> What a day it was. Yesterday, my family and I went up to Davis for my first horse show. Last night, the rain began. This morning, when it was still going, we began wondering if we'd driven up for nothing.
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> But, as my dad said, horses are waterproof. We drove up to the lake--excuse me, the arena--and checked in with the coaches. One looked at me and said, "You're dressed like you are," meaning I wasn't going to have to wear show clothes or mess with my hair (hallelujah!). Good thing I wore my riding jeans.
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> I didn't think I did badly; I was busy concentrating on the reins and not running into someone else. (I had to ride two-handed, with which I have all of 45 minutes' practice, instead of one-handed like I'm used to.) We walked, jogged, reversed, jogged, walked, and then the five other beginners and I lined up on one of the few remaining bits of land in the lake--er, arena--to hear the placings. My number, 595, wasn't called for first. I didn't hear it for second, third, or fourth. My heart sank when it wasn't called for fifth. I didn't think I'd done *that* badly. But I was really confused when it wasn't called for sixth (and last) either, so the coach and I walked over to the judges to find out.
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> There is a large red ribbon sitting on my desk. It says "Second Place." I think it's pretty darn good for someone who's only been riding for five months. Although placing second in the beginner class is a dubious honor, to be sure, it sure was thrilling. I couldn't stop grinning for an hour. And the other girls were so excited for me, it was almost funny. Heck, they're seniors and just plain awesome riders (reiners!); I didn't think they'd get all that excited about me getting second. But from the way they hugged me and squealed and took my picture, I felt like I'd just won an Oscar for Best Performance in Inclement Weather.
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> I drove three hours to ride for two minutes, in the pouring rain, on a horse I had never ridden before. Craziness. I can't wait to do it again.
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> La"But I can do without the precipitation this time, thank you"Zorra

Horse shows are somewhat like scooter meets. We still have fun if it rains. The scooter show is usually indoors and we spend a lot of time sitting around with friends that we only see two or three times a year. A few lies are told, and other discussions center on grandchildren and the places we've traveled to since the last meet.

But scooter rides are curtailed for safety reasons. Scooters, like horses, are waterproof, but you don't really want to get them wet or muddy.
Howard