December 23, 2019

When you have a full set of games equipment you need a means of containing and moving it around. And when you want to make sure it’s water safe and not stuffed in too tight and getting smashed and broken.

Having as many items in a secure sealed tote is important too. One time I was taking equipment to a practice in the back of my truck and somehow one stepping stone popped out in transit. No idea how but there were six when I left and only five when I arrived.

My previous tote was a plastic foot locker, with wheels on one end. Wheels are key. And although it was sold as water tight, even from the start it would take on water. It also was not large enough to fit the stack of stepping stones (a new set of 6), the association containers, four flag holder, bucket, toolbox, and such.

I have been eyeballing the big Stanley 50gal tool chest and recently stumbled on the Home Depo Husky brand version for a much more affordable $50 price tag. It has large wheels on one end and a large pull out handle on the other. It also has a lock which would have been nice in the past when we left equipment at our practice venue, just for piece of mind. It also has a removable toolbox tray inside that is excellent for holding a lot of the smaller items.

I loaded the new tote up with all the equipment and it fit all of the small items including the four flag holder, association, stepping stones, and a bucket. And there is room to spare.

I’m thrilled with this tote and ready to roll it our next practice!

December 12, 2019

We are a couple practices into our winter practice series and we had a smaller turn out which made for more space.

These are such good opportunities to ride with friends and get in some technical skill work.

December 11, 2019

It was a fun chilly day in Upper Marlboro, MD at the PG Equestrian Center. We rode in mixed heats in the covered arena and had a good time.

Possum was really quite good. I’m super pleased with him. Simon on the other hand was a hot mess. Poor Karen was riding him and he was pulling out all his moves. She managed to finish out the day though and I hope she had an enjoyable time.

November 14, 2019

We started our winter practices back up this past Sunday at Almeda Farm in Boyce, Virginia.

For our kick off of the winter season we had four of our regulars; Val, Carly, Jenny, and myself. Joined by sometimes participant Carol Ann.

Carol Ann brought her new pony Dash who is a complete natural and did not appear new to games at all. He is a handy little pony.

We rocked through some races and enjoyed the morning. Here’s looking forward to another winter of practices.

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November 13, 2019

Photo: K Brookes

The first weekend of November we had a Gamblers Choice one day fun day at the Woodstock Equestrian grounds in Maryland hosted by Stacey Calhoun. These are always way fun and make an excellent training day.

Photo: K Brookes

For the first session Kim W and I drew each other. I rode with Kim maybe 10+ years ago at a similar event and had a good time. This session was just as fun. She’s very laid back and easy going and was a joy to play with.

Photo: K Brookes

Possum is learning to move out more and was working hard and doing an excellent job all session.

Photo: K Brookes

We had a 30 minute break while leadline rode and I made a point of sitting on Possum in the back of the arena and having him stand and wait. This is a huge challenge for him and tends to spoil his mood. Since we do a lot of standing and chilling in games this is a skill he needs to learn. He started off good but started to get rather agitated towards the end. He tossed his head, pawed and started to cross his legs and do turn on the forehands.

Photo: K Brookes

We went right into session two from standing around which tested his lack of work ethic. He was a bit grumpy, as I expected, but he worked right out of it and was an excellent pony all session. This is a huge improvement for him.

For session two, Ashtyn and I drew each other. I was lucky enough to draw her at the last gamblers choice so I knew this would be another fun session. Ashtyn is a joy and we spent a lot of time laughing. We are also signed up to ride together at the first Popsicle pairs at the end of the month. Good times!

Photo: K Brookes

So I managed to have two excellent sessions and possum was an good pony. He is starting to move out and keep up with the pack. We are losing them on our end turn though. We have to get that right hand lead and balance to get that improved. Work work work. But he is turning into a rather nice games pony.

Photo: K Brookes

I also enjoyed both of my partners. They are both skilled and solid players so we got to work on handoffs (which were perfect all around) and general skills. What more could I ask for?

Photo G Arens

Pizza. Pizza is what I could ask for.

One of the nice things about these events is we fit in a social pizza lunch with time to chat and catch up. Side note, the veggie pizza is probably the best veggie pizza I have had. Amazing.

Photo G Arens

So a fun day with improvements with the pony. Yea.

Photo G Arens