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MEAGAN Wins ALSA Lifetime Recognition AwardsALSA Youth Ultimate Achievement Award!
ALSA Superior Youth Showperson Award!
ALSA Superior Youth Obstacle Award!
ALSA Superior Youth P.R. Award!
ALSA Superior Youth Pack Award!
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MEAGAN Wins the Gold Medal Award for the LANA Youth Essay Contest
and a scholarship to the 2007 LANA Expo Youth Program!
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MEAGAN Wins LANA/LASC Youth Show Team Jacket Award!
Meagan fulfilled the requirements to earn this award which included writing an essay about her experience with llamas, participating in a Youth Judging Class at a llama show, qualifying for Regionals and Nationals, participating at Southwest Regionals in October 2006
and being a current member of LANA, LASC and ALSA
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MEAGAN Wins LASC Intermediate High Point Youth Award
Three years in a row!
2005, 2006 & 2007
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MEAGAN has been writing awesome stories about her experiences with our llamas since she was 9 years old!
She has been published several times in 5 National Llama Magazines,
"Llama Life II", "Llama Banner"," LamaLink.com", "Hummer Country", and "Showring".
She has written llama stories for almost every issue of our local llama organization Newsletter,
LASC, for the past three years.
Several of Meagan's stories and articles have been published in the
(Llama Association of North America) LANA Newsletter and have also been published Internationally
in the Llama Association Newsletter for Australia and New Zealand.
You can see Meagan's LlamaShow Results on our Show Results page.
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2008 Llama Stories
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March Magic Casual Classic
Double Point ShowMarch 15th and 16th 2008
LA County Fairgrounds Pomona, CA
Emerald Show Shamrock Show
2nd Place Senior Youth Obstacle 1st Place Senior Youth Obstacle
2nd Place Senior Youth P.R. 2nd Place Senior Youth P.R.
1st Place Senior Youth Pack 1st Place Senior Youth Pack
2nd Place Senior Youth Judging 3rd Place Senior Youth Showmanship
Reserve Grand Champion Senior Youth Grand Champion Senior Youth
High Point Senior Youth
Magic March Magic
By Meagan Browne-age 16
Ok people, I have a story to tell. On March 15 2007…are you listening? Ok, just testing you, making sure you were paying attention. On March 15 2008 LASC hosted the second annual April Magic llama show.
-poke- C'mon people, you caught that one right? Ok, now I think you're listening.
So seriously, it was the second March Magic Llama Show. A couple years ago it actually was April Magic, but LASC started a new show instead, since April Magic was too muddy. This year we had the show at the LA County Fairgrounds, where they have the LA County Fair every year. Of course, during the show there was no Fair, and it looked so different without tons of people walking around shopping at vendors etc. There was a bird show going on, but I won't get into that. So back to the llamas, since that's what you guys bought this newsletter to read about anyways!
Even though there weren't any classes that day, almost everyone arrived on the 14th, , just to set up their pens and stuff. A lot of the youth were in school that day so only their parents came to set up. I think Jeremy, Sarah and I were the only youth there for the majority of the day. Who are they you ask? Well, Jeremy and Sarah are a couple of my friends who are both really tall, and I mean it when I say tall. The day was sort of slow, and Sarah and I spent most the time just hanging around and talking, while Jeremy played a video game. My 16th birthday had been the week before and Tracey, Sharon and Joyce gave me a cute card and a green shirt with a shamrock on it (perfect!) that Tracey made, and a nice pair of P.J.s plus a tasty Birthday Cake! Thanks again you guys! My little family and I ate some really good hamburgers with the Wallace's and Joyce. Later that evening Elise arrived with her daughter, Jessie. I had to go shortly after, since I was staying at home at night and it was a long drive with traffic.
When I arrived the next morning, my friends, Bridget and Dylan were there, so that made me happy, since seeing friends is the reason I come to shows anyhow. By the time the show started, lots more kids had come. Kyle and his little brother Austen came plus Megan, (it was weird saying hi Megan, lol), plus Katherine and Matt (a cool kid who's dad makes the best honey ever!).
We all watched with mixed emotions as they set up the obstacles, a few kids saw them and positively thought of how easy they would be, while others, like myself, did some jaw-dropping, since there were some crazy things out there. Let's just say that the obstacles here were far harder than at any other show. I for one was wishing for the good old days when the bridges were short and the duck-unders tall. It seemed that even the juniors had some tough stuff ahead of them. The only ones that seemed completely calm and uncaring were the llamas.
The first class was PR, which was unusual since Obstacle is usually first, but oh well. The juniors got to go first, and they all did really well, especially considering the course.
There wasn't much re-arranging done on the course for the Intermediates, but the judge did try to make the obstacles harder, like making them do things a different direction.
Then came the seniors, which is Bridget, Dylan, Sarah and I. Just looking at the course was freaky, but the walkthrough made it even worse. The judge must be secretly left handed, because she made us do a ton of obstacles holding our llamas in our left hand. It felt weird for all of us doing that, but somehow we managed. Needless to say, none of us did everything perfectly, but we did survive.
The next class we had to do was obstacle, and it was just as hard, if not harder! The Senior course was unreal. One of the obstacles was backing up over a bridge! I mean, who's ever heard of backing up over a bridge!!?? None of us did that super, but Bridget did pretty good compared to the rest of us.
The last course was Pack, and it was the easiest by far. Dylan and I didn't want to get our shoes wet so we asked the judge if we could go to the side, and predictably we ended up having to walk on the side of the obstacle while holding the llama in our left hand. Bridget didn't like that too much, but she did good anyways. It was late, cold and everyone was tired, but we still had once more class, Youth Judging. We shivered through that, and then they FINALLY announced the placings. It was the boys' day, and Matt won grand for the Juniors, Jeremy got grand in Intermediates, and Dylan for the Seniors. I came in Reserve Grand for Seniors, and was satisfied, even surprised since I didn't do so hot in my opinion. But it's what the judge thinks that counts right?
One more thing, that night there was an amazing catered dinner! The food was really good and everyone had a great time talking and being able to relax for the first time all day. There was a fashion show too, but I wasn't there for that since I had to get home, due to the fact that it snowed at my house! That was cool, since I've been waiting for snow all winter.
The next day, the first class for the youth was Showmanship. Though it's not the greatest class ever, it sure beats Youth Judging. The Seniors went last, again, but at least we got to watch the Juniors and Intermediates. Then we finally went, and it was a rather interesting class. Apparently we were good, because the judge said it was really hard to place us. We even had to do extra things like switching llamas! In the end, Bridget was placed first (she had the best answer to the question), and Dylan got second, I got third and Sarah fourth.
Shortly after that they started the youth performance classes, and it was a great relief to see that the courses were far easier than they had been the day before. We breezed through all three classes, and of course we did a lot of left-handed obstacles, but it was much better than the day before. The llamas were a little restless since they were ready to go home, but they did the obstacles anyways, being loyal friends to their tired handlers. In the end, the placings were much the same as the day before, Mat got Grand for Juniors, Jeremy for Intermediates, and I got Grand for Seniors instead of Reserve, while Dylan got Reserve. It was close though, and everyone did really well.
