Congrats on bringing Faith home! Now you can have the time you need with her. And I know what a relief that is! Nine also surprised me in Fort Worth - it was utter chaos but he remained calm the entire time. He came home a better gentled horse because of it. He learned to trust me in a new environment, and that gave us both a boost.

Unfortunately, my knee has been giving me no end of trouble lately... I hurt it when Nine bucked me off his second ride, and that was at least 6 months ago! So, my advise - go at the pace you feel comfortable with. If you rush your horses training to impress someone or meet some silly deadline, you can end up hurt and with a horse who now has to be taken back down to basics. It's traumatic to the horse when you get bucked off, too. Obviously - if the horse wasn't scared, he wouldn't buck! (Unless he is my mare, and she does it because she's a silly git :P)

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for their encouraging words concerning Faith and me. I was amazed by the friendliness and support of all the trainers at the competition. It was truly a one of a kind experience.

Faith and I did not place well at the event. Showing is just not my thing (put me on a horse for 5 hours in the woods any day over that). However, I was proud of myself for stepping outside of my comfort zone and participating in the challenge. I would like to encourage others to do the same. You will be happy you did.

As for the auction/adoption, my family, my friends, and I were all a mess. We all realized how much we loved Faith. She impressed us with her loyalty and calmness throughout the chaos. We decided that we wanted to bring her home. Thankfully, only one person bid against me, and we were able to bring her home for a mere $200.

HERE are the rest of the pictures.

~ Michelle and Faith :)

http://www.ourextremedream.com/

Michelle, I know you probably don't know me :P I did the 2008 EMM in Forth Worth. I want to tell you not to feel like a failure! I didn't ride my Nine in Fort Worth either, but get this - at the auction the bidding went clear up to $700, which means he was the top selling horse in his division! Even better, the people who paid for him gave him back to me so I could continue his training. So if there are people willing to pay $700 for a horse who's never been ridden that those people aren't even going to keep, I imagine Faith will do just fine! Plus, I had 100 days where you only had 70... Just focus on what you DID achieve.

You are absolutely correct that it is the right thing to do. Giving adopters a false impression hurts everyone involved.

Good luck to everyone and their Mustangs!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL who participated! You've done a wonderful job, wish I could have gone to see you perform. Especially congratulations to Katie who trained Kit. It was a pleasure to meet you in Sulphur and I'm so glad you got to keep Kit! All of you guys are amazing to train with only 70 days!! AWESOME! Did I say that already?? lol Let's keep up the great work and get homes for ALL of these marvelous horses!
Again, congratulations to all, I know you really worked very hard!

This is it.... I am down to my last few days with Faith. I am so sad to let her go. I absolutely adore her, and I know in my heart that she will be a spectacular horse some day. We have done our best to expose her to as much as possible. She's had such a great start. I wish things were different, and I could keep her.

I have put several of the pictures that document our journey together on photobucket. You can see them here:
http://s185.photobucket.com/albums/x44/mickeyamouse/Faith%20-%202009%20GEMM/?albumview=slideshow

I have decided not to ride Faith in the competition. I will only show her in hand. Although it makes me feel like a failure (in a small way), I do believe it is the right thing to do. I am terrified that she will throw a tantrum and ruin her chances of finding a good home. I would rather be honest with potential adopters and tell them she has been started under saddle, but she still has a long way to go.

I have totally enjoyed this process and have no regrets. I hope to someday participate again in a future EMM event (with the full 100 days). Good luck to all of the people competing in the upcoming makeovers.

Michelle Stemerick :)

http://www.ourextemedream.com/