Rachaels Equine Services

Ridding Gabe

2008-06-20T09:03:00.000-07:00

Well, I ahve been doing some serious work on Gabe the Babe! He is looking GOOD!!! All toned up! We have been working on giving to the bit instead of leaning on it!! It is amazing what a little o-ring work will do for a horse!!! Now I am wondering if I need to change up my bit for our actual runs! NO, I refuse to run him in an o-ring! He just gets too fast coming out of the pen and not being able to stop is a BIG issue for me! he wont even slow with the o-ring coming home and I am sure that what ever I run over or into leaving the arena will hurt just as bad going mach speed....But, i am thinking about trying a lifter or a gag bit for running instead of the hack. Or, maybe I will go back to the beetle hack or the side pull hack??? Lots of things to think about! Looks like I have 3 weeks to think too! I have not run barrels since April and will not run barrels again until July 4th...Yeah, that is a LONG time, but, we needed the break to work on issues! Now, we are ready but have NO money and need to pick Joe up in Marshall that weekend from the trainer, so, I am going to go up there on the morning of the 4th and ride Joe before anyone gets there. Then, I will get Gabe ready for that night. I might run an exhibition too... Just to get a feel for him running again! Ever since he got his injections, he moves a little different and I am not sure how he will actually turn the cans now!

2008-06-07T21:08:00.000-07:00

Joe from Today

2008-06-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

LOL, see what he thinks about going to the trainer....

Joe to the Trainer, Gabe Got a Tune Up!

2008-06-07T20:45:00.000-07:00

Well, Joe is now two, has been gelded after he bred both of my mares. Now he is at the trainer to be broke to ride! I have him working good in the round pen. After his surgery, he had to be worked every day for the last 3 weeks to keep the fluid moving,so he is in shape! Lots of long trotting! I also have saddled him and gotten him used to that as well as taking the bit with ease. Junior, in Marshall, TX, is going to break him, sack him out and get him going good under saddle!
Well, to make sure that I liked this trainer, I decide that he needed to show me his abilities by ridding Gabe, and yeah.....he is good! We spent an hour working on Gabe. He informed me that Gabe has been lying and bullying me. So, he got him to really give to the o-ring and we managed to get several good runs out of him with out him cheating me on the first barrel! I must say that I was impressed! Not only with Junior's skills, but also with Gabe! Man, that horse can inhale a barrel! We have some homework consisting of giving to the bit and keeping his head down when I ask him to bend around the barrel. I think we will work on these things and make our come back in July!

Life and Horses!

2008-05-27T08:29:00.000-07:00

I woke up at 6am and jumped out of bed to throw on some jeans, boots and head to the barn..Why you ask? I have been having a really hard time getting out of bed for the last year. Basically, the snooze button was my friend and my pillow was the enemy....I just did not have the drive to get up and be "functional".

I started to think about why it is that when I head home my head ache that I have had all day and the sleepiness that has been lingering all day just goes away!!! Well, I figured it out! My horses. My horses drive the evil monsters from my soul. This is what sets barrel racers and horse owners/ riders apart from the rest of the world! We would rather be shoveling manure than sitting behind a desk ANY DAY RAIN OR SHINE!!!

Well, after realizing all of this, I decided that I need motivation to rise and shine. So, now, I will rise to the urge to ride and shine all day long to think about what I accomplished while most folks would be reading the paper, drinking coffee or sleeping. I WOKE UP AND RODE MY HORSE FOR A MILE AND A HALF AT THE LONG TROT AND LOPE!!!!! Grin And because I did this, when I get home, I can work the fat kid! Or the colt! Or what ever!!! Because I Did my work out this morning!!!!

2 Mares Bred!

2008-04-28T06:35:00.000-07:00

Well, Chivas (MJG Scottish Scoot) and Day (Bring On The Day) have both been bred by JoesStreakinForCash! Chivas is Due to foal March 26, 2009 and Day is due April 4, 2009! I am SOOO Excited! We were a little worried that my young, 2 year old stallion, would not be able to cover the mares. Neither mare showed any interest in him during their foal heat. Well, last weekend, Chivas showed interest and was bred several times. Sunday night of this weekend, Day began to show some interest! Looks like Joe will be heading to Lufkin to have his brain surgery soon! He will be gelded and then begin his training! He is such a nice looking horse. I cant wait to start riding him!

