It’s the small things in life that matter, or so I am told. I think that the big things in life are equally important, in part because they are more visible. I am not sure if what I’m thinking about is big or small. I’ll for now, say that it’s medium sized.

I just got the December and end of the year agility results. The December results: Tyra and Hrimmi tied for first with a score of 96 and Raudi came in second with a score of 94. If you come in first, you get two free evaluation/ratings/commentaries. So, we got four, and have one left over from last month. As for the year end league results – Tyra came in second, Hrimmi fourth, and Raudi fifth. Horses owned by a woman named Leslie, who

Alys and Raudi headed up to the agility arena

lives in British Columbia, came in first, third, and sixth. It would have been nice to have gotten first place, but I’m not going to dwell on this.

Yes, this is a huge accomplishment in one way. Getting these videos done and in took a lot of time with a lot of re-takes. The horses, as always, remained incredibly patient. And so did Pete. Once we had, at the near end of a session, the battery in the camera die. We also were dealing with inclement weather. We got the video sessions done in mid-December, just in time because after, the temperature dropped, the wind picked up, and the snow began piling up.

Now I have a tough decision to make, this being, what to do next year. I am leaning towards doing classes in the liberty division, which will be off lead. I took a look at the January walking two-star course, and I thought, oh oh, I don’t think that our horses will be adept at going through the S bend in reverse. Perhaps the agility club organizer is now wanting to make the two-star courses harder for those at the top.

I’m overall encouraged by the December results, but perhaps more importantly, about how the target training is coming along. Some time ago, I put bucket lids on carabiners and attached them to the fence. I wanted them to hang there while I doled out the hay, rather than continue to mug me. Since, I’ve been teaching the horses to stay at their stations. They all now clearly understand what I’m asking them to do. Sometimes they dawdle. And other times they look around for something more interesting to do. But most of the time they go to their places with bright shiny faces.

And most of all, I am feeling good about how all are doing when under saddle. We have not ventured far this winter, much to my dismay. But this may be for the best because it’s good to give horses a winter break. They all seem to enjoy our altogether brief outings and at the same time have a bounce in their step.

Collectively, and maybe collectively is the key word – all this is a big thing, and big things are in my mind quite acceptable.

Next: 358. 12/30/20: A Conversation with Shadow