Thursday News & Notes from SmartPak

Sinead Halpin and Grey Area prep for Red Hills. Photo courtesy of Sinead's FB. Sinead Halpin and Grey Area prep for Red Hills. Photo courtesy of Sinead's FB.

I’ll admit, I’m pretty jealous of Jenni Autry right now, who is down in Florida enjoying the 80 degrees and horse activities. Meanwhile, I’m back in VA and we have more snow predicted for today, followed by a week of nice weather, which basically means hot Virginia mud, and horses that cake themselves in puddles of muck. Thank god I don’t have any grey horses! Most of mine don’t even have white on them, which is a blessing in disguise. Otherwise I think I would go insane in the spring.

U.S. Weekend Preview:

Southern Pines H.T.  [Website] [Entry Status]

Red Hills CIC & H.T.  [Website] [Entry Status] [Ride Times] [Schedule]

Full Gallop Farm March I H.T.  [Website] [Entry Status]

News From Around The Globe:

Excitement is building for the 2nd Annual Cloud 11 ~Gavilan North LLC Carolina International, including the Eventing on the Red Carpet event. On the Saturday night of the event, CI will honor David O’Connor, J. Michael Plumb, Lefreda Williams and Jimmy Wofford and celebrating their profound effect on the sport of Eventing. The foursome will be recognized as Icons of the Sport. I was present at this party last year, and trust me, it’s not one you want to miss. [Evening on the Red Carpet] [Carolina International]

Giuseppe della Chiesa is back designing Badminton this year, and hoping for a slightly higher rate of success this spring. Last year only 32 horses made it to the final day, which was only 38.6% of the field, the lowest completion rate at the event on record. With 23 combinations eliminated between fences 13 and 18, the 2015 course will have made that specific area a little less challenging, and is running the course in the opposite direction. You can check out the interview with Giuseppe below in the video. [Badminton Design Changes for 2015]

Eventers competing at Barroca d’Alva in Portugal this weekend have decided to wear armbands honoring the memory of Francisco Seabra, who died in a cross country fall last month. The armbands are black, blue, and cream, and feature a silhouette of Francisco’s head with a helmet, and has the words “Faith” and “Smile” printed around that in four languages. The idea was created and promoted by the event organizers, who gave all the riders the armbands. [Riders Support Francisco Seabra]

Do you have a Horse of a Different Color? One of the most wonderful aspects of this sport is its diversity, from ponies to draft horses and everything in between. Eventing Nation is looking for stories to feature in our “Horse of a Different Color” series! If you own or ride a horse or pony that has been successful in the sport of eventing while representing a unique breed, email lindsey@eventingnation.com.

Well acquainted with the mischievous horse? You’ll love this. [13 Situations Your Horse Finds Funnier Than You]

An interview with Badminton course designer Giuseppe della Chiesa. 

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