Destry's Free For All in Alvarado, TX

2008-04-14T13:38:00.001-07:00

Well, we set off for a weekend at the barrel race. The weekend was long starting Friday morning. I saddled up Gabe not 15 minutes before my run on Saturday Morning (we got a little mixed up) and headed up to the arena. Gabe was acting a little off, but, nothing to cause great alarm. We went running into the arena and about the time we got to the first barrel, he bobbled then proceeded to crow hop the rest of that turn and the entire pattern. Everyone was yelling for me to push him, but, this was VERY unusual for Gabe. He was literally crow hopping every stride. I came out of the pen after finishing the third with a 21.6 second run on a standard pattern...Yeah, no where close to the money. But, hey, it was a clean run and I did not get bucked off....So, I headed down to the warm up pen to work the buck out of him. We did several circles when I looked down to see his shoe complete with all six nails. Ah, that was the problem. His shoe came half way off on the way to the first barrel and the nails were sticking him in the arena....No big deal, go get the shoe put back on to the hoof that is now missing half of the sidewall. I gave him some banamine and a bath to sooth him.
Got ready for round number two around 6pm. He felt good and was really flexing nice. We went running in to the pen! YAY! I thought he was flying! 3 strides to the first, he cuts hard to the left. Yup, we run to the left....He was lined up to mow over the first barrel. I stuck him hard and pulled him over...NOPE, he would not respond to anything! Before I knew it, he turned before he got to it and I pulled him up, made him do a hid end pivot to the right and took off to the second barrel. man, his second and third were AWESOME! He still clocked a 21.6 even with me STOPPING him. Yeah, he was cruising! To bad it was a no time...
After long thoughts about this run, I figure that he thought he was going to turn the barrel and get spiked in the foot again. I sure hope that this is not a new habit. I guess we will pick up an exhibition before our next open run to make sure that he is over and done with the ducking issue. After all of that, I can say that I had my two worst runs ever on Gabe in ONE DAY. But, I actually had the best seat on him than I have ever had in the past. Not once did he bounce me out of the saddle! Too bad no one noticed that part. I guess I am good at staying on him at the crow hope and can catch myself when he does the unpredictable....

Pictures of My Babies! The Lineback Dun is Dually and the Sorrel is Cooter

2008-03-24T18:02:00.000-07:00

Some Pictures of Cooter and Chivas

2008-03-23T13:41:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures I took today of Cooter's Runnin Shine and MJG Scottish Scoot. Cooter is now 11 days old!!!!

Waiting on Foal #2! And, How we did at Crockett!

2008-03-23T11:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I am waiting on Foal #2. Bring on the Day was Due yesterday...Nothing yet, but, she sure is acting like she wants to foal right now!!!! Anyhow, she is out front grazing right now and seems very uncomfortable! So, maybe tonight???

Yesterday, Gabe and I along with Hannah and her mare Jazz went to BRFC in Crockett, TX. Gabe came into the arena strong and fast! We found the first barrel, went a little past, but he recovered great and headed to the second barrel! Well, we meaning I needed to push him just a little bit past that second barrel and I set too soon causing the barrel to crash and burn. However, we did recover and headed to the third in perfect form! His third was nice and clean with a strong run home. We ran a 16.??? I imagine he would have fallen right into that 4D spot at this 5D race had we not turned over a barrel! But, we can try again next weekend!

Foaling Time!

2008-03-20T06:15:00.000-07:00

One foal down and one to come!

A Miricle Happened Today!

2008-03-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

We were blessed with our first foal out of two to come this morning! He is a healthy Bouncing Baby Boy! We are calling him Cooter for now! He is all legs and is super sweet! We imprinted him this morning! Jeff picked up all 4 feet and he has had lots of love, hugs and kisses too. Momma and Baby are doing great!

Pictures of My Yearling...

2008-03-10T08:47:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of Tottie!

WBR Feb 29-March 1

2008-03-03T09:04:00.000-08:00

Well, we had a great time in Conroe this weekend! Gabe won 4th in the 4D and the Adult Incentive race he won 1st in the 4d!!! YUP, THAT WAS $1260 PLUS A VERY NICE SADDLE PAD!!! Now, about the run that I have attached to the post. This was not the winning run, but, it is a good run! Gabe was a little less "setty" around the first, but, we recovered just fine! He had an awesome 2nd and third!!!! I am very proud of Gabe right now! Watch the video and turn up the volume!!!

Its Sunday....Not a Day for Rest.....

2008-02-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

Today is Sunday and there is work to be done! Stalls are being built for the upcoming foals and horses are needing to be worked. Joe spent some time with the mares (pregnant mares) with hopes that they would put him in his place. Well, that does not seem to be the case. Needless to say, when i went to go catch him, he was acting like a stud colt, so, to the think tank he goes.

Next up, Hick. Hick has now had 2 days consecutive work outs and today made 3. We started as always, in the round pen. He warmed up with now silliness, so, I mounted up and set out to move the shoulder, hip and get a little bend and flex. We had a little trouble giving our shoulder to the left, but, after a lot of circles, he moved it for me. We also worked the poles. I do think that Hick is going to make one awesome pole horse!!!! He is so easy to move and really gets into the swing of things! His end turns are pretty good too! After some loping circles and some random turns, we were done with our work out for the day. I was satisfied with our ride today. :)

Saturday NBHA

2008-02-10T14:53:00.000-08:00

Well, todays race was an OK race. Gabe and I were ROCKIN' ! He was hauling butt to the first so much that we actually went past it. Well, he recovered just in time and pushed to the second and made a nice second and thrid barrel. We ran a 17.3 and a 15.8 won the race. Where does that put me as far as placing? In a crack....again. But, thats OK. He was running hard and giving me a lot of heart! The ground was deep and he beat his previous time in that pen.

Next, we ran poles. We did one exhibition because its been several months since we actually ran poles. However, Friday, we did work on poles. Well, he came into the pen hauling Butt again. I went to slow him up because they do not drag on exhibitions and like I said, the ground was DEEP. Well, I wanted to move him over for our first left turn...move him to the right....I stuck my left spur in him and he split to the left!!!! Duh, we are suppose to move away from pressure!!!! Anyhow, I got him backed up and back into the pattern. Our actual run started out the same. Hauling butt! We were last on the drag and he went to make the first left turn and turned HARD! he slipped a little but got back up to work the pattern. Keep in mind that running poles involves a lot of body movement for the rider and lead changes for the horse. Well, Gabe likes for me to keep my hands straight and move my hips to get him to weave. He did a great job, but, I did not zig and zag like I needed too tipping 2 poles. However, he ran a 23 second pole run for the first time in his life!!!! So, there is hope for us! Videos coming soon!

Friday!

2008-02-10T09:07:00.000-08:00

Today (Friday) I worked all three boys! Joe got saddled and worked very nice in the round pen. He also got his first hair cut with clippers. It took him about 20 minutes to get used to the clippers, but, after a lot of rubbing and convincing, he settled in and let me clip his bridle path! Such a smart boy! He is also down to 3 big hops under saddle. I sure hope that by the end of next month I have him ground driving and ready for a passenger!

Hick worked great too! He got a super hair cut. He has always been great with the clippers and since he rubbed half his mane off, he got a buzz cut! It actually suits him really well! I will most likely let it grow back though! Anyhow, he worked very nice under saddle. Really giving me his head and staying collected!

Gabe had a great work out as well! He worked the pole pattern and we also worked on some barrel turns to get past the knocking over of the barrels. I asked him to push past and keep his shoulder up. I was very pleased with our work out!

YouTube - Gabe at Destry's Free For All in Conroe

2008-02-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

YouTube - Gabe at Destry's Free For All in Conroe

99% Of All Errors are the Rider's Fault

2008-02-06T07:26:00.000-08:00

OK, well, we went to destry's Free For all this weekend and made two runs. Needless to say, I was less than happy about either run. Video will be in the side barn for now. Watch first then read!

First Run. Notice that Gabe was coming in to the pattern more aiming straight at the first barrel than up the middle. He did spin out a little due to me leaning into the barrel instead of leaning out to help him catch his balance. From the video, our other two turns looked ok, but, we cut off our pocket and came off wide on both the second and third barrel. Mostly because he was sore, but also because I was not in position to pull him around and I was using my inside leg to keep him off the barrel but, did not switch to the outside leg to bring him off the barrel. Also, notice that we tapped the third. Again, Rider error.