There was one more class however, the Jackpot. They decided to do one for the youth, and so in the end most all the youth competed in it, but it took some prompting to get some of them to do it. The obstacles were actually easier than the ones on the first day, but since the llamas were all tired and ready to leave, it added a level of difficulty. My llama Checkers was certainly ready to leave, much like myself. Bridget won that class, and with it a nice bit of money. Jeremy came in second, despite all his complaining about having to stay for it (aren't you even a little glad you did it now?), and he made some money too. I came third and got a nice thirty-five dollars out of it. March Magic was a really fun and I look forward to it next year!
Riverside County Fair
National Date Festival
Indio, CA
February 15, 16, and 17, 2008
1st Place Senior Youth Obstacle
1st Place Senior Youth P.R.
1st Place Senior Youth Pack
2nd Place Senior Youth Showmanship
Grand Champion Senior Youth
High Point Senior Youth
I-N-D-I-O
By Meagan Browne-age 15
So….I was asked to talk about the Indio Show this year that just happened, so I'll relay it from my point of view. First of all I want to say that this year's show was probably the best placeCityIndio show I've been to, it was the most fun!
Preparing for the show was a hassle as always, running around and getting stuff together in a hurry. I had to get the llamas washed before the show, and about a week from when we had to leave I was freaking out because it was so cold. Luckily the weather warmed up just a couple days before the show and I was able to wash the two llamas we were taking, my boy Checkers, and then one of our little boys, Bopper. Once we got everything done (finally) we were on the road. We had gotten a late start so it was already late in the afternoon when we got there. It was dark by the time we got all our pens and everything set up in the barn. It looked nice and the llamas were happy to be out of the trailer and have room to move! That night we checked into our hotel and I was SO happy when I found out that not only did I get a queen bed all to myself, but that the hotel had wireless internet available, which totally made my day.
The next morning I was dragged out of bed and I groggily got ready, taking a shower and putting on my makeup in a sleepy rush. Then we went down and had the hotel's breakfast. It tasted horrible but oh well, I was really hungry. We got to the show nice and early to get ready to show, I was excited since it was the first day of actual showing. All the youth performance classes were Friday.
At first I didn't really want to show, I was in a bad mood since I had to clean up the llama's pens. Checkers had been to lots of shows before, and he has, after many, many long hours of grooming, discovered that the cleaner he stays, the less I brush him. He went to the bathroom in one corner of his pen in a neat pile, never walking through it, and he slept on the other end of the pen. Bopper was the opposite, he pooped right in front of the door, so when you walked in you step in it, and it had spread out everywhere and he had junk all over him.
Thankfully my mom groomed him for me, that was one nightmare I was able to avoid, and Checkers wasn't that hard, I just had to pick a few pieces of hay off of him.
Once everything was set for them I sat back and waited for the show to start. Over the next couple of hours more people started arriving, and the barn that had been empty when we came filled up rather quickly.
Finally the show was starting, and a judges meeting was called. The judge talked about how everything was going to work, and I was a little surprised to hear that we only got one refusal per obstacle in youth. Usually we had more than one. She said we wouldn't be dismissed from the ring, but that we would have to leave the obstacle and move on to the next if our llama refused. Then the actual showing part started. Normally it starts with juniors, then intermediate and finally seniors, but somebody was running late so they decided to start with intermediate, and then do juniors and then seniors. I didn't mind too much since I was in seniors this year though, my class would have gone last anyways. It was my first show as a senior, and every time they called intermediates I thought for a moment they meant me, it took a while to get used to being in a different age group.
After the intermediates and juniors had finished, it was time for my class. We were doing obstacle first, one of my favorite classes. It wasn't actually that different from intermediates, most of the obstacles didn't seem much harder than in the younger classes. There was only one obstacle that Checkers didn't do very well, one that I had never thought to practice. I had to put my llama's feet on a bucket and then do a 360 degree turn on top of the bucket.
Checkers knows how to stand on the bucket, but I had never tried turning him on it, so now I have something new to practice. He stood up on it fine, and turned, but he kept stepping off as I tried to turn him so it was difficult. He did the rest of the obstacles fine and seemed to really enjoy it, he does like to show. He was happy to go back to his pen when he was done, to eat hay of course. After I put him back I went out to watch the rest of the class show, and then waited for them to announce the placings. I won first, and I promptly danced off to show Checkers his lovely ribbon when it was all over.
The next class was PR. I've always liked PR, though I can't truly say why, I just do. This time they did it in the right order, juniors, intermediates and then seniors. There were some fun obstacles in the class, and Checkers did them all fairly well, standing still for the petter and being calm and relaxed for the rest. The only little thing I noticed was he brushed up against the side of the chairs that were being used for the backup, I was a little disappointed at that but it was mostly my fault for not directing him enough.
We made it through the class without much difficulty and then I watched the rest of the seniors do it, then was told I had won first. I was pleased, and gave the ribbon to my parents to hold on to, lest I accidentally drop it or something, since I'm prone to be a klutz. By this point I was starving so I went out to get something to eat while the younger age groups showed in their classes. Of course, the fair always gives you too much food for a ridiculous price, so I was full by the time I was done, and I hadn't even eaten all my food!
The last class of the day was pack. It SEEMED like an easy course, but oh was I wrong. In truth, it was easy, very, very easy, but I still messed up. I went into the ring with Checkers, and I was just breezing through it, all happy cause it was going well, until we got to the underpass. It was going fine at first, he ducked and went under it, but once I got through I looked over my shoulder and guess what? The underpass had caught on the pack and he was dragging it with him. I was so embarrassed, I took it off his pack and was trying to fix it (I should have just left it) and while I was distracted he went over and started eating the leaves off the deadfall!!! Everyone was cracking up, which didn't help at all, and then he had a leaf hanging from his mouth as we went through the deadfall, which I'm sure I got points off for. I took it out of his mouth before we went through the water so we didn't lose points for that thankfully, and everything else went smoothly, but I was still really embarrassed about it. I was shocked when I got first place. I totally expected to get last place after that happened, so that was surprising. That was the last of the classes so the rest of that night was just to hang out and relax. LASC did a hamburger and hot dog BBQ for us and we had a fun scavenger hunt with all the youth. We went home early that night so we could go to bed early and wake up really, really early. Except we ended up staying up really late afterall!
The next day was the novice and advanced classes, so it was a time for me to relax. I showed Bopper in a couple of novice classes and then I was free!! We only signed him up for Obstacle and PR, though I later found out that Pack was the easiest class!!! The first class he did was Obstacle. I was already expecting him to mess up on the backup and foot, so I wasn't very surprised when he refused to back up, and wouldn't let me anywhere near his back feet, but he actually did really well on a lot of the other obstacles. He wasn't really jumpy like I had thought he was going to be. The next class was PR, and he did really well in that, he stood still for the petter, and the only obstacles he didn't do right were show teeth and backup. Again, he was amazing. He won fifth in both classes out of like, seventeen or something.
The rest of that day I just spent time with friends and went around the fair. But wait, there's more. Yes, more. There was a totally awesome fashion show that night! Everyone in it had to wear something made out of llama, and then they walked a llama into the ring, handed it to Jeremy, and then showed off their attire to the onlookers. Everyone was so funny to watch as they mock-modeled, and it was really fun to do, just goofing off and having a great time!
