Show Report: MTCC 2016

Herein follows my totally objective summation of Greg’s first combined driving competition. [25 Years, more pix]

Show Details
MTCC & MTPC Schooling Driving Event
Percy Warner Park
Franklin, TN
July 16, 2016
Greg & Lyricc
Lyricc is owned by Kate Bushman, Whip Hand Farm, Franklin, TN
Training Single Horse, 2nd of 2.
Training Division, Reserve Champion, 2nd of 5.
Fastest Cones time of the day, 1st of 8. (Bragging rights, no ribbon.)

Dressage
Warm-up
Greg: Can I do this?
Lyricc: No.
Greg: What about this?
Lyricc: … um … no.
Greg: How’s this?
Lyricc: Okay.

Test
It wasn’t their best:

It wasn’t their worst:

Greg drove an accurate and consistent test. Remarkably steady. Not remarkably athletic. Undoubtedly Lyricc has done better. Undoubtedly Greg will do better. However, the peanut gallery voted it the best test horse and rider were capable of on the day.

To the fun stuff.

Cones
After a short breather, the cart headed directly over to cones. In a big show, each phase would be its own activity. Today, the schedule was dressage, cones, done.

Warm-up
Greg: Okay girl, let’s go.
Lyricc: Really?
Greg: Come on, faster.
Lyricc: Really?
Greg: Go, go, go.
Lyricc: Oh! Cones!

Course
Like most event horses (and riders, and drivers), Lyricc would rather be running cones or marathon than prancing about in dressage. Greg had no trouble with horse participation in this phase. They took a long wind-up so that they hit the start line full-tilt. He drove the course the way one should ride a jump-off, always pushing up. They cantered once, which is okay as long as you do not ‘gain an advantage’, in other words, the canter was obviously from exuberance and you come back as soon as you can. He asked for tight turns. Lyric obliged with nifty footwork. They beat everyone, including the Preliminary drivers, who were allowed to canter, if they chose.

Marathon Schooling
After a break, Greg and Lyricc schooled the water obstacle.

Then, I climbed onto the navigator’s perch for a splash-thru and a trot around the field. We’ve taken our first step into a larger world.

Saddle Seat Contributions
Drive Time. The tack is different. The cart is different. The class requirements are different. OTOH, you have wheels under your butt and reins in your hands.

Speed. Greg found that the extended trot called for in saddle seat driving – as well as the occasional uncalled-for canter and/or rack – had gotten him
used to going fast in a cart.

A Pop of Color. The pink tie is the first saddle seat outfit I bought [Show Report. Now, I own four shirts, three vests, and three ties. What’s up with that?] We would never have put this particular outfit together if he hadn’t worn it for Alabama Charity [Show Photos]. The hint of pink lightened up the dark outfit, dark horse, dark cart.

Piece of Mind. In between his last lesson and the show, Greg had a great saddle seat driving lesson. I handled it much better than the most recent combined driving lesson [Watching from the Sidelines]. It is easier to watch when things are going well.

Thanks All Around
Thank you to Lyricc, Coach Kate, and the generous volunteers of the Middle Tennessee Carriage Club. Wonderful show.

Huge thank you to whoever arranged the weather. Greg drove dressage during a light drizzle. Cones was overcast. The sun didn’t come out to pound on us until everyone was done. For Tennessee in the summer, you don’t get better than that.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott