Cadence's First Horse Show

Synopsis of the weekend:
Saturday was grey, with a steady cloud cover.  Not too cold, not to warm. At noon, the trailer pulled into the barn's parking lot.  A friend of ours had a horse going to the show already, so they kindly agreed to pick us up.  They already had a horse on the trailer, and he got a little pissy when they stopped, so when I brought Cadence out to load her up, it was to a trailer that appeared to be rattling and kicking.  She found this terrifying, but we got her on, and she and the gelding who was already on the trailer fall in love.  Her and her new boyfriend were totally chill for the whole trailer ride.  Then, when we got to the show, they had stalls next to each other.  Those two became a little inseparable!  Cadence's boyfriend's rider took him out of his stall to ride him, and my mare freaked.  We ended up riding together.  I stayed in the outdoor while she moved outside, and they spent the whole time calling to each other.  Cadence was pretty relaxed though (save one or two minor spook/buck sessions) so we called it a day pretty quickly.  I bathed and (partially) braided her Sat. night, with the knowledge that she would lay down in her stall as per usual.

Sunday morning I got to the barn at 6:30am, finished braiding, wiped off any dust/shavings with a damp cloth, groomed and tacked up, and had hopped on by  7:55.  My first ride was at 8:20, and my second at 9:00.  The stable's indoor arena was being used as a warmup ring, as the actual show was in the outdoor, and the grass rings were too muddy.  They had a big door open at one end, and spectators at the other.  Cadence was not at all keen on the open door, but quickly settled into a nice relaxed (for a show) rhythm.  She was still having door issues, which created some submission issues.  When we did our center lines and halt transitions (C was at the door, and there was a crowd at A) she wouldn't soften in the halt.  If I asked, she'd react and get strong and stubborn, so I made the decision to ignore her frame in the halt transitions. 

Due to the threatening clouds, a car had been placed at C for the judge and scribe.  Cadence and I entered the arena as soon as the previous rider had saluted, and headed around the outside.  If Cadence is nervous, it is generally best to keep her moving.  Otherwise she reverts to her old bad habits, and goes on strike.  We trotted up the long side, and then she spied the car.  My coach went and stood infront of it, which made Cadence a little happier, and we proceeded without (major) incident.  They rang the bell, and we entered at A.
To be continued (once I have time... I hate the end of the school year.)