The last day, Sunday, I woke up kind of sad, I really didn't want to leave. I never like leaving the show, unless I have something to do that day. All morning I was just hoping time would freeze, so I could stay there, but of course, life goes on. That day we did showmanship, which is far from my favorite class. Luckily for me, Checkers was in an apparent good mood, and throughout the whole class he stood still and even lined himself up! When the judge asked me the question however, I got it wrong, but I'll remember what to say next time it is asked. I ended up placing second, but the judge said that I would have won first, as a matter of fact she said I was really, really good, in those exact words, that she liked my technique and my focus was very nice. The reason I didn't win though was because I didn't turn right when she asked us to switch places. That was the deciding factor for the class, and only one person did it right. After that class was over they announced the awards, and I won Senior Youth Grand Champion, and Senior Youth High Point. I got a really nice bag and ribbon for that, which I liked.
As soon as I finished showing we got all packed up, since the fair wanted us all to leave quickly so the goat people could come in. Right when they would let us out, we left, to my dismay of course. I was glad we got to go to this show. I really loved the show. placeCityIndio has always been my favorite. So, that's Indio 2008. Over and Out.
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2007 Llama Stories
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LANA
Llama Luau!
2007
By Meagan Browne-age 15
LANA Expo-Plymouth, CA
This story is about a conference/show called LANA Expo. Before I begin my review of the happenings and wonders of this particular conference/show, I want everyone to know that this story is/was being written during the show! I can't give great detail about the performance classes, as I'm leaving for a month to go to a wilderness camp at Loon Lake on the last day of the show which disables me from showing in performance classes. But I can tell you about youth judging and youth showmanship …Well…Showmanship and the amazing classes LANA offers!
On June 20, 2007, we drove our car to a quaint little town called Plymouth. It is an old mine town, with historical significance. During the day, it is a very cute town with old buildings from the original town built years ago. I actually rather liked it, though at night it was like a ghost townJ. And so were the surrounding towns at night as we found out when we went out to dinner very late on Wednesday night.
There weren't any classes on the first day, but there was what was called a CSI youth icebreaker. I don't know what the adults did, but the kids, me included, went to a fun little meeting where we all introduced ourselves and played some fun games. I met a lot of really neat people that day, which I was glad of, since I only knew a couple of other youth there. Kathy Nichols made it really fun for all of us and so did the other adults that helped with the youth.
The next two days were really fun. We had different classes about llamas and showing. I can't remember what order they came in but I do remember the names of some of the classes. I learned some valuable tips about showmanship and performance from two different judges plus getting my llamas ready for shows! I also took a class on the digestive system of the llama as well as nutrition. A skilled vet taught both. One class I took was on pack. An experienced packer, Charlie, who has written a hilarious book about his adventures, and misadventures, on the trail, taught this class. I hope he comes back next year! It would be really fun to get to go on a pack trip with him. I got to make a cool lead rope and felt some things with llama fiber too.
The classes were very thorough and I learned a lot of valuable information. During that time there was one class (an actual judged class) called Youth Judging. During the actual class I had a brain freeze when I had to give the judge my oral reasons and grants! I thought I did really horrible because of that but as it turned out I got 2nd place in Intermediate Youth Judging!
On Thursday night, there was a fun program for the youth called CSI. Now when I first heard about it I was sure it was about the show CSI, which would have been really neat. Needless to say, it wasn't, but it was really awesome nonetheless. The youth were split up into teams and played a variety of fun games. The team, who won the most points when the games were over, was the winner, and the team I was on won!!!! It was really fun and we got some cool prizes.
The next day the show began. They started with all the halter classes, which I wasn't showing in. During the halter classes I went shopping with my parents in a little town called Sutter Creek. It was really neat, especially since they were having Black Bart Day in the town, a festival of sorts with lots to do with Black Bart. That was fun, and when we came back, it was time for Youth Showmanship!
I didn't bring my llama, Checkers, with me since I wasn't showing in youth performance classes because I was going to summer wilderness camp on Sunday. It would be rather hard for my parents to get him home with having to find a hotel that takes llamas after dropping me off at camp! Because I couldn't bring Checkers, Eileen Ditsler was so nice to let me use one of her llamas, Iceman. Iceman is a really neat llama and I enjoyed showing him. Thank you Eileen! We did really well in showmanship, and though there were some rough spots, I handled those situations really well! Since it was a double show, there were two judges judging. The first judge gave me first place, and the second judge gave me second place! It was really neat. They also announced the placings for Youth Judging, and even though I thought I didn't do very well, the judge must have liked it, because I placed second!
I really had fun at the Hawaiian dinners too especially at the raffles and auction. I got to get several of the things I wanted a whole lot!
So that really concludes my account of LANA Expo, and I really encourage everyone to come to the show in 2008 and to join LANA. I also want to thank LANA for putting together this show and for me getting a youth scholarship to come this year for winning the youth essay contest. I had an amazing time.
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Magic in March
2007
L.A. County Fairgrounds-Pomona, CA
By Meagan Browne-age 15
On a slightly foggy weekend in March, at the LA County Fairgrounds llama people from California and neighboring states brought their llamas to show at the March Magic double show. It was the first time the March Magic show had ever been held, and it turned out to be really neat! Since the theme of the show was a green Saint Patrick's Day theme, everybody was wearing green, and the llama, Bandit, was even wearing a really neat costume to match the theme of the show!!! Since there were two judges, we had to do all the performance classes twice! We only had to do Youth Showmanship once, but both judges judged at the same time.
On Friday, several people came and set up their pens and stuff, because the show was starting early the next morning. My parents couldn't come to stay at the show this time, but since I really wanted to go, I was able to go with Sharon and Neal Wiesenberger and Sharon's FFA group. I got to stay in my own tent. That was great!
On Saturday, Saint Patrick's Day, most of the halter classes were held and then most of the performance classes. I had thought that the performance was going to be first, but they did halter first instead, so I spent half of the day watching the show and hanging out with friends. After lunch, they started the performance classes with Pack, which us unusual considering that pack is usually the last class at shows, at least the ones I've been to. Checkers, my llama, and I did really well, and ended up placing first, which I was really happy about! The second class was PR, and they had some really difficult obstacles. One was putting this strange little thing on their heads that didn't fasten very securely, so the llamas could shake it off easily, which was, of course the point, they weren't supposed to shake their heads at all. I was kind of nervous when I got to that obstacle, but Checkers did it ok and for once in that entire class, I was able to breathe! There was also a really difficult bridge that had really sharp turns on it like they do in advanced classes, but Checkers did it well too, and after the whole class was done, I placed first! The third class was Obstacle, and I am not very fond of that class. The two things I had trouble with were the change of pace and the jumps, since Checkers is a hulk and doesn't like putting that much effort into moving his massive self around! He didn't really run much, he was being kinda lazy, and he stepped over a couple of the jumps, even though they were tall!!! Anyhow, I still got third place, so it didn't turn out that bad after all! I thought that we were going to do the three performance classes again the next day, but they had us do pack again that afternoon! Checkers was tired and so was I, so we didn't do as well. It was all the same obstacles, just switched around a bit! We got second place, which was really good considering how tired we both were!
