The Strangest Little Hunter

Show: Class 47 Sidesaddle
Horse name: Francis, reference
Horse breed: Walking mule
Rider name: Lady Donna Tannfield
Stable: Hemsbury Stables (UK)
Class Pictured: Gaited Side Saddle
Gait Displayed: Flat foot walk. Frank is unshod and ridden in a fullcheek snaffle bit.
Period Attire: Modern/30s riding habit. It was customary for hunting horses to have two sets of reins even if they only had a single bit, in case the horse would get loose or the primary reins would snap.
Prior Shows: None
Prior Placings: None
Reference used: None
Method of Drawing: Free-hand

---

If someone had once told Donna that she would be taking part in a ladies sidesaddle class, perched on top of a gaited mule, she would have walked away and decided that the person must be out of their mind. But there they were, in a class of several stunning and actually gaited horses and top-notch showing experts. Penny and Paula were filming the class and she was riding Frankie the Mule. Frank was curious of his surroundings, and a little nervous which was sadly to be expected. But he was an honest gelding, and that was good.

After Curtis had gone and bought the sad creature, they had had their hands full of a stumbling, fumbling gelding, who couldn't seem to decide what to do with his legs. No gaited horses for the hunter ring or dressage shows, thank you. After Donna and Elaine had spent an afternoon crying about the mule, they had stumbled over every known gaited dressage website, and they all had the same advice: teach the horse to gait properly, and teach it to understand the difference between lateral and diagonal movements.
And yeah, okay, it was good advice. Donna appreciated Curtis's efforst with Frank and ground poles, and she liked hacking with Frank because he never bolted. But she didn't like training gaits, it felt pointless and frustrating, because she knew nothing about them. Elaine was the side saddle expert. How had she ended up in here?

Hadley had sent her a message before the class saying "heard ur there now - good luck with the ass!", and Donna really couldn't say if he was being sympathetic or just an ass himself. Frank had eyed her curiously when she mounted, probably wondering about the situation just as much as Donna did. In the end he whipped his silly ears around, shook his head and accepted the fact that the two of them were to be a team today.