Spinoff - Crazy Things That Have Happened To You In The Show Ring

[MysticOakRanch]

This is just a fun thread, and a spinoff on the “rule book” thread. What are some crazy things that have happened to you while riding a test? Here are a few of my crazy show stories.

First Story:
I’m attempting PSG - lovely facility, we’ve never been there before, but it is really nice. Dressage court is surrounded by a tall hedge. I start my ride, and it feels pretty good - cruising along, some nice lateral work, then just as we start our canter work… A HAWK slams through the hedge and rips through it at full speed after something - leaves flying, hedge is going crazy, he screams - it was actually really COOL - but my horse didn’t think it was so great… Ride went downhill rapidly. We ended on a good note, but had quite a series of tense movements.

Next:
I was riding a 4th level test. We were in a court that was right next to the parking lot. A trailer pulls up right before our ride - pretty normal when you are next to the parking lot, right? Rider and trainer get out of the truck and leave. The horse falls over in the trailer and gets cast - just after my entry halt and salute! And poor thing proceeds to batter the trailer through our entire ride - my horse is in a sheer panic, bolts several times, practices a few “airs” for everyone’s entertainment. My freaking stock tie flies off in the middle of the ride! The judge does not hear a single thing - I don’t know how that happened?

I am bound and determined to ride through this disaster and NOT let Big Boy get away with this display of BS - if I really thought it through, I should have dismissed myself! So I muscle through the ride (my brain is now on sheer adrenaline), halt and salute, and the judge says “I could dismiss you for not wearing a stock tie”. Really? I’m sitting there shell-shocked - did you not HEAR what is going on? I kept my mouth shut. Meanwhile, the trailer horse has gained his feet, and all is quiet now. Someone goes and gets my stocktie out of the arena, and I leave. BTW - horse that was cast comes out of the trailer looking a bit skinned up, but they rode him anyway?!?!?

Next story…

Same stallion. 2nd level test ( a few years earlier). I am riding along, having a lovely ride - it is pretty windy. All of a sudden, there is a huge gust - I swear it almost knocked us off our feet - right as I’m suppose to pick up the canter, and he just scoots - he is NOT a scooter, wth? I try again, and he scrambles around - the judge blows the whistle. I turn around to find the photography booth trailer’s awning (which is about 36 feet long) has flown into the ring behind us! So several people go and drag it out. Rest of the ride was a bit tense…:lol:

Same horse - but trainer riding. She is going along, having a really nice test. A horse in the warm up ring (which is right next to the show ring, and is not fenced) bucks his rider off, falls down, then get up and proceeds to gallop around the show ring! Rider is OK;) Horse gets a break while they have to catch the loose horse.

Different horse.

Fancy little guy, but with cataracts, so a bit reactive to things. Apparently the ride after me is a freestyle, so partway through my ride, they start setting up a big sound system by the arena - two guys crouched, running back and forth between pieces of equipment - 3 feet from the arena - and it is spitting feedback! My horse must have thought it was a couple of mountain lions - we come around the corner, and he shoots sideways - I am not sure we even touch the ground - but now I’m in the middle of the court!:eek: Everything on one side of the ring was fine, but on the side with the “construction project”, it was disasterous - a ride with 7s and 8s and 1s and 2s. Had to retire him not long after that show- the eyesight thing just became too much of a thing:cry:

Those are just a few of the weird things we’ve experienced at shows - sometimes I’m amazed that horses put up with it at all!

