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September 18, 2023 by Lisa

Last Show of the LEG Series – The Colorado Horse Park

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Wow, what a summer! I made it a point to try and get to all of the shows at the Horse Park for the summer season. And this is the Last LEG show at the Colorado Horse Park for the summer. I am a little sad, because this means that it really is autumn, and it won’t be long before the days get even shorter and the snow starts flying.

But that’s enough talk about winter! I have a horse show to share with you! Or I should say, I have a bunch of horse show photos to share with you!

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

I made it a point to take a lot of different types of photos for this outing. Right now, I am obsessed with how beautiful the tails of the horses are that are showing. And I have been scouring the internet for any tips, or secrets of show grooms of how they get the tails to look like this.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

I do realize that the tails are banged, which means a blunt cut across the bottom of the tail. And I think this has a lot to do with the overall appearance of the tail. But they are just so beautiful! So I wanted to pay attention to some of the smaller details at this show.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

The overall grooming of these horses is just so incredible. And I know the people showing have teams of people for the horses. But that doesn’t mean I don’t try to have my horses look their best, like these horses.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

And then there’s the tack. Holy cow, these horses are turned out beautifully. No detail has been overlooked.

They are immaculate!

Rusty Stirrups Division

And, of course, I had my counterpart and friend, Lynda, with me for the show. I can’t even remember how many years we have been doing this. It’s literally a summertime tradition. And we decided to start with something a little bit different for this show, we had to check out the rusty stirrups.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

I wish they had a better name for this division, though. And if you haven’t heard of this division, here is the definition according to the Colorado Hunter Jumper Association:

“Open to amateur riders 18 and over. Riders may not cross enter into any division or Class exceeding 2’6” or any rated division or class at the same show with the exception of USHJA 2’ and USHJA 2’3” Hunter, age group, maiden, novice, limit equitation or flat classes.”

So basically, anyone over 18 is considered a “rusty stirrup”. That doesn’t seem right.

rusty stirrup rider

It was a lot of fun to watch older riders.

tack in a rusty stirrups under saddle class

We stopped and watched the under saddle class. And it was a lot of fun to see older riders participating. And these aren’t the super fancy jumpers. But to me, they were just as much fun to watch.

I actually took a video of the entire class so I can practice at home on my own. I know that may sound odd. But I learn best from the audio input. So my plan is to make a video that I can upload to my phone and practice the class as if I were in the class.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

The Show Jumpers

show jumpers at the Colorado Horse Park

Ah yes, the jumpers. This is where my heart truly lies. The Grand Prix class got moved to the end of the show day due to rain the previous day. So they had to fit in all of the missed classes from Friday into Saturday. And we actually got to the show grounds early enough to walk around and scope out the best seat to watch the class.

LEG horse show

Which gave me an excellent opportunity to check out all of the jumps.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

They pulled out all the stops on the jumps for this class. And the course designer made a beautiful course for the competitors.

show jumps at a horse show

I don’t know why I am drawn to this jump. Maybe it’s all of the extras, and it’s different than any of the jumps we typically see.

This vertical is pretty nice as well. I like how they combined the striped rails with the solid ones. Very pretty.

Grand Prix Jumping at the Colorado Horse Park

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

And the riders did not disappoint. They were beautiful.

To me, this horse looks like a hunter. Am I wrong? He just looks like he belongs in a hunter class with his beautiful form over jumps.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

The course did seem to cause some difficulty for the competitors. There were a total of 20 riders and 6 came back for the jump-off round.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

And I think we chose a great spot to capture some of the jumps.

I don’t remember all of the riders. But there is one that I know before they even say his name.

Bjorn Ikast

Bjorn had 4 horses in the class and had 3 come back for the jump-off round.

One of his horses, The Great Dane, didn’t have the best round. But hey, that happens, right?

But he wasn’t the only rider in the class. There were a lot of other very talented riders.

And some of them looked pretty young.

young show jumping riders

Not quite as young as Haley, who I shared in my last horse show post. But still, these were some young riders!

Looking at the Details

And being how I am, I look at the little details all over the showgrounds.

show grounds

From how people decorate the front of their ‘show barns’.