That night after the show Tracey Wallace and some others did a really cool dinner thing with great food, the hotdogs were the best I've ever had!!!! I hung out with my friends till ten thirty at night, and then went back to my tent, and fell to sleep pretty quickly, since I was so tired!!!
On the third day, they finished the halter classes and then did Showmanship. There was no Junior Showmanship, so they started with Intermediate Youth Showmanship. When they called for us to get ready to go in, I was in a hurry because I couldn't find my show halter and lead rope!!!! It was back in my suitcase. I ended up borrowing a halter and racing to get to the arena just in time. I was really tired in the class because I stayed up late, and as we walked around the arena, I wanted to just go to sleep. I barely heard a thing the judge said, but I was alert enough to hear the question she asked me and remember the answer. I almost forgot to back up four steps like she told us, but I managed to do it, and I managed to see when she snuck her hand down Checkers back so that I could smooth his wool out. Both judges judged at the same time luckily, so we didn't have to do Showmanship twice!!! The judges both placed me in first place. I was really surprised because I thought I hadn't done very well since I was so tired! I had really wanted to get first place in Showmanship though because now I only need to get two more firsts in Showmanship to get my ALSA Ultimate Award!
Later they had the rest of the performance classes. They did obstacle first, and I did ok, but not even close to as well as I had the day before, and I think I made the same mistakes. I ended up placing fourth in that class, which was better than last! I deserved the place I got though, because I thought over it afterwards and realized my mistakes, so that I can practice at home so that I don't make them again. They did the novice and advanced classes after that. PR was the last class for the youth, and I think I did ok! I didn't do the hard narrow bridge with the sharp turns as well this time and I got third place in that class. They have never had a bridge like that in youth classes before so that's one I will have to learn how to do.
I had a great time at the show and really want to go next year!!!
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Llamas at the Fair
2007 Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival
Indio, CA
By
Meagan Browne-Age 14
My family and I went to the Riverside County Fair 2007 to show our llamas, and I think it was the best show ever. The weather was nice, which was an improvement from last year, and plenty of people learned lots about llamas.
We took four of our llamas, Checkers (of course), Bopper (an adorable though unrelated mini-Checkers), Chay, (a little weanling girl), and Jigs, (an energetic weanling) to the show. I showed Checkers, and we loaned Bopper to a young girl named Ava for her first show. Jigs was there to get used to shows and basically keep Bopper company. We took Chay to get her used to being away from her mom and also to do a halter class.
We got to the show on Thursday late in the day. We had to clean out the pens in the barn first and then get them all set up; making sure everything was secure for when people stormed down the narrow aisles to get a look at the llamas. It took a while, and it was dark when we were finally done. Emilio was kind enough to keep the barn open till we got finished. I was so tired when we got to the hotel but excited about the upcoming show the next day.
On Friday, we left the hotel early to take care of the llamas. Jigs, Bopper and Chay had slept in their poop and hay, and it was a depressing mess. I was relieved that Checkers had the sense to poop in one place, and sleep in another. We hurriedly cleaned the pens and groomed the llamas, then rushed to the meeting that the judge was holding for the youth. She made a speech about the “Journey” the youth were going on from Juniors and up…and all the lessons we had and will learn, then explained the rules of the show. Then the classes began.
The show started out with obstacle, and it had a new obstacle that I had never had to do before. We had to put our llamas back feet into a small tire. I had never had to do that before, and it was hard. Even though Checkers did not do it…which I was disappointed about, I still did well enough at everything else to win first place. I was really happy about it because now all I need to do to get my ALSA Ultimate Award is win First Place four more times in Youth Showmanship. Showmanship is a big challenge for me.
The next class was PR. Again, to my dismay, there was a new obstacle. I was not happy with it. We had to put one of the llama's feet in a small bucket. It was not a metal bucket like I had hoped, but instead a small plastic bucket that did not stand up very well. Checkers knocked it over once…with my help, and the second time put his foot in it. At least he did something. The rest of the class went smoothly, so everything was all right. I got second place in the P.R. class, which surprised me; because I thought I didn't do that well.
After that was Pack. It would have done it perfectly, but I guess I wasn't paying attention, because I picked up the right back foot instead of the left back foot! You would think I had remembered to pick up the left because it was easier! It went well though, and the rest of the course wasn't too hard for me. I liked the water obstacle because it was hot outside, so it cooled me down. I placed third in the Pack Class.
My friend Ava showed Bopper in Juniors, and won a first and two seconds. She was really excited because it was her first show and she did so well! During one class, Bopper went potty right in front of an obstacle where he was supposed to stand on a bucket. He finished pooping, and then stood up on the bucked before Ava even had a chance to tell him too! Everyone was cracking up, even the judge! It was so funny. I wish we had a video tape of it.
After the three performance classes, they announced the Grand and Reserve Champions. I won Grand Champion and was so happy! I was not expecting it at all, so it came as a major surprise! Ava got Reserve Grand Champion in Juniors, which was really awesome for her first show! I hung out with friends later, so we ended up staying pretty late. We got to do a fun scavenger hunt with all the kids and eat pizza. We got to the hotel really late and I was really tired.
On Saturday it was all the Novice and Advanced performance classes. Since I did not have any llamas to show then, I went out and rode the carnival rides with my friend Bridget; though I wouldn't go on one ride she wanted me to go on…I regret it now. I think I will next year though. It was fun, and gave me a break from the barn area.
Sunday was Showmanship and the halter classes. We had to get there really early, and check out of the hotel. It was busy, but worth it when we got there. There was a judge's meeting first and then I sang the National Anthem in front of everyone.
Showmanship was first. I took Checkers in because Bounder, the llama I used to show in youth showmanship, is highly energetic, and doesn't put up with it anymore. I was worried that Checkers would act up. The last time I showed him in Showmanship was over a year ago, before he was bred. I was in luck though, he did perfectly, standing still and lining himself up, even during part of the class when there was a female right next to him. I got second place, and was really pleased.
After the halter classes were over we had to be quick to pack up and leave, because the Fair wanted us out in time. We left eventually, but it seemed like a lot of work taking everything down. Before we left, they had a meeting where the awards the Fair made for the winners were handed out. I got a cool bag for winning Grand Champion, and also found out that I won High Point Intermediate Youth, by one point! I was given a comfy red sweatshirt for it, which I am wearing right now, though it is a little big.
All in all, it was an awesome show, and I had a great time. I can't wait to go next year!
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Newsflash!
Golden Browne Llamas was in the January 1, 2007118th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA!
History in the Making! A 2007 Rose Parade Story
By Meagan Browne-14 years old
On the streets of Pasadena, people pushed and shoved to view the small party of llamas that strutted proudly down the street. White suited men and women held them back, stopping them from overrunning the llamas and their handlers. It was January 1, 2007 New Years Day in America. It was the day when the 118th Rose Parade kicked off the New Year and when two football teams would battle it out at the Rose Bowl shortly after the parade.