[belgianWBLuver]

[QUOTE=MysticOakRanch;8638106]

…

Those are just a few of the weird things we’ve experienced at shows - sometimes I’m amazed that horses put up with it at all![/QUOTE]

Not quite as crazy as your experiences :eek: But decades ago my Lusitano stallion at his 3rd show ever, comes up center line, halts, salutes, stretches out, pees “FOR LIKE EVER” while grunting and shaking his head. Then he stands back up straight and we proceed at working trot towards C. Judge is loosing it in her box :lol::lol:

[Shagyas_Rock]

I don’t have anything nearly as colorful to share, but once, on a windy wet day, the arena was full of puddles, and during our First Level test, my horse leaped one of the puddles as if it were an oxer - threw a flying change and then did a lovely 15 meter circle in counter canter. I was very embarrassed

[Stitch_In_Time]

[QUOTE=belgianWBLuver;8638234]
Not quite as crazy as your experiences :eek: But decades ago my Lusitano stallion at his 3rd show ever, comes up center line, halts, salutes, stretches out, pees “FOR LIKE EVER” while grunting and shaking his head. Then he stands back up straight and we proceed at working trot towards C. Judge is loosing it in her box :lol::lol:[/QUOTE]

I had that happen TWICE at a hunter show! They announced “you are now being judged at a walk” and the horse parked and peed. Jumped 2 more courses, went back in for the next flat class, “you are now being judged at a walk”, park and pee. Worst part, the judge was my old college IHSA coach, she was a tough cookie and wasn’t amused.

[arlosmine]

This happened to my coach on her “quirky” Appaloosa, decades ago, at Bloomfield Open Hunt.

Second level test is proceeding well, with a deep corner having been ridden in preparation for the medium trot across diagonal.
As the pair pass the corner letter, which is festively decorated with a large clay pot of the country club’s signature flower, the geranium, horse snakes head sideways and snatches geranium. Horse proceeds across diagonal doing a really GOOD medium with plant firmly in mouth. The clay pot dislodge and bangs into his knees, shattering into little bits. This bothers him not one iota: he simply shakes the dirt off of the root ball as he proceeds in the medium…and he does NOT let loose of geranium.

The test calls for a halt at C, at which point the rider (whose whites are now covered with geranium-red slobber/dirt) reaches up and yanks the carcass out of the horse’s mouth, resists clonking him over the head with the remains, and turns to the judge to be told what to do next, since she can’t come up with anything

This presents a brief new problem because Judge and scribe both have flattened themselves on the table with heads in arms. Unable to speak.

Test is retrieved with a score of 7 on the medium, and the previous movement (where the flower was grabbed): “movement not called for at this level”.

[belgianWBLuver]

[QUOTE=Stitch In Time;8638261]
I had that happen TWICE at a hunter show! They announced “you are now being judged at a walk” and the horse parked and peed. Jumped 2 more courses, went back in for the next flat class, “you are now being judged at a walk”, park and pee. Worst part, the judge was my old college IHSA coach, she was a tough cookie and wasn’t amused.[/QUOTE]

:lol::lol::lol:

[beowulf]

:eek: Some of these are crazy! Hawk?! Yikes!

The worst that has happened to me was during a dressage test @ GMHA… I had a big fat b52 bomber fly try to land on my guy during the first portion of the test. He tried SO hard to pay attention to me and there were no theatrics… but he was so very concerned. Thankfully the bug was visible from the judge’s trailer and the comment @ the bottom of the test was “very obedient despite fly’s insistence… treats and flyspray in his future” :lol:

Pretty… mundane compared to some of these!

[coloredhorse]

Good topic! My TB/Trak mare at her first schooling show in an indoor as a greenie. The indoor had high windows for ventilation; the way the sun was coming in, along one long side there were blocks of light. My little mare apparently interpreted the dark blocks as a series of jumps, so every time we came down that side, the judge was treated to Sally demonstrating her jumping capability.

