Show Jumping Class [open to students]

[Onzy]

Chuck entered the stabling block, sweat dripping into his eyes and stinging slightly. Polo had decided he was going to fight Chuck every step of the way and the result had been that both him and the horse were exhausted. He still had to go teach a few private lessons and the main show jumping class, which he was not in the mood for at all. The students, though interesting, were the one thing that he didn't have the energy for today. With Max in ICU, his time had been limited to very little. Handing Polo over to a groom, he made his way back to the indoor arena to set up the exercises he was planning to do with the class.

Trotting poles on one side of the arena, canter poles on the other and course of five technical jumps in the middle. He was feeling particularly sadistic today, with two uphill verticals, an oxer, and two combinations with a related distance between the one. At least four horse strides between it, and five pony strides, he wanted to see how well the riders would be able to handle it.

[Cara]

Cara stood in the barn, getting her chestnut mare ready for their show jumping class. Today was what she would call an off-day, as her head seemed to be a million miles above her body. However, she had a class to get ready for, so she pushed any problems to the side and would deal with them later.

When the mare was saddled and was wearing her tendon boots, the girl removed the cross-ties and led the Connemara/Thoroughbred cross toward the indoor arena. She held the reins in her left hand and almost rested her right shoulder against the mare's side as they walked.

Arriving at the arena, Cara took a look at the way it had been set up and felt tension enter the mare's body as she looked at the jumps. "You will be fine." She told the pretty pony gently. "Come on." She opened the gate and led the pony through, Missy following behind the girl, and closed the gate.

Leading the pony over to the mounting block Cara pulled the stirrups down, tightened the girth, gathered the reins and then vaulted into the saddle - she knew that her actually using the block would let anyone who knew how she rode know instantly that she wasn't feeling the best, and she knew that there would be the chance she wouldn't be allowed to jump.

Pushing her seatbones into the saddle, she took up the reins. Rather then putting her feet into the stirrups, she crossed them over the front of the saddle and let her legs hang long as she squeezed with her legs and asked the pony to walk forward, using the time before the other students arrived to warm the pony up and get her supple and flexed, and ready to face what Mr Bass had in store for them.