Education in Equestrian

Right along the edge of our neighborhood is the K-State Equestrian arena.  I walk by there with the kids all the time and we say "hi" to the random horse or two that is occasionally grazing by the street.  Sometimes we catch a glimpse of the girls practicing with their horses, but today we got to see the real deal.  K-State was hosting an equestrian competition there, so we snagged a couple friends and headed over to watch.

I think we stuck out like a sore thumb.  Everyone was decked out in their purple, and we definitely were not.  I was the only one there with small children.  And we were clueless!  I don't even know how to talk sophisticatedly about what we watched, so I won't try too hard.  We saw parts of two events...one where the horses jump over obstacles and another where they have to walk/run a set course for showmanship.  I kept feeling like the kids or I were breaking some unspoken laws of equestrian etiquette while we were there.  Is it okay for kids to holler and grunt at the horses?  Is it okay for them to stand at the fence to watch?  I sure didn't know, but I did make them sit in the stands unless the horses were just warming up.  And a kind fan did inform me that they were not allowed to wave the big purple powercat signs they'd been given because it could spook the horses.  Glad that was clarified.

But, the weather was gorgeous and it was fun to watch the horses and hear them winny and neigh (the kids thought that was great).  The girls got bold and asked a stranger if they could pet her dog.  And I did learn a thing or two about the sport.