To the bits and bridle tags that the horses are wearing.

Even the saddle pads. I noticed a lot of the riders were using the Ogilvy Baby Pads. These are great, and you can even customize the piping colors.

This is something I don’t see a lot of anymore, the quarter marks. I don’t think Lynda has ever seen it before this show because she asked about it. I think it looks really fancy!

Magnetic Safety Stirrups Ophena S

And this is something I have been seeing a little bit more, a new type of stirrup. This looks really interesting. You wouldn’t have to worry about getting your foot caught in the stirrup in case of a fall.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

These are the coolest stirrups I have ever seen. I have a habit of seeing things like this, and these stirrups are my latest find.

These are called Magnetic Safety Stirrups. And they are made by a company called Ophena. And they really are magnetic. I guess you wouldn’t have to worry about losing a stirrup then, right?

Ophena S is the name of the stirrup. According to the website, the stirrup has been developed for the highest safety. Its open design minimizes the risk of your foot getting caught. And the magnetic system releases you safely in case of a fall. The stirrups even include a pair of magnetic insoles, which generate a magnetic connection between the stirrups and your boots. This connection provides better grip and control. Again, according to the website.

I didn’t intend to make this post about these stirrups. But after looking closely at the photos, I couldn’t help myself! These just look so cool! You can check them out on their website and see some pretty cool examples of how the magnetic system works. Maybe they will have a deal for Black Friday. One can only hope!

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Colorado horse park

And even though this was the last show of the showing season for the LEG shows at the horse park, there are still some smaller shows for the year. I will definitely be trying to go to a couple if I can.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

I find it very interesting to see the difference between local shows and those that are rated. It seems like the smaller shows are more fun for the competitors. I could be wrong, but that is how it seems to me.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Or maybe the smaller shows are the starting point for some horses and riders. Whatever the case, I really enjoy going to horse shows, big or small.

And even though the LEG shows are done in Colorado for 2023, I was so happy to see that they have already published the shows for 2024!

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Oh my goodness! I am already excited about the shows for 2024! 12 horse shows! 12 opportunities to go to the horse park! So exciting to be able to plan the upcoming year of shows. It makes me happy to see that they are releasing the dates so early. Hopefully, by doing so, more of the top riders can plan on coming back to Colorado in the summer.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Maybe this will bring back some of the past Olympic riders. I know for a fact there would be someone very happy to see Will Simpson back in Colorado.

LEG Shows at the Colorado Horse Park

Whatever the case, and no matter the riders, I will be back at the Horse Park in 2024. And if you live locally to the area, I would love to see you there too!

Related

Category: Articles, Colorado Horse Park, Horse ShowTag: am I too old to horse show, Colorado Horse Park, english horse show, horse show jumps, horse show photography, horse show pictures, how to dress for a horse show, how to show a horse if you are an older rider, rusty stirrups division at a horse show, show jumping, what a hunter jumper show is like

About Lisa

I am horse crazy and love DIY projects, and finding great deals on everything horse related. When I have a new idea, or find a great deal I love sharing this information with you……..AND just to have FULL Disclosure:

Affiliate Disclaimer: Some of the blog posts on my site will allow you to purchase different products and services online provided by other merchants, and not myself. Some of the links that I post on my site are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I may receive an affiliate commission.* I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn a commission by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
*Disclosed in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Comments

  1. Kay Frederick

    September 19, 2023 at 6:10 PM

    Thanks for posting these pictures! I’m not sure about those stirrups either, but surely they are safer. Years ago when I was showing, a favorite class for “mature” riders was OFOFOF(Old FoggiesOverFortyOverFences) so you can see by that title, 40 was the starter for older riders! Looking forward to the small show pics too.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      September 20, 2023 at 4:41 AM

      I love the name of the class for mature riders! That is awesome! At the smaller, local shows here with the 2 riding clubs in my area they have a class division for riders over 50. Which is my age group. And from what I have seen, the competition is pretty tough, so it will be fun to practice, and be competitive again with these ladies! 🙂

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Lisa. I started The Budget Equestrian to share what I’ve learned about owning and caring for horses. If there is a budget way to do something with horses – I’ve tried it!
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