Second Run. #1 thing I did wrong is I was looking dead on at the first barrel!!! Yikes! We slammed it and it all goes back to the horse is going to go where you are looking!!! We hustled to the second and third making a nice turn on both. Probably because I loosened up after hitting the first and was more relaxed for the next two turns!

Pictures!

2008-01-30T10:42:00.000-08:00

Got To Ride!!!

2008-01-29T20:09:00.000-08:00

Well, Gabe got some riding this week despite the weather. Sunday, it was terribly wet, but, I got on Gabe bareback and worked on flexing and moving the shoulder. These activities are great when you cannot get the work out in.
Monday looked like it was gonna pour rain at any moment. However, I managed to beat the storm and saddled Gabe for a great ride! We worked in the slow twist copper mouth snaffle. Mainly, we worked on keeping our shoulder up in circles and a good solid stop and reverse. Gabe showed me remarkable flexion and great control of movement. Due to the mud, we did not attempt any tight turns with more than a slow trot. However, we did work on approaching the barrel with bend and turning with the shoulder lifted. I was very pleased with our ride on Monday. :)

Sad but True

2008-01-27T15:06:00.000-08:00

Well, I am sick. Fever and Ear pain. So, looks like the ponies are not getting the attention they need. Yesterday, Gabe was ridden by my husband. I might go out there and crawl on him tonight. I feel awful. Looks like lots of rain the rest of the week. Today is the only sunny day we have had in 2 weeks. I need to cowgirl up and ride, but, well, I just need to.

The Weather....

2008-01-27T09:35:00.000-08:00

Sad but true....Cant Ride in the rain and we had sooooo much rain that the ground is SLICK!!!! However, Today the Sun came out. So, it looks like I will get to ride!!! It is very Muddy, but, we can get lots of long trotting in!!! Joe will be Ponied as well. :)

Trianing...The On Going Process

2008-01-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

Another Day Full of Working Out for My Horses! Well, fortunately the rain held back today allowing me to get 3 horses worked! Now, keep in mind that the clouds were black and threating, but, i managed to work Joe in the round pen with ease. He is getting smarter every time I put my hands on him! Hick was also worked in the round pen!! I am telling you right now, both of those kiddos are gonna be NICE!!!
Gabe needed work on the pattern and one way to keep him focused on the pattern and not speed is to be ridden bareback. I caught him with ease in the back pasture, climbled on his back and proceeded to the barrel pattern. Due to our issues with turning too soon, I strategically placed poles around each barrel to allow him to visualize what I want him to do. Normally, I would do this with cones or tires. Both items, however, do not exist currently in my bag of tricks. Poles were there and they served a purpose! After 10 rounds, he finally got the hint. Move past the second and travel straight to the third along with finishing the turn on the third.

Today is Tuesday and it looks like rain, rain and more rain.....

My Tripple Horse Day

2008-01-20T19:53:00.000-08:00

Well, today I saddled my colt for the second time!!! Boy, that colt is sure footed!!! I put the saddle on him and away he went for a 3 minute bucking spree in the MUDDY round pen. He never slipped!!! After that, he went to work on the rail! Normally, i have to put the lounge line on him to keep him going. NOT TODAY!!! He stuck to the rail like glue! I was even able to get him to change direction simply by stepping toward the front of his body!!! I am telling you, that colt is SMART!!! When I said whoa, he turned, faced and came right to me!!! Licking his lips in submission the whole way! I am very pleased!

Next, I tried to get the mud off of Hick and Gabe and saddled them both. I warmed Hick up because he has not been ridden since Christmas! It did not take much for me to realize that he was fine and ready for me to climb on! He worked very nice under saddle! \

Gabe got to wear his new headstall and breast collar today too!!! Man, he looked GREAT!!! I got on him and Jeff took the reins on Hick and we headed out to the back pasture. It was a nice relaxing ride!

Bad Week For Riding

2008-01-18T17:45:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been bad all week. Raining, Cold and too dark when I got home from work to get any riding done. I wish that I had a better week this week because my horse is going to suffer. We have some issues to work on, but, mother nature said NO! Anyhow, Next week, we should have a few good days to ride. I will keep you posted!