Every year, there were horses, floats and marching bands in the parade, all covered in flowers of every kind. There had never been llamas in this parade before, but this year was different. For the first time in history llamas had been invited to the internationally famous annual Tournament of Roses Parade.
There were eighteen llamas in the parade unit, four pulling carts and the others being led by handlers. Checkers and Bounder were two of the llamas in the parade. Checkers was a stunning and utterly handsome grey, black, brown and tan spotted appaloosa male, while Bounder was a regal solid black male. Both were intact, studs for Golden Browne Llamas. Meagan Browne was Checkers handler, and his best friend at that. John Browne, Meagan's dad, was walking Bounder, his llama, who he had shown several times.
They were dressed in traditional South American attire; Meagan was wearing a Coastal Peruvian black skirt and white U necked decorative blouse with a black and gold sash under her black poncho made of llama fiber. A wide brimmed hat with black ribbon adorned her head. John was wearing a white shirt and black pants under a stunning red patterned Peruvian poncho made of llama fiber. He wore a hand felted hat made of llama fiber that Marti, his wife made. The llamas each had South American llama packs on decorated with tassels and pom-poms as well as hand crocheted breast collars. Carnations, orchids and roses filled their packs. Tassels hung from their halters, and bells jingled on their breast collars along with three tiered tassels, adding to the great splendor of the sight. Some of the rest of the llamas in the group were dressed similarly, though some had regular hiking packs on with bunches of roses filling their panniers.
Everyone was excited; you could just feel it in the air. Reporters buzzed around interviewing the llama's handlers, and TV cameras zoomed in on the scene. Then the drums of a nearby band sounded, fire works went off and the Stealth Bombers flew over! Then the fast paced march down the street began.
At first we marched by the people who had camped on the sidewalks that night, of which there were plenty. Then the bleachers came into view, and it took ones breath away. Every seat was taken, and the massive bleachers towered over the street.
There were live TV cameras at the top of the bleachers and more on the ground level. News reporters were talking on TV about each float and group that passed by describing all kinds of details. The llamas passed the cameras, and went down the long street passed many more bleachers packed with people. Sometimes family members and friends would call out to the llama handlers, making them swell with pride. I got to see my mom and several of my friends along the parade route.
Halfway down the parade route, while the llama group was passing the Pasadena City College, everybody in one bleacher section called out twice, “We love you Meagan and John”. It made them happy, especially myself, considering I AM Meagan!!! At the end of the parade, everybody was happy that both llamas and handlers had made the five and a half mile walk up and down hills on the paved city streets. The group continued down the road past the parade route quite a long way to reach their trailers in the disbanding area. Then they were driven to a In and Out Burger truck where they were served free food just for being in the parade! After they ate, the group met at a park in Glendora where the adults enjoyed a bottle of champagne in celebration, and the youth drank sparkling apple cider. Talk about fun! I was really glad I had worked so hard to prepare to be in the Rose Parade and actually got to walk in the parade with my llama, Checkers. I hope to do it again next year, so watch for Checkers and me on TV!!!
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2006 Llama Stories
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1st time ever for Llamas to be in this Historical Parade!
A Llama’s Tale
By Meagan Browne – age 14
A magnificent appaloosa llama with black, brown and peach spots against a stony gray backdrop stood with neck proudly arched and ears forward as he watched the crowd. While gazing around at the people in the bleachers, he could feel their excitement. He shook with anticipation at what was to come. He was standing on the cold, hard pavement of the street that people called Orange Grove. The air was chilly, and crackled with the excited murmurings of the people. His person, a girl with brown hair and light brown eyes, came up to him and leaned on his neck with a sigh.
The llama could feel her excitement and her fear. He did not object while his person he called Meagan, hugged his neck and clung to his wool. He had no idea that his person saw him as “her llama”, for in his mind, he saw her as “his person”. He nuzzled her face softly and she murmured, “Oh Checkers, isn’t this great”? Checkers silently agreed with her and did the best in his ability to make her understand, thinking the thought hard with the hope she might somehow pick up on the thought he was now thinking. She seemed to understand, for she beamed at him with a smile so big it made his heart melt with happiness for his friend.
He glanced over at Bounder, a regal looking black llama with silky fiber who lived with him on his ranch. Bounder pranced with his own excitement as he viewed the scene before him, the noisy people, the long stretch of street before him, and the tall moving objects made of the most delicious looking flowers. Checkers sent a thought message to Bounder saying, “Look behind us at the other llamas and their people who were beginning to gather around”. He knew Bounder could easily pick up his message, for that was the way all animals communicated with each other.
Checkers felt honored to be apart of this great historical event. His person told him this is the first time ever for llamas to be in the internationally broadcast famous Tournament of Roses Parade. He had picked up a that this was a major parade from Meagan’s thoughts, which she sent to him without even knowing it whenever she came up and started rambling off some of that senseless noise. He did not understand many of the long words in the name, but he realized they must mean something. He decided that it was a name like any other, with no particular meaning, just a fancy sound with which to refer to something.
Then a person yelled something nearby, and he was jolted from his thoughts as the odd assembly of llamas, horses, marching bands and large edible vehicles started moving forward down the long street. The parade had begun…
This story was written to tell about a great event which will happen January 1, 2007. For the first time ever, llamas are going to be in the 118th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. The author, Meagan Browne, will be participating in the parade along with a chosen group of people and llamas representing LASC, the Llama Association of Southern California.
The author’s father, John Browne, who is also participating in the parade with the mentioned llama “Bounder”, is the Great Nephew of James K. Ingham. “Uncle Jamie Ingham”, who is also Meagan’s Great-Great Uncle, was the President of the Tournament of Roses Parade in 1943, during World War II. The theme of the Parade in 1943 was “We’re in to Win”. The Grand Marshall was Earl Warren who was the Governor of California at the time. He later became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
In 1943 the Rose Bowl Football Game was back in Pasadena; in 1941 and 1942 they were afraid that the Japanese would attack so they moved it to the east coast. The score of the football game in 1943 was Georgia 9 – UCLA 0
Meagan, who is, like earlier mentioned, participating in the parade with her dad and Bounder, will walk her llama Checkers in the parade along the 5 ½ mile route on the city streets of Orange Grove and Colorado Blvd. ending on Sierra Madre Blvd. The theme of the 118th Tournament of Roses Parade is “Our Good Nature” and llamas do have “Good Nature”. Checkers and Meagan are best friends and both are looking forward to this parade.
See Meagan with Checkers and John with Bounder on TV January 1, 2007 with the rest of the LASC Parade Unit in the 118th Tournament of Roses Parade!
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Captain Jack Sparrow Goes to a Llama Play Day!