Same mare, several years later: Just getting back into showing after a hiatus due to work issues and a move several states away, so I tried out a local schooling show I was told was low-key and had hired a good judge. Breezy spring day. They had a folding lawn chair set up for photographers near the judge’s stand. During my test, the breeze blew the unoccupied chair over as we were passing C; minor spook, OK, no biggie. Next time we had to come past C, of course, my luck being what it is, the breeze picked up and tumbled the chair onto the rail, where it hung wobbling for a few seconds. Unsure what it was about to do, I halted. I’m sure the poor judge was confused. The breeze tumbled the chair into the ring; I picked up the trot and continued on the rail. The chair tumbled around a bit, but I was able to avoid it, had only minimal spooks, and finished my test. Judge wrote very kind comment about a “tactful handling” and a “bold little horse.” :lol:

My “redneck warmblood” mare is a steady-eddie now, but had a spook when she was younger. One dressage test, a butterfly landed on center line during our halt. She refused to move forward, instead planting her hooves and snorting in horror. Of course, once I realized what the issue was, I about died laughing and couldn’t ride to save my life. I had to do a little sidepass to get around the horse-eating butterfly to start my test. Judge scored accordingly, but had a sense of humor about it.

The scariest one: I rode a friend’s TB in dressage for a while. During this one test something spooked him and we had a little scurry and shuffle. I didn’t think much of it until I realized he was straddling the chain arena. He tended to swing his haunches when we halted, so I was scared to do that. So I took a deep breath, filled my head with happy thoughts, and asked for a leg yield. Damned if he didn’t step right back in the ring w/o touching the chain! His owner’s son trail rode him on weekends and, unbeknownst to me, had been practicing walking over logs and poles and whatnot … forward, backward, sideways. I adore that kid!

[beowulf]

Good topic! My TB/Trak mare at her first schooling show in an indoor as a greenie. The indoor had high windows for ventilation; the way the sun was coming in, along one long side there were blocks of light. My little mare apparently interpreted the dark blocks as a series of jumps, so every time we came down that side, the judge was treated to Sally demonstrating her jumping capability.

Pro-tip for the future: it takes more than 45 minutes (!!!) for equine eyes to fully adjust to light-to-dark conversions… At venues when I know I am going to be indoors, I always try to warm up a little outside and then hang around for a bit in the shade or the indoor (if available) for at least 20 minutes… Horses have incredibly slow adaptation periods for light/outside to dark/indoor. This is especially a consideration of mine if jumping…

As a teen I had a similar experience w/ a green bean, but he was jumping the bright patches and I could not, for the life of me, get him to settle for the class. I thought he had vision problems but my vet explained the lengthy time it takes and it had been BRIGHT outside and the indoor was not even lit.

[dotneko]

[QUOTE=dotneko;8636945]
Can I play? In our third ever Grand Prix test, we are cantering across the diagonal. Wind kicks up and I put my hand on my top hat to keep it on. We continue around the short side to begin the twos on the next diagonal. As we turn we both see that the pop up tent covering the B judge has blown free and is now upside down at X. Horse’s eyes are now dinner platters. He spins but stays in the ring. The judge, scribe and assorted spectators march into the ring, right the tent, and crab walk it back to B where 4 people now stand at each corner and hold it down. C judge yells to me ‘take your time and signal when to want to begin again’. I think next Tuesday might be about right. Anyway, we completed the test with the horse looking sideways at the tent expecting it to come after him again. That was our last time in the ring without him on high alert.

Of course, we try again the next show. This time, they decide to fill the water truck in the small pond adjacent to my ring. As we begin the piaffe-passage tour, the water truck is filled and begins to spout water out of the top like a whale. Piaffe turns into fly backwards at warp speed.

I have a number of these LOL. - oh one more. CDI with Axel at C. 5 tent flaps around the judges boxes. Windy day. We are in the final passage up the center line and wind starts the B and E flaps going. Fabian passages up to his eyeballs and I cannot stop him. Axels eyes get bigger as we approach G. I finally halt and Axel says to me ’ I thought you were going to join us’. So did I, Mr. Steiner, so did I.[/QUOTE]

Couple of others - horse very distracted throughout test and scores/comments reflected it. Turns out there was a moose just behind the judges trailer that the judge couldn’t see. She thought my horse was afraid of the trailer.

During an eventing test a flock of sheep came through my arena - hopped over the chain on one side and out the other.