My Run In Gonzales, LA

2008-01-18T17:23:00.000-08:00

OK, now i have the time to tear the run in the video below apart!! Sorry, my other two runs were not videoed.....due to technical difficulty. Anyhow, For starters, Notice that for the first time, I asked for speed in the alley! Gabe was beginning to get the idea of "run" to the first. However, that left room for error due to me not being aggressive enough for the first barrel. So, we came to the back side of the barrel and went a stride too far. However, we recovered quickly and were able to make a smooth path to the second barrel. Take not that we are still turning a half a stride too soon on the second causing us to cut it close. Now, our third barrel is not as snappy as it needs to be, but his run home was totally me. I was trying too hard to find my whip and allowed myself to be distracted and let my rear fall to the seat. If i had just stayed up and kicked, we would have shaved a 1/2 second off of our time. All in all, not a bad run, but still in much need for improvement.

How will I go about fixing these issues? Well, once it dries out a little, or next week, we will work on being snappy on our third by using the 3 point reverse method. We will go into the turn, stop on the first stride and reverse in a straight line, move forward, get in the next stride of the turn and stop and reverse in a straight line and do the same for the last stride. After working on that, we will see if he finishes his turn. If not, we will try something else. Also, on the second barrel, we will have to push past the barrel before we allow ourselves to turn. The first barrel was more of a speed/ control issue and needs to be handled in an arena on a run.

For those of you wondering about the Friday and Sunday run, I can say that our friday run consisted of 3 nice turns in slow motion due to the fact that Gabe was a little lost in the arena. The barrels were white with a white wall behind them. Mostly a seasoning issue and a little bit less drive to each barrel. Our Sunday run consisted of an awesome first barrel and the second was not so good. Again, Gabe and I turned the barrel a half of a stride too soon taking the barrel down with us. However, our third barrel was much better and we had more speed than we have in the past. Our times were as follows Fri 16.5, Saturday 16.3 and Sunday 16.1 All in the 3D but, none brought home a check. Better luck next time! I hope!

Video Break Down of Gonzale, LA 1-12-08

2008-01-17T13:32:00.001-08:00

Gabe the Babe In Gonzales, LA

2008-01-16T07:34:00.000-08:00

January 11-13 was the Triple S Productions Barrel Race in Gonzales, LA. Yet another arena that he has never been to.

I do not have video of my Friday run, so, you are gonna have to use your imagination. Picture a huge arena with panels set up a quarter of the way, timers at a third of the way (from the entrance) and the barrels not too far from there. Then imagine a barrel pattern that is small, way far from the fence, and an equilateral triangle. I have never before seen a pattern like it. Also, the barrels were white with a white concrete fence behind it and the barrels had a red top (very top) and a red outlined Dodge symbol.

Now that you have a good picture in you mind, let me describe my run!!! We started off warming up with 5-10 of walking. It was COLD!!! Then, we proceeded to 5 minutes of trotting and 5 of loping. Gabe was flexed out then ready to rumble. They had holding pens and a closed off alley. YOU HAD TO STOP In the alley!!! No big deal. Gabe took off at a fast lope to the first. He got right on it and said "hey, there is the barrel" we managed to stop a half a stride too soon at every barrel to turn it! EEK!!! Anyhow, I was in Go Position whn he was in turn position. we mad a slow smooth turn around all three barrels. Left them all up and still came wide off the third. We managed to pull a nice 4D time on a 5D scale...Too bad it was a 4D scale :(
Anyhow, he ran a 16.589. http://www.sssbarrelracing.com/ This is the link to look at our results. Anyhow, I will have the other 2 runs up on video soon and, Dont worry, I will pick them apart too!!!

1/10/08

2008-01-15T15:53:00.000-08:00

Well, after arguing with my dog, Ruger, I decided that it was time to go for a ride in the back pasture!!! Gabe needed a break from the everyday workouts and I think I did too. After all, we were fixing to load up and go for a 3 day barrel race!!! So, we did do some breezing and lots of long trotting with Ruger keeping the pace. I think we are ready to load up and haul out!!! I will be posting the results from the barrel race and video too. :)