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Meagan & Checkers win First Place in the Costume class
at the
LASC Fall Play Day 2006
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A Pirates Playday for Me
Yo Ho…
By Captain Jack Sparrow/Checkers
I have a story to tell. A tale of excitement, intrigue. But first let me introduce myself. Everybody knows me as Checkers, Beijing's Chinese Checkers. But in secret I am the daring, adventurous llama pirate Captain Jack Sparrow!!! I live my life making everybody believe I am a normal llama, but when nobody is watching, I open the gates that cage me in the brig, and I commit many acts of piracy (getting into the green plants etc.)! So that is the real me. But now for the tale of my latest pirate adventure. Oh and, don't forget, nobody knows I am really a pirate (and the one eating the garden) so don't tell anyone! J
It was a day like any other; I let myself out for a morning stroll and a quick snack of tasty garden grown lettuce, and then locked myself in the brig again before anybody found out. But I was in for a surprise. Shortly after committing my crimes of piracy, my people woke up. They seemed in more of a hurry than usual, and I figured something was up. After a while, they took me and my First Mate, Bounder, and loaded us up in the ship that runs on land, and took us on a little trip. I did not mind, I enjoyed sailing down the long, black sea of pavement watching other land-sailing ships go by.
Anyhow, when we reached our destination, I saw that there were other llamas there. So I figured it would be like all the other gatherings of llamas, beginning head to head rivalries with other llamas doing stuff over obstacles to win ocean colored ribbons, and make your people happy. But when I got out of the ship, I found that it was much different. There were llamas there with stripes and spots, which were purple red and green! My rival captain (and good friend) JR who is usually just white, had spots on him with all the colors of the rainbow! Talk about strange. Not only that, there was a punker llama, a llama bug, and a wizard llama! I could not believe my eyes. It just seemed too strange for hums. Then I saw another pirate llama, and I had an idea. If everybody was showing their true identity, and then having a contest about how good they looked, I would join too. I was a pirate, so it would be no problem.
There were a few competitions before the looks contest, all timed. I was doing ok, but running is not my thing. Remember, I am Captain Jack Sparrow, and for all of those who have seen the actor named after me (not vice-versa), well, he runs like I do (I won't be more descriptive for the sake of my own pirate pride). I only did ok in those, but I knew I would rule when it came time for the looks contest, because I was the most handsome pirate I have ever seen.
Finally it was what I had been waiting for. The looks contest, though my person called it a costume contest (costume indeed! HUMPH). The bug, wizard, other pirate and punker were there and waiting. I donned my mustache and goatee (it wasn't easy) and my fine pirate shirt, boots, dreadlocks, red bandanna, hat, earring, and the one thing I can't be without, my sword (I left my compass at home). Then I put on a pack, with a boom-box inside of it, playing the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack (my favorite movie, it is all about me!) I covered the pack with my homemade pirate flag, and was ready to go. My person dressed as a pirate also.
All of us (the strange llamas and I) walked around a gazebo, being judged for our looks by a man of some importance (my person said it was a mayor, but I am sure it was a commodore of the British navy keeping the lookout for pirates), and I thought I was doing great, until my boots started coming off! I was surprised; they had never done that before. But I held in there, dragging my boots on the ground and barely holding on to them with my toes, and I kept them from coming off.
Just like I thought he would, the person of importance placed me first for looks and gave me an ocean colored ribbon. I was so happy, that I decided I would get drunk on Electrolyte Water when I got home.
There was only one contest left after that, a timed race. I decided I wasn't going to run, I had done what I came to do. I put my person in a sour mood, but that is not my problem!
That wraps up my tale, thanks for reading it. I want to thank a few persons now, by request of my person, Meagan Browne. First she wanted me to want to thank Crystal Meyers, the mother of the punker llama's person, for putting together this gathering of llamas and making it so great.
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Meagan Browne Wins
High Point Intermediate Youth 2006 LASC Award!
2nd year in a row!
&
Grand Champion Intermediate Youth - Southwestern Regionals-Oct. 2006
Southwestern Regionals-Oct. 2006
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The First ALSA Southwestern Regional Show
By Meagan Browne - age 14
The first ever ALSA Southwestern Regional Championship Show took place at the Industry Hills Expo Center on September 30th and October 1st 2006 in the City of Industry, California. It was a great show, with Cart Driving Performance Classes, Showmanship, Halter Classes, and even Youth Judging.
The Grand Arena, where all the classes were to take place, was on top of a large hill. There were two paths leading up to the Grand Arena, and both were steep and hard to climb. I think my llama, Checkers, who is a little over-conditioned, lost some weight though! I sure am glad that Norma Stevens was there to give me a few rides up and down the hill on the golf cart she volunteered to drive! Thank you, Norma.
On the first day we brought our llamas and set up their stalls and our display table. The animals were kept in big horse stalls, in two large barns. After I helped my parents set up everything I spent most of the rest of the day with my friends, Dylan, Jeremy, Bridget and Matthew.
On the second day that we were there, all the youth classes were held. In the morning, before the show actually began, all the youth performed the opening ceremony, a drill exercise to music with our llamas. Kathy Nichols put the drill team together, and she did a great job. I had a lot of fun learning the drill.
The first class was Public Relations. I loved it and so did my llama, Checkers. The obstacles in the course were pretty easy, but we had one of the hardest youth judges there is. In the end I won first place.
The second class was Obstacle. Again, the course was pretty basic, but I'm still working with Checkers on his change of pace and jumping. He does really well at home but sometimes not so well in the show ring. Checkers and I did well over all, but we only got one point out of ten for the change of pace. The score sheets later revealed that if I had gotten at least three points more, I would have won first place. I was glad I did well anyway and came in second place.
The third and final performance class was Pack. At the previous show I had gone to, the AV Fair, I did really well in Pack and was hoping to do well again. The obstacles in the class were fun, and I really enjoyed it. The second obstacle was the bridge, the same bridge Checkers had gone over just fine in the first two classes. I don't know why, and might never, but he stepped off the bridge the first time, and then went over it fine the second. The rest of the course went smoothly, but I was still surprised to learn that I won first place.
Even though Performance Classes were over, we still had a couple of classes to go. The first one was Youth Showmanship. I took our llama named Bounder into the class because that's who I qualified with for Regionals. I won first place with him in Youth Showmanship at a couple of shows this year. Bounder was not in a good mood that day and he did not want to move at all. I felt like I had to drag him through the class. The judge asked us all where the Gaskin was on the llama. Some of the other kids didn't know and told me they just guessed. I simply said I did not know. I ended up winning fifth place out of six, which was better than I thought I would place.
Before we did Youth Judging, the final awards were announced. I was so excited when I won Grand Champion. I got a bottle of sparkling white grape juice with a really neat llama label for winning! The best part was that I won sixty-five dollars all together for my two first and one second places in performance.
The last youth class of the show was Youth Judging. I don't particularly like it, but I do it none the less. We judged three classes, a halter class, a showmanship class, and a performance class. The actual judge was helpful and taught us a lot about how to judge, and I am thankful for that. I placed fourth, and thought I did rather well considering who I was competing with.
That night there was a party for the adults and kids alike. Unfortunately, by the time we got out of Youth Judging and to the party, most all the food had been eaten by the adults. Still, I got to eat a couple cookies and a piece of a cake with a llama on it.
On the third and last day, I sang the National Anthem in the morning for the opening ceremony, and then all the halter classes took place. I spent most of the day hanging out with Dylan and Bridget (Jeremy was showing in halter classes).
