Battle of Breeds, part three

After the excitement of the Pony Breeds performance class, things settled down for a bit with two business as usual performance classes. The first was Draft Breeds.

I showed Liam Bray in draft horse barrel racing.  

He placed second behind Sandy Sanderson's circus horse, which was the only other entry. 

Longears were next. Sandy fielded a nice packing entry...

but I owned this class.

Jennibray picked up the blue with this coon jumping set-up... 

and Emma placed second with her Hide Race entry. 

Go Jose! 

 Onto Fantasy!

I don't own any actual Fantasy models, so I went with a pony wearing a unicorn bridle. Good enough for second place!

First place went to Sandy's over the top Day of the Dead harness entry. 

The cart was purchased at Target and improved by Sandy.

 It was really awesome.

The last class of the day was Other Breed. Sandy went with a Native American costume horse.

My entry was a little more creative. So creative, in fact, I've decided it gets it own post. Stay tuned!

Battle of Breeds, part two

Ponies are my favorites, and I own a lot of them.

I could have happily fielded a team of twenty for the Pony Breeds performance class at last Saturday's Battle of Breeds live show in Centennial, Colorado. Alas, the rules restricted showers to two entries per class, so I was forced to pick and choose. After a lot of thought, I decided to go with a naughty and nice pair.

Purdylegs was the nice pony.

His basket saddle and Chihuahua were made by Tiffany Purdy, and the doll was dressed by Jane Schneider, who was Purdylegs' original owner. I really love how well the pieces of this set compliment each other!  

My naughty pony was Dagobert. This is the entry for which I "needed" a doll with a broken leg. I thought it turned out great, and the judge agreed. Dagobert won the class (his second pink NAN card this year!) and the judge also awarded him a rosette for Most Humorous Entry of the Day. 

Second place went to Sandy Sanderson's Chia pony. 

Sandy made this for the Jennifer Show, and I absolutely love it. I don't even care that Purdylegs didn't get a NAN card because that's how much I love the Chia pony!

Ponies are my favorites, and I really loved the Pony Breeds performance class at Battle of Breeds. Thanks again to Renae Keller for creating such a fun and innovative performance class list. Draft Breeds, Longears, Fantasy and Other Breeds are next!

Battle of Breeds, part one

As its name implies, Clash of Colors and Battle of Breeds was actually two live shows in one.

Clash of Colors was an all yellow card halter show featuring ten divisions organized by color.

Battle of Breeds was a breed-based performance show, in which entrants were "judged according to realism of breed participation in the selected discipline and accuracy of the discipline/scene portrayed." This was a unique and innovative change from the traditional performance format and made for some really creative and exciting entries. 

The division started tamely enough with the Light Breeds class. There was an Arabian dressage horse,

a half-Arabian sidesaddle Western Pleasure horse,

a Morgan in cavalry tack,

an Arabian costume horse... 

and a half Arabian showing in a Versatility class. This one was mine, and she was the winner. Hurray!

The next class was Spanish breeds. There were only two entries in this one, my own Estudioso...

and Sandy's victorious Spanish Mustang. 

Onto Sport Breeds!

Flying Phoenix was created specifically for this class, and she looked absolutely fabulous in her High Performance Hunter set-up. 

Unfortunately for me, the judge found Sandy's eventer and Karen's circus cob to be just a little more fabulous, and she had to settle for third. Darn!

Carriage Breeds was a one horse class, but at least the one horse was a good one. This is Llwynog Copr pulling my Bill Duncan sleigh.

Gaited Breeds was next. I showed Lady Liberty in her "X-rated" (over twenty one) Water Glass class set-up.

Here's the judge measuring the amount of beer left in her mug. She didn't spill a single drop!

The blue ribbon went to Sandy's parade horse, who was the only other entry in the class.

By comparison, the Stock Breeds class seemed almost huge.

Teresa had one, 

Sandy had two... 

and I had two as well. 

This is Fabian acting as Formal Attire's personal paparazzo.

Sandy's buckskin roping horse won the class, and Dun Up Purdy placed second with his working ranch scene. Dun Up Purdy was one of my first serious performance horses, but it's been years since I've shown him. It was really nice to see him out there again!

Because Sandy's roper and Dun Up Purdy would eventually be named Overall Champion and Overall Reserve Champion of the Battle of Breeds performance division, it's tempting to say that the Stock Breeds class was the highlight of the performance day. However, in my opinion, this was not actually the case. Sandy and I were just beginning to get rolling, and the best was yet to come.

Also yesterday

My best friend, Carol, arrived in Denver yesterday afternoon, so my day started with the Battle of the Breeds and ended with Margaritas at Senor Rics.

After our meal, we had a slumber party at Carol's hotel, and I got to see the suitcase filled with Christmas presents. Apparently, advent calendars are really popular in Germany. Everyone on Carol's Christmas list got one this year.

Mine is the best.

Ponies! 

So far I have opened day one... 

and day two. 

I have a pony and a teeny tiny curry comb. 

With Carol's blessings, I will probably be donating most of the ponies to a deserving young horse lover after the holidays, but this curry comb is staying here. 

Thank you so much, Carol. I am really looking forward to twenty three more days of pony presents!

Battle recap

Yesterday, I showed eleven horses, two mules and a skeleton in the performance division at Renae Keller's Clash of Colors/Battle of Breeds show in Centennial, Colorado. It was amazing.

Eleven of those models placed first or second in their classes, earning their way onto the Battle of Breeds Champion Callback table.

This one - my very first Purdy horse - was named Overall Reserve Champion.

Top honors went to Sandy Sanderson's excellent roping horse.

Our traditional victory photo.

Thank you, Renae, for a most excellent day. I can't wait to do it again next year!

My day today

I have been tacking...

and tacking... 

and tacking! 

I still have a couple small projects to finish, plus I need to pack. This has been a long day, but the end is in sight. I am almost ready for the Battle of the Breeds!