekend. It was really good to catch up with everyone who we've not seen for while, such as Richard (from The Sheep Show, doing both a shearing demonstration and the very funny sheep racing), and Randal and Jeff Carey of Countrywide Falconry (who gave me a falcon to hold just before the first show for an impromptu photoshoot!). I did manage to get quite a few photos over the weekend of various different things - just click here to have a look at them. Tinker and Ronan were both their usual superb selves all weekend - they really do look after us very well and we couldn't do any of it without them! Thankyou boys!

Unfortunately we've not got another show until 6th June, so until then it'll just be more of the same. We do have our coaching exams at the end of the month so wish us luck and I'll let you know how we get on!

Lots of love Rosie xx