Backing with Quality of Movement in Mind

I woke up this morning ready for an adventure to Ignacio. Stephanie was going to drive Diana, Faith, Rachel, Gina, and me to Ignacio, CO for the last day of a cutting show Pat and Caton were competing in. I have never been to a cutting before today and I was so excited to have my first show be one watching the Parelli's.

Blu's pen was mucky from rain last night, so I decided to let it dry up a bit before picking it out. I gave Blu a bucket of water and his food then we headed off.

The drive to Ignacio is beautiful. I was reading my Tony Robbins book, but I took time both ways to look at the views of the mountains.

We arrived at the Sky Ute Fairgrounds in only forty-five minutes. Pat was first up on Skyline and it was awesome! He scored a 70, even with a 3 point deduction for lifting the reins inches off the neck. Watching the competitors, it became evident what a technical sport cutting is.

I was struck most by the cooperation and support the competitors have. I don't know if it is just a part of the culture that goes with the sport or not, but it was really cool to witness the comradery amongst these people. One thing unique about this sport is that it cannot be done alone even though the competitors are scored as individuals. There is the cutting individual receiving judgment and a score then there are two riders holding the herd and two riders holding the cow from running away from the cutting rider. These four holding riders were competitors and they shouted out support for the competitor. Everyone was doing their best to help everyone else.

I learned the point system well enough that I could guess pretty close what the score would be. Pat got a 70 on Skyline, but on AR Chex Olena and a horse owned by someone else, he got 65s because the cow got back to the herd, which is a 5 point deduction every time it happens. Once the cow is alone, the rider can only use cues invisible to the judge's eye--no legs, no reins. Caton rode his new horse Bolero and I guessed correctly that he had earned a 70!

On the drive home, I really got into my book. It made me very happy and I was ready to enjoy an afternoon of volley ball when we got to the ranch. Last week, my team won 8 out 10 games, but today, we lost them all! However, I put a lot of effort in today. I also took one for the team when Bill Thacker served one right to my face. It has been a long time since I've been hit in the face playing sports, so I guess I was due! We all had a lot of fun and I am so ready to play next week!

At home, it thunderstormed intensely. We watched three episodes of McLeod's Daughters before bed. They were dramatic episodes and the thunderstorm intensified the whole experience.

I am so ready for this week to start, as usual :)

Natural Horsewoman Out.