Work out for 1-9-08

2008-01-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

Today I decided to utilize the round pen. Gabe was very reluctant to be caught so, he was due for a good work out!! Anyhow, I managed to work him for a full 30 minutes with out getting too dizzy!!! I also got him to sweat a little regardless of the cool temperatures.
Joe has been in his stall due to the fact that he is a STUD now and my weanling filly is coming to that age where she is teasing him. He needed to stretch his legs some and its time for him to go back into training. To my suprise he was very easy to lounge and worked well until he got a little tired. It seems that all my horses think that way LOL. Well, once he decided that he was done, he turned to face the gate and refused to turn back to face me. When he does this it is very important for me to regain the upper hand and to stay at a safe distance. The back end of the horse is never a safe place. Well, I had to go around him to get back in position and regain the control of his face. After doing this, he then went back around a time or two and turned away again. One thing about colts is that you have to have patience and be calm cool and consistent. So, we worked until he made several laps with out stopping at the gate. We finished with him turning to face me and allowing me to rub his head.

Gabe and His Work Out on 1/8/08

2008-01-09T17:19:00.000-08:00

Well, today we decided to work on the Barrel Pattern. It has rained today and it gets pretty slick in our riding area, so, we spent a lot of time trotting. I used my o-ring snaffle with the copper slow twist mouth along with my german martingale. We worked on flexing, bending and lifting the hip and shoulder. After all of that, we worked on the barrel pattern. We really needed to work on moving over coming off the first, going past the second and going straight to the third along with finishing our turn on the third. After 8 or so rounds on the pattern, he finally made a good go through the barrels. My theory is to always quit them after doing things the right way. We retired for the evening.

Henderson, TX Barrel Race 1-5-07

2008-01-08T08:51:00.000-08:00

After our Run in Conroe, I was determine to fix some issues. It appears that Gabe no longer needs his exhibitions and so, we found another barrel race in Henderson, TX. This was an NBHA and there were some really nice horses being run there. Gabe had never been to that arena and we were determine to try out the "no exhibitions" at a new place! Well, he actually gained some speed in Henderson!! For our warm up, I stretched his legs, trotted for a total of 4 minutes and loped for the same amount of time. We did walk up the alleyway, but were unable to see the pattern.
I asked Gabe to enter the alleyway from a different side than our usual. Normally, we enter from the right side of the alley way, but, at this race, we entered from the left side. He seemed a little confused because he knew we were going in for a run, but was thinking that we had not done our exhibitions....
Well, he came through the alley and went to the first barrel!! He made a nice turn too!!! Then, we cruised over to the second barrel. Notice that we did not go past the second which caused us to get a little "hung up" on the backside of the barrel. When we left the second, I should have utilized the whip, however, I did not. I waited until he was too far off of the third to attempt to move him over. This does not work!!! Instead, it threw me off balance affecting him as well. This is why we came off the barrel wide. Anyhow, I have learned that I need to push past the second, line him up better for the third and utilize the whip in the alley and coming off thesecond, not going into the third! I have also learned that Gabe has the ability to hunt for the first barrel and we no longer need barrel exhibitions! Now, for poles...I dont know!!

Happy New Year!!!

2008-01-07T06:46:00.000-08:00

The New Year has begun with a BANG! Gabe and I began at a barrel race in Conroe, TX called the Extreme barrel Racing Plus. This barrel race had over 400 entries! Anyhow, the month of December was more like a holiday for Gabe and I. I was very limited on my ride time at home and it showed at the race. We rode maybe 10 times during the month. Not only was Gabe very sluggish to the first barrel, he was not able to push past the second and manged to go wide on the third. When you are watching the video, Notice a few things. Before reading this, you must know that 99% of all mistakes are caused by the rider, not the horse!!!

1. From the Alley, the harder I kicked, the slower he ran. Also, we did not go up the middle which caused Gabe to not have a pocket and he then hung up on the backside of the barrel.
2. I sat down too early going into the 2nd barrel. This caused Gabe to shut down and turn before he got to the point past the barrel. You will notice that he appeared to "wrap" the barrel, but, in all actuality, he was too close and not able to cross over on his front end to drive to the third barrel.
3. Well, my third barrel was a disaster! As Gabe was leavi9ng the second, I should have utilized my whip to encourage the speed. However, instead, as we were getting close to the third barrel I made a POOR attempt to move Gabe over with my hand whip which in turn caused me to be out of balance and then it caused Gabe to be out of Balance as well. Therefore, we came into the barrel wide and came off the barrel wide.