Curious as to where we stood, I headed by the score sheet on the way to walk the stadium course. All I could manage to do was laugh when I realized that we had the second best test in dressage and the leader had been eliminated on cross-country. My determination turned to panic as I entered the indoor arena for the course walk and came face to face with fence one. Though only 18 inches high, it was surrounded with flowers of every shape, color, and size. Thoughts of victory were quickly replaced with vivid images of rearing, run-outs, and little girls laughing as I dusted dirt off my breeches.
Every jump look like it was sponsored by a local florist.
After frantically casting my eyes about to find someone to complain to, I resigned myself to the inevitable and remounted him for our final warm-up. I held my breath as we entered the arena, and much to my relief, Kat never so much as looked at the flowers as we trotted by them. To put a short end to a long story, Kat jumped the course like an experienced hunter. He never balked, never shied, and never wavered. He took every fence straight on and was always looking to the next upon landing.