Brace yourselves, Tucker fans. . .   Tucker and I are really taking this cross-training thing seriously.  First, a dressage clinic, and now, cross-country schooling with our friends Dom and CP:

Tucker falls in love with yet another pony...

Haha, okay, so I didn’t really go wild, but when I strapped on a safety vest and went marching into the water complex, my inner Hunter Princess just stood there with her mouth gaped open in shock.  But Tucker and I had huge smiles on our faces!

See?

Tucker LOVED the water and did lots and lots of splashing.

This is the weirdest horse show we've ever been to... but I like it!

Dom and I trotted in circles around the water complex giggling like idiots (Best Carousel EVER!) until some real eventers came over the hill to actually school the water complex (the look on their faces was priceless) and we decided to venture elsewhere. . . .

When we tackled the first jump of the day, Tucker was, shall we say, a little bit impressed with the natural obstacles he encountered.  Always the gallant hero, Tucker decided that just in case any predators were lurking below, he should clear them by at least four feet:

Scopey, ain't he?

But as the day progressed, and Tucker got the hang of this cross country thing, he relaxed into himself and started jumping more like his normal adorable self, clearing them by a reasonable amount of space:

Such a good boy!

 

And so brave!

The funniest part of the day, for me, was when I walked my little hunter up to take a look at the bank before I asked him to jump out of the water and onto the bank (you know, given that we’ve never done anything like that before, I figured I should give him the benefit of the doubt and let him have a look first).  Tucker’s response?  “Oh!  Exit that way?  Okay, hang on Mom!”

Note the length of my reins....

Clearly, this horse was a five star eventer in a past life or something.  He had such a good time.  I was so shocked and so over-the-top thrilled at how brave, sane, and willing he was.  This horse really is game for just about anything!

My favorite pictures from the day are below, and there are more here on Dom’s website (along with pictures of Dom’s amazing almost-fall-and-impressive-save, and some great shots of CP the Pony).

Water + Horse = Permanent Grin.

Mike laid on the ground to take this, he's pretty brave himself.

This horse is gorgeous, if I do say so myself.

 Photo credit for all of these goes to Dom’s boyfriend Mike.  And ladies (those of you who follow Dom’s blog), since I know that there are quite a few Mike fans out there, and having met him I know now that this will embarrass the hell out of him, I want you to know that Mike is just as charming and helpful and good-looking in person as he appears on Dom’s blog.  He made a comment about being happy to be spending a day around horses — no, I’m not kidding — and I just about drove the truck and trailer off the highway.  It’s a good thing Dom is so incredibly wonderful or else I think we’d all have to hate her.

Oh and I almost forgot!  I met Ozzy!!  Well, I got molested by Ozzy, is more like it.  There are certain horses I know (you may be familiar) that, despite the plain brown wrapper, stand out in a crowd.  Ozzy is definitely one of them.  You can see his personality from a mile away.  He and I were instant friends.  He showed me a bunch of his tricks, then pointed out all his most itchy spots and let me scratch them, and then we kind of made out.  I know, I know, I barely know the guy, but sometimes when the mood strikes, you just have to go with it.  I must say, there is just something about a big bay gelding that tugs at my heartstrings:

Ozzy (photo by Dom)