At one of our fall shows I was showing a clients hot Arabian. Of course, we drew the 8 AM ride in 35 degree weather. The local geese decide to take off from the adjacent pond and fly over my ring at about 25 feet altitude. I could feel the wind from their wings and they made a gawdawful noise. Horse came completely unglued.

Judge, while returning to her seat after the first halt, manages to fall out of her chair. She attempts to right herself just as I am coming up the centerline. She never rang the bell, so I kept going.

In my first test in a full bridle I give too big of a half halt aid before a flying change. Horse throws head straight up in the air and whacks me in the nose. I am sure it is broken and I am seeing stars. Finish the test with tears of pain streaming down my face. I am sure Michael Poulin is going to rip me a new one for use of the curb. I finish and he says to me ‘don’t worry, it has happened to all of us’. Perhaps I was really concussed LOL

Now, I have been showing since the early 80s (and judging since the 90s), so I have seen and done a lot - this was over the course of many years.

[Hilary]

At a schooling event my silly spooky horse usually took issue with the flowers while he was in the ring. This day, he opted to spook at the flowers at E while going around the edge waiting for the whistle. He leaped into the ring! I was a bit puzzled as to how to get back out - since the test hadn’t started could I just jump back out? Would that be impolite? Should I turn around and exit at A? Since I was IN the ring before the bell rang was I eliminated?

I jumped back out and the judge laughed and rang the bell for me to start for real - but I don’t know if it had been a sanctioned event what the right answer would be.

[rascalpony]

Oh dear. I rode in a show last summer with my quirky half-Arab mare. We weren’t doing a high level test (First) and she decided she DID NOT LIKE one corner of the ring. She hopped away from it every time she had to get near it.

As if this is not enough, just after the first leg yield, the judge blows the whistle and yells “STOP THE TEST!” I had no idea what I’d done wrong, until I spotted a loose, very agitated horse come rampaging towards my ring, which was surrounded by a high wooden fence. He was moving so fast I was dead certain that he was just going to crash through the fence. Meanwhile, I’m sitting on an already-ticking time bomb. This was not going to be pretty.

My horse luckily has some experience with other horses galloping straight at her (my pony does it all the time), so she stands and watches curiously as he gets to the fence, decides he doesn’t want to go through it, and spins out, almost falling down and wiping out several spectators in the process. My horse, who is a nutter if the littlest thing goes wrong, does not move a muscle during this entire performance. I meanwhile cannot believe what just happened, and somehow continue on with my already wonky test.

[belgianWBLuver]

@dotneko;8638383

…

Turns out there was a moose just behind the judges trailer that the judge couldn’t see.
…

A what? wtfunkadidilies :lol:

With my current guy I woulda had a one way ticket to the black hole Hubble passed last week!!!

[AltersAreUs]

First schooling show of the season on a lovely but windy spring day.

I’m riding my been there, done that, slightly lazy mare doing 1st level. We’re tooling around the ring, waiting for the judge to ring the bell, which she does just as I passed the judging tent. As I make the turn up the long side, I ask for a canter, something I always do to ensure I have something close to impulsion during my entry.

Instead of a nice upward transition, my mare flies upwards and hits stride at a full out gallop. I think “woah, where did this come from?” Then I catch a glimpse of movement behind me, glance back and realize the judging tent, one of those big white four pole jobbies, has tipped over and is now CHASING US up the long side not more than three feet behind us.

I did the only logical thing I could think of. I turned my horse into the field beside us, put the reins up by her ears and got the hell out of dodge.

Half an hour later, the show resumed and my poor mare was rightly convinced that the judging tent was going to eat us every time we went past it. Got some good scores at the other end of the arena, though.

[LadyNeon01]

Last schooling show of 2014 at a farm I’d never been to, but my instructor and other barn mates have. The warm-up area was right next to the dressage ring and cross country course. Lots of trees all around. I had just walked into the warm-up area when a huge tree branch comes crashing down in the cross country field. My then 6 year old went sideways so fast. I thought I was done for right then and there.

