Thinking about first schooling show for green OTTB

[dontskipthecafe]

My horse is doing remarkably well lately, and showing her is starting to look like less of a pipe dream.

That said, there are a couple of schooling shows this summer that I’m considering (I’d only be doing flat classes), and I’m wondering if anyone has tips for what (or what not!) to do.

Specifically, I’d be interested to hear what you think about when a horse is “ready” for a show, what kinds of things to watch out for, and suggestions for keeping both her and myself from succumbing to show jitters.

[BostonHJ]

Take her on some off-property excursions that are not a show situation to see how she handles new situations. You may have to pay a ring fee to use another barn’s facilities, but it should be cheaper than a show and much more low key for both of you! If she can handle that, take her to a show with the idea that you may just hang out for the day. If she is again relaxed and up to the task, you can ride her around a bit and see if she feels calm enough to show.

The biggest no-no’s to me would be taking her to a show for her first extracurricular activity OR entering classes that are geared towards beginner riders rather than green horses.

I also like to do a few days of UlcerGuard before and after going anywhere so stomach issues are less of a factor. Good luck and have fun

[flexion]

Do you have any multi-day schooling shows in your area? The opportunity to get a stall and hang out for a couple of days is why most trainers recommend taking a greenie to a week long show rather than a 1 day schooling show, even though it seems backwards.

When is a horse ready to show in a flat class? When your horse is well schooled at home and you are confident in your ability to ride through an oopsies. When your horse schools okay in the warm up ring (that you handwalked and lunged in) with mild chaos but you’d like to see how they will handle a new arena with the happy reprieve of all horses in the same direction at the same gait.

Avoiding show jitters: don’t pre-enter any classes at the first show! Take your own nerves out of the equation entirely. It’s also perfectly okay to sacrifice a ribbon for a schooling opportunity, say if your horse blows through a transition or needs to circle by a spooky spectator again.

Things to watch out for: this one is super random but has caught me a few times… when walking toward a line of portapotties, quickly check the handles to see if any are occupied and pose a potential threat to spooking your horse when someone barges out suddenly.

[flexion]

Do you have any multi-day schooling shows in your area? The opportunity to get a stall and hang out for a couple of days is why most trainers recommend taking a greenie to a week long show rather than a 1 day schooling show, even though it seems backwards.

When is a horse ready to show in a flat class? When your horse is well schooled at home and you are confident in your ability to ride through an oopsies. When your horse schools okay in the warm up ring (that you handwalked and lunged in) with mild chaos but you’d like to see how they will handle a new arena with the happy reprieve of all horses in the same direction at the same gait.

Avoiding show jitters: don’t pre-enter any classes at the first show! Take your own nerves out of the equation entirely. It’s also perfectly okay to sacrifice a ribbon for a schooling opportunity, say if your horse blows through a transition or needs to circle by a spooky spectator again.

Things to watch out for: this one is super random but has caught me a few times… when walking toward a line of portapotties, quickly check the handles to see if any are occupied and pose a potential threat to spooking your horse when someone barges out suddenly.

[Simbalism]

When I was getting my sport bred TB mare ready to show, I took her to 2-3 smallish schooling shows and just hung out. Didn’t even get on her. She got to experience all the sights and sounds without the stress of being ridden as well. One of the shows was right next to rail road tracks, so she got a little bombproofing as well. After that she progressed to my trainer riding her in some flat classes and then as she learned to jump some low jumping classes. Once she was feeling fairly confident with her new life, I started riding her in the hack classes and trainer jumped her. In the past, I had an OTTB and the loud speakers really set her off.

[lizziescase]

As everyone else so far has said, having NO expectations is really important. That was the biggest (of the many) mistakes I made with my TB mare. As a teenager, it was hard for me to not have an ego going into a show…and our performance in the show ring reflected those nerves and expectations!

I’m also going to echo what someone said above about taking her off the property first. Definitely a cheap way to test the waters and see how she handles new situations.

[Sing_Mia_Song]

Along with several field trips, I will say that I actually find flat classes to be far more stressful than little crossrail classes. This may be because I have my guys at home and so a ring full of strange horses working in the same area is just too fresh an experience! I take mine to a lovely little schooling show down the road and trot the lines, halting in a straight line at the end of the ring, turning and trotting again. This means I am taking myself out of the ribbons and not stealing from sweet pink-cheeked little angels on fuzzy ponies. It also means that horsey learns that he is going to be asked to do something specific after the second jump on the line and that yahooing around the corner is not gonna happen.