I got to learn some things about training a llama how to get used to wearing a pack from Charlie Hackbarth when my parents were at his booth buying a new Sopris Llama Pack. He is a really good teacher. I can't wait to start using that pack on Checkers! He said he's going to come and teach a clinic next spring so I want to go to his clinic.
Later that day, I changed back into my Showmanship clothes and I showed a llama named Ivan for Crystal Meyers in the Get of Sire class. Then I said a reluctant goodbye to all my friends, (except for Jeremy who had already left) and went home after a long and exciting Southwestern Regional Show.
I want to thank Maryan Baker for putting together this show and making it so great. I look forward to next year!!!!
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AV Fair 2006
Antelope Valley Fair Llama Show - Lancaster, CA
By Meagan Browne - age 14
This year at the AV Fair, they offered Youth Judging Classes. We had to judge a Performance Class, a Showmanship Class, and a Halter Class. It was scored on how we placed the class compared to how the judge placed the class. I learned a lot from it, and saw things from a judge's point of view.
On the first day of the show, there were no classes, but everybody was hurrying to get their llamas in their pens and set everything up. Then everyone talked about llama stuff, and I hung out with my friends Dylan, Jeremy and Bridget…..and Matthew.
The fairgrounds were really small, and couldn't have been more than a mile and a half wide. The food there was great, and you certainly got enough to eat! It was available to play Paintball and Laser Tag there, and I did Laser Tag with Jeremy and Justin.
On Saturday, all the performance classes were held. First they did the Obstacle class, starting with the juniors and then doing intermediates, seniors and open. When I went in, I was slightly nervous because at the last show I went to, my llama Checkers didn't do as well as usual. But I was relieved when he did alright and didn't mess up. The second class was Public Relations. Like Obstacle, they started with juniors and so on. The obstacles were well made and fun to go through and I really enjoyed the course. The weave was the best, because it was long and windy, and going through it just seemed really fun. We did very well in that class and everyone did really good in it. The third and final class for the day was Pack. Like the other two they started with juniors and ended with open. The pack course was completely green, and almost every obstacle was covered in leaves. Because the arena was so small, it was a windy course, and every time you thought you were supposed to go one way, you had to go the other. Checkers was perfect and so was I. I loved the course the best even though in the beginning I thought I would hate it because at the last show I went to Checkers tried to eat everything green! In the end I learned that I got a 100% score on Pack, and I was really happy.
On Sunday all the Halter and Showmanship classes were held. I did Youth Showmanship with our llama named Bounder. Usually Bounder and I do really well together in Showmanship, but he wasn't at his best this time. In the class, he wanted to sniff all the llamas, and didn't want to stand still. He went to the bathroom in the middle of the class, and when I thought he was finished, I took a step forward. He straightened up like he was done, took a step, and then went again! How embarrassing! For the rest of the class I didn't have too much trouble, and I was glad of that. In the end I was glad I did not place last, so it turned out all right.
Now what you have all been waiting for, my placing…. In obstacle I won second place and I was really happy about it. In Public Relations I won first, and I was really excited. In pack I won first, and best of all, later when I learned my scores, I found out I got ten of ten on every obstacle!!!! In youth judging I won first place and it was only the second time I had ever done it. I was so happy! All in all, I won Grand Champion Intermediate Youth and High Point Intermediate Youth. It was a really good show and I thank Sharon Weisenberger and everyone else who helped put it together and for making it so wonderful!!
Next year my llama Checkers and I are going to be in the Annual Tournament of Roses Parade, so watch for us on TV! We are also competing in this year's Southwestern Regionals, so see you there!!!!
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Showing in the Moonlight Madness
Moon Light Madness Show-Glendora, CA 2006
By Meagan Browne-age14
I just got back from a llama show called Moonlight Madness. It was a lot of fun. I got to hang out with my friends Jeremy, Dylan, Bridget and Matthew. It was at an equestrian park with two arenas. There was a mountain background where you could see coyotes wandering around. A few coyotes came to the fence and looked at the people at the show. They did not like llamas though, and kept their distance. The llamas did not pay much attention to the coyotes either, but some of the llamas seemed on edge. I did not do as well this year as I did last year at this show, but I had fun, and I think that is important. I got a first place, a fourth place and a fifth place. My llama, Checkers, was kind of in a bad mood, because I left him tied to the fence instead of putting him back in his pen to eat after each class.
The first class was PR. {Public Relations}. It was a fairly easy course for me but I had never seen some of the obstacle before. Here are a few of the obstacles. The first one was the trailer. It was a huge horse trailer, and the step to get into it was almost to my knees. It was quite a climb for me and a high jump for my llama. Checkers jumped in, but his front feet slipped on the slippery floor. Fortunately he did not fall and made it safely into the trailer. The second obstacle was the blow-dryer. The blow-dryer was an interesting obstacle. You had to walk your llama onto a mat, and then turn on a blower and blow it on your llama's neck a couple times. Checkers just stood there, so it worked out all right, even though that had never been done to him as an obstacle before. Another interesting invention of Eileen Ditsler (who created the course), was the car wash. The car wash was made an old easy-up frame without a top that had long lime green and clear plastic strips hanging off of it. It also had sprinklers, so it sort of resembled a car-wash, and by the time you got out of the obstacle, it was like you had gone through a car-wash with your windows rolled down. Checkers had never even seen the obstacle before, but he did it. I was so excited, because I had doubted he would do it. I placed first in the class.
The second class was Obstacle. This course was a little harder than PR for me. There were obstacles there that Checkers was still learning how to do. One of them was a tight turn going over four different heights of step/jump overs that were all connected to a tall pole running up in the middle of them. Checkers had done that obstacle before, but he only had to go over three of the step/jump over before. When they changed it to four this year, Checkers was not used to making a tight turn and stepping/jumping over such a high jump. He had always taken a high jump straight on. He made it over all of them, but almost tripped on the highest on so I think we got points off for that. Another difficult obstacle for us was a large hose like circle raised above the ground that the llamas had to jump through. Checkers jumped it, but his back legs got caught in the tube and he almost tripped. He was able to free his feet and land though, and the fact that he was not hurt was more important to me than any first place ribbon. After all, he is my best friend. I ended up placing fourth in that class, which actually surprised me since I thought I would place last.
The next and last class was Pack. Unfortunately, we left our own packs at home. We were able to borrow packs that were just like ours though, which was a miracle. Checkers had done all the obstacles before, but it was getting very late, and he had been forced to stand still tied to a fence, because I did not put him away to eat after each class. The only obstacle I really had trouble with was the back up. It was no ordinary back up. The llamas had to back up through hanging branches with leaves that reached far above their heads and touched the ground. Checkers had not eaten in a while, so at the sight of the juicy, refreshing leaves, not to mention that they were a tempting bright green with a strong yet not unpleasant odor, he could not help trying to eat them. He wanted to rub his head on the plants and as well as eat them. He ended up not wanting to back up, something he usually is great at, and eventually backed out the wrong end, not to mention the fact that when we got out of the obstacle, my number fell off and he stepped on it! I placed fifth in that class, but was glad that I knew what areas of training we need to work on!