Then to top it off, I had just entered the ring for one of my tests when the farm dog promptly lays down in the corner of the arena near H. Halt at X, salute, and proceed down the centerline while hoping that the stupid dog moves. Nope, I end up going around him. Not sure the judge noticed the dog but she did make a comment about not going through the corner properly! :rolleyes:

Same show, my friend went in the ring to do an intro level test right after they changed to a large arena. Her horse spooked at the change in footing. He apparently didn’t like that it went from a used path to smooth footing! :lol:

[Beentheredonethat]

Mystic–You remember this. You saw it. Championships, 1st level futurity class. I was riding my young horse at the time. As we enter, it is not raining. As we circle, it starts sprinkling. We enter the ring. It starts raining harder. We keep going. It starts gusting winds. We keep going. Starts POURING. We keep going. Wind starts whipping trailer door open next to the ring, slamming it over and over. We keep going. Starts thundering and lightening. Going. Announcement over test that everyone needs to get inside NOW as there is lightening. Everyone is running inside. Going. Crackling thunder and lightening. Heavy gusts of wind blow over letters, garbrage cans rolling towards arena. Mare spooks, but we keep going. It starts HAILING. We keep going. We came down the centerline with both of our heads tilted sideways because it was raining so hard we were trying to keep the rain our of our ears.

The judges (yes, two) never rung us to stop, so we didn’t. Both of them and the few spectators left gave us a standing ovation, including Mystic. We left the arena at a walk.

It was a huge mess. They cancelled the class and that score didn’t count, and I wasn’t even allowed to see the test or the score.

[FatDinah]

I was supposed to ride green TB mare in schooling show. Day before, she got kicked in the field and had a huge lump on her chest, very painful. Same afternoon, green TB gelding bucked off his timid teen rider. Rider refused to show so trainer suggested I show him. No time to ride so first time I got on was in the warmup.
All going well in warmup and as we started test. But dressage ring was next to a x-country field where a human cross country track event was going on. AS we trot off from our halt, a park police car followed by an ambulance with flashing lights (no siren) and about 100 kids goes down the side of the arena next to us!!!
Gelding stuck his head up and swiveled it but kept marching along in test, we actually got a nice 60s score.

A friend of my daughter bought a former Prelim horse moving down to lower levels. At his first schooling show, he jumped a line that faced the dressage arena, which was inside a fenced area with a gate. He proceeded to jump the gate like another fence and landed in the arena with another rider.

[Chestnut_Run]

My first time ever riding 3rd level, there was a mare in heat in the warm up ring next to our showing ring. Poor stallion I was riding went the whole test with an erection. The judges remark was “amazing level of suppleness and submission, all considered. Vicks is your friend”.

[Graymaresrule]

My first mare and her first test: They had PEACOCKS, unseen but not unheard. the judge said he had to give me a horrible score but Idid a great job of remembering the test and keeping her in the ring.

A few years later, same mare, minding our one business in the warmup at Foxcroft we were mounted by a warmblood stallion with professional rider.

[yaya]

With my Friesian mare (who I just lost last week at age 24), we were in the middle of our test, going on the short side at C towards H, when the entire long side of the arena, from H to K, blew over towards us. She started spinning in circles, not wanting to go anywhere near H. I asked to be excused, but the judge said, “you paid for this time, school her past it.” Well, she still wouldn’t go anywhere near the long side, so we left the arena.

Same facility, different horse (my 26-year-old gelding I lost 2 months ago). There was a wildfire going on in the area, and several competitors had already left with their horses as a precaution, but those of us who stayed just kept on showing. (Facility was on a body of water, so we figured if the fire got too close, we’d just go for a swim.) Apparently the fire jumped the highway, and was now getting close. We could hear bells, shouts, and the sounds of bulldozers. As I went down centerline and halted, what I thought was a crow feather came floating down next to me. It was a burnt leaf. When the sounds died down later, a bunch of us went up the street to see how close the fire got. It was stopped a block away.