May marked Saro’s first full month back in training after taking a break for the winter, and I couldn’t be more thrilled with how she bounced back. I eased her back into her routine at the start of the month, and she picked everything up quickly, she was definitely ready to get back into action.
Leading up to our first show on May 19, we put in some solid practice time. One thing I really focus on with Saro is mixing things up between arena work and getting her outside of the arena. I’ve found that alternating helps her stay engaged.
When we’re in the arena, I always start with a good warm-up before jumping into any drills. This month, my main focus was working on barrel and pole patterns. Rather than running the full pattern every day, I set up six poles around the outside of the arena and work Saro around them at a walk, jog, and lope. This keeps her in frame and encourages smooth, consistent turns. Once we’ve got that down, we work through the pattern at a slow lope or jog.
We’ve also been enjoying trail rides, which help keep things relaxed while still building her fitness.
At our first show at Trent River Stables (PRHC Jackpot Barrel Race Fundraiser), Saro was so happy to be back in action! Our first barrel run wasn’t perfect, but by the second run, she cut two seconds off her time! We then ran poles twice, cutting off a full five seconds from our first attempt.
After the show, Saro had a few days off before we headed to High School Rodeo Finals, where she had runs at TLC Quarter Horses. I was so impressed with her—she made her fastest runs yet in that arena and really stepped up and made me very proud! I cannot wait to see how the following months go for us!
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