I showed my llama, Bounder, in Novice PR. and Novice Obstacle. He did really well and even placed sixth in one class. My friend Matthew also entered his two llamas, Pearl and Appi in the show. He bought those two llamas from us. I got to train them and he and I have fun working with our llamas. He did really well and is on his way to be one of the best.
During the show, some people from the Rose Parade committee came to look at the llamas. They really liked Checkers because of his spots and super heavy wool. I am so excited that llamas are going to be in the 2007 Annual Rose Parade, and am hoping that Checkers and I will be able to be in it. I think we will be accepted, because the people from the Rose Parade liked him so much that they wanted to take a picture with him to show to their committee. So, if all goes well, I will see you in the January 2007 Rose Parade!
I really want to thank Eileen Ditsler for making this show as fun as it was. The obstacles were awesome! I would also like to thank Tracy Wallace for letting me borrow her pack since we left ours at home. Thanks everyone who participated in making the show so great, and see you at the Antelope Valley Fair and Southwestern Regionals!
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Muddy Magic in April
April Magic Casual Classic Show, Chino Hills, CA- 2006
By Meagan Browne-age 14
This year I went to the April Magic Show. It was a lot of fun! It was partly cloudy when we arrived at the equestrian center on Friday. It hadn't started to rain yet. My parents unloaded our truck immediately and got the llama pens all set up first and then started pitching the tent that my friends, Matthew, Breanna and I were going to sleep in. Matthew showed his new llama, Miss Pearl, at this show and my friend, Breanna, came to have fun and watch the llama show. Even though it was supposed to rain and it was predicted to be very cold we all wanted to stay in the tent. It started raining right after they got the tent pitched so we were happy they finished putting it up so quickly. It actually stayed dry in the tent. It is a three room tent so we each had our own room. My parents got to stay in our friends' Toy Box again. They really liked doing that.
The first event the next day for me was Intermediate Youth Showmanship. I placed first in my class showing GBL Bound For Glory. We call him Bounder. Then there was the Obstacle Classes. I think there were some fairly hard obstacles in my class. In one obstacle you had to get the llama's right back foot in the tire. I was using Checkers for all the Youth Performance classes. He did not like that obstacle. He did all the other obstacles really well and to my surprise I won first place in my class! The next class was P.R. It went pretty well and I won second place. Then came the Pack class. I did all the obstacles well but when I put trash in Checkers' pack I did not stop and make him stand still. I won second place in the Pack class too. To my surprise I won Grand Champion and High Point Intermediate Youth. I won a really cool chair that is embroidered with High Point Intermediate Youth on it. I really like it.
I also showed Miss Perfect and Bound For Glory in Novice Obstacle and P.R. Miss Perfect placed second out of twenty six llamas in the obstacle class and got a ribbon in P.R. too! Bounder placed really well in both classes as well even though he didn't place in ribbon range. I was very proud of both of them.
My friend, Matthew, just bought two of our llamas that I trained and brought one to show at this show. He showed GBL Appi Mattox (Appi) at Indio and did really well. He showed GBL Girl With the String of Pearls at this show and did really well with her too. We call her Miss Pearl. She looks like she's wearing a string of pearls around her neck because she has a white marking around the base of her neck. The interesting thing is that Miss Pearl was born right during April Magic last year. My parents had to leave the show to make sure everything was going O.K. with her and her mom and I stayed at the show with Norma Stevens. They came back the next morning to see me show.
Sunday I got to show several llamas in Halter classes. This was my very first time doing that. The first llama I showed was Tracey Wallace's Kubota. He placed third in a rather large class and I think he did really well. Then I showed Miss Perfect and I was very nervous and couldn't get her to stand still. That made it very hard to show her at her best. She did all right but not as good as she might have done if I could have gotten her to do what I needed her to do. Then I showed Bound For Glory and he placed first in his class so I got to take him into the ring again when they are judged for Grand and Reserve Champion. The last llama I got to show was Tracey's My Bolero. He came in third with some very stiff competition. It was a great experience for me to get to show in Halter Classes. I still have a lot to learn about doing that but it was fun even though I was pretty nervous about it. I felt so good that Tracey asked me to show her llamas in Halter.
April Magic is a very worthwhile show to go to. The auction was fun and the food was really good at lunch on Saturday. If you come next year be sure to bring boots. The mud is a real killer!
We have babies due in May and June so I guess I won't get to come to Del Mar or LANA this year. You'll have to check out our cria page to see our new babies when they come. Look for them in the show ring because I'll be training them too! See you at Moonlight Madness in July!
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Fun at Indio Date Festival
Riverside County Fair, Indio, CA- 2006
By Meagan Browne-age 13
The Indio Date Festival llama show was the first llama show I went to this year. I was bit worried that I would do terrible at this show because the llama I always show, who also happens to be my best friend, was recently bred to one of our females. His name is Checkers. I thought he would be all hormonal, but when he started doing the obstacles, he was completely concentrated on the show. I was really relieved that he did so well and that he behaved himself. Now I will get to take him to another show.
The first class I showed in was Intermediate Youth Showmanship. I showed our llama named “Bounder”. I was unsure how well I would do with him because the last time I had taken him into a showmanship class, the judge said he was too jumpy. When I got into the arena, I felt confident because “Bounder” was behaving himself perfectly. I concentrated hard on the judge and what she was doing, and I was feeling even better about myself as time went on. Toward the end of the class, the judge told us that it was really hard for her to decide who won because we were all so good. She had us switch llamas which felt really strange. She had me hold Dawn, my friend Dylan's llama. Dawn was so tall I had trouble holding my arm high enough up. I was very surprised when the judge placed me in first place. I was so happy because this was the very first time I have ever won First place in showmanship.
The second class was Intermediate Youth Obstacle. I showed Checkers in the Youth Performance classes. I think I did pretty well but sometimes Checkers doesn't like to run and jump. There were two jumps and Checkers stepped over the first one and jumped the second one. He kind of half trotted on the change of pace so I probably had a tight lead. We placed second in this class.
The next class was Intermediate Youth PR. It was an interesting class because the very first obstacle was called the confinement area. You had to take your llama in a pen, and take off his/her halter. Checkers mastered this because he actually likes to be haltered. At home he comes to me when I'm carrying his halter. He did all the rest of the obstacles on the course really well and I was proud of him. We won first place in P.R.
In Youth Pack, they changed the course around a little at the last minute because it was getting so late. Checkers did really well on all the obstacles, and I did my best to keep a loose lead. I got to use our new pack this time because we loaned our other one to Matthew. I was so excited when they announced the placements. We won First place!
I ended up winning Grand Champion Intermediate Youth and High Point Intermediate Youth, which was very exciting because now I qualify to go to the new ALSA South Western Region competition here in Southern California!
I also showed two of our llamas in Novice Obstacle and PR. One was Bounder, who I also showed in Youth Showmanship, and the other was Miss Pearl, a weanling female. It was Miss Pearl's first show. She won fifth place in Novice PR, out of around TWENTY-SIX entrees!!! She loves performance!
All in all I had a great time at the show, and getting to go on the rides at the Fair. It was really neat being able to sleep in our three-room tent. The tent was not cold either.
See you at April Magic!
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2005 Llama Stories
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Meagan Browne shows Bejing's Chinese Checkers and wins!