[Manni01]

about the point when a horse is ready for a show… I usually do a schooling show a little time before I think my horse is ready. It makes you sweat a little because you worry a lot but so far it worked out really weill. My horse never disappointed me so far. I started our first schooling shows in Nov and did the first rec. Show at the End of Feb. I always gambled a little with the level. Of course I did have some little draw backs, but overall it worked out really well but it it important that you have no expectations. Be happy if it works out and just take it easy if it doesn’t …

[Mukluk]

I bought my OTTB in November (several years ago) and I think we did our first schooling show the next spring. I had no particular expectations. She did just fine. She was used to being around other horses and seemed to adapt just fine. We started out with the 18" cross rails (trotting). Also did flat classes and even trail! We always have a great time.

[findeight]

Find a place to go, get a stall and just let it see the bustle and…important…hear the PA without having to go race. No matter how calm at home, they often get worked up when returning to that competition environment. They think they are going to run and maybe some bad memories of rough handling come back triggered by the sound of the PA and activity in the barn area.

The other thing that trips even the best prepared up is working as part of a large group in a very small area. Not a skill developed at the track. Gets even green horses that never raced upset, cannot be duplicated at home. Although it does help not to ride alone all the time, nothing prepares it for the chaos of the schooling ring.

Those two things cause the more dramatic reactions in ex racers. The more you can expose them to that before actually going in a class, the easier you will make it for you and the horse. Just haul and hang out if you can’t get a stall or it’s a one day. You just need to erase the race part out of their memories when going off the property to a competition where they will be part of a large group.

Not particularly advocating for it but, since you won’t be actually showing, if it gets upset or overwhelmed, bit of Ace might be appropriate. Best to try without but with so many other horses around, some handled by novices and kids, it’s a real bad place to manage a meltdown.

That said, many of them are fine, no issues at all. Just take it slow and be conscious of the varying experience or lack thereof of others at the show. Which is another reason to plan on not showing the first time or three off the property, you need to be sure of what you have before actually going in that small show ir schooling ring with a large group.

[PoohLP]

No matter how good he is at home and how many places you have taken him off campus, be mentally ready for a first show meltdown. By which, I mean be prepared to not step a foot in the ring and to spend the whole time hanging out, working in the most secluded warm-up ring you can find and simply getting him acclimated.

My horse was going great at home when we went to his first show. But when we hit the show grounds, he lost his flippin’ mind. It didn’t help that it was a cold February morning and that alien ponies were walking around in scary coolers, scrims and scarfs (yes, bright pink and blue scarfs!), but more than that, I really think it was being somewhere with lots of noise and people and commotion and new things (like tables and tents (super scary!) and loudspeakers and, of course, the above mentioned alien ponies). As I worked him and later hand walked him he got better until the end of the day when he was actually very good, but we ended up not setting foot in a class. When we went to his next show, he was much, much better.

Just approach it as a training opportunity and don’t expect too much. If everything goes well, be happy, and if everything doesn’t, be ready to adapt and get what you can from the outing.

[findeight]

It’s not just Ponies, they can be terrified of Minis too. And not just ex racers. Experienced, BTDT, seen everything show horses can turn inside out at first sight of a Mini. But in that case they have enough handle trained into them you can at least keep them on the ground, usually not the case with an excited ex racer thinking a race is coming up at its very first horse show.

But you can anticipate these things may be a problem and plan to gradually introduce them at home and at some spectator shows to convince them the added stress of a race is not coming up-as his previous career taught him it was race time. Once he learns that what he has to do at a show is comparatively boring and requires little effort no do or die trying ethic, he’ll relax and then you can start putting him that small arena with a group.

IMO this is where many get into trouble and maybe where that bad rap of being a “crazy TB” comes up. They just are not ready and think they have to run as they were trained for years to do, get ahead of that and you’ll be good to go with him.

[EmJ628]

I definitely agree with everyone who said pick a multi day show, get a stall and let her hang out. I learned the hard way that schooling shows can sometimes be way more stressful than unrated multi day shows. It was really frustrating to try to work off a trailer with a stressed out horse that wouldn’t tie, so I could never leave him. Also make sure you have visited the show grounds and they have a good separate warm up area and area to lunge if needed. Another reason I didn’t like schooling shows with a greenie- tons of small kid riders who don’t know show etiquette yet, careening around, parents who also don’t know show etiquette, and if you want to go in classes appropriate for your baby horse you’re usually in a sea of ponies and pigtails. (which felt a little awkward) I vowed I would only go to the multi day shows where I could have a stall, and if we had a bad day on day 1, there was still the next day.