Warragul Show

The massive toothache wakes me up at 4am. I drink some water and go back to bed. On the one hand I realise that I should get up at 5am and plait up Dingo. On the other hand, I cannot fathom how I will plait him up in the dark.

I compromise and get up at 5:30. It's dark. I pack the rest of the car. Then I get the ponies and plait up Dingo. It's just light enough. I put the ponies back in the paddock, have breakfast, then run out again with Sabina.

We're on the road. The day looks beautiful. Windstill and not a cloud in the sky. By the time we get to Warragul it's not windstill any more.

The experiences of yesterday leave Sabina more focussed, and today when I say "get dressed", she does. Yay! I saddle up Tornado, and we run over to ring 2, just in time for smartest on parade. Sabina rides into her class. Is she paying attention to the judge? Ummm ... no. She comes third (out of three), and looks at me. "Mama, I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing." I smile. "Well, you need to listen to the judge. She will tell you what to do. And if you don't understand, then you need to ask", I say patiently.

We run back to the float, where hastily, in the wind, I finish Dingo's preparation. That includes sawing the plaits into rosettes. I busy myself with the needle, while Dingo keeps getting distracted by floats and horses. Do I prick myself? Yes. And there are bits of blood running down my fingers. Lucky that Dingo is a chestnut and it doesn't show.

Once Dingo is ready we rush back to the ring. I ride into my class with Sabina running behind me. I stop and gently say "hey, why don't you go and sit down on one of those chairs?", as I point to the chair next to the penciller. Luckily, the penciller is kind. Phew! It's not like that at all shows.

Finally, I can relax though, and enjoy my class. In fact, from here on, I enjoy the rest of the day. Sabina and I even find the time to ride around the outside of all the show rings, and take in the atmosphere. On our well groomed, clean ponies, in our jackets, we cut quite a picture.

It's all worth it.