excerpt
Backing the horses out of the trailer, Tanya led them around, giving
them a chance to stretch their legs and survey their new surroundings
while Joel checked in at the office and got directions to
their stabling area. The good news was that the stalls they were
assigned were still in the state of Oklahoma. But just barely.
After stabling the horses and unloading their gear, Tanya and
Joel headed to the arena. As they arrived, they realized that they
were just in time to watch the evening’s performance. So that
night, after a long three days of hauling their two horses across
the country, they settled back to get the feel of the arena as they
ate hot dogs, drank soft drinks, and watched the cutting and
working cow horse classes.When it was all done they realized that
they were tired and needed to find their hotel in a hurry. After one
last check on their horses, which seemed to have taken to their
new surroundings quite nicely, Joel and Tanya drove over to the
hotel to claim their room for the next few days. Tanya insisted to
Joel that he could have the bedroom, and she would take the
couch. Reluctantly, Joel accepted Tanya’s firm offer. After unpacking,
they fell asleep to dreams of victory in the show ring.
Manolis Aligizakis 