Dear lord this #tbt wins everything. Photo courtesy of Sara Kozumplik Murphy.
Good God there is nothing better than a TBT from a professional upper level rider to let you know that we all came from the same barrel of horse crazy kids. This one comes from Sara Kozumplik Murphy, who kindly posted it to her Facebook wall with this note: “TBT to me torturing my pony, Mr. Marshall Mallow. God knows what this costume was supposed to be? My favorite bit is possibly the head collar with hearts on it that I thought was amazeballs. Brian says he can tell I had a lot of friends in school…… Of course? I mean look at me. #winning“.
U.S. Weekend Preview:
Groton House Farm H.T. [Website] [Ride Times]
Surefire H.T. [Website] [Entry Status]
Fox River Valley Pony Club H.T. [Website] [Ride Times] [Live Scores]
Shepherd Ranch SYVPC H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]
Inavale Farm Spring H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]
Arrowhead H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]
Midsouth Pony Club H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]
Honey Run H.T. [Website] [Ride Times]
Abbe Ranch H.T. [Website] [Entry Status/Ride Times]
News From Around the Globe:
Considering a mini vacay to Florida in December? Make sure you get to the USEA Convention in Fort Lauderdale on December 7-11th. The USEA strives to continue to organize a Convention that will be the best experience for our members. The educational opportunities in the week are limitless and have ranged from lectures with Cat Hill, co-author of the very popular, World Class Grooming for Horses, art lessons with Julie Lawther, breaking down Equine Behavior with Tik Maynard, to more hands on discussion like cross-country course building and frangible design implementation. The Association organizes these seminars each year to benefit our members, so we want to know: What topics do YOU want to learn at Convention? Who would YOU like to hear from? They want to hear your suggestions! Please comment on the Facebook page with suggestions on topics, speakers or seminars that you would like to hear at Convention – or you can email [email protected] with your suggestions as well. [USEA Convention]
Working donkeys in Ethiopia are on their way to having their thirst satisfied as funds have been raised for the first of five permanent water troughs.The trough is part of Brooke USA’s “Buy a Donkey a Drink” fundraising campaign to provide access to water for 13,500 equines in the Shala Woreda district of Ethiopia. These 50-foot-long concrete troughs will be located in busy market areas where thousands of animals regularly gather. The troughs will allow as many as 340 horses, donkeys, and mules to quench their thirst with each filling, and will allow other livestock such as cattle and camels to drink as well. With a goal of $98,000, Brooke USA is looking to the next milestone of $50,000 by July 15. [No More Thirsty Donkeys]
COTH staff writer Lisa Slade recently scheduled herself a riding lesson on Dante Maximus, the equine simulator. Dante is a master at Grand Prix Dressage, Advanced Eventing, and Grand Prix Show Jumping. He tells you when you’re using too much leg, not enough left leg, too much right rein, and simulates the sizes of the fences appropriately so you get tossed up his neck when you get a bit over ambitious with the fence height. Read more about Lisa’s learning experience in her blog. [Bring Your Helmet]
Short girths for mono flap saddles are one of those things that seem to have gotten too expensive for their size. Luckily, SmartPak knows you need a reasonable solution for your everyday girth. I just ordered their SmartPak brand Dri-Lex Fleece Dressage Girth for my big guys for the summer, because I know that’s prime time for super-sweaty-chafing to happen, and I also hate cleaning a leather girth when it’s just soaked through with sweat. The fleece offers no more chafing, it’s quick drying, and I can just throw it in the wash and have it ready for the next day if I want. Also, it comes in at around $34 with my SmartPak VIP discount, so that’s pretty hard to beat. [SmartPak Product of the Day]
Bit by Bit with Richard Spooner:
