The Auction

Well, it is Dad's birthday, and the day Uno is auctioned. It took me about an hour to understand the first auctioneer... And then, they changed auctioneers. I couldn't understand a word the second auctioneer was saying. I couldn't tell if he was saying $200 or $200,000.00. God blessed, me though, as always, He changed the auctioneer back to the first auctioneer about 5 horses before Uno.... Thank you God.... Of course, it didn't help the outcome. Randy and Marsha Olson outbid me and became Uno's new owners. It was a very sad weekend, and on Dad's 70th birthday no less. Anyway, we located the Olson's number and called them. We found out they have a nonprofit organization named Mustangs4ever. They adopt the mustangs, and eventually donate them to organizations that work with children that would otherwise never be exposed to horses. I know that Uno went to a good home, but he will be sorely missed. He was Dad's best friend for 100 days... God blessed our lives when he gave us dominion over the animals! It is an honor to be able to care for and receive the unconditional love they provide....

The end!

Dad and Uno bow to the judges....

EMM - The Horse Course - Of Course

I am so proud of how well Dad and Uno did during the In-Hand. After the conditioning and the in-hand, they are in 4th place in the Legends division. And he is going against professional trainers that are nationally recognized. Pretty impressive if you ask me! And now the horse-course. Dad made a couple of mistakes during the pattern, that unfortunately knocked him out of the top 10. He was supposed to make 2 turns to the right and 2.25 turns to the left. He did 1.75 turns to the right, which then caused him to break pattern to the left also. You will also see that Uno starts to trot over the W pattern, and Dad broke him back down to a walk. Oops. But all in all, Dad and Uno did an outstanding job!

Handsome Pair

Don't they make a handsome pair entering the arena for the horse course !!!

Extreme Mustang Makeover In-Hand Competition

Well the competition has begun. Uno got a perfect score for conditioning 120 out of a possible 120. Woo Hoo.... At the end of the In-Hand, Uno was in 4th place.

Uno Working Buffalo

Dad decided that it might be a good exercise to work Uno with the buffalo. I wonder how many buffalo Uno saw when he was roaming free.

Uno's First Competition

Saturday, August 9, Dad decided to load Uno up and take him to one of the local competitions, obviously just for the exposure. They tried out "the pole" competition and did GREAT! It cost $5.00 to enter and they won $1.00.... If they keep this up, Dad will be rich and be able to retire. All kidding aside, it was a really good time, and Uno did an excellent job for his first time...

Uno just loves sweet tea

Don't know if you can see it from the second picture, but Uno has taken the glass and is holding it with his teeth. You know how I know he has become a member of the family. When I was a little kid, I would spend the day with my grandma during the summer because she lived right down the road and my mother worked. Every day after grandma would finish with lunch, they call it dinner down south, she would sit down with her glass of sweet tea to watch her stories. She would sit there and chew the ice from her sweet tea. That is a habit I picked up and I have been chewing ice for 30+ years now, even though the dentist tells me it is bad for my teeth. Well guess what, Uno likes sweet tea and he will adjust the glass to get the ice from the tea and chew it too. Guess it runs in the family. :)

Uno Tied To The Tree

This is probably the first time the horse has ever really been tied and not been able to go wherever he wants to. As you can tell from the photo, Uno isn't really pleased with the situation. I can only imagine what could be going through his mind.

Uno's First Swim

Dad ponied Uno down to the pond, since Uno has such a passion for water. As you can see by the clip.... Uno had more than a great time!

Training Horses is Hard Work

After a morning of horse training, a nap under the peach tree is mandatory. And certainly man's best friend, Lost, has to keep a close eye on the situation.

Love Of Water

On day 2, I discovered that Uno has a real love of water. He prefers drinking from the water hose rather than his water bucket.

Meeting Uno in Ewing, IL

We drove from Alabama the day before so we could get an early start on the journey home and begin the training process. We were so eager to meet the new mustang, we were first in line at the pickup site. You can't tell it from here, but Uno has a white stripe down the front of his face that looks like the number one. So as you can probably guess "Uno" is his name-o.